ASSEMBLY
It had been a few days since the two platoons joined ranks. Making use of the new manpower, they began to rapidly expand their mountain stronghold. There was no time to waste, as the construction opened up its defenses to attack. Every soldier was put to work. There was so little time to sleep that the men often slept in the field rather than the barracks.
Naoki was put to work as well. She was primarily mobilized outside the walls, helping the men haul the rocks they gathered in and out of the carts. The men were surprised by how strong she was for a girl, being able to lift just as much as the other men. It was especially stunning when her powers were put to full use. Once all the large stones in the vicinity were gathered, she was employed to demolish some of the stone faces with her explosive power.
For some of the soldiers in her own platoon, this was the first time she demonstrated her magical power. Even the short-stump lieutenant, as Naoki called him, was impressed by her abilities as he oversaw the project from his post. The work took a toll on Naoki, however, as she ate more frequently to replenish her drained energy. Eventually, Lieutenant Isobe reasoned it was better to use the explosives they had on hand instead of burning through their rations to fuel her.
On the morning of the fifth day, the foundations for the wall structure were complete, and Naoki was finally afforded some time to rest. She wearily dragged herself to a campfire and collapsed in a heap. She laid face-flat on a log, warming herself by the fire. The other soldiers continued to work around her, propping up foundations for other buildings within the walls. None dared to disturb her.
Naoki began to doze off when she was eventually nudged on the shoulder. She looked up, expecting to see her sister. Naoki was surprised she had snuck up on her without her noticing. But instead, she saw the young officer, squatted down next to her, holding out a canister of soup.
“I saw you here when I passed by earlier, and thought I’d grab you something to eat.”
Without getting up, Naoki reached up and accepted the can, placing it on the ground below her face. “Thanks.”
The officer sat down on an adjacent log and ate his own ration. Naoki attempted to eat how she was, cheek-flat on the log, with some difficulty. The soup kept spilling out the sides of her mouth, and after some frustration, she sat up to eat.
“… How’s Haruna? I’ve been too tired and busy to check on her.”
The young officer looked up. “She hasn’t moved since the day you arrived. I tried to get her to go outdoors and get some fresh air, now that the watchtower is shuttered, but she wouldn’t listen.”
Naoki wearily chuckled. “Don’t worry, that’s just how she is. She only listens to me and the lieutenant.” She took another sip. “Our lieutenant, that is. And not always.”
“Ah, I see.”
They ate in silence.
“… Is she always stationary like that?”
“It drains her; what she does. She’d rather not move around, and focus.”
“Your chaperone told me the same. Though, even with your powers, isn’t it detrimental for her to sit still all day?” The officer stirred his soup. “I feel irresponsible for letting her do so, but then again, I don’t understand what you two can do.”
Naoki shrugged. “Maybe? It doesn’t seem to affect her. Other than her being tired. I mean, she hasn’t gotten sick.”
Finishing her soup, she laid back down on her back this time, her hands behind her head, and watched the camp buzz. In the distance, she noticed Lt. Isobe amongst the men, working just like the rest of the men. She perked up. “The lieutenant is working as well?”
The officer looked over his shoulder. “Lieutenant Isobe? Yes, he’s quite the craftsman actually. Mostly working on the interiors.”
Naoki relaxed her shoulders. “Nice to see him share the work.” Her voice dropped to a murmur. “Meanwhile, short-stump just sits in his post all day.”
The officer laughed. “I’m sure he’s not sitting around doing nothing all day.”
“Sure seems like it.” Naoki lowered her eyelids. “At least Haruna is shielding the camp when she sits still, and as far as I’m aware, short-stump can’t do that.”
“He shields us with his brain.” The officer finished his soup. “You’ll find that he’s pretty clever if you get the chance to talk to him.”
Later that day, in the evening, the officer received orders to bring the two girls to the headquarters. After passing the orders to Naoki, the two walked back to their quarters to pick up Haruna, who was still eating dinner. After some lengthy encouragement from her sib, she begrudgingly got up and followed them.
“Come to think of it, I don’t think I ever got the chance to ask your name,” Naoki said as they walked.
“Ah, I’m Officer Koga.” He smiled. “Apologies for not introducing myself before.”
“It’s okay, we’ve all been busy,” Naoki said with a giggle. She liked how polite he was, just like Ken. “I’m Naoki, and my sister is Haruna.”
“I’m pretty sure he knows our names by now,” Haruna monotonously spoke.
“…?! Well…! You never know!”
