Forewords
I have learned a very valuable lesson regarding mobile phone gaming just a few minutes ago (this line written in 5:21PM in 20th of August, 2015):
Back-up your game's progress after every session, even if it means using a 3rd party program to hack the game. I lost over a year worth of progress on Metal Slug Defense (as I have stated in Chapter 8 of Metal Slug: Mercenaries) due to not doing this myself in the first place. I'm so sad about life right now that the Forewords of this chapter may be a whole week older than the rest of the chapter...
Chapter 9: Fall Of Mann
Time: 0800 Hour; 3rd of July, 2015.
Location: Coal Town.
Coal Town, the Mann Co stronghold against Gray's Robot Army has not been used ever since Gray Mann has been defeated.
The only reason RED Team is here is to give the late Saxton Hale a proper military funeral. The casket containing Saxton Hale's body is placed in a mine cart in front of the Mining Accident Simulator (which was ironically first intended as a joke by the Hale family), with the REDs and FREDs standing around the casket, holding bouquet of white lilies in their hands.
Soldier is the one delivering the speech in homage to the deceased.
"Here lies Saxton Hale, Australian, President and CEO of Mann co. During his living days, he gave us all the necessary support we needed to fight and defeat Gray Mann and his army of robots, and also kept Mann Co on the top of the megacorporation industries by eliminating all competitions in any way he can find. Were it not for him, none of us will be standing here today. You will be missed, Saxton Hale..."
After finishing the speech, Soldier took out a trumpet and blew the funeral tune, while the other mercenaries placed the bouquet of white lilies onto the casket as it is being pushed into the Mining Accident Simulator by Heavy and Fem-Heavy.
The casket and the mine cart carrying it began to tip as it reaches into the Mining Accident Simulator, and then tumbled as it fell down the shaft.
The Mining Accident Simulator was so deep the sound of the casket hitting the bottom was never heard.
...
Time: 0830 Hour.
Location: Cart 4, Gravel Express #42; currently heading for the Gravel Outpost.
"This is becoming more and more unacceptable!" Soldier proclaimed angrily. "I only need to point at the Mining Accident Simulator in Coal Town to show just how much I wanted to make NEW Striker, his team and their boss cease to exist!"
Scout is juggling a baseball by continuously batting it into the air, and he has been at it since the train started moving half an hour ago. "I'm gonna bonk 'em all!" The Bostonian batter added in without losing focus on the baseball.
Soldier cracked his hands, and said, "I'm definitely gonna crack some skulls. Specifically, Striker's, after I've cracked the Mann Of Conspiracy's..."
Aside from the REDs and FREDs, the Final Combatants are also in the train, accompanying their allies.
Rocket walked toward Soldier and gave him a pat on the back. "You gave me and my colleagues a place to stay when the People's Republic Of China basically disowned us. I owe you one, friend, and because of that, I will help you hunt down the NEW Striker and this Mann Of Conspiracy." The Chinese mercenary told the WW2 veteran.
Soldier looked at Rocket for a few seconds, before responding "Thanks, buddy..."
...
Time: 1000 Hour.
Location: Command Center, Gravel Outpost.
As soon as they got back to the Gravel Outpost, the REDs had another briefing session on. This time, the FC Team mercenaries accompanied them in the brief (with Rocket providing translations for his teammates whom don't speak English).
"Well, what do you know." Soldier started the briefing session, once again angered by the topic at hand. "The Mann Of Conspiracy has decided to blank out the Mann Co database after we were forced to kill Saxton Hale who he turned into his unwitting puppet!"
"Well, that sucks!" Scout very much agrees with the veteran. "This guy's smarter than we think he is!"
"Little baby man has big head..." Heavy speaks his mind about the person in question.
"Since we can no longer spy on the NEWs during their game, we're gonna need an alternate strategy at kicking their collective asses." Soldier continued the briefing. "Anyone got any suggestions?"
