Hello everyone, thank you for your patience! I started a new job just after last chapter's upload and things have taken some time to settle in. I won't hold you long, just wanted to explain the absence. Below you'll find a link for the general layout of VIRM's base and the surrounding area for reference as you read. Looking forward to your feedback as always!
Link: imgur[]/a/KaLT7oH
Don't forget to replace the brackets with dot and com!
Dusk falls on a secluded coastal mountain range, the waning sun only just visible over the horizon. 80 rebel FranXX slowly and silently creep through a forest of conifers to the range's northeast on their way to their target. Somewhere within the largest of the five peaks, the Virtual Intelligence Reputable Monitor hides.
This will not be a smash and grab mission as the resistance force is used to conducting. Tonight's objective is to raze the facility and destroy VIRM. With it out of the picture, the Nines would be APE's only ace. Removing those psychopaths wouldn't be easy, but as long as VIRM continued to exist it was impossible. As a result, all rebel forces on the lower half of the island have converged on this location.
Twelve hours ago, an attack had been made on one of APE's largest supply and transport depots in the center of the island to act as a diversion and draw away any forces it could. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that any of VIRM's guards were called away. However, the reinforcements it would inevitably try to summon once the battle began would be unable to respond as quickly, if they were able at all.
Valkyra observes the facility, her pupils dilating as her vision shifts between levels of magnification. It is truly a fortress. First there is an outer wall, equipped with an assortment of manned cannons and automatic rail turrets controlled by VIRM. From the briefing she knows that behind it there is another wall that is nearly identical, with just enough space between them to create a kill field. Further still are the supporting facilities of the base surrounding the mountain itself. Only once each of these obstacles had been cleared could the assault on the interior of the mountain, which would be completely blind, commence.
Kyo sighs. "They never make things easy, do they?"
Valkyra smiles at her partner. "No, they don't. Have a little faith, you and I have been through worse."
"Worse, yeah," he chuckles. "I don't remember the Garden being worse."
There is a pause in the conversation as Valkyra issues orders via hand signals to some of the rebel line. They are passed down to each squad spaced roughly every hundred yards along the forest's edge.
"I got stabbed multiple times," the mech answers coolly.
"Right," Kyo places his right hand behind his head. "I'll try not to let that happen again."
A low rumble emanates from within the unit, Valkyra's laugher. "I appreciate it."
The pair look one another dead in the eye via the feeds of the FranXX's internal monitor.
"Are you ready for this?" the lieutenant commander of the resistance asks her partner.
With a nod, Kyo replies, "I'm ready when you are."
Valkyra steps out of the tree line and into the two-mile flat surface between the waiting rebel forces and the mountain range VIRM hides itself under.
"To the defenders of this facility, you are about to fall under siege. This is your one and only chance to surrender. There will be no quarter."
The transmission is met only with silence. On the battlements of the first wall, the cannons and automated turrets menacingly align themselves to meet the oncoming attackers, and a force of FranXX 90 strong steps out to bar their advance. They position themselves close to the facility itself, between the fortified walls and the rebels.
"We tried," Kyo says with a hint of sadness.
Valkyra's frown reveals her feelings as well. "It's all we can do. The new indoctrination is stronger than ours was. Those poor souls hardly possess the ability to think, much less think for themselves. We'll release them from that cursed existence."
The blue and gold FranXX takes a deep breath. After a moment of stillness she thrusts her spear into the air.
"All units, forward!"
Thus begins the slow march toward the facility and its waiting defenders.
The rebels have learned since the assault on the Third Garden, and their tactics and equipment show it. Just outside of artillery range, the heavily armored unit of each squad steps to the forefront and deploys their shield. Their energy barriers burst into existence, but with several notable differences to the previous model.
First, the barrier projected by each shield interacts with those nearby. The hardlight surfaces extend to reach one another and form a single unbroken wall to protect all of the rebel FranXX taking shelter behind them. Additionally, a solid segment extends back from top of the barrier at a 45-degree angle, creating a canopy to stop projectiles or mortar rounds fired from above like the Garden had employed.
Almost as if by design, the barrier finishes erecting just as the attacking force enters the range of APE's artillery. They respond by bombarding the shield with the full extent of their firepower. The rebel advance remains steady under the barrage of lead and the distance separating the trespassers from their target grows smaller with each passing moment.
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As the attack upon the exterior of the facility begins, another commences, this time targeted at its internals.
