Alice Blossom's Diary

Meeting

Dear Diary,

Another week has passed since my unsuccessful attempt to capture A.R.C.A.N.E. I still blame myself for what happened and for not being able to find more information about the entity. The rescue team arrived at the scene just moments after the deaths of [Grim] and Pavel, but they didn't find the prisoner who survived the A.R.C.A.N.E., nor did they want to enter Monkey Land itself. I received numerous phone calls from Aqua Squad, but I only accepted the Commander's call. Trying to maintain a formal emotions, I explained what happened, but he didn't believe me. I tried to show him the radio audio recording, but for some reason, he refused to accept it as evidence. I understand him; losing a squad mate can sometimes be as painful as losing a relative.

We have been called out for a major emergency deployment to the Isle, involving all the elite squadrons, including our squad. The Isle has spiraled out of control, and the situation reached a critical point when "Transportation 2," with around one hundred prisoners aboard, crashed on the coastline. A.L.I.C.E. was responsible for the crash, as far as I know, and we have to report to the Forward Operating Base of B-Corp to handle this mess. It's an emergency.

So, I packed my things and went to B-Corp HQ, from where I was relocated to the Forward Operating Base and met all my squad members. I looked at my phone and thought about calling my mom and dad to tell them that I had to deploy to a dangerous place on short notice. My hand moved towards the phone in my pocket, but—I decided that it's better for them not to know where I'll be. My mom has had multiple heart attacks, so I can't risk telling her that I'm going somewhere for a week or more where I could die. Instead, I took my mother's necklace and wore it around my neck. It has a real diamond gem and has been passed down through generations. Maybe it could give me some 'spiritual power,' as my mother always said. I took a backpack with all the required documents, food, and other items, put on a black jacket, my father's cap, and stepped through the door, closing it behind me.

As I left my house, I started walking down the street towards B-Corp HQ. The streets were filled with people, busy with their work and deadlines. I passed the football playground again, and there were no kids playing. Of course, it's school time—what a great time that was. I chuckled at my thoughts as I saw a football lying on the ground. I decided to kick it. One... two... and goal! Look, I'm a certified football player. I never thought of joining a football club. I continued walking until I stopped at the grocery store that Patrick owns. I decided to grab a drink! Opening the door to the store, I went inside and headed to the familiar fridge with the tastiest Fanta. I took a can and approached the cashier stand.

"Going somewhere?" Patrick guessed, glancing at my appearance and backpack.

"Oh, I am. Possibly for a week. It's an emergency," I replied, handing him two dollars.

"I see," Patrick nodded seriously. He looked at me, still holding the two dollars in his hand. I was confused for a second until he spoke again. "Alice, take care out there. I know your job is dangerous, being a soldier for a company."

I nodded in agreement. "Yes, I'll be careful. Thanks." Taking the Fanta, I left the store. I could still feel his gaze on my back, which made me a bit uneasy. Opening the can on the street, I started drinking as I walked towards B-Corp HQ.

The HQ was buzzing with personnel like a hive of bees. It seemed that not only the combat teams were called for the emergency. I went up to the third floor to meet Julia in her office. As I approached the door, I knocked a couple of times. I heard the sound of documents falling and rapid footsteps approaching. Julia opened the door while she was talking to her boss. I entered and saw the mess on her table—unsorted documents not only on the table but also on the floor and chairs. God, I would hate working in such a chaotic environment!

"Yes, yes, I will finish it today. Right now, yes," Julia was saying on the phone as she put it down and looked at me like I was some angel savior who would rescue her from the document chaos.

"I'm glad you came in. B-Corp just dumped so much work on me tonight, I'm not even sure if I'll be able to finish it by next week!" said Julia, with a worry. I understood her as I walked around the room, careful not to step on the documents.

"The whole HQ is on high alert. What is all of this?" I asked, pointing to the scattered papers and the phone on her desk.

"Accounting, reviewing new documents, printing, and hundreds of other things! The boss doesn't seem to care that his worker might be overwhelmed, so he dumped all his work on me too! Do you know what's happening? You're a soldier, after all," Julia said, pointing out my rank.I couldn't reveal too much, or I could be fired, but I said, "It's an emergency. We have to leave for a week."

Julia sat at her laptop, and when she heard my words, she looked at me with concern. "What do you mean? Did terrorists attack the prison site to release their men?"

Well, not exactly. Prisoners did escape, but there were no terrorists. The Isle had to remain a secret, so I told her, "You got it right. We have to ensure safety and also stay for a week for peacekeeping, just so everything can get back to normal."

Julia looked even more worried, wiping sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief. She probably didn't believe me. "Y-Yeah, Alice. Please be safe out there."

I gave her a smile and nodded. Glancing at the floor, I picked up some documents and took a quick look. "Military Ammunition Budget Allocation—wait, is this the accounting you're doing?" I asked in surprise. Does B-Corp really force a casual employee to handle military-tier accounting?
Julia nodded. "Yes! It just switched to military stuff. Well, it is somewhat similar to my work, but I wonder why it changed so suddenly."

