>>28870683
>>Go help Janice with breakfast.

>>28870683
I thought we were going back to being cap, Merc... Like the whole thread.

>>28870683
>Go help Janice with breakfast.

>>28870683
>Go help Janice with breakfast.

>>28870683
>Other

Let's see if we can't help Cap'n along with a shot of healwitch juice.

>>28870683
>Go visit Cap.
>>28870741
this is punishment for being a dumb ass last time. he's probably been busted down rank and have bad marks on his record for this.

>>28870683
>>Go help Janice with breakfast.

>>28870683
>>Go visit Cap.

>>28870683
>>See if Tarin has any intel on Raikov.

>>28870773
i guess another go with the heal spells can't hurt.

>Go visit Cap.
agreeing with heal-juice

>>28870683
>>Go help Janice with breakfast.

The cap can suffer awhile longer

>juicing heal-witches
Hmm. I wonder if anyone's done research into the restorative properties of witch-juice.

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>>28870683
You decide to go help out Janice with breakfast for a bit. Ever since you arrived here, Janice has now apparently become the barracks' resident chef. Practically every witch here had learned to worship the ground she walked on. You also heard that things were like this back in Elmendorf where she was originally stationed, as well. Janice would often joke about getting letters from her friends back in Alaska pleading for her to come back.

As expected, when you get to barracks' small kitchen area, you smell something really... REALLY good. You should probably be used to this by now, but you find yourself literally getting led in by your nose.

"Oh, good morning, Red!" Janice turns her from the stove she's working on. "What brings you in, today?"

"Morning Janice, I just thought I'd help you out with breakfast today." You yawn. "What are you cooking today, anyways."

"Well..." Janice smiles. "I thought I'd try something a bit more ambitious today. How do you like French Toast."

"HOLYSHITYES."

"I thought so!" Janice laughs lightly. "I think there's some powdered sugar in the cupboard. Can you help me get it?"

You nod and make your way to the cupboard, grabbing a bag of powdered sugar that looked as if it had not been used in a very, VERY long time. You bring it over to Janice, and look down at her handiwork.

"Oh my god, are those REAL eggs?" Your eyes widen. "How the hell did you get those?!"

Despite witches' better access to supplies, in wartime they had to make do with what they could get, just like everybody else. Most of the time, you had to subsist on powdered eggs, which, despite Janice's best efforts, still tasted kind of like powdered eggs.

"Oh, you just have to make some friends with someone in Logistics. Simple, really." Janice shrugs, still smiling. "You'd be amazed what people would do for you if you ask the nicely."

Yeah, no doubt people would bend over backwards for Janice. You look on a bit jealously at her figure.

(cont)

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>>28871310

"I SMELL SOMETHING GOOD!!!!" You hear a voice squeal from outside.

"IT SMELLS LIKE TOAST!"

"FRENCH TOAST!"

"YEESSSSSSSS!"

"Oh dear, they woke up earlier than I thought they would." Janice giggles. "Well, I'm just about done anyways. Help me sprinkle some sugar on these?"

"Yeah, sure."

You quietly assist Janice for the next few minutes, putting a dab of powdered sugar on each plate of french toast as Janice finishes them up.

"There! Perfect!" Janice nods as she takes off her apron and turns to you. "Actually, I'm quite glad you stopped by. There's something I wanted to ask you."

"Really? Like what?" You blink.

"You see, me and Tarin were sort of planning for a kind of girls' night out. Just us three, doing whatever we want. There's just been so few opportunities for the three of us to have some free time together!"

"Huh, I'll think about that." You say.

"Please do." Janice smiles and hands you a plate. "Here. I put on a bit of extra syrup just for you!"

"Oh, thanks." You grin as you take a bite and your taste buds literally explode.

"Oh right, I also managed to get my hands on some genuine maple syrup, too, which is how I got the idea to cook french toast today!" Janice adds.

"HOLYSHITJANICEYOUAREFUCKINGAMAZING."

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Janice sighs. "Anyways, can you do me favor? I made some for the rest of our crew, but for obvious reasons most of them aren't here. Do you mind helping me deliver them?"

>Take one to Cap.
>Take one to Tarin.
>Take some to your helo crew.
>Other

>>28871310
>You look on a bit jealously at her figure.

Hey Red's a growing girl, she might end up like that one day.

>>28871330
>>Take one to Cap.

>>28871330
>Take one to Tarin.

>>28871330
>>Take one to Tarin.

Hospital stay means no good food. suffffer

>>28871330
>>Take one to Cap.

I'm just thinking of that MASH episode with the B plotline where they got real eggs.

>>28871330
>>Take one to Tarin.

>>28871330
>Take one to Tarin.
We do owe her for that evac from the town
>Take some to your helo crew.
The guys don't get enough appreciation.

>>28871330
>Take one to Cap.
>>28871383
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55Og6KiHZI8

>>28871330
>Take one to Cap.
i am sure tarin will be dragged in by her nose as well. not sure if she ever ate any french toast in her life. but ask janice to give her some. right now, we off to see the cap and heal him!

Considering that Cap got rescued by the rest of his PJ squad, does he need the green foot tattoo on his ass as well?

>>28871330
>Take one to Tarin.

>>28871330
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKD9V80ubGY

>take some to the helo crew

Come on, these guys work hard too!

>>28871330
>>Take some to your helo crew.
>>Other
How about that Rex dude? Should go learn about him. Maybe he has some cool family members?

>>28871330
>>Take some to your helo crew.

>dem raker tits

>>28871721
>dem oppais tho

>>28871738
>rematch with raikov in the lift

NO VOLGEN NO!

>>28871721
>dose 'motherly aspects'

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>>28871765

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>>28871330
"Sure, I'll take one to Tarin." You say. After all, you owed her for saving your ass by pulling you out of that village. "But um, any clue how I'm supposed to find her?"

"Oh, it's simple, really." Janice laughs lightly. "Just go where you'll find the fewest people. She tends to be up on the roof if she's not in our room. Though lately, I think she's been hanging around the hospital to keep an eye on Captain Pierce."

"Okay, thanks." You nod.

"Oh, and one more thing!" Janice picks up a letter that had been lying on the counter. "I was meaning to deliver this myself, but since you'll be going out anyways, can you give it to him, as well?"

"Okay." You nod and pick up the letter and stash it your coat. Janice then hands you two styrofoam containers.

"Now, run along, Red, I have a lot of hungry mouths to feed!"

With that, you dash out of the kitchen's back entrance, deftly avoiding the crowd of witches that were gathering to sate their morning appetites. You do a quick check of Janice and Tarin's room and then on the roof, but you find no sign of her. Sighing, you exit the barracks. You might as well check if she's prowling the hospital or something-

"Thanks for the breakfast." You hear Tarin's voice beside you.

"GAH!" You nearly leap into the air in fright and turn to see your wingwitch striding alongside you, nibbling on a piece of french toast. You look down and see one of the containers you were carrying was missing. When did she-?!

"Don't worry, I wasn't following you for too long." Tarin says nonchalantly. "Only for the past five minutes."

"It'd be nice if you didn't scare me like that!" You sigh.