The REDs and FREDs spent an entire minute discussing with each other about the topic.
"The Mann Co Marketplace..." Rocket suggested all of a sudden.
Hearing the Chinese mercenary's answer, everyone changed their topic of discussion to the answer he gave, and went on for a short while until...
"Of course!" It was Spy who broke up the discussion. "The NEW team will be required to at least visit the Marketplace the day after their fifth Flawless Victory in a row!"
"Now why haven't 'Ah thought of that?" Engineer realizes what the Frenchman was talking about. "It took us REDs three whole years before we were able to achieve five Flawless Victories in a row, the BLUs took five, and the FREDs weren't able to do so for seven until an incredibly underpowered and idiotic team challenged them five times in a row. But the NEWs did it in less than a week."
"Mates, I still remember that the Marketplace is the only Mann Co train station that isn't a battlefield." Sniper raises a point, and suddenly realizes that Rocket is giving him that offended look. "Well, Camp Coolie was abandoned mid-construction. But my point is still valid, mates."
"Yeah, right. Maybe we can find the BLU Team in the Losers' Lounge and ask them what they know about the NEWs..." Fem-Scout suggested.
The mercenaries spent the next ten minutes or so discussing their course of action.
"Alright. It's decided." Soldier announced to everyone.
"We will wait for the NEWs at Marketplace, talk to the BLUs about what they know, and then we beat the crap out of every single one of those NEWbies!" Fem-Soldier announces the plan that has been agreed upon. "If they are already there, we'll beat the crap out of every single one of them anyway!"
All the REDs and FREDs cheered loudly. The Final Combatants... not so much due to their mostly stoic nature.
...
Time: 1200 Hour.
Location: Mann Co Marketplace.
The mercenaries' train ride to Marketplace went without a hitch. They've safely arrived at the train station of the Mann Co-owned indoor plaza.
"Right, boys and girls. Here's the plan." Soldier reminded everyone. "We wait for the NEWs to drop in at the center of the plaza. They don't use the railway, so there's no point in waiting for them at the train station."
"However, the Mann Of Conspiracy is no fool." Fem-Soldier added another sentence to the reminder. "Don't stand right in the open or his boys and girls will see us coming from a mile away."
"Especially not with that frickin' overpowered metal they call Anythium!" Scout complained, but not as loud as he usually is. "Speaking of Anythium... Hey, hard hat. How long will it take for you to analyze it?"
"Not even halfway done..." Engineer answered disappointingly. "That thing there is beyond even Gray Mann and his gosh darned robots."
The mercenaries looked around Marketplace, and soon notices that all three Snipers were not with them. Turns out that they have somehow found their way onto the second floor of the indoor plaza without anyone noticing.
"Oy, mates!" Fem-Sniper called out to the others from the upper floor. "If we're catching those wankers, we should all find some place to hide in!" Elsewhere, Sniper and FC Sniper can be seen looking for their own places to camp out in.
How the three teams' Snipers got up there without anyone of them noticing baffled them all.
...
Time: 1230 Hour.
The REDs, FREDs and Final Combatants all found their own places to hide in at Marketplace. Although some were not happy with the spot they picked due to the ones they actually wanted being either too obvious or already occupied.
Scout, for instance, hid himself under the desk of the Supply Crate Key Shop clerk, and was unhappy about it due to the clerk's shoes smelling even worse than rotten fish. "Frickin' unbelievable..." Scout mumbled while trying to hold his breath at the same time. "If the clerk was here, I'm gonna bonk him for such smelly feet!"
The Boston batter soon took his words back when he pokes his head out and saw Heavy hiding inside a lidless dumpster that is literally filled to the brim with rotten Holy Mackerels, and the massive Russian is having a worse time than he is. Made even worse when the Marketplace janitor came and dumped a trashcan full of rotten Sandviches into that same dumpster without noticing Heavy.
