Operation story: 11-14

Operation

Story

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Characters
Doctor Amiya Ascalon Dagda Indra Logos Morgan Rockrock Siege Totter Allerdale Closure Clovisia Lt. Colonel Lettou Manfred Sanguinarch of Vampires Theresis Self-Salvation Corps Fighter Victorian Soldier
Backgrounds
1 2 3 4 5

Before operation

“

At the top of the command tower, Amiya, Logos, and Ascalon battle the Sanguinarch and Manfred to a stalemate.

”

<Flashback starts here>
<Background 1>
Four Years Ago...
[Theresis talks with Lt. Col. Lettou.]
Theresis	Time goes by fast for your race and your country, compared to the Sarkaz. Not long after the titan that was Gaul collapsed, Victoria and Leithanien feasted on its remnants as quickly and ferociously as they could. It has only been a few dozen years, and the Gallic Era has long since come and gone. You never witnessed Corsica I's battleships and cannons. You have never knew Lingones's prosperity and pride. The lands of your father's generation have been integrated into the territories of Victoria's most provincial nobles. The uniform you wear is that of a high-ranking Victorian officer. The medals you wear are all Victorian. You speak the most standard Victorian as the Londinier nobility do, without even the slightest hint of Gaulish accent. When you walk before me and claim you want to negotiate with the Sarkaz, what gives you the right to call yourself Gaulish?
[Lt. Col. Lettou responds,]
Lt. Colonel Lettou	Your Highness, Gaul has not a single city left. The man who stands before you is not a Gaulish man, but a Gaulish survivor. Some of us live in Victoria, some in Columbia, and some in Leithanien. We did not choose this exile. We've long been without a place to call home.
Theresis	You wish to rebuild Gaul?
Lt. Colonel Lettou	...... Yes, just as you and other Sarkaz wish to rebuild Kazdel.
Theresis	Two centuries ago, the Gaulish Empire's artillery battalion also surrounded the walls of Kazdel. And now you will speak of yourself in the same breath as the Sarkaz?
Lt. Colonel Lettou	Victoria was in that war against Kazdel, too. And from what I heard, the reason you and the Military Commission were able to enter Londinium was precisely because of an invitation from Duke Cavendish.
Theresis	Then I'm certain you've heard what has become of him.
Lt. Colonel Lettou	Ten days ago, Duke Stafford stirred up an uprising in Londinium, and Duke Cavendish stepped forward to put a stop to his scheme. The Londinium Defense Forces joined the battle as well. Too bad. Neither Duke Stafford nor Duke Cavendish survived the other's cannonfire. I'm sure you know this better than me. The other dukes are all paying keen attention to Londinium's situation right now. No matter what you are planning to do within the city, you will need a new helping hand.
Theresis	This is how you will work with the Sarkaz.
Lt. Colonel Lettou	Correct. As you can see, the Gaulish remnant will fully support all of the Kazdel Military Commission's activities in Londinium. In exchange, we only ask that you return the few Gaulish cities to Gaulish rule in Victoria's forthcoming chaos.
Theresis	What good is my promise? A nation's destruction has nothing to do with the number of cities it has.
Lt. Colonel Lettou	I understand that, Your Highness. But... We can't afford to wait for a more opportune time than this.
[Lettou pauses for a moment before continuing.]
Lt. Colonel Lettou	I know a Youth Vanguard. He once served directly under the Gaulish Emperor's Guards. When I met him, he was already sixty-something. However, the Guards had long disappeared during the Battle of the Four Emperors. He never got the chance to become a Vieux Vanguard. He told me about the spirited emperor, their indomitable fleet, and the troops' idle conversations during mobilization. Over the decades, he has always insisted on telling his stories in Gaulish. Now, he lies in a small sanatorium in the Chep Borough of Londinium. I paid him a visit not too long ago, and he has already