Chapter 4: Unusual Negotiations
Disclaimer: I don't own Vandread or the Ace Combat series.
Vandread Ace: The Second Stage
Grimm's eyes slowly open from last night's sleep. After stretching and letting out a yawn, he rolls to the right the moment he does that he is greeted by the sight of Meia completely bare of any clothing. His face turns red when he realizes how close her breasts are to him, a part of him was tempted to reach out and touch them but Grimm restrains himself from performing such a perverted act. Even though they are boyfriend and girlfriend, the recently turned 20-year old still holds firmly to his belief about not doing anything intimated without Meia's consent, something that the Dread leader found commendable. Another part of him found her be so angelic when sleeping. Meia eventually opens her aqua blue eyes to meet his.
She said with a loving smile, "Morning, Grimm."
Grimm replied, "Morning, Meia. Sleep well?"
Meia stretched, "Yes. Really well, in fact." She discovered that Grimm was staring at her, "What's wrong?"
Grimm looked away, "You're completely naked and this is only the second time I saw you like this besides that night when you asked me to show you how men and women expressed their love for each other." The blue-haired woman couldn't help but giggle at the young Osean's look of embarrassment.
She gently brought his face back to hers, "Come on, Grimm. We're lovers now and I don't mind the fact that you stare at me, naked or not. Tell me, Grimm. Do you find me attractive?"
Grimm nodded, "I would be lying if I didn't. Your hair is shiny and feels like silk, your body is athletic and beautiful and your smooth, pale skin only makes you more stunning. Your aqua-colored eyes would make any man want to stare at them for hours, you have this aura of confidence and leadership surrounding you, you're also leader of the Dreads just like Nathan is with Razgriz Squadron. All these qualities make you one attractive young woman that a man would want by their side for the rest of his life." Meia listened intently as Grimm expresses his opinion. Hearing him say that with such honesty made Meia's heart soar with happiness, Grimm's reward from her is a passionate kiss from the Dread leader, she presses her body tightly to his allowing him to feel her breasts against his chest.
Meia stared at him with a heartwarming smile, "Thank you very much for your honest compliment, I greatly appreciate it. We better get ready for another day." She untangles her body from his and swings her legs to the edge of the bed before standing up. Grimm unintentionally watches her to the bathroom and locks the door behind her. After they take turns showering, they get dressed and head for the cafeteria to eat breakfast.
A bit later, the Nirvana crosses paths with a mission and establishes communications with it.
A man with a shaved head and eyebrows popped up on a monitor, "Is someone still using that frontier ship signal? So who are you pumpkins?"
Belvedere said nonchalantly, "Awfully rude, ain't he?"
BC cleared her throat, "We come from Mejale and are requesting permission to come on board for re-supplying."
The man scoffed, "Ha! What makes you think we'll allow you on board, we are running short ourselves."
The platinum-haired commander added, "We also have some very talented engineers here that can help you with repairs."
Intrigued, the man looked away to chat with his friends before giving his answer, "Our rule here is eat or be eaten so if you don't care about your personal safety then come on board."
BC smiled, "I promise that you won't be disappointed." After being informed, the boarding party gets ready for any confrontations.
Grimm and Snow load their M9A1 pistols with a fresh clip and tighten the gloves of their g-suits they also decide to go without the helmet.
Jura sees Barnette putting a bag full of guns and a case holding another gun down. Next she customizes her M-4 carbine assault rifle with a scope and laser pointer. She also replaces her long gloves with some fingerless ones and dons an ammo vest.
'Now I see why Barnette loves collecting guns.' Snow thought, seeing the dark green-haired woman's passion for guns before him.
Jura asked her close friend, "What are you doing with all of that, Barnette?"
Barnette replied with a mischievous grin, "There might be a chance where we may see close-range combat so it's best to be prepared for the unexpected. Better be safe than sorry as the old saying goes."
BC ordered, "We will be going in a small group so don't shoot unless in self-defense." Barnette sighs comically.
Hibiki called out, "Let me go, too! I want to check this place out!" They board a transport shuttle and head for docking hanger K2 while BC directs Dita to docking hanger 5A.
Snow and Barnette press against both sides of the entry door and turn the safety on their pistols off, cocking them before nodding to each other. Barnette places her hand on the scanner and a moment later the door opens. The condition of the interior quickly becomes apparent.
