The Osiris was flying over the Black Sea, and the ship was filled with a sense of loss after defeat. This was the first defeat of the Osiris after its independence.
After receiving the order to retreat from the New European Union (NEU), the Osiris had to lower its altitude under the threat of the HER "Wuhou" class battleship to facilitate the "lifeguards" who could not fly on board. During this evacuation, Team B also lost an additional "lifeguard". In the end, thanks to the sniper deterrence of "Hundred Steps", "Wuhou" did not pursue.
The restaurant inside the ship was crowded with people, and everyone was talking about it. No one questioned Captain Shepard's leadership, but placed all the blame for the defeat on the NEU. If NEU hadn't pulled the Osiris to attack the Crimean Peninsula, how could they have lost so humiliatingly.
"These idiots from the NEU failed to win any of the three battlefields. Without us, they wouldn't even be able to bring back humanoid weapons this time."
"Keep your voice down, those NEU people are also on board."
"What are you afraid of? I heard that NEU commanders have to write a review every time they lose a 'Partner Cavalry'. How many did they lose today? Maybe they are hiding there and writing a review! Hahahaha!"
"It's just that because my skills are not good enough, we also suffered losses. The warehouse on the left wing was even blown up."
"A few days ago they were shamelessly attacking this ship."
Everyone became more and more interested as they chatted, but they didn't notice Sergeant Anton walking in. When Fiona, the cook, saw him coming in, she didn't remind everyone and just kept cooking.
Sergeant Anton slammed the table, calming everyone present.
"What are you arguing about! This defeat shows that the Osiris lacks actual combat experience. You should all look for the reason from yourselves! Don't think that you can take chances by putting all the blame on the NEU. There will be no allies in the future, Osiris. Is it possible for No. 1 to win against an enemy like today by itself? Don’t forget, HER is the enemy who took away our hometown, and is a very powerful enemy. Taking chances and shirking responsibility will only lead to destruction!"
Although the Osiris broke away from the Covenant, the superior-subordinate relationship within the ship still followed the original Covenant military ranks. There were people present with a higher military rank than Sergeant Anton, but no one dared to contradict him. Firstly, Anton is equivalent to the vice-captain of this ship, and secondly, Anton’s own prestige convinces everyone.
However, someone still stood up. He was Chief of Staff on the Osiris—Warrant Officer Dan Quayle. Although his military rank is higher than Anton's, because he is not Captain Shepard's old subordinate, his status on the ship is not as high as Anton's. Although he wears the title of chief of staff, he doesn't always follow Shepard. He is more responsible for coordinating the internal affairs of the ship.
He pushed up his glasses: "What Sergeant Anton said is good, but what will the Osiris do in the future? Will it become a 'mercenary' of NEU?"
Most of the people present did not like NEU, and upon hearing this, they all showed dissatisfied expressions.
"Don't worry, our cooperation with NEU ends here. As for the next step, Captain Shepard is still thinking about it."
Sergeant Anton walked to the dining table and took two Sanyinye, and asked Fiona: "Have you seen that boy Lin Ao?"
"I saw it. He left with the female reporter."
"What!? Why didn't you stop?"
Fiona put down the kitchen knife and looked at Anton coldly: "Didn't you see me cooking? And you didn't let me keep an eye on those reporters before. If you don't trust them, why did you let them on the boat? That Female reporters are very mouthy!"
"Alas, it's not me who approved them to board the ship."
…
Reporter Sima Qian pulled Lin Ao to her room. Lin Ao blushed when he saw it was a girl's room:
"Miss Sima, I think I won't go in. If you have any gifts for me, I'll wait for you outside the door to get them."
"Why are you so shy? If I take out the gifts to comfort you in public, I'm afraid they'll all be 'divided' away by the crew, and what's left for you?"
"What on earth are you going to give me..."
Sima Qian smiled mysteriously and dragged Lin Ao into her room. Lin Ao originally thought that girls' rooms would be beautifully decorated, but Sima Qian seemed to have not had time to clean them up. The layout of the room was roughly the same as Lin Ao's, except that there was an extra computer and some messy papers.
