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It was cold.
The rain had been falling for some time now, heavy at first but now an unpleasant drizzle, turning the dry ground of the area to mud. Small fires still burned in spite of this, the trees of the barrens providing ample kindling. The former site of the Coati rebellion base had been utterly decimated by the Imperial assault. Mortar and missile strikes had torn the earth up and left nothing but rubble and craters.
Towering over the destruction was the source of much of the bombardment, the remains of a gigantic, quadrupedal mech. Its black armour plating was marked with several large holes and two of its legs had been severed at the joint. The hatches of the missile pods that lined its hull hung open, awaiting commands to fire that would never arrive. The enormous mortar mounted on its back stood ready, a monolith amongst the desolation.
There in the mud, only a few feet away from the monstrosity, lay a girl.
Small and shivering in the rain, her grey hair matted with dirt and blood from an open head wound. She didn’t know how long she had been there. Only that she was there, and that she was alive. She knew that it had been light when she had crawled from the wreckage of her machine, and that now it was dark.
The aching in her legs told her she wouldn’t be able to make it far, even if her vision wasn’t as blurry as it was. If the emergency signal she had sent out before Hellion was destroyed had been received, nobody had come to retrieve her.
Why was there no search party?
Had She forgotten about her?
Did She think that she had been killed
So many questions ran through her pained and anxious mind. All of them lead to the same dreadful conclusion.
Marcie Andrych was going to die.
Julie Cicero didn’t enjoy the prospect of leading, but as one of the few pilots to be uninjured and still have their machine functional after the battle, she’d been able to round up survivors better than anyone else who might have made it out.
The Imperials hadn’t combed the area much once it was all over, and so what remained of Coati’s forces had been able to salvage a decent amount of tech and gear from the various wrecks littering the battlefield. A temporary hideout had been set up in a sizable cave network a few miles south. It wasn’t an ideal distance, but it was as far as the injured had been able to go without time to recover.
It was hard to find, at least, and dry. Getting out of the rain had been a welcome reprieve for the group, but the fact it hadn’t let up for a while now was becoming a nuisance. Maneuvering even a light mech like Apropos Of Nothing through the thick mud was proving difficult.
Julie pushed onwards regardless. She’d set out close to sunset to scavenge some heavier supplies, and it was likely she’d be navigating her way back in near darkness. The idea of being ambushed in such low light conditions weighed heavy on her mind, but if they were ever going to make it anywhere, the rebels needed anything they could get their hands on. It was a grueling trek, but she was almost there. In the distance, Julie could just about see the tip of the mortar from the massive mech she’d helped take down poking up over the treeline.
It was a horrible thing. It’s a wonder that Coati hadn’t caved in entirely from the strikes. Disabling it was probably what had allowed there to be any survivors at all. As soon as it had been downed, she begun laying down covering fire from her vantage point for anyone she saw retreating. As a sniper, she wasn’t able to risk taking Apropos Of Nothing into close quarters combat. Maybe it would have made a difference if she could, or maybe she’d have died bravely instead of running.
She couldn’t let that kind of thinking get to her now. She’d been scared, of course, but she’d saved people. That didn’t make her a coward. Many had survived. They could rebuild because of that. The rebellion hadn’t been snuffed out. They’d likely never be as high in numbers as before, but more would come to fight against the regime that sought to smother them all.
The final stretch of the journey was an easy hike, made easier by the forest surrounding the conflict zone having been mostly annihilated. The area for the most part seemed deserted, but marching straight in wasn’t worth risking, even if it seemed empty. Pulling up her rifle, Julie turned on the temperature scanner in the scope. A quick sweep of the area confirmed her assumptions, some small wildlife sniffing about the area, but otherwise-
A ping from the scanner caught her ear. Something larger was giving off a heat signature.
It was propped up against the base of the wrecked artillery mech. A person? Julie couldn’t believe it. Surely that wasn’t the pilot of that monster. If they survived, wouldn’t they have gotten out of here with the rest of the imps days ago? Another salvager perhaps, or maybe a survivor of the assault that was unaccounted for.
