86 -Eighty Six- Ep. 15: Welcome Back

The sun rises at the Giad Federacy Forward Operating Base on July 30, 2149. Shin stands before Fido as it signs a bunch of documents for him. Raiden comes up and asks him if he actually read them. Raiden claims they’ll all be together tomorrow and asks Shin if he could treat them a little differently. They took some heavy hits yesterday using their Reginleif prototype units. He also asks Shin if he’s thinking it’s time for the Legion to come. Shin says no, but they could come at any time. Later a speaker in a conference room talks about their analysis of how a large scale Legion attack is likely in the coming days. Grethe assumes they’ll be reorganizing their units to prepare for the attack and would like her men back. Various officers in the room appear angry about this. The Reginleifs are still in a prototype stage and without knowing if they are effective on their own, its safest to keep them grouped with the Vanagandr units. She argues with her colleagues, claiming they have a high kill count, but is countered that losses are high. Someone claims she’s taking advantage of the Eighty Sixers and is sending them right back into war, even calling her a merchant of death. Grethe claims the Reginleif has greater mobility than the Legion and if a large-scale attack is coming, shouldn’t they break with tradition and send an elite unit capable of battling a much larger force? The next day, an officer named Bernholdt reports to Shin on recent casualties and their recent unit count. They have asked for more men but haven’t been sent anyone. Shin says he’s used to this. Bernholdt claims his life would have been easier if he joined a regular unit, but Shin says he feels more at home here. Spotting some body bags being pulled out of a truck, Shin thinks back to Eugene and when he killed him. A sleepy Frederica wanders down the hall with her teddy bear, bumping into him. He tells her to change into her uniform and she makes excuses. When Anju and Theo arrive, Frederica falls into Anju’s arms and tells a confused Theo to get her a uniform, which he runs off to get. Bernholdt tells Shin he got another present, showing him a touch pad screen of numerous children’s toys that have been provided by a populace that considers them poor, helpless children. Shin tells him to get rid of them. Bernholdt says he wants to but claims he must follow the rules. Later, Shin, Raiden, Theo, Anju and Frederica sit together in a mess hall, joking about whether Frederica is a “lady.” Raiden taunts her about wandering the base half asleep and half naked. Shin says if she can’t even manage to dress herself, she’d be better off at the base. Mascots aren’t allowed to follow military orders, and they’d feel better if she was in the rear. Frederica claims she can’t do that and must see things to the end. Kurena approaches, shocked at them talking about a half-naked Frederica. It’s been a long time since the entire group has been together, but Raiden says they won’t be together long. Anju thinks they’ll be starting clean up and Theo wonders if they’ll be sent on patrol. Anju claims there’ll be no point to that. Frederica says they’ve become used to being lackies for the army.

Later, at the Giad Federacy 177th Division Command Post, Shin helps Frederica come off a transport truck. She waves to Grethe and they meet up with the others in a hangar. The Reginleifs have worked better with them and the foreign units. Grethe asks Shin if he likes them and the two go back and forth about their name. Shin claims they’re aluminum coffins, slightly better than those of the Republic. Grethe gets frustrated at his and the other’s similar feedback. Shin eventually provides more positive words about them, appreciating their speed and preciseness. Grethe asks why they agreed to be an operator and says she’s opposed to child soldiers like them being sent to the front line, especially as they are Eighty Sixers. Grethe says she was a Vanagandr pilot and when the war began 10 years ago, she was their age. She claims a lot of her friends died because of how slow the Vanagandrs were. She told herself many times a faster unit could save lives which is why she made the Reginleifs. She thanks him for his honest opinion and says she’ll make him give her a better one with the next round of upgrades. Grethe claims to have good news, saying they were able to confirm the survival of two other nations, Roa Gracia and Wald. The countries have built a defensive line to maintain an area they can survive in. Grethe claims the other nations including San Magnolia are still not answering their radio messages. Another message comes in, a bad one, the Legion are expected to attack soon. Grethe says the