R Corp. 4th Pack Reindeer: Rodion's Story

The tree just needs this little star up here, and...

... there ya go.

Contracts have been pretty dry these last few days - last few weeks, actually - giving us very little to do in the meantime.

The proxy war contract at H Corp. ended up fizzling out...

... and even the regular jobs have been drying up too, client after client refusing to renew our contract. Or so I'm told.

As a result, the Reindeer Pack's been off the front lines for quite some time now.

The pain brought on by our antlers, the throbbing migraines trailing behind brainwave manipulation, the endless neuroses that'd grip us without ever letting on...

Every pain and agony that had been eating away at us was starting to lose its edge, like the dulling ache of wounds that get covered by scabs and calluses as they heal.

How's it going over there, Ishy? Is the fireplace coming along nicely?

Haven't even gotten to working on that yet.

Speaking of which - I thought this was supposed to be just a modest celebration? What are we doing with all this?

C'mon, it's Christmas~

We got a turkey roasting inside that T Corp. acceleration oven, and I made sure to lighten the place up with some Christmas candles, too.

It's the most special time of the year, when we all remember to sand down the edges in our words that'd usually prickle each other...

... and surround our hearts with some peace and gentleness, as unfamiliar as they were.

I proposed a Christmas party, certain that no opportunity like this would ever come again should we miss it...

... and with the Pack commander's authorization, we were able to Christmas up our living quarters.

It is a rather modest celebration though, isn't it?

Maybe for you, Hong Lu.

Ha ha... Haven't you ever been to these Christmas parties before, Hong Lu?

If you mean parties with a real sense of camaraderie like this one, then no.

Seriously!? What about you, Ishy?

Christmas isn't really my thing, although I've seen quite a few people who like to make a big deal out of it.

Oh. Really? Ha ha ha!

Wh-what the hell was that? What are you laughing about?

Just how was it with you, Rodion...?

Ah, sorry, sorry.

I used to be kinda like you in that regard, Ishy.

Christmas, gristlemas, big deal... I thought.

... Really? You?

Mhm, didn't care for it. There wasn't much in my old Backstreets to make it a heartwarming occasion, you know.

In Christmastime, the stench of cheap liquor permeated those alleyways instead of the sweet bouquet of top-shelf wine...

And of course, there wasn't so much as a typical Christmas tree to be found anywhere there.

Or there might've been one, but I wouldn't know.

Maybe the biting wind and the hunger boring a hole in my belly swiped away even the bright colors of the tree from my eyes...

... or maybe the Backstreets folks, broke and desperate as always, stole and exchanged it for a handful of cash.

Huh? Then why are you so gung-ho about preparing for this Christmas party?

I mean, from what you just said... You don't seem to have a very pleasant memory of it.

I dunno. 'Cuz... Cuz it's a nice day?

Despite everything, I still remember Christmas as a day meant for happiness. And that's because...

... Because of that warmth I once felt, even from the wrong side of the window.

I saw a twinkling little star atop the tree... and on the dining table, a hearty roast turkey, still steaming from the oven's heat.

There was a little kid too, bouncing with excitement and beaming at the unwrapped Christmas gift in his hands, while his family looked on with proud smiles.

Gotta admit, I was jealous. It made me want to spoil their happy little moment if I could, but...

... More than anything, I wanted to be a part of that picture and spend the winter in that pocket of warmth amid the blistering cold.

That desire overwhelmed any sense of jealousy that might've been there.

That's some pretty half-assed reasoning.

Hey, that's the holidays for you.

Pick an ordinary day that would end like any other, give it a name, and call it special. Right?

So, yeah.

That's why.

If work picks up again, it's back to bouts of neuroses and insomnia.

When else are we gonna get a chance to feel something like this?

Huh...?

... You've really gone above and beyond with gussying up this place.

Oh, Commander? What're you doin' here? I thought you were busy...?

Wait, I know. Did you wanna celebrate Christmas with us?

.......

... Sorry to be the party-killer, but we've got an urgent task on our hands.

Wh-what?! But you said we could take it easy for a while!

That's what I thought when the contracts we had with the other Wings expired.

Anyhow, about the mission: eliminate every guard and researcher within a research facility in the Backstreets of R Corp... and secure their internal files.

The problem is that this task will soon be posted as an Urban Nightmare contract for the Fixer Associations.

Ugh...

The payout's enormous - that's why it's been designated an Urban Nightmare...

But the job should be easy enough for even a Grade-5 Fixer Office to handle.

Easy and rewarding - in the City? You sure this isn't bait, Commander?

*sigh* So... when do we set out?

... Now.

Now?

Seven Association's decided to put the intel up for sale in 15 - no, 14 minutes from now.

It's a simple job with big money. We've got to beat the crowd.

