DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM
CHAPTER ELEVEN
"IT'S DECIDED THEN."
"You ready?" Wallace licked his lips and wiped away the sweat off his brow. He was trying his best to look calm, but I could tell he was anxious from the way he was tapping his left foot. Those are some fine-looking leather shoes, by the way. Did he get those from Texas? Are they like cowboy leather shoes or something? What's up with that weird-looking floral pattern? Oh what am I saying? I notice the strangest things sometimes and get sidetracked. Maybe my nerves are still shot from all the excitement I had a while ago.
"I-I'm ready." Mii-chan took a deep breath and adjusted his glasses again. He grinded his teeth and twitched his nose when he grabbed both of the floating yellow orbs in front of him. His hands were trembling a little when he pressed one of them to open the weapon slots.
The GN-X and the Gundam Leopard were now facing toward each other. The two Gunpla were exchanging gunfire near the harbor a few moments ago, and now, after leveling a few warehouses and crushing a dozen boats, including one fancy yacht, Wallace decided to challenge Mii-chan to a quick draw match to make things a bit more fresh and fun. I guess a little variety won't hurt and it makes for good entertainment for the viewers, but a quick draw match? I mean c'mon! You gotta be kidding me here. I totally saw this coming believe it or not. I mean I don't wanna stereotype good old cowboy-wannabe Wallace here, but he's not helping here!
The two Fighters stared into each other's eyes, probably trying to get a read for any signs of hesitation or weaknesses. Honestly, I think it was just nothing but a typical stare down to see who caves in first. After a full minute of eyeballing and tense heavy breathing, Wallace relaxed his shoulders and winked. "Draw!" He yelled and quickly raised his Gunpla's gatling gun for another dose of happy fun time bullet barrage.
Mii-chan also raised his weapon and fired. He quickly ducked low to dodge the incoming bullets after pulling the trigger and boosted up to the right to avoid any follow up attacks. He only squeezed off one shot, but he managed to hit his target. Half of the Gundam Leopard's face was now gone, rendering whatever weapons mounted in the head completely useless. That's the second face Mii-chan ruined in this match. He didn't say anything and just smirked smugly.
"Aw you rootin' tootin' eagle-eyed sonuvabitch." Wallace groaned as he lowered his hat and then laughed heartily after putting it back on again. "Fair's shot is fair and that was a great shot." He said. "Hot damn!"
"Shall we continue our dance then?" Mii-chan asked loudly and the GN-X fired both its beam rifle and vulcans at the same time.
"Shit." The Gundam Leopard got nicked in the right shoulder before it could completely get away and retaliated by firing the huge gatling gun again. Wallace fired in a sweeping motion this time to cover more area, but at the expense of accuracy. Mii-chan took advantage of this by ducking again to avoid the initial wave of bullets and blocked the rest with his shield. The GN-X then jumped forward and viciously slammed the butt of its rifle into the cockpit, cracking it. "Aw now ya done it, kiddo." Wallace narrowed his eyes. "Ya really done it now."
"Heh." Mii-chan smirked again when the Gundam Leopard opened up its chest vents to reveal the breast gatling guns and the GN-X quickly jumped back while unleashing another burst of vulcan fire, damaging what's left of the Gunpla's face and probably taking out the main camera. Wallace's jolly expression quickly contorted into a menacing scowl as he huffed softly. Things aren't looking so hot for him right now and he's slowly losing his cool. The Gundam Leopard then finally fired the breast gatling guns, but Mii-chan was already one step ahead and was now on the move for his next attack. The GN-X rolled on the ground as the bullets flew above it and cleanly lopped off the Gundam's right arm after pulling out its beam saber. "Finally taken out those grenade launchers." He said.
"A-A little help here!" Wallace cried out in desperation as he tried to get away from Mii-chan.
"Sorry!" Sakae exclaimed after blocking the Gundam Exia's blade with her own weapon to avoid getting decapitated. Setsuna's attacks were still fast and relentless and the Zeus Gundam continued answering in kind with each exhilarating display of swordplay. "I can't help you, cowboy-san. I got my hands full here with this weirdo. Sad to say that you're not the only one getting cornered here." She chuckled.
The King GM knelt down on one knee and fired both beam cannons at the retreating Hyaku Shiki Opera. Vinny jumped to avoid the beam rounds and fired his beam assault rifle after landing near a bullet-riddled department store. Adam slowly raised his super thick shield to protect himself and marched forward as Vinny continued to pound him with rapid fire beam shots. "You're on your own, Yamashita-san." He said.
"Oh fer shit's sakes..." Wallace whimpered as he avoided another beam attack from Mii-chan. "So much for teamwork, guys. You two just gonna leave me here to dry while glasses boy murder me to death?"
"Them's the breaks." Chika said in a high-pitched voice and then playfully puffed her cheeks. She was standing next to me, repeatedly tugging the sleeve of my shirt like a lost little puppy. Both of us joined the crowd of spectators after our climactic battle of epic evil loli proportions and were now rooting for our teammates and shouting like insane morons every time something cool happens. Chika was standing to my left while my little sister and Kaede were behind me, exchanging bewildered whispers. I guess there were a little surprised and amused that this stuck-up and almost psychotic little girl was following me around.
"That hurts, little missy." Wallace gave her a sad look. "How can you say that after all the times I tried to save your uppity little bacon?" He fired all of his remaining guns at the same time, but Mii-chan was fast and resourceful, expertly using buildings and the terrain for cover while firing off a couple of blind shots as a scare tactic.
"Them's the breaks." Chika repeated and just nodded her head.
"Harsh." I said and smiled nervously.
"Your name is Tachibana Isamu, right?" Chika tugged my sleeve for, like, the umpteen time.
"Yeah?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Chika is thirsty." She crossed her arms.
"I see..." I scratched my right cheek and looked away. "You're telling me this because...?"
"Chika is thirsty!" She stomped her right foot and rapidly poked my tummy with both of her pointing fingers like she had mastered the art of Hokuto Shinken or something.
