Asuka looks in horror at the sight of the news of the chaotic battle of Flumen. Its worse than she can imagine and it looks like the fighting will be much more brutal than in Typhon. She simply ignores the footage and carries on her work. Asuka has a plan and none of the Militia CO's know of it. The redhead whistles while passing by some soldiers watching the news as she goes to the armory to get her kickback assault rifle. A soldier spots her and follows the pilot.
"Hey Asuka, you saw the news?" The soldier called as he lifts up his balaclava revealing himself to be Shinji Ikari, her childhood friend. He is wearing a sage and green infantryman armor and has a smart pistol holstered. Shinji and Asuka knew each other since basic training even still kept in contact with each other.
"Oh please, that's nothing to a trained pilot...And student of famous pilot Misato Katsuragi." Asuka bragged pridefully with her hands on her hips. She's been training for years and knows how to pilot a titan. Thing is, she hasn't been assigned one yet.
"You sure? This'll be our first mission...Say, I hope Taisuke is okay. That battle got way too out of hand. The IMC of that planet better surrender..." Shinji sighed.
"He was listed as one of the survivors. Lets hope that idiot doesn't get himself killed out there." Asuka assured while praying to god that he doesn't fight. She needs to get to the sim pod soon so she can practice.
"Lets hope..." He replied. Shinji's watch goes off to show that its target practice now.
"Oh! Anyway, I have to go Asuka! See you later!" Shinji runs to make it to the armory. Asuka watches him run off to the hallway nearby. She always had something for him but she doesn't know what it is. Its a feeling yes though its still not confirmed to her. She has a worried look on her face now since this might be the last time she'll see Shinji if he doesn't survive the battle. Asuka shakes off the feeling then heads off to the docking bay.
Its a short walk really. The entrances are marked by text to let the pilots or soldiers know where they are going also the docking bay is marked by a caution notification at the same time for pilots. She enters the docking bay. Titans, namely Vanguard class titans, pass by her while the robot engineers check out the titans to see if there is any faults. 6-4 pilots pass by her led by commander Gates while Asuka swears she just spotted Jack Cooper among the pilots. She heads to the railing to see pilot Misato Katsuragi with her titan known as RK-4549. She is wearing a pilot grapple armor or expedition armor. Leaning beside her is her volt submachine gun as she is leaning against the railing. Misato has a ponytail and is rather attractive.
"Asuka, ready for another session for your first day in the job?" Misato asks.
"Of course! I learn from the best after all~So re-learn some basics to keep my mind up?" Asuka replied. For some odd reason, she always had a crush on Misato thus making Asuka wonder if she was gay though seeing Shinji made her realize that she was bisexual. Very bisexual.
"Yep, get into the sim-pod." Misato ordered. Asuka gets inside the pod while Misato places her titan's head into its chassis. The pod closes as Asuka takes a deep breath.
"Alright, lets see what you learned so far." Asuka's vision fades to white revealing a city-like environment with a night-life vibe to it which she likes. In front of Asuka is a course. Misato appears via hologram.
"As always, you can vault over objects. Give it a try." Misato notified. Asuka walks over to the bench in front of her and vaults over it as Misato teleports on top of a ledge.
"As a pilot, you need to be past and efficient so give a few sprints or to." Asuka runs in the course until she makes it to the entrance revealing a large city much to her awe. Misato teleports beside Asuka as she whistles at the sight.
"This sim was inspired by home back at Angel City. It was beautiful...Until the IMC came and turned it into propaganda hub of lies and deceit. Its things like this is the reason why we fight. Anyway, go to the next course." Misato said as Asuka nods. She heads to the next pathway though its cut in half though there is a wall near it. Misato appears once again as she is leaning against the wall.
"Remember wall running? Yep, this is it." Asuka smirks and uses her jump pack to attach herself against the wall the starts running before jumping off then landing perfectly. She walks to the entrance of another course. In the center is a large fountain.
"We've retaken a quarter of frontier space since the battle of Demeter and Typhon. The Militia's better organized now. More people join everyday to fight the IMC. People like you. We used to run away from them but now we chase them." Misato gets off of the fountain.