"Really? I was stomping here with all the grace of a drunken elephant. Didn't even use my optic camo."

"Goddamnit, Tarin..."

>Ask her about Raikov.
>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.
>Ask her why she avoids people.
>Other

>>28871794
>Ask her about Raikov.

>>28871794
>>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.

>>28871794
>>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.

>>28871794
>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.
Is she looking for a cute male nurse to accost?

>>28871794
>Ask her about Raikov.

>>28871794
>>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.

>>28871794
>Ask her why she prowls the hospital.

>>28871794
>>Ask her about Raikov.

Might as well get something useful since anon's stuck on punishing a character for something they made him do.

>>28871924
>WAAH WAAH WAAH A BAD THING HAPPENED AND IT'S ALL SOMEONE ELSE'S FAULT
Distracting the tankwitch was the right call. Standing still, instead of evading, was not. Get over it.
I didn't even vote on that one.

>>28871993
I was referring to anon choosing to avoid him this thread mainly for some stupid reason under the guise of 'punlishing' him. If anything you should tell them to get over it.

>>28871794
>Ask her about Raikov.

>>28872023
I see not one mention of punishing Cap. You're being a fag. Cut it out.

>>28872023
it is starting to get old
>>28872059
you shut the fuck up

>>28871357
>Hospital stay means no good food. suffffer
>>28872059
What's this?

>>28871794
"Anyways," you sigh as you try to regain your composure. "Janice told me you've been prowling around the hospital lately. What's the deal with that? Peeping on the nurses?"

"Sort of." Tarin frowns. "To put it bluntly, I... don't really like hospitals. They're very depressing places."

"Oh, I see how it is." You grin. "Don't want to leave our dear Captain all alone? That's actually pretty nice of you, Tarin."

"Something like that." Tarin says simply.

You get the impression that there's something more to her motivations. However, hospital has already come in sight, so you're going to have to wrap this conversation up.

>Press the issue.
>Change subject to Raikov
>Other

>>28872160
>Press the issue.
Talk dammit! Come on woman!

>>28872160
>>Press the issue.

>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov
I WANT TO TEASE YOU BUT I NEED INFORMATION DAMN IT

>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov

We're going to run into her sooner or later. Besides, we'll have backup from Janice later on. Pincer attack, more successful

>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov
but remind her we need to talk more on her men stalking ways... and how we can cut in on the fun.

>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov

>>28872160
>>Press the issue.
Getting more of her intentions in the light might help us get to know her a bit.

>>28872160
>Press the issue.

>>28872160
>Press the issue.
Gently though. If it seems to be a sore spot leave it be

>>28872160
>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov

>>28872160
>>Change subject to Raikov

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>>28872160
>Change subject to Raikov

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>>28872160
Well, it seemed like an issue that was really personal to Tarin. Even though you were tempted to press her for more information, you knew that there were more pressing things to discuss.

"So, did you find anything about that tank witch? Raikov?"

"Yeah, I talked with some SF guys I know, and they recognized her." Tarin nods. "Her full name and title is Major Ivena Raikov, and she is a very mean lady. She's part of a particularly nasty GRU unit that specializes in testing prototype equipment. She's been wreaking all sorts of havoc across Germany."

"Really? I thought Russian witches weren't too enthusiastic about this war." You frown.

"Yeah well... Raikov is different. She's a hardcore Stalinist. A firm believer in the Soviet cause." Tarin sighs. "She's particularly hated in Afghanistan. Not a lot of concrete details about what she did in there, but apparently she's on pretty much everybody's Kill On Sight list there.She's definitely somebody we should be avoiding at all costs."

>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.
>We're gonna put some serious hurt on that bitch if she comes after us again.
>Other

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>>28872676
>GRU
FUCK!
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

>>28872676

Moscow Academy Witch?

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

>>28872774
Nope. She's a true believer!

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

Spetsnaz witch, possibly brainwashed, yeah, we probably don't want to see her again.

>>28872821
worse then I thought! KILL HER!

>>28872676
>>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

> stalinist

No yandere russian tank waifu

Saddd

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.
Not only is she murdercrazy, she's also a true stalinist? Damn!

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we are no longer safe

>>28872676
>>We're gonna put some serious hurt on that bitch if she comes after us again.
We should look at drawing a LAWS or an AT4 (can't remember if those are in arsenal by now) from the armory, just in case. A magically empowered AT rocket would be fun.

>>28872676
>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

But

>Other: we probably will. We should come up with a way to be prepared.

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>>28872895

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>>28872900
Magically powered Gustav!

See, this is why I was interested in running with non-combat witches. As soon as the state-mandated recurring boss witch shows up, we're all RAWKET LAWNCHAIR all over everything.
Why can't we just save people?

Bet that soviet officer has some martian weapon that fire lighting bolt.

Hey, might as well as make the reference full circle.

>>28872975
Dat toroidal fireball.

>>28872676
>>Yeah, I don't look forward seeing her again.

>>28872998
Because sometimes to save people you need to kill the fuckers trying to kill the people you're saving.

>>28872998
But most of the votes are for "hopefully never seeing her ever again". We're merely amusing ourselves by imagining magic missiles

>>28873003
>FFV751 is a tandem-warhead HEAT round with an effective range of 500 m and ability to penetrate more than 500 mm of armour. Weight is 4 kg.
I wonder what that would do to a witch.

>>28872676
"Yeah, I don't look forward to seeing her again." You frown. Spetsnaz? Shit, leave it to the Deltas or Green Berets or SEALs to deal with them. You weren't cut out to get into knife fights with crazy Spestnaz tank witches.

"What are her powers, anyways? Does anybody know?" You ask.

"Apparently heightened senses." Tarin says. "Yeah, I know it sounds boring, but it's incredibly useful. I heard she was a great asset in sniffing out Mujahideen hideouts. I hear she's sensitive enough that she can even pick up radio waves."

Well, now it made sense how she was able to track you and Tarin. She was just getting scarier and scarier by the minute. Fortunately, the thought of seeing Cap again was enough to distract you from your unease.

"Oh, hey Red, hey Tarin!" Cap says happily as the two of you enter his room. "You're here awfully early."

"Yeah, well, we're pretty sure the hospital has been giving you nothing but crap for food so we decided to give you a little something. Straight from Janice!" You say as you hand him your last container.

"Hm, how considerate of her." Cap nods and takes a bite. You could see his facial expression change as his taste buds try and process Janice's exceptional cooking.

"Holy shit." He croaks silently.

"Yeah, I had the same reaction." You nod. "So how's the hospital life been treating you?"

"Oh, boring as hell, as usual, but I should be cleared to leave any day now." Cap sighs. "Got a visit from Anderson though, and he was a bit less than pleased about how I ended up in here."

"What did he say?" You ask, a bit concerned.

"Basically, he scolded me and warned me I might get transferred if I do something reckless like that again. Apparently McMurdo always has openings."

>That's terrible!
>Well, to be fair, he has a point.
>Other

>>28872900
thing is Red and Co are mainly about rescue, not combat.

