It is year twelve after the After Trial era, half a century since colonization began on the planet E.D.N III. During the colonization, some of the settlers revelled against NEVEC, the planet's colonial military enterprise. These rebels came to be known as...
Snow Pirates.
"There's three, One's wounded."
"Easy pickings."
The Snow Pirates fought until they forced NEVEC to withdraw from the planet in A.T 2.
The Snow Pirate duo began to advance toward the unsuspecting NEVEC soldiers. As they quickly caught up with them, they opened fire and disabled the wounded NEVEC soldier.
"No! Stay with me, kid!" The NEVEC soldier who was carrying the injured soldier screamed.
The Snow Pirate duo quickly advanced towards their prey, cocking their guns to prepare for battle. They opened fire, and quickly killed the downed soldier as they continued to fire and advance.
"Snow Pirates!"
The remaining soldiers regained their posture and began to fight back. One of the soldiers rolled into a better shooting position and began barraging multiple shots into the first Snow Pirate. The other soldier managed to down the other pirate, signalling their victory.
However..
With a newfound powersource known as Thermal Energy, the Snow Pirates utilized the Harmonizer, a device which gave them superhuman regenerative abilities.
"What?! He's got a harmonizer!"
The Snow Pirates got up, reloaded their guns and fired back at the confused soldiers.
Crack.
The sound of cracking ice made the pirates and soldiers to stop firing and look around. As the tremors grew stronger, the ice began to crack, and out came a creature with two gigantic front legs and two smaller back legs. The creature resembled an insect, with glowing parts on its two forearms, and its abdomen.
"Akrid!"
The pirates left their potential prey, and began to fire at the Akrid. In the confusion, one of the NEVEC soldiers spotted an unarmed Vital Suit, a manned robotical machine that allowed easier combat against the natives of E.D.N III. The soldier ran towards it, mounted, and fiddled with a few controls. The VS roared to life, and it sped towards the other soldier.
"Grab on!" The soldier who manned the VS shouted.
The other soldier complied and grab ahold of one of the iron bars that were built-in for multiple person carriage. The two Snow Pirates continued blasting bullets at the armored Akrid as the NEVEC soldiers sped away in their VS. One of the Snow Pirates threw a timed grenade at the Akrid, destroying its right forearm as it was swinging it towards the Snow Pirate who was still emptying his ammo clip. The enraged Akrid swung its other forearm towards the Snow Pirate, and missed by a few inches. The man shot a grappling hook onto its abdomen, stood on it and began barraging the oversized insect's abdomen. The pirate continued firing as the warm, glowing fluid spilled out of the abdomen. The Akrid desperately tried to fling the pirate off. And when it did, it lifted its arm for another attack, and instantly froze and shattered, as the thermal energy which was keeping it warm expired. The Pirates restored their lost energy by absorbing the huge puddle of Thermal Energy that was left by the giant akrid.
The NEVEC soldiers continued their walk in the blizzard, hoping to get to their base of operations in the VS. But alas, the VS ran out of energy, and deactivated automaticly.
"Well, at least it got us this far.." The soldier spoke, but no reply came. He turned around, and found his comrade's limp corpse hanging on the VS.
The advent of the Harmonizer, intensified the battle between the Snow Pirates and the Akrid, the source of Thermal Energy. This conflict began to radically transform the planet's frigid environment.
The NEVEC soldier took off his helmet, and trudged in silence in the blizzard, hoping to be put out of his misery.
It is A.T. 12, and E.D.N III still shows no signs of being able to shake off the chaos that envelops her.
"Well, that was an interesting presentation." Said Yuzuru, a 19 year old student on Earth who was preparing for his journey to E.D.N III. He has a head of bright red, almost going into orange. He wore the traditional NEVEC suit with a colour scheme of red.
"Really? I thought it kind of sucked." Said Hatsune, his 17 year old sister. Like Yuzuru, she has a head of bright red hair, almost going into orange. She uses the newest NEVEC suit which was designed for women, with a hot pink colour scheme.