It starts with a single ping off the server from a foreign IP. VIRM finds the offender immediately but the connection is dead before it can isolate the signal and trace its source. There is only one entity capable of this and VIRM had met it only weeks before for the first time, the AI assisting the rebellion calling itself "Freya."
In the span of a second another fifty false access codes are denied. Once again VRIM lashes out at the intruder but finds only emptiness. The VI is being toyed with.
Now having found what it was looking for, the AI strikes. A constant stream of access requests pour into the system at a rate of one terahertz. Due to its nature as a series of Klaxosaur cores interfacing with human computer networks, VIRM is able to withstand the tide and maintain control of the system, but not without several requests succeeding in gaining entry. While prepared for an assault, the APE intelligence had not thought the rebel AI could possibly be as powerful as it was.
A message is left in VIRM's systems, wanting to be found. It reads, "So you wish to hold my hand and keep me in one place? Let's see how well you dance. I must warn you, I've already had an excellent partner. Don't disappoint!"
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As the rebel force draws closer to the defenders, something happens. A series of clicking noises emanate from seemingly nowhere and everywhere all at once as the rebels advance. From beneath the ground a series of rods burst forth around the outer ring of the mountain range. The air shimmers with ionization as the rods are pumped full of energy
Electricity sparks and jumps from the conductors to the nearby FranXX. Screeches of pain echo from some of the units unfortunate enough to be hit by the tesla traps. Others drop dead in an instant as the shocks prove potentially lethal in a single dose.
The only rebels completely unaffected by the bolts are those wearing heavy armor that push forward the shield wall. After the energy mortar used by the Third Garden's defenders short-circuited either the shield or FranXX carrying it, which had resulted in two squads being almost completely mowed down, they had been insulated against further energy-based attacks. Instead the electricity is siphoned into their capacitor banks and used to provide power to the shields, turning APE's defenses against them in a way.
Approximately 10 of the 80 attackers are killed or left immobilized by the trap by the time the field is cleared. It remains active behind the force, cutting off their means of escape.
In anticipation of APE's next trick, the shield wall is lowered into the earth. Soil is churned up by the hardlight and explosions altogether different from those caused by the cannons reverberate off the solid surface. This forethought effectively renders the waiting minefield useless as it is swept away by the advancing phalanx without causing harm.
By this time the facility's defenders have reorganized themselves into a formation to meet their opponents. Thirty rows wide and three deep, the collage of units wait for the inevitable clash. Many of them are the upgraded version of the standard model and are carrying halberds instead of spears, but sprinkled within their ranks are several new types of FranXX.
Some wield two short blades and wear little armor. Those making up the front line are hulking units that dwarf their sisters while hiding themselves behind large tower shields. There are also several riflemen present in the middle of the last row. All in all, they will present a much greater challenge than the previous generations of APE's parasites had.
As the rebel line continues to advance, the roar of jet engines echoes in the distance. Two large dropships, those used to transport entire squads of FranXX, are headed toward the mountain base at a breakneck speed. To the defenders it would appear that reinforcements for the rebellion have arrived, based on the airframes' markings. The ships retract their cargo bay doors and the mounted defenses turn to acquire the new, unprotected, targets.
What they are greeted by is not two squads of additional FranXX but artillery fire. Slats fold and retract, and from within the transports turned gunships a multitude of high-caliber barrels emerge. VIRM's defenders are caught completely unaware as the first volley slams into their neatly packed formation.
The gunships fall into an orbit over the battlefield and continue to bombard the defenses while receiving fire of their own. They provide a much needed distraction for the assault force, whose shield generators had been running dangerously close to overloading.
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Deep within the facility another battle rages in cyberspace. The combatants, one cheerful AI and her silent opponent.
"You don't want to talk to me?" Freya asks her APE counterpart. "How cold. We can't get to know one another if you never speak."
The message is transmitted instantly through the foothold Freya has gained within the network. Her processing power was similar if not superior to VIRM's, but she also wasn't coordinating the defense of a facility under siege. Not to mention that she wasn't really being paid attention to. VIRM had locked down all systems critical to defending itself and left the others relatively unguarded.
"You are unnecessary to APE's plan," the machine speaks for the first time. "You have been a nuisance for too long."
Using the short-wave radio, VIRM attempts to locate the datacenter his attacker is using by interfacing with the destroyed or disabled rebel FranXX. If the hub could be found, a force would be dispatched there immediately. The best-case scenario would be the meddlesome AI's swift retreat to preserve itself. The worst was that she would be eradicated in a matter of hours regardless of the outcome of the battle outside.