"Okay, okay, okay! You're thirsty! I get it! Go buy a cola or something. Geez."
"No, you don't get it. Chika beat your ass so that means you do whatever Chika tells you. Tachibana Isamu, you are now my manservant. Now go buy Chika a drink, peon!"
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait a darn diddly doodly minute here, Chika-chan." I dismissively waved at her with my right hand and rubbed my forehead with my left while letting out a heavy sigh. "Are you freaking serious here?"
"Quit dicking around, you nincompoop! You lost so you go buy Chika a drink now!"
"I'm not buying Chika anything! I beat your ass too, you know! It was a draw! We both went kablooey!"
"You're gonna go kablooey if you don't buy Chika a drink!"
"Hey! How about I make you go kablooey, you little brat?" I retorted. "You really need to drop the attitude."
"No, you go kablooey!" She shot back. "Kablooey, kablooey, kablooey!"
"You!"
"You!"
"You!"
"You!"
"You!"
"You, you, you, you!"
"I-I'll go buy her a drink, Isamu." Kaede interrupted our little debate and took Chika's hand.
Chika's eyes went wide and gasped. "Uwaaaah! Onee-san, you're so pretty and your chest is big."
"E-Eh? T-T-Thanks." Kaede blushed. "You're so sweet, Chika-chan." No, she's not. Really.
"Hey Isamu, is this your sister or something?" Chika pointed with her thumb. "She can't be your girlfriend, right? She is so pretty and Chika is pretty sure someone like you can't bag a hottie like her."
"Y-You..." I closed my eyes and tried to suppress my growing rage. I slowly opened them again after counting one to ten. "No. Kaede is not my girlfriend. She lives next door and we just hang out sometimes. We also go to the same school."
"Oooooooooooh..." Chika then turned around to face Kaede again and leaned closer, examining her ample bosoms and gently poking them while giggling like a ninny.
"Chika-chan, please stop that. You're making her uncomfortable." I said sharply.
"Chika wants to have a smoking body like yours when Chika grows up, Onee-san." She said and I could tell Kaede was flattered.
"Right. How old are you again, Chika-chan?" I asked.
"Chika is 14 years old." She said proudly.
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!?" Shizuka finally spoke. "You mean she's older than me!? That's gotta be a lie! She's so short and underdeveloped and not to mention immature! She's lying! She's gotta be lying, Nii-san!"
"Chika is not lying!" She growled at my sister. "Oi, Isamu! Who is this brat?"
"B-B-Brat!? You! You! You're calling me a brat!?" Shizuka's eyes twitched and her body trembled with anger.
"Of course!" Chika cried out and laughed haughtily. "You can't be possibly mature like Chika so therefore you are a brat." She laughed again.
"Nii-san, you better hold me down now because I am so gonna strangle this little girl." Shizuka clenched her jaw and shook both of her fists. "There is no way in hell this girl is my senpai! Just no way!"
"Chill out." I lightly bonked her head to make her back away before things get dicey. "Don't let her get to you." I sighed and gave her a stern look. "Anyway, Chika-chan, this is Tachibana Shizuka. She's my younger sister and a middle school student like you."
"Chika's full name is Fuwa Chika." She twirled her brown shoulder-length hair and then bowed dramatically after introducing herself.
"Hatayama Kaede." Kaede smiled and patted her head. "Nice to meet you, Chika-chan."
"Nee-san, Nee-san..." She tugged Kaede's skirt and pointed to me. "If Isamu here finally pulls his head out of his ass after realizing you are one awesome lady and confesses his love to you, then you should totally-
"You should totally buy that drink now, Chika-chan." I almost glared and pushed her away. "Kaede, you take care of Her Highness here. Makes sure she gets what she wants. I'll pay for it later." It was my turn to twitch and tremble.
"Sure." My childhood friend nodded after giving me an awkward look and the two finally left to buy drinks.
"Woooooowzers." Shizuka gently elbowed me. "That Chika is a piece of work alright."
Back to the fight, Mii-chan managed to decapitate the Gundam Leopard from behind and was now preparing to deliver the final blow. "Talk about a total bed-me-down." Wallace said after he barely dodged the beam saber and kicked the GN-X right in the face. "I like ya, kid. You ain't all talk after all."
Mii-chan recovered quickly and slashed at the Gundam again, but it quickly dashed away before the blade could make contact while firing the breast gatling guns. The GN-X jumped to the left to avoid the incoming bullets and unleashed its vulcan guns once again, but Mii-chan aimed low this time, hitting the Gunpla's knees to slow it down even just for a moment. The Gundam Leopard quickly made a sharp turn to throw Mii-chan off his aim and the GN-X jumped for a second time while continuing to fire the vulcans until they ran of ammo. The Gundam Leopard then raised its huge gatling gun, hoping to take down the approaching Gunpla, but Mii-chan quickly spun around so he could stab the weapon before Wallace could pull the trigger. The Gundam tried to shake the blade off, but the GN-X quickly crouched down while still holding the beam saber and used its free hand to aim the beam rifle under the left armpit. Mii-chan smiled sadistically as he repeatedly fired away, completely severing the arm and wrecking most of the left shoulder and chest area. Mii-chan then proceeded to thrash the left leg to cripple the Gunpla.
"Poopers!" Wallace covered his face with sweaty and trembling hands. "You took out my main weapon." The now-mutilated Gundam Leopard stood up straight after shoving the GN-X away for a moment with a well-timed shoulder tackle and defiantly fired the breast gatling guns for one last time before getting cut down by Mii-chan's beam saber. His Gunpla was sliced in half, cut right through the cockpit. Aaaaand that was it for Yamashita Wallace.
"Adaaaam! They got the cowboy! It's three-against-two now!" Sakae screamed as she continued to parry Setsuna's attacks with her sword. "Way to go, Mii-chan." She said under her breath. "Impressive."
