"That's because there's a little Crusader still skulking about, unable to contain her own curiosity. Am I right, Lady Raven, or should I say, Natasha Ciora?" Natasha almost tripped upon the wooden floorboard when she heard her name being blasted on speakers.
Natasha isn't one for cursing but this is one of the few times she has to make an exception. "Motherfucker!" That young female voice gave her the chill for Natasha knows, this camp is far from empty. From a window of the command building, Natasha can catch a glimpse of the strange aircraft that are picking up the rescued females. And if her luck is bad enough, those unknown armored soldiers are just around the corner.
"Oh, right! Don't worry about my friends there, they're just about done with mopping up the area with anything useful." The voice, Natasha may or may not have an inkling from whom it belongs, jestingly said that. And she is right, the command building and almost everywhere else was wiped clean of any incriminating evidence. Although there is still something left for Natasha to work on in her case, what's left behind seems to be intentional.
"That's right, my dear Natasha. I've ordered them to leave a small gift for you, should be more than enough to set you up." Called it. The intel she picked up was just leftover, but at what cost?
The young voice responds almost instantly as if reading her mind, Natasha is a bit annoyed that this is a one-way conversation. "Don't mind the cost, don't mind it! It won't be anything you can't handle, my dear, consider this an equivalent exchange instead."
Stepping away from the window as she has seen the aircraft taking off, Natasha contemplates just getting the hell out of Dodge but ultimately, she chooses not to. Call her curious instead. "Ok, say your terms." Though Natasha said it aloud, she doubts the girl on the other end can hear her.
"For starter," The girl answered anyway. "This little clandestine meeting between us. It never happens." Well, that's understandable. Besides, Natasha highly doubt anyone except Kallen would believe her retelling of this event.
"After that, hum... How about you give me a good show instead? It won't be that hard, right? What's with all the bloody evidence you have on hand." I'm sorry, but what the fuck!?
"You must be wondering why we even need you to condemn your own country, right? As a matter of fact, we don't. However, you have, so far, proven yourself to be of sound mind and good morale, much like the subject of your interest, Kallen Kaslana. It will be a shame if you two never get anywhere, no? This is why I am giving you a chance to change the current status quo in Sardegna, a chance for you to uncover the ugly truths about Sardegna on your own terms. And while you're at it, perhaps you will be able to bring out a happy ending not just for yourself, but also for Miss Kaslana and the rest of your sisters."
... Natasha's interest was caught the moment Kallen was involved. Natasha is loyal to the Lord, yes, but more than that, she is loyal to the Saint that is Kallen. A tangible presence inspires her more than a never-present God, after all. Still, more than anything, how can Natasha even trust the voice in the first place?
"You don't trust me, just as we don't trust you. We don't even care about what you will be doing with the evidence. Granted, we will be more than capable of hunting you and your sisters down if our existence is revealed." The voice chuckled. "You may have escaped the notice of our soldiers for now, but can you do the same in your next encounter? Can your sisters hold their grounds against supersoldiers that have decades of experience ahead of them? If anything, my soldiers stand committed to excellence in warfighting, the integrity of character, and respect for the heritage received in their path to becoming something more than human. They will improvise, adapt and overcome any obstacle, hidden or not. Those are their creed."
The way the voice said it, with such confidence in her troops, does bring a chill to Natasha. Natasha wouldn't have believed what she spouted if she hadn't seen their ways of combat, firsthand. Unlike the Crusaders that almost always become the tip-of-the-spear and dislike subterfuge, these armored individuals are better in every way, intangible, unstoppable, and infallible. Natasha doesn't have to see witness a live engagement to know that the Crusaders will lose 8 times out of 10.
"Fine..." Natasha breathed out. "Have it your way then."
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
"Good. You stay on your own path, we stay on ours. So long as you keep that in mind, we can even work together when the situation calls for it." What does she mean by that? "You may address me as Overlord in the future. Should the need arise, I will have my way of reaching you. Have a good day, dear Natasha." Before the speakers go silent, Overlord says something that ticks Natasha off. "Oh, I would vacate the area if I were you. See you later~!"
"Goddamn it, woman!" Natasha shouted as she made a break for it while holding to the photos and documentary evidence tightly. Crashing through a window of the three-stories command building, Natasha then rolls onto the dirt floor before assuming a sprint stance. Dashing out the way she comes from, a stealthily cut segment of the barbed-wire fence, Natasha barely makes it into a treeline when her instinct screams at her to create ice, lots and lots of ice. This is the second time in the day that Natasha sincerely feels afraid for her lowly life.