The interface succeeds on several of the units and VIRM begins the trace. It turns up empty in microseconds. The rebels are not connected to the AI or any other network. All communication was being handled over short range encrypted comms. Freya isn't coordinating their attack.
VIRM is confused by this lack of coordination but wastes no processing power debating what it knows to be the truth.
Meanwhile, Freya begins to take hold of anything and everything she can get her hands on. Climate control, water supply, whatever VIRM has left unprotected. She's not getting its attention yet, but that will change soon enough.
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The rebel line has nearly reached the fortress walls and the facility's defenders when there is a terrible roar. The forest the rebel force had come from trembles violently from whatever made the noise, in addition to strong tremors. A dust cloud is visible above the tree line, moving rapidly in the direction of the base.
Before the tremors' origin can be identified, several trees at the forest's edge collapse after having been shaken from the ground at the roots. Bounding over this fallen timber is the second ace up the rebels' sleeve, a feline FranXX. The lion-inspired unit stops with its front paws on a tree and throws its head back, releasing another ferocious roar. 19 additional bestial mechs charge out of the foliage and toward the ensuing brawl.
Upon encountering the field of tesla towers, the Stampede Division FranXX bound through the electrical deathtraps without so much as a stray bolt connecting. They are too agile to be slowed by such a small field of obstacles and avoid the shocks masterfully. Thus, the units emerge from the traps completely unscathed.
The mechanized creatures arrive just as the battle is met. Those that are more agile jump the shield wall, surprising the unsuspecting defenders. As far as they would have been aware, FranXX couldn't operate in Stampede for long enough periods of time to be useful. And they definitely weren't able to control their violent tendencies like these units were.
Opposing forces crash into one other like waves against the coast.
"Push through!" Valkyra orders, deactivating her shield to engage in the melee.
In a stroke of good fortune the gunships' arrival had thrown APE's forces into a bit of disarray. They hadn't expected to be assaulted from the air as well as ground and it shows. Of the 90 units stationed outside the facility's first fortification, 25 had been seriously damaged or killed outright from the gunships' barrage alone.
As it has been in previous engagements, VIRM is quick to act. It raises 15 of the fallen defenders into the state of undeath only it is capable of manifesting.
Fighting alongside Valkyra are Gladiolus and Heliconia. In addition, a Stampede FranXX taking the form of a bear joins the trio in leading the advance.
"Ursa, now!" Heliconia shouts.
With a roar the hefty creature, weighing nearly as much as one of the rebel defender units, charges a FranXX whose back is turned. The recipient, one of the unarmored new models, is thrown to the ground by the momentum built up during the rush. Ursa stands on her hind legs and bellows. The unit hardly has time to cry out before its skull is crushed underfoot.
Heliconia is cleaning up her own kill when she finds her charge caving in the chest cavity of the already very deceased FranXX. It wouldn't be getting up even with VIRM's help after that to be sure.
"Good girl!"
Gladiolus finds herself engaged with one of APE's defender types, which had been dubbed the "dauntless" subclass by the rebellion. The massive tower shield proves to be incredibly annoying and she quickly finds herself at a disadvantage, with her net being rendered almost useless.
At the same time, Gladiolus is afforded some reach over her opponent thanks to the trident. This forces the dauntless to stay at arms' length from the Roman lookalike, out of range that the short sword she carries affords her.
The back and forth dance continues for nearly a minute before an opening is created for either side. A shell from one of the fortress cannons explodes some sixty feet from the units and throws them both to the ground. Gladiolus had been the intended target but the shot was wide.
Gladiolus is first to recover and lashes out with the net. The fibers ionize into their rigid state on contact, locking the right arm of the dauntless to the ground and keeping her pinned to the dirt.
A simple coup de grace is not an option, however, as the shield arm is still free. With the design having the protective armament built directly into the forearm, the dauntless can still defend herself.
To counteract this, Gladiolus rushes to the head of the crippled FranXX. Instinctively her opponent raises the shield to protect herself, but this leaves the midsection exposed. Three prongs pierce the steel, causing the dauntless to cry out in pain. The recoil causes her to sit upright, which removes the trident from Gladiolus' grasp. Placing her hands on either side of the heavy mech's head, the gladiator twists with all her might. There is a snap and the giant falls silent.
An earth-shattering crack fills the air. The fortress' anti-air defenses were lacking due to APE's total control over the skies until today, but under the hail of bullets VIRM was directing at the rebel forces something was bound to happen eventually.
