Operation story: 6-7

Operation

Guide

Story

Previous 6-6	Next 6-8
Characters
Doctor Amiya Blaze Ch'en GreyThroat Swire Faust Mephisto ??? Phantom Crossbowman Reunion Member L.G.D. Officer Herd
Backgrounds
1 2

Before operation

“

The operation proceeds smoothly, and Blaze discovers Faust's location. In addition to satisfying the terms of the agreement, Ch'en decides to do something about the special forces in black raincoats. Faust chooses to sacrifice himself for Mephisto.

”

<Background 1>
Amiya	GreyThroat! What's your position?
GreyThroat	Amiya, I am providing support to an L. G. D. team.
Amiya	We're about to engage! Attention all elite operators: this may be our first, last, and only large-scale battle in Lungmen. Everyone take objective one as your primary mission. My team and I will be focusing on engaging the enemy commander. I want you all to remember: top priority is completing the terms of our contract, that is to work with the L. G. D. to ensure the security of Lungmen. But Rhodes Island's mission in this battle is to reduce the friction between the Infected and uninfected people, to prevent clashes! We are Rhodes Island! No matter what else we carry into battle! No matter when, no matter where! And of course, if at any point our operations fall outside our standards, we will put a stop to them at once! As such, we go into battle with a heavy burden of responsibility on our shoulders.
<Background fades out and in>
Blaze	That was for my sake, huh? She's such a worrywart...
Doctor	We'd better speed up, or we won't make it.
Blaze	You saw what tough customers those Infected were back there. That's a lot for one operator, or even one team to handle. I really should've put that kid to bed once and for all back on the rooftop. Oh, copy.
[Amiya contacts Blaze through radio.]
Amiya	If you don't get your butt to the ambush point, I'll take all of last year's disciplinary reports and hand them over to Dr. Kal'tsit!
Blaze	...... Settle down! I'll be there right on time!
<Dialogue branch starts here>
Doctor	Amiya! She's scratching my coat!
Amiya	Blaze!
Blaze	What am I supposed to do? We have to hurry... (You'll pay for that one!)
<Dialogue branch>
Doctor	......
Amiya	Why so quiet, Doctor? ......Blaze!
Blaze	I didn't do anything! It's the Doctor who clammed up! Tell her already! Come on, say something...!
<Dialogue branch>
Doctor	Could you put me down when you take a call?
Amiya	Huh...? Sorry, Doctor. I forgot you and Blaze would definitely go at it like this...
Blaze	I do what I gotta do.
Amiya	Why are you so pleased with yourself?
<Dialogue branch ends here>
Amiya	Anyway, all I need is your location and current operation. You two seem to be getting along.
Blaze	Sure are!
Amiya	...Really?
Blaze	...... (Wait, what's happening here? What should I tell her?)
Doctor	(I don't know.) / (Say nothing.) / (I'm not sure.)
Blaze	(This is bad! Red alert! I'm taking psychic damage! I need guidance!)
Amiya	Keep at it.
[Amiya ends the call.]
Blaze	She hung up! Oh no. We're in trouble. But at least we're here. Let's take a load off.
<Background fades out and in>
Doctor	But this is the highest point in the district?
Blaze	Well... shit. You know what they say, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Let's hop down.
Doctor	Hop? From this high?
Blaze	Yep. Yawn. Hold on... If I'm not mistaken... That's Mephisto's team over there to the east, moving to the ambush zone. And over there... the scaly kid? He's taking his team to fight something. What is all that black there? Is that the herd...? With those numbers?! Looks like we can't rest here, Doctor. Let's go. Time for the final battle! Hey, Amiya. Hey! I'm taking the Doctor into the fight!
<Background 2>
Swire	What are you thinking?
Ch'en	...... We let a small Reunion group go, then we track them into the slums.
Swire	Weren't you leaving that to the special forces?
Ch'en	No reason we can't take the opportunity. I've already looked into the situation once and one thing is clear: as long as we're there, the special forces can't act openly. Once the fighting stops, they won't be able to do much.
Swire	You're not worried about orders from the top?
Ch'en	Who's going to stand up and take responsibility for the team?
Swire	All right, so you've got it all figured out. What's going on in the slums?
Ch'en	My informants have been busy. There's a few sectors I haven't been able to contact, but we have a lot more intelligence than anyone else.
