>>3310580
>> Run away!
Tactical Retreat.

>>3310580
> APDS SHOT
> Engage at will!

Focus on Mei, and try to keep her from chasing Griselda.

>>3310580
> Follow Griselda!
Take a shot at Mei on our way out.

>>3310580
>>3310623
Sure prevent her from Griselda

> Engage at will!
> APDS SHOT

“Fire!”

Your APDS flies through the air, hopefully to hit Mei. It instead hits a T-54 that moves into the way just in time. Damn! The shot at least finds its way into their suspension right below the engine block. And it sends oil and fires out.

> KO: CHARLOTTE TUFFIN (T-54-3) *ELITE*
> KILL CREDITED TO: ELODIE R. ZUMWALT (Comet I “Oliver”) *ELITE*

And in the meantime, the fire spreads throughout the Jagdpanther. And unfortunately it too goes up.

> KO: DUCHESS SCHAEFER (Panzerjager V Jagdpanther “Ripley”)
> KILL CREDITED TO: FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3) *ELITE*

Mei starts moving to where Griselda was. But instead, you speed the tank forward and smash her into her side. She again goes spinning out. Come on, doesn’t she want a proper duel!? Then a shot scrapes across your side, shearing off the remaining spaced armor and even a bit of the applique. You look back to that other T-54 closing to point blank range.

Mei again pops smoke, leaving you with the last T-54 in that little group. Son of a bitch, she keeps trying to get away! You won’t let her get away this time!

Then she fires. The shot slams straight into your turret, sending you all spinning out of control. You all scream as you hold on. Oliver’s wounded! He goes spinning into a building, with brick and mortar crashing down onto the hull. You’re not buried that’s for sure. “Status!”

Stack says, “We’re fine! The shot must not have managed to hit anything important!”

“Not good, not good!” says Winona. “We’ve lost power to horizontal traverse!”

“Okay, I take that back!” says Stack.

“Can we fix it now!?” you shout.

“Yeah, yeah! Just give me a second, it’s probably something with the mechanics!”

“What position is the turret pointing!?”

“12 O’Clock!” Stack says. “Wait! Winona, do you still have the hand wheels, do those still work!?” Winona quickly tries the wheels. Slowly, you feel the turret move. Well, that works at least. “Okay, I can fix this then, stand by!” Stack lowers herself in. “Until then, you’re stuck with that!” Shit.

The other T-54 closes to near 50 meters away. Mei has gone. AGAIN.

> COMMAND POINTS: 52 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> Run away so you can pull your repairs.
> Retreat!
> If this bastard wants a fight, give him one!
> Other

>>3310741
> Run away so you can pull your repairs.

>>3310741
>> Run away so you can pull your repairs.

>>3310741
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> SMOKE SHOT
> Run away so you can pull your repairs.
Launch our own smoke and use a shell to cover Griselda, then have her get out from behind the wrecked Jpanther. We need to pull back, get some breathing space, regroup and reassess. We aren't going to win this with boldness alone, we need a plan. A plan so cunning, you stick a tail on it and call it a fox.

File: chengdu.png (1.65 MB, 1442x800)

1.65 MB PNG

> Run away so you can pull your repairs.

You take out the bomb launcher and load a smoke shell. Then you fire it out of the hatch. The smoke explodes over the head of your tank, just in time for Josephina to pull the tank right out of the bricks and get moving after Griselda. The T-54 attempts to block your path. “Fire!”

The next shell is a simple smoke shot. It explodes against the hull, dousing it in smoke, just long enough for you to speed past. You’ll follow on after Griselda. Mei again has gone missing. Probably looking to ambush too or looking to pursue from a different angle. “Griselda, you read?”

“We’re good!” says Griselda. “Any sign of Denise or Serafina?”

“This is Serafina! We’re being pursued by another T-54! It must be one of the ones that had its tracks killed earlier!” Well, good to know. “We’re on the north end of town!”

“What about Denise?” you ask.

“No sign of her!” says Griselda. “Maybe her radio got busted!” Damn it. Alright. Just the three of you then. You take a look at the map. Ingrid has already plotted the predicted courses for you to look at. Serafina’s going southwest towards the river. And you’re already headed west yourself. You’ll need to think quick before Mei comes back.

> COMMAND POINTS: 52 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> Have everyone rally at the river bank. Super numbers should win.
> Try and draw Mei towards the city center. The tight corners and city streets will favor nobody and allow for even footing.
> Try and make for the outskirts into open terrain.
> Other

>>3310792
>Try and draw Mei towards the city center. The tight corners and city streets will favor nobody and allow for even footing.

>>3310792
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> Other
We're already in a mess of urban and suburban sprawl, use it to move NNW towards the rest of the team and avoid combat, and try to figure out where Denise is, it might only be a tetrarch but we need every gun on hand, and I have an idea for her.

>>3310792
>>3310831
Trust the Dan, he is your friend.

>>3310850
I appreciate the vote of confidence, I'm just glad I could make it back in time and not miss the last match of LGA2 entirely.

>>3310792
This >>3310831

>>3310831
Backing this

File: chengdu1.png (1.65 MB, 1442x800)

1.65 MB PNG

> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> Other

“Alright. Ingrid, guide Josephina to Serafina please. Serafina, track us and move towards us if you’d be so kind!”

“Got it!” says Serafina. With that, Ingrid guides Josephina into a side street. For the most part now, you gotta figure out just what the hell Mei is planning. If you’re trying to rally together, then maybe she knows that. Maybe she knows that if you all band together, she’ll be overwhelmed. Or, maybe that’s exactly what she wants. Ugh, you’re going in circles here. No. Mei is a keen thinker, you’ll give her that.

But you’ll also say now, Mei will not go quietly even if you swarm her with superior numbers.

You take a breath and steel yourself. The end’s coming.

You come out westward around a corner and see Serafina being pursued by a T-54. “We’re being pursued!” she yells. You take a look with your binoculars. The T-54 is hot on their heels. And yet… Wait.

Something weaves and bobs around behind it. A Tetrarch! Denise! “Hey, that’s Denise behind you!” Denise fires the two pounder into the turret, a glancing blow that doesn’t even penetrate. Once the T-54 spots you and Griselda however, it immediately breaks off and retreat. “Don’t pursue, let’s get together here!”

The four of you all gather your tanks. You pop out and look at Denise. She pops out too, coughing and wheezing as black smoke rises out of her hatch. “Denise, you weren’t on your comms, what happened!?”

“T-54 rammed into us and busted our radio!” says Denise. She takes another breath of fresh air. “But we survived! Almost got a kill shot I think on that last one! He’ll be sorry if he comes back!”

Serafina pops out of her hatch. “Ellie! We have to finish them now! If we let Mei rally her tanks again, we might not be able to survive!”

“Serafina’s right,” says Griselda. “But Mei is already hot on our tail.”

“How do you know?” asks Serafina.

“Trust me.” Griselda nods to you. “I know.”

> COMMAND POINTS: 50 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> If you can hold them at the bridge on the river, maybe that’ll work.
> A sneaky ambush in the buildings is old but gold.
> As soon as Mei comes out, rush her from every direction.
> Other

>>3311027
>A sneaky ambush in the buildings is old but gold.

>>3311027
>> A sneaky ambush in the buildings is old but gold.

>>3311027
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
> Other
We need a more complex setup than a simple ambush if we want this work.

Serafina and Griselda will take up positions just East of the bridge amongst the buildings and side streets and hide, while Denise crosses the river, she must stay out of sight until the time comes, without a radio, she'll just have to use her intuition on when that is, but she's been our assistant for long enough now I trust her judgement. They've basically ignored her this far, so hopefully they won't miss her absence.

We'll screen ahead a little, get the turret working and avoid combat. Once we spot Mei, we'll Mark her, then retreat, having Ingrid track her through radio intercepts or that. With this knowledge of her approach, we can change our ambush position and posture, taking position at a good point East of the bridge, with a good line of retreat.

That'll probably be all for a post, but I'm planning a three stage engagement. An initial ambush, a retreat to the bridge with Serafina holding the West side to give an appearance of a rearguard action while Griselda and us retreat, while we actually break visual and setup a second, final ambush as the Chinese move across either to or after eliminating the Poles. That will be our decisive fight, and where we shall spring a Denise shaped trap. One way or the other, we end the match and the season there.

>>3311027
Daning this one >>3311075

>>3311027
>>3311075
I herby declare the danon fanclub

>>3311075
A bit late, but I'd also append to this we should dismount and talk this out in person, and say thanks to Griselda for giving us a chance to do this. It's a shame Iris can't be here to see this through to the end, but from here on out, there won't be any chance to slow down, so now's our opportunity to psyche up for the last push, hug it out and remember how far the team's come.

>>3311027
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
> Other
>3311075

File: chengdu3.png (1.65 MB, 1442x800)

1.65 MB PNG

>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
> Other

“Is everyone clear?” you ask. Everyone nods. “Denise?”

Denise salutes. “You can count on me.” You dismount quickly, then hurry on over to Denise’s tank. Everyone pops out of their hatches. Hilda and Fina look at you, ready and waiting.

“Aye, we’re good,” says Fina.

“Way I see it,” says Hilda. “We’re going for broke here.”

Denise grins. “Trust me, Elodie. We’ll know what to do.” You don’t hope she does, you know she does. You and Denise lock hands, then shake firmly. With that, they pull back into their Tetrarch and take a drive away.

“Serafina,” you say. “You’ve come a long way.”

“And we’ll go even further!” Serafina declares. She salutes you from the hatch of her newly christened Patton tank. “We’ll do our best!”