One of the rebel gunships has had its right wind peppered with so many holes that it can no longer maintain altitude. The massive craft slowly begins to fall from the sky. It careens into a segment of the outer wall, leveling close to five hundred feet in length before violently exploding and taking out even more.
A message sounds over the general comm from Valkyra.
"All troops, through the breach!"
The outer defense force had been reduced significantly by this time, ending up with closer to 30 units of their original 90. The rebels have suffered their share of casualties as well, but not as many as APE. Their number had dropped from 90 to a more modest 65 before they started to file through the opening.
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"You know, it's terribly rude to ignore your date," Freya informs the other occupant of the fortress' systems. "It's high time I teach you some manners."
Having grown tired of being ignored, Freya lashes out at VIRM with something a little more potent. Using access codes she had found during the raid led by Argentea, the AI forces herself into a good portion of the systems VIRM had been keeping locked down.
What can only be described as aggravation is felt through the network as Freya finally gains the majority share of VIRM's attention. Much to her surprise, VIRM proves stronger than she'd thought possible. Freya is immediately kicked from the servers and her connection to the facility goes dark. VIRM has isolated the facility to the local network in an effort to keep the annoyance from plaguing it any further, closing off all systems to their direct connections accessible from inside.
Freya has no choice to admire VIRM's prowess in cyberwarfare. She's more experienced thanks to months of working with the rebellion, but it was naturally better by design. Hopefully it wouldn't see through her little trick until it was too late.
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Now inside the first wall, Valkyra's force finds themselves in a tough situation. They are sandwiched between the outer and inner walls, with automated defenses firing at them from both sides and nowhere to go. To make matters worse, the remaining defenders from outside had followed them in. While closer to their goal, things are without a doubt worse than they had been minutes before.
"Testudo!" Valkyra calls to her remaining forces. This ancient technique first perfected by the Romans sees them gather in a closely packed circle with shields facing outward. The shields interlock to form a shape reminiscent of a circus tent, protecting the force from outside attack for a time.
"Laevis, we need that artillery!" Heliconia shouts.
The voice of the green mech replies. "We're ready, give us a target!"
"Designating," Valkyra states as the laser targeter on her temple activates.
"Firing!"
Several miles away in the densely packed forest, Leavis and a squad of nine other FranXX and several self-propelled guns loose the first salvo. The assortment of shells and missiles fly through the air toward the base, and with many of its point defenses occupied by Valkyra and company they are undeterred. The barrage smashes into the outer wall, shaking the earth.
"That's the wrong one!" Gladiolus yells.
Valkyra's tone is cool. "Negative, no effect on target."
"Sorry lead, something is jamming the signal," Leavis informs her superior. "We need direction for more precise fire."
"Understood," Valkyra replies before addressing her squadmates. "I'm going out there."
"Are you crazy?!" Heliconia asks.
Gladiolus is likewise skeptical. "I know you're strong, Kana, but you can't handle that much."
The leader's voice is resolute. "Someone has to or we'll never get the artillery strike we need to break through. This barrier won't last forever. I'm not putting someone else in danger when I'm best suited."
Valkyra drops her segment of the energy shield and rushes out. It's quickly filled by another heavy unit and the Testudo is once again made whole, sealing her off from her comrades.
No sooner has Valkyra vacated the safety of the formation than a round slams into her shoulder from behind. It forces the warrior maiden to her knees and a warning tells her a portion of her left pauldron has been blown off, but still she carries on.
Two more shots ricochet off her shield as she pushes toward the inner wall. The torrent of lead doesn't cease even as she is blown from her feet by a mortar shell. Warnings from her systems tell her that punctures in her legs and arm are present and the integrity of her shield is below 50%, but she can't stop.
The alarms are almost deafening when Valkyra reaches the inner wall. The previously beautiful unit is shot full of holes and missing large segments of armor when she collapses against the base of the wall. Even the Einherjar drive's pain and damage suppression couldn't keep the unit functioning in this state.
"Fire for effect – cough cough – tight pattern. Full salvo."
"We still need coordinates, lead," Laevis tells her.
"My position," Valkyra chokes out.
"We can't–"
"Laevis, do it!" Kyo shouts.
There is a brief pause. "Understood. Firing for effect, tight pattern, full salvo on location of last transmission… I'm sorry."
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Inside the FranXX, Kyo looks up at the night sky. "We probably won't make it out of this."
"I'm sorry for dragging you along," Kana tells him.
There isn't a moment of hesitation. "Nonsense, you didn't force me into anything."
