User blog:Seieireppa/God Eater ∑: The Maxim of Possibility, chapter 4

This was it, Nanako thought, as the Crawler’s jaws closed around her. Her own circumstances aside, there were probably well over ten Crawlers lying in wait beneath the base. Croswell, Sasha, and Natalia together could probably handle around three or four before being overwhelmed, but there was no way anyone else could handle a Crawler alone, and with this many…

Nanako had no more time to think, as the Crawler’s massive maw closed shut around her, shutting her off from the light and from the outside world…

-

The battle had gone on for hours, with the remaining three core members of the Rhizome doing their best to fight off the invading Crawlers. Croswell could beat one down in about two minutes, but he ran the risk of being swarmed by others while he did. Sasha and Natalia could cover him, of course, but not even Natalia’s special bullets could down a Crawler in a single shot. It was practically a battle of attrition at this point – while the three of them fought, other Crawlers were certainly rampaging throughout the Rhizome, devouring civilians and destroying the Rhizome’s structures. Certainly, they had been planning to move, but…

And all the while, one thought ran through the minds of the three core soldiers:  where the hell was Nanako?

Ever since the Crawlers started their attack, the Rhizome’s leader had been nowhere to be found! What could she be doing? It wasn’t like her to fall in battle… so what, then?

No matter what the circumstances, though, Croswell, Sasha, and Natalia all knew that they had to keep on fighting even in Nanako’s absence. Even if they were to lose their leader, it was their responsibility to keep going, both out of duty to themselves as well as to all the civilians who called the Rhizome their home. For all their sakes, they would repel the Crawlers, no matter what!

…Easier said than done, though. The fight had been going on for a while, and they were beginning to tire out. The last two Crawlers had made it a point to act perfectly in tandem, circling around the core members and diving underground to avoid their attacks. They had them almost taken out, but these tactics were steadily wearing them down.

Of course, these WERE the core members of the Rhizome, and that title didn’t come easily. Croswell did not hesitate to demonstrate this by igniting his hammer’s rockets, delivering a well-placed Boost Impact directly on a Crawler’s head as it emerged. The impact proved fatal to the Crawler, laying it out as its body stuck partially out of its makeshift tunnel. The remaining Crawler took that opportunity to attempt to close in on Croswell from behind –

– but it was to no avail, as Natalia and Sasha sniped it simultaneously, resulting in a massive and colorful explosion as the Crawler’s head blew to pieces.

They’d done it at last – victory was theirs.

As they moved to devour all the Crawler corpses, Croswell decided to take command. “Alright, people!” he shouted. “In light of this assault, we’ll need to get moving immediately. Assemble all civilians and God Eaters – we depart in 0100 hours!”

Croswell, accompanied by Sasha and Natalia, went their own way while the surviving other God Eaters rallied the surviving civilians. “So,” Natalia began, as the three of them headed towards the surface to scout out the surroundings, “is the initial plan still on?”

“Of course,” replied Croswell. “Getting to the abandoned concourse to the northwest is our most viable option for the continued survival of the Rhizome. Moving in there should give us at least a few months to a year free of Neo Aragami assault – they rarely, if ever, scan over the same place twice, so we’ll be able to operate free of surveillance.”

Natalia turned to Sasha. “Sasha, can you use your eyes to scope out the area to the northwest and see if there’s any Neo Aragami waiting for us?” she asked.

“Of course,” came Sasha’s immediate reply. Readying her God Arc, she pointed in the indicated direction and gazed into her scope, specially built for extra-long-distance operation. Her scope, combined with her near-superhuman natural vision, could see for miles and miles, given no interruptions.

Sasha peered into the distance, gazing intently towards the horizon and scoping out for any waiting Neo Aragami. Fortunately, her examination came up negative…

…but the ground immediately rumbled, causing the three core members to take defensive stances as another Crawler emerged from the ground nearby, facing directly towards them. They prepared to attack –

– but before they could, a spurt of blood erupted from its long body as a blade cut through its hide from the inside. Over the course of a mere few seconds, the blade cut its way down the Crawler’s length, as a pair of hands reached out and pushed the gap apart, revealing a human figure drenched in the Crawler’s fluids, one that began to speak.

“I applaud your drive and initiative, Croswell,” the figure spoke, “but were you SERIOUSLY planning on leaving without me?”

The eyes of the three core members teared up as they gazed upon the figure of Nanako Kawashima, very much still alive.

“Goddammit, Nanako!” exclaimed Sasha, running up to Nanako and stopping just short of hugging her. “We all thought you were dead!”

“Well, as you can see, I am very much not dead,” came Nanako’s response. “Did you guys at least take care of the Crawlers?”

“Seamlessly,” replied Croswell. “Every last one has been completely and utterly annihilated.”

Nanako nodded in affirmation, attempting to wipe herself off. “Good… you all performed admirably in my absence. How goes the evacuation?”

Natalia came forward, handing Nanako a towel. “It’s currently in progress. We’ve got the other God Eaters assembling the civvies in preparation for a departure in less than an hour.”

“Alright,” replied Nanako. “Let me just clean myself off here and I’ll join you in a few minutes. For now, get back to work in rallying the civs. Understood?”

The three core members nodded in affirmation.

“Good… then move out!”

-

It had been five hours of nonstop walking. Nanako helmed a line – or rather, a long line-shaped crowd – of all the Rhizome’s denizens, with Natalia and Sasha heading up the sides and Croswell taking the rear. Everyone was tired and hungry, but they knew they had to press on.

And lo, before too long, the all too familiar sights of a ruined city skyline came into sight over the horizon. This was their goal, and below the ground in the distance, their new home lay waiting for them.

Nanako’s eyes gleamed with renewed hope and determination, for today, the members of the Rhizome would have a new front from which to launch their attacks on the Neo Aragami.

Mankind’s counterattack begins now.