"In combat, things never go as you expect. You must be read to use any weapon you can find...My old friend, Lastimosa told me that. These are just a few of the weapons I've come across out there." A wall of weapons land near Misato as Asuka picks up her kickback assault rifle and B3 Wingman elite.
"Once you found a weapon or ordinance, come see me at the gauntlet." Asuka walks over the pilot's gauntlet, a training simulation of upcoming pilots. Misato leans against a wall as Asuka loads her rifle and twirls her pistol then holsters it. The redhead takes a deep breath and looks at the course. In front of her is a pathway though it will hold her back but on the right is a wall. Asuka looks at the wall next to her...She runs to the wall and bounces off then jumps towards the wall on the right. Asuka runs towards the wall above and cocks her arc grenade then looks down to see enemies below her causing Asuka to throw the cooked grenade to destroy the simulated enemies. She continues to run and spots a wall with an opening below it that can fit a human so she slides then fires her assault rifle and spots another enemy causing her to throw it and destroy two of them. Asuka jumps to the wall on right while firing her assault rifle at another enemy below. She smiles triumphantly but notices more enemies ahead so she throws her grenade again. The grenade explodes sending arc shocks at them as she continues to run against the wall. Asuka fires her assault rifle at an enemy in front of her while shooting at another one behind him then turning to the right and shooting another enemy. She makes it to an open area and aims at two enemies on two floating platforms but because of the curve she misses so she launches herself off and kicks an enemy in the face then shooting the other one with her pistol right before jumping and sliding to the finishing line.
"Wow...Almost there to Cooper. As in legendary pilot Jack Cooper." Asuka looks at the wall representing the time it took. The time is 00:21:10. Misato gets off the wall and places her hand on her hips with her pilot helmet reflecting Asuka's face on the lens.
"Alright, you ready to head out?" Misato asks.
"Yeah I am! Now time to know how to pilot a titan!" Asuka excitedly cheered. They soon find themselves on a platform in the middle of a field. In the field is Misato's SRS Vanguard class titan, RK-2328.
"Try to call in your titan." Misato ordered. Asuka tries to order in a titan...Only for the environment around them to glitch up causing Misato to groan in annoyance and raise her head in annoyance then shakes.
"Great, let me re-calibrate the-"An alarm goes off causing Misato to look at Asuka in a serious look underneath her helmet.
"Its time. I'll send you to an unmarked drop pod and an Atlas titan when you're on the ground. You better bring him home safe."
IMC Base, days prior to drop.
The drop-ship opens to reveal Taisuke and the surviving IMC grunts who are either scared out of their minds or angry at general Marder for basically dropping an orbital strike at them. The IMC grunts head out of the ship while Taisuke separates from the group and runs to the nearest cover nearby then takes off his helmet while breathing heavily from the shear terror of it all. The fact the IMC would just bomb their own men made him realize...This is the wrong side. The Militia is right. He wants to escape but deserting is borderline impossible. He hears some footsteps behind him causing him to turn to see Spyglass, an AI robot and also the new vice admiral for the IMC.
"Private second class Soryu, why are you not with your team?" Spyglass coldly asks. Taisuke's face reflects off of Spyglass who coldly looks at him. The robot scared him to the point of becoming an obedient soldier...Sort of. His leadership is harsh and borderline demoralizing but the IMC doesn't care, they just want to win the war. Spyglass has received a bit of an upgrade from before. He looks bulkier.
"N-Nothing sir! Just taken a breather." Taisuke explained to the AI.
"I see, please report back to your team...Or what remains of it."Spylgass ordered before Taisuke puts on his helmet. He has another idea. The redhead walks past some soldiers who are patrolling the base as he salutes them before continuing to walk. There's only one person he can trust in the IMC...And its one of the Apex Predators. Mari Illustrious Makinami. Childhood friend and all around mercenary to the Apex Predators next to Slone and many others who are bloodthirsty killers like Blisk himself. But...He needs to know how to fight his way out. Taking on the IMC when trying to desert is risky but this is his only chance. While walking, he steals a pilot helmet and jump pack that is sitting on a crate full of them. He makes it to the titan docking bay where most of the pilots are as he looks around for the Apex Predators. Their docks are empty for some odd reason. Taisuke raises an eyebrow...Only for a loud metallic thump to scare him causing him to jump then turn to see a red and yellow ion titan tower over him alongside a ronin one.
