Greetings once again!

I apologize for the late and rushed update. I didn't really know how to portray Nico really well here and I got swamped on shift yesterday. I will rectify this in a later chapter in order to give her a proper spot.

The first two chapters have been cleaned up a bit. Here, I decided to try too build a little bit of relationships between the women, going for the normal pairings, let me know if any ideas come to mind on the matter and how I should shape the story arc.

So, I have it planned that I will be doing one more POV chapter followed by a bit of a "backstory" chapter to alleviate where this world they are in comes from. Don't worry, I have all that more or less laid out and ready.

Finally, I present Chapter 3: Contact.

Enjoy!

~Cear

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Love Live and any names or events mentioned are purely works of fiction and any resemblances are insane coincidence.

~Nico's POV~

It had been three hours since the group got underway, bounding in formation across the desert sands. The group moved in a loose diamond, allowing the gunners good fields of fire, and making sure the following vehicles didn't get too much sand in their faces.

The turret atop the lead vehicle swiveled, the long, tri-barreled fifty-cal, swept across a wide arc before the vehicle. The team's gunner, Nico, surveyed the landscape, keeping her eyes open for anything of interest as they neared their first objective.

The trip had been more or less uneventful. First signs of any activity had been an aerial convoy of enemy attack and transport helicopters. It was nerve-wracking as every barrel followed their path, in case they were spotted, breathing a sigh of relief as the aerial contacts continued their course. The team did the same.

Nico spied a small dot of light in the distance, the airport was in sight.

"Ice Queen, first objective in sight. I see movement at the gate, but cannot make out the specifics." Nico reported to Eli, but she knew they all would hear.

"Copy that. Let's push to four clicks out and see what we got Maidens." was her response.

The group came to a halt at the designated distance and dismounted, taking up a reconnaissance position behind a short dune.

Nico zoomed in on the gate, taking in the details of the enemy defense: the guards were going about their business, as good soldiers should, there were two towers with heavy weapons, providing good coverage of the approach. Just in front of the fence-line, in well dug positions were two tanks. The visible personnel counted numbered at least three-dozen, there were two small structures just past the entrance which surely housed more.

This should be fun.

With the threat assessed, the team gathered at Eli's vehicle, and waited for her plan.

"Alright ladies, this is not the main gate, but we knew it would be heavily defended, so here's the plan: Nozomi, Umi, Maki, and I will hang back and provide over watch. Honoka and Rin will lead the rest in the push on the position awaiting Umi to take the first shot into the towers, followed by Nozomi as she focusses on the armor." Eli spoke with an air of confidence.

The rest of the plan was simply put by the Russian: clean house. This is what Nico was waiting for.

The group returned to their respective vehicles and moved into position. Eli maneuvered hers just into effective weapons range, onto a flat dune, allowing Umi and Nozomi clear lines of fire onto the gate. The rest assembled just below the crest of a dune not far in front of the over watch and awaited the signal.

Nico gripped her weapon, excitedly waiting to hear the shot from Umi, who now had her own large caliber rifle mounted on the vehicle and was sighting in on her first mark. All their mics had been switched to voice activation in preparation. They all could hear everything each other had to say now.

"Longbow, sighted in, ready to take the shot." Umi reported, in an obvious concentrated whisper.

"Take it." Was all they needed.

The first shot cracked the silence of the night and found its mark: catching the soldier in the left tower square between the eyes, impacting with such force that he spun away from his weapon. Nozomi launched a missile immediately after, the munition leaving the tube and quickly gaining altitude before arcing down into the top of the opposing vehicle, impacting in a brilliant explosion as it apparently detonated the ammunition: causing the turret to "pop" off and come to rest behind the fence.

The rest of the vehicles lurched forward over the dune, looking to close the distance before they opened up. Nico's vehicle was on the left side of the wedge; her barrels aimed forward, thumbs on the trigger. Her grin was obvious in the night as they sped towards their prey.

Chaos ensued as Umi opened up with a succession of rapid shots, taking out any soldier behind any mounted weapons. Nozomi had the second missile loaded and in the air on its way towards the second tank. The vehicle lurched in reverse as it attempted to bring itself from the missile's path, taking a blind shot at the attackers before meeting a similar end as its counterpart.

With the heavy vehicles gone and the attacking team within range, Nico thumbed the release on her gun answering her with a resounding thunder as the barrels spun, unleashing a hail of large caliber rounds across the gate. The rest of weapons followed suite, catching any unfortunate soul caught in the open. Her hunch was right about the small structures in the back, there were more soldiers within and she delightfully switched between each one, cutting down any who foolishly entered the fray.

The group quickly closed the distance to the gate. Nico followed a group of opposing soldiers as they scrambled to find cover, catching the stragglers in the open and cutting them down with a burst from her weapon in a bloody hail of bullets. She was grinning wickedly, this was fun for her.

