SUPER ROBOT TAISEN S ZERO
Chapter 17 – To Go Like A Man!
Akito was amazed. Even though he had always hated war and fighting, he couldn't help but be impressed at how advanced, well constructed and impressive the Nadesico was. Everything onboard the newest Nergal battleship was the top of the line, manned by qualified personnel and using the best technologies available to the company. But it was not just that – the polish, the sheer quality of just about every single one of its features… it was enough to leave Akito is awe of what he was seeing.
"This is just… amazing…" he murmured as he walked out of a corridor and looked around. He could see that he had emerged into an hangar, where several humanoid robots had been stored, ready to be fielded in the event of an attack. The young man felt a pang of nostalgia at the sight of the Nadesico's Aestivalis units, so sleek, brightly colored and powerful looking despite their relatively small size. He thought back of when he was a little boy on Mars, and when he watched his favorite anime, Gekiganger 3, in order to take his mind off harsh reality. Of course, the Aestivalis would never be quite the same thing as his childhood hero… there was no way they could pull off a Gekigan Punch, produce swords from seemingly nowhere, or shoots beams from their eyes, but still… they were the closest thing to a real life Gekiganger he had ever seen! As his gaze wandered all over the hangar, he could see a red-colored Aestivalis standing at the front of the line, giving a feeling of power and majesty, and he joked to himself that it was probably a commander's unit. After all, lots of people seemed to think that being painted red meant that it was more powerful… and the pictures of Char Aznable's red Zaku and Gelgoog were still freshly burned into lots of people's imagination.
Besides the red model, a few more Aestivalis units were standing and awaiting activation. From his position, Akito could see an aqua green model, an orange one, and finally a pink one whose coloration looked oddly out of place among the more fierce-looking war mechs.
"Okay, begin testing!" came a voice from the hangar. "Try moving a bit and see how the IFS responds!"
The heavy plodding sound of metallic feet on the hangar's floor attracted Akito's attention. In the middle of the large hangar stood another Aestivalis unit, a rather heavy-looking blue model with a peculiarly shaped head, which was now in the process of testing. Although its pilot, whoever that was, seemed to have a rather odd idea of testing, and was taking his time striking dramatic poses and exclaiming highly-inspirational (if corny) phrases.
"ALRIGHT! LET'S GEKIGA-IN!" a confident male voice blared from the blue Aestivalis' speakers. Akito blinked in confusion when he saw the blue Aestivalis dramatically point towards an imaginary sky. "Fly on, Gekiganger! Deliver your justice upon evildoers with your mighty finish! GEKIGAN BLADE!"
The pilot ended his speech with the imitation of a plane's engines, and made his Aestivalis turn around, much to the confusion and anger of the dark-skinned man in glasses that was presiding the test.
"Ugh, why did I get the nutcase as the first test pilot?" Seiya Uribatake grumbled before speaking into his megaphone. "Hey, you there! Is this the way you should behave when you're doing a test? Behave yourself!"
The blue Aestivalis came down from its majestic pose, and instead struck a very awkward one by placing its right hand behind its head, as if it was laughing goofily along with its pilot. "HAHAHAHAHAAA! My bad, my bad! It's just that when I heard that I would finally make my lifelong dream to pilot an actual robot come true, I just couldn't resist coming! And now that I'm here, I'm making the most of it!"
Akito sweatdropped as he scratched his left cheek in awkwardness. "Seriously? How old does that guy think he is?" he murmured. Seiya sighed from frustration, but the guy in the Aestivalis' cockpit was not finished yet.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen... for your eyes only, I shall demonstrate the great Gai Daigouji's ultimate move! Feared by all! Everyone calls it..."
The blue Aestivalis reared back, as if gathering energy for one mighty blow...
"GAAAAAAIIIIII... SUPEEEEERRRRR..."
and then lunged forward and delivered a tremendous uppercut, which thankfully didn't hit anything in the hangar!
"...UUUUUUPPEEEEERRRRR!"
Akito could almost swear he had seen waves and a rising sun appear in background behind the Aestivalis for a moment, while Seiya nervously massaged his temples in an attempt to ward out a ferocious headache. "Ugh... okay, okay, crazy guy, you've made your point! Anyway, the test was satisying. Your IFS implant was fully successful. You get get down now." the mechanic stated. Akito could almost feel the pilot's disappointment as he powered down the Aestivalis and opened the cockpit hatch in the robot's chest, before descending via a lift-like device, a wide silly grin stamped upon his face.
Now that he could actually see him, Akito did think he looked very much like the typical protagonist of an old-school mecha anime, to be honest: tall, well-built, with a slightly tanned complexion and unruly black hair combed in a large fringe in front of himself and two large sideburns on both sides of his head. He was wearing a tight-fitting pilot suit which was mostly red, with black highlights on the shoulders, waist and pants and a pair of silvery boots. Looking a little more closely, Akito could see that a symbol representing the head of his childhood idol, Gekiganger 3, had been sewn upon the piloting suit, close to the heart.
"Heheheee… not bad, not bad at all! This robot moves exactly as I want!" the black-haired pilot exclaimed with an hearty laugh. "It's just amazing that I can pilot it like this!"
As he walked towards the pilot, Seiya sighed in a mixture of frustration and relief. At least, the guy didn't end up damaging any of those beautiful Aestivalis… "Yeah, yeah, not too shabby. Now, will you be so kind as to go report to the main bridge? They will want to know how their first pilot fared."
"I can't wait to meet the other pilots!" the younger man exclaimed, seemingly oblivious to what Seiya was saying. He seemed to be living in his own little world, if Akito had to be honest… "I'm sure we will make for an awesome team and… huh?" he stopped abruptly as he came face to face with Akito, who had approached the testing area and was trying to get a closer look at the blue Aestivalis. The two young men found themselves facing each other, simply staring in what appeared to be puzzlement… before the taller boy spoke up again. "Huh? And you, why are you here? You don't happen to be a pilot as well, do you?"
Akito's surprise at the insinuation jolted him out of his funk. "Wh-what? No, it's not like that!" he exclaimed. "I'm not a pilot… I was simply taken on board the Nadesico as a cook! I was just… taking a look around to get familiar with the place."