"Is NEVEC that desperate for new recruits?" Asked Hinata, the siblings' 19 year old friend. Hinata had wavy blue hair, and he wore a traditional NEVEC suit as well, with no colour scheme.
"Well, yeah. The increase in development of Harmonizers and Snow Pirates make it so that NEVEC require skilled reinforcements immediately." Yuzuru said.
"Well that explains everything. Good luck on your final test, by the way." Hinata wished them both.
"Thanks."
"You too."
"The test will begin in 3.. 2... 1."
The soldiers began firing mercilessly at Yuzuru, who quickly took cover behind the pillars provided. The soldiers repositioned, got a good vantage point and continued firing at him. Yuzuru took a few hits before ducking into another pillar for cover. He cocked his machine gun and attempted to return fire. The merciless exam continued for what seemed forever, until the soldiers finally caught Yuzuru and barraged him, which Hatsune cringed at. The harmonizer regenerated him, while draining every last drop of his thermal energy resources. Two of them helped him up, and led him back to the entrance of the atrium.
"Mmm..hmm.." The examiner continued to scribble some notes into her electronic pad. "Well, you lasted 17 minutes, 28 seconds. Not too bad."
"Your test is over." She announced. " Total score, 97 out of 120. Rank A. You'll be heading off to E.D.N III today, in 2 hours after the exam."
The exam continued for what seemed like hours. Hatsune's score was also 97 out of 120. Hinata's score was 90.
"You should've studied, Hinata." Yuzuru said.
"Meh, least i got a full score in terms of strength." Hinata said to make himself feel better.
The trio went back to their rooms and began preparing for their trip to E.D.N III. As the two hours passed by, they were called to the launching bay.
"Welcome, recruits." A man in the latest NEVEC suit with a purple colour scheme greeted. "I'm your captain, Shin Amano, and due to the need of urgent backup, we will be heading to E.D.N III effective immediately."
Total silence in the bay as the recruits listened to the captain.
"Now, if you all remember the lectures we've given, you should know that all Akrid and Snow Pirates are to be disposed of, with no hesitation. If I even see a tiny hint of hesitation in you, I will leave you for dead in the snowy fields, the trecherous jungle, or the hazardous dunes, wherever our mission takes us." The captain added with an icy cold stare. "Briefing over, board your respective ships, NOW!"
The recruits entered their respective ships and prepared for blast-off. The trio were conveniently situated in the same ship, and they themselves prepared for the journey.
The ship began to hover, lifting it off the landing bay. It took off, going against the gravitational pull and headed upwards to infinite space. In a certain cabin in the ship, Yuzuru couldn't help but wonder..
..What awaits me at E.D.N III? Will I see any familiar faces? Will i get to see her again?
Location : E.D.N III, Abandoned NEVEC outpost
"..."
Mild footsteps could be heard as the silhouette trudged through the abandoned facility, searching every corner for her target. As she entered a room which seemed like the main command center, she couldn't help but notice a few akrid hives littered around the area.
Squelch.
A disgustingly putrid sound could be heard, as it echoed throughout the place. The akrid hives began spawning their respective akrid species, and the whole room began filling up with insect-like creatures, which resembled tripods. Above their legs nested a pod-like object, which served as a mouth. The figure stood there in silence, her emotionless gaze unfazing the creatures. The creatures began lunging forward, attacking the intruder.
"E.M Sonic."
Two bright energy blades emerged from her arms as she spoke. She then proceeded to slash away at the creatures whom attacked.
In no time at all, the floor was littered with ice shards and glowing orange fluid. The figure stepped forward to claim her energy, which then got absorbed into her energy container as she stepped into the puddle of glowing orange liquid. A notification came up on her holographic interface, stating the capacity of the container, which read 9880. She nodded in satisfaction and turned back to where she came.