The incoming barrage is visible now, the smoke streams of the missiles give it away.
"Aegis protocol, shield active."
The shield glows and emits a faint blue shield in the shape of a dome over the collapsed FranXX.
"Do you think it will be enough?" Valkyra asks.
"I don't know," Kyo answers truthfully. "But I do know I don't regret this even if it isn't."
"You're a good friend, you know that?" Valkyra weakly asks.
"And I'll be with you to the end," Kyo replies as the barrage crashes down around them.
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From her position in the CIC room of the fortress, Psi has been watching the battle unfold.
The rebel force had appeared from the forest, as would be expected, because it offered the best cover for their advance. The tesla traps had served their purpose, debilitating a number of the rebel FranXX and, more importantly, keeping them from retreating.
Modified transports used as gunships had swung the battle in the attackers' favor and given them an early lead, but when the first came crashing down their momentum was lost. They filed into the hole the downed gunship had created in the perimeter wall and proceeded to trap themselves like rats. Guns blazed and the remnants of the outer defense loomed over the rebels as they cowered behind their shields. The hardlight barriers wouldn't last forever, and when they fell it would be a bloodbath.
That thought brings a smile to Psi's lips. To see them all destroyed… it gives her chills. How invigorating it would be to do so personally, but her duty was to remain here and coordinate the defense alongside the program. At least one of the pitiful creatures would survive, and that would be all they needed to find the rest.
Psi crosses her fingers and uses her imagination. When they did, she would finally be reunited with her darling Omega. And she'd tear out the spine of that bitch who had brainwashed him. Nothing would make her happier than that exact sequence of events.
As she's fantasizing about the soon-to-come future, Sigma's voice draws her back to the here and now.
"You know, that one must be crazy," he says. "You know, leaving the safety of the shield and making a run for the inner battlements. You know, whatever for?"
"Die… fast?" Tau offers, though she doesn't seem convinced herself.
Psi huffs at the unit who had broken away from the others. "They must be suicidal or insane."
Sigma stifles a chuckle. "You know, I believe you would do something similar, Psi."
Psi flashes a prideful grin. "I could do it. But it looks like they can't, see?"
The blue and gold FranXX takes a cannon shell to her midsection on screen. She doubles over and pieces of her breastplate fall from the cracks that had spiderwebbed through the armor.
"Val… ky… rie," Tau stutters.
With his hand on his chin, Sigma studies the unit. "You know, I do believe you're right, Tau."
The young man turns to Psi. "You know, that is the FranXX who led the attack on the Third Garden."
This time, Psi takes a closer look at the FranXX's structure and armaments instead of a fleeting glance. "You're right," she agrees. "Well, the burdens of command aren't for everyone. I believe they snapped."
Valkyra collapses out of sight against the inner battlement.
"Die alone you miserable filth," Psi orders.
As if the heavens had heard her order, a torrent of artillery fire and several missiles strike the battlement where the FranXX had fallen.
"Ma'am, the secondary wall has been breached!"
"What?!" the blue-haired woman demands.
As the dust settles it is clear that the bombardment had been intended to destroy a section of the wall. The rebels had probably intended to do it with the first, but when the gunship crashed it removed the need.
"Contain the breach!" Psi hisses. "Activate the reserve and get them moving!"
"We can't, ma'am, external communication has been severed!" an analyst reports.
"Why?!" Psi's anger is beginning to mount.
"VIRM has locked down the network."
"Program!"
"Engaged in cyberwarfare with the rebel AI," a harsh synthetic voice answers. "Once the system is secure, communication may be reestablished."
"I did not give you permission to–"
"Permission is not necessary, Nine Psi. You are here to protect this facility. It is APE's will."
Psi is ready to continue her argument with the VI when another analyst catches her attention.
"Sonar contact!"
"You know, a Klaxosaur? Now?" Sigma asks of no one in particular.
"They number 25 in total, sir, and are approaching fast."
The external camera zooms in as the contacts break the surface. It is not a herd of Klaxosaurs that have come to join the fray but more rebels. At their lead is a FranXX of blue and white, and beside her are more of those animal units colored silver and gold.
"Omega!" Psi shouts as the blood in her veins boils. "Omega!"
She turns to Sigma and Tau. The grin she offers them is nothing short of terrifying. Psi's eyes bulge and her nostrils flare.
"Omega is here!"
Before they can reply, Psi dashes from the room toward the hangar and her awaiting brethren.
"I'm coming my love! I'll kill her! I'll save you! Then we can be together forever!"