“And Griselda, I wanted to say thank-“

Griselda is already standing next to you. Griselda takes your hands and says, “Elodie. No matter what happens out there, it’s been an honor riding with you. No one could ask for a better XO.” She quickly plants a kiss on your cheek, then pats your arm. “Bon chance.”

“Bon chance,” you say back. You guess you didn’t need to say anything. Griselda already knows how grateful you are for a chance such as this. You sigh, taking a deep breath. You and her quickly go back to mount your tanks.

Athena and Tessa are turned out of the hatches, as are Yuno and Luisa. Yuno says, “We look forward to seeing you on the other side.”

“Good luck, Elodie!” says Tessa.

You get back into your tank, for what will hopefully be the final time this match. The next time you step out, it will be when things are over. “Right, on the bounce,” you declare.

Everyone moves to take their positions. Serafina and Griselda hide among the buildings near to the bridge on the east bank. Denise has crossed over. She’ll wait until the time comes. And as for you, you’re screening ahead. “I’ve managed to get the turret working again, Elodie. But we can’t take another hit like that.”

“Understood,” you say. “Anything out there?”

Ingrid says, “I’m not picking up any radio freqs.”

>>3311437
“Remember, we’re not going to go for the kill. We want to draw Mei across the river if possible.” Then a shot flies past overhead. Shit! You duck and look ahead. Poking out barely behind a corner and some cars is a T-54. Mei’s T-54! “There she is!”

“Got it,” says Ingrid. Mei pokes behind the corner, disappearing. “Don’t worry, I got her.” Ingrid adjusts her headphones, listening in. “She’s coming south now.”

“Right, south.” Another T-54 comes around the corner that Mei was at. It too fires. The shot screams past, nearly nicking the side armor. Shit! “Back us up!” You start reversing away at full speed.

Ingrid looks at you. “She’s swung westwards.” Alright, two options for Mei then. She’s trying to find another crossing. Or she’s trying to come around and flank. Either are good.

> COMMAND POINTS: 20 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> Retreat across the bridge.
> Pick a spot south and try to ambush
> Go down and intercept her.
> Other

>>3311437
> Pick a spot south and try to ambush
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> WP SHOT
Going for another crossing doesn't make sense, as she'd have to come back over the exposed bridge to get at us, so she's probably going for the flank. So we'll break off, making it look like we're trying to draw the main force back into an ambush. With numbers this few, they'll probably break off and regroup much as we did, lest they get picked off piecemeal, not realising they're bypassing a non-existent ambush only to attack into the actual ambush.

Once the ambush is sprung, we'll open with a close range APCR round, then follow with a WP round initiate the fallback/rearguard deception across the bridge, using copious smoke from the others too, making it look like we're running and the headstrong Poles stay behind to try to hold Mei off. Exactly the kind of foolhardyness Mei would expect from them.

>>3311447
Liking the sound of this >>3311499

>>3311447
>> Pick a spot south and try to ambush

>>3311447
Supporting >>3311499

Danon's getting in Mei's head now and has the plan.

> Pick a spot south and try to ambush
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> WP SHOT

Josephina breaks the tank off to the left. Right. Wait for it then. She whirls the tank behind a building into waiting. And if your plan goes correctly, Mei will fall right into the trap. She’ll think she’s bypassing an ambushing you’re setting up and attack into a real ambush. Hopefully Griselda and Serafina can hold steady. You hear a T-54 roll past. Then another T-54. And another. Three T-54s. Then a fourth. Then finally Mei!

But they roll right past, apparently unaware you’re there. You’re well hidden to be frank. Though…

That means you have a shot. You hear a loud bang.

> KO: JULIA BRUNET (T-54-3) *ELITE*
> KILL CREDITED TO: GRISELDA POOL (M4A3E8 Sherman) “Janus”

Another cannon shot sounds.

> KO: GINA MACGREGOR (T-54-3) *ELITE*
> KILL CREDITED TO: SERAFINA MACZEK (M46 Patton “Sokol”)

“Right now!”

You pop out of your hiding spot, right to their sides. You fire a shot. Mei manages to dodge her tank out of the way, and the APCR shot slams right into the tank in front of her. Shit!

> KO: PINA DE LOPEZ (T-54-3) *ELITE*
> KILL CREDITED TO: ELODIE R. ZUMWALT (Comet I “Oliver”) *ELITE*

“WP! Do it!”

Another follow up shot quickly douses the remaining tanks with white phosphorus smoke. Right, time to make a hasty retreat! “Let’s go, let’s go!” You and Griselda immediately begin running. Just in time for Mei to fire a shot in anger at you all. You start across the bridge. With the Patton though, it rolls in front of the bridge to block Mei’s path.

“Just let her see our true resolve!” says Serafina. You look back and see Serafina quickly give you a salute from her hatch before she pops a smoke shell.

Godspeed Serafina.

File: UqVNdaH.jpg (366 KB, 1035x1500)

366 KB JPG

Unfortunately, that's all the time we have for tonight. But tomorrow we shall return for the final confrontation. This is where the match shall be decided.

Follow at: https://twitter.com/GermanSchteel
And if you ever feel like shooting the shit with me, you can hit me up in my discord: https://discord.gg/9e9yvfv

See you next time.

>>3311884
That actually went better than I expected. Only two left.

Thanks for running Schteel, catch you tomorrow.

>>3311884
Thanks for the fun, boss.

Tomorrow we will crush her!

>> LAFAYETTE GIRLS ACADEMY
>> Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia
>> Motto: “Dum vivimus, vivamus”
>> March: Lafayette Girls Academy March
>> Commander: Griselda Pool

>>> FLAG << **GRISELDA POOL (M4A3E8 Sherman – 76mm M1A2 “Janus”)
>> *ELODIE R. "ZUMZUM" ZUMWALT (Comet I – OQF 77mm HV “Oliver”) *ELITE*
>> SERAFINA MACZEK (M26 Pershing – 90mm M3 “Sokol”)
>> JANE FOGERTY (Jagdtiger – 128mm PaK 44 L/55 "Spinal Tap") *Mobility Kill*
>> DENISE SPUNKMEYER (Mk VII Tetrarch – QF 2-Pounder “Pierpont”)

VS

>ZHOU ENLAI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
> Hometown: Guangzhou, China
> Motto: “Sequere pecuniam”
> March: Shimada Victory March
> Commander: Mei Xiang

>> FLAG << ** MEI XIANG (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T “Jinbu”) *LEGENDARY* *ELITE*
> FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE*
> JULIA BRUNET (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE**
> GINA MACGREGOR (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE* *Mobility Kill*
> PINA DE LOPEZ (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE* *Mobility Kill*

5 vs 5

Going to be sad, I won't be able to tally these anymore.

>> LAFAYETTE GIRLS ACADEMY
>> Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia
>> Motto: “Dum vivimus, vivamus”
>> March: Lafayette Girls Academy March
>> Commander: Griselda Pool

>>> FLAG << **GRISELDA POOL (M4A3E8 Sherman – 76mm M1A2 “Janus”)
>> *ELODIE R. "ZUMZUM" ZUMWALT (Comet I – OQF 77mm HV “Oliver”) *ELITE*
>> SERAFINA MACZEK (M46 Pershing – 90mm M3 “Sokol”)
>> JANE FOGERTY (Jagdtiger – 128mm PaK 44 L/55 "Spinal Tap") *Mobility Kill*
>> DENISE SPUNKMEYER (Mk VII Tetrarch – QF 2-Pounder “Pierpont”)

VS

>ZHOU ENLAI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
> Hometown: Guangzhou, China
> Motto: “Sequere pecuniam”
> March: Shimada Victory March
> Commander: Mei Xiang

>> FLAG << ** MEI XIANG (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T “Jinbu”) *LEGENDARY* *ELITE*
> FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE*


5 vs 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKGixzA_mg8

You and Griselda make it across the bridge. As you drove, you heard cannons explode and shoot in the smoke, faint silhouettes bursting out of the white clouds. Serafina’s put up a hell of a fight. But in the end, it wasn’t quite enough. And she too bought it.

> KO: SERAFINA MACZEK (M46 Patton “Sokol”)
> KILL CREDITED TO: FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3) *ELITE*

Griselda sighs, looking back. The two of you stop at the edge of the bridge. Griselda says, “Tough girl.”

Ingrid looks back at you. “They’ll be crossing the bridge in a few minutes, Elodie.”

“You think Denise will be ready?” asks Winona.

“She’ll have to be,” says Stack. “We got faith! That little midget knows what’s up!” She looks at you. “Right?” You nod. “Right!” Stack is now reassured at least.

> COMMAND POINTS: 20 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> Continue your retreat west.
> Hold position here and get ready.
> Other

>>3314685
> Continue your retreat west.

As per Danon's clever plan.

>>3314685
> Hold position here and get ready.
Get into hiding spots and prepare the final ambush.

>>3314701
Remember, the plan is to make them -think- we're continuing to retreat, when actually we're setting up an ambush, suppose I could've explained that better.

>>3314685
> Hold position here and get ready.

>>3314685
> Continue your retreat west.
Continue the plan

>>3314719
I'm not that smart.


>>3314685
Schteel, I'm changing my vote >>3314701 from >retreat to >hold position

>> LAFAYETTE GIRLS ACADEMY
>> Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia
>> Motto: “Dum vivimus, vivamus”
>> March: Lafayette Girls Academy March
>> Commander: Griselda Pool

>>> FLAG << **GRISELDA POOL (M4A3E8 Sherman – 76mm M1A2 “Janus”)
>> *ELODIE R. "ZUMZUM" ZUMWALT (Comet I – OQF 77mm HV “Oliver”) *ELITE*
>> JANE FOGERTY (Jagdtiger – 128mm PaK 44 L/55 "Spinal Tap") *Mobility Kill*
>> DENISE SPUNKMEYER (Mk VII Tetrarch – QF 2-Pounder “Pierpont”)

VS

>ZHOU ENLAI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
> Hometown: Guangzhou, China
> Motto: “Sequere pecuniam”
> March: Shimada Victory March
> Commander: Mei Xiang

>> FLAG << ** MEI XIANG (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T “Jinbu”) *LEGENDARY* *ELITE*
> FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3 - 100mm D10T) *ELITE*


4 vs 2

> Hold position here and get ready.