As she stepped out into the white fields, the sun began to shower her with its radiating light, exposing her identity. She wore a pure white battle suit, which was custom made. The design of the suit included pipes which allowed Thermal Energy to flow through them, providing warmth. She also wore a transparent skirt-like clothing, which only covered the sides and back of her waist and thighs. Under her suit, she wore a black full body thermal suit, which also provided additional warmth. Her boots stretched up all the way to her thighs, resembling stockings, except for the fact that it had light armor platings, and was made of heat-keeping material. She owned a head of silver hair, with a purple clip holding up a part of it at the back. On top of it, she wore a pair of earmuffs which were equipped with a communications system, that was held together by a black band. The golden orbs in her eyes darted from the left to the right, scanning the area for any threats.
"How'd it go?" A voice spoke from her communicator.
"..Nothing special, the usual akrid hives." She answered with her usual monotone voice.
"Shoot, I was hoping we could find some useful parts for our VS's." The voice replied with an irritated tone.
"..I can continue scavenging the nearby outposts if you want me to." She replied in her usual monotone voice.
"Nah, its fine. Return to base for now, you've earned your rest."
"..Okay. Thank you."
"Otonashi, wake up!"
"Bro, we're here!"
Two voices called out to the sleeping Yuzuru, one low and deep, and the other high and cheerful.
"Wait, really? 48 hours didnt seem long whatsoever.." Yuzuru said as he rubbed his eyes.
"It felt like 5 minutes, didnt it?" Hinata said.
"Yeah, i know." Yuzuru replied as he got up from his reclinable cabin seat."
"All personel, report to the armory." A voice boomed from the hallway.
"Come on, lets go." Hatsune rushed the both of them.
At the armory, various weapons were stashed on shelves, lockers and chests. The trio picked up a traditional machine gun which held 50 rounds in a single magazine. Then they were given Thermal Energy containers which contained 2000 units of Thermal Energy.
"You three. Yuzuru, Hinata and Hatsune. Report to the mission briefing room." A voice from the doorway to the briefing room commanded.
Murmurs could be heard from the recruits as the trio proceeded towards the entrance.
"Who are those three?"
"Are they in trouble or something?"
"Nah, can't be. I heard they scored high marks in the exam."
"Wow, really?"
"Yeah."
The briefing room contained some ship personel, the person who commanded the trio to come, and Captain Amano himself.
"I suppose you're asking why you're here, Yuzuru, Hatsune, and Hinata." Amano stated with a cold stare. "Well, since you three are ranked as the top recruits, each of you owning a grade of A, I want you three to join the lead squadron. We're tasked by the higher ups to eliminate a certain Snow Pirate group."
"And what are we going up against, captain?" Hinata asked.
"The Shinda Sekai Sensen. A unique name, since it means Afterlife Battlefront. We call them SSS for short. They're a new snow pirate group, using guerilla hit and run tactics to sabotage us. But, thanks to some new intel, we found out that they're just a bunch of teenagers who have special talent. However, theres one individual who's taken out a whole team of Vital Suits by herself." Captain Amano briefed.
Shocked expressions painted the faces of the trio as they heard that. What kind of human is able to down a whole team of Vital Suits? Two of them had also felt a sense of deja vu. Where have they heard the name 'Shinda Sekai Sensen'?
"We don't know who exactly this individual is, but the alias we've given her is 'Tenshi', or Angel, if you like translated terms." He explained. As Yuzuru heard this, he began to feel heartbroken, as he knew the individual they were talking about. He was chosen for the NEVEC program, and he had to leave her behind. "According to eyewitnesses, she uses one of the new Battle Suits, which is essentially armor that has all the capabilities of a Vital Suit. The alias comes from its unique booster structure."
"Sir, i don't think we're ready to-" Yuzuru started, but was cut off by the sound of laughter.
"Hahah, being modest now are we? You three are good enough to join us." Amano spoke. "Anyway, seeing as all three of you are ready for battle, we shall head out now."
The three couldn't object as the captain went to the flight deck. The trio followed soon after.
The flight deck was filled with Vital Suits, which included the GAB-25M, which were most commonly known as the Spider Walker and the NEVEC designed GAN-34.