>>28872998
It's /tg/ we're talking about, the same people who go Leeroy jenkins-ing into things even as a Cleric.... though to be honest Clerics aren't like FF mages, they can hold up decently in combat.

>>28873091
>>Well, to be fair, he has a point.
>>Say so in a concerned tone.

>>28873091
>"Apparently heightened senses." Tarin says. "Yeah, I know it sounds boring, but it's incredibly useful. I heard she was a great asset in sniffing out Mujahideen hideouts. I hear she's sensitive enough that she can even pick up radio waves."

DOOOOOOMED!

>>28873091
>Well, to be fair, he has a point.

>>28873091
>Well, to be fair, he has a point.
This, but in a more sympathetic way.

Also what the hell is McMurdo? Desk jockey job?

>>28873127
>McMurdo

It's Antarctic research center.

>>28873127
Try Antarctica.

Except unlike Siberia, there aren't even any trees to count there.

>>28873142
>>28873149
okay. let's not go there

>>28873091
>>That's terrible!
Poor cap.

>>28873091
>>Well, to be fair, he has a point.
don't go trying to punch tank witches

>>28873091
>to be fair, he has a point
"Don't scare us like that, Cap!"

>>28873091
"To be fair, he has a point." You sigh. "You really worried us out there, Cap!"

"Yep." Tarin nods in agreement.

"I'm sorry about that, girls. I really am." Cap sighs. "Guess I'll try to reign in that warrior spirit of mine, huh?"

"Yeah." You snicker a bit and then remember the second half of Janice's request. "Oh right, apparently you've got mail!"

"More?" Cap frowns. "Who could it possibly be from?"

"Beats me. Apparently from one of her friends at Elmendorf or something." You shrug.

Cap then breaks open the envelope and reads the letter. It couldn't have been very long because he looks at the writing in confusion but seconds later breaks down in laughter.

"Oh man, I should have expected that!"

Curious you peek over to see what's written on the letter. Tarin pretends not to be interested but you see her slowly inching over as well. Your eyes scan the letter, which says:

>Dear Captain Pierce,

>YOU'RE A GODDAMN IDIOT

>XOXO Chris

Well... that was something.

>Ask Cap who Chris is.
>Ignore it. It's none of your business.
>Other

>>28873324
>>Ignore it. It's none of your business.

let's not go snooping too heavily.

>>28873324
>>Ask Cap who Chris is.
Fuck it.

>>28873324
Wait, if it's Bitchtits' XO, wouldn't Red know who that is?

>other
>ask Cap what he got

>>28873324
>Ignore it. It's none of your business.
Do not like but must... respect... privacy.

>>28873324
>Ask Cap who Chris is.

I am really liking Chris, here's to hoping she shows up later on.

>>28873324
>Ask Cap who Chris is.

Uh wait, shouldn't Red know who she is because she used to be under her direct command?

>>28873387
I get the feeling that Red's going to end up with chest issues, more so if Chris is brought up. Bad enough she's doomed to be a little sister type to Pierce.

>>28873363
Red's a new transfer and never actually met Chris, or at least didn't think much of it. If you recall, Pierce never brought her along to the witch barracks when he encountered her.

>>28873324
>>Ask Cap who Chris is.

>>28873324
>Ask Cap who Chris is.

>>28873411
that and she might not know her by first name, but maybe her last name.

>>28873401
>Bad enough she's doomed to be a little sister type to Pierce
Don't you bring that evil upon us

>>28873324
>>Ask Cap who Chris is.

>>28873324
>[x]Ask Cap who Chris is.

>>28873437

But she is little sister

>>28873324
>Ask Cap who Chris is.

>>28873387
You and me both.

I am a Chrisfag.

>>28873486
hush

So Red is Miyafuji, Tarin is apparently Tarin, and Janice is Mami.
Can't you be original AT ALL, Merc? Not even a little?

>>28873486
Yes, but it's fun to play the jealous little sister

>>28873324
"Who's this Chris person?" You ask somewhat suspiciously.

"What, you don't remember?" Cap blinks. "She's Colonel Macleod's XO back in Elmendorf."

You try to recall the time you spent there, and vaguely remember a blonde witch with a pair of daisy cutters grafted to her chest.

"Oh... OH." You say in realization. "I didn't know you were friends with her."

"Yeah, well, we sort ran into each other and she really helped me out of a tight spot." Cap grins. "A bit blunt and vulgar times, but she's really nice."

You're... you're not sure how to feel about that. However, before you can stew in it, the door to the room opens again.

"Oh, I didn't know you already had company here, sir." Rex says apologetically as he steps in. "If you want I can wait in the hall..."

"Oh no, it's all right!" You and Cap say at once. You both look at each other awkwardly and return your attention to Rex.

"Um, well," Rex scratches his head, as if trying to figure out how to best say what's on his mind. "some of the PJ crews are thinking of putting together a poker night in Hangar P. Anderson's given his implicit approval so there's no worries of run ins with the brass. We were wondering if you were up to going."

"Normally, I'd be all for going AWOL for some party time." Cap sighs. "But I'm sort of on a tight leash here, so I'm not sure if I should risk it."

>I'm sure Anderson would understand.
>It's probably better you stay here.
>Other

>>28873625
I like the little jealous sister

but Them Janice and Chires...

A tarin is fine too

>>28873604
Nah, Red isn't a mary sue or completely useless.

>>28873644
>>I'm sure Anderson would understand.

>>28873644
>It's probably better you stay here.
>Cancel that thing with Janice and Tarin to hang out with Cap

>>28873644
>It's probably better you stay here.

>>28873604
Because obviously Mami is a totally original character and not derived from the same motherly stereotype Janice was.

Other

Why don't you ask?

>>28873644
>Other
It's not like there isn't a medical professional we could ask if Cap is ready to leave his bed for a few hours.

>>28873644
>>Other
Let's see if we can get his discharge processed more quickly, perhaps using some sparkles to hurry things along. Perhaps we can get in on this poker night!

>>28873644
>I'm sure Anderson would understand.

>>28873687
Which makes Merc even LESS original.

>>28873644
>>I'm sure Anderson would understand.

If Anderson wasn't somewhat friendly, Pierce wouldn't have gotten off with just a warning.

>>28873644
>Other
Ask one of the doctors if he'd be okay to leave for some poker

>>28873702
Practically nothing is original anymore. Someone's always going to pop up and say 'That's just like X!'. Best to accept it & move along.

>I'm sure Anderson would understand.

>>28873702
And how does this make him any different from literally almost every other QM on this board?

>>28873761
At least they're honest about it.

>>28873644
"I'm sure Anderson would understand." You shrug. "I mean, if he's willing to condone an off the books party, I'm sure he can overlook a by all accounts healthy guy going AWOL for a night."

"Yeah, you got a point there." Cap grins. "But I'll stay here till it gets dark. Maybe I'll get lucky and they'll discharge me before the end of the day."

"That would be nice." You nod.

"How about you? You're invited too." Rex says, turning to you.

>Hell yeah.
>Actually, I got other plans...
>What about Janice and Tarin?
>Other

>>28873814
>Actually, I got other plans...

>>28873779
Considering Merc is running a Strike Witch quest right now, I think it's safe to say that originality is not something that's high on his priorities.