"Miss Sima, do you also have a separate room?"
"Captain Shepard assigned me a room considering the special nature of my work. The area is smaller than yours, and there is no separate bathroom or shower room."
"Isn't this inconvenient?"
"This is a battleship after all, and there are so many people on board. The residential area must be very tense. I am already grateful for having a private room. Let's not talk about it anymore. You sit on the bed and wait while I get you a gift!"
Lin Ao sat down uneasily and touched Sima Qian's bed with his hand. The softness was the same as his own bed. He originally thought that a girl's bed would be softer.
"Okay, this is the gift I want to give you!"
What Sima Qian wanted to give to Lin Ao was actually a bottle of red wine, and she also brought two glasses.
"Miss Sima, I, I can't drink."
"Are you not of age?"
"No...I am an adult, but I have never drank..."
"What? I thought you were really a child, and you only become an adult when you drink."
"This is nonsense! My dad never drinks alcohol."
Sima Qian sat next to Lin Ao, and Lin Ao moved to the side shyly.
"You have to try everything. If you don't think it tastes good, then don't drink it. This bottle of wine is 'Romanee-Conti'. It's very expensive. It was specially made by my sister to reward you for your good performance in the Battle of Yalta. Take it out."
"Since it's very expensive, sister, you can drink it yourself..."
"I can't drink such a big bottle in one sitting. I didn't want to drink this bottle of wine now. But the Osiris was shelled just now and the ship was shaking a lot. I'm afraid that next time I won't be able to drink this bottle of wine in time." Broken."
"...Sister, aren't you afraid of staying on the Osiris? Aren't you afraid that the ship will be sunk?"
Sima Qian opened the bottle cap, poured half a glass for herself and Lin Ao, looked at the gently swaying wine and said: "Everyone fights in different ways, and I am also aware of it. You choose to go to the battlefield, and I choose to report the true story of the war. .”
"But is it really useful to report it? I mean, there have been terrible wars on earth before, and some people reported them at that time, but the war did not end immediately..."
Sima Qian smiled: "Listen carefully, only by publishing the true report of the war can we gather the strength to fight against evil. Otherwise, the war will only be expanded and the evil people will whitewash it. Is it in vain?"
Lin Ao nodded and saw Sima Qian taking a sip of wine, he was really a little greedy. He couldn't help but taste it. Although the taste was not as good as expected, he could still taste the rich fruity aroma.
"How's it going? Does it taste good?"
"…no juice tastes good."
"Hahaha, you are indeed a brat."
Lin Ao took a few more sips and gradually got used to the taste of red wine.
Sima Qian looked at him with interest, making Lin Ao very embarrassed.
"Look at what I'm doing..."
"I'm very interested in you. A young man like you, driving the latest humanoid weapons on the battlefield and fighting the ferocious HER, is simply a story of a young hero."
"I'm sorry for what you said...Do you want to interview me? I'm not prepared!"
"Hahaha, don't be afraid. I will tell you in advance if I really want to interview you, but I want to take a good look at you first."
At this time, there was a sudden knock on the door.
"Hey! Is Lin Ao in there?"
Sima Qian stood up and opened the door with a displeased look on her face, and asked Sergeant Anton who knocked on the door rudely: "Sergeant, what do you mean by knocking on a single lady's door so late? Aren't you afraid of the negative impact if word gets out?"
"What are you talking about! It's only eight o'clock in the evening. I'm here to see Lin Ao. Is Lin Ao there?"
Lin Ao quickly put down his wine glass and wanted to come out, but was stopped by Sima Qian.
"Lin Ao and I are drinking, don't disturb us!"
"Huh? You, a single lady, don't like to be knocked on the door at night, but you like to bring boys into your room to drink? Aren't you afraid of the negative impact if word spreads?"