The officer laughed. “Well, nice to meet you two, regardless.”
At the headquarters, Lt. Isobe and a few other officers were in the room as well. The lieutenant was back in his uniform again. He silently greeted the girls with a slight nod. There was a large table in the middle with a map on it. Lt. Akiyama was stooped over it, and looked up once they entered. “Ah! There you are!”
“Apologies for being late,” spoke the young officer.
The lieutenant nodded, looking at the children. “Understandable, understandable.” He looked back at the officer. “You may stay if you want.”
They all sat down around the big table. Lt. Akiyama sat where he always did, by himself on the far end of the table, with the two girls on the other end, nearest to the door. On the adjacent sides sat two of his officers and Lt. Isobe with two of his own officers. Once everyone was settled, Lt. Akiyama leaned forward in his seat, his hands crossed in front of him.
“To put it simply for you girls, this is a strategy meeting,” he said. Naoki was irked by how condescending he sounded. “As the one in charge of this outpost, out on the frontlines, I need to know what all of my soldiers are capable of.” He paused. “Especially you two.”
Naoki was irritated by his demeanor. “What, is he now changing his mind on commanding us?” she thought.
“Don’t say that out loud,” Haruna thought back.
Lt. Akiyama’s gaze was keen and unflinching. He returned Naoki’s suspecting glare. “As much as I don’t want to put you two on the battlefield, survival comes first. I’ve seen a little bit of what you can do, red-haired.” He turned to Lt. Isobe. “Remind me again?”
The lieutenant looked confused. “Their names.” Lt. Akiyama further clarified.
“The older one, Naoki, and the other, Haruna.”
“Yes, Naoki it was. I’ve seen your explosive work, and that’s changed my mind somewhat. I must say I was skeptical whether you could actually fight until I saw you in the field.”
“Sure,” Naoki abruptly replied, then tensed. She came across more sarcastic than she intended. Lt. Akiyama did not pay any heed, however.
“As for the other girl, Haruna, you’ll need to explain to me just what you do.”
“I shield the camp from projectiles,” she rehearsed.
“And just how do you do that?”
She took a breath. “I project several auras of my energy out over the camp; one large one to detect incoming projectiles and one smaller, concentrated one to block them. When I detect one, I triangulate its location and direction using the energy particles I’ve dispersed in the large aura, then rapidly compress my energy in the smaller aura along its trajectory to block it and absorb the shock of the explosion.”
The lieutenant looked lost. “This… energy, then… is something magic related?”
“Yes,” she carried on expressionlessly.
“Does it really work?” He seemed skeptical.
“If you want to get one of your men to randomly fire off some artillery at the camp, I will stop it.”
“Have you tested it before?”
“In training.”
“Not in the field?”
“A few times. A couple months ago.”
“How accurate is it?”
“Very.”
“Very?” Lt. Akiyama looked at Lt. Isobe. “What ratio?”
“So far, she’s blocked every shot,” he replied. Lt. Akiyama raised an eyebrow.
“Artillery,” Haruna clarified. “Stray bullets, such as sniper’s fire, are another thing, as they are harder to detect and sometimes takes several triangulations to map, and I may need to block it just a few meters before their targets. Which is not enough time if the soldier is on the edges of my aura.”
“Which is still pretty good,” Naoki defended. “It’s not like she can make your soldiers invincible.”
The lieutenant calmly glanced at her, resting his head in the palm of his hand. “Take it easy, kid. It’s not like I was expecting her to.”
Naoki raised her shoulders, agitated. Lt. Akiyama only stared back at her in silence, mimicking Haruna’s expressionlessness. This unnerved Naoki, and she tried to stand her ground, but eventually looked away. She wondered why no one else was speaking up. Haruna, on the other hand, understood this man’s position in the room.
“What about you?” Lt. Akiyama eventually spoke. “You two are opposites; that much I know. You fire projectiles?”
“Some…what. I don’t have much range though. If you want to hit something far away, cannons are still better.”
“Oh? Why so?”
“Well… it disappears if it travels too far…”
Lt. Akiyama looked confused. Lt. Isobe explained further. “The magic is not as concentrated as a solid artillery round. The magic is more like a solid-fluid, so it disperses if it travels too far.”
Lt. Akiyama’s face lit up. “Ah! I understand now.” But then he grew puzzled again. “But then, what about her?” He briefly pointed at Haruna. “I recall you also concentrate your magic?”
“I’m not throwing my energy.”
“That’s true, I suppose.”
