The Marvin gave Dustin a thumbs up, which the Pilot returned. He always liked the worker robots, so happy-go-lucky. It was kinda fascinating, though he did of cases were they would enter a state of depression should they lose a tool or something.
He was in Max's cockpit, the hatch wide open. He could see Phillip in front of him, hooked up to the Titan launcher as well.
"You ready?" Dustin heard his voice inside his helmet, a small icon on the right side of his HUD showed a profile picture of Phillip in his robotic state. It made Dustin wonder if he would ever see the real one.
"Ready as I will ever be," He responded.
"Good spirit. That shit makes a good Pilot. You'll do just fine down there!" Dustin could already tell he was gonna like being on the same team as this one.
"Thanks! I just hope I fair better against IMC Pilots compared to the Apex Predator that attacked me last night."
"Yeah lets….wait what!?"
Before Dustin could respond, a man over loudspeaker announced that Titanfall would execute in thirty seconds. Every Titan closed their hatch, and mechanical arm handed each their weapon. Dustin was giving the 40mm tracker cannon, customary for the Tone-class. It was essential for getting lock-ons after all.
"We are talking after we win this," He heard Phillip say.
"Titanfall in three…two…one…"
Dustin suddenly felt weightless. The metal room around him was replaced with dark rain clouds and a gray sky. He could see the majestic mountains off in the horizon. He looked down. The town itself looked somewhat ok, save for a fire here and there. But what really caught his eye was how warfare appeared from a birds-eye view. Of course, he'd seen it before, but it never failed to leave him in awe.
Then he felt the resistance of thrusters and the final crash as he collided with the surface. Dirt shot everywhere due to the shockwave. He had landed close to the town entrance. Looking up, Dustin noticed his allies falling, smashing into the ground in different locations. He was told they would be dropped at separate coordinates to cover more ground.
"Alright, Max. Let's do this," Dustin said.
"I'm ready."
Deploying the cannon, the pair charged towards the town. This was nothing but attrition, so the only objective he was given was to drive the IMC out and keep civilians in and alive. Of course, the latter was a little difficult due to the giant robots, but he could make it work.
A small arch was in place as decoration for the town entrance, but it was easily smashed out of the way as Maximus charged in. Two groups of grunts shot at one another in the streets before him. Dustin picked out the distinctive white uniforms and opened fire. Two IMC soldiers were caught in the blast of the first shot. More followed as he continued, one being eviscerated by a direct hit. No matter how much he would do that, Dustin would always cringe at the sight. With the grunts cleared out, and the Militia fighters moving on into a building, Dustin chose to follow the road and clear out anyone in the way.
There was Spectres here and there, sometimes reinforced by Stalker squads, but nothing too much for a Titan to handle. Dustin easily left shattered cybernetic parts in his wake. Then, the Reapers started to fall. Two of them charged up their missile launchers and opened fire on Dustin and Maximus.
"I recommend using the particle wall. Their missiles do heavy damage against Titan hulls," Max reported.
Dustin took the recommendation and placed the particle wall before him, blocking the incoming projectiles. He launched a sonar pulse and gained partial locks onto the pair of machines. 40mm rounds caused them both to stumble backwards, but otherwise the Reapers pressed their assault. Having acquired the necessary locks, Dustin fired two missile salvos, shredding the robots into fragments of their original selves.
Dustin sighed with content. It was every bit as satisfying as he remembered it to be. Though, in his military years, robotic infantry was somewhat of a rarity. However, what he did encounter was destroyed to his amusement.
He turned around a building, continuing follow the road. So far, everything had been easy. He hadn't encountered any Titans yet. Well, he hasn't at least. Up ahead was a Titan he recognized: Michael's Scorch-class, Hellfire.
Michael blew through a window, landing with grace considering his hefty armor. Grunts near him fell as he held down the trigger. His Devotion tore everything up. A Reaper and a squad of Stalkers started bearing down on his position. He threw down an A-wall and fired to eliminate the Stalkers. Hellfire launched a thermite shell into the Reaper, setting its circuitry ablaze.
An enemy Titan, Ronin-class, approached quickly. Michael embarked into Hellfire as the sword swung and struck the heavily armored Titan. Its thick plates prevented any serious damage. The Ronin went threw a punch with its other hand, only to have it caught by Hellfire's grasped. The Scorch ripped the limb from its socket and tossed it away. Attempting one last attack out of desperation, the Ronin swung its blade again. Michael reacted by wrapping Hellfire's arms around the Titan and forcing it to the ground, followed by a heavy stomp into the cockpit.