The power grid was barely keeping the life-support system on, the air smelled funny, water pipes leaked, severed wires hung precariously, etc. To put it simply, the place was a dump.
Gascogne said sarcastically, "Wow, what a palace." The inhabitants range from children to adults.
Barnette cautiously leads the group down the stairs while pointing her gun at the inhabitants.
She warned, "Stay where you are! Come any closer and I'll put a bullet in you!"
Dita pulled out her camera to snap a picture but Hibiki stopped, "This isn't the time for pictures. These people don't look too friendly."
Pyoro said, "He's just scared."
Hibiki at the white robot, "What was that, scrap heap?" The group soon spots the bald man at the top of the stairs in front of them.
He said, "Follow me." While follow him, the other adult men begin wolf whistling at the sight of such hot women walking past them. Jura blows them kisses at them, something that Snow doesn't understand because he can tell that they would not hesitate in possibly raping Jura. The group soon arrives at an arena surrounded by fences topped with barbed wire. They hear a chuckle coming from a woman with long purple, matching eyes and wearing a rusty red jumpsuit.
She said, "Looks like we have some guests."
BC asked, "Are you their leader?"
The woman shrugged, "I wouldn't exactly be called that but considering that there isn't any men stupid enough to challenge me, right Patch?"
Patch nodded nervously, "Uh, yes. It'd be foolish to oppose you, Ms. Liz."
Liz asked, "Where do our friends come from, Patch?"
BC replied, "We come from Mejale."
The thug leader mused, "So our friends come from behind the magnetic storm? No wonder you don't know how to talk."
Parfet mumbled, "Magnetic storm?"
"It certainly seems that they know where we're from so it's no surprise they would tease us a little." Gascogne said while eyeing the crowd behind the fences.
BC said, "We ask permission for a short rest and re-supply, in return we'll share our technical expertise with you."
Liz declined, "Thank you for the offer but we're not in trouble at the moment. However, we are lacking some entertainment."
BC narrowed her eyes, "What do you mean by that?"
Snow replied, "She means we'll have to fight for our right to claim the supplies. Ain't that correct, Ms. Liz?"
The purple-haired woman nodded, "That's correct. How about a six on six fight? Anything but projectiles is fine by me."
Hibiki grinned, "Count me in."
BC held out her arm when she said, "I have a better idea for you. How about a fight between representatives?"
Liz smirked, "Okay." The woman stands up and the chair starts sliding down a tread. While that happens, BC pulls out a whip. The moment that happens, the boarding party feel a shiver run down their spines.
Pyoro said, "It fits her so well it's almost scary."
Gascogne grinned, "It's been a while since BC brought that old thing out."
The platinum-haired woman snapped the whip, testing it, "So, Ms. Liz when does the bell ring?"
Liz said, "You know what pisses me off more than anything?"
BC titled her head, "Oh? What would that be?"
Her opponent sneered, "It's people who have a smug attitude like you!" She grabs a tube from her jumpsuit and activates it, turning it into a saber.
The purple-haired woman leaps into the air for a slash attack but BC jumps away and retaliates by swinging the whip against the thug's cheek leaving an imprint. Gritting her teeth, Liz throws a kick that BC blocks with no difficulty. Liz aims her saber at the commander's neck but BC ducks and tosses her overhead.
On the Nirvana Meia, Nathan, Nagase and Duero look over the station's schematic.
Meia studied them, "It may not look like much but their radar system has flaws."
Duero nodded, "It seems that these people are just doing what they can to survive."
Nagase narrowed her eyes, "Hm? Take a look at that. It appears they have suffered some recent damage."
Nathan said, "That doesn't look like meteorite damage because they would leave a dent in their path, so this looks more like damage from a battle that happened outside not too long ago. We all know who would come knocking on that station's door."
Duero cried, "The Harvesters. No doubt about it." They hear a beeping noise as the Nirvana's radar detects an all too familiar enemy and the four pilots look at each and nod, knowing that it was time for a dogfight with the Harvesters.
