Disclaimer: I own neither RWBY nor Super Robot Wars.
The two machines were but blurs as they raced across the battlefield, clashing repeatedly, sword against scythe, sniper against drones, neither able to score a solid hit as the preternaturally fast machines moved with purpose and practised grace.
Certainly, neither were at max speed, but since neither were able to support it for prolonged periods of time, neither would use it. They were simply distracting each other, keeping the other from interfering with the battle unfolding around them.
While Ruby couldn't speak for her opponent(s?), she herself felt relieved that she didn't need to fight her sister and friend at this moment. Add to this the feeling of exhilaration from fighting with an equal opponent, and part of her was actually kind of exited right now.
But that couldn't keep her from worrying about the well-being of her team-mates, and whenever there was a lull in the duel she found herself looking for them. Of course, they were doing well, while Yang's recklessness didn't quite work perfectly with the mass produced Gespenst she piloted, it did seem like the armouring had been modified and strengthened, so it worked out in the end.
Blake, on the other hand, seemed to have found the perfect fit for herself in the Hückebein, the high mobility and innate ability to create afterimages suiting her perfectly, although the weaponry left a bit to desire really. Still, it was a force to be reckoned with, and Ruby prayed apologetically for the poor pilots that had to contend with her.
And Weiss… well, she was with the Hiryu Kai and its complement of insanely skilled pilots in the form of the ATX-team, not to mention the heiress herself didn't seem too bad as a pilot either. Yeah… she probably didn't need to worry about her partner at all.
But of course, her adversary was not one to ignore for long. While information about the mysterious machine was sparse, what with the only person who seemed to actually know something not telling anyone about it, from what the Huntress had been able to gleam, the Cybuster, as it was called, was a very fast, unreasonably well armoured, for its speed and size, attacking power-house with more firepower and attack strength than what could be reasonably expected from something of its size class.
Yes, she knew the Granzon made all that look cute, but something told Ruby that the Granzon was a total rule-breaker with no regard for convention or reason. Besides, the mysterious man that was both involved in its development and was its pilot really didn't seem like he was playing it fair in any way, shape or form, although he also almost never seemed to take anything seriously.
Actually… this lull was getting a bit long…
"Hey, you! You're Ruby, right?" Masaki suddenly shouted, trying to contact her.
She was a bit caught off guard by this, and as such her reply wasn't the most well formulated.
"Yes…"
"Why are you fighting against your own sister?!" The guy sounded slightly pissed off.
"That's…" The young Huntress wasn't sure how to answer this. "I didn't know my sister was with the EFA... and Professor- no, Commander Bian's cause… I believe in it. His conviction, he means well!"
"Hmm… I see. You don't sound like you can be convinced otherwise." There was some resignation in the youth's voice. "At least you're not working for Shu."
"What's your grudge against Professor Shirakawa? You really don't seem to like him at all."
While Ruby couldn't see the boy, she could still hear his displeasure.
"He killed my father and destroyed my new home. He betrayed my trust, and hurt not only me, but also my sister and my friends." There was a surprising amount of fire in Masaki's voice, and it caught her slightly off guard. "That, and I can't stand his smug, overly polite face."
And then it all went out the window with those last few words, lessening slightly the severity of the reasoning.
Slightly being the keyword here.
The red-headed team-leader had not expected that her alleged discoverer had performed such acts, although she guessed she could see him do it all things considered.
It's just that… sometimes… she could sense kindness in the man.
Seems like its time…
As if on que her reinforcements arrived, perfectly surrounding the Hagane.
The group in question was led by Thomas Platt, who had also come up with the plan itself.
Ruby didn't like the man. He was sleazy, always chomping a cigar and had tried to use one of his men, a boy not much older than her team-mates, as a suicide-bomber, without asking the boy's consent.
Why was it that most of her allies were such… dastards...? No, that's not quite right… ehm… unsavoury…? That'll work. Such unsavoury individuals. Hell, she'd almost rather trust Prof Shirakawa than most of the people in the DC… At least Elzam and Sänger were trustworthy guys, even if the latter was a turncoat.
Oh well, at least this plan was decent enough.
"What?!" Masaki shouted, surprised by the sudden turn of events.
"Well, I was stalling." The red-haired girl said as she moved to better place herself between the Cybuster and the Hagane.
Suddenly without warning the Hagane launched a new unit, one she had heard about, but never seen.
The R-1, one of the Project-SRX prototypes.
But even as it touched the ground it was clear that it wasn't functional yet, as it remained unmoving.
'They sent out an unfinished PT? Even if backed into a corner that's kind of…' Ruby thought, perplexed by this sudden turn of events.
"You sent out an unfinished machine? What are you, stupid?" Thomas laughed. "Well, I guess I'll just take it then." The yellow coloured Guarlion moved in towards the immobile PT.
Even as Ruby watched this, she got a nagging feeling that she couldn't quite place, like…
Just as Thomas' Guarlion reached the PT it suddenly sprung to life.
Yet it wasn't that the machine suddenly actually moved that truly staggered Ruby. It was the sudden burst of will that washed over her before gathering around the machine like a veil.
She could practically hear the boy's shout as his will gathered, forming in such density around the fist of the PT that it became visible as a green energy.
"T-Link Knuckle!"