Whoever they were, they were barely moving, and looked to be clutching one of their legs, wounded for certain. It was worth taking a look, they couldn’t pose much of a threat in that condition. Julie had her pistol with her, so if it was an empire troop she could just off them and go on with her mission.
She watched for a moment longer, in the event of anyone else making an appearance. Getting ambushed in her machine was one thing, but out of it would be a death sentence, or worse. After a few moments she made her way towards the stranger, satisfied that the two of them were the only ones around. Julie crouched Apropos Of Nothing down behind the burned out husk of another mech before carefully dismounting.
Now at ground level, she could get a proper look at what she’d found. A girl, a very small girl. This wasn’t anyone from Coati. She’d been with the rebellion long enough to know the faces of everyone she was holed up with. The baggy purple and black flightsuit she wore made it apparent she was a pilot, and an imperial one at that.
Julie sighed. Of course it was an imp. At the very least she could bring her back to base to try and get some information out of her. She moved to lift the girl up, tripping on something laying in the mud and catching herself on the side of the mech in front of her. The thing had snagged around her foot, she was about to throw it to the side in frustration before taking a good look at it.
A muzzle, dulled by the wet earth. The sort of thing you'd put on a dog.
Julie was perplexed. Neither side of the war used dogs, at least as far as she knew. What the hell was this doing here? Was it some weird lucky charm someone had been carrying? She shrugged, hooking it to her belt. It’d make for a weird story to tell when she got back at least.
The girl was light, barely any muscle or meat on her. It was no wonder the flightsuit was so loose. Julie had no issue carrying her back to Apropos Of Nothing. The tiny thing stirred a bit as she was laid in the back of the cockpit, but didn’t wake up as Julie bound her hands. Even someone as small as this could pose a threat if she got the jump on her.
The rest of her salvaging was uneventful, a few good finds but with the girl taking up space she couldn’t take many of the larger parts. Julie almost felt sorry for her. There was no way this scrawny thing was the one in that colossus, was there? She’d taken a closer look at the thing while she was looking around. The name Hellion was emblazoned on the side of the great beast, and from the hole left in its body, Julie could tell she’d gotten lucky to land a shot where the armour had been thinnest. The rest of it was coated in incredibly thick armour plating. She had been smart to aim for the legs first.
It was darker out now, and the trip back would take longer for it. Julie wondered if her hostage would wake up while they were on the way home, and if she did, would she be in any state of mind to register what had happened to her? A shake of her head threw the questions from her mind. There would be time for those later.
-
Back at the hideout, after a thankfully quiet return, Julie took a moment to breathe before leaving the cockpit. A large overhang outside the entrance had become somewhat of a makeshift hangar. The machines and tools they still had were kept sheltered enough that there wasn’t too much worry of damage from the elements.
“Hey Jules! Any luck with the salvage?” One of the engineers, Kara, called up to her as she climbed out of Apropos of Nothing. As the most experienced mechanic amongst the Coati survivors, now with the old chief engineer unaccounted for and Cassie still MIA, Kara had been picked to lead hangar operations.
“Afraid there’s not a whole lot of material for you and the crew this time, Kara.” Julie shouted back. “Got something else though. You’d better come take a look.”
“Oh yeah? Sure thing.” Kara raised an eyebrow, and made for the ladder.
Julie helped her up to the cockpit hatch. “Okay now don’t freak out. I’m still not sure about bringing this back, but I couldn’t not. Promise me you won’t yell?”
“Uuuuh, okay. I promise. Jules, you're making me nervous now.” Kara said with a small laugh. “Whatever you’ve got, it can’t be that much of an issue.”
Julie popped open the hatch. “See for yourself.”
A moment of silence felt like an eternity as she waited for Kara’s response from inside the machine. Maybe this had been a mistake. Maybe Kara was about to make a scene.
“Julie.” She finally spoke.
“Yeah?”
“This is an imperial pilot.”
“Yeah.”
Another long stretch of quiet. Really it was only fair, Julie thought. She’d probably be stunned too if someone brought an unconscious enemy pilot back in their cockpit with absolutely zero plans on what to do with them. She’d thought about trying to get information out of the girl but was starting to question how much a pilot like this would even know.