"Watch where you going you fucking idiot!" A voice yelled on the speaker of British origin. Taisuke moves out of the way as the titan docks alongside a tone, northstar, scorch, another ronin, another ion, a legion, and a SRS vanguard class titan painted red with a pink stripe on it. Getting out of the tone is a man with a Mohawk and dressed in some kind of ghillie suit and sounds like he is cursing in German. His name is Heinrich, Richter's brother who is far more tamed than he is. The ronin pilot appears revealing her beautiful looks and goddess-like nature, she has F-cup breasts and wears an IMC pilot sniper outfit also has long blue hair. Murasaki Yatsu is her name and she is patient yet very deadly also is Ash's student. The northstar pilots gets out showing his typical fighter pilot attire, his name is Viper. He survived the events at Typhon without a scratch but his psyche comes into question after the events. The other ion pilot is Ingrid, she has brown skin and pink hair also wears an IMC pilot assault uniform and has the same physique as Murasaki. Getting out of the legion is Keuben Blisk himself, a ruthless mercenary who is the leader of the Apex Predators. The other ion pilot reveals herself to be Slone, the Slone back at Typhon was a life model decoy who was made to test Cooper for the Predators, this is the real one. Another is Theo, an old friend of Kane. He is scrawny but creepy. The final pilot is Mari herself and she is wearing a female holo-pilot suit.
"I had a good tone back there..." Viper hissed as Slone places her hand on his shoulder in sympathy.
"Better luck next time love." Slone smirked before Viper shrugs her off. Theo nudges Murasaki causing her to nudge back but harder almost breaking his arm. Heinrich checks his G3 rifle then holsters it on her back while Ingrid simply walks away distancing herself from the group as Ash nods at Murasaki then signals her to follow her which she does. Slone signals Mari that Taisuke is looking at them.
"Hey I think that trooper there is in love." She joked.
"Wait I think I know him...Taisuke?!" Mari laughed. She speed walks towards the IMC soldier as he smiles back to him. The two share a hug as Mari realizes that she completely didn't notice him for the past months in the base. They both let go.
"Man its been a long time, didn't know you were in the base. Should've called me." The Brit snorted.
"Well you completely went dark and basically left Harmony. It was a surprise seeing you as a mercenary working with the Apex Predators." Taisuke replied. The pilots then leave before Mari and Taisuke head off. They walk in the hallways while passing by the spectres and soldiers.
"So how's Asuka?" Mari asks.
"She's with the Militia." Taisuke answered.
"Jeez...And you're with the IMC." She sighed.
"I know, I know which is why..." Taisuke opens the bathroom nearby as he signals Mari to come in. Mari gets inside the bathroom as Taisuke looks around then closes the door. He checks the stalls before turning to Mari.
"I need your help in getting out of the IMC through the Apex Predators." He explained as Mari's eyes widen then she raises an eyebrow.
"Wait...What?"
"I need you to help me get pilot training so I can join the Apex Predators and soon leave to join the Militia." Taisuke thoroughly explained knowing he was being vague the first time. Mari is silent for a moment.
"...Look I know you might tell the IMC-"
"No, no. I completely agree with you! If I was you, I would've left! Marder is an ass after all!...I was just looking at your gear and wonder why I didn't see this obviously in the first place obviously...Cause you know, the stolen pilot gear your carrying." Mari replied before walking towards the door.
"Now...Meet me at the simulation pods tomorrow."
The MacAllen launches a swarm of pods and ships towards Flumen as Asuka is inside one of the pods. Her pilot outfit is her standard pilot winter outfit that is colored brown and has a fur hoodie. She is also wearing her standard pilot helmet. Its an unmarked one and is cloaked giving Asuka an edge in terms of landing. She braces herself because she feels like she's being pulled off of her seat. Something is wrong. The coms are going haywire with troops screaming and panicking. Asuka breathes heavily as she is in panic now. The pod breaches the atmosphere right before Asuka closes her eyes. Shock goes through her body with a sound of a crash is heard.