The enemy had gathered their senses and began returning fire in bursts. The attacking wedge broke formation: Nico's going left and stopping to dismount the Americans behind a slight rise, Kotori and Hanayo remaining in their vehicle as they strafed the enemy positions, and Honoka and Rin continuing forward and blowing through the gate and speeding past shocked personnel. She could have sworn they cheered as they rocketed through.

Nico's weapon continued to thunder as she covered her team mates' advances, cursing silently every time one of them moved in her line of fire, but good trigger control got the best of her.

A ricochet from her left caught her off-guard and she quickly swiveled her mount to face its source. As she sighted in, what she saw made her blood run cold: an enemy patrol was responding from along the fence. They had a new tank…and they brought a helicopter.

She began firing at the new threat, cursing her current vulnerability in her stationary vehicle.

"Over watch, Demon has new targets, left side, 700 meters from my position and closing. Spyglass, if you could pop their tank soon I would be really happy." She yelled into her mic as she continued firing at the airborne threat, knowing full well she couldn't scratch the armor.

The tank took a shot, aiming at her vehicle. She ducked down as the round flew above her and impacted the sand behind her. She sprang back up to her gun, continuing her fire into the approaching helicopter. She breathed a sigh of relief as a new missile arced down onto the lumbering vehicle, neutralizing the threat.

Her sustained bursts finally hit the helicopter's pilot: she knew this because the cockpit was suddenly coated red. The aircraft started its dying spin, out of control. Her aim came down onto the smaller vehicles, who were attempting to hit her with their own weapons. She heard a crack and saw glass shatter and the now driverless vehicle on her right turn towards its counterpart: ending the course by slamming into it and causing both to crash spectacularly.

She watched for survivors from the vehicles as the helicopter collided with one of the towers before impacting the ground and exploding, feeding her satisfaction.

Eli's vehicle appeared in view near the wrecks of her previous targets, and she spotted three silhouettes move between the vehicles. Her ears caught the sounds of single shots…executions, no survivors. She looked at their vehicle and saw Maki, turning from the scene with a cringe on her face. Nico's heart ached at the sight, feeling for the German woman. She was a medic, and sitting idle while wounded soldiers were being silenced would not sit well with her.

Her feelings pushed aside, she turned back to the gate, finding a similar scene as the Americans and the scout team moved through the destruction at the gate. They took fire from remnants of the enemy post, but swiftly moved in and put an end to the threat.

After several minutes, Eli's vehicle pulled up alongside her own, Nozomi leaning towards her with an amused grin on her face, "Was darling Nicochi worried?~" she said in a teasing tone.

"Hmpf, as if. I was just waiting for you to do your job, Nozomi. I know you would have been devastated if any harm came to me." The smaller woman protested with crossed arms at the teasing.

This caused the Japanese woman to giggle at her Chinese counterpart, "My my, as if I would let my little Demon be harmed."

This was the point Eli chimed in, her usual commanding tone at her bickering team members, "Cut it out you two." Was all she needed to say to silence them.

Nico's eyes gazed down to the medic, finding her in obvious contemplation at the situation. She would press her questions later.

Her eyes tore away from the woman to see the rest of the team approaching. It didn't take long for them to regain their positions, preparing to move. The engines purred as weapons were reloaded.

The fire fight had lasted just under fifteen minutes, from first shot to last. All hostiles had been eliminated and their path was now clear onto the airfield.

Eli spoke, standing on the side of her vehicle, "We have to move quickly Maidens. They know we're here and our window won't be open for long. Rin, Honoka, I want you two doing what you do best, keep their birds on the ground and keep them distracted. Hanayo, set up in the first space that's clear enough for you, Kotori will assist. The rest of you will be with me, ensuring the interior is clear for Hanayo, and no one or nothing comes to bite us in the ass."

The team members responded their acknowledgements and loaded up.

Nico's eyes scanned the vast field as they pushed through the gate.

She could make out the silhouettes of aircraft on the line, knowing full-well they wouldn't be there for long. Visible personnel were running about the few buildings and vehicles, obviously in response to their attack.

Their formation split once more as the two over-excited women headed towards the field and almost immediately punctured the night with staccato weapons fire. The main effort continued towards the rather large structure that served as the airfield's control center.

The incoming fire began.

She swiveled towards the direction, or rather one of the directions it came from. A lone soldier was peeking out from behind a parked helicopter and taking pot shots. Her barrels spun, and a stream of lead cut through the thinly armored aircraft, impacting the man behind mid torso, cutting him in half.

Her bloodlust was not sated with this as she turned to address the next threat, readying her gun for more and thumbing the trigger at her next victim.

The Maidens were pushing onto their first objective.

Contact had been made, and they had to be swift if they were to succeed.

A/N

As promised, cleaned up a bit and made more readable!