Disclaimer: I own neither RWBY nor Super Robot Wars.
"The assault on Aidoneus will be our most dangerous operation to date." Ingram explained coolly, no indication of the gravity of the coming battle showing on his face. "The island is well-defended, with several gun-emplacements making an aerial approach impossible for the Hagane. As such, the ship will remain submerged until it reaches this bay-"The blue-haired man indicated the location on a map over the island. "where it will surface to fire its Tronium Buster Cannon directly into the DC Headquarters, destroying it."
Blake frowned as she heard this, and made to rise, planning to voice something, but before she could start the motion or open her mouth a hand on her shoulder stopped her.
The raven-haired girl sent a sharp questioning look towards her partner, who was the one responsible.
Yang simply shook her head. "She'll be fine." She mouthed.
There was no need to define 'she', nor was there any need for the two to communicate why she would be fine. They both knew, and they both worried.
"Any questions?" The major asked, his gaze unexpectedly seeming to linger on the two Huntresses as a small smirk formed on his lips…
-Break—
They moved into formation with a speed born out of mad determination. There was no real time, they were already near the shores of Aidoneus, and the defensive gun batteries were already targeting them.
Behind that a screen of DC units spread out in great number, their core being the black and green Last Battalion's Guarlions, the finest soldiers the DC could muster, in custom Guarlions.
Anchoring the formation was the third ship of the Space Noah-class, the Kurogane, equipped with a massive drill it floated lazily near the main headquarters, directly in front of the bay.
There were a few familiar units around. Thomas Platt's Guarlion was hanging back further away, Tenzan Nakajima, an asshole who treated the war like a game was present with his Barrelion…
But, even with this seeming last line of defence, there were a few notable absences. Ruby's Guarlion, and the Granzon, both machines the Hagane's pilots knew well were powerful fighting-forces, were nowhere to be seen.
Hell, the Granzon alone, if fighting seriously, should have been able to win this war.
But even in this hectic situation the eye was drawn towards the massive structure on the western shore, containing the still relatively intact Meteor 3.
Blake shook her head. Focus! This is the last battle, and she could be sure the DC would throw all they have at them.
She watched as the R-wing, Wildraubiter, Grungust and Cybuster charged ahead, the flight enabled by their respective jet-modes, or, in the Cybuster's case, just being able to fly anyway, allowing them to move ahead easily.
Behind them she, Yang, Rai and Ingram followed, their machines either capable of moving well over water or equipped with auxiliary equipment that enabled it, they made up the core force that would force the breach caused by the vanguard.
Finally, making sure the Hagane remained defended was Aya, Giado, Garnet and Ryoto. They would provide support as necessary, but mostly they would just provide defence for the Hagane.
As the vanguard clashed with the Last Battalion it became clear that it would stalemate, and as such Ingram made the judgement that it would be better if they split up and circled around, taking out any emplacements and squadrons that got in the way.
Yang and Blake went together while Rai supported Ingram. Blake took the lead slightly, drawing the attention towards her, allowing Yang to proceed with less trouble.
It helped that with the majority of the Last Battalion being locked up in a giant melee with the vanguard, most pilots attacking them were of… lesser skill, and therefore were more focused on the fact that the Hückebein was unique, making the rather major mistake of dismissing the Gespenst as inferior, and a lesser threat, when, in actuality, the Gespenst actually hit harder.
No pun intended.
Their charge lead them straight into a group attempting to flank the melee, and they unleashed their weaponry, Blake leading with a well-aimed salvo from her Boosted Rifle, and Yang firing her machine gun.
Interestingly enough the Lions stayed back, laying into the two with their railguns.
This was a good idea against the Gespenst, but not the Hückebein. So while the cat-Faunus wove around the enemy fire, returning as best she could, distracting them and shooting down a few, her partner circled slightly around as she approached, avoiding to shoot so as to not draw any attention.
By the time the Lion squadron realised she was coming she was three-quarters of the way, they had lost near half their number, and their original target was closing in fast as well.
Activating its boosters the yellow-coated Gespenst crossed the last of the distance in a flash, leaving most of the enemy fire to miss wildly, while the few shots that did hit failed to faze its armour.
And the first to have noticed the manoeuvre learned first-hand how hard a Gespenst hit, as an energized fist tore through its armour completely, the Gespenst barrelling straight through its victim.
His panicked comrades started withdrawing from the unexpected attacker, only to find themselves beset by Blake's Hückebein, who first ripped one opponent apart with a Ripper and then clove one in twain with its sword.
The remote weapon continued onward, and tore through another before it was destroyed by Gatling fire, but by then Yang had smashed apart another Lion with the Jet Magnum and then blasted two others with the Shotgun.
By the time the last one realised his loneliness two plasma swords were already shearing through the armour, bisecting the poor fool.
On the other end of the melee Rai and Ingram had destroyed their opposition, the combined might of two of their most skilled pilots proving overwhelming for the DC pilots trying to stop them.
And the melee itself was starting to dissolve, only a few Last Battalion units remained, while their vanguard remained reasonably intact, the Grungust having suffered the most hits, but remaining fully functional thanks to its strong armour and bulk.