>>28873814
>Hell yeah.

>>28873814
>>Hell yeah.
>>What about Janice and Tarin?
Need to get murdermute and the professional big sister out more.

>>28873814
>>What about Janice and Tarin?

>>28873814
>Actually, I got other plans...

Girls night out, remember?

>>28873814
>>Actually, I got other plans...
Girls' Night, yo.

>>28873854
>>28873859
Eh why not

>>28873814
>Actually, I got other plans...

>>28873814
>>Hell yeah.
>>What about Janice and Tarin?

Why not try to have them join in on the fun? No one said it was a guys only thing.

>>28873814
>Actually, I got other plans...
Unless Janice and Tarin want to join. We should ask them what they want to do

>>28873896

But Janice wanted to go out with just the three of them.

>>28873944
We should ask them what they want to do. If they want a girls night then the guys can have a guys night

>>28873944
hence asking them what they want to do, for all we know Janice might go along with the card game.

>>28873814
>>What about Janice and Tarin?

>>28873814
"Hey, what about Janice and Tarin?" You ask. "Can they come along, too?"

"I don't see why not." Rex shrugs. "They're part of the crew too, right? Just... keep quiet, okay? We don't want the whole damn base showing up."

"Gotcha." You nod and turn to Tarin. "Tarin, you in?"

"Well..."

"If you answer in any way other than 'yes', I'm going straight to Janice."

"Then why did you even ask me...?" Tarin blinks, confused.

"Because that's what Janice would have wanted. To give you the illusion of free choice in the matter." You nod.

"Oh! We're having a party tonight?" Janice says as she steps into the room.

"Janice? What are you doing here?" You blink.

"Well, I was delivering breakfast to our hard working helo crew, of course! But I just missed Rex so I followed him all the way here! Here you go!" Janice happily hands Rex his breakfast.

"Ummm, thanks." Rex says, a bit confused. "Anyways, I need to be heading back. I'll see you guys later tonight, then. Hangar P, 2100."

"So.. what about our girls' night out?" You say.

"Hmmmm, I guess we can save it for another day." Janice smiles. "But I do think we should also value our camaraderie with the other PJs here. Not just our own team!"

"You're not afraid of the guys there hitting on your, or anything?" You blink.

"Red, you speak as if I haven't had experience in that matter!" Janice laughs lightly.

Oh, right. Damn.

"Anyways, I guess we should go get our day duties sorted out before this party." Janice says as she tugs at both you and Tarin to follow her.

----

You watch as Red, Janice, and Tarin leave your hospital room, and you can't help but smile. They seemed to be doing well for themselves, even in your absence. You were actually pretty damn proud of them, Red especially.

Now, the problem was getting to that party everybody was talking about.

>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.
>Just wait for nightfall and sneak out.
>Other

>>28873814
>[x]What about Janice and Tarin?
Then tell them what's going down, if they want to play, then ok. If not Red goes with the girls

>>28874283
>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.
Failing that...
>Just wait for nightfall and sneak out.
I mean really.

>>28874283
>>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

reason it'll be a few days before the unit gets another mission.

>>28874283
>Ask the doctors to clear you for light partying.

>>28874283
>>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>Ask the doctors to clear you for duty.

>>28874283
>>Just wait for nightfall and sneak out.
We're no longer adorable magic girl!? Terrible!

>>28874283
Well, you might as well do the polite thing and ask to be cleared. You pick up the phone next to your bed and dial the reception desk for your doctor.

"Doctor Lindell will be up shortly." The nurse on station assures you.

About fifteen minutes later, a relatively short woman with long brown hair strides in to your hospital room. She was Doctor Lindell, the healwitch in charge of your recovery.

"Oh, Red isn't here today?" She asks curiously, looking around the empty room.

"Nah, she just left. She's a bit busy today." You say.

"I see." Lindell nods. "So why did you call me up here today?"

"Well, I was sort of wondering if you could push up my discharge date." You say as innocently as you can. "Like you said before, there don't seem to be any complications, and there IS a war going on..."

"Well, you do have a point." Lindell nods and checks her chart. "But... I'd like to keep you at least for the night to make sure."

"Actually, I was hope you could discharge me today."

"Ah, in a hurry, I see." Lindell grins. "Got plans tonight, soldier?"

>No, nothing at all.
>I just wanted to get back to my unit. That's all.
>Well, there's this party thing going on...
>Other

>>28874560
>No, nothing at all.
And wink.

>>28874560
>>Well, there's this party thing going on...
"You want in?"

Honesty.

Not cleared for work but cleared for partying.

>>28874560
>Other
"Okay doc, let's cut the crap. What do I need to bribe you with to discharge me early?"

>>28874573
this

>>28874560
>>I just wanted to get back to my unit. That's all.
>>Well, there's this party thing going on...
Gonna try to have some fun with our girls.

>>28874560
>Other

"Maybe, A discharge would certainly help."

>>28874573
>>28874599
I feel type of combo this works when she calls out bs on the 'No' part.

>>28874560
You decide that honesty was the best way to deal with doctors. Besides, Lindell had been nothing but polite and helpful to you. You'd feel bad lying to her like that.

"Well, there's sort of party going on soon that my guys are throwing, and well, it'd be a shame to miss it." You say. "I mean, it's not that bad right?"

"Hmmmmm..." Lindell pauses as if she's considering it.

"Okay, seriously, what do I need to do to get you to discharge me early?" You ask.

"Oh, you guys are just so cute when you get desperate like that!" Lindell grins. "I was going to discharge you anyways the moment you asked. There's honestly no reason for me to keep you here other than red tape, which I can cut due to 'wartime emergency' aaaaand healwitch privilege."

"I.... totally walked into that one, didn't I?" You sigh. "What am I in for?"

"Think of it as repaying a favor." Lindell grins. "Saving a witch is a big deal in our circles. It's the least I can do."

"Wow... thanks, Doctor." You say, sliding out of your bed.

After spending so much time bedridden, even with rehab sessions, your legs still don't feel quite right. You feel slower, clumsier. However, Lindell assures you that it's a normal feeling, and that it'll go away the more you walk. After gathering your personal effects, you give a respectful nod to the nurses as you walk out he door.

>Head straight for the party.
>Drop by the barracks first.
>Other

>>28874832
>>Drop by the barracks first.

>>28874832
>Drop by the barracks first.

>>28874832
>Drop by the barracks first.

Get into something that doesn't smell of hospital.

>>28874832
>Drop by the barracks first.

drop off things, change in to better smelling attire.

>>28874832
>Drop by the barracks first.

>>28874832
>Drop by the barracks first.

>>28874832
>>Drop by the barracks first.

Healwitch waifu?

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>>28874832
You manage to find an off duty ambulance driver who's nice enough to drive you back to your barracks. Unlike Red, you haven't been constantly traveling between the two buildings so you don't know the path back by heart. Looking at the barracks as you step out of the ambulance, you feel as if this was the first time seeing it after being away for years, decades even. It was funny since you were hardly away for more than a few weeks. However, it looked the same as it ever did. Walking in, you notice immediately that the interior was lot cleaner than you last saw it. Nearly spotless, in fact. The same janitor you had seen working here on your first day here is quietly dozing off on one of the couches. You can't help but grin. Seems like Janice was running a tight ship in here as much as she was out in the field.