It's not far from here, but it wouldn't hurt to get a move on.

H-hang on, why's it gotta be us? Aren't there plenty of other big-talk Packs you could rope into this?

... Call it a Christmas gift.

What, so we're supposed to drop everything and head out on Christmas?

You've gotta be kidding me. Wait, you're serious, aren't you?

What about the turkey? We can't just leave it in the oven!

.......

Hahaha...

I was wondering where that carol was coming from... Turns out the brainwaves zapped the melody tape to life.

Red lights, green lights... Hah. How very Christmas.

The silver lining, at least...

... was that the contract the Commander landed was a piece of cake, considering the money in it...

So easy that the hardest thing about the mission... was the damn Christmas lights I never got around to untangling from my antlers.

Eeep... I can't untangle these stupid lights!

Heheh... You look like a walking Christmas tree with your energy powering the lights. It's pretty nice, actually!

... When did you hang that thing on your staff?

Hey, I've got the exact same bell on my staff too... Oh. Guess you didn't get to untie that thing either, Ishy.

The holiday plan's totally botched,

and it really is a far cry (almost astronomically far, even) from the nice and warm Christmas I had in mind...

*sigh*

But I suppose it does have something festive about it.

The battlefield this time around was an unusually "chill" one.

Since the job was a cakewalk, there weren't any reindeer screaming their lungs out in pain as was often the case...

And only the occasional dying cries of the researchers could be heard every now and then between the sound of jolly carols and jingling bells.

Well... it did end up being a special day, I suppose...

Special... Ha ha, yeah. This Christmas celebration sure is one of a kind, huh?

Flashy decorations, check.

Christmas tree, check.

Bells and carols, too. Yup, carols. Didn't leave out the carols.

As for the presents... The commander did "gift" us this holiday gig.

Yeah, sure. I suppose this still counts as a present.

Haha... Yay... Season's greetings and all...

All that's missing is the star to top the tree.

Oh. Now that you mention it... Let's see. Star, huh...

Here! If I focus my brainwaves into my antlers like this...

We have our star now!

Careful, you might end up hurting someone - huh?

Did we let the excitement get the better of us and drop our guard? Or was the trap simply too intricate to notice?

Whichever was the case, Ishy was right. Nothing's ever easy and rewarding in the City.

We should've known better.

Wait, there are too many of them.

The enemy forces were at least 10 times greater than what we were briefed prior to the mission, not to mention how the entire lab was booby trapped to the teeth with all kinds of security contraptions.

It wasn't long before condensed whips of energy began to arc indiscriminately, wreaking havoc through the laboratory.

... What the hell is this?

Aren't we allowed to be festive, to be happy... even for a day? It's Christmas. Just one day out of 365...

The Christmas carol slowly begins to cacophonize with the blood-curdling screams.

My vision fills with wildly flashing lights, red and green all over.

I don't hear the jingling bells around me anymore.

All that remains are the blinking lights and the cascading waves of -

Aggh... Get out of my way... Why won't these fucking decorations come off...?! My head, my head hurts so much!!!

Guuuh... Get off me...

.......

... Ah.

When I came to, what welcomed me was the sight of half-crazed Ishy with a wild look in her eyes.

What happened to the others?

Haha... Why are you asking me?

What the hell... kergh... do you think? Everyone's dead. The mission f-failed... W-we failed... Nnh...

Then the Fixers who came in after us must've already gotten away with the internal files.

The biting edge in our words that had been sanded down by the holiday mood grows sharp again.

Everywhere I look, my vision is consumed by the gory remains of the slaughter that'd taken place.

I didn't even need to check the time to know that Christmas had officially ended.

And then, I hear it - the unmistakable sound of transmission static cutting between the carol.

Commander?

Finally. I've been trying to reach you.

What became of the mission?

F-failed. We were totally outnumbered. There were too many of them, way more than what the briefing said...

... So you didn't get to unwrap the Christmas present.

Ravens will arrive there soon.

.......

You're gonna... you're gonna have us culled just because of a single failure?

... Correct. The 4th Reindeer Pack, in its current state, is no longer deemed fit to serve. R Corp. has no need of underperforming units.

The order comes from the Supreme Commander. It's final and beyond appeal.

Any last words?

Yeah. More than I'll ever get out, unfortunately.

A whole shitload of curses, for starters. I mean, don't I have every right to be pissed about this? Why us, of all people? It's not fair. If I could, I'd yell until my throat gave out.

But then it hits me - beneath all of it, there's just a single thing I actually want to say...

Because keeping it in will hurt more than what's waiting for us.

I swallow whatever migraine meds I had on me, the same meds I'd been saving so I could guzzle some goddamn wine down my throat tonight, and finally say the words I never got to say.

Merry Christmas.

…….

Thank you for your service, Rodion.

Merry Christmas.