Demoman, on the other hand, has somehow placed himself in a locked mailbox that is barely the height of his torso. Then again, he may not even know where he actually is, knowing how drunk he can be sometimes. Fem-Demo has hidden herself in an already unlocked Mann Co Supply Crate that is even smaller.
While most of the REDs and FREDs got themselves in all sorts of weird hiding spots, special mention goes to Pyro, who has decided to hide himself under a "Welcome" mat in front of the train station, and the deranged mercenary doesn't even seem to notice being stepped on by feet after feet.
Hiding places aside, it has already been half an hour and still no sign of the NEW Team or Mann Of Conspiracy.
"The BLUs had the same idea of hacking into the Mann Co database shortly before the NEWs blanked it out." Soldier reminded everyone silently through radio. "They didn't learn much, but enough that they know NEW Team will be arriving today along with the Mann Of Conspiracy."
It took another few moments later before the REDs, FREDs and Final Combatant spotted someone they were looking for.
It was just one person, but there's no mistaking that she's NEW Mage.
"I see her..." Engineer reported from his position. "I'm ready to lay her out."
"Vait..." Medic stopped the Texan. "Vhy do you think ze Fraulein is alone?"
"Who cares?" Fem-Scout decided not to wait any longer, and jumped out of her hiding place and proceeds to sneak up on Mage who is currently facing the Hats And Cosmetics Shop.
Scout also have the same idea, as he joined his female counterpart.
"Come back and continue the observation, you two dolts!" Soldier called out on the two Bostonian batters to no avail.
Scout and Fem-Scout continued sneaking toward Mage with their Boston Bashers raised, and was about to lunge at the magician when they both noticed something odd about the rug they are currently standing on.
It was not a rug at all, it was a camouflage-equipped satchel of C4 which was only revealed when Scout unintentionally kicked it over.
"Oh, cra..." Scout and Fem-Scout both uttered right before the C4 went off in a big explosion that didn't get anywhere close to Mage.
NEW Arsonist blew up RED Scout and FRED Scout with Unwelcome Mat.
"Dammit!" Soldier cursed upon losing contact with the Bostonian batters. It didn't help with the veteran's anger that Marketplace's broadcast system was somehow equipped to broadcast kill feeds even though the indoor plaza isn't supposed to be a battlefield.
"Mon dieu..." Spy exclaimed upon hearing the aforementioned kill feed. He raised his Cloak And Dagger watch, and was going to activate the cloak when the Frenchman noticed that it isn't working. Spy knew exactly why it failed to work. "Oh, no..." He uttered shortly before suddenly getting killed via a large number of bullets all over his entire body.
NEW Recon mowed down RED Spy with Akimbo Assassin, with assistance from his Jammer.
Soldier finally realizes what is actually going on. "Get out of cover, everyone! We have been played by the NEWs!" He jumped out of hiding place just in time to avoid an out-of-nowhere lightning strike that is obviously one of NEW Alchemist's Kill-Taunts.
Demoman and Fem-Demo were about to come out of their hiding place when Mage suddenly turned toward them and jinxed them both in quick succession.
NEW Mage voided RED Demoman and FRED Demowoman's lives with Harming Potion.
"I knew the two of you were in there all along..." Mage pointed out to the now dead Scots.
Knowing that their friends' positions have been made, the three teams' Snipers stopped camping, and attempted to regroup with their respective team by jumping over the second floor railing onto the first floor. FC Sniper was able to land on her two feet, whereas FRED sniper face-planted upon landing, breaking her glasses in the process. "Remind me not to take that bloody way again, lass..." Fem-Sniper looked at where she thinks FC Sniper is, and said (even knowing her Chinese counterpart don't understand English). Through her blurry vision, Fem-Sniper was able to locate Sniper, who has also face-planted upon landing...
...Except that the male Australian gunman's body was bisected from the waist.
NEW Ninja bisected RED Sniper with Keigo Kamikaze.