You and Griselda get on either side of the street. It’s one long road down. There won’t be much room for error. If she comes out, she comes out. You hear the rumbling of the tracks. This is it. This is going to be the last fight. You take a deep breath. Steel yourself Elodie. You hold your shaking hand and wait. They’re coming and they’re coming fast. This isn’t just for you. This is for Griselda. This is for your crew. This is for your family. For Jeep Jockey. For LGA.

For a flash of a second, you see the gun barrel pop out. There. “Fire!” The shot skims across the front of the T-54. It spins around. It’s not Mei. It goes sliding down the street, now facing eastward. Griselda fires too. She gets a successful shot in, smashing the gun off and causing a fire in the turret.

> KO: FREYA T. WARD (T-54-3) *ELITE*
> KILL CREDITED TO: GRISELDA POOL (M4A3E8 Sherman “Janus”) *ELITE

The next tank comes. Mei.

She screams past Freya’s burning tank then slides, spinning around to face the two of you.

Mei comes out of her hatch, adjusting her glasses briefly before looking at you and Griselda. The two of you stare her down. The sun’s starting to come up behind you, bathing the area in orange light. Mei picks up her radio then starts talking into it.

Ingrid looks back at you. “It’s Mei. She’s hailing us.”

“Put her through,” you say.

After a second, Mei talks to you and Griselda. “You’re pretty good. But not good enough for me." You look behind Mei and see the Tetrarch slowly creeping outward.

> COMMAND POINTS: 20 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (3/5)
> Go right at her.
> Use the buildings for cover and try to keep on poking at her.
> Other

>>3314920
> Other
Taunt her.

You bribed the judges, bought newer tanks, fought in your home territory, and we still wiped you out. So much for money and the new ways you're so proud of.

>>3314920
>>3314920
> DEPLOY SMOKE (1/3)
> APCR SHOT (2/5)
> Go right at her.
> Other
We need to keep her there, and get onto the same side of her as Denise is without her spotting the light tank for my idea to work, plus we need to stay aggressive to keep her from KOing Griselda, who she'll probably prioritise if we don't keep her on the back foot.

So, she'll most likely go for the kill right off the bat, if her gunner isn't already lining it up in the lull. Tell Griselda to reverse, hopefully spoiling any immediate shot then we rush at Mei, pop smoke and jink hard to the outside just before she fires, then zoom out of the smoke and take a pot shot at her side armour, using that to get around her. She'll turn with us, turning her away from Gris so she can't finish her, and we'll position ourselves between Mei and Denise, hiding the tiny light behind us, to spring the final part of our plan.

>>3314920
>>3314981
This dan is your friend, he fights for freedom.

>>3314981
This

> DEPLOY SMOKE (0/3)
> APCR SHOT (2/5)
> Go right at her.
> Other

“Now!”

Griselda backs up. The shot from Mei’s T-54 screeches past and scrapes against her turret side. Josephina gets the tank moving forward. “Ready!?” Stack points the bomb thrower up through the loader hatch. Mei starts backing up, trying again for another shot at Griselda. “Now!” The tank shoots left. Stack fires the smoke. It explodes overhead, dousing the street with white puffy clouds of blinding smoke. You speed around Mei, just in time for her turret to lock onto you instead. “Fire!”

Mei fires at the same time you do. The two shots bounce off each other, crumpling into a fused hunk of metal. No time to reflect. You turn around her. She starts turning on the spot. She fires again. You fire too. The two of you get close enough that your barrels cross each other. She smacks her barrel against yours, trying to force it off target. “Winona!”

“I feel like fucking Zorro right now!” Winona screams. Your gun barrels cross and slam into each other, trying to get on target. “Can’t… get… a SIGHT!”

She fires upwards. The shock and overpressure nearly deafens you. You feel some concrete and bricks land on the tank. Winona fires too. The shot shreds the DshkA off of Mei’s T-54. Mei flinches back but does not waver. The two of you continue spinning around on the street, trying and failing to get shots in on each other.

> COMMAND POINTS: 20 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (2/5)
> Close your hull against hers.
> Build distance so you can get a shot.
> Call for help from Griselda or Denise.
> Other

>>3315206
> Close your hull against hers.
> Call for help from Griselda
> Other
We need space, but we can't be seen to want it overtly, we have to trick Mei into giving it to us herself.

So Gris can just pop out and take a snapshot while Mei's distracted, then immediately retreat, hopefully if Mei manages to get a shot off it's only a mobility or armament kill. Denise needs to hang back a little longer, as this kind of super close up fighting favours Mei and she'll probably zone us back somehow, either with a stunning shot or ram or something like that to engage Gris again, but that'll put us right back directly in front of Denise from here, then we start our final run, the Tetrarch still hidden behind us. We have to use Mei's skill against her, don't get overly aggressive in the brawl prior to Gris rolling out and snapshotting again, the focus is on defence first, killshot second.

>>3315206
>Keep her close and keep dueling. Also have shoot the machine gun or throw HE. Anything to disrupt her sights or damage her optics. Trust in Denise to get a shot

>>3315260
>>3315261
Supporting this with my vote but still insist on throwing He or using the machine gun to fuck up her hearing or optics on her tank

>>3315206
>>3315260
Ballsy and agressive, but I like it, supporting.
Also, I just noticed how few CP we have compared to the LGA1 finale.

>>3315260
Yeah this

>>3315274
Yup, we're on fumes here, and I'll be burning what little we have for the next post.

>>3315206
supporting >>3315260
but also have someone grap the MG and light up viewports like >>3315261 suggests.

All that chaos should get Mei to force some fighting room

>>3315283
Well my goal if worse comes to worse and we get taken out, I want to disable as many systems, Meis tank has.

Hatches, optics, machines guns. Anything to make it harder to operate

>>3315349
Yeah, fair cop.

> Close your hull against hers.
> Call for help from Griselda
> Other

“Griselda!” you shout. “Shoot!”

Griselda pops out of the smoke screen. She levels her gun down on Mei. Mei looks back and shouts. The Sherman fires, the shot scrapes across the engine block, popping smoke and throwing the spare fuel tank off. Mei hurries the turret around to aim at Griselda instead of you. But Winona responds by blocking It again with the barrel of her gun. “Push!” screams Winona. The two gun barrels creak and grind against each other. It’s turret rotation versus turret rotation!

Stack pushes against the wall of the turret. “I’m trying!”

“Stack, that’s not gonna work,” you say simply.

Mei slams her fist against the turret roof then shouts another order. She starts the tank turning around, trying to spin around you and hopefully get a snapshot at Griselda off instead. You hold on. She continues to spin around, and around, until you realize she’s not even turning around but spinning on her center! Before you can react she throws Oliver straight into a building behind her. She quickly screeches to a halt, again leveling her gun down on Griselda as she retreat. The next shot she fires connects, striking the turret again but exploding off on the side. “Shit!” yells Griselda.

“Griselda!” you scream.

“We’re fine! We just lost power traverse!” she screams. Mei starts forward.

“Josephina, reverse!” you order.

You back your engine block directly into hers, spinning her out once more. Winona’s arms sweat furiously as she turns the handwheels, trying to get a shot in. But Mei’s attention is now divided.

> COMMAND POINTS: 20 CP
> INTUITION: - 2 CP
> EXECUTE TACTICAL MANEUVER (Which?)
> ACTIVATE LOYALTY ABILITY (Which?)
>> MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (-30 CP)
>> MARK TARGET (-30 CP)
>> LOCKDOWN (-10 CP)
>> TARGET WEAKPOINT (-10 CP)
> DEPLOY SMOKE (2/3)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
> APCR SHOT (2/5)
> Back up and try for a kill shot.
> Keep ramming her!
> Other

>>3315611
> Keep ramming her!
>shoot the browning at her hatch and vision ports while Winoa operates the manual traverse.

We can’t turn the turret for now but we can operate the .50 cal.

Keep distracting her and FUCK HER SYSTEMs.

Jam hatches, turret ring, anything with the machine gun

>>3315611
>Keep ramming her!
> Other Shoot her like Anon >>3315643 suggests.

Denis's time should be soon-ish, but I defer to Danon's plan on that

>>3315643
It's Gris whose turret is disabled, ours is still functioning.

>>3315611
> Other
> EXECUTE CO-OP MANOEUVRE: ZUMWALT PINCER (- ? CP)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)
Okay, so, we've got our back to what I think is Mei's side right now, as we rammed engine to engine and she spun away slightly, so there's a bit of space between us too. Not the starting position I would've liked in a perfect situation, but nothing's ever perfect in a fight, point is, it'll do.

Punch it forwards, zoom straight for Denise's hiding spot, then whip around in a U turn and race back at Mei, every MG we got lighting her up, fire the AP we've got in the pipe too, we need to look desperate. The dust from our acceleration, sudden turn and the building we were just smacked into, plus the gunsmoke and MG fire might not blind Mei and her crew, but it will mean they can't see perfectly. And that means it'll be basically impossible for them to spot Denise popping out from behind cover as we turn and falling in behind us, real close, close enough she's completely hidden by our hull. The important thing here is we cannot communicate with Denise at all, we can't even be looking at her to check she's following, we've got to take a leap of faith that the months she's spent standing by our side every hour of the day practically have given her enough insight to clue into what's happening. If we look, I have no doubt Mei would pick up on it, like she did with the flare trick during our last duel. The best we can do is have Ingrid try to communicate it through hand gestures out of her hatch, as she'll be hidden by the turret while doing so, but she'll only have seconds to work.