"Oh, that makes sense." The other young man answered, a little mollified. "Because, honestly? You don't look anything like a pilot."
Akito narrowed his eyes in annoyance. There was something about the way he had said that, that came across as condescending to Akito, and he was not going to just shut up and take it. "Hey! What's with that tone? You seem to think there is something wrong with being a cook!" he exclaimed.
"Well, you can't say that being a cook in any way compares to being a pilot." The other one answered cheekily. "Cooks just stay in the kitchen and serve meals. It's pilots who get all the hot-blooded action!"
The two boys began comically glaring at each other, lightning bolts flared between their eyes... until Seiya put an end to the nonsense by getting in between them and separating them. "Alright, you two, cool it right now! I'm not in the mood to be a babysitter, you hear me? I'd much rather spend my time admiring the Aestivalis onbord this ship, but I have my duties, and I don't want you guys messing things up!" he exclaimed in annoyance. "Now... Jiro Yamada... I believe you have a report to make, right? You need to tell the commander about your test and how you qualified as an Aestivalis pilot."
The taller young man widened his eyes in a comically flustered expression at the mention of his name... and Akito frowned in confusion. "Huh? Your name is... Jiro Yamada?" Akito asked. That was just about the blandest name he had ever heard... "I thought you name was... huh... Gai something-or-other..."
"GAI DAIGOUJI! My name is Gai Daigouji!" he shouted, both from indignation and embarassment. "Jiro Yamada is just my bland mortal name! Gai Daigouji is the name that belongs to my soul and my fierce spirit!"
Akito took a step back from surprise. He had never heard anyone taking so much offense from simply being called by his name...
Seiya, for his part, hardly looked impressed. "Yeah, yeah, whatever... Jiro Yamada, Gai Daigouji or whatever else you want to call yourself... you still have to report to the captain. And since I'm in charge of the Nadesico's mechanical and maintenance team, I need to report as well. So, let's get to it. I'm not exactly in the mood to drag this thing out more than it should."
"Ugh. Fine, fine! As long as you remember that my name is Gai Daigouji!" Gai answered, before turning back to Akito. "Hey, kid! You're free to take a look at my robot and take all the pictures you want! But don't you dare touch the controls, okay?"
"K-kid? Hold on a second! You're not that much older than I am!" Akito tried to protest, but at that point, Gai and Seiya had already taken off and were walking towards a large elevator on the opposite side on the hangars, with the intention of going to the main bridge and do all the reports they needed to make. Feeling like trying to discuss things with Gai would be pointless anyway, Akito shook his head and resumed his walk through the hangars, admiring the Aestivalis and their design...
oooooooooooo
Reika Sanjou sighed in relief and allowed herself a moment of relax. That had been a busy day, even though the Jovian Lizards and the Meganoids hadn't yet attacked. And she knew for a fact that it was still not too late for them to show up unexpectedly. Still, for now, she was able to take a rest and relax, sipping some fresh water from a plastic bottle she had just taken from a vending machine.
"Well, I guess things are quiet enough, at least for now." she said to herself. "Aside from that young man Akito looking for Captain Misumaru, there has been nothing unexpected for now. I will report to Banjou as soon as I get some rest..."
As soon as she had said that, her keen senses caught that something was wrong. She would probably have referred to that as her sixth sense as a former Preventer member, but she could just feel that something had changed in the span of a split second, and a sense of tension was now hanging over the spaceport...
Much to her displeasure, she turned out to be right when a loud alarm began to blare, drowning out most of the other sounds, and she winced as the loud noise assaulted her eardrums. "WARNING. WARNING. ENEMY APPROACHING." a computerized voice spoke up. "ALL PILOTS TAKE POSITION. PREPARE TO SORTIE. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. ENEMY APPROACHING. JOVIAN LIZARD UNITS DETECTED."
Reika sat there, seemingly calm and controlled even as all Hell broke loose around her. The orderly stillness of the spaceport quickly dissolved, and several Nergal employees began making haste to prepare themselves for the incoming attackers.
"They're coming! Everyone, to the shelters!"
"Non-combat personnel, follow evac instructions!"
"Don't panic! We just need to buy some time for the Nadesico!"
Reika stood up from her place and quickly slipped back into her no-nonsense persona. She slipped into a narrow passage, took out her comm device, and opened a channel to her 'employer'. "Banjou... Reika here! It seems that one of our predictions came true after all. Jovian Lizards are heading towards the spaceport. Nergal is already scrambling to intercept the enemy and drive them away. What should we do?" she asked, keeping her voice as low as possible while still allowing the person on the other side to hear her...
oooooooooooo
In a control room, not too far from the Nergal spaceport, the person Reika was talking with was observing the situation from a large computer screen, on which images from several surveillance cameras were being broadcast. A young man nearing his twenties, holding a strong and determined demeanor that made him look a bit older than that, Haran Banjou, the last remaining heir of the Haran financial clique, paused for a few moments to reflect on what Reika had just said.
"I understand, Reika. Good job. Now, get to safety along with the rest of the non-combat personnel. I think things are going to get quite hectic down there." He answered thoughtfully. "Still no trace of the Meganoids, then?"
"No, but there is still the possibility that they might launch an attack, taking advantage of the distraction made by the Jovian Lizards." Reika answered. That was just what Banjou had suspected himself.
The young billionaire nodded. "Of course. We'll start preparations to intervene, and keep a watch over the developments. For now… I'm kinda curious to see the Nadesico's capabilities." He answered, a mischievous smile appearing on his lips, and his voice tinged with interest. "Of course, should they find themselves in over their heads, we will intervene."
"Of course. I will join the rest of the Nergal personnel, and I'll make sure to update you as soon as possible. Over and out." Reika ended the conversation, and the young man nodded in approval before getting up from his seat. It was time to step on the stage… and there was no turning back this time!
oooooooooooo
Akito, still walking around the hangar when the alarm had sounded, had not been quite as composed.
"They… they have arrived… they're here on Earth!" he stammered, his eyes wide and unfocused as the terrifying scene replayed in his mind. For a moment, he felt like he was once again in that civilian shelter on Mars, powerless and terrified as the Jovian unmanned robots tore into the place, slaughtering his companions with impunity. Any time now, the mechanical insects would make their way into the Nadesico, and nothing would be able to stop them. It was just a matter of time… and he had to get out of there.