The world around Asuka is black for a moment but she opens her eyes while breathing heavily. She could see the window of the pod as the cold winds roar in fury with gunfire giving slight visibility but their fire is interrupted by sudden shots and lights coming from stalkers. Asuka kicks the door open in rage then prepares her CAR rifle while holstering her kickback. The stalker in front of Asuka is firing at a bunch of Militia troopers but she punches the stalker sending it flying against a tree. It gets up as Asuka turns the safety off her gun then shooting the robot dead in the face. She activates her thermal to reveal incoming stalkers and IMC troopers so she calls in her titan...But her titan is unavailable much to her shock as it has been shot down during the fall. Asuka runs in the snow while shooting at any stalker or trooper as more Militia troopers are visible. She jumps towards a tree and launches herself towards an IMC trooper and punches him in the face and cloaks again to look for anyone.
Asuka throws a pulse knife showing all Militia troopers so she fires flare to designate the rendezvous point then continues shooting. She could seem more Militia soldiers grouping up with them. Suddenly a titan comes out of nowhere knocking Asuka back and smashing the soldiers like insects. The titan is hit by a rocket next causing it to stagger before another shot hits it. Running into the scene is Shinji himself who throws his empty rocket launcher away then runs to Asuka.
"Asuka! Listen to me, we need stay down!" Shinji yelled before grabbing Asuka in the back of the shirt then dragging her before using the snow to cover himself and Asuka as they arrive at some kind of cave. Asuka administers a healing aid on herself which makes her feel dizzy as she does the same to Shinji. Their visions fade in and for a moment, she can see something. Heading out of his tone is Heinrich who smells the blood of the dead militia troopers. A surviving one crawls but he shoots him with his revolver. Other titans are seen like an ion passing by. Heinrich turns the soldier over and closes his eyes before praying in German then making the sign of the cross. Beside Heinrich's tone is a red vanguard titan...It begins to act up.
"Die Hölle?! Strand, was ist falsch?!" Heinrich yelled. The titan throws its pilot out and crushes him before going on to crush Heinrich but he gets into his titan quickly. The vanguard throws a punch at Heinrich before he dashes back and shoots at him though the vanguard blocks the bullets and launches them at his tone. Asuka's vision fades again but regains focus as the snowstorm settle down to reveal the same vanguard titan fighting Heinrich who grabs its XO-16 machine gun as it fires wildly. A legion titan phases out of nowhere and guns it down causing it to stagger on the ground seemingly defeated.
"What the hell happened!?" Blisk yelled through the mic.
"I don't know! Es wurde verrückt! It went crazy!" Heinrich replied. Blisk shakes his head at the defeated vanguard.
"Great, another one. Anyway, we have 18 hours, 18 hours till blackwing is sealed and ready for delivery. Come on, we'll bury what remains of Beacher later." Blisk signaled. Heinrich simply nods and walks with Blisk.
Hours later.
Asuka regains her vision now as she squints. Beside her is Shinji who is still breathing and appears to have fallen asleep. What she notices is that his hand is on hers causing her to aggressively shrug it off then getting up. Asuka breathes to relax herself and looks around the beautiful surroundings littered with the dead bodies of Militia soldiers. She looks at the immobilized vanguard titan before going to wake up Shinji...
"Pilot..." The titan called causing Asuka to turn around. Shinji gets up behind her while shivering. Asuka walks towards the titan.
"My combat efficiency has dropped. To increase efficiency I must have a neural link. To establish link I must transfer authorization codes to a new pilot. Link: Bravo-tango seven-two-seven-four. Neural link established. Hello pilot Soryu." He greeted. Asuka realizes who it is, the legendary thought to be destroyed titan, BT-7274! He used to belong to famous pilot Jack Cooper also! Asuka feels honored to pilot such a titan, an SRS vanguard class...But the question is, how is BT still alive?
"Did the titan just say who it is?" Shinji asks much to Asuka's annoyance causing her to turn swiftly.
"Of course idiot! The authorization code link is based off of the titan's name! See baka, are blessed to be around me! Asuka Langley Soryu picked out by a legendary titan!" Asuka bragged.