So we charge in and for a Zumwalt Hook, Mei knows this is our signature move, she'll spot the approach. Now the hooks are effective but they're a basic manoeuvre, with a simple counter: Rotate the hull to 'chase' the sliding tank, wait for them to lose speed past the apex of the slide, then ram them. Mei is a really good tanker, there's no way she wouldn't do this, with Griselda reeling and no other visible friendly tanks, it's an opportunity to secure the kill and essentially, win the match. This is where Denise comes in.

She'll execute a regular Nishizumi Hook, behind us, then, as we continue around in the longer slide, she'll come to rest first, popping out from behind us while Mei's T-54 is still trying to follow us with the hull, presenting its side to the Tetrarch before it can react. A 2-pounder won't kill a T-54, but it'll blow a track off just fine at point blank. Suddenly immobilised, we'll outrun Mei's turret traverse alone, and plant an APDS round right into her side.

It'll only work if everybody executes with perfection, we slip for a split second and Mei will see through the ruse and counter it, but if any crew could do it, it's ours.

>>3315611
>>3315732
I am supporting dan just because of how much text this is. Have fun with it GS.

>>3315643
>>3315732
Supporting this.

If we can aim, aim st the vision ports or hatches.

I want enough lead that Mei can’t open her main hatch and cracked periscopes leaving her blind

>>3315732
Glorious plan. I was expecting to have Denise go for the traditional shot in the ass, but I don't know if that's weak on a T-54.

We should swing on the side opposite of Griselda so she can get a backup shot.

Or would that be too obvious?

>>3315760
Probably too obvious, Mei's sharp as a tack, if we give her any hints we're up to something we risk blowing the whole thing, and with only 20 CP, I don't think we'll get another shot.

>>3315781
thought so.

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>>3315732
Yeah, this'll do it

> Other
> EXECUTE CO-OP MANOEUVRE: ZUMWALT PINCER (ALL THE CP MOTHERFUCKER)
> APDS SHOT (3/5)

You start zooming away, towards Denise. Mei looks at the flag tank as it reverses back. She has a shot. But instead she turns and looks to you. She orders the tank to instead turn right to you. She’s giving up the chance to win to go right for you instead. Perfect. Josephina brings the tank into a U turn around, nearly clipping the building behind you where Denise is hiding. You can’t even look at her or say anything but you have faith. She knows what to do. You quickly rack the .50 and say, “Open up with the machine guns!” You start firing away. Ingrid takes up the hull MG too, firing away. And Winona lets loose on the coaxial gun. All three of your machine guns force Mei to duck down and hide as you start charging forward.

“Josephina.”

“I know,” she says. “Bon chance.”

Mei holds her position, then starts turning. She knows the game. Sparks fly as Josephina brakes hard left. The tank starts sliding, rotating to the left hard. It continues forward, threatening to move past Mei’s side. Mei continues to rotate the tank left, following it.

It’s Arisu Shimada did against Miho Nishizumi. Rotate the tank to follow the hook then counter at the end of the slide. The circumstances here are different through. You’re flying straight and will only come to the hook towards the end.

And you have someone behind you. Mei continues to direct her attention at you, trying to aim the hull at you and keep the turret centered on you, waiting for the opportune moment. Then she looks to her right. Her eyes widen as she sees Denise at the end of her own hook behind you. Mei shouts to her driver. She stops rotating to face Denise and fires off a wild shot.

The shot shreds Denise’s side, splitting off the tracks off. The Tetrarch’s suspension digs in and suddenly flips over. For a second, your heart stops at the sight.

>>3316108

Then Denise fires a shot. The little two pounder shell stabs straight into the T-54’s tracks. And is rewarded with an explosion of track links.

> MOBILITY KILL: MEI XIANG (T-54-3 “Jinbu”) *LEGENDARY*

The Tetrarch slides to a stop, tipped over onto its top. You do too, sliding around to the now immobile side of Mei’s tank. She looks at you, absolute shock and surprise in her eyes.

“Fire!” you shout.

The next shot goes right through her side armor. Her engine block explodes open, filled with fire and smoke. And finally, the white flag pops.

> KO: MEI XIANG (T-54-3 “Jinbu”) *LEGENDARY*
> KILL CREDITED TO: ELODIE R. ZUMWALT (Comet I “Oliver”) *ELITE*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoHGb-kjSts

> ZHOU ENLAI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS’ FLAG TANK HAS BEEN RENDERED INOPERABLE

> LAFAYETTE GIRLS ACADEMY IS VICTORIOUS!

The weight of four months of Tankery finally falls straight off your shoulder. You drop down into your hatch, crumbling like a rock. Everyone is quiet. You can finally feel the tension and heat lift out of your tank. Winona slides back into her seat, shutting her eyes, putting her hands over her face. And quietly, she starts to sob with relief. Ingrid leans forward on her machine gun, panting heavily. Josephina sighs deeply, hugging herself.

Wow. You won.

Stack looks over, then offers you a fist bump. “Good job.”

> Boast
> Neutral
> Polite

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fueLPs8LJtw

>>3316115
> Polite

Fist bump of exhaustion

Internally release a howl of victory.

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>>3316115
>Boast

>>3316115
> Polite

>>3316115
>> Polite

>>3316115
> Boast
I think we earned this one.

>>3316115
>Boast
Hell yeah we did!

>>3316115
>> Neutral

remember, we still have the fate of NATO's future to decide: Allow or deny Cold War tanks?

>>3316115
> Boast
Let's hear it

>>3316115
Polite

>>3316154
Deny, we might have won today, but Cold War vehicles should have their own leagues, if they don't already. The presence of NATO alone is a sign of how Tankery is growing, but it has a good identity as a more flexible approach to International's classic WW2 formula, it doesn't need to go for a gimmick like cold war machines.

>>3316192
Of course.

Can someone remind me the differences between ITL and NATO.

Your tribute to LGA2 was most moving. Thank you for posting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDs124RCwT8

>>3316192
I think cold war tank can still work with number and type limitation and if they only deployed in penultimate match.

>>3316220
Simply put, both leagues only allow tanks that were at the very least in the design/prototype stage before the Armistice, but ITL requires the use of only historical tanks that can be proven to have existed, whereas NATO gives teams the flexibility to allow modifications that could have been made, such as extra armor or .50cals on everything (leeway that Walter Christie took full advantage of with their already... "unorthodox" lineup). Any modifications to your tank in the ITL have to be backed up with proper paperwork indicating that "yes, at least one instance of this happening did in fact exist."

>>3316220
Basically >>3316305 but also NATO allows open topped machines for example, with an essentially 0 armour thickness enclosed fighting compartment added, or if a historical or historically plausible modification exists, the use of that, which is a pretty cool concession if you ask me.

>>3316154
We could have have a hard cutoff that prohibits smoothbore guns and composite armor, I've heard that works well in other games...

> Boast

You bump fists with Stack too. Then you let out a howl of triumph. Everyone flinches when they hear you. They likely have never seen you do that before. You’re just releasing all that tension, all that excitement, all the energy you’ve had today into one long shout. You’d probably knock down a dragon with it if you could. You slack back into your seat and put your hands over your eyes, reaching your fingers under your glasses. “You okay, Winona?”

“I’m okay!” she says. “I’m just crying cuz I’m so happy!” she blubbers. She reaches for your leg and hugs it. You’re not even going to stop her. “We won! We won!”

“All thanks to everyone,” you say. “And all we’ve done.”

You can already hear the recovery helicopters and trucks coming.

…

…

You and the crew come to a field in the match locale, with the rising sun behind you. The entire team has assembled in the fields, sitting down, waiting around, chatting excitedly, hugging each other. Then they see you, Griselda, and Denise. They all stand up and rush at you. “There they are!” Iris is the first to run up to you all, outpacing everyone. She quickly wraps up you and Griselda in a very tight and ferocious hug, almost uncharacteristic of her.

“Iris!” You grin.

“Iris, you-…” Griselda has no words for it.

“A lady will not suppress her happiness,” she remarks firmly. Serafina too comes up. Then Regina, Suvorov, Elyse, Lyra, Claudia, Serina, Benny, Dalia, Jane, Hadley, Duchess, Kathy, and all the rest. Those that came to help too, all the other schools too. “You’ve done well by us.”

“Da!” Oryola wraps her arms around you and picks you up. A shock of adrenaline rushes through you as you look down at everyone. She puts you on her shoulders, letting you ride around and shake hands with everyone. Griselda grins, being hugged by all of her crewmembers, tears in her eyes. And Denise too is picked up by Captain Spruance and Regina and paraded around.

Then you see them coming. Everyone stops celebrating once you see who’s arriving. They come in by their trucks. You know exactly who they are. Mei and the rest of Zhou Enlai. They dismount from their trucks, coming towards you all. Oryola puts you down, and instead comfortingly puts a hand on your shoulder. You nod to Griselda. She nods to you and Iris. The three of you get walking towards her.

Mei walks towards you, purpose in her eyes. Freya and Josie walk on either side of her too, neutral expressions on their faces. Until finally the two groups stop, only a few feet away.

>>3316316
…

Griselda looks around, then says, “That was a good match, Mei.”

Mei looks at Griselda, she then looks at you.

What do you say to her? “… Mei, listen, I-…” Mei holds her hand up, stopping you from talking. She looks down at the ground. You thought you’d be facing Oryola at this juncture. That you’d get to shake hands with her after she defeat you or vice versa. Instead, everything these four months have led up to have led to her. All of her hate. All of her pride. All of her ways. She looks at you directly, taking a deep breath. What does she have to say to you?