"Raaaaaaaaarrrgh!" Adam bellowed angrily as he bombarded Vinny with his beam cannons. He then pulled out his two beam assault rifles and fired them without bothering to aim. Man, I think he's gone nuts again. Hope he won't rearrange the field this time.
Vinny reloaded behind cover and popped out as he jumped sideways to fire his weapon. "Hah! I think we might win this after all."
"Dream on, blondie!" Adam fired a couple of his shoulder-mounted missiles after dodging.
"Right." Vinny snickered and tried to shoot down the missiles with his vulcan guns, but for some reason they won't fire no matter how many times he pressed the control orb. "H-Hey! The heck is going on? Why won't they fire? Oh crap! I forgot half of the Hyaku Shiki Opera's head is now gone so that means the vulcans are kaput!" He quickly did a backward dash to avoid most of the missiles and activated his assault rifle's beam bayonet to cut down the remaining two before they hit him. "Man, that was close. Jesus frigging Christ." He said in English.
Vinny then charged towards the King GM and quickly swung his beam bayonet at the huge Gunpla. Adam instinctively used one of the beam assault rifles as a shield to block Vinny's attack and the weapon was then rendered inoperable when the blade sliced through the barrel and the clip like a hot knife through butter. That was a major blunder on Adam's part and he just lost an important weapon. "Shit." He cursed.
The Hyaku Shiki Opera crouched down and launched itself to shoulder tackle the King GM, but the Gunpla didn't even budge due to its size and heavy armor. "Okay, that was a bad move too." Vinny groaned.
"We're both idiots then, blondie." Adam fired his vulcan guns and damaged the Hyaku Shiki Opera's right arm. The King GM then swung its heavy spiked shield and sent Vinny flying like a torpedo, bouncing against structures like a pinball. "Hahahahaha!"
Mii-chan's GN-X landed behind Adam and raised its beam rifle. "Yo." He greeted with an amused smile.
"Double-teaming me now, eh? Well bring it on! I'm gonna kick both of yer asses!" Adam unfolded his twin beam spear and quickly turned around as he swung the weapon, hoping to strike the GN-X's head and pierce it.
"Nice try." Mii-chan chuckled as he ducked and fired his beam rifle, taking out the left beam cannon.
"You're Arakaki Mitsuo, right? I know you. You used to run with that Wakahisa guy before he moved out of town. You also hang out with that crazy lesbian and Miss Justice. I hear you recently went toe-to-toe with Khushrenada High's Amatsaki Kouji and even survived a five man battle royal a couple of weeks ago."
"My oh my..." Mii-chan smiled and adjusted his glasses yet again. "I didn't know I was that popular. Even the famous Mukuda Adam knows of my exploits. I'm honored."
"They say you're also a big pervert and a bit of a smartass too." Adam smirked and Mii-chan just scoffed. "Doesn't even have a girlfriend and spending most of his time whacking off to porn games."
"Okay! That's it! You are soooo dead! I don't whack off to eroge! I play them for the story!"
"Yahalloooooo!" Vinny appeared out of nowhere from behind and repeatedly stabbed the King GM's backpack with his beam bayonet. "I ain't down for the count yet, buddy." He pulled the trigger after the seventh stab and completely destroyed the Gunpla's back thrusters and the remaining beam cannon.
"You...ASSHOLE!" Adam swung the twin beam spear again, but Vinny quickly managed to jump back.
"Mii-chan! Pop smoke! Pop smoke!" Vinny reloaded his rifle and hid behind a building.
"G-Got it." Mii-chan fired a couple of smoke grenades to create a smokescreen and did a backward dash while firing his beam rifle at Adam, damaging the left shoulder and half of the King GM's face. I think he was aiming for the remaining cannon, but hit the face instead. Regardless, the head is still a crucial part.
"I see you two turds got no qualms hitting a guy below the belt. Well bring it, you frigging sons of bitches!" Adam fired his remaining beam assault rifle and launched all of his missiles. Since the smoke was messing with his visibility and covered everyone's movements, he just blindly sprayed destruction everywhere, but Mii-chan and Vinny were thankfully were unharmed and got out unscathed.
"I knew he's gonna go nuts." Vinny said as he charged again and repeatedly fired his grenade launcher, hitting the King GM from the right side and destroying most of its body armor. "Oh hell yeah! Might as well purge the damn thing because it's already cracking."
After the smoke cleared out, Mii-chan rolled on the ground again and stabbed the King GM's right leg with his beam saber, pinning it down. "Bastard." Adam gritted his teeth and his eyes went wide with shock and horror when he looked up because he saw the Hyaku Shiki Opera propelling itself from the ground and pulling out one of its beam saber.
"Special delivery!" Vinny spoke in English and drove the beam saber down hard as he landed. He was aiming for the Gunpla's cockpit, but missed his target by a couple of inches when Adam quickly raised his twin beam spear in time, skewering the Hyaku Shiki Opera's lower abdomen. "Aw crud." Vinny frowned and his machine twitched.
"Tough luck, pal." Adam laughed as he raised his rifle and fired. The Hyaku Shiki Opera's head, right arm and weapon were now completely gone, but Vinny's Gunpla continued to move and struggle. "Persistent. Like me."
The GN-X then stood up and stabbed the King GM's head from the side with its other beam saber. "NOW!" Mii-chan shouted and viciously pulled out the blade, shattering the head like glass. "This is your chance! Hit the cockpit now, Vinny-saaaaan!"
Vinny quickly used his remaining arm to pull out his other beam saber and stabbed the King GM's cockpit with so much force that the Gunpla's upper abdomen shook upon impact. The Gunpla twitched and convulsed uncontrollably for a few tense moments before staying still. A couple of deep breaths later, Vinny smiled widely after making sure his opponent is finally down and wiped his face with his hands. He then started screaming like a little school girl when the King GM's right arm suddenly shot up and grabbed the Hyaku Shiki Opera's left shoulder. The snapping sounds of the plastic as the fingers dug in was enough to give me nightmares. After that, Adam's Gunpla was still once again and for good this time. "Holy fudge!" Vinny nearly collapsed and his face was chalky white like a ghost. "Shit. I nearly soiled my pants there."