"Crikey!" Fem-Sniper's vision may be blurry, but she can still see how her male counterpart had been killed, and exclaims about it.
The rest of the mercenaries quickly regrouped at the train station entrance, where Pyro seems to have disappeared from the "Welcome" mat he is hiding under for some reason.
"We've been made!" Soldier exclaimed angrily at the turn of events. "Either the BLUs have sided with the Mann Of Conspiracy, or they all have been brainwashed by him, or..."
"...The NEWs were already here to begin with." Fem-Soldier added to the exclamation. "Those maggots were waiting for us, not the other way around!"
"How could this happen?!" Heavy cried out in anger. The massive Russian then turns toward Engineer and Fem-Engineer, and said "Engineer, we are going home, by train!"
Both Texans agreed with Heavy, and was about to head for the train, before they were stopped by Striker suddenly coming out of the train. Engineer and Fem-Engineer were forced to raise both their hands up and take several steps back, and didn't try anything to fight back, especially not when the North Korean mercenary had an Assault Rifle that came with an under-barrel grenade launcher pointed at them. "Darn..." They both uttered.
It wasn't long before the rest of the NEW team appeared and had the REDs, FREDs and Final Combatants boxed in at the Marketplace train station.
"We all should have seen this trap coming..." Rocket told the REDs. "The Mann Of Conspiracy saw ours from a light year away."
FC Fatman, without warning, suddenly decides to grab his Minigun (which isn't Heavy's Sasha) and yelled like a maniac as he was about to fire it. Fatman quickly got a harpoon through his head before he could even rev up the barrel of the Minigun, courtesy of NEW Sailor.
NEW Sailor skewered FC Fatman with Submariner's Spearhead.
"I wouldn't move a bloody muscle if I were you." Sailor warned.
"I believe we are not going anywhere right now..." Fem-Spy commented on the current situation.
And then, all of a sudden, something smashed the ceiling apart from above the indoor plaza, raining down concrete slabs and steel rebar upon the REDs, FREDs, Final Combatants and NEWs. Hardly anyone noticed the ceiling being smashed apart (even the patrons and employees of Marketplace didn't put any attention onto it), but its hard to not notice the massive hunk of flying metal that is the Carrier Airship.
A beam came down from the bottom of the Carrier Airship and shone upon a spot not too far away from where the mercenaries stood. Seconds later, a figure materialized within that beam.
The Mann Of Conspiracy has arrived...
"Greetings, RED Team..." The Mann Of Conspiracy spoke with a rather mechanical voice. Under Marketplace's lightings, one can see that the Mann Of Conspiracy has a mechanical right arm, and wore a featureless metal mask over his face. "Also the female mercenaries that are the FRED Team, and the Chinese rip-off known as the Final Combatants..."
"Get to ze point already, dumpkopf..." Fem-Medic was getting impatient, and told off the shadowy person.
Surprisingly, the Mann Of Conspiracy actually listened. "You all called me the Mann Of Conspiracy, and that's exactly who I am." The NEWs' boss took several steps closer to the REDs.
"You sure are one hell of a mechanical bastard, turning Saxton Hale into a half-robot which you control against his will..." Soldier speaks out what he has in mind to the Mann. The veteran can't help but find the mechanical arm somehow familiar to him. "Who are you, really? And what are you planning with Mann Co?"
The Mann Of Conspiracy ignored the first question, and answered only the second. "Mann Co robbed me of everything I have 50 years ago, and I plan to exact revenge on the company. I figured that hiring different versions of your team's classes won't contribute much to my plans, as demonstrated by the Copycat Wars..."
"So you trained nine completely original classes to beat the crap out of every single one of us?" Fem-Soldier responded in a rude manner.
"That is correct." The Mann Of Conspiracy replies calmly. "Now I have but one choice to offer you and your team: since you have nobody left to work for, how about you join me..."
"Nein!" Medic pretty much denied the Mann's offer before hearing the entire sentence. He then proceeds to load and fire his Crusader's Crossbow at the NEWs' boss while proclaiming "Oktoberfest!"
