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A... very mini-update, as it turned out.


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VIDEO!

...?

Google Version!
Youtube Version!
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YEAR 1917, RUSSIA

No matter how much I try to forget that day... I can't. I won't. In an instant, that which had anchored me to this world was ruthlessly torn from--

----
[Ogami]

Boo! This movie sucks!!

[???]

... Ensign?!

[Ogami]

Maria? Is that you? Hey, could you pass the popcorn?

[???]

What the HELL are you doing in my expository flashback?!

[Ogami]

Hey, I wasn't kidding when I was wondering what kind of dream you'd be seeing tonight, so I figured why not pop over and take a look at it for myself? I mean, you're the only one with an actual mov--



[Ogami]

Hey, who's that chick? I'd totally hit her.

[???]

...

[Ogami]

... what? I would, she's ridiculously hot. You know, in that horribly illegal kind of way. Though I guess my tastes are a little bit on the younger side--

[???]

GET OUT.

[Ogami]

Can I get at least get a refund on my ticket?

[???]

NOW.

[Ogami]

Okay, fine, fine...

[???]

... god, I'm going to have to start over, aren't I. Where'd that goddamn remote go...



[???]

... rassin'-frassin'-sunnuvavarmint...

**

[???]

Wha-- baby pictures?! DAMMIT, too far back, where's that stupid fast forward button on this thing-- c'mon, c'mon...
----


YEAR 1917, RUSSIA

No matter how much I try to forget that day... I can't. I won't.



Those bloody, desperate hours blurred together. We'd all lost track of time, stuck in that merciless cycle of life or death. It was the only thing that mattered- kill, or be killed. On we went, rushing into the fray, gritting our teeth and running into the hail of bullets. For each inch we gained, many of us- too many of us- died for a hopeless cause, as if those hard-won inches were actually WORTH something by that point.



Even though snow was everywhere, I never felt the punishing chill that sank through even the warmest gloves or the heaviest coats. By that time, I could barely feel anything, aside from fear. The ambush- the betrayal- had doomed us from the start; we were undone, our forces as good as shattered. I held onto my beliefs, but even those were starting to blur together, made meaningless by the rush of adrenaline that comes in the face of death...

So I held onto my blind faith, held onto my belief that our leader would pull us through this last battle and give us the opportunity to regroup. And why wouldn't he? He was the one who gave me hope, and saved me from falling prey to my own despair. He taught me everything I knew, everything that was currently keeping me alive. He anchored me to this Earth, he held me together, prevented me from turning into a mindless killing machine...

He was the center of my unverse.



It was a wholly reckless manuever, born of desperation-- dashing out of cover into the open-



- to draw the enemy's fire-



- thus giving the rest of us a chance to take advantage of their temporary lapse in attention-



- and by the time I'd figured out what he was trying to do-


----


It was already too late.



No.




"CAPTAIN!

This time. This time, I'll make it to his side-- I can still save him, I just need to hurry... please, I can't-- not again....

I-




"CAPTAAAAAAAAIN!!!"


----

----


(Every time, I wake up with the snow still crunching beneath my boots, with the winter's chill still running down my spine, with my heartbeat still pounding through my ears.)



(Every time, as I calm myself down, feeling the weight of those past years on my shoulders, and my bedsheets soaked straight through with sweat, I still hear myself screaming my captain's name, hoping against hope that he can still be saved....)



















(... and every time, I remember that there is no longer anything I can do for him.)


















[Maria]

... a dream, huh.
Again... of that time...



(WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP)

[Maria]

... the enemy?!

[Maria]

Ch'... it's just one bad thing after another...



INTO THE LAUNDRY CHUTES!



[Sumire]

No... Maria-san isn't here yet.



... actually, I think it might have more to do with the fact that Maria doesn't seem to wear anything when she sleeps, which, assuming she doesn't want to dash around the theater buck naked, makes it inconvenient for her to run all the way to the chutes at a moment's notice.




----


[Yoneda]

We've received word from civilians that the Hive of Darkness' demon-driven mechanical soldiers have appeared in Tsukiji.

[Sakura]

Tsukiji... is it.

[Ayame]

The demon-driven mechanical soldiers were seen at an abandoned town, which is near the mouth of a river.
It does not appear that the local inhabitants will be endangered, but in order to prevent any disorder from breaking out, it will be necessary to alleviate the situation.

[Ogami]

I see... understood.

----
[Ayame]

... Ogami-kun, what did I just say?

[Ogami]

... really big words which just sorta mean "kill everything in sight"?

[Ayame]

... close enough. Just get to it, will you?
----



[Ogami]

Yessir!
Alright, everyone! Let's show them the strength of the fully-assembled Imperial Assault Force!


----
[Ogami]

And by "fully-assembled," I mean "everyone but Iris."

[Ogami]

... again.

[Ogami]

... as usual, actually. Kohran, why doesn't Iris have a Koubu yet?

[Kohran]

Weirdest thing, Ogami-han. Her spirit energy readings keep goin' up into numbers partially fused with infinity, and we're having a devil of a time findin' the kinda limiter for her engine that can handle somethin' like that.

[Ogami]

... d... doesn't that strike you as weird, Kohran?

[Kohran]

Not really! I mean, Sakura's numbers've recently started spikin' around the same range, and look at her! She's doin' jes' fine! Right, Sakura-han?

[Sakura]

WHAT'S THAT?! I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF POWER OVERWHELMING.

[Kohran]

See? Nothin' to worry 'bout.

[Sakura]

I CAN KILL WITH ALL THE COLORS OF THE WIND!!

[Ogami]

... Kohran, does our insurance cover death by teammate?

[Kohran]

Only one way to find out! Right, Ogami-han?
----



[Ogami]

Imperial Assault Force, Flower Division, go forth! Our target destination is Tsukiji!

[Everyone]

Understood!



We don't need no stinkin' robots to fight.



WE'LL LAUNCH! ON FOOT.


* Courtesy of Web U.R.C. Pretty much the entire site's NSFW.



NEXT TIME: We've got the chapter's battle already? Gosh, this must be the shortest chapter in the game!







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