Frantically, Akito looked around… and the first thing that caught his attention was the pink Aestivalis standing the closest to him. His fear of war machines almost took over, and he stepped away from it… but his desperate need to get away from the Jovians and survive was soon able to override that. Reluctantly, he looked at the back of his shaking hand, and saw the rune-like symbol of his own Image Feedback implant. Much as he didn't have fond memories of it, that was his best – and probably only – chance to get out of that nightmare alive. At that moment, the only thing that counted was to get away from that place…
"I… I won't die here like a cornered rat!" he murmured to himself as he began to climb onboard the pink mecha…
oooooooooooo
On the Nadesico's main bridge…
"The Jovian Lizards will enter our airspace in 10 minutes." Ruri stated matter-of-factly as she looked at the screens above her console. Her pale hands were placed upon the surface, an IFS symbol glowing brightly upon the back of her right hand, and her golden eyes sported a strange silvery luminescence. "An Earth Union squadron has just taken off to intercept them."
"Sweet!" an excited Gai exclaimed, glad that the chance had finally come to show off his skills in real combat. Everyone ignored his gloatings, and jumped to attention at the mention of the invaders from Jupiter. "They have arrived already." Yurika said, switching from her usual bubbly self to what people would call her game face. Her voice lowered just an octave, and her expression turned focused and determined. "Honestly, I was expecting them to arrive, but not this soon."
"That's not a problem, we'll just have to blast those damned invaders out of the sky!" Munetake tried to take charge of the entire situation.
Mr. Hori sighed in annoyance, being used to the hysterical Admiral's antics. "And how, exactly?"
"That's pretty simple, of course!" Munetake exclaimed, slamming his fist on a nearby console. "The Nadesico has the newest Gravity Blast, right? We'll use that to destroy them all?"
"But this way, our allies will be caught in friendly fire." An unimpressed Minato pointed out. Everyone, including Gai, stared at Munetake in disapproval.
"That's just a cowardly way of fighting." The dark-skinned pilot answered.
"Why don't we hear what our captain has to say?" Mr. Prospector asked, before turning to Yurika. The blue-haired young woman nodded in assent and began explaining her own plan.
"What we need to do is create a distraction." She began. "We need to trick them into disengaging with our troops and force them to follow us. After they have been separated, we will have our Gravity Blast charged up and ready to destroy them.
Gai knew that was his cue. "And that's where I come in, right? I will be the distraction!" he answered, a wide grin on his face. "I will draw the Jovian bastards away thanks to my robot, while you take off and blast thrm to nothing! Whooo-hoooo! Talk about a burning debut!"
Just then, Ruri noticed something on one of the screens. "Excuse me, Captain. I believe an Aestivalis unit is already launching." She pointed up. Immediately, Yurika's face slipped into an expression of confusion, just like that of several members of the crew.
"What the heck?" Gai exclaimed. "How is that possible? I thought I was the only pilot here, for the moment?"
"I have no idea… let's try to get in contact with the Aestivalis!" Prospector said. "And we need to do it fast! The Jovians will be upon us in a few moments!"
oooooooooooo
"There's no way I'm going to get dragged into this shit! I'm just a freaking cook! If they want to fight their stupid war, they can do it without me!" Akito murmured to himself. After climbing onboard the pink Aestivalis he had found in the hangars, he had activated it thanks to his IFS implants, and had boarded an elevator to the surface, hoping to make a beeline for safety and away from the spaceport. Part of him was disappointed that he had to run away that way just now that he had the chance to question Yurika about what had happened to his parents on Mars... but as far as he was concerned, it wasn't worth risking his life over.
He had just about emerged from the elevator shaft... and just then, he was startled by a luminous comm screen popping up right in front of his face, showing Mr. Hori's stern face glaring at him in suspicion! Akito yelped in surprise and grit his teeth as the man wasted no time questioning him.
"Who are you? Why are you boarding an Aestivalis? Are you a pilot?" he questioned. "You should be aware that what you're piloting right now is a humanoid weapon developed by Nergal Heavy Industries for the army."
"Wh-what?" Akito stammered. "No... no, wait, I'm not a pilot! I'm just a cook on this ship! I... I just got the job... about one hour ago, at most!"
"Hey! That's the kid I met in the hangar!" Gai's voice exclaimed. "What do you think you're doing, piloting a robot? Trying to upstage me?"
Akito was getting more and more flustered. More than a state-of-the-art new battleship, the Nadesico was beginning to look like a nuthouse! "Th-that's not it! What gave you the idea?"
"We cannot just overlook you taking one of our Aestivalis units and taking it for a stroll." Goto thundered. "Tell us your name and rank!"
Akito hesitated for a moment, unaware of the many pairs of eyes looking at him incredulously from the Nadesico's screens... among which, those of a certain blue-haired newly minted Captain. "Erm... my name is... Akito Tenkawa... and I'm a cook!" he said hesitatingly. A collective exclamation of incredulity came from the rest of the crew... except Jun and Yurika who were still looking at the newcomer, recognizing him as the young boy they had met by accident on their way to the spaceport.
"A cook? What's the meaning of this?" Munetake ranted. "Since when is a freaking civilian allowed to pilot an Aestivalis?"
"Please, Admiral, do calm down!" Prospector tried to play peacemaker. "I just offered that kid a job as a cook! I had no idea he could pilot an Aestivalis!"
"I can't believe this. I just can't believe this." Goto muttered, shaking his head.
"Hmm... looks like things are getting quite a bit more interesting now." Minato stated, a mischievous smile playing on her full lips.
Jun finally regained enough of his wits to speak. "Say, Yurika... is that guy... he's the same one we met on our way here, isn't he?" the young man asked in curiosity.
Yurika nodded silently, her mind still processing what she had just heard. That name... Akito Tenkawa... it couldn't be, could it? She had been sure that her beloved childhood friend had been lost so long ago, or at least, when the Jovian Lizards had attacked Utopia... could it really be that he had survived, and she hadn't recognized him at first?
