Sanya and Eila are conducting a scouting mission when they encounter heavy fog and are subsequently attacked by the Neuroi. After Sanya informs Minna of this, she runs into Shizuka and Yoshika who are looking for Eila. The trio find the Suomus witch working on putting together a himmeli in Shirley and Lucchini's room. Minna then calls everyone into the briefing room to inform the 501st that fog has enveloped Kiel which the Allies need to capture to continue Operation Southwind. Unable to launch a precision airstrike, the Allied high command decide to launch a carpet bombing mission to destroy the Neuroi batteries in the city. However this will heavily damage the cities' port facilities. Gertrud protests to Minna about this mission as this would push Operation Southwind until at least next spring. As both witches are nearing the age of 20, they know their magic will wane soon and that they may not be able to see through their dream of liberating Berlin. Sanya overhears this conversation and begins to plan something.
As Gertrud, Erica, Lynette, Perrine, Shirley, and Lucchini head to Britannia to escort the bombers that will bomb Kiel in two days, Sanya approaches Minna with a plan to take out the Neuroi that are causing the heavy fog over Kiel. After a day of training with Eila, Miyafuji, and Hattori, Sanya leads the group to hunt down the Neuroi. As Sanya seems to locate the Neuroi, Eila's Foresight sees that a beam is about to hit Sanya. In response, Eila opens fire in the fog ruining the attack and forcing the four witches to return to base.
Sanya confronts Eila about opening fire prematurely with Eila insisting that there was a Neuroi even though Sanya could not detect it with her radar. Later that night, Sanya is still determined to destroy the Neuroi and takes Eila off the mission roster, taking only Miyafuji and Hattori. Stuck on base, Eila finishes her himmeli and talks with Minna and while doing realizes why Sanya is so determined to destroy the Neuroi. She wants to help Minna and Gertrud retake Berlin while they are still witches and knows how they feel about losing their homeland as most of Orussia which is where Sanya is from is also still under the control of the Neuroi. As the sun rises, Eila get's an idea as to what the Neuroi are up to and rushes towards Kiel.
The three witches managed to seemingly destroy the Neuroi but it begins to reform as Sanya realizes that they have been targeting a drone and that the main Neuroi is still in the area. The other Neuroi appears with one of them being invisible to Sanya's radar due to its lattice structure allowing the magical radar waves to pass by without returning a signature. Unable to retreat, Sanya knows that the Neuroi have them cornered. Just then Eila rushes in and helps Sanya destroy the main Neuroi just in time for the fog to dissipate and allow the Allied bombers to hit the Neuroi positions accurately, thus not harming the port facilities. Back at base, the witches celebrate Saturnalia with Sanya surprising Eila with a present.
References[]
Nipa'a Letter[]
The letter is from Nikka Edvardine Katajainen, a Suomus witch who is assigned to the 502nd Joint Fighter Wing. Both Eila and Nikka served in the same unit together back in Suomus Air Force.
Himmeli[]
An example of a himmeli
A traditional Northern European sculpture that is made of straw, "himmeli" means "sky" in Swedish and German. They are a staple during Christmas as they were used to ensure a good harvest for the new year. These sculptures can be as intricate and complex as the person making them desires.
Saturnalia[]
Tree for the holiday
An ancient Roman holiday that lasted from the 17th to the 25th of December, it was to celebrate the god Saturn. The occasion was celebrated with feasts, gift-giving, and other events. As Christianity came about, some of traditions influences other holidays such as Christmas and New Years to some extent.
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress[]
B-17 bombers in formation
The B-17 was an American heavy bomber and with the B-24, were uses by the United States Army Air Force in daylight raids against Germany. The B-17 was famous for being being quite survivable and returning home from missions with severe battle damage though it carried a smaller bombload and had shorter range compared to its B-24 and the British Lancaster. The B-17G variants present in this episode is powered by four Wright R-1820 Cyclone engines which propels the aircraft to a maximum speed of 462 km/h. The bomber has total crew of 10 people. The bomber is defended by 13 x .50 Browning machine guns and can carry a bomb load of 2,700 kg at a range of 3,219 km. 12.731 B-17 of all variants were produced.
Gallery[]
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