While the Red Constellation and Nidhoggr mobilized their respective squads...
Back to where we could be seen. I was now standing next to Fie, who could be seen leaning against some rocks. Our battle had just finished, and we could still feel the adrenaline pumping through our veins. Across from us stood Sara and her friends who belonged to the Northern Jaegers. But considering the current placement in the timeline, Sara herself is still a Jaeger, who also belongs to this corp. It is none other than her adoptive father who leads the entire Northern Jaegers.
The Northern Jaegers are survivors of you-know-what. The Salt Pale incident that struck this country a couple decades prior. It was chaos then, and North Ambria has been in chaos ever since. It has one of the most corrupt governments I've seen on the continent. It is much worse than how Father tackles the Imperial Diet back in Erebonia, and that's saying something. You can't trust anyone inside there.
But these guys have learned to adapt to such a lifestyle of always being on the run, or being chased around. They're trying to claim true freedom, but it will be inevitable when Father forcibly annexes the country right underneath them. I do have some plans involving that, but right now, I'm just here to experience the battlefield as a fellow Jaeger. It's one of the quickest ways to gain practical combat experience.
Fighting monsters can only take you so far.
Right now, the coast is clear, but I know that won't last forever. I could see several shadows mobilizing in the far distance. I'm trying not to be overly-reliant on my Vermillion Eyes. I know it's one of my abilities, but I'm using this time to gain experience. I shouldn't rely on Skills twenty four-seven you know? Instead, I saw Sara next to her friends. They called themselves Tal, Iseria and Marty. Several other purple-clad Jaegers who also belonged to the Northern Jaegers successfully managed to meet up with us. We now had a couple tens of Jaegers around me now, the odds looking better than before. I could see them catching their breaths. They had survived the first wave.
But there is more to come. Nidhoggr aside, this is the Red Constellation we're speaking of here. One of the strongest corps in Western Zemuria. I saw a very familiar figure in the far distance who looked just like a lion. The very same man who led the mission to attack my villa shortly before the start of the Hundred Days War.
The Red Ogre.
To think he's here. I think I saw another familiar face too. Shirley Orlando...
Shaking that thought aside, I saw the several dead bodies around us. You'd think the smell of gunpowder would be assaulting our nostrils right now, but the traditional way of fighting in my previous life using those types of weapons doesn't exist here. Once the Orbal Revolution came about, everyone ditched gunpowder, and switched to orbal machinery. Because of that, this smell didn't exist, which only made the smell of blood that much more prevalent.
Any sort of fossil fuels that were popular in my past life were long gone. Not completely non-existent since there's collectors and all of that, but it is clean, in that regard. That's one of the beauties of Zemuria. Clean energy.
With that in mind, we were taking a breather, waiting for the next battle to begin. This was going to be a long, long night. It was unclear who was going to be the victor. Apart from gaining experience, my secondary goal here is to make sure certain people don't die during this battling. Sara Valestein and such. Hell, I'm even considering saving her Father.
I'm pretty sure this is the battle that claims Colonel Valestein's life, and in return, it causes Sara to retire from the Northern Jaegers, eventually finding her way as a Bracer. If I save Colonel Valestein's life here, I'll need to find another way to have Sara retire. She needs to become a Bracer so she can join Thors Military Academy as a teacher. That must happen to let certain plot points continue. She's too important.
As I thought that, I glanced my eyes around, and saw one of the stone crags further beyond us. Claire and Emma could now be seen seated atop it, chatting away with each other. Large puffs of smoke burst forth from her Mana after shooting her newly acquired orbal sniper rifle, courtesy of the Crimson Roselia. Thankfully, no damage came her way. Emma came out unscathed.
Seeing this lull in battle, I took a moment and calmed myself down. Even though I'm trying not to rely on this Skill, I figured it was a good time to use it nonetheless. I used Vermillion Eyes. Those who were more proficient in battle were able to detect a sudden, subtle shift in the air around us. My golden eyes soon became tinted in a vermillion hue. Wooosh!
Fie was the closest to me, so she was the first to react.
"Did your eyes just change, Naoto? That's pretty cool. What do they do?", Fie asked, gaining interest.
"Haha. It's a special trait that my family has. These eyes of mine can do a variety of things.", I said, keeping it vague at first. As I said that, I began to look around while jumping onto one of the rocks that Fie was currently leaning on. I went upward several feet.
Fie saw me scouting the area, and a glint of light streaked across her eyes, acting as if she had come to an understanding.
"I think I see why the Boss placed you in one of our scouting squads now.", Fie said, seeing me look around. I was now looking well beyond her, and all of the other Northern Jaegers. My eyes rested upon the roads where the trees were. There was a large gate blocking off a military site in the far distance.
It did not take long for me to spot many hidden figures rushing outward from the trees. Armored figures clad in both black and red. I could assume they were Nidhoggr and Red Constellation respectively. Seeing the enemy start to mobilize, I looked elsewhere, toward the front of the forest. It was then, as I had stated, that I spotted him.