forgotten how to speak. Even so, whenever he sees Gaulish imperial-style architecture on the telly, his muddy eyes regain their former vigor without fail, and he lifts his spasming hands to clap. He will be gone in no more than five years. The last generation of Gaulishmen who have truly seen Gaul with their own eyes is dying. Your Majesty, you are right. Compared to the Sarkaz, our lives are insignificant. Our memories... cannot be passed on through our blood. When the final witnesses pass away, our memories of Gaul will disperse with the wind like the empire. When that moment comes, Gaul will truly be lost. All we can do is to grasp at the ashes as best we can.
<Flashback ends here>
<Background 2>
[The Victorian collaborators hold their ground against the Eartha partisans.]
Victorian Soldier	Ballistae! Fire!
[A collaborator ballista is fired at the Eartha partisans.]
Victorian Soldier	Hold the sealing layer! Do not let them any closer!
Rockrock	These Defense Forces men... A tad bit stubborn, aren't they?
Clovisia	Because their leader is still up there. These soldiers... really respect their commander.
[An Eartha partisan runs toward Clovisia.]
Self-Salvation Corps Fighter	Commander, the Sarkaz are here! The Rhodes Island Operators are engaged in battle with them!
Clovisia	Back them up. We need to draw the enemy's attention on this facade of a battlefield to the best of our ability. To buy the Doctor time.
<Background 3>
[Amidst the fight between Ascalon and Manfred...]
Manfred	My guess is the mercenaries at Highbury died by your hands. War is imminent. Both you and I know it in our hearts.
Ascalon	......
Manfred	Ascalon, you were born and raised in Kazdel. The General plucked you from a corpse pile, the Regent taught you to use a weapon, to defend yourself and your homeland. But now, at this moment when all Sarkaz must stand together, what are you and those Sarkaz at Rhodes Island doing? Are you going to give our information to the Victorians? To... a group of outbloods that once trampled upon Kazdel?
[Ascalon attacks Manfred, who guarded them.]
Manfred	You betrayed the promise you once made. You betrayed Kazdel.
Ascalon	Kazdel is several thousand kilometers from here.
Manfred	During the civil war, you chose to become Babel's assassin. I couldn't stop you, nor did I have reason to. After all, you were serving Her Majesty Theresa, the sole King of Sarkaz. But what do you serve now...? A phantom of the past? The civil war ended long ago, and now even Her Majesty Theresa has returned to our side...
[Manfred strikes Ascalon, who dodged it.]
Ascalon	Four years ago... You were the ones who killed her. And now you will sully her death so dishonorably.
[Ascalon channels her Arts and charges at Manfred...]
Ascalon	Who's the real traitor?
[...and unleashes an attack which pierces his defenses.]
Manfred	–Urgh!
Ascalon's attack cuts through his Arts. The two of them have been different since they were small. He learned much from the General. Swordsmanship, military theory, and how to play political games. Yet Ascalon remains as pure as the weapon in her hand. On the battlefield, she cannot be swayed by any words. Her eyes always focus on her highest priority target.
Manfred	Lettou...!
[The sound of blood dripping is heard.]
Ascalon	...... This blood...
Lt. Colonel Lettou	–!
A thick, viscous, blood-red color rapidly seeps out of the ground. It turns into a barrier harder than a wall, dividing Lettou and Ascalon.
<Background 2>
Closure	Doctor, the drones have detected another squad of Sarkaz fighters closing in on our position! No, not just Sarkaz fighters... That surging red...
Doctor	Here comes the Vampire. Have the Corps and our operators keep their distance. / Let Amiya and Logos know.
Closure	Okay, Doctor. It's pretty much going exactly the way you said it would. He's heading straight for the top of the command tower! The vampire's twisted stubbornness is really giving away his movements... I won't be affected by that, will I?
Doctor	How are we doing with the drones? / We gotta pick up the pace.