Your room is likewise nearly impeccable. Unchanged since you last saw it, most likely courtesy of Red. Grinning, you shirk off your wrinkled fatigues, which now reek of hospital antiseptic.

After a quick shower, you put on a fresh uniform and just take a deep breath. It's felt like forever since you've had a proper shower.

(cont)

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>>28875195
"WILL!"

Unfortunately, you long hospital stay means you're not quite as fast as you used to be, and you fail to dodge Bree's enthusiastic tackle this time.

"Damnit, Bree!" You croak. "Are ou trying to put me back in the hospital!??!"

"I'm just too exciiiited!" She squeals, hugging you even tighter. "You're finally back!"

"N-not for long." You wheeze.

Finally, Bree lets go of the hug and helps you back to your feet.

"Anyways, it's really great to see you up and about." Bree grins, but then leans forward. "Hey, you don't happen to now what Red and the others are up to, do you? They seem to be acting pretty... suspicious if you ask me."

You're conflicted. On the one hand, you don't want to lie to your sister, but on the other, you just know that if you tell her, she's going to crash the party, and you're not sure how that's going to turn out.

>I have no idea what you're talking about.
>We're going to a party.
>Other

>>28875207
>I have no idea what you're talking about.

>>28875207
>I have no idea what you're talking about.

We are totally not whipped by our sister.

...Right guys? Guys?

>>28875207
>Other
"What was that, Bree? You want me to sing Halloween songs?"

>>28875242
this

>>28875207
>Other

"It's probably nothing, This place sure looks different from a few weeks back, so clean!"

>>28875242

please no.

>>28875207
>>We're going to a party.

>>28875207
>We're going to a party.
No lying to big sis. She'd probably find out anyways

>>28875207
>Other
Just organizing a little get together for the PJs, non-PJs not allowed in

>>28875207

>>28875269
changing from this to >>28875295

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>>28875207
"We're going to a party." You sigh. No point lying to Bree. She'd probably follow you there, anyways.

"REALLY?!" Bree's eyes flash. "Can I-"

"No."

"You didn't even let me finish!" Bree pouts.

"Look Bree, this is a PJ only thing, all right? What are they going to think if you suddenly show up uninvited? Besides, don't you like, throw parties in here all the time?"

"Yeah, well it's not the same." Bree somehow manages to pout even harder. "I mean, there's going to be actually GUYS there and-"

"No. Nononononono. You're not going there, and your witches ESPECIALLY aren't going to be going." You shake your head. "Seriously, Bree, if you do show up I am going to teach each and every PJ there every single Halloween song you hate. Which is all of them."

"Fiiiiiiiiiiiiine." Bree sighs. "But you're going to have to make a promise, okay?"

"What is it?" You sigh, knowing you'll regret letting your curiosity get the better of you.

"When me and the girls throw a house party, you'll have to come to it, too. No ifs, ands, buts!"

>Deal
>No Deal
>Other

>>28875355
>>Deal

Could be interesting

>>28875355
>Other
Start singing and walk to the hangar

>>28875355
>>Deal

>>28875355
>>Deal

As long as you dont treat me like a piece of meat

>>28875355
>Deal
But I'll be bringing anti-grope security in the form of one or more of my witches

>>28875355
>Deal
But we get to bring Chris and when the party gets boring we're going upstairs to break every bed in the barracks

>>28875355
>Deal

keep in mind she never said anything about staying for the entire thing.

>>28875355
>Deal
are squad comes with as well so we have someone to protect are manmeat

>>28875391
I thought Chris was still at Elmendorf
>>28875395
>are squad
>are manmeat
>are
please tell me this is intentional...or at least that you're drunk

>>28875416
we'll bring her over just to be arm candy for the party

I'd much rather bring Red since we know we can rely on her.

>>28875416
it is nearly 6am I am tired

>>28875456
> I are tired
FTFY

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>>28875355
"Fine, deal." You sigh. "Now I really got to be going, okay."

"Have fun then, little bro!" Bree gives you the most devilish grin.

You give her a wave as you leave the barracks. As you make your way to the door, you run into Red, Janice, and Tarin.

"Cap!" Red's eyes light up. "You got out fine?"

"Yeah, the doctor agreed to discharge me early." You smile. "As of today Captain Pierce is back on duty."

"Excellent! Another thing to celebrate, then!" Janice smiles. "Come now, we can't be late."

As the four of you make your way to Hangar P, you can't help but feel that things are going to be okay. Red, Janice, Tarin, even Rex, Hoskins, Bullseye, and Snips, they were not just any crew, they were YOUR crew. After being separated from them for a few weeks, you now realize just how precious and wonderful they all are.

"Hey Cap, are you okay?" Red asks.

"Huh? Why do you ask?" You blink.

"You just had this really funny looks on your face." She says. "And I can swear you were tearing up or something."

"Nonsense. Must be a trick of the light." You respond. "Anyways, you've ever been to a party before, Red?"

"Ummmmm, no." Red shifts nervously.

"Oh, well you're in for hell of a time, then."

>And that's it for tonight! Apologies for the late start today. Be sure to come back on Friday evening for the next thread!

>>28875504
Thanks for running Merc.

>>28875504

Thanks for running Merc.

Also, Hornet should be posting the next part in the Bitchtits saga once he finishes catching up with the thread.

>>28875504
good run as always, looking forward to next thread.

if feelthyhornet is around, any more Bitchtits?

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>>28875600
Yeah, gimme a second to make sure I won't repost anything from before

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>>28875626
The most recent post of Rollercoaster can be found in:

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/28749811/

-

Holly stayed with her head against the desk long after the phone had started squawking at her to hang up, the call has been over for ten minutes.

"If it's not wrong, ma'am," she whispered, "if it's not wrong to be worried about mixed units, then why is everyone telling me that I'm wrong?"

She lifted her head off the desk slightly, and let it fall back down. Thud.

"Getting my people killed, because I'm worried about them? Because I'm worried about what happens in mixed units, and that I don't want to have that piling on top of everything else we all worry about? What the hell..."

Thud.

"Can't happen. Won't happen. I won't let it happen."

Thud.

She could hear Georgette, Chris, Commander Kazanski, and Grenadine all telling her something she didn't want to hear.

'You don't get to make that choice, Holly.'

"It's my job to at least try, Goddamnit!"

Sucking in a breath through her teeth, a frustrated sob escaping her lips, Holly raised the phone over her head, as though she were going to slam it home onto the receiver, breaking it and possibly part of the desk. For a moment she really was going to, she was sorely tempted, looks from maintenance be damned. Self control prevailed, and she softly put the phone back in place.

She took a few moments to collect herself, wiping her cheeks to make sure that any sign of her losing her bearing was gone, trying to restore the look of the tempermental but confident officer she was in front of everyone else.

