Saul was relieved the battle was over. Of course, he knew that thousands of troops perished in the amphibious assault that ultimately ended in failure, something which placed him in a deeper internal depression. He hid such depression so well, only his wife, son, and daughter knew about it. To the rest of the Metargo Kingdom, he had a charismatic aura about him. Seeing Karen return back to the ship safely brought a soft smile to him as he walked up to her and hugged her. "Karen..."
---
Bibi saw the Champ model and realized right away it was the same pilot. She heard what she was going to be asked to do, so she simply walked up to the pilot during the conversation he was having after she told one of the mechanics to prepare a spot for the admiral. The mechanic in front of her next noticed that and then introduce her to him.
"Pilot of the Slaughter Dagger, here is the Head Mechanic, Ensign Durrans." Whispering, the man added, "Her full name is Bibiana Armine Durrans. She's the eldest daughter of and eventual successor to Duke Adelias Durrans of Lexcorvi. As you know, Dukes and Duchesses often act as advisors to the royal court. Anyway, whatever you do, don't refer to her by any titles referring to a noblewoman. She gets a bit touchy about her status. If not refer to her by her military rank, just call her 'Bibi', and you'll be fine." That same man next went over to Laurence Vincent Howe and whispered the same warning to him about Bibi.
Meanwhile, Bibi glared at Jin while saying, "So, you're the guy who's been doing my job when it comes to my mechanics division on this ship! I am familiar with that model, by the way! I kind of have to be! I'm the one who laid the schematics for the prototype and helped build it, too! Next time, just request the switch to the mode of your choice, and I'll take it from there, all right?"
After she got her answer and told him she already prepared a place for Zane Preston's mech, she next walked up to her fiancé and suddenly, her expression was a bit softer. She realized it was an arranged thing, so she could not exactly blame the boy. That is not to say she would suddenly warm up to him. That would take time. "Laurence, my office is this way." Her office was one typical for a military mechanic on a ship, which also acted as part of a living quarters for multiple people (of course, there were separate bunks in the adjacent room). "This is the two of us will be staying in between battles. I personally requested that from Captain Ire, before the now-over battle, that is. We're engaged, anyway, right? So, we might as well get used to that fact." She washed her hands before going up to the fridge, then brought out two vanilla protein shakes and shook them well before setting one on the table next to the desk. "You'll need the supplements, trust me. Being in the military really takes a lot out of you." Sitting down in one chair and waiting for him to sit in the other, she asked with an arched eyebrow, "Not so glamorous once you're actually in a fight for your life, is it?" Shrugging, she added, "Well, that's reality for ya."
---
While Aaron used colorful language to describe how he and Lion Team lost several good pilots to a bunch of rookies, Kyle walked beside Minmei with a clam, yet stressed-out demeanor. Placing a hand on his forehead with a disgruntled sigh, he said, "I could sure use a drink, about now. Still want to do that?"
---
Zechariah and Benjamin made it back to the Seraphim with the rest of the remaining Brown Wings that were accounted for. Still, there was no sign of Chemda nor Adira. What happened to them? When Zechariah spotted Captain McKenzie, a burning anger seethed in him. Walking up to him, Zech said in a clam, but stern voice, "Captain, that mech pilot was already out of the fight. If she did not intend what she said to me to be a bluff, I would have already been dead." Benjamin pulled Zechariah aside and shouted at him with, "Zech, this is a war! This is what we do, we destroy the enemy! Forget that, and you're a dead man!" Pushing Ben away, Zechariah asked him, "What makes you think I wanted to be a part of any war, to begin with? When was the last time you heard me express any interest in that?"
With that, he walked away to leave his older brother to his thoughts. Meanwhile, Ben noticed Catrina nearby and told her, "Don't worry about my brother. He's just stressed out, is all."
---
Back on the Titan, after letting go of Karen, Saul spotted Jin in the aftermath of Bibi talking to that pilot. The King went up to him and said, "Bibi is often like that. You get used to it, after a time." He then said to Karen with a soft smile, "Oh! I almost forgot that you had something to say to this young man. I better check on Scoar and tell Viki of the results of the battle."
First, he gave his message on the results to Viki, which went like this:
My daughter, while the whole family is safe, for the moment, the amphibious assault on the beaches of the Gatwashiim peninsula nearest our country ultimately failed. The amphibious troops were all but decimated by the enemy garrison, roughly totaling a number of 6555 foot soldiers, 210 pilots, and 15 ships. Elsewhere, such as the southern-most shorelines of Benjlakki territory, the weaker resistance resulted in advancement further inland, though not without reinforcements from different places within Benjlakk arriving to try to counter them. Progress in this war has been made, but for how long from now, I cannot say. These matters are never so simple. The fleet I am with still has 21 ships, despite the heavy losses. I suspect neither this fleet nor the enemy one we face will be capable of any fierce combat for a while, considering the damage most ships on both sides sustained. Repairs may take at least a week, if not more. After that, we shall plan an alternate route inland to continue the military campaign. I pray to Marlextov that this war end soon, lest internal problems within the kingdom become our downfall.
---
Adira took a risk and activated the electronic map for a brief moment. Once she saw that the battle was over, she realized that this was an opportune time to test her stealth while piloting a mech. She took a guess as to where the enemy would go and took an alternate route to get there. Metargo territory was not that far, and with the mountains in the nearest enemy territory on the other side of the sea, radars would have difficulty locating her if she flew in low. Next stop, Fort Ordimarga. I'm not going back to the Seraphim without my sister.
---
Speaking of whom, Chemda was slowly regaining consciousness, yet it was barely noticeable. She had yet to be able to move, though she could hear a couple people speaking in the Metargo language. Although the words were similar to those in the Benjlakki language, some she could not comprehend everything. What she could gather was the male voice apologized for possibly waking the female one's up, while the female said something about being down while everyone else was fighting. Were they talking about the aftermath of the battle?
---
Field Marhsal Constantini received word that the defensive was successful and also heard about Vance's success in taking out three Leo Vermilions by himself. Knowing that at least one squadron needed more pilots, he personally went on speakers to make an announcement:
Listen up, boys! We may have taken some significant losses during this defensive, but thanks to everyone involved, we managed to repel the enemy amphibious assault. I would personally like to congratulate Private 1st Class Vance in defeating three Leo Vermilions all by himself with a Praetorian. He is now two kills away from being a mech ace, and his skills as a pilot, I believe, the Benjlakki Republic Navy could use. Therefore, I am requesting a transport and escort be made ready for his trip to the Seraphim, where Rear Admiral Lionel of the 101st Fleet shall be informed of his achievement and requested transfer.