“She’s also better at concentrating her magic,” said Lt. Isobe. “Not because of any lack in skill. That’s just the inherit property of her relation in the Treasured Pair.”
Lt. Akiyama sat back in his chair. “Please elaborate.”
“In a Treasured Pair, one child is short-ranged, and the other is long-ranged. The short-ranged children, such as Naoki, cannot concentrate their energy—their magic, very much. But they are physically strong and can regenerate their magic quickly. The long-ranged children can concentrate and expand their energy rapidly, but it consumes their limited supply of magic very quickly. And they do not regenerate it very quickly.”
Lt. Akiyama nodded along. “Talk about a yin yang couple,” he remarked.
“The long-ranged children are generally very brittle too,” Lt. Isobe continued. “Which is why they are kept at a distance.”
“I see, I see. You should have told me from the very beginning to avoid this confusion.”
“My apologies,” said Lt. Isobe. Naoki bristled once again.
“So then, keep Naoki with the infantry, and Haruna with the artillery division. Am I understanding that correctly?”
“Yes.”
“These magical particles or whatever…” Lt. Akiyama turned back to Haruna, waving a finger indiscriminately across the map on the table. “Can you send them over to the enemy and explode them or something?”
“I wasn’t trained to do that.”
“Can you learn, then?”
“I’m only here to protect, not to kill.”
“Ha!” The lieutenant ejected a loud but short laugh, slapping the table and surprising everyone in the room. “That’s rich! Super! Ha ha!” He leaned his head over the table, bobbing up and down from laughter.
Naoki looked around. Even the lieutenant’s own officers looked uncertain. Haruna finally broke her expressionless masquerade.
“Well, then! I ask you this then, little girl.” Lt. Akiyama looked up, leaning forward on an elbow, and stared straight into her eyes. Haruna sunk deeper behind her cloak.
“Can you block an enemy soldier charging with a bayonet?”
“That would be too nuanced to detect on a broad battlefield.”
“What if, let’s say, a fellow soldier was being charged upon by the enemy; and you saw this coming from a distance. Let’s say, if you did nothing, it would mean certain death for that fellow soldier.” He sat back in his chair again. “Would you not strike down this enemy soldier then?”
“…”
He raised an eyebrow. “… No?”
“… I don’t kno—”
“He’s already dead then.” He quickly interrupted. “There’s no time for indecision on the battlefield, kid.”
Haruna looked like she was about to buckle under the pressure. Traces of extra fluid were building up in her eyes. Naoki saw this and angrily turned to the lieutenant, who was already gazing at her, anticipating her retaliation.
“Lay off, will ya?!” she exploded, dropping her composure. Lt. Isobe abruptly straightened in his seat and opened his mouth, but Lt. Akiyama waved him off, signaling it was fine.
“This is war, young lady.” He stretched out his arms. “I don’t make the rules. The only goal is to win, no matter what.”
Haruna looked down at the table to avoid his gaze. Her tears only built up faster.
“In the thick of a battle, if a soldier sees an enemy, he will shoot him. If he sees his buddies in danger, he will do whatever it takes to save them, even if he must kill a few perfectly loving fathers. And you must expect the enemy to do the same.”
Haruna began to sniffle. Naoki instinctively reached out and brought her sib into her arms, shielding Haruna from the men that encircled them with their prying eyes. She glared back with a vicious stare, as if she was ready to fight. Her heartbeat accelerated. Haruna ducked her head into Naoki’s chest and hid her face. Trying to stifle her sobs with little success, Haruna let her tears flow, soaking Naoki’s shirt.
Lt. Akiyama watched in silence. He was leaned forward again, his face behind his crossed hands. His gaze gradually softened to one more paternal. It was almost a look of pity.
No one else in the room spoke up.
“Look here. I completely understand your line of thinking, kid. See, even my gut reaction to having you girls fight didn’t line up with this philosophy, right? To ‘do whatever it takes to win.’ I’ll admit to that. But I did change my mind, didn’t I?”
There was silence once again. Naoki slowly eased her shoulders, calming down.
“I’m asking you two to consider doing the same. Think about the position we’re in. There’s no room for naive ideals.” He lifted his elbows off the table and leaned back in his chair. “I’ll give you two some time to think it over. You’re still very young for this kind of talk. But, the devil’s already touched your poor souls, so you must make the best of it now that you’re here.”
He partially glanced over at Lt. Isobe. “We’ll continue this discussion another time.” The younger lieutenant silently nodded back.
“Then, you are all dismissed.”