"Get into the Spider Walkers, we're heading out."
The three complied, and entered their respective VS's. The rest of the squadron followed suit, and they headed out to the snowy plains.
"Our enemy is most likely in a mobile unit, so keep your eyes peeled." Captain Amano said in his custom Spider Walker.
"See anything?" Yuzuru asked Hinata.
"Yeah, I do, actually. Snow, snow, and more snow." Hinata replied sarcastically.
"We've got a joker in our team guys, be sure to pelt him with your empty magazines afterwards." Captain Amano threatened. Hinata shuddered at the thought.
The squadron trudged through the snow, following their leader who was moving his turret around to scout the area.
A deafening blast filled the ears of the squad members as one of the VS's in the squadron exploded.
"We're under attack!"
"From where?! I don't-" The squad member was cut off as his VS got blasted as well.
"Dammit! I don't see 'em! Where are th-" Another one got cut off as another explosion sound filled the communications of the remaining squadron.
"Captain! I see them!" Hinata shouted as he aimed his guns toward a certain direction.
"Good eye, recruit!" Captain Amano jerked his turret to where Hinata's was pointing, and sure enough, he spotted a silhouette with an Anti-VS rifle. He spared no time, and fired his laser vulcan towards the silhouette. The figure retreated for now, and out came his VS. It was a traditional PTX-140.
"What the?! They have one of the most advanced VS's ever manufactured?!" Yuzuru shouted as he continued to shoot. The enemy VS was too fast, however, strafing from side to side, and returning fire with a rocket launcher.
All of a sudden, a deafening blast could be heard from the middle of the formation, taking out most of the VS's located there.
"Hatsune! Hinata! Are you guys okay?!" Yuzuru screamed, praying for a response.
"I'm alright!"
"Same here, bro!"
Yuzuru breathed a sigh of relief as he regained his composure. But that was to be short lived. The figure that took out multiple VS's with a single blast rushed at their remaining forces, incapacitating them by severing the VS's legs. Amano, however, converted into his VS's tank form and darted off into the distance. As the figure finished disabling the VS's, a gigantic ship flew in. At the front of the ship, a noticable logo that had the letters 'SSS' was there.
"The snow pirate group? They knew?!" Yuzuru said.
"Warning, VS will self-destruct in 10 seconds." The computer voice notified.
"Crap! I have to get out of here!" Yuzuru said to himself as he used his bayonet to sever the seat belt and rushed outside. However, the range of the explosion was huge, and it pushed him forward, injuring him with the shrapnel that flew. He looked around, and he saw many VS wreckages, and many dead bodies lying around. He spotted his sister and Hinata, who were alive, thankfully.
"Theres some still alive, take them out."
"...Okay."
The figure headed to Yuzuru first. As she drew closer, she readied her blade, poised to strike. But as she noticed Yuzuru's bright red hair, she withdrew her blade.
"Wh-why?" Yuzuru asked.
"...Yuzuru?" The figure managed to speak after a short delay.
"How do you.. Wait... Are you.." Yuzuru struggled to find his words as he had many things flowing through his mind at once. But the solid conclusion his mind reached was simple. How could he forget that monotone voice? Those beautiful golden orbs? That long, flowy silver hair?
"..Kanade?"
"..I've missed you, Yuzuru."
"Kanade!" Yuzuru regained his strength, pulled himself up, and embraced Kanade in a hug. Kanade returned it with a teary expression, the only time she showed any emotion, was in front of him. "Kanade..! Kanade!"
"..Yuzuru! I've really missed you." Kanade spoke through tears, and so did Yuzuru.
"Kanade?! Whats wrong? Did something happen?" A voice that sounded higher than the one before blasted her communicator.
"..Its him, Yui. I've found him."
"Otonashi-senpai?! You found him?! What about Hinata-senpai?! Is he there?!" Yui barraged Kanade with questions.
"Yui? You're here, too? And yes, Hinata's here." Yuzuru, who overheard their conversation, replied.