"This intel better be fucking worth it!" Jumping over a large root of an oak, Natasha immediately goes for a slide down here. It's when she reaches the foot of the hill that she flattens her body onto a soggy patch of dirt while freezing her surrounding with as much ice from spells as she can, even putting up.
No sooner had she done that than a cacophony of eerie roars rush over the air. Barely managing to catch a glimpse of a pair of fiery blue trails cutting across the night, Natasha's attention is soon rudely grabbed by multitudes of booming and bright lights that torch the sky. An intense heat wave rushes over her frozen trench as Natasha gazes up in a daze at the top of the hill. There, a veritable sea of flame engulfed everything but where she's at. With heat waves pushing 1200 degrees Celsius, Natasha finds it hard to breathe, and it's not because of the vaporizing ice around her, no. It's because the flame rapidly deoxygenates the available air and generates large amounts of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide.
Knowing that it will be a fool's endeavor for her to stay here and the fact that the molten-hot flame is encroaching on her, Natasha encases herself in a makeshift ice barrier. Wading her way through the hot steam around her, Natasha keeps on moving, running as fast as she can and as far as she must. The last thing she wants is to die in literal Hell on Earth.
"These Belkans are bloody crazy!" And Natasha thinks she has just rolled herself up into it.
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"This is Rigel 1. Confirmed, the target is up in flame. All napalm hit with 100% accuracy." The Captain of Rigel Squadron reported over the comms wave. Over on the live feed provided by the AWACS, Yuki, and company, can see just the same where an entire debauchery camp is obliterated in a sea of fire.
"Good copy, Rigel 1. Start egressing and rejoin with the formation. Fleet departs in an hour." Yuki said to the Captain. Aside from a few hiccups along the way, the opening mission for Spaniard Freedom is a resounding success.
All hostages have been rescued, Ravens have taken negligible damage, and all required evidence secured. It goes without saying that the compliments from the Generals and Admiral bring not-so-small smiles to the faces of the people behind the Raven program. With the mission done, the Ravens have been tasked with relocating to a hideout, deep behind enemy line.
Now that the aftermath of the battle is on the way to being processed, Yuki can now breathe easy, handing the fourth cup of coffee over to Agent. Even so, Yuki struggles to contain a yawn. Knowing that Yuki is dead tired right now, Bryn gently pats the girl on the head. "Hey, just a little bit more before we can all head home."
Leaning over to Bryn, Yuki draws out her words. "I know~, I need to witness them touch down before I can rest assuredly."
"Yeah, so hang on for just a bit... Yuki, are you sure it's wise to pull that wildcard?" Hearing Bryn asked that question, everybody at the holotable perked up.
Mobius raises her hand. "Yeah, yeah! Tell us, Yuki! I, for once, would like to see a match between my Ravens and their Crusaders." She said excitedly, earning a bonk on the head from Einstein. Dreamer, on the other hand, just smiles lightly, fully trusting Yuki's decision.
Taking another breath, Yuki explains. "It's just me fishing in troubled water. If I play my card right, we will be able to have a powerful hand in the Sardegna situation. Further than that, we will be able to glean more intel in the uncertain Auschwitz. I know Natasha Ciora's type, once she broke off her restrain that is the indoctrination of Sardegna, she will stop at nothing to ensure a good ending for herself. Cooperating with us, right now and in the future, will increase her success chance by a lot."
Stopping for a bit, Yuki taps her fingers on the table. "From this point onward, we will be engaging the Crusaders on a limited basis or not at all. Partly because I want to see if we can turn the Crusaders around, partly because I don't want to reveal our hands early. Natasha is the only one other than us that knows about the Ravens, it's best if we keep it that way."
"Other than that, I want to see how one Crusader, or two in this case, can bring chaos to Sardegna. Will they succeed and bring the Papacy to its knees, or will they fail and be stabbed in the back instead? Either way, we will still go on with our own plan and make the life of the Sardegnian Army as hellish as possible. Don't forget, our ultimate goal is to put a stop to Sardegna's current and future expansion, once and for all, one way or another."
Sharing a look, everyone at the table then turns toward Yuki.
"Yes, Marshal!"
Returning a nod at them, Yuki redirects her attention, and with it, everyone's, back at the holotable. Half an hour later, all of the Ospreys touch down on the Yggdrasil, and the debriefing and treating of the rescuees follow soon after. Ten minutes later, most of the aircraft are recovered, bare a squadron of Phantoms and AWACS for early warning. After five more minutes, the fleet begins their departure back to Belkan Sea. Only then does everyone heaves a soft sigh.
"That's that. Congratulation, everyone, the mission is a complete success." Yuki said, prompting the room to explode into a resounding cheer.