Then she slowly comes down to her knees on the ground. She shuts her eyes, taking a breath. And slowly, she bows herself down, putting her head to the ground. The kowtow. Freya and Josephina do the same, kneeling down and pressing their heads to the ground. And behind them, the rest of Zhou Enlai’s crews. They too kneel down and kowtow to all of you.

Pride fills you. And yet some bittersweet to it too. Today, Mei acknowledges you as her better.

> “Mei. You don’t kowtow to an equal.”
> “Thank you, Mei.”
> When they stand back up, bow quietly.
> Other

>>3316320
>When they stand back up, bow quietly.

>>3316311
Still allows huge curve wreckers like the Chieftain, with modern fire control systems and a 120mm gun and all that. Stuff that would completely invalidate WW2 vintage vehicles.

>>3316320
> When they stand back up, bow quietly.

>>3316320
Good firm handshake, the American Way

>>3316320
>When they stand back up, bow quietly.

>>3316338
supporting

>>3316320
>“Mei. You don’t kowtow to an equal.”

>>3316320
>> When they stand back up, bow quietly.

>>3316320
> When they stand back up, bow quietly.
...Then
> “Thank you, Mei.”

>>3316320
Supporting this >>3316408. Anon understands the importance of humility and respect

>>3316305
>>3316310

Thank you for the info. I can see how it works well for smaller budgets. Especially if the team is technically minded.

>>3316335
Why not push it to 1946?

I think thats okay?

> When they stand back up, bow quietly.


After several seconds of them bowing, they recover and stand back up. You look to Griselda and Iris. They nod. The three of you bow in return. All of you bow in return, a sign of respect for an adversary. For once, Mei finally shows respect to her foe. It only seems fitting you show it in return. After about ten or fifteen seconds, you recover as well. Mei stands straight, looking at you.

She takes her gloves off carefully, looking at them. Then she glances at you and puts her chin up. “Seems the Shimada-ryuu still has things to teach me.”

“Seems it does,” you say back.

She snorts. “Arisu picks her students well.” She turns and points to you. “You’re pretty good.” And with that, she takes her leave.

Freya winks at you, pointing to you all. “We’ll get you next year.”

“You’ll try,” Griselda responds, smiling. Josie salutes you all as the three of them take their leave.

“That was the first time in years I have seen Mei acknowledge a foe,” says Arisu. Right. Wait. You jump, looking to her. How did she get here!? Iris and Griselda look surprised to see her too. What the hell!? Arisu looks at you, clutching a boko bear in her arms. “Consider it a high honor, Zumwalt-san.” You nod, of course. And like Freya said. There’s always next year. No reason to get lax. She offers her hand. “Omedetou.” You shake it warmly, smiling back.

“Hey!” Suvorov yells out. “We just won the war! Let’s go celebrate!” All the crewmembers cheer and immediately rush for the vehicles. You let go of Arisu’s hand, watching them run.

Griselda nudges you. “Come on. We gotta greet our adoring public.”

Right. You smile. You look to Arisu and…

She’s gone.

Well. You sigh, still smiling. There’s still so much to say and to do. One last day.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2M7QwHnVXQ

That is it for this weekend's LGA2. Tune in next weekend as we finish off this session.

And then the weekend after, the epilogue thread. It's been a wild ride these past few years with you anons. And we've just crossed the finish line. I hope you've enjoyed yourselves. The end is coming soon.

Follow at: https://twitter.com/GermanSchteel
And if you ever feel like shooting the shit with me, you can hit me up in my discord: https://discord.gg/9e9yvfv

See you next time.

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>>3316569
USDA Grade A stuff as always boss

And now, the Ooarai Senshadou team will honor our victory with the traditional celebratory Anglerfish Dance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6Ek3h4HTRE

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>>3316569
Thanks for running Schteel, it's been a hell of a journey, that's for sure. I wonder if Mei's going to develop a complex about Tetrarchs?

>>3316569
Thanks for the fun, boss. Hope I can make it next week.

Its been a heck of a ride. Two years...I can hardly believe it.

>>3316581
Achievement Unlocked: "Tet Offensive"

>>3316581
Also, fuck, I guess I have no excuse for not starting Reccecrafts now.

I feel like Elodie's going to end up being captain of LGA in the future. I base this solely on the fact that the Navy replaced the Spruance-class destroyer with the Zumwalt-class.
(The USS Zumwalt itself was in my hometown for a couple weeks for painting back when this quest had just started. Just a piece of random trivia.)

Once you dismount from the trucks taking you back to the festival grounds, the first people to run and mob you aren’t students of LGA. They’re the boys from Kill Devil Hills High School, the Skycraft boys. They rush in from the bleachers, whooping and hollering for each everyone, charging as if you were the Memphis Belle returned from battle. “Woo!”

“Whoa, whoa!” Serina holds her hands up. “Don’t-“ One of the boys charges her, picking her up and spinning her around. “Aaahh! Noo! Hahaha!” Serina grins, immediately changing the situation. Hugs and girls being thrown into the air sweep into the crowd.

“Hey, hey!” Denise shouts at everyone. “Don’t get so grabby, I-“ A boy picks her up and throws her into the air. “Ah! Put me down!” Denise gets picked up in a crowd surf of boys. “Ahahaha! Noo! I didn’t do that much! Okay, maybe a little, okay, carry me over there!” Denise laughs loudly as the boys carry her like a queen.

Griselda shakes hands with Rafe. “Thank you all so much for coming out for us!”

“Griselda!” Jack comes out of the crowd and runs to her. Griselda and Jack quickly take each other in a deep hug. “Aahh! That’s my girl! You did it!” Griselda grins happily. You see too very quickly stop a boy from charging at her, and then she shakes his hand very politely. “You all did it! We’re so happy!”

“You have school today, don’t you!?” shouts Griselda. “Shouldn’t you guys-“

“Ah, fuck school! We wouldn’t miss this for the world!” says Jack. “LGA and KDH are like bread and butter!” You grin, smiling. You quickly hug one of the boys too, then shake his hand. Then out of the corner of your eye, you see him. Jock. He stands there, some tears welling in his eyes. Oh, you sentimental boy you. He starts running at you.

Wait.

He thinks it’s going to be like that sailor photo, does he?

> Eh. Let him have his fun.
> Turn the tables on him.
> Nope nope nope no PDA please, don’t embarrass yourself.
> Other

>>3332602
>> Eh. Let him have his fun.
>> Turn the tables on him.
Surprise him halfway through, Elodie has needs too...

>>3332602
This >>3332627

>>3332602
This >>3332627

>>3332602
Sure, let's go with >>3332627

> Eh. Let him have his fun.
> Turn the tables on him.

You sigh, holding your arms out. Here it comes!

Jock runs up, grabs you by the arms, and pulls you into a deep kiss. The soft touch of his lips is surprising contrast to how rough he holds you. But hey, if he wants to play this game, fine, you’ll play that game. You grab him by his arm and put your hand behind his head, pulling him in deeper. He makes a muffled surprised noise as you open your mouth and let your tongue meet his. Yes, yes! You try to push up against him so that –he- gets pushed down. But no, he fights against you and tries to keep you down until finally the two of you fall all over each other.

“Elodie!” Griselda laughs at you, as do several other people. No. No! Don’t laugh! Goddamn it! You cover your face as you straddle Jock’s lap. “Not in public! There are cameras around!”

“I- I was just-“ You blink. You point to a very dumbfaced Jock. “He started it!”

“You’re still sitting on top of me!” he yells.

“I was just- you came in and kissed me in public!” you shout. “I was trying to be assertive and you-“ Jock grabs you by the hip. “Wha-“ He then picks himself up, with you in his arms. He carries you in a princess carry. The feeling of not being on the ground completely silences you and sends blood every whichaway through your body. Your heart has never raced faster. This boy! This boy!

“If you’re going to act like a princess, I’ll treat you like one,” Jock says with a light smile.

GODDAMN IT WHY DOES HE SAY THESE THINGS IN FRONT OF PEOPLE

To dispel things, LGA students finally show up and start dancing among the crowd. Griselda is mobbed by a dozen Naval Studies students, along with Captain Spruance herself. Jock continues to carry you around like this, letting you shake hands with people and greet them and receive their well-wishes. Then finally you meet your parents.

“Smile!” Mom and Dad quickly take pictures of Jock holding you like this. DAMN IT NO! THEY’RE GOING TO SHOW EVERYONE!

Mom walks up to you, rubbing fresh tears out of her eyes and off of her cheeks. “You did so well this match, I’m so proud of you, baby!” She grabs your hand, squeezing it tight. “You were so beautiful out there!”

> Boast
> Neutral
> Polite

>>3333021
>> Polite
We might be the most visible part, but everything we did, this match, this season, none of it would've happened without our crew, without our teammates there every step of the way. Don't be proud of me, be proud of us all.

>>3333050
This

>>3333021
Yep this >>3333050

> Polite

“Thanks, Mom.” You let Jock put you down so you can stand up. Mom comes over and hugs you tightly and sweetly. “It wasn’t just me though. We might be the one standing out of the turret but inside was the rest of my crew. It was all them. I was just telling them what to do after all. Without them, none of this would’ve happened.” You look behind you and see them standing there. Winona, Josephina, Stack, and Ingrid. They smile at you, happy to be praised. “Be proud of them too. Not just me, all of us!”

“Come here, surrogate daughters!” screams Mom. Winona and Stack immediately pounce on her, with Ingrid and Josephina coming next. All of you hug her tight, snuggling up together. “You too future son-in-law!”

“Excuse me!?” yells Jock and Dad.