That sounded like a very lucky turn of events...
And yet, as she looked at the young man on the big screen, she could definitely see the resemblance, even with more than ten years having gone by... the same spiky dark brown hair, with the matching eyes... the innocent look on his face... and even the same attitude... no, there was no way she could mistake that!
That guy was indeed Akito, Akito Tenkawa, her dearest and oldest childhood friend!
And that realization caused her face to light up in the biggest smile she could muster!
"AKITO! IT'S AKITO!" she exclaimed, her voice suddenly growing about a couple of octaves or more! Suddenly, another comm screen popped up in Akito's cockpit, and the poor guy found himself staring in the blue-haired young woman's obliviously happy face! "It's been so long, Akito! How have you been? I've missed you so much ever since my family moved away from Utopia! What's been like for you? I know you missed me too!"
"W-w-w-wait a second!" Akito stammered, growing more and more frustrated and flustered by the moment. "What's the meaning of this, Yurika? You... you are the captain of this ship, right?"
"Indeed she is." Prospector stated, a third comm window with his face on appearing right above Goto's. The large man frowned, feeling like he was being sidelined. "She scored at the top of her class despite her age... and her father is a reknown admiral of the Earth Union Spacey! She was the most logical choice for this endeavor!"
"Exactly! I am the captain of the Nadesico! Pretty cool, huh?" Yurika continued, her smile only growing more radiant, and her hands proudly placed on her hips.
Jun blinked, feeing uneasy at this random boy suddenly showing up and monopolizing Yurika's attention. "Er... Yurika... do you happen to know this guy?" he asked, dreading the answer. Was he getting jealous right now?
Yurika, for her part, seemed to be quite oblivious to Jun's feelings. "Of course I do!" she beamed. "Akito was my best friend when we were children on Mars! He's my knight in shining armor! He was there every time I was in trouble!" With that, she quickly turned to Akito, before the unfortunate guy could correct her on her wild statements. "Akito, I am deeply grateful for your bravery. You know I would never put your life in danger by acting as a decoy… but since I know how determined and stubborn you can be, I have no real choice but to allow you to do as you wish."
"What the heck are you saying?" Akito exclaimed. "You're making this all up!"
"But don't worry, my dear Akito… we will be there to support you in a snap!" Yurika obliviously answered. A loud metallic clank shook the lift, and Akito realized that he had reached the surface. And much to his horror, he was surrounded by a bunch of unmanned Jovian robots. "Now, just distract the Jovian robots for about ten minutes, okay? We'll be ready to intervene by then. I know you will do a great job, Akito!"
Goto sighed, having been unable to get in a word. "Whatever. Do your best to distract the attackers, Tenkawa."
Megumi's freckled face appeared in a comm window as well. "Good luck to you, Mr. Pilot!"
"Don't you dare try to upstage me!" Gai angrily ranted.
"And try not to damage that Aestivalis too much." Prospector concluded with a wry smile. All three comm windows winked out of existence a moment later, leaving a flabbergasted Akito to stare in disbelief at the controls… and then, at the Battas surrounding him! A small army of the yellow locust-like robots had gathered near the exit of the lift, surrounding him…
"Damn… what have I gotten myself into?" Akito murmured to himself. He saw a gap in the Jovian robots' formation, and wasted no time rushing towards that, putting as much distance as he could between himself and the enemies. "No way I'm doing this! I'm outta here!"
The pink Aestivalis sped towards the only available escape route, and the Battas wasted no time in giving pursuit…
oooooooooooo
"Gaaaah! Will you look at him? He's running away like a chicken!" Gai exclaimed, getting angry at Akito's mad dash to try and get away from the Battas. "Stay there and fight, you coward!"
"He's actually doing a very good job." Prospector noted. "By running, he's drawing the Jovian drones' attention towards him, which will allow us to launch the Nadesico without further problems."
"Akito is doing his best to let us launch. He's risking his all, like a true knight!" Yurika dreamily murmured, lost in her romantic fantasies. But a moment later, she opened her eyes and set herself for what she had to do, switching to her shockingly no-nonsense persona. "We cannot do any less. Please, everyone, get ready for takeoff. Check Phase-Shift Engine and start the takeoff sequence! We're launching! And... Ensign Yamada, please get ready to launch!"
"I told you, my name is Gai Daigouji!" the pilot angrily answered. He was already halfway to the hangars when the order came, and wasted no time in getting back on the lift and heading to his mecha.
"Just don't even put a dent in my precious Aestivalis, you hear me?" Seiya called out after him.
"Well, if nothing else, we're enthusiastic about this." Ruri noted in a deadpan voice. Near her, Megumi and Minato were at their seats already, and Jun was busying himself with the final checks...
"Excuse us! Aesti pilots coming through!"
Just then, a strong female voice echoed throughout the main bridge, and a surprised Yurika raised her head as the doors on the other side of the main bridge slid open. "Get moving, you two slowpokes! Those damn Jovian robots aren't waiting for us!" said the person who all but charged into the main bridge – a tomboyish-looking teenage girl with short bright green haired and an athletic build, already dressed in the standard red-and-black pilot suit, much like the two young women who were following her, breathlessly trying to keep up with their comrade.
"Give us a break, Ryoko!" a pretty glasses-wearing redhead exclaimed, her shorter legs barely allowing her to keep the pace with her companion. "We've been running like the wind!"
"We already had a lucky break. This won't break us." answered the third girl – a tall, thin, pale-skinned young woman with long emerald green hair falling in a large fringe on her face and concealing her right eye. She chuckled, as if she thought she had said some kind of phenomenal joke, as the three girls marched to the center of the bridge and drew several incredulous gazes in their direction.
"Excuse us for the lateness!" the green-haired girl stood at attention and snapped a military salute in front of Yurika. "We are the newest group of Aestivalis pilots assigned to the Nadesico! We need to know where we can board our machines to sortie against the Jovians. You're the captain of this ship, right?"
The other two girls saluted as well, and Yurika stared at the three of them in confusion, not knowing what to think of them. She quickly regained her composure and cleared her voice. "Er… may I ask for your names and rank?" she ventured.