Closure	Good news. This command tower is very close to the city walls. I've already located the best route to the control area. The modern communication methods that the Defense Forces are using are much easier to take advantage of than all that witchcraft the Sarkaz use. I went and disguised my drones' identification codes. None of our long distance signals will be jammed, guaranteed. Though... drones are very fragile. If they get attacked, that's gonna be all our hard work down the drain. I just hope that Amiya can stall those guys who really know how put up a good fight up there...
<Background 3>
[The Sanguinarch joins the battle between Ascalon and Manfred.]
Sanguinarch of Vampires	...... You're weak and foolish, Liberi. You know a Sarkaz can easily end your life, and you choose not to run?
Lt. Colonel Lettou	I am the commander... This is my tower. My men... They're all still here.
Sanguinarch of Vampires	Perhaps I should consider cleaning them up first, then.
[Suddenly the Sanguinarch is struck by black Arts attacks.]
Sanguinarch of Vampires	Hm? These Arts.... This scent...
[The Sanguinarch realizes that...]
Sanguinarch of Vampires	Ah... I see, the foolish pretender is here. This is our first proper meeting, "King of Sarkaz."
[...Amiya was the one who attacked him as she reveals herself.]
Amiya	I've met you plenty of times before, Vampire. Countless Self-Salvation Corps fighters sacrificed themselves because of you. I remember all their names, and their lives won't carry any less weight than they deserve just because you look down on them.
Sanguinarch of Vampires	So, what do you intend to do, King? Will you use that... pitch-black axe of yours to end me?
Amiya	........ Caster team, sniper team, join me and tear down his blood defense! No time to lose. Seize the target!
[Assisted by R.I. operators, Amiya attacks the Sanguinarch...]
All at once, black lines and bolts dart into the thick, blood-colored layer. Nothing has changed.
Sanguinarch of Vampires	You disappoint me. Cautus, you assume the stance of a warrior, yet you deny the necessity of killing in politics. You are even weaker than Theresa. Theresa was a ridiculous one... She tried to have the Sarkaz bow down to our invaders, namely Victoria. And the most foolish of her actions was undoubtedly her decision to make you her successor.
Amiya	Focus fire!
[Amiya and the R.I. operators continue attacking the Sanguinarch to little effect.]
Sanguinarch of Vampires	What a pointless struggle...
[As the Sanguinarch retaliates toward Amiya, a snap is heard...]
???	Disperse.
[...which surprises him.]
Sanguinarch of Vampires	Hm?
Right before the tide of blood reaches Amiya, it's suddenly sliced apart in one clean cut.
???	–
Sanguinarch of Vampires	I see. In addition to the assassin who was your vanguard, you brought another servant with you.
[The one who countered the Sanguinarch's Arts is revealed to be none other than Logos, the Banshee elite guard of R.I. and one of their finest operatives who saved Mudrock and her warriors before.]
Logos	I am Amiya's employee, not her servant.
Sanguinarch of Vampires	Banshee. Are you perhaps afraid? You think... by hiding in that shell called Rhodes Island, you can refute your relationship with this counterfeit, and escape Kazdel's judgment on its traitors?
Logos	Your words are always riddled with falsehoods, Vampire. Although only for the time being, I took off my Rhodes Island elite operator uniform the moment we decided to come to Londinium. I'm the Lord of the Banshees. Wheresoever I speak, there lies the Elegiac Court.
The young Banshee raises his hand. On his dark-colored robe, his incantations quiver softly like the first drop of dew dripping down under morning sun.
Logos	It is not the crown that I follow. It is precisely Her Majesty Theresa's ideals that have driven me this far. You took her life and desecrated it, but you can't extinguish the flame that she lit before our eyes. How can someone who has seen daybreak return to an eternal night?