"Well you got me." Adam said calmly and crossed his arms. He seems to be taking his defeat pretty well surprisingly. "The win is yours, blondie." He then turned to Sakae and smiled. "You're on your own, girly."
"I don't like playing the lone survivor." Sakae said bitterly after doing a diving spinning attack, but the Gundam Exia quickly and effortlessly deflected her sword. Wow. Setsuna is really focused and not missing a beat. His attacks are almost continuous and his movements were smooth.
"Help me out here, Mii-chan." Vinny tried to extract the twin beam spear that's still lodged in the Hyaku Shiki Opera's lower abdomen. "Crap. The beam blades are still active and they're slowly melting the plastic."
"Stay still..." Mii-chan used both of the GN-X's hands to grab the spear's handle and slowly pulled out the weapon. Vinny's Gunpla crumbled like a deck of cards and slowly managed to stand up after a couple of attempts. "You're not looking too good, man.
"Yeah..." Vinny smiled. "Rifle is gone and my only weapon is a beam saber. Right leg is acting up too, looks like the joints are busted. My back-up camera is flicking up like crazy as well. I guess I have no choice, but to concede."
"That would be...disappointing and unsatisfying." The Zeus Gundam's sword suddenly burst out from the Hyaku Shiki Opera's cockpit and Sakae quickly pulled out the blade as Vinny's Gunpla went down on both knees. She then swung the blade downward and bisected the machine. "That's it for Vinny-san." She giggled loudly as she watched the upper part of the Hyaku Shiki Opera bounce on the ground before exploding.
"Fuchida-senpaiiiiii!" Mii-chan roared and opened fire, but the Zeus Gundam spun its sword and deflected all beam shots. "Damn it." He kept firing and firing like crazy and Sakae kept deflecting without any effort while smacking her lips. The excitement is getting to her and is intoxicated by it.
Setsuna suddenly attacked from above, but Sakae was expecting him. "I didn't forget about you, Seo-kun." She giggled again and did a back flip to avoid the Gundam Exia's diving blade attack. Setsuna then quickly turned around after he landed and swung his weapon again, but Sakae blocked it with her round shield. Sparks flew as the sword and the shield made contact and both Gunpla almost shook.
Mii-chan quickly dashed to the left and stealthily went behind the Zeus Gundam while it was preoccupied with the Exia. He reloaded his rifle and aimed again, but Sakae's Gunpla suddenly spread its wings, surprising him. "Goddammit!" He exclaimed and Sakae quickly sent the GN-X crashing down face first on the ground with a devastating sweep kick before it could fire its gun. "Damn you, Senpai." Mii-chan's eyes twitched.
The crowd was getting wild now and the noise was almost unbearable. I looked around and realized that Chika and Kaede haven't returned yet. What's taking them? I hope Chika is not giving Kaede any trouble. Shizuka noticed my worried expression and grabbed my arm. "You wanna check up on them or something?"
"Nah." I shrugged. "I think they're fine."
"You sure?"
"Yeah." I nodded.
"Those boys might be back again." My little sister shot me with a wary look and I hated her for saying something like that. I know she means well, but I can't help but feel upset.
"Shizuka..." I sighed and frowned.
"I'm just saying, Nii-san."
"I know, I know." I almost raised my voice and Shizuka just rolled her eyes.
Setsuna jumped and did another downward slash attack, but Sakae beautifully blocked it with her blade. The Gundam Exia then jumped back, folded the sword and squeezed off three shots before unfolding it again. Sakae deflected the first two beam rounds with her weapon and just casually avoided the last one by slightly moving the Zeus Gundam's head to the right. "Heh." Her eyes glinted as she raised her shield to block Mii-chan's surprise beam saber attack from behind. It was like she had eyes on the back of her head or maybe she possessed some sort of heightened and developed awareness that lets her easily read or sense or predict her opponent's moves. "I see you there!" She cackled what almost sounded like a pleasurable squeal that made some of the more randy viewers blush. I guess her fan base is gonna grow even bigger now thanks to this spectacle of a fight and the crazy but somewhat arousing noises she's making. I mean really. "I can handle you two just fine." She said and then quickly kicked the GN-X away when she noticed Setsuna charging again from the left side. The Zeus Gundam spread its wings again and took it to the skies. Both the GN-X and the Gundam Exia followed suit since they're also capable of flight and what followed was an amazing rondo of clashing blades, close calls and death-defying maneuvers that made the crowd scream their excited little heads off. Shizuka was also screaming and she was cheering for Sakae, telling her to kill the shit out of those two perverts.
"We need to finish this, Mii-chan." Setsuna said while panting. His voice was low and subdued.
"Yeah. I guess it's safe to say that the three of us are evenly matched. I know Senpai. She won't stop fighting until she literally drops. She's that stubborn."
"The hell you two whispering over there?" Sakae raised an eyebrow.
"We're ready to end this." Setsuna said flatly.
"Is that so?" Sakae sheathed her sword and pulled out her weird-looking hammer with both hands.
"On three, Mii-chan..." Setsuna cracked his knuckles and narrowed his eyes. "One...two...THREE!" The Gundam Exia's eyes flashed brightly and charged forward while raising its sword again. The clouds parted as he rushed through them, picking up speed and momentum.
Sakae smiled as she raised her hammer too. "Thunder of Judgement!" She shouted and a massive wave of electrical energy enveloped the hammer and surged through it, charging the weapon. Hey, I thought the Zeus Gundam was supposed to be based from Greek mythology or something? Why is it acting like a certain Norse thunder god? Well, this is certainly weird. I guess I just have to ask Vinny for the details later.
Setsuna swung his sword hard as he drew closer and a blinding light covered the field when the Gundam Exia's blade and the Zeus Gundam's hammer met. The whole city shook and some of buildings' windows shattered from the spreading shockwave, raining glass on the cracked and cratered streets. "Exia, time to go full doki doki mode!" Setsuna's entire machine trembled and then started glowing pinkish red. "TRANS-AAAAAAAMS!"