The Red Ogre.
The Red Ogre's figure towered over the other Jaegers. He seemed to speak to a fancy armored-figure who was clad in black. Was this Nidhoggr's commander? He seemed to stand out over the other black-clad Jaegers. He carried a large orbal assault rifle on his back. Not as big as Emma's orbal sniper rifle, but it looked powerful. He seemed dangerous.
But this confirmed one thing.
I haven't seen this man in quite some time...
Fie noticed my frowning, and spoke out to me.
"Did you find something, Phoenix?", Fie asked me with a hint of worry in her eyes.
"The Vice-Commander of the Red Constellation is here. He's in cahoots with Nidhoggr. But I'm sure you know him as the Red Ogre.", I explained.
The moment I uttered the Red Ogre's name, shock spread around the eyes of the Northern Jaegers. Even Talion's eyes almost burst out of his skull in shock.
"Are you shittin' me, Phoenix? That damn demon is here?", Talion cursed.
"I'm afraid so.", I replied with a nod of my head. I continued to observe for a couple moments. Seeing the Red Ogre here, I expected the worst. He can get extremely bloodthirsty if he enters battle, and always leaves a trail of corpses when he strikes. Man, I really hope that isn't the case here. The SSS had a really rough time trying to deal with him. And what's worse, he's Randy's uncle...
My interest was, on the other hand, to see if a certain someone decided to tag along with him. Sadly, that didn't seem to be the case here, and I sighed. I was able to confirm my doubts after looking around for another moment or two.
"It seems the Red Reaper ain't here. Just the Red Ogre and Nidhoggr's Commander. I said to everyone.
"The Red Reaper...I haven't seen him partake in any battles lately whenever we clash against the Red Constellation. It happens on occasion.", Marty said, which drew my interest toward him.
"This isn't your first time fighting the Red Constellation?", I asked with interest.
"Only here and there. We've lost Jaegers on both sides. They wreak havoc wherever they go and leave no one alive. We're gonna be in for one hell of a run tonight, considerin' we've killed off several of their scouts already. You really are able to observe that far away, Phoenix, was it? Makes me jealous ya have such a nice ability. I'm startin' to see why Zephyr promoted ya.", Marty replied, grinning at me.
"Heh, thanks.", I replied, letting out another laugh. "Like I said to Fie, these eyes of mine can do a lot of things. They are quite beneficial to help scout the area. Nothing leaves my grasp.", I continued, only to shift my eyes back to the forest where Nidhoggr and the Red Constellation were currently mobilizing.
It was then I spotted a much smaller figure who was beginning to move with her own squads. That's right, it was a red-clad girl who seemed around Fie's age who barely wore any clothing at all. Doing such allows her to move extremely nimble. She had the same red hair as the Red Ogre has. I could only blink my eyes the moment I saw her.
To think I would not come across Randy Orlando, but this person instead...
Shirley Orlando, cousin to that of Randy!
And she is none other than the Red Ogre's daughter!
Was it fate for us to cross paths like this before Sky even begins? In being a Jaeger, the chances are rather high, especially if you consider the fact we're in Western Erebonia. I was also in Zephyr who is known to have clashed against the Red Constellation on multiple occasions. Much more than the Northern Jaegers. They're known rivals in the world of Jaegers.
I could only shake my head in silence as I saw the two leaders chat away with each other. Well the Red Ogre isn't the entire leader of the Red Constellation. That role fell onto someone else, Randy's Father, the War God. Seeing Randy not here, he was likely beginning his preparations to inherit that title. And that also meant Randy's desires were now in motion. In the next couple of years, he will flee the Red Constellation no doubt.
As I thought that, in the next moment, I saw Nidhoggr's Commander reveal a signal, which caused several trees to shake in response. A whole bunch of black-clad figures began their retreat, departing into the shadows. They didn't head toward our direction. They began another front, and started to head toward North Ambria's capital, Haliask.
"Nidhoggr's going on the move. It looks like this deserted area wasn't their only target tonight.", I said to everyone, which drew their eyes to me. At the same time, several Nidhoggr's squads departed.
"Hoho, so that's what these bastards are playing at, eh?", A rather aged voice suddenly reached our ears. Sara's eyes lit up, being the first to react to this voice. Shortly after, many presences reached my peripherals, coming from behind us. They weren't enemies. They were reinforcements!
The man of the hour arrived. He was not clad in purple like the Northern Jaegers were. He was clad in blue. And yet all of the Northern Jaegers surrounding him were showing eyes full of respect. His hair was already aged white too, and even had a white mustache.
No doubt about it. This man is Colonel Valestein, Sara's adoptive Father!
"You made it, Papa!", Sara happily said, seeing the old man jump down, arriving next to us with several purple-clad Jaegers in tow.
With Colonel Valestein arriving, things are becoming more interesting, aren't they?