Once more Kara broke the silence. “She’s not the biggest, is she? Kid can’t be far past her teens. You sure this is a pilot, Jules? You lot get more rations than the rest of us and she doesn’t look like she’s been fed a good meal in her life.”
Well at least she wasn’t freaking out, that was a relief.
“Yeah, she’s pretty scrawny, but she’s definitely a pilot. I found her propped up against the side of that huge artillery walker, no idea if she’s the one that was inside it though.”
“No way somebody like this could be controlling something like that. She must’ve just crawled there or something.” Kara paused, grunting as she lifted the girl up onto her back before depositing her by the hatch. “We’d better get her to a cell or something. You take her, I’ll run and tell the Commander.”
Kara was off into the hideout almost as soon as she’d left the cockpit. Commander Rox wasn’t going to be happy, but it was important. Julie sat for a moment looking over the ‘hostage’.
Now in the glare of the haphazardly hung lights, she was finally able to get a good look at the girl’s face. Young, as Kara said she must be barely in her twenties, which made her grey hair look very out of place. Her eyes had deep dark circles around them, with strange scars around her mouth and the sides of her face. Julie couldn’t figure out what those could have been caused by, but from the looks of her eyes she definitely needed the rest she was getting.
Julie clambered down from the top of Apropos, taking care to balance the other pilot on her back. Her inner thoughts chastised her for worrying so much about one of the enemy, but she ignored them. Young people like her often got pulled into the empire’s military with promises of a warm meal and a bed. If you couldn’t work they’d see you as worthless. So many became victims of the imperial war machine that way.
She’d been walking for a while before realising they didn’t have anything to really call a cell here. It wasn’t the first time Kara had asked her to do something as if they were still at Coati. They couldn’t just throw her in a storage cupboard, what if she woke up panicked and destroyed supplies? A bunk room would do, maybe they could just jam the doorknob with something.
But of course, none of the rooms were free. Julie paused, before coming to a snap decision. She wasn’t just going to put this stranger in with someone at random. Her room was the only one that wasn’t occupied by multiple people, so it’d have to be that one.
The quarters were hastily set up, makeshift mattresses and dimly lit by small low energy lights. It was the best they could do with what they’d been able to bring. Something on her belt knocked against the door frame as she entered, clattering to the floor. Laying the girl down on the spare bunk, she turned to check what she’d dropped.
It was the dog muzzle. Julie stared at it for a while before placing it on the bedside table, still perplexed by it. She was about to go wait outside the room for Kara and Commander Rox when she looked at the marks on the unconscious pilot’s face again, and then back at the muzzle, an idea forming in her mind.
Surely not? They weren’t strapping those to their pilots were they?
She half dismissed the thought, heading out of the door just in time to see Kara enter the barracks, the Commander in tow. She’d ask about it once the girl awoke.
Commander Rox greeted her with a groggy wave, clearly not in the best spirits after having been awoken in the middle of the night. “So, Jules, Kara tells me you brought a girl home?”
Rox had stayed just long enough to air her concerns about Julie bringing home a prisoner, especially when they barely had enough room for what was left of the Coati cell, and to tell Kara to go fetch the medic.
Julie felt her eyelids getting heavy as the medic arrived, shaking her head a bit to try and stave it off. Kara had already filled him in on the situation. She helped him get the baggy flightsuit off of the girl so he could look her over. Her wounds weren’t deep apart from the hit to the head she’d taken. It didn’t seem like it would be fatal, but she’d lost a lot of blood. One of her ankles was sprained. It looked like she fell on it from high up.
The rest of her body seemed fine, though she was covered in all sorts of marks from other injuries. There was barely anywhere that didn’t have some sort of scar or bruise, even small burns dotted her back here and there.
“Wow, Kara wasn’t kidding. If this is the kind of person the imps are sticking in their machines it’s no wonder HECTORs never last ‘em long.” He held up one of the unconscious girl's arms. “There’s barely a muscle on her. Really I’m surprised the cold didn’t get her before you found her, Jules.”
Julie did her best to stifle a yawn. “Yeah, looks like they barely fed her.” She looked to the discarded flightsuit on the ground. It wasn’t sized for anyone big by any means and it was still hanging off of the tiny girl when she found her.