Mage was standing too far away to from the Mann Of Conspiracy to intercept the bolt, which hits the Mann in his metal mask hard enough to knock it off his face and cause him to flinch.
Striker proceeds to gun down the insane German doctor without a second though in response.
NEW Striker gunned down RED Medic with Arbiter.
As they took a good look at the Mann Of Conspiracy's true appearance, the REDs were shocked to find that its a face they have seen before.
That face belonged to no other than Gray Mann himself. Granted, he has a cybernetic left eye and first degree burn over many parts of his face, but there's no mistaking that he is Gray Mann.
"Gray Mann!" Soldier exclaimed.
"Gray Mann? The same crook that sent a robot army to try and destroy Mann Co 50 years ago?" Rocket asked the veteran with confusion.
"'Ah should've realized it when I ran the Mann Of Conspiracy photo through a facial recognition software and it came up with exactly one match!" Engineer realize the crucial point of the reveal.
"Wait! Didn't Gray Mann crash and burn when Demoman blew up his tank with a dozen Critical Sticky Bombs?" Fem-Soldier raises another crucial point.
"Hmph. Did you honestly think something like that could kill me so easily?" Gray Mann, at this point has dropped his Mann Of Conspiracy act, and boasted in a rather hammy way, although he still has that mechanical voice. "Since Medic responded to my offer by shooting me, I guess there's no point in hearing out the rest of you anymore."
"You bet we won't!" Soldier shot his answer toward Gray, and aimed his Rocket Launcher at the NEWs' boss, as did the rest of the REDs, FREDs and Final Combatants.
The NEWs all pointed their weapons (Ninja readied a handful of different-looking Shuriken) at the REDs, but even Striker hesitated to act, for they all recognize the situation.
Gray Mann remained calm despite having the tides partially turned against him. "So if you want to rock and roll, I will have someone do that in my place since I myself has a schedule to catch up with."
Another beam shot down from the Carrier Airship overhead, and beamed Gray and the NEWs out of Marketplace onto it. A second beam followed the first, and beamed down a figure clad in all black.
"Come back here, you coward!" Soldier shouted at the Carrier Airship and fired his Rocket Launcher at it as the massive aircraft is taking off and leaving the vicinity. The rockets failed to even scrape the paint off, and the Carrier Airship got away.
"Gray Mann was half little baby man, half giant man..." Fem-Heavy comments on the turn of events and unexpected reveal.
The mercenaries turned their attention back on the black-clad figure, who also turned his attention toward them.
"I do believe this is one of those Freak Fortress games where we are not allowed to Respawn as long as the boss lives..." Rocket takes note of the black-clad figure. "And I do believe he is the boss we are about to fight.
The black-clad figure, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Sniper, pulled out a bigger-than-usual Bushwacka and a bazooka loaded with Huntsman arrows... both literally from out of thin air...
...And proclaimed "It's like Christmas Morning!"
Freak Fortress battle initiated. No Respawns! You are now fighting: Christian Brutal Sniper!
The mercenaries whom have been killed earlier were permitted to respawn for their death took place before the Freak Fortress game. They all looked at Christian Brutal Sniper and dropped their jaws almost all the way to the floor.
"Aw, jeez!" Scout complained.
Afterwords
Sorry for delaying this update so long. I've been trying to catch up with my lost progress in Metal Slug Defense that I've neglected to even look at the Doc Manager tab for two weeks. I assure you, such a delay will not happen again.
I have nothing else to say on the matter from this point on. This line written in the 8th of September, 2015.
Well, I've planned for the reveal of the Mann Of Conspiracy being Gray Mann to be left for a later chapter, but since everyone saw it coming in the previous one, I've decided to reveal it here, as vaguely as possible so that a bigger reveal can be made later.
No shout-outs in this chapter.
That is all. "Erectin' a punchline..."