Portal:History/Para bellum

A man in military uniform hurriedly walked back and forth through the improvised office, which was once the back room of an engineering plant. A patch with a wolf grin and a high-quality bulletproof vest gave him away as the lieutenant of “Steppenwolfs”. The second officer with an eye patch was sitting on a large ammo box, entirely covered in rust. The waiting was dragging on.
— Why don’t you sit down already? You're running around like a madman.— The second officer decided to break the silence.
— I had enough of that while I was writing the report. Did you hear about the seeker? It’s difficult to describe it briefly.
— I know something, yes. An unusual appearance, rumors about the Ravagers, a land ship. In short, it’s strange, — he scratched his nose. — What is the point of putting an entire vessel on wheels? They could’ve dismantled it and built something useful with those parts.
— No idea. And this Ochre seems to be on her own, — the officer approached the table made of wooden pallets, and casually scrolled through the folder lying on it. — At least she’s the only one described in the reports. If that’s true, then it’s not surprising that she contacted the kids from the Engineers.
Silence returned to the room. A few minutes later, heavy footsteps were heard behind the door, echoing through the remains of the factory workshop. The officers hurried to straighten up at the seams, hastily lined up, and the door of the room opened with a creak.
Major Stahl, the leader of the “Steppenwolfs”, silently passed by his subordinates to the table. An old soldier with a metal prosthesis for his right arm and almost two meters tall, he inspired respect by his appearance alone.
When he got to the table and took some images out of the folder, he finally commanded:
— At ease. Lieutenant, report.
Though both of his subordinates were of the same rank, they always knew to whom exactly the commander addressed.
— As you know, recently one of the seekers of the Order of the Fallen Star arrived in the Valley, — the officer with a bandage began. — She calls herself Ochre and she’s been persistently spreading rumors that the Ravagers are supposedly controlled by the rogue scientist Lloyd. We have no confirmation of this, but recently their actions have become more coherent and consistent.
The major looked at the second speaker and nodded. The lieutenant started his part of the report.
— Scar AB sent more images of prototype parts, which he plans to put into production. However, we have reason to believe that he’s hiding most of them. Probably revenge for our refusal to allocate more people.
The Major couldn’t resist the response.
— Scar, that old fool. He knows perfectly well that we don’t have the men to guard his scrap caravans. Continue.
— Yes, sir. We also managed to intercept confidential information on new Nomad projects. Hull parts with good aerodynamics, protective elements aimed at close contact with the enemy, as well as a machine gun with movable protective plates, firmly fixed at the place of installation. Judging by the elaboration of the blueprints, I have reason to believe that the production has already started.
After finishing the report, the lieutenants waited silently for further instructions, while Major Stahl made calculations in his mind, studying the information. A minute later, he spoke.
— All right, soldiers. The situation isn’t pretty: the Syndicate operates in the Valley. We’ve already had several encounters with them. And now these rumors about the tin cans getting smarter. All our potential opponents are anxious and preparing for war, even the nomad-fanatics are increasing the pace of production. We won’t get help from HQ. And in these conditions, Scar AB allows himself some kind of childish resentment, undermining our defense capacity! — the Major continued irritably. — I order him to report to me right now. Make sure he gets the information. It’s time to remind this collector where his place is. Dismissed.
“Yes, sir!” — both officers uttered in unison and moved toward the exit.
— One more thing, — Stahl said, stopping his subordinates. — Find out more about this Ochre. Maybe there’s some truth to her stories.
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