The medic over to take a closer look. “Nasty head wound here. I’ll clean it out, shouldn’t be too bad in the long run but I think she’s gonna be a lil concussed. Definitely shouldn’t be piloting again any time soon.”
“Hey doc, what do you think’s up with these marks?” The scarring on the girl’s face caught Julie’s eye again, the muzzle by the side of the bed once again filling her head with questions.
He finished cleaning up the head wound before looking over his patient’s face. “Well the way they’re indented they look like something’s been strapped over her face, maybe some kind of helmet? Could be from an oxygen mask. Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen an imp hypoxic from their machine having bad ventilation.”
“Hmmm, maybe.” Julie felt herself growing a bit unsteady on her feet.
The medic was quick to notice. “Look, Julie, I appreciate your input here but you’re clearly exhausted. Go sit down, get some rest.”
“But I-”
“No arguing with a medical professional. Go. Rest.”
Begrudgingly, Julie crossed the room to her new "bunk", a mattress propped up on some wooden pallets like all the others in the hastily set up hideout. The medic continued his examination, talking to her as she watched but clearly not expecting responses. Medical jargon and other nonsense. It was all she could to stay awake.
-
“Hey Julie! Real nice day out, patrols said things are looking pretty clear today too.”
Julie turned her head away from the works being done on Apropos Of Nothing. “Oh, uuh, hey Cass.” The hangar was fairly empty of people, a few pilots milling about chatting. “Your head okay?”
Cassidy poked at the small wound on the side of her head. Blood was seeping slowly from the gash. “Oh yeah, nothing serious. You wanna go grab food together?”
“Sure, but we really should get that looked at, Cass. You’re bleeding.” Julie wiped sweat from her brow. The hanger felt so warm.
The blood dripped from Cassidy’s head, now coating her strangely pristine engineering jumpsuit. “I told you it’s nothing. What’s got you so worried?”
The quiet hangar had begun to fill with smoke. Flames began creeping up the walls. The pilots and engineers milling around didn’t seem to notice.
“What do you mean?! Cass we have to go! Now! It’s dangerous!” She grabbed the other girl by the arm and turned to pull her away, but it was like moving a boulder. She turned back and froze.
“There’s nothing wrong Julie.” Cassidy’s head had completely opened up at the side, blood flowing freely from the wound, flesh sloughing onto the floor. “You’re freaking out for no reason.”
Julie couldn’t let go of the arm, she screamed.
-
Julie snapped awake,having fully dozed off. The medic was just wrapping up as she came to. She rubbed her eyes, trying to get the strange dream, nightmare, whatever out of her head.
Rox stood nearby, listening intently to the medic. “She’s really been through the wringer, but she’s stable. Best to leave her to rest. You can bind her arms if you feel she’ll be a problem, but I don’t think she’ll be getting far in the state she’s in.”
“Thanks doc. Think we’ll do it as a precaution regardless.” Rox replied. “Julie, you think you’ll be okay with her in here? This place is cramped as is and we don’t exactly have anywhere secure. Plus it means someone’s keeping an eye on her.”
Julie shrugged. “Sure thing. I got no issues, and like the doc said I don’t think she’ll be any trouble.”
With the new sleeping arrangement decided, the medic and Rox made their way out, leaving Julie alone to make herself comfortable again. The doc was right, she did need the rest. It had been a long day, and even lying on a lumpy mattress in a dim room in a hole in the ground, she found sleep overtaking her quickly once more.
The meeting room overlooking the hanger was stuffier than usual. It was also quieter. Every scratch of pen on paper, irritable breath, and metal scraping from below was grating on Lavinia’s ears. She and her colleagues had been called here to discuss the successful destruction of Coati, along with damages and casualties from the assault.
After maintenance had been finished for the day, one of the hangars had been allowed to be used for a post sortie party. Soldiers of all ranks and engineers mingled and drank whatever cheap alcohol was able to be requisitioned. None of the women present were expecting to be able to attend the gathering, ‘such frivolous activities were beneath their station’ their superior claimed.