"Maybe he picked you because you're the only pilot here..." Shinji muttered causing Asuka to smack him in the back of the head.
"My internal systems are offline. Requesting power cells." BT requested. Asuka nods and scans the area to looks for any available power cells. One is located within upper ground so she nods and walks towards the location of the power cell as she picks up a mastiff shotgun.
"I'll stay behind to keep guard of BT." Shinji said. Asuka stops at a cliff and jumps to the wall on the left then runs towards the end. She continues to head onto the area while looking for any enemies nearby. Asuka remembered that BT was destroyed years ago and yet he suddenly comes back? She suddenly stops at a sight of a drone passing by causing her to aim her rifle at it.
"Militia troopers, this is general Marder. Please stand down, you're outnumbered and outgunned. If you stand down you will be pardoned. You are trespassing in private property. We are sending relief to all soldiers." Marder spoke. Asuka could tell that he is lying after what she saw in during the first wave of soldiers who attacked Flumen.
"There is a 96.7% chance that he is lying due past activities." BT spoke via coms.
"What in the-"
"Apologies, I am tapped into your coms to maintain contact." He explained. Asuka jumps towards another ledge nearby then wall runs to another one. She passes by a deserted drop pod and could hear some chatter over it on the radio.
"Say BT, how did you survive? Last I heard you blew yourself up to save Jack Cooper when the ark was activated." Asuka asks then checks her corner.
"I survived my explosion when my CPU core was the only thing active by the time my new chassis exploded. Through that, the Apex Predators tried to cannibalize me by putting me in a new vanguard chassis as they uploaded a hardware to keep my from resisting. Luckily, months after slowly resisting, I broke free at the right time. Though I can no longer access my previous loadouts from before." BT explained.
"Wow...Guess vanguard titans are indeed unstoppable." Asuka commented then heading out. She suddenly stops and crouches as she hears two IMC soldiers talking while overlooking a crashed ship. She sneaks up on one then grabs his pistol and shoots him twice in the leg right before blowing his head off with it then throwing the pistol away. His friend turns as Asuka punches him against a rock breaking his back but killing him due to the shock. Bullets whizz pass Asuka causing her to turn to see more soldiers firing at her. Her hand curls into a fist as she runs against a wall then begins firing at them with a soldier being shot in the chest while another in the head. More soldiers come in as Asuka throws a grenade at the group before cloaking. A soldier gets out of the smoke while aiming his R-201 assault rifle but Asuka decloaks then slams him on the ground and stabs him in the face.
Asuka looks at the crashed ship being supported by a mountain so she enters through the hull. She looks up to see an entrance above so she jumps to the left and right walls before grabbing onto the ledge then lifting herself up. She spots a power cell then picks it up before going back to BT. Her HUD states that there is a shortcut so she goes to it which is on the right passage. She looks down before jumping on the ground then finds herself in the same place BT is. Asuka wall runs then jumps to another ground.
In front of BT is Shinji being held hostage by IMC soldiers who have him restrained. They aim their guns at Shinji as Asuka crouches and aims her gun at them. She suddenly cloaks and installs the power cell into BT. BT suddenly smacks the IMC soldier away Asuka decloaks and guns his partner down.
"Jeez, you sure did try your best in trying to protect BT." Asuka sarcastically commented on Shinji's failure.
"I was ambushed!" Shinji defended.
"As if-"
"Warning, enemy forces incoming. Stalkers. Please seek cover." BT advised. Asuka gets inside the titan as it begins to reboot. So far the only thing she can do is the vortex shield. Shinji takes cover while firing at the incoming stalkers who start shooting at them. Asuka blocks the bullets as she shoots them back at them destroying the stalkers. Her HUD states that all systems are rebooting but the most recent is the swarm missile one so she locks onto the stalkers. Missiles fire from BT as they destroy the stalkers. Shinji is ambushed by a stalker next as it holds him hostage while firing at the titan. Asuka blocks the shots once again then shoots it back the robot killing it and freeing Shinji. Her HUD states that the servos are back online as BT rises up with the stalkers shooting at him.