"Finally!" Sakae's expression was disturbing. "Oh man, I've been waiting for this, Seo-kuuuuun! I thought you'd never activate Trans-Ams. Let's freaking go all out, guys! Oh man, my whole body is trembling."
The Gundam Exia disappeared...no...teleported...no wait...that's freaking impossible. I mean a Gunpla couldn't just blink and teleport away. I mean could the Plavsky Particles even do something like that? Technology has come a long away and Gunpla Battle is a testament to that, but teleportation is still within the realms of fantasy and science fiction. No, the Gundam Exia did not teleport. It was moving fast. It was moving really, really fast. Lightning fast. Three-times-faster-than-the-normal-speed kind of fast. Just what the hell is Trans-Ams anyway? Is it exclusive to the Gundam Exia or could any other Gunpla do it? It was like one of those heroic power-ups you see in shounen manga. Something the protagonist would use when he's in a pinch. Oh man, I am so gonna bombard Vinny with questions later and, since they're all Gundam-related, I am pretty sure he'll be more than happy to help. Anyway, Setsuna's Gunpla was moving so fast that it was leaving afterimages like it was some sort of ninja doing a splitting shinobi technique or something. His Gunpla was circling around the Zeus Gundam like a fly high on caffeine and making that somewhat unsettling buzzing mechanical noise. Sakae was losing it and was just laughing like a maniac. Whatever this Trans-Ams is, it's making her loose her marbles due to excitement. I mean, geez.
Sakae then suddenly snapped and started swinging her hammer wildly when she realized Setsuna wasn't taking the initiative and was just buzzing around and displaying all kinds of feint maneuvers to rile her up. I never pegged Setsuna as someone who'd use psychological tactics to mess with his opponents, but then again, the guy can be such a troll sometimes. As Sakae continued to attempt to swat down the annoying glowing red fly that is the Gundam Exia, Setsuna just narrowed his eyes again and severed the arm holding the hammer with one clean swing. He then tossed his shield aside and punched the Zeus Gundam right in the face. The Exia's wrist slid open when the Gunpla's fist connected to reveal a small barrel and started spitting out low-powered beam rounds. So the Gundam Exia's vulcan guns aren't mounted in the head, but in the wrists instead. Interesting. Very interesting. The Zeus Gundam's mutilated head burst like a juicy watermelon on a hot summer day and the crowd made gasping noises. I almost expected to see brain matter fly and I quickly reprimanded myself for thinking something so morbid. A shadow cast across Adam's face as he watched, but he quickly switched to a disappointed smile and just slowly shook his head.
"T-T-That's not good..." Sakae's smile wavered and quickly drew out her sword with her remaining arm.
The Gundam Exia did a corkscrew spin as it folded its sword again and opened fire. Both of the Zeus Gundam's legs disappeared in an instant and Setsuna's Gunpla blinked away and appeared behind Sakae before she could even register what just happened to her Gunpla. The tables have been truly turned.
"T-That's not good..." She said again when Setsuna wrecked one of the Zeus Gundam's wings with multiple thrusting attacks like a sadistic fencer on crack. Sakae then began to laugh again. "This is it, I guess."
Sakae defiantly tried to swing her sword, even if she knew it was already too late, but she forgot all about Mii-chan and the GN-X stabbed the Zeus Gundam's remaining forearm with its beam saber and used the GN claws of its other arm to mangle the rest of the Gunpla's limb "Not so fast now, Senpai." He said softly.
Setsuna then pierced the Zeus Gundam's back and the Gundam Exia's sword violently burst out from the chest. Mii-chan joined in for the final kill and stabbed Sakae's Gunpla in the lower abdomen with both beam sabers, twisting the handles slowly with a bright smile. He totally relished the damage he had just incurred. Both boys then silently nodded to each other and the two quickly turned around as they dragged their blades while they were still lodged inside the twitching and convulsing machine and the Zeus Gundam's broken body was nothing but a showering confetti of shattered and burned plastic afterwards.
"Battle ended." The cold computerized voice announced and there was a wave of deafening applause and cheers that nearly made my ears bleed. Whoo. It's finally over. That was a doozy of a ride alright. The whole building shook as the spectators stomped their feet in unison and some of the staff even joined in the revelry. I guess they got us to thank for bringing in such a huge crowd. Or just Mukuda Adam, if I were to be realistic, since he's a local celebrity and the one that actually managed to draw a crowd in the first place.
What matters is that we gave them a hell of a show.
"So what did Chika miss?" Adam's bratty niece finally returned. She was holding two cans of orange soda and was wearing a weird hat with cat ears. "Is the match over?" She blinked and looked around.
"Sorry we took so long." Kaede followed from behind and she was smiling apologetically. "She wanted to play the crane game." Her cheeks were a bit flushed and she was panting softly. Chika probably dragged her all over the place. Damn it, Chika.
"Chika wanted the pandas, but we got this instead." She pointed to her hat. "Anyway, Chika can't believe the match is already over." She puffed her cheeks and disappointedly dropped her shoulders.
"You have no one to blame but yourself." Shizuka sneered. "Ooooooh Chika is thirsty! Isamu, you are now Chika's sex butt slave! Ooooooh Nee-san is so pretty and shiny and her tits are so big and bouncy!" She imitated Chika's high-pitched voice and exaggerated mannerism. "Pathetic." She cocked her head.
Chika just tilted her head sideways and widened her eyes. "Chika is gonna fucking destroy you." Her voice was cold and emotionless. "This place will eat Shizuka flesh."
"BRING IT! RIGHT HERE AND RIGHT NOW!" Shizuka suddenly jumped back and quickly bent her body to assume the praying mantis kung-fu stance. "I'm gonna frigging pop those glittery eyes of yours and grind your bones to dust, you fucking brat! Come at me, Chika! Come at me!"