The R-1 had taken more damage, but remained fine, Ryusei's skill not quite being enough to avoid damage, even with the T-Link system's support and inexplicable barrier. Likewise the Cybuster was only slightly damaged, it's strong combination of armour and agility meaning that it got out of the fight quite well.
Perhaps unsurprisingly the least damaged of the group turned out to be the Wildraubiter, the agile mech proving more than capable of running circles around even the skilled Last Battalion in the hands of Latune. All it had suffered was minor scratches from a few close calls.
In response to this Tenzan had moved up, targeting the R-1, which in return engaged, locking the two into an aerial dogfight, but it was quickly broken when Latune and Irm intervened, eliciting some disgruntlement from the Otaku, though he quickly conceded that this was war, and there was no place for fair one on ones.
Simultaneously Masaki, Rai, Ingram, Blake and Yang engaged the Kurogane, aiming to cripple it before the Hagane reached its designated point.
The Cybuster rushed forward, enveloping itself in that weird fire-bird that it summoned. The attack was perfect and the aim spot on…
So imagine her surprise when the Kurogane evaded it.
Luckily Masaki was able to avoid the return fire, but it was spot on, and the girls quickly came to regret getting close to the ship.
Fortunately neither Ingram nor Rai were daunted by this, and they expertly avoided fire as they lay into the vessel, the Schutzwald's Beam Cannons doing their best to harm its cannons while the Wildschwein pinpointed as many weak-points as possible.
And just as it looked as if the Kurogane was slowing down, the Hagane reached its target point, surfaced, and was prepared to fire in but a few seconds…
The Kurogane suddenly regained speed, heading straight for the Hagane from the front.
The Hagane fired just as the two clashed, the shot going slightly off course as it crashed into the Kurogane's energy field and missing the main HQ, although the Kurogane suffered extensive damage in return.
Unfortunately the Hagane suffered even more, the massive drill smashing into the ship and disabling the Buster Cannon, as well as causing major damage to the side of the ship.
The biggest surprise came next. Instead of coming about for another attack on the Hagane, the Kurogane kept going, heading away from the island.
"Wait, Elzam! Where are you going?!" Adler exclaimed in outrage.
"I have fulfilled my duty. As in accordance with Commander Bian's orders the Kurogane will now withdraw." The blonde ace replied calmly.
How or why they could hear this was unclear to Blake, but she decided against questioning it.
What happened next was unclear, but suddenly all the remaining DC troops withdrew, and it seemed that all personnel evacuated the base. She could vaguely make out a yellow Guarlion leaving in a different direction before it disappeared.
"Wait, what's going on? Where are they all going? Did we win?" Ryusei questioned in confusion.
"No. Not yet. There has yet to be an announcement of surrender, and there are still DC forces remaining unaccounted for." Ingram responded coolly.
"The Granzon and Valsion…" Latune provided.
"Most likely they await within." The gruff voice of Daitetsu cut into their conversation.
"There is an entrance here, presumably leading to an underground area." Rai remarked as he indicated said gate.
Even as they laid their eyes upon the massive gates they opened, giving a clear message.
'Come.' It said.
"The Hagane is unable to enter. All forces, perform repairs and resupply. Prepare to assault the last stronghold of the DC." The elderly captain ordered.
A chorus of affirmations rang out as they regrouped with the Hagane for repairs and resupply.
This would be the final battle… Hopefully they could reunite with the rest of team RWBY and start working on finding a way home. If there even was one…
-Break—
"That's right. Come, warriors of the Hagane, prove yourselves." The deep bass voice of Bian Zoldark rang out inside his Valsion.
It was lazily standing around inside a massive underground chamber. Quite a ways off to its right hovered the Granzon, the purpled haired man inside patiently awaiting the climactic showdown that was about to begin.
And to the front in-between waited a black and red Guarlion.
"There is no need for you to stand so far ahead Miss Rose." The calm and polite voice of Shu Shirakawa instructed the young pilot of the Guarlion.
"I cannot idly sit by and watch. They will at the very least have to defeat me as well." She responded, her voice containing no sign of hesitation.
Bian sighed deeply. "Then at the very least be sure to surrender before you are killed. You need to continue on, in order to repent for your sin, like Elzam."
"Of course. I'm not ready to die just yet." She said, her bravado temporarily falling away as her voice revealed profound sadness.
"I at the very least shall respect Commander Bian's will and simply observe." Shu interjected, with no readily apparent change in emotion.
"I am most grateful Professor Shirakawa." The gruff elder said with genuine gratefulness in his voice.
A silent notification interrupted them.
They had come.
Author's note: Ugh. This was just... This took far too long, and I'm not sure I like the end result overly much. I hate writer's block, and I think I just had one of my worst cases. Oh well, what's done is done.
What do you think of the chapter? Feel free to tell me in a review. Hopefully the next chapter will be interesting, both for me to write and for you to read. Wait... excrement, the next chapter will be...
I hope you enjoyed and that you have a nice day.