The green-haired girl named Ryoko wasn't quite so patient. "There is no time for that! We need to get to our Aestivalis and go out there to fight off the Jovians, or this spaceport will be blown to kingdom come!" she retorted in annoyance.
Luckily, her companions were rather more willing to cooperate. "Hiya! My name is Hikaru Amano, 18 years old, blood type B, aspiring manga writer, and my favorite food is pizza crusts and soggy rice cakes!" the glasses-wearing redhead introduced herself, her blue eyes getting even wider in her enthusiasm. "Pleased to meet ya, everyooooone!"
"Izumi Maki. Issue me for marking the fireplace." The tallest of the girls answered with a short, chuckling laugh. Yurika blinked in confusion… and the leader of the trio of girls, seeing as there was no way to avoid that annoyance, decided to get it over with as soon as possible.
"Lieutenant Ryoko Subaru. Leader of the squad." She answered. "So, can we go to our Aestivalis or not?"
"Wh-what are you trying to pull? Don't forget your place!" Admiral Munetake angrily ranted. "Do you think you can just waltz up to the bridge and demand to take your Aestivalis?"
"You can take the elevators to the hangars right there." Yurika answered with a wide smile, not offended at all by Ryoko's rude attitude. Munetake, feeling that the wind had been taken out of his sails, almost did a facefault right then and there! "Take care out there, and good luck!"
"Hah! You bet we will kick some ass out there!" Ryoko answered confidently. "You heard the captain, girls! Let's go out there and show these Jovians who's boss!"
"Right away!" Hikaru practically squealed.
"These Jovians won't be jovial." Izumi exclaimed, throwing out another one of her wordplays. With a quick dash, the three female pilots headed for the elevators to reach the hangars and their respective units, while the rest of the crew followed them with their eyes, still not knowing what to make of them…
Munetake, for his part, was left to sputter in outrage. "The… the… the NERVE of that woman! I'll have her court-marshalled so help me!" he ranted breathlessly.
"Er… Yurika, since I will be your XO, I think I should tell you… I'm not really sure about this." Jun started to say. "Are you sure those three can be trusted to handle the Jovians out there?"
The blue-haired young woman smiled in satisfaction. "It will be okay. You worry too much, Jun. Those girls may be kind of strange, but I know about them. Lt. Ryoko Subaru has graduated with top grades at her military school, and her family has a pretty long history with the Earth Union military. And with my dear Akito fighting out there, everything will go smoothly!"
"I hope you know what you're doing, Yurika…" Jun sighed, looking like he had seen it all already.
oooooooooooo
But the Nadesico crew were not the only ones keeping an eye on the battle...
"Commander Benmel! The Jovian robots are currently engaging one of Nergal's new mobile weapons!" a Meganoid soldier exclaimed from his seat onboard Benmel's pirate ship inspired battleship. "It appears to be a humanoid type, much like a Gundam."
The Meganoid commander adjusted his hat as he sent a disgusted look at the Battas trying to surround Akito's pink Aestivalis. "Ugh... such utter lack of a sense of aesthetics, these Jovians. Then again, what was I expecting?" he commented. Seeing Akito's Aestivalis, however, caused him to lighten up considerably. "On the other hand, that pink robot has a pretty sweet design! I will consider giving it a place in my collection!"
"Alright, soldiers! Let's get in range! We need to stay just out of the area where the fighting is happening!" Benmel instructed his underlings. "Our big prize is the Nadesico, and I'm sure it will show up pretty soon! We'll capture both the Nadesico and its crew in one fell swoop! And then Don Zauser will be proud of me, and I will get a promotion!"
The commander sighed dreamily, and several silvery sparkles lit up around his body as he fantasticized about the many perks of having an higher rank... including but not limited to having better chances to be sent to an important mission and collect more miniaturized mecha for his collection. Oh, this was going to be his breakthrough, he could so feel it in those old bones of his, that he could hardly contain his excitement!
The Meganoid soldiers inwardly groaned at the sight of their commander lost in his thoughts. That was par the course for him, always thinking about his so-called precious mecha collection rather than his mission...
oooooooooooo
Akito's pink Aestivalis had almost touched its maximum land speed as it continued to run, with several Battas hot on his trail. Biting back a curse, the young cook realized there was no way he could keep evading the murderous robots, with the way his Aestivalis was moving. Some of the robotic bugs were already about to catch up to him, and several vulcan rounds zipped past his mecha, missing him by only a couple meters.
"Dammit... this is getting nowhere!" Akito growled. Despite his fear, he grit his teeth and turned to the attackers, determined to hold out as much as he could. "Alright, that does it! No more running! You won't take me that easily! Haaaaaaaah!"
Yelling in desperate rage, Akito pressed hard on the controllers, and the IFS symbol on the back of his right hand lit up. At the same time, the pink mecha raised its right arm... and its clenched fist flew towards the closest Batta, connected to the rest of the limb only by a flexible steel cable! The wired punch struck the mechanical bug with tremendous power and sent it flying back an impressive distance before it crashed on the concrete, exploding upon impact and scattering a group of its fellow invaders! A split second later, the arm reattached itsef to the Aestivalis, as if it had always been there, and Akito stared at it for a moment in sheer amazement.
"What?" the young man murmured, before a wide smile spread upon his face. "That's awesome! It's like the Gekigan Punch!"
His cheerfulness only lasted for a few moments before the rest of the Batta, undaunted by their brethren's demise, kept advancing towards Akito with murderous intent. Snapping back to reality, the young cook reached for a weapon, and grabbed the Rapid Rifle on the Aestivalis' back. He took a step back and showered another Batta with gunfire, destroying it... then, he jumped away as more mechanical bugs released a barrage of micro-missiles. He had dodged just in time, and the missiles impacted on the ground, leaving several craters but sparing the pink mecha; then, Akito made another lunge and stabbed another Batta with his Aestivalis' close combat knife. The mechanical locust ceased functioning and collapsed, but more of its number began advancing on Akito.
"Ugh... this is bad..." the young man murmured, using his Rapid Rifle to try and keep the attackers at bay. But his aim was off because of his haste, and only a few bullets found their mark. Akito had started out well, but against such a huge number of enemies, he knew he couldn't last long.