“I’m joking!” says Mom. Mom slaps Dad on his back, grinning at him. “Elodie, you’ve raised a good gaggle of people!” She takes your arms, looking you in the eye. “You’re going to be a great mother one day!”

“Thanks to you,” you say. “Thanks to both of you, Mom and Dad.”

Mom and Dad hug you tight. “You’re a good girl, Ellie!”

“Hey, reporters!” yells Captain Spruance calls out to you, Iris, and Griselda. “Reporters are coming!” Oh shit.

Griselda nudges you. “Come on, Ellie. I’ll need some help with this.”

> Help answer questions with Griselda.
> “No thanks, I just wanna relax. Give the usual stuff for me.”
> Other

>>3333408
>> Help answer questions with Griselda.

>>3333408
>> Help answer questions with Griselda.

>>3333408
>Help answer questions with Griselda.

>>3333408
>> Help answer questions with Griselda.

>>3333408
>> Help answer questions with Griselda.

>> Help answer questions with Griselda.

…

…

You, Griselda, Iris, and all the rest of the commanders sit at a long table on stage for the after tournament QnA. Nearly all the questions are directed to Griselda. And Griselda can’t really do much else except thank everyone. “I just want to say that thanks to the efforts of our people from the other schools, we had a fighting chance. I never in a million years would think anyone would like LGA enough to actually want to come fight with us.”

One reporter raises her hand. “And your opinion on the Cold War tanks?”

“They have their place,” says Griselda. “But NATO is unique enough that I feel we don’t need them. In a separate league sure, in a different time, sure. But now? Probably not.”

“Is it true that you intend to stay with NATO instead of the ITL?” asks another reporter.

“That’s a story for another day,” Griselda says.

“I have a question for Elodie Zumwalt.” Kit Blumenthal rises from her seat, grinning. “Elodie, you’ve been an amazing asset for Griselda in this tournament in your first year too. How do you intend to keep this up? This is going to be a big act to follow next year after all. Do you intend to one-up yourself?”

> “I intend to win next year too.”
> “Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”
> “How we move on is all up to Griselda.”
> Other

>>3333873
> “Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

>>3333873
>“Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

>>3333873
>“Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

Senshado should be done right, or not at all. With poise, dignity and courtesy.

>>3333873
>> “Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

>>3333873
>> “Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

>>3333873
> “How we move on is all up to Griselda.”

>> “Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great.”

“Tankery’s about the match, not about winning. If we lose, too bad. If we win, great. It’s the experience that matters above all else.” The reporters start writing down your answer. “Everyone here knows that what matters is really what you do both on and off the field. And victory while great, it only lasts so long. And if you’re nothing without victory, you’ll never be enough with it.”

“Iris!” A reporter calls out to her. “How do you maintain your cool under fire?”

“By acting like a proper lady,” she responds. Everyone laugh at the response. But Iris seems to have intended that very seriously.

“Alright, alright, no more questions!” Fina and the Hall Monitors start intervening, pushing the reporters out of the way. “Get on, get on, ya mongs!”

You, Iris, and Griselda stand up and head off the stage. “Ugh, Q and A is such a drag. Glad we got through it through,” says Griselda. “Feels like we spout off the same stuff every time.”

Iris says, “Regardless, we spoke from the heart.”

“Yeah, that’s what matters,” you say.

Griselda nods. “Yeah, that’s what…” Griselda stops. You and Iris look at her in confusion before looking where she’s looking. Standing there in the open, hands in her pockets, a warm smile on her face is Gertrude Pool. Griselda starts walking up to her. You follow but Iris quickly stops you by tugging on your sleeve.

“Family matter,” says Iris. “Let’s let them have their day.” Right, of course.

“Iris, can I ask you a question?” you ask. She looks at you. “Were you serious about the whole lady stuff?”

“Of course,” she says. “Why do you ask?”

> “Maybe I’d like some more pointers.”
> “Nothing. Let’s go eavesdrop on them.”
> “Nothing. How about we find something to do?”
> Other

>>3334355
>“Maybe I’d like some more pointers.”

We try to be cool, but we sometimes fail, and inwardly we lose our shit often.

>>3334355
>“Nothing. Let’s go eavesdrop on them.”

>>3334355
> “Maybe I’d like some more pointers.”

>>3334355
>> “Maybe I’d like some more pointers.”

> “Maybe I’d like some more pointers.”

“Maybe I’d like some pointers,” you say. “Much as I like to try and act cool, I do fail. And inwardly my mental state can be kind of erratic so…” You point to her, smiling. “Some advice would be nice.”

Iris shrugs. “Of course. A lady does know how to pass on her knowledge. Come then.” She takes her arm. “We can talk. We’ll let the two sisters speak by themselves.” You look back as Iris leads you on. Griselda and Gertrude speak in private. You can’t hear what their conversation is.

Honestly, you’d love to hear it. From one sister to another. Griselda has loathed being in Gertrude’s shadow since this all started. And now that she’s won a tournament of her own and proved her worth, Gertrude’s reaction must be something. What would they say? Was it time for Griselda to come back and practice Tankery alongside Gertrude? Or was it time for Griselda to branch off on her own and become her own person?

Either is fine. But…

Truth be told, you hope that by the end of it, those two sisters are happy.

That is it for tonight. We'll be back tomorrow for more epilogue shenanigans so I hope to see you then and hopefully this thread is still alive by then.

Follow at: https://twitter.com/GermanSchteel
And if you ever feel like shooting the shit with me, you can hit me up in my discord: https://discord.gg/9e9yvfv

See you next time.

>>3334969
Thanks for the fun, boss.

See you tomorrow

>>3334969
Looking forward to it boss

>>3334969
Thanks for running boss, sorry about the arm.

You, Winona, Iris, Stack, Ingrid, and Josephina stand in the shadow of Oliver. He’s been dinged up. There’s gashes, scratches, dents, and all other manner of battle scarring to him. “It’s going to take a lot to fix that up,” says Ingrid.

“Yeah,” says Winona. “Poor boy.” Winona holds Cuddles in her arms, clutching him like a teddy bear. “He’s been through so much with us.”

Iris says, “A lady always acknowledges the man in the house.”

“Well, regardless,” Stack says. “We all pulled together for our guy here.” You step up and touch the hull with your palm. Soot, grease, and a little rubble is still on his battleworn metal, staining your hand. You look up at the turret and see the faint LGA Fleur-de-lis, near completely worn off from the match. From Centaur tank, to Cromwell, to Comet. He’s gotten you through so much. And now it’s finally over. At least until next tournament of course. “I’m so proud of him!”

Josephina grins, looking up at him. “He’s been such a good boy!”

Winona sighs. Then she bows to Oliver. “Thank you for everything, Oliver.”

What should you say to the tank that brought you here?

> Boast
> Neutral
> Polite

>>3337338
> Polite

Thank you , Oliver. For your courage and endurance and for giving us a place to be better. We'll get you fixed up properly right away.

>>3337338
>> Polite

>>3337338
> Polite

>>3337338
Seconding this >>3337351

> Polite

You bow to Oliver. As do the rest of the crew. “Thank you, Oliver. For everything you’ve done. Your courage, your endurance, and giving us a place to become better women. We’ll get you fixed up properly right away. And next year, we’ll repay the favor by winning more fights.”

Oliver obviously doesn’t say anything. His imposing presence on the field is enough to give you all pause. Winona yawns, rubbing her eyes. “I could really use some sleep.”

“Yeah,” says Stack. “We stayed up all night, adrenaline pumping!” She shadowboxes a little, still smiling wearily. “I think all we deserve right now is some goddamn rest.”

“Oui.” Josephina yawns loudly. She looks around. “When are they going to take away Oliver?”

“In a few hours,” Stack says. “That said.” She sits down in Oliver’s shade then lies back, hands forming a pillow below her head. “I think right here for a nap should do.”

“You’re going to have bugs crawl all over you though,” Winona says, frowning. Stack doesn’t respond. “Stack?” She’s already sleep.

Ingrid kneels down. “Best to keep her company. Just so no one tries to do anything funny.” She lays down next to Stack as well, sighing. And she too fall asleep before she even realizes it. Josephina too joins in as well. She lies next to Stack and curls up, smiling happily. Winona pouts a little before sitting down next to them.

“You joining us, Elodie? It’s only going to be a few hours,” says Winona.

> “Sure. A nap would be lovely actually.”
> “Nah. I’m going to walk around. You guys rest up.”
> Other

>>3337682
>“Nah. I’m going to walk around. You guys rest up.”

>>3337682
>“Nah. I’m going to walk around. You guys rest up.”

Still too wired or tired to sleep

>>3337682
> “Nah. I’m going to walk around. You guys rest up.”
Iris is still hanging around with us, isn't she?

>>3337682
>> “Sure. A nap would be lovely actually.”
Remember when Griselda made us sleep at our tanks, everyone huddled in, on or around their machines.

>>3337682
> “Nah. I’m going to walk around. You guys rest up.”
We were going to hang with Iris. Should spend the night with Jock, we have a surprise for him. The maid outfit.

>>3337806
I'm just waiting for a flyby with the pinup.

File: Elodie does not approve o(...).jpg (191 KB, 900x900)

191 KB JPG

>>3337834
I thought we made him change it to something less lewd.

>>3337798
>>3337806
Modifying my vote, we can take time for a quick nap, even if we wake up earlier than the others. If nothing else, there will probably time e to hang with Iris in the future. We should have plenty of time for Jock at night.
>>3337866
I don't think so, it kept Elodie well covered, so she wasn't upset with it.

> Some combination of the two.

“Eh. Why not.” You sit down between Stack and Winona and say to Iris, “I’ll meet you in a little bit, okay?”

Iris nods. “Take care.” With that, she turns and walks away.