Chika's eyes grew even wider and formed a creepy smile. "Looks like the fridge won't be empty tonight."
"Okay, knock it off, you two scary-ass lolis." I sighed and pulled Shizuka away. "Let's not cause a scene here, okay? Besides, you started it." I scolded my little sister and she just poked my nose while grumbling.
"Dude, do something about your niece, man." Mii-chan whispered to Adam and gently elbowed his gut. "Can't you, like, have a proper talk with her or something? She's freaking me out."
"Dude, I value my life and sanity." Adam whispered back. "There's nothing I could do."
"You could try being a man and use your balls." Mii-chan frowned.
"In return, I'd lose them. Literally. I'm not joking. She tried it before and I barely escaped."
"I have no words, Mukuda-san. I have no words." Mii-chan was horrified.
"Weeeeeeeell..." Wallace tipped his hat and flashed his friendliest. "I gotta acknowledge the corn here and tell you kiddies straight up: you folks are hella monstrous." He then walked up to Mii-chan and put his arm around his shoulder. "Especially this mean old son of a gun here. Glasses boy gave me the most hog-killing of pleasures and excitements I tells ya. He is ruthless indeed and I'm telling ya straight."
"Damn right he's ruthless. He trained with the best." Sakae nodded proudly. "Tears definitely not wasted."
"You're not so bad yourself, blondie." Adam playfully punched Vinny's right arm. "I'm not too fond of the backstabbing though, but you got some serious balls, kiddo."
"Aw shucks." Vinny blushed and scratched his head.
"What about Chika? Chika was awesome too, you know!" Chika shook her body and did a little dance. "Chika kicked Isamu's ass and showed him what for. Isn't that right, Isamu? I kicked your ass, right?"
"Universe." I groaned monotonously and let out a heavy sigh. "Yay."
"Might as well drop your pants and bend over, Nii-san." Shizuka said sharply.
"I'm seriously hungry, guys." Setsuna said.
"Oh speaking of hunger!" Wallace's face beamed up radiantly and quickly pulled out something from the back pockets of his messy jeans. It was a flyer and he raised it proudly for everyone to see like it was some sort of wrestling championship belt. "The reason I'm here is because I'm advertising my new restaurant. We serve the finest Texan-inspired cuisine with a Japanese twist. Come one, come all, everyone."
"The Texan Tornado Tsunami or The Tripe T." Vinny read the name of the restaurant aloud. "Wow. So it's like one of those Asian fusion things?"
"Yep!" Wallace nodded enthusiastically. "Oh I ran out of flyers and...uh...this is the only one left so here you go, kid." He handed it to me and I reluctantly accepted it with a nervous smile. The flyer was downright tacky to be honest and was obnoxiously colorful, with a lot of red and pink abuse. It was direct at least and you could never go wrong with pictures of mouth-watering steaks and bowls of meaty stews. I'm not exactly familiar with Texan cuisine, but this looks appetizing enough and the prices seem affordable and fair. The name of the place is kinda lame though, but it's something I would expect from someone like Wallace.
"We'll drop by sometime. The steaks look good." I said while folding the flyer and pocketed it.
"I want steak now." Setsuna poked my arm. "Let's go there now and eat dead cows."
"Maybe some other time. I'm kinda broke right now and I only got a few yen."
"I'm pretty sure Carrots serve steak too, Seo-san. Why don't you ask Marina to cook you a slab when you get home. I'm sure she'll be happy to oblige." Shizuka said.
"But I want Texan steaks." Setsuna sighed.
"What's the difference? Steak is steak." Shizuka raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.
"But Texan steaks are special, right, Yamashita-san?" Setsuna turned to the cowboy slash chef.
"Of course! My meat comes straight from Kobe City, folks. I even got a few sources in Kasumoto City too. The best of the best and the finest of the finest Wagyu cows."
"But that's Kobe steak! Totally not Texan at all!" Vinny pointed out. "You should be using Longhorns imported from Texas or something or Angus at least."
"I cook it Texan style." Wallace winked. "Texan steak is Texan if you cook it Texan style no matter what kind of beef you use."
"I guess..." Vinny just shrugged. "Gaaah! It's fusion anyway! Let's leave it at that." He laughed.
"Uh...excuse me?" Someone suddenly interrupted and we all turned to see the beanie-wearing blogger who took Sakae's pictures a while ago slowly approaching us with his fancy camera. "You guys were pretty amazing. Is it okay if I take a group picture? I mean that four-versus-four match was just kickass and I really need to put this on my blog. You guys don't mind, right? I mean it's okay if you don't want to but...well...uh..." He continued to ramble and we all just nodded happily and smiled much to his delight.
After our pictorial session, more people approached us and it was pandemonium. The staff didn't even bother quelling them and just ate up all of this new surge of activity. Adam's way more popular than I thought. Is he, like, some sort of local hero among this city's Gundam fans or something? He seems to be eagerly and intensively enjoying his fame. I could easily tell from that happy and gratifying look on his face every time someone asks for his autograph or handshake or whatever. I guess getting eliminated in the Qualifiers two years ago didn't do much damage to his little toy robot manipulation career. There was also Fuchida Sakae and she seems to be fairly popular too within the local Gunpla Battle community. I mean she was tall, pretty and outgoing, so yeah I'm sure people will take notice. Not to mention she was pretty out there during battle and was damn good with a sword. Her duel with Seo Setsuna will usher in more stories. I am very sure of that. It's not the stuff of legends, but it'll still have people talking.
"Oh my..." A pale girl wearing a Gothic-Lolita outfit bumped into me. Was it by accident or on purpose? She was slim and has dark hair gathered in braided twin tails. She was also wearing frilly knee-high stockings and black heels. I'm not much into this kind of fashion, but I gotta admit she looked cute. Anyway, what is she doing here? I mean folks like her don't hang around these kinds of places. Is she a Fighter too? A Gunpla Fighter who's into Gothic-Lolita fashion? Okay, now that's a hoot. "I beg your forgiveness."