>>28875699
'Lets list just how little I've managed to accomplish for the last half hour:
1. I've discovered that Frank Bishop is alive! Georgette Mackintosh is on the case! (oh my god really that is so cool)
2. Barely. He could still die.
3. I am expressly forbidden from telling a soul about Frank's condition. Admiral's Orders, Georgette's personal request.
4. Georgette can be added to the list of people who think I might be doing this whole Wing Commander Thing wrong.
5. So goddamn much for making things up to Spellcaster and its commander.

Great work, MacLeod.'

Chris was pressing against the door, as though she were trying to get in, the side of her face mashed up against the window. Sighing, Holly stood up from the seat, trying and failing to feign annoyance. Chris had been with her since they graduated from the academy, always there for her to lean on. She couldn't ask for a better friend.

The door suddenly unlocked from the other side, and Chris walked in, waving a spare key at Holly.

"I was worried about you."

"Huh."

"You didn't see me standing at the door for like half the phone call?"

"N-no."

"Gawd, you get so tied up in things." She smiled at the shorter witch. "So tell me how it went."

"Not good enough. Maybe terrible. I really don't know." She winced as Chris ruffled her red hair. "I've been ordered to keep mum on Bishop."

"Order my ass, MacLeod. Witch Privilege, girl! Come on!"

"It's not just orders. I'll...tell you about it some time. I just need to take a walk."

"To your room for some sleep." Chris grabbed one of Holly's arms, dragging her to the door. "Come...on! Stop being stubborn!

"N-no, I'll be fine Chris, really!" She was better than Chris at self-defense, but the blonde was taller and just plain stronger to boot. She was delaying the inevitable just dragging her feet on the floor.

>>28875725
"Holllllyyyyyyyyyy..." Chris whined again. "Don't make me get Raker to help me drag you to bed." Her face brightened up. "Better yet, I'll get Wilkins, he'll warm those boots for ya, and maaaaaybe something else if you know what I-"

"W-W-Wilkins?! What the hell, Chris!"

-

The strong winds outside of the witch barracks forced Holly to keep one hand on her prized cowboy hat. It was a gag gift from Chris and everyone else in the Fighting Mudhens squadron on her 18th birthday a couple years back, but she treasured it nonetheless. Even if Chris and her jokes about Wilkins made her want to throw it in a furnace. She stomped away from the barracks, the laughter from her friend still audible over the wind and the roars of steelwings streaking down the runways, feeling unusually warm despite the usual Alaskan chill.

'The crews did a nice thing for all of us, dammit Chris! Warm me up, she says. Gawd.'

Holly made a beeline for her wing's designated hangar. Whenever she was flustered by crude jokes from Chris, frustrated by paperwork, both at the same time, or feeling down after a legendary war hero told her that she was possibly a danger to those she cared for the most in the whole world (after Mom and Dad, anyway), her strikers and her weapons could always use attention.

It wasn't that the ground crews didn't know how to handle her equipment. She just felt that as the things that would keep her aloft and alive in the worst conditions in the sky, she needed to know how to take care of things herself. As far as she was concerned, there was no such thing as being too careful when her life consisted of slipping magical jet engines over her legs and breaking the sound barrier just by thinking about it.

God, she loved strikers. She loved that they let her fly far and fast. A love of flying wasn't exactly uncommon among witches, but she didn't think there was much in the world that could beat the freedom of flight.

>>28875741
If she lived to see the end of the war, she hoped that she could still fly with her wingmates as far and as high as her strikers could take her. No frantic maneuvers to avoid incoming fire, no Flanker-Cs trying to grind her to paste. Just her, her witches, and a clear sky.

Her F-15E strikers were already being tended to by Wilkins' team, access ports open, parts arranged all around it. She didn't rightly understand absolutely everything that went into their maintenance, but she insisted on learning as much as she could.

"Hey Colonel," Wilkins smiled at her before returning his attention to one of the access panels. "You're not up for a while yet. Need to get away from the boring stuff for a bit, huh?"

"You could say that. Don't worry guys, this isn't a surprise inspection or anything. Consider me another hand, if you need one."

"Sounds good, ma'am." Wilkins pointed over to a nearby table. "We've set up your weapons already, minus the ammo of course."

"Thanks." She appraised her strikers for a moment before turning towards her guns. "You've got my babies opened up quite a bit today. Replaced the turbines already?"

"Ayup. Everyone's gettin' that done, Wartime strain on parts and all. We were gonna run some start up tests and foci adjustments with yer kit in a little bit, based on your presets of course, but now that you're here you can make things a lot easier for us and actually be in them."

"That's good," Holly started to disassemble her M-16A2, entirely by reflex and memory at this point. "I was thinking of a way to return the favor from yesterday, that could be a start."

>>28875752
"Aww, hell, ma'am." Wilkins shook his head. "It wasn't a special favor or anything. You witches are out in the cold, and we're not."

"Magic, Wilkins."

"Magic nothin'. It's cold as shit that late at night, ma'am." She was surprised to hear Wilkins walk towards her, almost dropping the firing pin to her 16. "Besides, I kinda noticed somethin' the other day."

"Oh?"

"Well, everyone knows that black Tomcat didn't come back from Tanana."

'Bishop again.'

"Y-yeah, and?" She frowned, setting the pin down on the table and looking up at the tech sergeant.

"Well, some of the guys who run greasemonkey for Spellcaster said that whole squadron just up and quit for a day over that. Whoa-" he reached past Holly to catch the firing pin as it started to roll off the table. "I kinda got worried about you guys too."

"Joint units have their own problems to deal with." She held up a hand, and Wilkins dropped the pin into her palm. "We ought to be fine, but thanks for looking out for us."

He looked at her for a second, squinting slightly.

"If you say so, ma'am." Spinning around, Wilkins made his way back to the strikers. "The hell are you boys lookin' at! Close 'er stuff up, come on now!"

"We ain't lookin' at nuthin Billy Willy!" The techs all started laughing among themelves.

Holly was really glad that Chris had pushed her to request that this ground crew stay attached to the whole wing. It was always nice to know that there was someone else looking out for her girls.

-

"Okay, I'm ready."

Holly lowered herself into the strikers, her familiar manifesting along with the comforting warmth of magic flowing through her body. Her headwings knocked her cowboy hat off her head, and the wind caused by her strikers blew it into Wilkins' waiting hands. There was the slight buzzing sensation as her legs vanished into the interface, a hiss as fitting cushions expanded, allowing for a snug fit around her upper thighs.

>>28875761
The MFD on her wrist blinked a series of start up processes at her, synching with her HUD goggles.

The striker stand shifted as the engines lit up, an impressively large magic circle expanding underneath. The engine nozzles expanded as more power was fed into them, and closed as Holly 'relaxed' on the 'throttle'. The process repeated itself several times, a contented smile on her lips.

"We're good," she said distractedly. "MFD-HUD Link all green with zero detectable lag, no out lights, no cautions, good highs, good lows, magic interface normal, focus normal." With a disappointed sigh, she cut off the magic, the strikers winding down and sagging back towards the ground. She could have told everyone she was going up for a test hop, but that wasn't something that a disciplined officer should do, she thought. Wilkins and another tech were already at her side, helping her out of the strikers and down to her waiting boots.