After operation

“

Siege opens the door to the Mausoleum of Kings, and a millennium of Victorian history surges toward her.

”

<Background 4>
[Allerdale gazes at the mausoleum's hall.]
Allerdale	So this is...
The giant door lies solemnly in the underground area. There is not a sound to be heard aside from the breathing of those who have made their way here. Of course, death is silent. Not even the most glorious reign can change that fact.
Siege	The Mausoleum of Kings... Just as its name suggests... this is the resting place of all Victoria's kings. Do you hear something?
Dagda	Nothing besides our breathing.
Siege	......
There is no mistaking that there is some kind of sound echoing throughout this space. Is it a murmur she hears, having woken up from her dream, or is it a groan she owes to her fatigue? They are staring at her. Victoria is staring at her. The moment she comes to realize this, a sense of agitation immediately follows. What do they expect? What kind of future are they envisioning for her? She grew tired of these days on the run long ago. And it has been a very long time since she last heeded the call of that golden creature.
Golden mane...
Siege	Come. We need to finish this mission as fast as we can. Rhodes Island and the Corps will need our help.
Totter	– Stop! What's this... on the ground...?
Indra	It's too dark here... I thought this was some of that upper crust posh decor. This is blood.
Totter	Signs of a fight here. An utterly tragic battle... No, this place is a mire soaked in death.
A meandering trail of blood can be found having slithering down the pathway and past the gap beneath the door. Or perhaps it crept its way out the large door. The trail of blood has long since dried, leaving the shattered bricks on the ground covered in its twisted, dark crimson stains. Likewise, there are tattered bolt heads, sword fragments, and craters left behind by Arts explosions, all submerged under the bed of dried blood. There are also marks more massive in scale, such as the numerous scars on the door, each one by itself more than enough to tear the silence of this place asunder. Although there are no bodies to be seen, everyone who seen war before can easily work out what transpired here. Two groups, both prepared to fight to the death, battled each other. Evidently, they got their wish.
Totter	Judging from the color of the blood, this must be at least several years old.
Allerdale	Several years... You don't mean...
Dagda	The Sarkaz. Sarkaz died here. I recognize their weapons. They're... the same ones the Sarkaz warriors who attacked the Knights of the Tower used all those years ago.
Totter	They're different from what the Sarkaz outside are using.
Dagda	Completely different.
Dagda	The blades that the Sarkaz use now are all made in the munitions factories in Highbury, and they're very similar to the standard weapons used by the Victorian Army. They're not as crude, and nowhere near as... barbaric. I still remember... the sounds of their rusted blades cutting through my fellow knights. They were heavy, and they'd shatter bone before crushing armor.
Morgan	Dagda, are you alright?
Dagda	I'm fine. If the sight of these battle scars was enough to stop me in my tracks, I probably wouldn't have been able to manage a single peaceful night since my escape from Londinium.
[Allerdale tells Siege,]
Allerdale	Vina... The situation's not quite what we expected.
Siege	......
The sound hurts her head. They are urging her. They are speaking.
Siege	The Sighs of Kings is still inside.
<Background fades out and in>
Siege	Who fought the Sarkaz?
Totter	There's no way to tell.
Siege	The other side left no traces?
Totter	If they did, it's likely I haven't seen them before.
Siege	Mr. Totter. How long has it been since you became a mercenary?
Totter	It'll be my fourteenth anniversary next month.
Siege	You must've seen weapons from most countries out there.
Totter	Certainly, but not every country out there. I'm just your garden variety merc. I haven't seen the weapons of any particularly elite forces. If I had, I wouldn't be alive right now.
Siege	...... Morgan, Indra. Head back outside the path and stay alert.
Morgan	Secure our evac route, just like before, right?
Indra	I hope I don't miss out on anything good.
[Morgan and Indra heads back to secure the entrance to the mausoleum.]
Dagda	Siege, we can't act rashly now...
Siege	Do you hear the battle above us, Dagda?
Dagda	No.
Siege	I do. This trembling... I can imagine it. I can't go back empty-handed. If the sword will stop all of this, or even just ease all the sacrifice and slaughter... Then I shall do it. I do not see this as a responsibility. It's just... a tiny act on my part. It's nothing different from knocking out the front teeth of those thugs who come looking for trouble.