"you!…"
"Lin Ao is the pilot of the Osiris. If you want to interview him, you should ask for my permission first."
"Did I interview you, Lin Ao?"
"No…"
"Look, we are just drinking, please don't disturb us!"
The automatic door was closed, almost pinching Anton's hand.
"This woman!!"
…
Anton rushed to the Osiris' combat command with a displeased look on his face. The people sitting inside waiting for him were Captain Shepard, Chief of Staff Dan Quayle, and NEU's Colonel Billy.
Seeing Anton come in, Billy stood up and shook hands with him in a friendly manner.
"I have admired the name 'Silver' for a long time, and today I finally met him in person. It can be said that you and I have never known each other without fighting."
"To each other, you are also one of the best drivers I have ever seen. I admire you very much."
Chief of Staff Dan Quayle coughed and motioned for the two to sit down.
While eating cake, Captain Shepard asked Dan Quayle, "How are the conditions of the two damaged lifeguards?"
"Not too optimistic, but NEU promised to help us with repairs when we arrive in Istanbul. It will take about three days to repair."
"Yes." Shepard pushed the cake away: "In the Battle of Yalta, the left wing warehouse of the Osiris was destroyed, and half of our food reserves were lost..."
"What?"
Shepard sighed: "Although the Osiris had enough supplies to feed a crew of people for two to three years when it became independent, it's a bit of a loss after losing so much."
"We at NEU will help repair the damaged parts of the Osiris, but we can't do anything to replenish supplies. But when we get to Istanbul, your ship can be purchased."
"That's the difficulty. Although the Osiris is not short of supplies, it doesn't have much available funds. I originally wanted to get sponsorship from local wealthy businessmen after Yalta was liberated, but I didn't succeed..."
Shepard said this, took out the remote control, opened the conference room screen, and showed everyone a letter.
"This is?"
"This was received shortly after we left Yalta. The sender was the chairman of the city committee of Athens. He invited the Osiris to Athens and said that Athens would do everything in its power to fund the Osiris."
"It is not good?"
"Colonel Billy, I am a cosmonaut and don't know much about earth affairs. What is the role of the chairman of the committee in Athens? Can he use the resources of all Athens?"
Billy nodded: "Although I don't know the person you're talking about, the chairman of the Athens Committee is basically equivalent to the mayor of other cities."
"what happened?"
"You know the 'Declaration of Nineveh,' right?"
Everyone nodded. The so-called "Nineveh Declaration" was a declaration signed by various forces and HER after consultation on the colonial satellite "Nineveh" after HER attacked the earth. The main content of the declaration is to prohibit all forces from destroying ancient monuments on the earth and prohibiting the seizure of historical cities on the earth by force. There are many monuments protected in the declaration, but the number of historical cities is limited, and Athens is one of them.
HER promises not to attack the cities in the declaration, but at a price: these cities must form their own management committees, not allow troops to be stationed in the city, allow cities to trade with HER, and allow personnel from various forces, including HER, to operate without weapons. Entering the city... Because of the content of the declaration, some people within various forces expressed dissatisfaction with it, and some people even took to the streets to protest. However, because it can prevent the glory of human civilization from being destroyed by war, and at the same time reduce the pressure and risks of defense, all the forces basically agree with it. For HER, as long as they can maintain a foothold on the earth, the long days ahead may allow these cities to voluntarily surrender.
"Since Athens became a protected city, influential people in Athens got together and formed a committee. They gave the NEU a large sum of money in exchange for the right to self-smelter."
"Would the NEU allow this?"
"As long as Athens does not break away from the NEU in name, it will be fine. Now that the NEU needs military spending, and the Athens Committee has promised that they will protect Athens on their own, the people above will turn a blind eye."
"In wartime, anything can happen..."
"I understand...There is no other choice now. I plan to accept the invitation of the Athens Committee. Anton and Dan Quayle, do you have any objections?"
"No, everything depends on the captain's orders."
"Very good, the Osiris will rest in Istanbul for a week and then go to Athens!"