It was obvious to Dustin that Michael knew his way around Titan V. Titan combat. Then he saw Phillip in Sideswipe taking down an Ion. His attack patterns showcased graceful, calculated strikes compared to Michael's use of pure force. Phillip finished his foe with a stab through the hull. The machine collapsed to the ground and Phillip moved on to hunt for another enemy.
Then, Dustin noticed something off to the side. He turned, reacting to a Pilot attempting to rodeo Maximus. Dustin grabbed the Pilot in Max's steel grasp. He turned and threw him, only for another Tone-class to catch the Pilot in its cockpit. The hatch sealed.
"Come and get some, Pilot," He announced.
Dustin charged forward, dropping his 40mm and locking hands with the enemy. They struggled, one gaining the advantage one moment before the other countered with more force. Dustin raised Max's leg and kicked the Titan back. Taking the opportunity, he tried to throw a punch at the optic, but the enemy used his momentum against him and drove him into a building. Bricks fell onto Maximus, but he quickly stood.
His enemy performed a right hook. Dustin blocked it and drove Max's fist into the front. The Titan recoiled back. Dustin tackled it, repeatedly pounding the front as they crashed to the ground. The fight was now becoming really violent, with both machines thrashing to gain control over the situation. Dustin must have had more experience, as he started to overpower his opponent.
His fist breached the hull and yanked the Pilot out of his chair. He pounded on the metal hand, a futile attempt at escaping Maximus' grasp. Dustin swung Max's arm and released, throwing the Pilot off in some random direction behind him. Dustin's communications suddenly flared up:
"This is Captain John Harrows of the SRS! Me and two additional Militia Titans are pinned down on the outskirts of town! We have retreated into a nearby dormant canal, but IMC Titans have us against the wall here!"
"This is Lieutenant Dustin McHawken of The Rangers. Your call is heard and I am on my way, Captain!" He responded.
"Thank, Christ! Bring some backup there is too many here!"
Ceasing communications with one Captain, Dustin spoke with another:
"Captain Hathorne! We have allies trapped outside the town and I am going to assist! He recommended backup!"
"I heard. I am close to your position, just keep moving towards Harrows' beacon and we will meet up! I have DeSanto with me and I have already asked Birk for aerial support!"
"Roger that, moving in!"
Dustin picked up his cannon and charged through the town. More IMC and Militia units were seen engaging one another in the streets. Anyone that got in his way and wasn't allied was blasted by the 40mm. He could see the edge of town, the short wall bordering it was clear of activity, so it was a straight…
"Not so fast, Pilot!"
A Northstar collided with him and propelled him into a building. Dustin could feel small hints of pain in his abdomen, but the numbness that was administered to him earlier was stronger. The Northstar's lighter frame allowed him to easily kick it off, but it retaliated with a cluster missile. Dustin leapt to the side, the missile flying past Maximus' legs and further damaging the building behind him.
Dustin fired the 40mm repeatedly, hitting the Northstar twice. The Titan effectively dodged the other rounds, but still had two locks on it. Equipping its railgun, it fired past Dustin as he maneuvered Maximus, moving to the left then charging to the right. The Northstar attempted to take off, but a quick thrust upward was all Dustin needed to grab hold and drag the Titan down.
"You're staying on my level, you bastard."
"Hey, McHawken! Let him go!" Jessie said over comms.
"What? Why!"
"Well if you let him go, I'll show ya!"
He sighed with a smile. "Great, another smartass other than Maximus," Dustin whispered. "Alright, he's coming up!"
Dustin punched across the front of the chassis to spite the Pilot inside, then let go, allowing his still ignited jets to take him away. Jessica came soaring by, wrapping Monarch's arms around the enemy and took him higher. The force caused him to drop his railgun. Jessica turned to the ground, flying full speed downward before letting go and pulling up. The enemy Northstar collided with the ground, the sound of crunching metal prominent.
Upon examination, Dustin found a wreck of a Titan. He could pick up a faint life force on his radar inside the wreck, but chose to forget it. Jessie soared over him as he charged past the exit of town and towards the canal. He could already see the hefty form of Rook through the trees.
"Good to see you are doing ok. How's the wounds?" Hathorne asked.
"I tell you what, Captain, whatever numbing agent you guys use, they work like a charm!" Dustin responded.
"Good, because the battle isn't over yet! The canal is just up ahead!"
Dustin could hear the gunfire of massive weapons. "What's that plan?"