"First class work you guys." She gratefully accepted her hat back from Wilkins before slipping back into her boots, familiar vanishing with a muted pop. "The settings were spot on, like putting on a set of pants."

"Awright guys, take a breather, meet over by the Lt. Colonel's kit in ten," Wilkins said, taking another quick walk around Holly's strikers, making sure there was nothing left behind by anyone. Satisfied, he took a seat next to the Colonel, who was still fiddling with her boots.

"You run a pretty good shop, Wilkins."

"Someone's gotta, right?" He grinned at her.

"No, I'm serious. We can tell when something's off with our strikers. Kinda goes with the interface. I can't think of any time within the last year that I've ever had that feeling."

>>28875784
"One year, two months as of today, without any downchecked strikers," Wilkins stated proudly.

"Really?"

"Uh huh. Ordnance boys aren't so lucky, still working on that."

"I didn't find any problems with my stuff, so maybe it's working out."

"Maybe." They both shared a laugh. "So what brings you to our side of the fence so early, Colonel?"

"Nothing that affects you," Holly said, "but definitely something I'm happy to set aside. If just for a little bit."

"I won't bug you about it, then." The two sat in silence for a moment. Holly stared out through the open hangar doors into the horizon. "I uh, found out about you requesting my team to stay with the 3rd Witch Wing permanently."

"I think you earned, Wilkins." Holly said, feeling a sudden weight in her throat. "I do what I can for the girls, but I'm starting to think it's not enough. So...thanks. I'll repay it somehow. I don't know how, but I will."

"I think we're square, Colonel."

-

The lull after Tanana continued, another evening in the sky where the Russians were apparently playing coy. That suited Holly just fine, she was still feeling the the effects of a bad night's sleep. The cold was getting to her sooner than usual, and while she was certain that if properly motivated she could turn and burn as needed, she hoped it wouldn't be necessary.

She was also on the receiving end of some form of bizarre psychological warfare that Chris was practicing on her. Chris had found Holly sitting next to Wilkins in front of her strikers, with predictable results.

"Just tell me already! What DID you two talk about, hmm?" Chris closed up their formation once again to hound MacLeod. Holly answered with a 'hmph', turning her head away from her friend. "Oh, don't be like that, not when you give so much ammo to work with." She rolled over to Holly's left, taking a poke at one of her headwings as she did. Holly 'hmph'd' again and turned her head the opposite way.

>>28875799
"I mean, I poke some fun at you ABOUT Wilkins, you immediately run TO Wilkins, what sort of connection do you want me to make-"

"None!" Holly snapped. "At all! Whatsoever!"

"You're blushing."

"I know!"

There was a minute of sweet silence between the two, Holly taking in deep breaths to try and regain her composure the entire time. This was how their patrol had gone almost the minute they broke above the cloud layer in their assigned sector. The storm they were flying over was rolling towards Elemdorf, nothing serious, but it meant that the approach back to Elemdorf was going to suck. Fairly high winds and snow meant that Holly suddenly really liked the idea that Wilkins and and the rest of the crew were going to be waiting for them with those space heaters.

"I went," Holly said, with all the calm she could muster, "to the hangar. To check on my strikers, and my weapons."

"And Wilkins."

"He was THERE, but he wasn't WHY I went there. We ran a start up test on my strikers, which is why we were sitting next to them."

>>28875815
"Oh, I bet that went real well." Holly glared at her friend; Chris countered with feigned offense. "Mind out of the gutter MacLeod! I was going to say that I couldn't help but notice that my strikers are particularly responsive tonight. They do a full work up?"

"I can't win, I just can't win," Holly moaned in despair.

"I'm queen at this game, Eagle. QUEEN." Chris patted her friend on the shoulder before drifting to a safe space away from her.

"Why do you always, ALWAYS do this to me? Whenever there's a guy YOU'VE got your eyes on, you always act like I'M the one who just can't wait to get her legs wrapped around-"

"Norn One-One, ARCHANGEL."

"Go ARCHANGEL," Holly responded, instinctively flicking the safety off of her M16A2, while Chris slapped a belt of ammunition into her M249. Something about the voice from the AWACS told them that this wasn't a friendly call to remind them that relief was on the way.

"Relaying a request from Elemdorf tower, they're saying they have an intermittent contact thirty klicks to your north, too small to be a recon steelwing. Possible night witch. Your flight is currently the closest to intercept, we're vectoring in another pair of sparkles, designated Stalker Flight, from the east to assist."

"Can we get a data link from you on a more precise position of this contact?"

"Negative Norn One-One, whatever it is it isn't appearing on our screens at this time. We have designated search box as Nike."

"Roger. Norn Flight, pushing to waypoint Nike."

"I'll lead us in Eagle," Chris said, not waiting for a reply. The engines on her strikers flared, and within seconds she'd put about a thousand feet of distance between them. She probably knew that if there was a scrap, Holly didn't have same amount of fight left in her after the extended patrol.

>>28875834
It would add another hour to the patrol to accomplish a thorough sweep over a one hundred square mile piece of sky, which meant dipping into the cloud layer far below. Between the four witches of Norn and Stalker flights, ideally there'd be no place to hide. If the night witch was around, surely they'd catch her.

-

Another yawn threatened to escape her lips, and Holly barely managed to stifle it before wearily putting in a call to ARCHANGEL. She was shuddering from the cold now, and it didn't help that the storm below had given her a thorough dusting of snow. Most of it had melted on contact with her magically protected body, but as the search dragged on, the water was starting to freeze on her protective coat, seeping under the protective layers of cloth. It was possibly the most miserable she'd ever felt as a witch since the war statred, even worse than her storm navigation trials in the academy.

What made this more frustrating is that mid way through the search, ARCHANGEL called in a contact report in Stalker flight's general vicinity, which got Holly and Chris burning more precious magic to race over and support them, only to come up empty, and more tired for their trouble. There'd been two other false contact reports, neither of which had been responded to with the same level of intensity.

Shivering, Holly opened up her coat to reach for a 'juice box', gasping from the sudden chill that blew into the coat. The energy drink couldn't come close to bringing her back to full strength, but it did taste surprisingly good, and it would help keep her flying.

Of course, despite being pressed tightly against her chest, the drink packet had turned into an icy slurry that took effort to suck down.

The search had given Holly time to think about the day she'd had, and that wasn't doing her any favors with the weather and her physical state.

>>28875863
She was worried now, more than ever, about the whole wing, about the girls immediately under her in the Fighting Mudhens. Her phone call with Georgette should have been the most exciting thing to happen to Holly MacLeod in her entire life, just after her first flight in strikers. Instead, she found herself second guessing...everything. All her offhand comments about Spellcaster's CO crying in a corner were coming back to haunt her. She knew she'd be no better off if Chris was taken from her. Possibly worse. If she planned an op that went badly and cost her witches in the Mudhens, she'd be a wreck. All the survivors would be.

'Which is I am the way I am!' she shouted in her mind. 'Everything I do is to avoid having that happen to me! To anyone! I'm...I'm as flexible as I can be, and I stand firm where I have to!'