Allerdale	Vina...
Siege	Allerdale, you said it yourself. Having taken this step, we can't turn back now.
<Background 5>
[While guarding the entrance...]
Morgan	You look pretty cheesed.
Indra	Hmph, this was my chance to fight right beneath the palace!
Morgan	I just hope they don't actually run into anything that calls for a fight.
Indra	Eh, you should know what a big sacrifice I'm making for you. If someone whacks you in one go, you've got to have a friend to yell for the others, right?
Morgan	Haha, my silly Hannah. ...... Do you remember how Vina looked when we first met her?
Indra	How could I forget? She was real cocky.
Morgan
Indra	She said it was her teacher. And I thought she had some brawler from Norport for a teacher. Then we found out about who she was, and it all made sense. Probably a knight with muscles for brains. Seriously, though, aren't princes and princesses all meant to wear frilly clothes and have trouble running? What kind of teacher would have her fighting like she's facing a wild beast?
Morgan	Haha, when she first told us who she was, I thought she was having a laugh.
Indra	Vina wouldn't kid about something where life and death is concerned.
Morgan	I thought it was a new gang looking for trouble with Glasgow. But it turns out it was an operation to assassinate the heir to the throne? Hah.
Indra	They were pretty tough, though.
Morgan	I thought it'd be a lot more fun to follow a crown princess on an adventure than living the thug life. Besides, this princess has got a special place in my heart. Before I knew it, we were following Vina out of Londinium, wandering the world with her, and making it back here. Now... If the heroes in the legends had a choice, they'd rather lie down on the sofa and gulp down a cold beer, wouldn't you agree?
Indra	Having second thoughts?
Morgan	Of course not. We've come this far already. I started on my memoirs already, and I'm going to make a huge with the book! It's called The Legendary Vina and Her Legendary Mates. All I need now is a publisher.
Indra	With your sorry vocabulary? Forget it!
Morgan	Vina said it was cool! ...... This reminds me... of that pub that we smashed the sign of.
Indra	That was the first battle we won with Vina leading us!
Morgan	That night, we drank all the booze in their cellar. In the end, Baird carried us back to the lorry, one by one, and drove us home before the police got there.
Indra	Are you bloody daft? I was the one who carried you on my back. Baird was so off her trolley, she tried to steer the loo! And you wanted her to drive?!
Morgan	Haha. All I'm thinking is... No matter where we are, we can still come together and make a name for ourselves, right? Even if it's just taking over a pub from the other gangs. Say, Hannah... We've been back for days already. Why hasn't Vina so much as suggested paying Glasgow a visit?
<Background 4>
[Siege pulls out a relic.]
Siege	The key. Before we left, the Doctor gave me this key. The Doctor told me that Dr. Kal'tsit negotiated for this... Only this can open the door that leads to the Mausoleum of Kings. I know this key once belonged to a Draco. ...... ...Allerdale. Do you know... where the other key is?
The other key. The key that belonged to the Aslan royal family. It, too, can open this door, and it should have been passed to her by her father, but she has never seen the key herself.
Allerdale	Why ask me that, all of a sudden?
Siege	I just remembered... another legend about the Sighs of Kings.
"With the sword in his hand, the Aslan padishah tried to conquer the last swath of foreign land." "The Draco king's fire Arts flew straight toward him. His armor burned away in the flames, disappearing in purplish drops. However, his sword was far harder than his armor." "The moment it pierced the Draco king's body, only half of the Aslan padishah's sword remained." "And so, the Draco king lived, and the Aslan padishah lost his right hand." "After the Draco and the Aslan signed their treaty, the sword was reforged, and it has since become the symbol of Victoria's centuries-long glory."
Siege	My ancestors... once nearly killed a Draco king. And now I hold the key of the Red Dragon's descendants... ...to open the door to the Mausoleum of Kings.
Allerdale	Here, it doesn't matter whether one is Draco or Aslan–
Allerdale	One is only Victoria.
<Background black>
The door opens. It is much easier than she imagined. It's so simple, as though everything was already in place, awaiting only this tiny push from her.
The Mausoleum of Kings– A millennium of Victorian history surges toward her, the Aslan who left, only to return.