"There is a ridge just up ahead overlooking the canal. We position ourselves up here and fire down on those bastards. Birk, the sky is yours."
"Roger that, Captain," Birk replied.
"Sounds like a plan. 40mm is locked and loaded," Dustin reported.
Coming up on the ridge, Dustin took a knee and observed the battle below. Three Militia Titans, an Ion, a Tone, and a model he has never seen before. On the opposite end, seven IMC Titans closed in on the trio. Dustin picked out two Legions, three Ions, a Scorch, and a Tone.
"Damn. They want these guys dead," He said to himself. "Got a solution, Maximus?"
"I do. Allow me two minutes to charge up the salvo core."
Perfect.
Hathorne was several feet to Dustin's right. He started to spin the predator cannons barrels. "Engage!"
A constant stream of bullets barraged the IMC mechs. Dustin's 40mm fired, ejecting its casings onto the grass near him. The enemy Titans took cover quickly, but one Ion was overwhelmed by the sudden attack and detonated. There was no ejection, no blood or body parts. These were automated Titans.
"I guess that Spyglass bot is running low on Pilots," Dustin commented.
"One minute until salvo," Max reported.
Dustin kept launching rounds upon the Titans cover. Hathorne was reloading his minigun. IMC dropships flew in from above but were shot down by Jessica, who flew overhead and drew her railgun. She got a quick shot off, crippling the IMC Tone, before flying away from the enemy fire. The Tone's leg was shattered and it collapsed to the ground, scrambling to regain its cover.
But Dustin took advantage of its situation. A well-placed round through the optic destroyed the Titan. The other Titans were placed just right in cover that Dustin couldn't hit them, but they could hit him. A plasma shot from an Ion struck him, making him react with a particle wall. Rounds from the twin Legions fired up at Hathorne and Rook, the heavy armored Titan taking the blows but being forced to duck down.
"Salvo online."
"What's the best way to do this, Max?!"
"The Salvo core is very powerful and should be able to destroy their cover and highly damage the enemy Titans. However, we will be vulnerable."
"Alright." Dustin tapped into the comms. "Captain Hathorne, Captain Harrows, I need covering fire! I have a salvo online!"
" Roger that. Covering fire!" It was Harrows that responded first. The three Militia Titans below left cover and opened fire. Hathorne didn't respond, only firing as requested. The particle wall wasn't ready yet, so Dustin could only hope he didn't get eaten alive by bullets.
Charging up to the edge, both the shoulder mounted missile launchers readied themselves and fired. A startling number of missiles left the tubes and barraged the cover and IMC. With their defenses shattered, Dustin focused fire on the Legions, one exploding and the other crippling to the ground, but still online.
Dazed by the attack, the two Ions were destroyed by the Militia Titans below. They cheered over the comms as they marched out of cover. But something felt off to Dustin. What was it? The Ions, the Tone, the Legions…. shit!
The remaining Scorch, as damaged as it was, burst from the rubble and surprised attacked the Militia Ion. The Pilot screamed in fight over the comms as the heftier Titan tore the right leg off his Titan. Without anyway to stabilize his Titan, the Pilot couldn't resist as the Scorch lifted its foot and forcibly kicked the Titan onto its back.
Before any killing blow could be delivered, the Unknown class Titan piloted by Harrows charged up and tackled the Scorch. He pinned its arms down and two acolyte missile pods rose from over his shoulders. The pods seemingly fired hell itself into the enemy mech. Harrows stood and the hatch opened. He dropped to the ground and started towards the downed Ion. His Titan scanned the area, pointing its XO-16 in every direction. The Militia Tone stomped over, its hatch opening as well. The Pilot only perched herself on the edge and looked down.
"Let's get down there," Hathorne said, carefully lowering Rook into the canal.
Dustin did the same with Maximus, carefully choosing his steps. It's not that a fall of this kind would really do anything, it just wasn't exactly the most enjoyable experience one could have inside a Titan.
Once Dustin and Hathorne were in the canal, they both left their Titans and rushed over to where Harrows stood before the Ion.
"AS-1894, are you still online?" He was asking.
A female voice responded: "Affirmative. Opening hatch."
The AI seemed like it was struggling. Harrows checked the battery to find it was damaged. AS was only able to slightly open her hatch, but not enough to get the Pilot out.
"Brakiss! Get me a spare!"
The other Pilot, still perched on her Tone's hatch, gave a brief two fingered salute and climbed inside. Several seconds later she emerged with another battery. Hopping down, she brought it to Harrows, who replaced the damaged one. The Ion now was able to open its hatch.