Back with the fight inside the mission, Liz throws a pair of kunai that BC deflects with her whip but the platinum-haired woman gets her feet kicked out from under her, she grabs the kunai and throws them at Liz who dodges them. Restoring her vertical base, BC wraps the whip around Liz's ankle and closes in for the final blow but then suddenly, Patch pushes a button that causes a block to pop up from the floor. She gets knocked off her feet but BC quickly restores her footing and gets behind Liz, kicking at her knee to make the wily female kneel and twists her arm behind her back.
Then they heard a familiar voice, "My, my, I never thought I'd see the day where you would get beaten, Liz." Turning their heads, the boarding crew discovers it to be Rabat. Snow wonders if the trader's pride was still bruised after the ass whipping Nagase delivered.
Liz screamed, "How the hell did you manage to get in here undetected?"
Rabat smirked, "The security system here is full of holes just like your fighting style, Liz."
She growled, "How long do you plan on irritating me until you're satisfied?!"
Rabat scratched his nose in a thoughtful matter, "I actually lost count now that I think about it." The conversation gets interrupted when the mission shakes violently.
Dita wondered, "What was that?" Outside the station, the Harvesters unleash capsule-shaped objects. When their heads reach touch the outer hall they burn through the metal and release gel objects into the interior.
Rabat explained, "Our new guests are refugees that most likely escaped the Harvesters. To put it in a more simple matter, they are outcasts driven from their home worlds and have wandered aimlessly throughout the universe until they banded together and attacked this piece of garbage called a mission."
Patch added, "Just when we think we have gotten rid of them, they wind up coming back. It's almost like they were toying with us!" BC asks Patch what's the safest place on the mission and he said it's the central control room. She begins giving orders. Gascogne, Parfet and Grimm will help him lead the civilians to the central command room while Jura, Barnette, Snow and herself will hold off the invaders to make sure the evacuations are complete.
Hibiki and Dita eventually reach their respective craft and head for the battle taking place outside the mission.
Outside of the station, Meia and the others take off to engage the enemy formation.
Meia ordered, "Everyone, our goal is to keep the enemy away from the mission." Blaze and Edge break off from the Dreads in their F-15E Strike Eagles to engage F-16 Fighting Falcons that are heading for the still damaged Kestrel II. They're equipped with AIM-9X Sidewinder heat seeking missiles, a 20mm M61 Vulcan Gatling cannon and GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs.
Approaching the squadron head-on, Blaze fires his F-15E's own M61 Vulcan Gatling cannon to make them deviate from their intended target. The F-16s break off from their primary target and engage the two Strike Eagles.
The enemy flight lead forms up on Blaze's 6 o'clock and arms a Sidewinder but Blaze pulls hard left to prevent the missile lock, the F-16 stays on his tail firing its M61 Vulcan Gatling cannon at him. The Razgriz Squadron leader evades every 20mm round without taking any damage. He performs a somersault that puts him behind the Fighting Falcon and arms a Sidewinder of his own, once he gains a lock Blaze pulls the trigger. The AIM-9X finds its way to the target and destroys it. Blaze jinks right when he hears the missile alert, popping flares to direct heat seeking missiles away from him. Performing a vector roll, Blaze arms a pair of AIM-120D ARAAM and acquires a lock.
He said, "Blaze, Fox Three!" The AIM-120Ds travel at Mach 4 and obliterates the enemy multi-role aircraft.
Nearby, Edge watches her flight lead and husband score one kill after the other with such lethal procession that she briefly sees his F-15E Strike Eagle take the form of Mobius 1's F-22 Raptor. She snaps out of her gaze when a radar warning sounds. She turns around and downs an F-16 trying to arm an AIM-9X with the M61 Vulcan Gatling cannon.
BC, Snow, Jura and Barnette wait for their enemy to arrive inside the mission. The wait isn't long because the door panel flashes red and the door opens up, that in turn causes them to open fire. Jura shoots her laser ring at them but the beam merely bounces off the gel-like entities.
BC donned a look of surprise, "What? A prism effect?" Unfazed by the beams one of the gels comes at Jura but it suddenly explodes and splatters all over the blonde's dress.
She gagged in disgust, "Yuck, what are they?"
Barnette smirked, "At times when a beam doesn't work, use something solid." She gave her close friend a spare assault rifle, "Here Jura, use this." The buxom blonde grabs the weapon and stands in time for the second wave to appear.