His onboard sensors warned him on an imminent collision. One of the Batta had broken formation and was launching itself at Akito's Aestivalis, trying to ram it with all of its power. Akito cursed and got ready to dodge, and he saw the Batta slow down dramatically for just a second...
"GEKIGAN PUUUUUUNCH!"
A clenched robotic fist struck the Batta from its side, stopping its charge cold and sending it to crash in the distance... and a moment later, the heavyset blue Aestivalis that Akito had seen testing in the hangar came to the rescue, mowing down a pair of the yellow insectile robots with its Rapid Rifle.
"Feel my wrath, Jovian scum! GEKIGAN SHOT!" Even though it was somewhat distorted by the electronics, Akito could not mistake that confident, loud voice...
"Jiro... I mean, Gai? Is that you?" Akito asked incredulously.
"Of course! Who the Hell did you think I was?" the taller young man answered, his Aestivalis pointing a thumb at itself shortly before it turned its attention back to the enemy. "Heads up, kiddo! These things aren't going to let up!"
"I... I'll do my best!" Akito answered. "Thanks for the save. I thought I was a goner for a moment..."
"And that's why you should leave such jobs to the professionals!" Gai answered, slicing at an approaching Batta and cleaving it in half. Then, Gai smiled and turned to Akito once again. "But... you didn't do half a bad job at all, kiddo! You stopped running away and fought these robotic freaks head-on, like a man should!"
Akito blinked in surprise, but he quickly snapped back to the battle and shot down a Batta that was trying to dive down upon him. "Well... I was simply trying to survive, that's all! Thank you for your praise, anyway!"
"No need to thank me! What's important is that you're safe and sound!" Gai answered, showing his trademark wide cocky grin. "Just remember not to go out more gloriously than me, okay? Now, let's go take down these Jovian jerks!"
"A-alright!" Akito quickly answered. The Battas seemed to have been momentarily thrown in disarray by Gai's intervention, and the two young pilots took advantage of that to unleash a barrage of gunfire upon them. Several of the mechanical bugs were taken down, but the rest quickly regrouped and fired their vulcan guns to keep the Aestivalis units at bay. "Ugh... too many of them! We're not gonna be able to defeat them all!"
"Aaaah, weren't you paying attention at all? We're not to defeat them all! Just buy time for the Nadesico to arrive and blast them all to kingdom come!" Gai exclaimed with a mock-exasperated groan. His blue Aestivalis' fist seemed to glow with energy, and he made a mad dash towards a pair of Batta that were aiming their missiles at him.
"GEKIGAAAAAAN FLAAAAAAARE!"
Before the Battas could realize what was going on, he lunged his Aestivalis' fist at them and smashed the closest of them to a pile of scrap metal! With a victorious yell, Gai slashed with his combat knife and struck down another Batta. Emboldened by his companion's unrelenting bravado, Akito took a deep breath and fired his Rapid Rifle at another couple of Batta, downing one of them before closing up on the other and stabbing it with his combat knife. The two young men were showing remarkable teamwork, covering each other's weaknesses and working in tandem to destroy the Jovian robots... and the shattered husks of numerous enemy mecha already littered the floor!
But it was clear that it was only a temporary advantage. More Battas were already converging upon them, and both pilots knew all too well that they would be defeated in a prolonged fight. "Hmm... okay, cook! We've got their attention alright! Let's do a strategic retreat and let the captain do her thing!"
"Okay! I wasn't keen on staying here long anyway..." Akito answered. Both Aestivalis units made a dash for it, with the Jovian mechs in hot pursuit, only turning back for a few moments to fire a few shots at their pursuers.
"We need to take to the air! The Nadesico needs to aim its Gravity Blast at these pieces of scrap metal!" Gai exclaimed, now nearing a cliff over the sea.
Akito narrowly avoided a few more missiles from the Battas. "And how do we do that, exactly! I don't think these Aestivalis can stay in the air for long..."
He was expecting Gai to pop up on a comm screen in front of him and make another of his silly speeches that had little to do with reality... but much to his surprise, it wasn't Gai who answered, but a green-haired young woman in the female version of an Aestivalis piloting suit, whose comm window had appeared right in front of him and above the controls. "You two keep going towards the cliff, you hear me? Make use of your Aestivalis' propellers to leap up and draw the Jovians towards you! We're coming to support you!"
"Wh-what the...? Who are you?" Akito asked awkwardly. "And who do you mean by... we?"
"What's a girl doing in a Super Robot trying to be the protagonist, anyway?" Gai exclaimed in annoyance.
That got him a nasty glare and a thorough tongue lashing from the green-haired girl, whose comm window comically expanded to twice its size as she went right into his face! "Trying to save your stupid ass, if you don't mind! And by 'we', I mean me and my companions, right here!" she exclaimed.
Before Akito could answer to that, a fiery red Aestivalis flew in front of him, using its propellers to keep in the air with amazing skill! Its wired fist shot forward towards the closest opponent and struck the Batta in the head, literally caving it in! The mechanical bug exploded a split second later, just as two more Aestivalis – one orange and one green, the same ones Akito had seen in the hangar only a few moments earlier - began wading through the Jovian invaders, systematically taking them down!
"Go, go, go!" the pretty redhead in the orange Aestivalis exclaimed as she showered the Battas in gunfire.
"Go-Go Boots. These boots are made for walking." the creepy-looking pale-skinned girl in the green mecha answered quickly. She cut down a stray Batta before opening fire as well and destroying a Batta that seemed to be heading towards the red Aestivalis.
"Quit your clowming, Izumi! And concentrate on taking out these bots!" the green-haired girl exclaimed in annoyance. The three female pilots went on the offensive, shooting down several Batta as they advanced more and more. The mechanical insects hung back a little and fired a few more missiles, and the three girls scattered followinga well-rehearsed battle plan.
"Hah! Just like the robots they are, these Battas have no imagination at all!" the green-haired young woman commented with a grin, clearly enjoying herself as her Aestivalis' fist smashed into another Batta. "We can hold them back no problem!"