Despite all of them having arrived 30 minutes ago, Handler Superior Lillian had been filling in forms all the while, not even acknowledging anyone who had entered or any attempts to gain her attention. The 3 of them had been growing increasingly agitated, exchanging glances and gestures. Handler Zhu had tried to speak up, only to be loudly shushed by the scowling woman at the head of the table.
Lavinia felt as if this was going to continue endlessly. It looked as if Handler Giovanna was about to crack and start shouting, her hands twitching with aggravation. The woman hated nothing more than having a lack of control over a situation. Zhu was picking at her nails, a nervous habit one wouldn’t expect from her usual commanding demeanor she carried around her hounds, and her wife who was usually following her around. Lavinia had passed them being intimate on the way to the meeting, and assumed the corporal would be waiting outside to be dragged off elsewhere instead of doing her job.
The clatter of a pen dropping onto the table brought the eternity of silence to an end. Handler Zhu jumped at the sound, snapping her head around to face her superior. Lavinia knew that none of them would enjoy this meeting, though it was somewhat relieving to have the waiting be over.
Lillian stood up and glared across the table at them. “As you are all aware, the assault on the rebellion foothold in the northern pine barrens was a success. Barring a small group that escaped during the battle that is being searched for, the opposition was almost entirely annihilated or taken prisoner. I have had several potential assets from amongst those captured transferred to our holding cells.”
“That is very good news, Sir, however I do not see-” Handler Giovanna spoke up, her words cut off by a look that would have killed a more anxious woman.
“You will wait until I am finished to speak, Giovanna.” Lillian growled. “While the operation was successful, it was not without losses. The frontline infantry casualties, while many, are irrelevant. They are expendable, and more will be recruited. The commanding officers and troops will mourn whoever mattered to them after their ridiculous celebrations.”
The older woman sighed, her fist clenched. “Our losses however, are significant. One specialised asset is worth far more than any HECTOR pilot could ever hope to be. That is why the loss of my hound, Marcie, our program's first asset and pilot of the heavy artillery machine, Hellion, should be a shock to you all. A body has not been found, though the likelihood of Marcie having survived whatever bored a hole straight through its cockpit is incredibly low. Hellion being destroyed is also a major setback, the strength of our artillery now being much weaker for it. I have put forward a plan to remedy this, which I will discuss with you all upon its finalisation.”
Lavinia stifled the urge to roll her eyes, instead focusing on the rancid glare from her superior.
“Once this meeting is concluded, go to the holding cells and pick out a potential candidate. I expect all of you to increase your workload as we push forward into new territory. Especially so you, Lavinia. The machine brought in with your most recent acquisition needs a pilot, as its previous one seems unable to understand how to do so now.” Her tone was as condescending as always. “Find something else for it to do, it disgusts me seeing it drooling over the machinery. That will be all, get on with it. Dismissed.”
Lillian once more set her unpleasant glower on Lavinia. “Except for you Lavinia, we need to have a discussion.”
Giovanna looked as if she was going to speak up again, furious about having to wait so long for such a short briefing. She seemed to think better of it, however, and hurriedly followed Zhu out of the room. The door clicked shut and Lavinia turned to see Lillian approaching her, the ever present scowl on her face somehow worsened.
“Successful operation or not, it was your plan, and thus I shall be blaming the loss of Marcie on you, Lavinia.”
Lavinia was taken aback at the accusation. “And just how is the loss of your hound in any way my doing?”
“SHUT UP.” She slapped her, the sound echoing through the space. Lavinia gritted her teeth, desperate to hold back a retort. “Why was Amelia not interfering with the backline forces as you say its machine is specialised in? Why was it running around dealing with chaff that our HECTOR units could so easily outnumber? Why was Hellion left unguarded? That machine and its pilot were some of our most useful assets, and now I will need to waste more of my time finding a replacement.”
Lavinia stood tall, eyes locked with her superior’s. “I informed you of my plan to recover a new asset during the mission. Do you think I would go to an active battlefield to do it myself? Did you expect me to miss my chance on getting ahold of a way to guarantee Amelia's continued improvement? You were the one who approved the operation and brought it before command. You agreed that it was worth the risk to mobilise against the enemy forces without full knowledge of their weaponry.” She rubbed her cheek, the sting from the slap lingering. “It sounds to me that you are unwilling to accept that victory comes at a cost. Or did you simply get too attached to a weapon?”