"Whoa, didn't expect to see you again, Tachibana." Hinata broke in. "Damn, my head still hurts."
"Hey, bro, who's this?" Hatsune asked as she clutched her injured area.
"Oh, uh.. This is Kanade Tachibana, my oldest friend. Well.. you could say girlfriend." her older brother replied.
"Kanade? Im hearing familiar voices! I'm coming down, alright?" A voice boomed from her communicator.
"Okay." Kanade replied in a happier tone.
A few seconds later, a rope ladder rolled towards the group, and a figure started climbing down.
"Is that.. Yuri?" Yuzuru asked Kanade.
"Yes." She replied, still holding on to him, fearing that he will leave her side.
"Ehh?! Otonashi, Hinata?! And who's this..?" Yuri spoke with a shocked expression.
"Holy crap, never in a million years did i expect to see you again, Yurippe." Hinata said.
"Still holding on to that nickname, huh?" Yuri added.
"Hey, well, you know. I'm too used to it." Hinata explained.
"Meh, not like i care. Anyway, lets get inside, quickly, before more reinforcements arrive." Yuri invited. "Oh, and whos this again?"
"Shes my sister, Yuri." Yuzuru replied.
"Um.. Hatsu- something?" She stuttered.
"Hatsune... I don't even know what words to use now." Hatsune spoke.
"By the way, why are you guys snow pirates?" Yuzuru asked.
"Yeah, whats going on?" Hinata added.
"Its kind of a long story, we can talk inside, alright?" Yuri said, gesturing towards the rope ladder.
"Hey, you alright?" A certain orange-haired boy asked.
"..." Nothing but silence came from a certain white-haired girl.
"He did it again, didn't he?" The boy asked.
"..." More silence, but a slight nod was visible.
"What'd he do this time?" The boy asked again.
"..." Still, more silence. The girl released her grip on her right arm, and revealed an obvious bloodstain. She pulled back her sleeve, showing the boy a cut, too large to be an accidental cut.
"He's really done it this time.. I'm going to report this to the teacher. But first.." The boy paused, and produced a hankerchief from his pocket. He then proceeded to use the cloth to stop the bleeding from her arm by wrapping it with the cloth. When he was done, he stood up and offered the girl a hand. She gladly took it, and stood up. When she lifted up her head, visible tears were present. The boy couldn't help but frown.
"Thank you.." A soft, monotone voice came from the girl, albeit sounding a bit distorted because of the tears.
"Come on, lets go." The boy pulled the girl's other hand, as he didn't want to hurt her more.
When they arrived at the teacher's lounge to look for any teacher present, as school was over and most of the students and staff have vacated the premises.
"Ah, Otonashi-kun! I've been looking for you." A voice called out from behind the two.
"Kirishima-Sensei, what is i- Wait there's something more important i need to tell you." The boy said.
"Sigh.. What happened this time?" The teacher asked, expecting the same result, as she noticed the white-haired girl behind the boy, holding her right arm, as if hiding something.
"Noda again. This time he-" The boy's words were interrupted, as the white haired girl spoke. "He almost stabbed me because I wouldn't do his homework."
"He did WHAT?!" The teacher exclaimed, obviously shocked.
"That jerk brought a flip knife to show off to his gang, I saw him brandishing it earlier. I should've told you sooner." the boy said.
"I'll tell the principal about this, Otonashi-kun, take Tachibana-san to a nearby clinic, I'll tell you about what i wanted to talk about to-" The teacher was interrupted by another voice.
"Ms. Kirishima. I believe i told you to- Ah, there he is. Otonashi Yuzuru, you're coming with me. You've been selected for the NEVEC Expedition Program."
Silence came from the two females, as the orange haired boy looked at the man in disbelief.
"I-I've been chosen for what.. sir?" The boy asked, hoping the man didn't say what he just heard.
"You heard me. You've been chosen for the NEVEC Expedition Program. You and your sister have shown excellent physical strength, as such, we need you to join the program. This is also not a request. Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. The easy way is you come with me with no other questions asked. The hard way is me using my taser on everyone present here, and dragging you by force." The man said, sounding and looking intimidating.
