Story/A Snowy Night Capriccio/E1-3 (Part2)

... At an obscure corner near the Griffin base.

Destroyer

Hehe, you think you can beat me like this?

Destroyer

You Griffin Dolls really are naive. You followed the routes I mapped out and gave my Dinergate room to escape.

Gager

Sounds like things are going well on your end.

Destroyer

Of course! I came up with this plan, after all!

Destroyer

Now, all I need to do is have it run into the pile of gifts and those stupid Griffin T-Dolls won't be able to catch me anymore!

Destroyer

My present delivery is about to arrive, hahaha...

... At the site of the pandemonium in the Griffin base.

The Dinergate tiredly squirms through a gap in the T-Dolls' encirclement and as ordered, it makes one last sprint towards the pile of gifts...

Springfield

From the way it's moving... Looks like it's planning to escape into the present heap...

WA2000

CZ75! It's headed your way!

CZ75

Leave it to me, I'll chop you to—

CZ75 calculates the position where the Dinergate will be, and then she pulls her axe back before bringing it down in a cleaving strike. However, she misses.

OTs-44 gently tugs on CZ75's sleeve.

OTs-44

Look... the Dinergate suddenly stopped moving...

Only then does CZ75 notice that the frantically scampering Dinergate has suddenly come to a complete stop, holding its just-about-to-jump-into-the-pile-of-presents pose...

Destroyer watches the proceedings through her viewscreen in confusion.

Destroyer

What's going on... ? Why isn't it responding to my orders anymore?

Destroyer

Its internal temperature is spiking...

Destroyer

But I didn't install any kind of self-destruct mode into it...

Curious, the Griffin T-Dolls lean closer.

Suomi

Maybe it crashed because it overheated from using too much power?

Gr MG5

You mean it overheated from just that bit of moving around?

Suomi and Gr MG5 carefully approach the motionless Dinergate...

WA2000

Wait—!

Before WA2000's warning registers, it is drowned out by the sound of an explosion.

BOOM!

Suomi

Aaaahhhhh—

Gr MG5

Scheiße!

The Dinergate suddenly explodes, and the pile of presents is engulfed in flames...

The T-Dolls' wails of despair echo off the ceiling.

Am RFB

NOOOOO! I worked so hard on my present...

SAA

Nooooo! Wait, put down my cola!

SVD

Should you be worrying about your cola at a time like this?!

Springfield

I'll go activate the fire suppression system, you head to the cleaning closet over there to get some water to put out the fire.

Kalina clutches her hair in anguish, her face as dark as the burnt walls of the base.

Kalina

How did things end up this way... ?

Kalina

Don't expect me to cover the base repair bills!

... At the same time, behind a shady corner near the Griffin base.

Destroyer is so worked up she jumps out of the pile of vegetation she's been hiding in.

Destroyer

How did things end up like this?! Nooooooo!

Destroyer

Wait, I have other Dinergates I can control...

Destroyer

I can still do this...

The Griffin T-Dolls dissolve into chaos once more. Everyone is fumbling to put out the fire and working their hardest to salvage their scorched gifts...

When the smoke clears, they see a sooty T-Doll dangling in mid-air before their eyes...

WA2000

Why are you hanging around here, ART556?

ART556

Um... I, uh... I can explain...

ART556 falls silent for a while.

ART556

It's like this! I was doing a chimney inspection nearby when I suddenly saw smoke coming out of the chimney, so I came over to check it out!

ART556

Who'd have thought that a Dinergate had suddenly exploded inside the base and started the fire, so I hurriedly lowered myself on a rope to try and put out the blaze...

FAL

You sure know a lot for someone who was separated from all this by a thick ceiling.

Gr MG5

And if you WERE putting out the fire, why would you need such a big, not to mention flammable sack?

M21

It's big enough to fit ART556 inside...

ART556

This... I...

OTs-44

Huh? ART556 has a Dinergate case on her! Isn't it from a Griffin Dinergate?

ART556

...

ART556

Say what?!

ART556

Crap! I forgot to throw it away!

SVD tightens her grip around a glass bottle and smiles coldly as she approaches ART556.

SVD

If you don't tell the truth, I'll pour this bottle of vodka down your nose.

ART556 looks fearfully at the vodka SVD is holding and shudders.

With everyone interrogating her, ART556 has no choice but to spill the beans...

WA2000

...

SAA

...

Am RFB

...

ART556

...

ART556

Why don't you guys say something? Let me down, c'mon—

SVD

... Just leave her up there.

ART556

Nooooo! I'm really sorry!

Not only do the Griffin T-Dolls express their agreement, some even tie ART556 more securely in her own rope before going off to search for their presents, leaving ART556 to weep mournfully as she dangles in mid-air...

END