Winona smiles at you. “Feels so long since we’ve slept next to Oliver!” She flops back, letting Cuddles curl up inside of her shirt as she exhales loudly. “Aaahhh… what a beautiful day.” You smile a bit at that. One of these days you’ll have to reward Winona and the rest of the crew for having been through so much with you. But for now, it was time for a nap. You lie back too. Stack snuggles up next to you, as does Winona. There’s no blankets or pillows here for you. Just you, your crew, and your tank. And really, somehow you’re able to fall asleep in the most comfy fashion possible.

…

…

You wake up earlier than most everyone else to find Oliver being towed onto the tank transporter. Everyone starts getting up, watching him be towed up and be taken out with the rest of the tanks. It’s already mid morning now. And that meant soon it would be time to leave for LGA. You’d have the rest of the week off too, so at least there was time for vacation.

Winona says, “I’m going to go find my Mom and Dad!” She kisses you goodbye.

Stack says, “My sisters are dying to hear from me.”

“My Mom and Dad too are looking for me as well,” Ingrid says.

“As are mine!” Josephina grins.

“Right. We’ll meet back on the plane then,” you say. With that, you all break. You decide to go and find Iris.

There you find her walking in the fairgrounds. You join up with right quickly. The two of you walk through the fairgrounds. No need for greeting. “Seems like so long ago the tournament started…” you mutter to yourself. People were packing up their booths and carnival stalls. But the buzz of the match was still alive. People were near swarming you and Iris for autographs here and there. “What do you think Griselda and Gertrude were talking about?” you ask.

Iris says, “If a lady’s intuition is correct, perhaps they were making up. However, Griselda is very different from Gertrude. The two are quite close but there’s enough difference that I feel that if ever came down to it, their styles of Tankery would clash.” Fair enough. “Griselda will get a lot of credit for what’s happened here. But you and I though, I think more people will recognize our deeds than you think.”

>>3337960
“Oh, we’re just trying to win the match and have fun,” you say.

Iris says, “Sure, sure. However, in doing so, we were the ones to carry the team on our backs during those early matches.” She holds up her smartphone and lets you see an article.

ELODIE ZUMWALT, Potential NATO WL MVP or WL Rookie of the Year?

Oh. Oh good Lord. You feel a rush of blood in your cheeks. You?

“I should say congratulations,” says Iris.

“Please no. Let’s not,” you say. “We can worry about that tomorrow.”

“Sure,” Iris says.

“Elodie!” You look up and see Hadley running up to you. “Elodie!” She grabs your hand, grinning happily. “Elodie, finally found you! Listen! I just wanted to thank you for everything!”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve helped me be a better officer!” Hadley says. She grins happily. “Captain Spruance is going to put in a good word to my shift supervisor! I could get a promotion later!” That’s great! You grin, happily hugging her. The two of you start giggling excitedly at the prospect of it. “I’m so happy too!”

“Awesome!” you say. “It’ll be good to see you in the office and on the tank grounds too.”

“Well.” Hadley’s smile drops a little. “Actually, Elodie. Um.” You blink, eh? “I’ve been juggling with this a little while. And I wanted your perspective on this. I’m not sure I could do Officerial stuff with Naval Studies and pursue Tankery at the same time. I’m not like you, I can’t multi-task like you. For me it’s… one or the other.” She shrugs. “I just wanted your advice, that’s all.” You admit it. It hurts a little. You helped Hadley get into Tankery and you obviously can't force her to stay. Both would do her well in the future.

> “Stick with Tankery. You’ve got so much potential.”
> “Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”
> “I don’t know. Do what your heart says.”
> Other

>>3337963
> “Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”
It's a shame to lose her, but Naval studies is more important, if she can't do both, and doesn't want to pursue tankery all the way post schooling, then one championship win will have to do.

>>3337963
> “Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”

>>3337963
>“Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”

>>3337963
>“Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”

That's why you came to LGA. For school. You'll always be welcome at matches.

>>3338006
She is always welcome to come to practices when she has time, and could pitch in to fill in vacancies if things line up that way. But school is most important.

> “Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity. Take it.”

“Being an Officer aboard an Academyship has a lot of opportunity, take it.” Hadley smiles, reassured now of her goals. “If you ever have the time, you’ll always have a place on the team.”

“Of course!” says Hadley. “I mean… yeah. If I have time. But I just want to let you know I wasn’t using Tankery to springboard me. You really did help. And I’ll always be grateful for that and if you ever need me to come back, then you just call me and I’ll come running.” She squeezes your hand, smiling at you. “Thank you, Elodie Zumwalt. You’ve saved my career.”

With that, Hadley says goodbye and takes her leave. Iris says, “There’ll be more like her. Obviously the foreign schools will be gone too.”

“Yeah. In the end Tankery is a sport, not a life,” you say. “But… it’s sad to see her go.” You can’t imagine who else will leave, either because they graduate, because they lose interest, or because they have other dreams to pursue. And speaking of which, you notice Arisu speaking with Miss McPherson and her girls as well. “Arisu!”

Arisu turns to you. “Zumwalt-san.”

“Hey, Miss Zumwalt,” says Miss McPherson. The two of you walk up to them. “We were just telling this little girl here what we plan to do in the future.”

“We’re staying put where we are,” says Miss Sandusky. “We’ve lived our lives for so long without Tankery, going back to it would just feel empty.” You can understand. “We just wanted to thank you for bringing us together like this. And for bringing love for the beautiful game back to us.”

Miss McPherson says, “We can’t give you anything except our thanks and our well-wishes. We hope that NATO on LGA will continue on for years hopefully.”

“What about Miss Durocher?” you ask.

“What about me?” Commissioner (or rather former Commissioner) Durocher comes a knocking behind them. Everyone turns to her, surprised to see her. “Since I’m now a former Commissioner of a Tankery Organization, I have a lot of time on my hands these days. And… I got a lot of apologizing to do. Elodie, sorry for how we treated you back there.”

“Water under the bridge,” you say.

Iris says, “A lady holds no grudges.”

>>3338146
“Thank you,” says Commissioner Durocher. “As for everyone else. Dottie, Mattie, Sandy, Emmy…” Commissioner Durocher folds her arms, smiling at them. “I can’t ask for forgiveness. But I can take you all out for a coffee date perhaps, so we can catch up.”

“We’d like that,” says Miss McPherson. “Come on.” The now five strong veteran tank crew takes a walk, chatting amongst themselves again, looking almost like they were high schoolers once more.

Arisu turns to you. “They were known to us back in the day according to my mother. It was an honor to meet them.” She looks up at you. “Now that the tournament is over, do you feel you know what you want to do in the future? There will always be a place at the Shimada-ryuu dojo for you when you graduate after all.” Really? Jeez. That’s…

You blink, thinking on it.

> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”
> “That sounds great. But I’m not sure it’s for me.”
> “Expect me then. I’ll see you there.”
> Other

>>3338149
>“I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

>>3338149
>> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

>>3338149
>> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”
It would be nice, but we've our own path to forge too, and other things to worry about. Who knows where we could be in four years time.

>>3338149
>“I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

But we will study what Shimada-ryu we can

>>3338149

> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

>>3338149
>> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

Final update for the pastebin: https://pastebin.com/bUU2v0z8

File: My Sadness Very Big.jpg (41 KB, 392x495)

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>>3338318
>Final

> “I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

“I got four years of high school in me, Arisu. Give me some time.”

Arisu nods. She looks to Iris as well then nods. “Know that whatever path you choose, Zumwalt-san, the heart of a tank is within you. Do take care of yourself. And please, never give up on your dreams as so many others have and possibly will.” She holds up her Boko Bear to you, surprising you. “Be like Boko. Never give up no matter what others tell you.” Yeah but… Boko’s kinda- You know what? No. You won’t comment. She’s being heartfelt.

“I’ll do my best, Arisu,” you say. “Thank you for all your guidance.”

“On your way then,” she says. She bows to you. You bow back to her in respect, a student to a master. She smiles, and then waves goodbye as she steps away and leaves.

Iris says, “Huh. So you really weren’t imagining her.”

“Iris.”

“That was a joke,” Iris says, not laughing. She smiles though. “Still. There was one more person I believe we need to say goodbye to.”

…

…

He slaps a suitcase into a dusty old Lada, probably older than he is. You haven’t seen him for quite some time. But he’s here now. The mechanic that helped save the team. “Oleg.” He turns to you, his face still covered by that welding mask of his. “Thought you could escape?”

“Da, actually,” he says. “I’m afraid this is where I part ways with Lafayette Girls Academy. I am not being one to stand around in place after all. Where there is profit to be made, Crazy Oleg’s shall be there to being exploiting, da?”

“Of course.” You open your arms. “You’re always welcome back though.” With that, you give him one final goodbye hug.

“Ah, solnyshka, so emotional, you imply as if Crazy Oleg should die,” he says. “I am tearing up you know! I am not as old as you think nor as young as I used to be!” With that, he lets go. “Some advice though, solnyshka. I want you to understand this clearly for it has guided me through life as it did my mother and my babushka and so many others in my family.” He taps your forehead. “People will tell you that you-“ His cellphone starts ringing. “People will tell you that life has no meaning. That there is nothing in this world but animals living on this blue Earth, claiming to be more than they actually are. If we are but a twinkle in the lifetime of the Earth, then know this. If we are but a twinkle,” he points to your eyes, “Then be the star that shines brightest. Da?”

You… don’t quite get it. But you understand the sentiment. “Da.”

He nods. You can tell he smiles beneath his mask. He checks his phone. “… chyort. Uh. If anyone asks, you did not see me here, da?” He quickly runs into the Lada, then drives off, leaving a cloud of brown smoke in his wake.