"You sure can get your blood running in a battle, Ryoko..." the glasses-wearing girl answered with a quiet giggle. She still showed to be no one to be taken lightly, as she stabbed a nearby Batta with her close combat knife, sending the vanquished enemy crashing to the concrete below. The other girl, Izumi, seemed to prefer long-range fighting, since she tried to keep her distance and fired her Rapid Rifle at the incoming foes with impressive accuracy.
"Wow..." Akito could only widen his eyes in amazement as he watched the trio of female pilots systematically hold back the Jovian horde by themselves, dodging and weaving in and out of the enemies' attacks while delivering some solid counters of their own. "These sure are some tough girls... I'm feeling kinda... inadequate compared to them!"
Of course, Gai was not going to let this slide. "Aaah, never mind that, kiddo! Are you going to let a bunch of girl upstage you? Piloting a robot and defeating the enemies of justice... has always been a man's job!" the mecha otaku exclaimed, before getting back into the fray and punching a nearby Batta with what he called a Gekigan Flare. The enemy hung back, but it was clearly just a temporary retreat, in order to reorganize themselves and make another attempt at overwhelming the Aestivalis quintet.
"Guys, be careful!" Hikaru warned. "I think they're up to something!"
As if they had pinpointed him as the weak link of the team, the Battas swarmed towards Akito's pink Aestivalis, and the young man widened his eyes as he realized that he was in their sights! Gai turned back and destroyed two of the attacking Battas in quick succession, but he wasn't fast enough to intercept a third one, which almost hit Akito's Aestivalis with a full-body ramming attack. Even though he had managed to avoid the most of it, Akito lost balance, and his Aestivalis went into a spiralling course towards the waters below!
"AAAAARGH!" Akito screamed in rage and panic, visions of his last days on Mars flashing before his eyes - the refugees, the shelter, the explosions... the Jovian robots... Ai's smiling face...
For a moment, Akito thought this was going to be the end of the line for him... at least, until he felt someone grabbing his own Aestivalis and preventing it from crashing! He felt himself being jolted arounf in his cockpit, and when he glanced around, he realized that his robot was in the grip of the green-haired girl's red Aestivalis.
"Oi! Get in the fight or stay outta the way, twit!" she growled. "You aren't helping by freezing up and panicking!"
"It's... it's not like I'm here because I want to! I just needed to see Yurika and ask her an important question!" Akito ranted angrily. "I would like to ask why is everyone so eager to fight!"
"Well, it's not like we can do much else, right now." Hikaru ventured as she tried to dodge a barrage of gunfire from a pair of Battas. "These things are attacking us, and we need to fight back in order to stay alive."
Ryoko, the green-haired ace pilot, nodded in assent. "What she said. If you're going to just hang back and feel sorry for yourself, then get off the robot and go hide in a bunker or something! But while I'm here, I'm going to do all I can to stop these bastards from taking our planet!" she answered.
She released her grip on Akito's Aestivalis and headed back to hold off the wave of Jovian invaders, leaving a stunned and bewildered Akito to stare in disbelief. His Aestivalis' hands shakily grabbed the Rapid Rifle hanging by his side, and he gulped down some saliva in order to suppress the wave of nausea and fear that threatened to wash over him. As much as he hated to admit it, Ryoko was right... they were being attacked, and those robots were not going to stop unless they were destroyed to the last one. The young man tried to chase away the lingering thoughts of his fellow Martian colonists' slaughter in Utopia...
But he couldn't find the time to act on his newfound resolve. Below him, the waters parted with a loud churning sound, and the young man quickly glanced down to see a massive, streamlined, almost shining white shape emerge from the dephts, looking majestic in the light of the moon! The Nadesico had just taken off and had reached the underwater escape route, emerging in order to assist the Aestivalis units!
"Alright! Here's the Nadesico!" Hikaru cheered.
"Hiya, Akito! I see you've been handling yourself really well here!" Yurika greeted her childhood friend in her usual bubbly, seemingly obliviously happy voice. Now that he was almost standing upon it, Akito had to admit that the Nadesico looked even more impressive. It was huge, completely covered in a shining white chassis with a few silvery and red highlights here and there that made it look even more dynamic, with two large prong-like "wings" in front and a pair of powerful thrusters mounted on the back, and yet it was flying with impressive speed and maneuvrability. Truly the Nadesico looked like the pinnacle of spacefaring technology. "And I see you've met our other pilots as well! I hope you can work together well enough!"
"Y-Yurika?" Akito stammered in surprise. "You're here already? I thought we'd have to hold on for ten minutes or so..."
"Oh, we hurried it up as much as we could!" the blue-haired captain cheerfully answered. "Now, please retreat! The Nadesico will take care of the rest!"
The Battas seemed to have identified the Nadesico as an higher-priority target, and those who could had disengaged from their battle with the Aestivalis to go after the new Earth Union battleship. As soon as they saw what was going on, Gai and the girls immediately flew out of the way, so that the Nadesico could have a clear shot at the swarm of mechanical monsters.
"Captain, our units have cleared the range." Ruri stated, eyes on the controls and the screens. "Gravity Blast charge complete."
Something opened up in front of the Nadesico, in the center of its main hull, and it began to flash with a strange, unsettling light, creating a strange ripple effect in front of the battleship. Small particles of dark light were being funneled into the opening, hinting at the immense power behind that weapon...
"Gravity Blast! Shoot down all enemies!"
At Yurika's order, the Nadesico's main weapon came alive, and a semitransparent beam of pure gravitational energy tore through the air and struck the immense swarm of robotic locusts, with devastating effects! The steely chassis of the Jovian unmanned weapons gave out under the massive gravitational pressure and were crumpled up like paper, and the robots began exploding in a lightning-quick chain reaction that lit up the sky and went on for several seconds before finally abating. What little was left of the Jovian unmanned units fell from the skies like so much dust, leaving the entire spaceport area safe again.
Akito, standing on the Nadesico's main hull, was absolutely breathless at the power displayed by the Nadesico's Gravity Blast. "Is... is that..." he murmured, his eyes wide.
"You should take the Gravity Blast with the gravity it deserves." Izumi, the pale-skinned girl piloting the aqua green Aestivalis, answered with a short chuckle. Glancing up, Akito saw that all five units were returning to the ship and gathering around him, eventually landing near him on top of the battleship.