Jura growled, "Get away from me!" She pulls the trigger and a rain of hot lead pours out of the gun barrel.
"Oh hell yeah, this is how real combat is supposed to be!" Barnette cried out with the biggest grin she could form, which shook from the constant fire. She soon runs out of ammo for her M-4.
She gritted her teeth, "Grr, I'm out of shells!" She picked up a more deadly assault rifle with rail bullets and smirked at her opponents, "Bring it on."
"Mind if I barrow this?" BC asked her before pulling out a high-powered shotgun from its casing.
Barnette started, "Um commander, do you know how to..." BC ignores her as she shoots at the gels with excellent marksmanship.
"Hm? Did you something?" BC asked Barnette after ejecting the last empty shell. Fear momentarily flood Barnette's system when she saw the way her commander used the shotgun.
She smiled sheepishly, "Oh, nothing. Never mind." Snow whips around upon hearing a noise.
He cursed, "Damn it, they're behind us too!" A wall of flame vaporizes the gel-like entities in front of him and Snow sees Liz wielding a flamethrower.
She smirked, "What? I can't let you have all the glory." Rabat stares down from the balcony he's standing on.
The trader groaned, "It's like for the most socially challenged." Without even looking he pulled out his pistol and shot a gel that was sneaking up behind him, "Jesus! Well, it looks like I can't sit here and enjoy the show." Rabat jumps from the balcony to join the fray.
Outside the mission, Meia said, "Bart, we could use some cover here!"
Inside the 360-degree helm Bart cried, "I think I can hit them all but one of the lasers may wind up hitting the mission. You have to drive them further away!"
Meia smirked, "Heh, you make it sound so easy!" Hibiki's Vanguard fuses with Dita's Dread to create Vandread Dita.
Inside the cockpit Dita looked at the change of design, "Wow! I never saw this before!"
Pyoro said, "What's going on? What kinky looking cockpit. I think I smell sexual arousal."
Hibiki snapped, "Will you shut up!" He too briefly observes the different look of the cockpit.
Magno shouted, "Hey, what are you waiting for? BC and the others need your help!" Inside the station, Barnette and Snow hold off the enemy to allow BC lead the others toward the central control room. Once they are inside Snow taps the brunette on the shoulder, letting her know that it's their turn. They enter the room and Barnette slams her fist against the scanner to seal the door. Their relief is short-lived because the door opens and the gels move forward. The only thing separating them is a laser grid.
Gascogne cracked her knuckles for a fight, "Well, it's only a matter of time now." Snow and Barnette load the last clip into their pistols. The gels suddenly change color from green to bright yellow.
BC exclaimed, "They can change form?"
Rabat commented, "That's pretty impressive." As the laser shuts down, the gang prepares to fight when Vandread Dita comes to their rescue and destroys the hostiles.
Dita chirped, "Sorry to keep you waiting!"
'About time. I was beginning to think they forgot about us.' Snow thought in annoyance.
Rabat mumbled, "A blue Kachina!"
Gascogne informed with a pissed off smirk, "If this was some part of making a grand entrance, I promise that you won't live long enough to regret it!"
After luring the enemy further away, Meia asked, "Well, Bart? How's it looking?" Seeing that the enemy has gain enough reasonable distance from the station, he locks onto the targets.
He yelled, "Okay, let's go!" He fires the Nirvana's lasers at the Harvesters, destroying them and F-16s with ease. Unfortunately, one lone F-16 survives, damaged but still functional.
The blazing aircraft lights up the afterburner and streams toward the Kestrel II for a kamikaze attack but it's shot down by Blaze.
Amarone said, "All enemy units have been neutralized."
Ezra added, "Everyone inside the mission are okay as well." Magno sighs in relief from her chair on the Nirvana's bridge.
Keeping their promise, the crew helps doing repairs to the station replacing any old metal with new ones, fixing the power grid and water circulation by patching up leaking pipes. They also fumigate the air to remove foul-smelling odor from it.
Rabat watches the repairs from the mission's bar room.
"I can see why you chose to side with them. It's rare to find good nature people these days." Liz said as she poured them a glass of wine.
Dita watches the scene from outside the entrance while Hibiki and Patch struggle to restrain Utan.
