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Post by aleksei on Feb 8, 2010 0:23:49 GMT -5
Hudson Bay, Canada. The sheets of ice covering the bay cracked, then shifted, and finally sunk beneath the sea as the GM Aqua surfaced. The mobile suit's camera surveyed the frozen tundra in the distance. With the winds whipping snow into the air, Bo could see nothing but white.
"Gaj, I can't see him. All this fucking snow, I'm not used to this shit!" Bo yelled into the headset.
Gajandra tried to calm her, but had only bad news, "Nothing on the sonar either. We should have never let him go out alone."
"Let's rendez-vous with the others, not much else we can do here," she expressed as she did not have any particular affection toward her boss.
"We cannot leave Master Munchek. I will stay, you can leave if you want," Gajandra said before opening communications again with Bo, "Wait, I'm getting something here. It could be debris, however it's big enough to be a mobile suit."
They found the Gundam.
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Post by aleksei on Feb 8, 2010 18:19:23 GMT -5
His head had gone numb. With freezing water pouring into the Gundam's cockpit, Hirsch could no longer think. Escape was possible, but any movement within the pool of water felt like a thousand knives piercing his skin. He closed his eyes and waited for the end.
I've failed all of you.
A jolt to the Waterproof Gundam woke Hirsch up in surprise. The cockpit's lights were out, but he could tell that the water reached his chin. Luckily for Hirsch, his helmet prevented him from drowning. Another jolt rocked the mobile suit before the water began to drain from the inside. Even in his state of daze and confusion, Hirsch perceived the Gundam was pulled onto land. It then occurred to him that the enemy may have captured him.
A voice disturbed the hiss of wind from the outside, "Hirsch, it's us, don't self-destruct!"
He recognized Bo and said, "I've failed all of you."
She yelled back, "Shut the fuck up and help me get you out, you're going to freeze to death."
"Is Gajandra alive?" he asked.
"Yes, he's right next to me. Too busy crying to say anything," Bo said.
"I'm right here, master." Gajandra said as he opened the cockpit hatch with a blow torch.
The two pilots ripped their team leader out of the cockpit and carried him to their makeshift tent just a few yard away. Hirsch shook convulsively.
"Cuh, cuh, cuh...cuh...cuh...cold," Hirsch sputtered after biting his lower lip to see if he still had feeling in his face.
Inside the tent, Gajandra proceeded to undress Hirsch until he exposed the corporal's naked body. He then grabbed a thermo-blanket and wrapped his burly arms around Hirsch in an attempt to raise his body temperature.
"Where did all this stuff come from?" asked Hirsch as he buried his head deeper into Gajandra's chest.
"The EFGF paradropped relief supplies for the survivors. Without them, no one would survive out here," said Gajandra.
Hirsch then asked, "How long was I underwater?"
"We don't know, but it took us several hours to find you, master." said Gajandra.
"I've failed us. I've failed us. I've failed us," repeated Hirsch.
Gajandra did not say much more, he simply waited for Hirsch to fall asleep. Meanwhile Bo stepped outside and lit herself a cigar. She could not bear the corporal's presence who only reminded her of everything she was not and despised. Furthermore, Bo could not help but feel that this dweeb, responsible for piloting the Federation's most advanced weapon, cost the Ground Forces the battle.
"Faggot," she said underneath her breath.
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Post by aleksei on Feb 11, 2010 20:56:21 GMT -5
Hawaii. Not long after The Krakens recovered the Waterproof Gundam in the Hudson, a Federal rescue team spotted their camp and airlifted them out of the wretched tundra. Thousands of miles later, The Krakens arrived in Hawaii where Hirsch was immediately interned in the last available medical facility. Hundreds of wounded soldiers across Earth Sphere checked in every day, filling hospital to capacity.
Hirsch was not injured gravely, just a purpuraceous bruise that stretched across his rib cage down to his right leg. Although he spent hours in freezing water, he managed to not contract pneumonia. As the nurse stated, "That boy simply needs some rest." Gajandra spent most of his time at the corporal's bedside waiting for some sign of recovery. Bo came in at times, mainly to scold Gajandra for his blind devotion. Hirsch would wake up long enough to hear their whispers.
In one instance, Bo said, "Look at him, he is sprawled out on a bed while the war passes him by. He is incapable of recruiting - like, what the fuck, where is this Charles Gano bitch? - and leading a team, let alone piloting a Gundam. Face it, Gaj, The Krakens are done."
Gajanda glared back at her and said, "Keep quiet, little girl. Show some respect."
"Don't you dare tell me to shut up. Just open your fucking eyes and see that we would be more useful elsewhere. This aquatic strike team is such a sham," she stressed the final sentence.
Their conversation stung Hirsch who fought against his urge to speak, but Bo was right: nothing had been accomplished since he acquired the Waterproof. He did not feel sorry for himself because he failed. Rather he had been told he could single handedly bring Zeon to its knees and actually believed it. As his two subordinates continued to argue, his chest swelled with guilt as he held back from pleading for forgiveness, "I've failed you...I'm sorry." Hirsch stayed quiet in an effort to look less like a fool. In the end, though, he let out a tear before falling into the sweet arms of Morpheus.
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Post by aleksei on Feb 11, 2010 23:35:19 GMT -5
Hirsch took advantage of his last day in the medical ward by enjoying the solace of his room. As of noon yesterday, everyone interned in the room since he arrived died from their wounds. Dressed in a cotton gown, Hirsch got out of bed for the first time, but only to shut the window blinds that let in all that feel-good sunlight Hawaii was known for. Nothing could tear him apart from his dark cave of depression.
An unexpected knock on the door interrupted his mope session.
"Hirsch? It's me..." he noticed the voice.
"Hello?" Hirsch called out.
"...it's Phuong. May I come in?"
He jumped from his bed and opened the door, engulfing Phuong with an embrace almost immediately. Little did he know that Phuong was responsible for assiging the Waterproof in the first place, and in effect, the cause of all this misery and self-pity.
"Well, hello to you too!" Phuong said.
She stepped into the room and dragged a chair to his bedside.
Her face was stern, "While I am very happy to see you again, I must admit that I am here under official business from Jaburo. The situation for us on Earth is grave. Pilots have abandoned the battlefield en mass, deserting on all fronts with valuable Federation technology and information. Not only have many officers deserted, some have outright committed suicide in the middle of engagements. Just yesterday we just received word that Southeast Asia Headquarters has fallen to Zeon's Terrestrial Forces, our second base sacked this week. According to survivors that managed to escape in the jungle, command never saw it coming. They must have traveled via Jukon for them to bring such a large force without detection. We are losing the war, Hirsch."
The word Jukon triggered Hirsch the memory of the SS officer he failed to kill on his first mission with the Gundam. He felt stomach in knots, guilt set in once more. Phuong verified Bo's suspicions: his failure meant death to thousands of Federation soldiers. Hirsch felt the world on his shoulders.
Phuong reached out and held onto Hirsch's hand, "But there is hope. Reports indicate their Jukons are still in the region, there is a chance that we can catch them off-guard if we react now."
She handed him a vanilla envelope.
Phuong then said, "Your orders, Corporal."
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