Swire	This is a big gamble. But I guess we have no choice.
Ch'en	The L. G. D. is the only group that can face down the special forces. Amiya, do you copy?
Amiya	Officer Ch'en, we're in position!
Ch'en	...Mmhm. I need to apologize for the whole ordeal with Reunion scooping up the Infected. That wouldn't have happened if we'd been more thoughtful.
Amiya	...It's thanks to the L. G. D.'s quick action in the slums that Lungmen is able to plan against Reunion. On a strategic level, I think you're fine, Officer Ch'en. But personally... Officer Ch'en, Misha is dead.
Ch'en	......
Amiya	And I can't condone your opinions of the Infected. Even you know... The Lungmenites who love their city will fight for her, no matter who they are.
Swire	Wow, what an awesome little bunny.
Amiya	Did I just hear Miss Swire?
Ch'en	Don't mind her.
Swire	Hey!
Ch'en	I agree with you, Amiya. Fighting for Lungmen can unite the people... except those tied up with Reunion. But actually living in Lungmen is another matter. Time can't solve everything.
Amiya	Of course. We have to solve everything ourselves.
Ch'en	Wishful thinking. The Infected and uninfected live in different worlds.
Amiya	It's not wishful thinking, Officer Ch'en. It's thinking about Misha, and the countless other Infected who died just like her. It was the gap between those two worlds that killed them. Are we going to let that divide define us? Are we not going to fight to bridge it?
Ch'en	......
Amiya	I hope you can understand, Officer Ch'en, why it is that the Infected and uninfected of Rhodes Island come together to fight for Lungmen. They're here, Officer Ch'en.
Ch'en	Prepare for battle.
<Background fades out and in>
Phantom Crossbowman	It's an ambush! The L. G. D. is pushing us in!
Faust	Push through to the slums. Even though we haven't heard from Crownslayer... the slums are our only way out. Take him.
Phantom Crossbowman	What are you going to do?
Faust	Me and a few teams have encouraged the "herd" to gather up here. They won't attack me, so I can fight alongside them.
L. G. D. Officer	Fire in the hole!
Reunion Member	We can't hold for long!
Herd	Ugh... Guhhh!!
L. G. D. Officer	It's those special Infected! Look out!
<Background fades out and in>
Phantom Crossbowman	You'll bring up the rear? You're not coming back.
Faust	......
Mephisto	Mmm! Mmhhh!!
Phantom Crossbowman	......
Faust	Let him speak. He can't do his Arts like this.
Mephisto	What are you doing?!
Faust	Mephisto...
Mephisto	What are you doing?! You can't do this! Come back! Please! Come back here!
Faust	You once told me you would do anything I asked you.
Mephisto	Sasha!
Faust	You said you don't want to make decisions for yourself. It's just, if you have your own ideas and your own goals now... I can't blame you for your choices. If that's the way it is, Mephisto... Well, that's great. But... I'm out of options. So let me tell you my last wish.
Mephisto	Sasha...? What are you talking about? I don't understand!
L. G. D. Officer	Don't let them escape! Take out their commanders!
GreyThroat	Ah...!
Faust	...The Rhodes Island swallow? (Mouthing "pull the trigger.")
L. G. D. Officer	Hit the deck! Watch the crossfire! We've got them surrounded!
GreyThroat	——!
L. G. D. Officer	Fall back, Rhodes Island crossbowman! This corridor is ours!
Phantom Crossbowman	Faust! Run!
Faust	No. Crossbowmen, I know FrostNova is on her way. And even though Crownslayer is missing, her people are out there in the slums somewhere. When FrostNova gets here, you're under her command. I trust her. Once she arrives, you'll be okay. And with my Originium Arts, you'll be invisible.
Phantom Crossbowman	You can't, Faust! That will rupture your organs!
Faust	Doesn't matter. There's no reason not to do it anymore. Retreat. That's an order. And take him with you. But not to Chernobog.
Phantom Crossbowman	...Faust...
Mephisto	You can't do this!
Faust	...... I hope you survive. Even on your own. Don't die. ——That's my last wish.
Mephisto	Sasha! Sashaaaaa!!!
Faust	I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to get anyone hurt. I wish we had just run away, back then. We could have... just run away.
Mephisto	Sasha, you promised! We promised each other! We swore we would survive together!
Faust	It's too late... for me... ...I'm too tired.
Mephisto	Sashaaaaaa!!!
Faust	Goodbye, Eno.
<Background black>
He nocks a bolt into his crossbow, and winds it. He takes aim, for the last time.