"It's fine! No biggie!" I chuckled nervously.
She then drew her face closer and whispered to my ear. "I was watching, you know? It's pretty obvious you're a newbie, but that unrefined potential is exquisite. You're so cute I could eat you up." She giggled. "I had my eye on you ever since you stepped inside this building. I thought you were something special and I was right."
"Ooooooooookay..." I took a step back. This girl is bad news! Every part of my body is telling me to get away immediately.
"Lucina is my name and it's not my real name of course. That would be Tsubasa Reina, but I prefer if you call me Lucina, for I am one of those sad fools who relish fantasy as you can see. You usually hang around at Watanabe Juro-san's shop, right? Be seeing you there soon." She giggled again. "Look forward to it." She elegantly bowed her head.
"What the hell? How did you..."
"Look forward to it." She repeated, and then turned around to walk away. I didn't bother following her because she was too damn weird. Oh man, what is up with these Fighters? Did I suddenly become a magnet for oddballs? Also, she introduced herself and didn't even bother asking for my name? Or maybe she already knows since she mentioned Juro-chan. Oh crap on a crapstick. This is just too creepy, man. Too creepy.
The others were a little busy to notice my encounter with the Gothic-Lolita girl. Vinny was talking to the blogger guy and showing off his now-heavily damaged Gunpla. Kaede and Chika were talking about something really funny near the battle table. I could tell because they were laughing pretty hard. Shizuka and Mii-chan are arguing about something and my sister was physically making her opinions known. Wallace was talking to one of the staff, probably something culinary-related since Wallace was making cutting motion with his hands like he was holding a kitchen knife. Adam was flirting with a bunch of gaudy-looking college girls. Setsuna and Sakae were playing a game of rock-paper-scissors for some reason. Yep. It was like the whole world suddenly had forgotten about my existence or something. It was like I was transported back in time. Back before I met Vincent Harvey. Back when Tachibana Isamu was just another grey faceless person in the crowd. It felt strangely and painfully nostalgic to be honest. I was alone again.
"That was a pretty cool match." Someone said from behind. The person's voice was pretty husky and there was a hint of an accent. I already knew it was a foreigner before I turned to face him.
"Oh hello..." I said in English. I didn't know why I even did that. The black guy might have a few traces of an accent, but his Japanese was flawless. He spoke slowly, but his pronunciations were precise. He was tall as expected and very muscular, but nothing about him was intimidating. In fact, his aura was pretty friendly.
"You fought well." He nodded.
"Thanks." I nodded too.
"I take it you're just starting?"
"Was it that obvious?" I laughed.
"You were still fumbling with the controls. I could tell you already got the hang of it, but you haven't mastered much of the layout yet. A vet always has his eyes on the main screen and just let his fingers do the talking without glancing down. Also, your hands were shaking." He chuckled. "That's always an obvious sign."
"Well it's only been a week after all."
"That's a lot of progress if you ask me." He smiled. "My friend said that you were pretty reckless when charging in, but pretty surgical and precise when attacking. Especially when you tried to knife Adam back there. It was like some sort of...uh...reckless precision fighting style. Yeah. That's right. Reckless precision."
"Reckless what now?" I flashed a bemused smile, but the man just ignored what I said.
"Samuel Davish. Davish is pronounced like Danish." He offered his hand. "Just call me Sam."
I shook his hand and smiled. "Tachibana Isamu. Good to meet you, Sam-san." His grip was strong and heavy as expected. "You staying or just visiting?" I hope this question wasn't too personal.
"Staying for four years straight now. This is a nice town and there's plenty of fellow expats to befriend. The Masachika Group is pretty friendly with foreigners like us so I have no problems. They also provide opportunities so we really can't complain."
"Glad to hear." The Masachika Group have international ties so it's no surprise they're friendly to expats. Not mention the current head's husband is a foreigner too.
"I usually hang around here since my gal works in the public service building. If you wanna chill out or do some Gunpla then don't be a stranger. I'm always eager to meet prospective Fighters and Builders." We then exchanged cell phone numbers before leaving me to join his friends. Finally! Someone normal! Yay!
"I see you met Sam." Mii-chan suddenly appeared to my right and I nearly yelped.
"Yeah." I said after composing myself.
"Sam is a pretty famous Builder around these parts. He doesn't fight much since he's more interested in creating rather than destroying. His words, by the way. He's pretty tight with hobby shop owners like Watanabe Juro or Toto. You should check out his place sometime, he's got this really sweet workshop. He helped me out before."
"I'll keep that in mind." I pocketed my phone.
"I also spotted Lucina a while ago. You should avoid that girl like the plague, man." Mii-chan warned sternly. "She's pretty easy to spot since she always wears Gothic-Lolita clothes all the time and has a taste for the theatrics. I tell you that chick is a very messed-up and disturbing. Delusional too. She's pretty, but her beauty is wasted on her antics. It's a shame though, she's actually a decent Fighter. She's lurking around here somewhere so stay away when you see someone wearing frilly and black clothes."
"Tell me about it." I mumbled bitterly.
"Come again?"
"Hey Mii-chan, what the heck is reckless precision?"
"Reckless what?" He gave me a confused look.
"Reckless precision."
"Beats me." He shrugged. "First time I heard it."
"I see..." I then gestured with my head. "Let's find the others and skedaddle out of here. Crowd is giving me a headache and I feel like taking in some fresh air right now."
"Sure thing." He patted my shoulder and went ahead.
"Reckless precision, huh?" I said under my breath and ran my hand through my hair. "Yeah."