"Peterson!" Harrows yelled as he wrapped his arms around the Pilot and pulled him out. Dustin rushed over and helped him bring the body out and lay it on the ground. The Ion watched intently as Harrows worked to help her Pilot.
"Ok! I have a pulse. He's only unconscious!" Harrows removed Peterson's helmet.
Dustin's first reaction was nothing but shock. The face, it was so young.
"How old is he?" He asked.
"Nineteen," Harrows responded.
"Nineteen?! He's fucking nineteen and fighting a war like this?!"
Harrows looked up at him and sighed behind his helmet. "Not everyone here had a choice."
Dustin stared down at his face. His mouth moved slightly with each breath. Dustin thought back, he was a Pilot by age twenty. But the biggest difference was the type of war. Dustin was only involved in special operations. His first large scale battle didn't come until he was twenty-six, and it changed him forever. Now he stared at a nineteen-year-old young man who had seen gore beyond belief.
"That was a pretty nasty hit," Harrows said as he administered some form of medication. Dustin assumed it was a painkiller. "Brass, come here."
Harrows' Titan stomped over, stowing its XO-16 on its back. It's cylindrical optic center glanced at everyone around Peterson before resting on the unconscious man. "What would you have me do?"
"Carry this poor lad in the cockpit."
Brass opened his hatch and lifted the Pilot into the seat. Dustin looked for Hathorne, who he found several feet away with his hand up to his helmet. Several seconds went by and he turned to Dustin, removing his hand from its place.
"Battles won. IMC forces are pulling out. Spyglass must be annoyed beyond all belief."
Dustin nodded. "Good."
Hathorne walked to Harrows. "Harrows, the battle is won. Whether your forces stay or leave has been up to you, but as for The Rangers, we are departing for The Fireblade immediately."
"Thanks, Jango. Saved my ass again. I owe you a drink."
Hathorne shook hands with him. "No, you don't John. You owe me the whole damn bar!"
They both laughed and began chatting as the female approached Dustin. "I haven't seen you before. New?"
"New to being a Pilot? No. The Rangers? Yes."
"Hm. Well, welcome to the fight." She removed her helmet, revealing black hair and a scar running down the right side of her face.
"Thanks!" Before Dustin could say anything else, he heard the sound of laser fire and turned towards it.
"Woohoo! Hell yeah!" It was Michael, firing his Devotion into the air. "We showed white jacket bastards!" Hellfire loomed behind, watching his Pilot with amusement."
The rest of The Rangers surrounded the happy Pilot. Dustin felt a hand on his shoulder. "Time to head back to the Fireblade. I believe you have a room to organize," Hathorne said.
"Yeah," He responded. "Time to officially get settled into another life."
"You did what!" Blisk pounded on the table, his liquor slightly spilling from the bottle.
The figure before him remained silent and stared at his boss. "It will be complete in time," He responded.
"Shadow, I'm getting sick of your games, you twisted bastard!"
"You always say to enjoy my work."
"Yes, but don't allow your sick tortures to interfere with said work!"
"I understand." The figure remained unstirred by Blisk's words.
"Now I'm sure you can understand why I don't believe you. So, I'm going to leave it at this: next time you run into Dustin McHawken, you end him."
Shadow nodded, then left the room, marching down the hall. He entered his personal quarters. Pictures were pinned to a large corkboard in the back of the room. A photo of Dustin was connected to photos of his wife and son, both crossed out with a red X. Shadow looked over the board, It wasn't like his target had anyone close to him. Except for that Anthony Shepherd, who wasn't home when Shadow arrived. There was no trace of were Dustin's friend had gone.
Shadow thought back to his conversation with Blisk. It wasn't like he had any more people to eliminate. Dustin McHawken was now alone. The torment of losing his family must be eating him alive by now. Shadow felt an excited tingle run through his body at the thought. He looked up the cork board, following two lines that connected above Dustin. Maybe there was one, or two, more ways to make him suffer…
[Hey, everyone! Sorry for the delay but I have been really busy going back to work and the weekend flying by. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! Every favorite, follow, and review is extremely appreciated and raises my confidence in this story. So thank you all!
On another note, I would like to take a moment to express my remembrance for a great man: Monty Oum. He inspired me to write and create, and gave the world RWBY, which remains one of my favorite fictional universes to date. I feel connected to RWBY because if that universe was our reality, being a Huntsman is what I'd do. Sounds weird, but I figured I'd share why this day hits me as hard as it does.
Anyways, thank you all again!]
See you on the virtual battlefield - Toa of War