Liz counted, "37 times." Rabat looked at her confused so she clarified, "That's the number of times you made me jealous."
Rabat smiled, "That many, eh? I haven't realized we have been together for that long." Utan is able to break free from her restrainers' grip and jumps into Rabat's arms.
Patch said, "Hey!" Utan bares her teeth at Liz in a threatening matter.
Rabat rubbed the prime ape's furry head, "Okay, I get it Utan."
Liz chuckled, "I guess there's always next time."
Rabat nodded, "Yeah. Until next time." After the repairs are finished, the Nirvana and Kestrel II depart from the mission.
That night, Nathan retires to bed happy that they have escaped Earth's clutches yet again.
Nathan stands on a grassy hill enjoying the view when he senses a presence, when he turns around Nathan lets out a gasp.
The man standing before him was slightly taller than Nathan, looked to be about 34 years old, had an athletic build, short red hair, blue eyes and a trimmed goatee. His attire consisted of a navy blue T-shirt that had ISAF logo on it, black jeans secured by a belt and blue Adidas shoes trimmed with white.
The man currently had his hands in the jean pockets and gives Nathan a friendly smile. The man was none other than James K. Brooks a.k.a. Mobius 1.
Nathan gasped, "Father?"
James nodded, "Hello, son. I wanted to say hi. I must say you have grown into a fine young man. You have become a very successful squadron leader and married Nagase, I couldn't be anymore proud of you."
Nathan closed his eyes smiling, "You're the reason why I wanted to become a fighter pilot. I wanted to become a legend like you did during the Usean Continental War in 2005 and against Erusian extremists one year later."
His father shook his head, "That much I understand."
Nathan gave him a serious look, "What happened to you? The last time we talked was after I graduated from the Osean Air Force Academy."
James sighed, "The morning after your graduation, I received a call to come to a meeting between the President of the Republic of Delarus and a representative of a neighboring country for a peaceful collaboration between the two countries. Sadly, it was a ruse set up by ragged remnants of the Free Erusea forces. They placed a roadside bomb up ahead and I didn't see it because it was hidden from view so once I drove over it, the bomb exploded. The last thought was about my wife and you."
Nathan said, "So in other words, you were killed." Seeing his father nod, Nathan feels tears running down his face.
James frowned, "Son..."
Nathan stated, "It's not fair, dad. The other wish I wanted was to fly in the same sky with you, even if it was just once."
His father sighed, "I can understand how you must feel. Listen to me, son. I have been watching you develop your piloting skills, becoming a squad captain, lead your wingmen into battle and build a reputation that has withstood the test of time." He walks up to his son and hugs him, Nathan returns the gesture.
Nathan asked, "How did mom take it?"
James said, "She took it pretty hard. So hard in fact, that a close friend of mine found her lying on the floor in a catatonic state. She was later prescribed anti-depressants to help her cope with the pain." Separating from the hug, Nathan wipes any further tears from his eyes feeling a little bit better.
Nathan next asked, "Are you aware of what Earth is doing now?"
His father nodded, "Yes, it's really sickening. I had no idea that our home world would descend into this kind of madness. Harvesting the organs of others for self-preservation? That's ridiculous!"
Nathan replied, "I know. Millions of innocent people are dying because of this operation, the Harvesters will pay dearly for this."
James warned, "Don't let your anger blind you, son. That can get you killed real quick."
His son nodded, "Don't worry, I'll be careful. Though I can't promise about going medieval on Hamilton's ass the next time we meet."
James laughed, "I'd love to see that. I better get going, see you again, son." Nathan waves him good-bye before a blinding white light descends.
Nathan's eyes snap open but strangely, he isn't breathing heavily like he would normally expect. Nathan looks out the window to view the countless number of stars passing by, he finally found out what happened to his father. However, this only strengthens his resolve to atone for the sins that his home planet's committing.
A/N: Chapter 4 done.
Here, Nathan meets his father inside a dream and found out what happened to Mobius 1.
Today marked the eleventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The irony of it was that the anniversary is on the same day that nightmare happened 11 years ago: Tuesday.
Even after 11 years, I still cry whenever that day replays in my head. Over 2,000 souls perished in just 2 hours. I just hope that history doesn't repeat itself.
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Stay tuned for chapter 5.
Vader 23A