>>3338387
“Strange man,” says Iris. As if to interrupt her, you see planes flying off overhead. The KDH team. Their Warhawks, Spitfires, B-17s, and their Zeppelin fly off into the morning sun, their roar of their engines drowning out the birds and the insects in the fields. But you notice one plane not among them.

“Hey, Elodie!” Jock calls out to you. “Your flight’s about to leave, you too, Iris!” Oh shit. You and Iris quickly hop onto Jock’s jeep. He puts it into gear and starts driving away. You feel the open wind in your hair and on your skin as you ride next to him. He grins, putting the pedal to the metal as you three practically fly through the fields and off to the airfield.

…

…

“There you are!” says Winona. The private jet intended to take you back to LGA is here already. Jock manages to get you to the boarding ramp. Griselda too looked worried you wouldn’t make it. But she smiles when she sees you coming. “We just got your luggage settled too!”

Jock wipes his forehead, panting. “Trust me, traffic was a killer out here.”

“Uh huh.” Winona rolls her eyes, unamused. Griselda smiles at you, then quickly pulls Winona back. “What. Hey! Hey!”

Iris says, “I will give you two a moment.” She too leaves as well. Eh? You look at Jock. Oh. Oh.

Jock sheepishly rubs his neck, looking at you. “Eheh. Well, I’ll… I’ll see you around I guess, Elodie.”

“Sure,” you say. “You didn’t leave with your friends though. Why?”

“I wanted to drive you back here, one last time before…” He shrugs. “You know. I just wanted to do something sentimental. Enjoy one last drive with you. I’m sure Gertrude might allow another cross-school training thing but who knows when that’ll be. And I don’t know when the next time I’ll get to visit you is. And I mean, I might get to see you tonight on LGA but that’s going to be…” He blushes a little. “Just you know.” He smiles. “I really…” He sighs.

“Jock?” You smile, leaning forward on the Jeep. This time, you’re better at it. Much better. And he notices it, front and back.

“Uh.” Jock looks you in the eye. “I… I lo…” He stops himself, looking away.

> “Tonight. You and me.”
> Kiss him. Save him the trouble.
> “I know.”
> Other

>>3338389
>Kiss him. Save him the trouble

Traditional end of series smooch

>>3338355
Yeah, LGA2's been two and a half years of my life now, basically, coming back weekend after weekend. Now that it's within about a week of ending completely, well it's been a hell of a thing.

>>3338389
> “I know.”
To be stowed on

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>>3338389
>> “Tonight. You and me.”
We have that outfit to surprise him with.
He can have a kiss to tide him over until then.

>>3338389
>> Kiss him. Save him the trouble.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE01aIysKUM

>>3338389
> Kiss him. Save him the trouble.
> “I know.”

>>3338389
>> Kiss him. Save him the trouble.

>>3338389
>> “Tonight. You and me.”

File: LargeGiganticIslandwhistl(...).gif (127 KB, 480x360)

127 KB GIF

>>3338418
>>3338539
Ellie'sFW

> fuck it, little bit of everything

“I know.” You then push forward and lean into him, pressing your lips against his. He puts a hand on your arm, shutting his eyes. You shut your eyes too and let the intense flavor of his lips and tongue create the colors in the darkness instead. A boy that actually loves you. You never thought it would happen, much less here. But it’s happened. Wether it’s thanks to Tankery is a question for the ages but you won’t answer it anytime soon, you’re just going to let yourself enjoy this.

And you suppose… You pull back, a smidgeon of saliva drooping between your mouth and his. You quickly slap it away before anyone else can see it. You look back and see nearly the entire team looking out the windows at you two. They look smug. Bitches. You look back at Jock. He pants, wiping his forehead. “That was uh… that was…”

“So you’re coming around tonight?” you ask.

He shrugs. “… definitely.”

“I’ll be waiting,” you say. You wink. Maybe something’s special in order for him. After all, it’s a celebration of your victory. With that, you quickly turn and head up into the plane. Jock waves goodbye to you, a very warm smile on his face. And with that, he turns the jeep away and departs.

You settle down on the plane next to Winona. You sigh, great seats these are. Almost too comfortable. Winona looks at you, smug. “Winona, I’m not that embarrassed I have a boyfriend.”

“You’re not gonna share?” she asks. You flick her on the nose. “Ow!”

“You have Cuddles,” you say.

“Mm. True.” Winona pulls Cuddles out from her shirt, smiling at him. “You’re the only boy for me, you cutie.” She nuzzles his head with her nose, snickering. As the plane starts up down the runway, you see something down there.

Meryl Hoffmeister on her tank, Dix Hauser too, Oryola Kuznetsov, Rosehip and Orange Pekoe, Eleanor D’Aquitaine, Mackenzie King, Salome Del Rio, Maria Da Silva, June Bug Weathers, Perrine Hobart, Carolina Greene, all of them who helped out in the match were now saying goodbye to you on the runway, waving goodbye as they stood upon their tanks. You watch them go, waving back at them. They probably can’t see it, but the sentiment counts. Yesterday’s enemies became today’s friends. Then you spot something too beside them.

Standing atop a Centurion I was Mei, watching you neutrally, her arms folded. And beside her, Arisu. They too wave goodbye.

Hmph. There’s always next year.

>>3338587
Denise hands you and Winona a blanket. “It’s going to be a few hours to LGA, Elodie.” You smile happily. “If you want more sleep, I’d get it.”

“Thanks, Denise,” you say. You look at her. “And I didn’t quite thank you enough for that last shot too. That was pretty good.”

Denise grins, happily clapping her cheeks to cover her blush. “Well, it was Fina that made that shot! I just shouted at her to do it, hehe! Though… I’m definitely doing Tankery next you with all of you. Count on it.”

Winona sighs, covering herself beneath the blanket. “There’s always next year, Elodie.”

Yeah, there is.

Denise sighs. “So much has happened these past few months, I’ve got caught up in it all." She looks at you. "You know, thinking on it, I never thought the NATO would ever get out of Gertrude's shadow too. But here we are now! People love us and... it's over! In the end…” She looks at you. “Elodie, you think we did good?”

> Boast?
> Neutral?
> Polite?

>>3338592
> Boast

"You all did."

>>3338592
I think we did the very best we could, and I don't think anyone could ask or hope to do anymore.

>>3338592
>Boast?

>>3338592
>Boast?

Damn right we did. We all did.

>>3338592
> Boast?

>>3338592
> Boast

>>3338592
>> Boast?

> Boast?

“We did our very best out there, Denise. More than good, way more than good I think.” Winona smiles, then gently puts a hand on your shoulder. “You did too.” You look out the window again, and see the ground start to get covered in clouds as you ascend to new heights.

Denise smiles, then leans over Winona and hugs you. “Oooh! I can’t wait for next year! It’s going to be great!” She quickly runs over to her seat.

Winona says, “You know, Gertrude’s going to be graduating this year.”

“Yeah,” you say. “Hopefully I can figure out what she and Griselda were talking about when we saw her this morning.”

“Sister stuff probably,” Winona says. “I wouldn’t worry too much. I think we can know for sure that they’re sisters together again.” Yeah. True. You look across the aisle at Griselda. She slumbers soundly next to an also sleeping Athena. “But hey, a lot of the ITL group is going to graduate too. Not to mention some of our people maybe as well.”

“And the process starts over,” you say.

“Process?” asks Winona.

“Yeah. If we want our team to survive, we gotta keep recruiting people,” you say. “Get more people interested in tanks, make heroes out of them like they did for us.” After all, Gertrude had her time in the sun. She’s finished her race and now she’ll be off to college once this school year is up. As for you though? You have a whole four years to work with. It won’t just be this tournament, there’ll be more. And with that, there’ll be more races to run, tanks to get, people to recruit, and most importantly more memories to make. From Gertrude to Griselda then to you.

You are Elodie Rosetta Zumwalt, Executive Officer of the new Lafayette Girls Academy NATO Tankery team.

And you are the next generation.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkNbMZhEGEw

And that is it for LGA2 this weekend. We have one more epilogue thread in this later on but let me just say deep down from the bottom of my heart, thank you for following LGA2 all the way to the end if you've been here since the start. And for those of you who started mid-way, thank you for reading. And for those of you who dropped, I hope dearly you'll come back to finish what you started.

LGA2 has been here for the better part of three years. We've survived a migration to /qst/, my own burnout, and all other things. But it's finally coming to an end. And I just want to say to each and every one of you again, thank you so much for reading. You've made this poor little amateur writer from the state of Virginia feel loved. And I hope that you felt loved by me running this Quest for all of you as well.

Next weekend we'll start the epilogue thread, and I hope to see you all there.

You are my sunshine, anons.

Follow at: https://twitter.com/GermanSchteel
And if you ever feel like shooting the shit with me, you can hit me up in my discord: https://discord.gg/9e9yvfv

See you next time.

>>3338741
It has been an Honor, Chief. Thanks for sticking around to finish this Quest too. o7

>>3338741
Thanks for three years of fun, boss.

Its always hard to let go, but always worth the ride on the way

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>>3338741
Top stuff through out boss. Always looked forward to this every weekend, not sure what I'm going to do now. Maybe read the Libby backlog and start following that and your other quests. Shame I missed all of LGA 1 and the first 1/3 of LGA 2.

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>>3338741
I think I've already covered most of my feelings on the impending end of LGA2 on twitter or elsewhere, so I'll just say thanks again.

Thanks for running Schteel, and catchya next time, one last time.

And remember to pour one out for him guys, never forget ShowerAnon

The camera pans out through Ellie's window and we watch the plane fly off into the distance, some chill lo-fi playing as the credits roll.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE01aIysKUM

>>3338789
That's a good image. I'm going to miss this place.

Why'd you make it start raining all the sudden anon?

>>3338815
Hey, don't blame me. It's those damn Onion Ninjas.