The fist collided into the surprised commander's Guarlion, causing extensive damage as it tore into the armour, blowing the machine away as the energy gathered around the knuckle burst outward.
What was that? She had felt something similar before but… that power couldn't do that… right? And for the first time in a long time did Ruby feel that she wished her mother was around so she could ask her to explain some things…
-Break—
After the spectacular activation of the R-1 the tide had swiftly turned. With Thomas Platt's Guarlion heavily damaged already and Ruby seemingly very distracted it did not take long at all to force the remaining DC forces away.
Unfortunately Ruby decided to retreat, even going so far as to activate her Semblance to get away. And the asshole Thomas also somehow got away, running like a sissy when he realised that the suddenly fully working R-1 was far too much for him.
The main problem Yang had was the power the machine had displayed. A defensive field that deflected weak enemy attacks and some kind of… well… it went boom? Kinda?
"So Aya, what exactly was that?" The busty blonde asked.
"What do you mean?" The green-haired pilot said, trying to play dumb.
"What the R-1 did earlier, what was that?" She pressed.
"That, Yang, was the power of the T-Link system utilised by the SRX-project." The cold and collected voice of Ingram Prisken said behind her.
Yang almost jumped in surprise as she turned around to face the man.
"Wow, and here I asked Aya because I didn't think I would get anything out of you, Major." She said.
"I don't see the reason to keep something like that hidden to someone who works so closely with the Project." The blue-haired man responded.
"And I'm guessing you need a… special aptitude to be able to use the system?" The fiery Huntress probed cautiously.
"Very good Yang. Indeed, a special trait is needed to use it. That is what you and Blake were tested for." He answered with an amused smirk on his face.
"And we didn't have it." She stated.
"Correct."
"So… I guess everyone in the SRX-team has it?" Yang turned to Aya.
"No, Rai doesn't have it. He was chosen for his excellent talents." The young woman answered.
"Oh, I see. Although… if the main purpose of the SRX-Project is to develop PTs using EOT and the T-Link system then it doesn't exactly make a lot of sense for there to be someone in the team of test-pilots that can't use the system." The blonde said contemplatively.
"Well… That's… classified." The team-captain answered.
"Of course. It always is." Yang answered in jest.
Even so, it didn't keep an unhappy look from crossing Aya's features for a short moment.
-Break—
"So, what's our next move?" Asked Katina impatiently.
The Hiryu Kai's next move now that they had retaken Columna was still undecided. They had received no orders, but they did receive news that the UCC fleet had moved into position to drop troops into Geneva, where the headquarters of the EFA was.
"I don't know…" Lefina answered dejectedly, clearly torn by uncertainty.
"I might have an idea…" Kyousuke spoke up.
All heads present turned towards the team-leader.
"Well, we could launch an attack on Elpis." The stoic man said.
'Elpis… that sounds… familiar…' Will wondered.
'It's the capital of the Colonies.' Eis answered, mentally puffing her chest out in pride. 'Wait…'
…
'EH!' Finally they both processed exactly what Kyousuke had proposed.
Elpis was also home to the Branstein family and the headquarters of the UCC.
An attack straight into the heart of the enemy.
The Captain looked equally shocked, but the others seemed to actually be considering it. Or, in the case of Katina, already completely in for it.
"Hoho… a bold proposal Lieutenant. Certainly, with the fleet away, the guard at Elpis would be weakened. A quick lightning assault could break through the defenders before reinforcements can arrive." Sean assessed, the XO clearly intrigued by the idea.
"Hmm… I agree. This could work. It will still be risky, but we can most certainly pull it off." Gilliam agreed.
Hearing these remarks, Lefina calmed down, realising that it was indeed a viable move. Crazy, but viable. They're practically behind enemy lines already anyway.
Weiss paled as she realised the proposal was about to be accepted. Why did she have to be placed with the most reckless members of the entire EFA?
"Yes, I see. If we…" The youthful Captain began drawing up plans.
But the young heiress(es?) simply blanked out as she still had yet to completely recover from the shock…
-Break—
"The end draws near. The Hagane is approaching this Aidoneus Island even as we prepare our assault on Geneva." Bian Zoldark calmly stated, his voice betraying no sign of nervousness.
"It is finally time. We will finally see who survives this violent struggle and who does not." Shu Shirakawa responded, showing neither joy nor worry.
"All is proceeding according to plan." The strong voice of Maier V. Branstein added.
"We all know our roles, and will fulfil them." Elzam V. Branstein said, sagely nodding his head.
"At the end of the violent struggle, no matter the victor, the Earth will be stronger." Sänger Zonvolt declared.
All present nodded in agreement. All except one, who instead looked quite sad.
"So, it's come to this." Ruby Rose said softly.
After all, she knew. She knew that both Bian and Maier were going into this fully knowing that they might die. No, if the Hagane and Hiryu Kai wins, then they will die.
It all came down to the next few battles.
Author's notes: And done. I wanted to get this out yesterday, but... I got in the way. Anyway... I'm not completely sure about this chapter, it seems fine but... I don't know. I'm decently sure this is at the very least the basic gist of the R-1's proper introduction, with a small bit of modification of course. I also realised that I couldn't for the life of me remember the order of events, and simply just now said... F* it, I'm just going for the end now. End of the DC war that is, not the end of the story.
I hope you enjoy and that you have a nice day.