"You're in trouble now!" Asuka yelled. She throws a punch at a stalker then picks one up and throws it against a rock before smashing another one with BT's foot. These stalkers feel like ants now as they make a small retreat to get a better shot at her. Shinji runs behind BT and continues shooting as Asuka loads the X0-16A machine gun of BT and starts firing at the incoming stalkers. They are basically turned into scrap metal at BT's steps. Asuka activates the swarm rockets yet again and starts
"Warning: Hostile titanfall incoming." BT warned.
"Shinji get to cover!" Asuka yelled before loading the machine gun. Dropping in front of them is a hostile brute titan. It shares the same chassis as a normal northstar titan but armed with better weapons like its rocket launcher though it has the same extra abilities.
"SRS vanguard spotted. Engaging." The pilot said on the coms. Asuka shoots at the pilot as he dashes to the left and continues firing. The rockets slowly draining BT's shield. She activates the rockets on the titan and opens fire on the brute causing double damage but its not enough to take him down. The brute tries to slam its fist into Asuka but she grabs the arm as the titan fires frantically but missing the shots...Only for a rocket to hit Asuka. The shields are now at fifty percent due to the fact that the rocket launcher fired too close to BT. Asuka fires back at the brute. The rounds give moderate damage but its taking his health down.
"Damn! She's good!" He commented. Asuka fires her machine gun but it runs out of ammo quickly giving the brute a chance to kick the titan's gun away from his hand. Asuka silently curses as she is left defenseless without her gun. She has an idea though...Asuka runs towards the brute titan while roaring at the titan. She jumps up while the brute fires his rocket launcher again at her thus removing half of the shield health but she successfully punches the brute titan in the faceplate before grabbing its rocket launcher and fires at the cockpit.
"No, no, NOOOOO!" The pilot cried before dying from the explosion. Asuka drops the rocket launcher since there is nothing for BT to take in. She turns to Shinji as BT places his hands on his hips since Asuka is thinking of that gesture.
"Come on baka, lets go." She smiled before Shinji nods. Asuka gets out of the cockpit and signals Shinji to come with her while she uploads the coordinates where Taisuke's base is at.
"Soryu, do you have a special operation? These set of coordinates are leading to an IMC base within Flumen." BT asks. Asuka looks at Shinji then has a worried look.
"BT...I'm not here for the mission. I'm here to get my brother who is an IMC soldier out of the war which means I'm going against the Militia's wishes..." Asuka confessed. BT stands still at the moment while hanging his optics down.
"I understand your situation. Since this is a personal mission, we must keep this classified. Do you have a false mission statement?" BT asks.
"Yes...No...Definitely no." Asuka replied.
"I'll fabricate the mission statement. For now, we must go." The titan replied. BT leads the two as Asuka and Shinji look at each other before following the titan.
IMC base, now.
Taisuke is looking at his old belongings from his home in Harmony. A portrait of his mother, him, and Asuka. The picture of his father has been ripped off out of complete hatred for him. He slept with an IMC pilot to have a better life and treated better than the citizens which caused him to go with his father. The pilot on the other hand treated him well as his father ignored him. He realizes something...There was a package she got from his mother after the battle of Demeter. She told him if his enemies surround him, he can open it.
He goes to his shelf and picks it up. Its an old box obviously. Tan in color with a stamp on it. Taisuke unties the knot of the package then unwraps it. The box is rectangular and metallic. He notices something on the box. In the center is a large blue orb. Its an SEU kit! Taisuke presses the button on the right causing it to open revealing a data knife and smart pistol. Taisuke then presses blue orb which comes out of its slot as he realizes that its a CPU core for a vanguard titan. He looks at the text on the bottom. It reads CT-3239. He remembers the IMC decided to make their own vanguard class titan with the same components. Taisuke heads out of his room and looks around for a moment then goes the docking bay.
Taisuke looks around the empty docking bay as he notices Mari but since she's a friend, she is no threat to him. He walks up to the white vanguard titan with no data core in it and installs the CPU.
"What the hell is that?" Mari asks.
"Its a data core, I found...It belongs to a vanguard titan." The CPU begins to charge up suddenly causing the titan to rise up.
"Hello pilot Soryu. I am CT-3239. Your mother has transferred authorization codes to me." She spoke.