"H-hey Eagle?" Chris' voice over their private frequency was welcome, even after all the ribbing. She didn't sound to be dealing with the cold much better than Holly was.

"I h-hear ya."

"A-are you e-ever gonna t-tell me about th-that phone call?"

"I w-will. Promise." Holly hoped that her smile was somehow also being communicated over the mile that separated them.

"H-hey. I'm s-sorry about all th-the jokes. Okay? I'm really sorry."

"I sh-should be used to it by now...I shouldn't s-snap at you."

"I m-mean...if you d-don't swing th-that way, I should at l-least respect th-that, r-right? Lord knows..." Chris trailed off. There was an extended pause before both women started laughing.

"Goddamnit Chris. I needed that." This had done more for Holly than that stupid juice. The sun had dipped below the horizon hours ago, but she felt as though it was shining on her now.

"If we're laughing, we're living."

Behind the laughter, Holly swore she could hear a high pitched wail in the distance.

>>28875881
'Strikers!'

Instinctively, she rolled over onto back, aiming her '16 into the sky, and was momentarily blinded as her shield barrier flared up. The distant report of an AK echoed from above.

"ARCHANGEL, NORN ONE-ONE HAS BEEN ENGAGED BY RED SPARKLE!"

There was an explosion of comm chatter from the other three witches and the AWACS.

"HOLLY! HOLLY PULL HER TOWARDS ME-"

"Hang in there, Eagle! Stalker One-One vectoring on your-"

"Stalker One-Two! I see 'em, tracers and one barrier on my five and I'm en route-"

"-reapeat, ARCHANGEL relaying hostile contact at map grid-"

Searching for all the strength she could muster, Holly clenched her weapon that much tighter, feeding magic into it to melt the ice that had undoubtedly formed up, while also pouring more coal onto the fires of her strikers, boosting out of the hail of bullets. 'Where is she, where-'

"I got 'er," Chris called out, half way between excitement and panic, "follow my tracers!" Her M249 chattered a lengthy burst, the tracers appearing like lasers in the evening sky. Following that, Holly quickly found the pale skinned, black jump suit-wearing witch diving in on her among the starfield above, saw the bright green glow of her magic antennae flaring up as she prepared her own defenses for the inevitable counterfire.

The Soviet was good, neatly evading everything Chris was throwing her way, her shield only manifesting for shots that would have hit for certain, allowing near misses through. Her focus was entirely on Holly.

'Ambush me, will you?' She reached forward on her rifle, and opened the breach to the attached M203 launcher. She then dug into her coat and produced a gold-tipped grenade, slamming it home into the launcher, taking careful aim.

>>28875916

shit that's fucking metal...

>>28875903
The Soviet witch seemed to understand what was about to happen, performing a snap roll to her left, trying to throw off the American's aim. A series of bright points of light shot free from the night witch-

'What the hell's that?'

-and Holly's world turned bright white. Reflexively she fired the grenade launcher, and somehow she could still make out Chris' panicked cries over the ensuing explosion.

"CAN'T SEE CAN'T COVER YOU EAGLE-"

"I KNOW, I KNOW!"

'She's still coming, I can hear her strikers.'

Relaxing into an inverted dive, Holly blind-fired several three round bursts from the '16, trying to blink away the effects of the night witch's attack.

'Has to be close now-'

Her vision cleared up just enough to see the Russian had blown through the HE grenade blast without a scratch, apparently having lost her rifle in the process, replacing it with a knife. She was also maybe fifty feet away, was going to crash right into Holly, and there was nothing either woman could do to prevent that.

Holly watched with surprise as her shield flickered to life, only to shatter a moment later as the Soviet crashed through it, knife pointed for her sternum. Eyes wide with fright, Holly fired another three round burst, the Russian's shield easily stopping them.

The knife thrust stopped just short of Holly's chest, the M-16 acting as an impromptu shield clashing against the witch's forearm.

Growling with effort, she tried to push the Russian away. The night witch didn't make a sound, red eyes staring blankly into Holly's blue ones. Through them.

They were falling very quickly towards the storm clouds.

"Get away from her Eagle! I can't shoot if she's right on top of you!" Chris shouted.

"GET OFF...OF ME!" With another push, Holly managed to get enough distance that she could avoid getting cut by that knife, and leveled her rifle once more at the witch.

>>28875943
For a moment it looked as though she would make another attempt to close the distance, but apparently decided against it. Holly slowly circled the night witch, hands shaking uncontrollably.

'She tried to stab me,' her mind raced. 'She actually tried freaking to stab me!'

"SURRENDER OR DIE SURRENDER OR DIE!" Chris roared, coming to a near perfect stop right next to the night witch, leveling her M249 at the Soviet's head. She held her fire only because of an unspoken understanding that she believed still applied even after her best friend had nearly been shot and/or knifed to death: witches didn't make killing witches a priority. "Eagle convince her to politely drop the small sharp stick!"

"Surrender!" Holly demanded, in halting Russian learned from a phrasebook in school years and years ago. "You are outnumbered! You cannot-"

The Soviet exploded into action, batting the M249 aside hard enough that Chris accidentally let loose a short burst of fire into thin air, while pointing the knife at Holly. A moment later the blade whistled just past her right ear. She juked to the side of another burst from the M-16 while, shot up and away from Chris, who was now trying to draw a bead on her, drew a small pistol from a hip holster and emptied the magazine at both Americans. By the time their shields faded, the night witch was already diving for the clouds. She vanished from sight a minute later, not even looking back.

>>28875968

fucking academy bitch

>>28875968
"Fuck. That." Chris panted, checking her weapon for damage. "I'm not chasing that down."

"Some doberman you are." Holly felt the shakes coming on something fierce.

"You okay?"

"I'm f-fine." She tried to smile at Chris for show. "We just got bounced by a lone night witch, no problem."

"Yeah. No problem." Chris orbited around Holly now. "No injuries?"

"No."

"Don't lie to me! Are you hurt?"

"No!"

"Okay." Chris breathed. "O-okay. You're fine. What the hell was she?"

"Some sort of night witch ninja thing, hell if I know. She shot a goddamned knife at me."

"That's what she shot at you back there?!"

"I know right?!"

-

And we'll cut things off here for the night.

Gonna hafta pick up the pace on the writing on my end.

>>28875988

why

why you cut off there you feelthy hornet

I was expecting Bed Gym exercises with Willkins post mission

>>28876010
mostly because we're getting closer enough to the end of my current writing that I want to give myself some time to get more done.

>>28876228
well I'm looking towards the next installment

Man, even Bitchtits has a crazy Russian witch lusting after her.

There should be like, a support group for this kind of thing.

>>28875598
I should note here that it was another entertaining run, Merc. Of course, I wait till you go offline to say that, because I am a rude asshole.

>>28876316
>Man, even Bitchtits has a crazy Russian witch lusting after her.

I think you've been tainted by Konstantina. This one was very obviously trying to kill her.

>>28876411
Yeah, I agree with hornert. Thanks merc

Also, Thanks for the update Hornet. Was that witch Konstanitina?

>>28878565
seeing as that witch used a AK and not a PP-19, no, it wasn't Stalinka

also sage for ded thread