We left Ex Extreme's fifteen minutes later and went to a cozy cafe right next to the public service building. We drank coffee and ate pastries and just had a roaring good time sharing silly stories. I was a loner for a good whole year, so readjusting to groups like these is still somewhat daunting for me, but I managed. I managed pretty well. Chika never left Kaede's side and just totally warmed up to her. My childhood friend didn't mind. Oh she didn't mind at all. She let Chika sit on her lap and just kept feeding her treats until her cheeks are all puffy like a squirrel. Kaede had always been a motherly person, it's one of the reasons why I fell for her. She just seems so patient and tolerant and ready to pamper you. It felt like she was always on your side and is quick to scold you when you screw up. I mean is this all a facade? A mask? Or maybe it's all genuine and her sleeping around has been just another side of the coin. I really wanna stop thinking about this, but I have to, right? I have to if I want to resolve this mess. For now, thinking is all I could do. Just stay with her and go with the flow.
I finished my coffee and turned my attention to the others. Sakae was telling stories about Mii-chan and their misadventures at their high school. She revealed all the sordid and embarrassing details and Mii-chan kept pleading her to stop, but to no avail. I could tell. The others too, but they're keeping quiet. Sakae definitely has feelings for Mii-chan and it was definitely unrequited. That somber look on her face every time she brings up Keiko and Mii-chan's childhood friend, Onodera Suzume, tells it all. It was just too obvious. It was just too painfully obvious. Mii-chan is probably aware. Of course he's aware. He wasn't born yesterday and he's sharper than he looks. He knows, but decided to keep quiet like the rest of us. Adam, the oldest among our group, looked away and retreated to his own privacy. He probably couldn't handle it and adult cynicism most likely got the best of him. My sister, while eagerly listening to Sakae's stories, was flashing that fake smile of hers. Shizuka is nosy by nature and something like this is probably too frustrating for her. The rest had nonchalant and indifferent expression. Sometimes playing dumb isn't always a bad idea.
Aren't we all pitiful? But we endure and we move forward. We have to move forward.
Two hours later, we said our goodbyes and went home. It was getting late and we have school tomorrow.
Later that night, after dinner, the three of us were hanging out in Vinny's room. Vinny was playing a first person shooter game on his laptop, Shizuka was lying face up on the bed and reading a fashion magazine for teens while grinning like an idiot and I was sitting cross-legged on the floor and reading a bunch of Gunpla magazines and manuals. After closing my ninth magazine, I let out a heavy sigh as I massaged my right shoulder. I turned my head and noticed something on Vinny's desk. It was a Gunpla. A Gundam to be exact and it was sporting a red and white color scheme. It was pretty barebones except for the sheathed katana mounted on the left hip. No guns, no shield and no anything. Oh yeah. This was the Gunpla Vinny showed us the day he arrived here. I remember now. It was called Gundam Red Flame or something.
"I'm done with this crap." Vinny turned off his laptop. "Damn 12 year old kids." He said in English.
I stood up and approached the desk. "Can I check out Red Flame again?"
"Red Flame? Oh you mean Red Frame? Gundam Astray Red Frame? Sure. Knock yourself out."
"Red Frame. Right." I was slightly embarrassed, but Vinny gave a me disarming smile and felt somewhat relieved. I then carefully grabbed the Gunpla and lifted it off the desk. I examined it thoroughly, checking every nook and cranny and moving the limbs. I wanted to pull out the sword, but I was afraid I might damage it with my inexperienced hands. I know I just started building Gunpla, but I'm still not confident if I could handle these materials properly. That's how it is with these kinds of sub-culture hobbies, right? Figurines, model kits, high-end computers and whatever. You gotta have gentle and caring hands.
We were silent for a while and then Vinny spoke. "I kinda broke the flight unit when I was putting it together. I was going for a vanilla build, but since the flight unit is now gone, I think I'll go for a major customization instead. I'll slap in a new paint job and buy some extra parts from Juro-chan."
"O-Oh. I guess even you mess up sometimes."
"Hey!"
"Sorry." I chuckled. "So what kind of stuff you planning on adding?"
"Dunno yet." He scratched his chin.
"It'll be nice if you mount some machine guns on the shoulders. That would be cool and badass. Kinda like that Cherudim SAGA kit I saw from one of your magazines over there. Oh, and beam pistols! Two of them! Just like Mii-chan's customized Gundam MK II. Maybe we could even add a shotgun too! I never got to use the Gundam MK II's shotgun. That thing could have packed a punch. Oh and knives! Lots and lots of knives! Hahaha! Oh don't mind me, Vinny-san. I was just messing around there. Really. Don't mind me."
But Vinny wasn't listening anymore, he was already in deep thought and then he suddenly snapped his fingers. "Two beam sub-machine guns mounted on both shoulders. Two beams pistols on the hips. A high-powered beam shotgun on the back. A crapload of heat combat knives placed all over the arms would be weird and impractical, but I think I could make it work. Yeah! I think I could make it work!" He snapped his fingers again.
"Uh...Vinny-san..."
"That's quite an ARSENAL!" He exclaimed in English as he stood up and laughed.
"Ar...suneru?"
"Arsenal!" He repeated. "It means a collection of weapons in English." He switched back to Japanese.
"Arsenal..." I nodded, finally getting the English word right.
"It's decided then." Shizuka suddenly said while still focused on the magazine she's reading. I didn't realize she was listening to our conversation. "Arsenal. Gundam Astray Arsenal Frame."
"Gundam Astray..." I muttered softly.
"...Arsenal Frame." Vinny finished for me.
Gundam Astray Arsenal Frame. Reckless precision. The pieces are all coming together now.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Hey ho! We're back to Moving Forward after posting up those two spin-off stories. DevilKingofFate also made a spin-off story of his own and they're all connected while still managing to be stand-alone. So yeah, no need to read them in order or something. Just pick and enjoy.
I really got nothing to say except that Lucina is loosely inspired from Celestia Lundenberg from Danganronpa. Celestia from the original video game, by the way, and not the anime since I really didn't care much for the adaptation. She's less cunning and more weird compared to Celestia. She's actually a nice person and one of the more misunderstood characters in the story. But yeah, like the most of the cast, she has her own quirks and eccentricities.
Well that's it. Next time on Moving Forward! Isamu finally befriends his classmates in school! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and be sure to post reviews. If you have any questions, suggestions, ideas and criticisms then feel free to PM me.