I could see distrust in her eyes, like she believed there was more to it than a "terrorist attack on a prison site." I began sorting through the documents I had picked up. Budget allocation to security "Boevo"; allocation to science team "Ravec"; allocation to forces of "Arba." Strange names, and I had never heard of them. But suddenly, Boevo starts with B and ends with O... Bravo... my squad starts with R and C... Alpha squad the same... could it mean—or is it a coincidence?

Julia snapped me out of my thoughts. "Alice, are you okay? The look on your face... Just put those documents here," she said, pointing to a spot on the table. I placed them down and, with a bit of worry, turned to leave.

"I'll call you when I'm at the location," I said, grabbing the door handle. Suddenly, Julia called out.

"Alice."

"Yes, Julia?" I asked, curious about what she wanted to say.

"Can I have the contact of someone from your squad?" asked Julia.

I wondered why she needed it, but after a few seconds of hesitation, I said, "Yes. Jonathan is his name. Do you have a pen?" I walked back to Julia's desk and decided to give her [Wood]'s contact number, just in case she needed to reach someone in an emergency. It was against the rules, but I could see that Julia knew more than just the "terrorist attack on a prison site." I couldn't leave her like that!

Julia handed me a pen, and I wrote down [Wood]'s number. Why [Wood]? He's a pilot in our team, and he would return to the Forward Operating Base later. He's loyal, and I've known him for a long time. I checked the room for cameras, and when I was sure there weren't any, I said, "Please call him if it's an emergency. If you do, say you're from ['Dispatcher']." Sharing codenames is super illegal, but otherwise, [Wood] wouldn't believe Julia if she used my real name. Julia looked at me gratefully as she took the note with the number.

"Take care, Alice," she said, holding my hand on the table. I placed my palm over hers and nodded silently. I left the office, my mind messy with thoughts about what Julia might think of me. She knew I was hiding something, but she appreciated my honesty. I headed to the waiting room. I had one more hour, so I lay down on the couch, put my hands behind my head, and stared at the white ceiling, waiting for my helicopter.



An hour later, I heard a door open. Turning my head, I saw a figure dressed in a black suit, wearing some sort of cowboy hat. He looked at me like I was a lazy bitch, but greeted me nonetheless.

"Greetings, [Dispatcher]," he said, using my codename as he approached. I realized that if he knew my codename, he must be part of one of the squadrons.

"Hello, I don't recall you," I replied. It turned out to be [Jupiter], a member of the Overwatch Squad. They are a pretty formidable group, if you ask me. They are one of the best squads among others. Most of other squads try to be like them.

"Isle Evacuation—last time it happened was three years ago. And now we're all being called up again. Also, good job on finding A.R.C.A.N.E.," he said. I glanced around to make sure no one else was listening, but thankfully, the room was empty.

"I know, thanks," I responded. I was the one who was evacuated that dreadful day. [Jupiter] is an experienced mercenary; he has been with his squad for six years. We talked about the Isle evacuation for about five minutes until another man entered the waiting room. He called us by our names, indicating that it was time to board the helicopter.

We boarded the helicopter once again and took off into the sky. I didn't talk much with [Jupiter]; he was occupied with solving a Rubik's cube while I was more interested in watching the landscape from a bird's-eye view. It didn't take long to reach the Forward Operating Base. Once we landed, I saw various types of helicopters, including our own with the nameplate 'Relic Squad' on it, poised to escort us. They looked like regal birds of prey, graceful and unchained, ready to soar through the sky at will. Without exchanging any words, [Jupiter] and I went our separate ways.

I headed toward our squad's private armory. I used my keycard to enter and planned to grab my tactical shotgun and other gear when I noticed [Unknown] (also known as Clef) talking with one of the scientists. Curious about the presence of a scientist, I approached them.

"Here she is," [Unknown] pointed at me, and the scientist turned to face me.

"Pleasure to meet you, [Dispatcher]. My name is Calum. I've been looking for you," he said with precision in his speech.

"Do you need something?" I asked.

"Yes, we've been working for a year to neutralize the 'Experiment' on the Isle, following the incident three years ago—"
"He wanted to give us an experimental weapon," [Unknown] interrupted, handing me a strange-looking device. It appeared to be some sort of railgun with a sniper scope. I took it in my hands and inspected it.

"Yes, that's correct. This weapon is designed to finally kill the Experiment," Calum explained. This railgun was heavy. As far as I know, B-Corp was determined to kill an experiment.

"So, how does this technology work?" I asked.

"It has only one charge. You aim it, and it takes five seconds to charge. The issue is that we couldn't speed up the charging process, and you can't move the weapon while it's charging, or it won't work, and you'll lose the charge. You can stop the charging by pressing this button. Make sure there are no mercenaries or materials like concrete between you and the Experiment, or you could harm someone, or it won't work at all," he explained.

I handed the weapon back to [Unknown]. "Thanks, we'll take care of neutralizing the Experiment," I said. Calum's eyes filled with hope and excitement. If I were in his place, like in the old days, I would be excited too. Calum left shortly afterward, leaving me alone in the armory with [Unknown].