“…Ray-Ray…M…my virgininty is broken.”

“It’s just a cut from a stray bullet. And it's just a cut to your side, not your....... Just hold still while I bandage you.”

“It will still be a scar on my body forever! This is no laughing matter for a girl!!"

“Ssssh. The enemy is still close by. If you want, you can bite this tree twig.”

“…Nein!--MMMPH!”

Belgium had been invaded. The German Opposition had pushed their way up through the border and were now delivering a flow of German Tanks to subjugate the Allied Defensive of Australian and British Forces in the sector. Everything was taking a toll in the trenches dug out near the Belgium-France border, and things didn’t look so good on both sides.

For example, a certain Canadian Pilot had been shot down in the aerial fight over that border. His beloved all black Triplane Sopwith took a beating and had crash landed right in the middle of No Man’s Land. It was a suicide zone, the mud was already saturated with rain water and debris from the endless artillery shells that kept hammering the fields that were once a blazing emerald land. Here came another volley of mortars gouging out the Earth's bloodied body

“I-it’s going dark. I-I’m starting to see my vision fading. R-Ray-Ray! I-I’m scared. Please hold me tight!”

“…It’s just the shadow of German bomb flying over our heads. Keep quiet or else the tail gunner will notice us.”

“NYAAH! MY EYES! TOO BRIGHT!”

“That’s the sun after the German bomber flew over our heads. Get down, I think the tail gunner noticed us a bit!”

“Uuuh! Wh-what do we do, Ray-Ray! We-we’ve crash landed behind enemy lines! So-so the Krauts will overrun the front trenches and find us! Ugh! I-I can’t imagine all the nasty punishment they have for a Prisoner of War, especially when it’s delicate maiden like me! Magician or not, they’ll find all sorts of terrible methods to applied to my chaste body! Nyaaah! I’m doomed.”

“…Sleipnir.”

“Y-yes, Ray-Ray?”

“Head down - now.”

“H-heh? I-in your lap!? (O///O)...S-so daring--GYAAAAH!"

Raymond Collishaw was a gentlemen. He would never take advantage of a woman no matter how desperate the situation was. But, sometimes, he had to be rough – especially when he had to shove the Canadian Witch down into the runny mud and shoot back at two enemy soldiers climbing into the fox hole they were in.

“…Ptoo...I…feel so violated.”

“It’s just mud. You should be glad we didn’t land inside a German compound.”

“I’ll burn those f**kers.”

“You say that, but you missed several magicians in the air that were attacking us. They were even riding on broomsticks, not the regular Fokkers or Gotha G.Vs. How are you useful in this situation!?”

“….........Sob.”

“Sorry. I shouldn’t be yelling at you while you’re covered in mud.”

“AT LEAST YOU’RE SMART ENOUGH TO PICK UP A CUE!”

Raymond Collishaw wasn’t the type of person who would frown at a bad situation. But since this was war and he was in a tight pinch, he had every right to frown over the lamentation of their issue. He was caught in the dead middle of No Man’s Land. The one side was Allied Forces hiding in trenches. The other side were Central Power forces hiding in trenches. The biggest problem he was thinking about right now was – which side was which. It's not like they would fly squadron flags on their backs, this wasn't the Japanese Sengoku Period.

After the crashing of his beloved all black Triplane, he lost his point of direction. Hiding in a fox-hole, he was too low inside the ground to see where the ocean was as a point of reference. At this rate, taking the wrong guess of a direction would land him in hot water. No joke, the Germans have developed new torture techniques to break even the strongest of spies and agents they tend to capture. He didn’t want to verifiy the efficiency of this newfound interrogation technology, not personally.

“…Sleipnir. We’re not close to either forces, so you can use your magic without them noticing right? And the Magicians on the German side are still out there in the sky, you should be authorized to use some magic to get us out of this mess, right?”

“Y-you say that but I’ve already used up three major spell slots just to bomb the Kraut tank column we flew over before we got gunned down. I-I only have two minor slots for the day, I can’t be too careless.”

“Is there anything you know that could provide cover from an aerial attack? The last thing I want as a pilot is to gunned down by a plane while I’m on the ground. It’s bad for my career profile.”

“Y-you say that as if you’re avoiding a bad investment. I-I’m not a super secret hover tank or jumping airplane, I’m just a Witch!”

“And look how effective your efficiency is.”

“…Sob.”

“Sorry. You’re still covered in mud. I take that back.”

The Canadian Pilot frowned, yes again. As much as he didn’t have time to deal with a Canadian Witch who also doubled as a crybaby, he still felt guilty for covering her in mud. No, he wasn’t trying to invent mud wrestling, obviously not under these warring circumstances. Still, they had to figure out a plan to protect hem from both the enemy on the ground and the magical enemy flying around above them. Raymond Collishaw still didn't believe or trust magic, but better safe than having someone drop a [email protected] animal on him out of the blue. Having something like a Walrus sit on him while in No Man's Land is a bad way to go.

“I-I think I know what to do. I have a Magnet Shield Spell where I can collect scraps of metal to form a movable barrier. With the right concentration and providing my arcane materials are still intact, we should be ableto pull it off and….Er…but.”

“…But what? If it’s going to save our skin, why are you hesitating?”

“…”

“…Sleipnir. Why are you looking at Black Maria?”

Black Maria was Raymond Collishaw’s beloved all black Triplane Sopwith from the Royal Naval Air Service (now Royal Air Force). 90% of his military career, he had been riding this beautiful vehicle in his later campaigns in the middle of the First World War. It was his iconic craft, and the signature color that made up his personal No. 10 Naval Squadron (callsign: Black Flight). However, it was gunned down and crash landed in No Man’s Land. The red lightning from German Magicians knocked out its engines, the same people who were now circling them in the air on flying antannae stands and levitating motorcycles

Right now, it was nothing but a metallic mess that was half buried in the Belgium-French Mud. A wing snapped off, the propellers shattered, and half of the tail was crooked on a 15 degree angle. No matter how talented an engineer at the time could be, it was impossible to fix under these circumstances. So flying away on it again was out of the question.

“….No. H*ll no. I won't let you desecrate her body.”

“D-don’t you want to live forever, Ray-Ray?”

“Anything but Black Maria. She's already had it rough. Leave her out of this.”

"........................................"

"...Son of a b--"

It was heavily debated by historians whether or not Raymond Collishaw was the type of man to swear so casually. For now, let's say he was not happy about the terms of his rescue. In the end, the Canadian Pilot swallowed his pride, grit his teeth… and bolted out of the fox hole with the Canadian Witch on his back. With whatever magic she had left for the day, she controled a series of metal plates and engines parts to swirl around them like a pinpoint barrier, blocking enemy fire from stray bullets and magic. They psychollogically flipped heads or tails, and went Westbound. Good fortune, they ran into a local air base controlled by the Belgium Resistance who were aiding the Allies.

“Don’t cry Ray-Ray. I-if it’s any consolation, y-you can hug me all you want as compensation. I-I don't mind even if you squeeze me.”

"... Black Maria... To go out like that... You were so young."

"I-I'm so sorry, Ray-Ray (>x<!!"