"That was the Gravity Blast, didn't you know? It's the Nadesico's most powerful weapon." Ryoko stated. "With this, I'd say that the Nadesico is more than qualified to get to Mars and save the colons, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yeah! We're going on a rescue mission, and we'll beat up all the Jovian scum along the way!" Gai exclaimed. "Just wait for us, Jovian Lizards! The great Gai Daigouji and his companions will take on all comers! Just you wait and see!"
"Ooooh, man... where have I gotten myself into...?" Akito began to ask himself.
oooooooooooo
"Did you see that blast?"
"Kinda hard to miss it, anyway..."
"This might be a problem..."
"Commander Benmel, what are we supposed to do?" a Meganoid operator finally asked his commanding officer, still spooked by the destructive power the Nadesico had displayed. "You've seen for yourself what that battleship is capable of doing..."
Unfortunately, Benmel was not too concerned with the Nadesico's Gravity Blast for now, as much as with the ship in and of itself. His good eye had turned into a huge pink heart, and the closest Meganoid soldiers could swear he was practically salivating at the sight of the battleship! "Ooooooh, it's absolutely gorgeous!" he exclaimed, looking for all the world like a child about to buy his favorite toy. "Wonderful! Amazing! Outstanding! Just look at that streamlined profile! That pure white chassis! That compact design! And its robots, so small and yet so powerful and well-designed! This is heaven for a collector like me! Never mind that cannon thing! It will take some time for the Nadesico to charge it again, so... let's take advantage of that and drop our stealth! I MUST HAVE THE NADESICO IN MY COLLECTION!"
"B-but Sir... Commander Benmel... weren't our orders to capture the crew and..." a flabbergasted Meganoid soldier ventured, only to get whacked upside the head by Benmel's cane.
"YOU FOOL! This is a once in a lifetime occasion! How could I miss my chance to add the Nadesico to my beautiful mecha collection?" Benmel ranted. "Now, do as I ordered! We're taking her! Right now!"
There wasn't much the Meganoid rank and file could do other than bow their heads and accept their commander's orders...
oooooooooooo
On the Nadesico's main bridge, all tension had quickly evaporated. This easy victory against the Jovian forces had been hardly stressful for anyone on board. "Situation report, Miss Hoshino?" asked Mr. Hori as the pale-skinned preteen girl separated her hands from the interface.
"All enemy units have been silenced." Ruri reported, in thesame calm and detached tone of voice she'd have used to talk about the weather. "Our ground forces were attacked, but only five casualties were reported."
"O-only five?" Munetake stammered in disbelief. This was going to reflect horribly on him! "This... this must have been pure luck! A fluke! There's no way it could have happened!"
"Oh, I'm sure it was not just a matter of luck." Prospector cheerfully answered as he adjusted his glasses. "Our captain showed some serious skills out there!"
A wide smile appeared on Yurika's face, and she stood in place for just a moment, basking in her moment of glory before she turned to her so-called knight in shiining armor! "It's all thanks to you, Akito! You were amazing out there!" she exclaimed, blissfully oblivious to the fact that the other pilots were listening too.
Akito blinked in surprise. "Wh-what? Well, no, that's not really what I was going for..." he started to say... only for Ruri to glance down at her interface again. The IFS symbol on her right hand glowed once again, and the silver-haired girl's stoic expression seemed to waver ever so slightly for just a second.
"Captain, unidentified unit detected. It's right above the spaceport." she reported, causing Yurika's happy rantings to screech to a halt. In fact, the entire crew looked honestly worried right now...
"What?" Megumi asked. "What is that? More Jovian Lizards?"
Ruri pondered for just a second before giving her answer. "I don't think so. According to Omoikane's database, we are dealing with a Meganoid Death Battler."
Yurika actually began to grow worried. This was going to be a serious problem. She had seen the Megnoids in action at times, and had an idea of what to expect from them, but an actual Death Battler could present a real challenge, what with its support vehicles and onboard weapons.
"Be careful, everyone!" Yurika warned the pilots. "It's Meganoid Death Battler!"
"Meganoids?" Akito's eyes widened in fear as a peculiar-looking battleship began descending from above, looking for all the world like a pirate ship that could somehow float in midair. Several Ai-Ai, the standard airborne fighters piloted by Meganoid grunts, surrounded the flying ship, providing a thick line of defense as the vessel began to bear down on the Nadesico.
"Woah! Will you look at that! I never thought I'd see a flying pirate ship!" Hikaru exclaimed. "That's really awesome!"
"That's a Meganoid Death Battler, you dummy!" Ryoko answered angrily. "And that means we're in for one hell of a fight!"
"Yeah... The Meganoids... they're the cyborgs who captured so many people of Utopia... and turned them into more of their own!" Akito recalled. "I... have lost count of those who fell into their hands and never came back... and now we're going to have to fight that thing right after the Jovian Lizards?"
This was just getting worse and worse at every passing moment...
oooooooooooo
As the Nergal personnel busied themselves with all preparations and for an haphazard defense against the sudden appearence of the Meganoids, Reika Sanjou was able to get away from the midst of the confusion, and she once again activated the small communicator she always kept with her, then she hid into a gap between two buildings and started talking into it.
"Banjou? Banjou, this is Reika! Still calling from Nergal's spaceport..." she ventured. "The Meganoids have made their move! A Death Battler has just arrived, and I'm sure there is a commander on board... we're going to need Daitarn 3, ASAP!"
oooooooooooo
"I got it, Reika!" Haran Banjou, the young leader of the Haran financial clique, answered. "Garrison has already finished tuning up the Mach Patrol. We'll be there in less than five minutes!"
"Alright. Be careful, Banjou. These Meganoids seem to be playing for keeps."Reika warned before closing all communications. Eithout wasting time, Banjou stood up from his seat and turned to the three people standing behind him, showing them a confident smile.
"So, is it time yet, Banjou?" a sweet and bubbly female voice asked, clearly eager to take action.
The young billionairie nodded at his three companions. "It is." he stated confidently. "Looks like we're going to have to introduce ourselves to our friends on the Nadesico."
TO BE CONTINUED...