Western Theater Army will strengthen its forces and reorganize its chain of command. She believes this is time for the Nordlicht Squadron and the Reginleifs to shine. Shin asks the size of the offensive. Grethe says she expects to be able to beat it back easily with their current forces. She claims the number of enemy units he sent her earlier is impossible, going far beyond what their analysts are saying. She claims the Federacy isn’t like the Republic, it takes reconnaissance and analysis seriously and sufficiently prepares. She claims the Federacy will never abandon those who fight alongside it. Shin has a dour look on his face. Later, Frederica walks down the hall to and knocks on Shin’s door, but he surprises her from behind. She tells him to stop walking up in complete silence. Once they go into his room, she claims it’s dreary and he should put up a photo or painting. The two go back and forth on whether this is a place to sleep or a home, and also talk about Eugene, whose room was filled with photos of his sister. Shin tells Frederica she shouldn’t have talked to him, as then she wouldn’t have had to see him die. She says no to this and that it’s better to meet someone than to not do so as they can still be remembered. Shin says if there’s no need you shouldn’t get involved in someone else’s death, but she says he’s one to talk as the Reaper. Frederica claims Shin is like Kiri and pulling out her diary, starts talking about him. Kiriya Nouzen was a member of the Nouzen clan like Shin, although the two weren’t directly related. He was four years older than Shin is now and looked like him. In a fortress filled with adults, he was the only one she could play with. He would comb her hair, get her flowers from the garden, and no matter what selfish things she asked for, he would never get upset. He was serious about everything, and stubborn too. Kiri was all about following rules and regulations, something she claims Shin would ignore. Shin asks why he became a Legion, and she says it’s her fault. The Giad Empire used the Legion to attack their neighbors. After that, the people rebelled, and the imperial family was chased to a border fortress. The Legion were supposed to protect them in the soldier’s stead, but the Legion weren’t built to fight alongside humans. As such they had to use human defenders at the fortress. Kirya had to fight to protect her against the rebelling people, the Federacy Army. He killed many of them and eventually went insane. He lost his family, everyone he knew, and it was as if the home he grew up in was enemy territory. All he had was fighting for her sake. Eventually the fortress fell, and the Federacy caught them. She was lucky that Ernst was there to inspire his men. Thanks to him, the only thing that was shown to the crowd as proof of her death was the Imperial mantle she wore. But Kiriya saw it. And at that moment the Legion were wandering the battlefield and looking for things they could recycle. Kiriya stood there, not moving or running away. She says she turned him into that monster. In the end, the Empire fell, and many died, with only the Legion left. She claims Kiri will be with the Legion when they come. Frederica says Shin should run, saving Kiri isn’t worth him or the other’s death and they can all have a future. He should take a lesson from Eugene and think about his next leave. Shin claims someone said the same thing to him once and he never thought about it. She calls him boring and says even his heart is dreary. That person must’ve been disappointed. Shin looks at the moon and says maybe so. Later Raiden spots Shin carrying a sleeping Fredericia down the hall in his arms. He says she likes him and calls him big brother. Shin says he just reminds her of someone, but Raiden says he seems to have taken a liking to her. Shin says she’s the same as the old him. Raiden contacts Kurena to come get Frederica. Raiden and Shin head to the hanger and talk about the warning Shin gave them. Raiden says when they came here to keep his power to hear the voices of the dead a secret. He says the Federacy isn’t the saints they think they are. Even here, they are not treated as equals. It isn’t just the Legion that take out people’s brains. If Shin wants to be a guinea pig, that’s up to him, but he doesn’t want to be a hostage to encourage him. Shin apologizes. Raiden claims the warning he gave is enough and it’s up to them if they believe. Raiden asks Shin if Ernst talking about the future bothered him. Shin says Frederica told him to think about it, but he never has. Raiden says it will all work out. It can’t be harder than fighting the Legion, right? He asks Shin if he thinks the Major is doing okay, but Shin doesn’t say anything.