She stepped back in time to avoid another, harder slap. Her superior was seething.
“You are the most wretched subordinate I have ever had the displeasure of working with. You are a vile insect and a disgrace to our Empire’s name. If I didn’t still have a use for you I’d put you down on the spot like the worthless animal you are. Even your useless mutt shows me more respect.” The older woman paused, took a deep breath. Lavinia had to hold herself back from strangling her there and then. “Speaking of your ridiculous dog, I believe I should inform you of the retrofitting of its mech.”
“Excuse me? When the hell did this happen?” She could feel her anger growing to match her superior's spiteful nature.
“I had it organised just prior to this meeting,” Lillian obviously lied. “With the loss of Hellion we need a new mobile artillery machine, and Dominance is perfectly suitable to be modified into it. Its scale will allow for all the new weaponry required to be easily attached. Of course it will also need to be more heavily armoured and lose its speed but I think it will be a good enough replacement. Not quite on par with what Hellion was capable of but certainly suitable.”
Lavinia’s fury was quickly replaced with a childish bewilderment. “That’s absurd. Amelia might not adjust to the changes, and even if she does it could take months. You saw yourself how long she took to be able to work out finding her way back post sortie. I won’t stand for this.”
“Oh, you will. Amelia will just have to get used to it. As I said, the maintenance is already under way. Your newer asset is assisting with the retrofitting as we speak. She seemed reluctant until I informed her the order came directly from you, Lavinia.” For the first time all day, Lavinia's superior smiled, face filled with infuriating smugness. “Now, off you go to the cells to pick out your new project. Dismissed.”
An indignant scream nearly escaped her throat, barely bitten back. “You have no idea wh-”
“I said, dismissed, Lavinia. Do you need that explained? Get out.” The conversation declared over, Lillian returned to her paperwork as if Lavinia had never been present.
Lavinia said nothing as she returned to her quarters. The holding cells could wait, she was in no mood for that kind of work. She paced back and forth through her room, resisting the urge to break something, all the while cursing the vile woman she was forced to work under. That woman was going to cause some serious damage if she went unchecked, Lavinia knew it. She needed to get rid of her, somehow, even if it meant risking her position. There was no way she would continue to allow this insult to stand.
She just needed to wait for the right moment…
It was hot. Too hot.
The small space she sat in barely had any ventilation. Marcie was burning up, she hated it in here. Hellion's cockpit grew hotter with every shot its enormous mortars sent flying into enemy lines, the kickback from every volley shaking the entire machine.
Suddenly the wall buckled as Marcie fired again, the cockpit growing even more cramped. She squealed, and tried to turn to inspect the damage but her head wouldn't move. Her hands wouldn't let go of the firing trigger.
Another shot, the metal surrounding her got ever closer. Another shot, Marcie couldn't see. The ceiling had crumpled in front of her viewscreen. Another shot, sharped metal jabbed into her sides. She was going to be crushed. Her breathing quickened, hot choking air filling her lungs. Another shot-
Marcie blinked.
She was huddled in a corner of a small room. Two large dogs were fighting, spittle flying from their mouths as they snarled and tore at each other with horrible needle-like teeth. Blood splattered the ground by Marcie’s feet.
Claws shredded skin and guts hung loose from unfeeling bodies. Then they stopped, and turned to her, drool and blood dripping from hungry mouths. They rushed at her. It burned as fangs sunk into her skin, claws raking at her-
Marcie blinked.
She was in a hangar, or at least something that looked like a hangar. The sound of power tools and scraping metal echoed around her. The room seemed to stretch on endlessly.
She tried to step forward, away from the wall she had found herself leaning on. She made it a few steps only for something to catch one of her legs, tripping her. Marcie spun to see what was clinging onto her.
A hand, rising from the floor. Another followed, and another, and another. Endless groping hands pulling and grabbing at every available part of her. She tried to scream but fingers pushed into her mouth. It was too much, she couldn’t see, she couldn’t breathe, she-
Marcie woke up screaming.