"..." Silence came from the boy, as he walked towards the man, giving in to his threat.
"Otonashi..!"
"Yuzuru..!"
"Good boy. Now then, we haven't much time. Your new academy's first lesson begins in an hour." The man said, while leading the orange-haired boy to the exit.
As he walked down the corridor, he glanced behind him and noticed the white haired girl standing there, still clutching her arm, with a look that said it all. 'Why, of all people, have you been chosen?'
The group headed down a metal corridor, with some tubing on the walls that resembled a glass pipe that had Thermal Energy running through it, to give light and warmth. Yuri, who was leading the group entered a doorway, which had the sign 'Briefing room' on top of said doorway. The rest of the group followed suit, and the sight that greeted them was one that almost gave Hinata a heart attack.
"What in the actual f-" Was all Hinata managed to say before he got tackled by a certain pink haired girl.
"Senpai! I missed yooooou!" The girl screamed.
"I get it! I get it! Now gerroff, Yui!" Hinata exclaimed, trying to pry Yui off of him.
"Most guys would kill to be in your situation right now, Hinata." Yuri said. "Why do you reject it, hm?"
"You swing like that?" A question that came from two simultaneous sources. One from Yuri, the other from Yuzuru.
"NO, I DON'T." He said, with a loud scream.
"That never gets old, does it?" Yuzuru commented.
"No it does not." Yuri replied, stifling a laugh.
"Ah, Yuzuru. Welcome back to the SSS." A plain looking boy spoke out.
"Ooyama, was it? Man its nice to see you again. I see Yuri's still using our old group name from high school." Yuzuru offered his hand for a handshake, which the latter accepted.
"Wheres everyone else?" Hinata asked, while looking around. Obviously noticing that some members are missing.
"Noda's doing his own thing, as usual, Matsushita's practicing his martial arts at the training room, Hisako, TK, Iwasawa and Fujimaki are playing mahjong at the bridge. Shiina's right there-" Yuri got cut off when Hinata let out a shriek.
"GAHH! WHAT THE HELL? Were you always there?"
"Yes. What about it?" A dark figure whom Yuri named Shiina in the corner replied.
"Ahem. As I was saying, Shiina's right there in the corner, as usual. Takeyama's on communications depot-" Yuri, now a little annoyed, got cut off again.
"Like I said, call me Chr-" A voice called from the intercom, interrupted.
"Nobody cares, Takeyama." Yuri said blankly. Silence came from the intercom.
"Uh, the rest of GDM's in the canteen, having lunch." Yuri finished, finally.
"Eh, not to be rude or anything, but do we have any use for a band anymore?" Hinata stated.
"Well.. No. They just kept that old name for their VS squad." Yuri explained, sitting down at her usual "boss chair" behind a large desk in the middle of the room.
"Wow, everyone's here. How even..?" Yuzuru couldn't find the words.
"A good question, for another time. Now then.. Now onto the more important bit. Will you guys join us again, as a part of SSS?" Yuri asked, in a more serious tone.
"For sure. I'm sure you guys have a good reason for becoming snow pirates in the first place." Yuzuru commented, with some spirit.
"Yeah, why did you guys become snow pirates anyway?" Hatsune asked, tilting her head.
"..NEVEC is not what it claims to be. They're starting up another Frontier Project." Yuri explained simply.
"You mean.. That project that eliminates all lives on the face of this planet?" Yuzuru asked, shocked.
"Yes. And only high ranking officials are allowed to enter the hibernation chambers."
"But.. what about everyone else?"
"Death."
"We have to stop them." Hinata interjected.
"Dummy, why else did you think we became snow pirates in the first place? I didn't like it either. Its biased as all hell." Yuri commented. "Anyway, I'm sure you guys are tired. Kanade, mind showing these guys to their rooms?"
"Not at all. Come on, lets go." Kanade replied in her monotone voice.