After operation

“

Faust is dead. GreyThroat retrieves his crossbow.

”

<Background 2>
Phantom Crossbowman	...... He stopped crying.
Reunion Member	His eyes... it's like he's braindead. I don't care about him. I miss Faust. He saved my life. He was a good commander.
Phantom Crossbowman	Faust gave Mephisto to us... It was his last order. We're going to carry it out.
Reunion Member	None of my business.
Phantom Crossbowman	Get out of the city with us and you have a better shot at survival.
Reunion Member	...Okay. Let's go. Where are you taking him?
Phantom Crossbowman	Faust said he doesn't want us to take him back to Chernobog. ...So where can he go?
Reunion Member	How long were you with Faust?
Phantom Crossbowman	Um... At first, I'd say he was with us. Four or five years ago, Faust couldn't use any tactics and he really couldn't shoot a crossbow. We taught him all that. He studied hard, trained harder, compared notes with the Yetis, sparred with Patriot's boys, and got stronger and stronger... Patriot and FrostNova both taught him. He became our leader, even though we never much called him that, it's what he was.
Reunion Member	You lucked out.
Phantom Crossbowman	No matter how Mephisto got, Faust never made us do anything. Archers, don't save your high-explosive bolts.
Reunion Member	Won't those bolts be useful against the L. G. D.?
Phantom Crossbowman	Faust insisted we honor the dead like this. "It's not a waste to show respect."
<Background 1>
Amiya	GreyThroat?
GreyThroat	He...
Amiya	If I recall correctly, he was the crossbowman with Mephisto, and one of Reunion's commanders.
Amiya	...You knew him?
GreyThroat	I don't know. I'm not sure if you'd say we... knew each other.
<Dialogue branch starts here>
Doctor	It seems like there's not much Rhodes Island can do.
Amiya	Yeah. This is how it is for Rhodes Island... most of the time. But even if there's only the tiniest bit we can do, we will do it. We have to.
<Dialogue branch>
Doctor	......
Amiya	What are you thinking, Doctor? Are you thinking about... all the death we've seen? I can't guess. And I don't want to take it from your mind. Because... I think one day you'll tell me yourself.
<Dialogue branch>
Doctor	Have we ever actually saved any Infected?
Amiya	The operators have put in the work. But death makes a heavy impression, heavier than saving someone. Every time we witness such death, it hits hard. Just remember that without the efforts of our operators, we'd be seeing a lot more death. So much more death...
<Dialogue branch ends here>
GreyThroat	I used to think Rhodes Island fought for the Infected. But now I see all the dead at our feet, they're all Infected. Amiya... Why does Rhodes Island fight?
[Blaze appears.]
Blaze	Now you ask?
Amiya	Blaze.
Blaze	...Answer her.
Amiya	Honestly, I ask myself the same question all the time. We see people, Infected and uninfected, die every day. We don't, and we shouldn't fight to stop every death. That would be meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Like now... like in this battle in front of us. It wasn't one crossbow, one Art, one explosion, or one wound that causes all the death. What we fight to defeat is the source of all of this... the hatred the uninfected have for the Infected, and vice versa, is the reason they kill each other. We must tear up the soil that nurtures the hate. Using our pharmaceuticals, and our operations.
[From a distance, explosive bolts are shot into the air and detonates in the sky, as if it was a three-volley salute.]
Blaze	Ah—— Did Reunion fire that?
Amiya	That was an Originium-boosted crossbow bolt.
Blaze	Pretty lousy fireworks. Nearl said, back in Chernobog, the scaly kid was pretty strong. She told me her arms nearly broke. And I'll tell you from experience, I wouldn't be able to break them. But back there, I knew his bowstring was as good as snapped, and he didn't have much Arts left in his weapon. What happened to you, you little shit?
Amiya	I think... maybe... he had no reason to fight anymore.
Blaze	Hey, Amiya, would it be possible that he used some sort of Arts and survived from the attack?
Amiya	...I'm sorry.
Blaze	What are you sorry for? I just pity the kid. Looking at him, I can tell he wasn't a bad guy.
GreyThroat	It's too late for any of that now.
Amiya	No it's not. The tragedies of the past carry on into the present... And we still have a chance to stop the tragedies of the future.
GreyThroat	...... I'll get his crossbow.
[GreyThroat picks up Faust's broken crossbow and leaves without saying a word.]
Blaze	Did she have an epiphany?
Amiya	You don't know what she's been through?
Blaze	She never shared. We're not close.
Amiya	Her parents were Oripathy researchers, doing work for the Infected. They died in a clash between the Infected and police. She just thinks her suffering and ours are the same. GreyThroat is more sensitive than you give her credit for. She just doesn't express herself.
Blaze	How am I supposed to know if she doesn't speak up?
<Background fades out and in>
GreyThroat	......
???	Was he your friend?
GreyThroat	...I don't know. Who are you?
???	Should I introduce myself?
GreyThroat	No thank you.
???	It's dangerous to make friends with the Infected.
GreyThroat	I don't care if my friends are sick or not.
???	Oh...? You have my condolences.
GreyThroat	Why did you ask me that?
???	Because I worried you were making friends with Infected.
<Background fades out and in>
Blaze	Call for you, Amiya.
Amiya	This is Amiya. Gavial? Where are you? Under the slums? There's a passage? How? ...Black raincoats, and... Yeti Squad? Are they forming up with Reunion in the slums?
Blaze	...The worst is yet to come.