Super Robot Wars Alpha Clash: Book 1

A Super Robot Wars Fan Fiction Series by Ryoga316

Greetings. This fan fiction is based on the popular Japanese video game, Super Robot Wars. This is my first attempt on doing a fan fiction series, so I apologize if this one is not as good as it is expected. Before you proceed to the story proper, please read the Copyright Notice below:

COPYRIGHT NOTICE:

The following is entirely a fan fiction story of Super Robot Wars and is not in any way related to the actual Super Robot Wars story. Any reference or inference to any other copyrighted work is used for the same purpose. Super Robot Wars and its characters are copyright Banpresto and their respective owners. The original characters used in this fan fiction are copyright Ryoga316. Comments and Suggestions are welcomed at kaiser_reinhardt@yahoo.com.

NOTES: This is a revised version of the original fanfic. If you wish to view the fanfic in its original format, you may request it via my e-mail and I would be happy to send it to you.

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Chapter 1:

"Rage of The Beast! Arise, Grungust Nishiki!"

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Part 1

For years, animation has captured the hearts and imagination of people young and old. From likable characters to fantastic stories, and even giant robots, animation has entertained its audience for generations. In celebration of this, an animation convention was held in Japan every year, as the country is one of the top nations that produce quality animation ('anime' for short). This year, the anime convention is a very special one, for it pays tribute to three of the most popular robots in Japan and the world: The RX-78 Gundam, Mazinger Z, and Getter Robo.

It is the third day of the Anime Robot Generation Convention at the Convention Center in Hokkaido, Japan. People from all places gathered to show their entire robot collection as well as selling some of them as souvenirs. But the biggest happening inside the convention is at the very center of the convention hall as the first Junior Robot Competition is taking place. Here, teams design and build a 2-3 meter tall robot before the start of the competition and, based on its appearance and performance in action, the winning team wins not only the 750,000 Yen First Prize, but also a Special Access Card to be used to visit the Photo-Atomic Power Laboratory and get a first hands look at real life Mazinger Z robot as well as to meet its famed pilot, Koji Kabuto.

The 7 judges for the competition have already finished looking and observing at the previous teams and are now looking at the last team entry. The Head Judge, who is a rather large individual, but with the mind of an intellect and the gestures of a nobleman, adjusts his glasses as he looks carefully at the list of members of the last team from his sheet. He then calls out the team leader.

"Mr. Daisuke Yamato!"

Immediately, a young man steps forward and stands in front of the judges with a smile of confidence in his face. He then fixes the goggles in his forehead and straightens up his blue leather jacket as well as padding out any dust from his blue jeans. "Welcome, gentlemen! I'm Daisuke Yamato and this is my group, team Daisuke," said the young man as he bows to them.

"I see." replied the Head Judge. "And what is the name of the robot you and your team are building, young man?"

"I call it, the 'Daisuke Special'! The ultimate Super Robot! It's faster than the speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap the tallest building!" Daisuke replied as he shows the robot to the judges. The robot is somewhere between 3-6 meters tall and its entire torso is rather cone-shaped. The spider-like legs of the robot were designed to give both balance and agility. The arms, while thin, have a great reach and its pincer-type hands make for handling and lifting heavy objects. The Head Judge tries to maintain a straight face after hearing what Daisuke said, as well as the overall look of the robot. Just then, one of the judges, a female, notices two young women sitting on the desk with computers in front of them. "What do those young ladies do, Yamato-kun?" she asks.

"Oh, you mean the lovely ladies, Hime and Rena! They're assigned to monitor the overall status of the Daisuke Special. They're to make sure my lovely robot doesn't have any problems for if it does..." Daisuke paused for a moment as he pulls out a handkerchief from his pocket, then sniffs. "Oh, the agony!" He then blows his nose hard. The judge that asked about the two ladies only grumbled after hearing that. The Head Judge then looks at the notes to see their names: Hime Hidaka and Rena Mizuhara.

"And who are those two people over there?" asked another judge, who is tall and thin looking as he points out two people making adjustments on the Daisuke Special.

"They are my mechanics, Roi Hiko and Yui Takatsuki."

"Who will be the pilot of this robot?" asked yet another judge.

"The pilot will be Uriko Mitsuki." He then points to the young girl wearing a yellow suit and helmet sitting on top of the robot where the cockpit is located. After a while, the Head Judge notices that there are only 6 people in the group. The 7th was missing.

"Mr. Yamato, it appears your 7th member is missing. I think his name is..." He then checks the notes to get the name of the 7th member when a voice from behind interrupted him.

"Kazehino. Ryoga Kazehino." The Head Judge quickly turned around to see another young man standing in front of him with a sort of a serious look on his face. He has short, spiky black hair with bangs on the sides and portions of his frontal hair almost covering his right eye. He wears a sleeveless, yellow-colored shirt and black silk pants with yellow trimming, Kung-Fu Shoes and Tiger-striped wristbands. Aside from his serious-like look, what caught the judges' attention was the device attached to the young man's left side of his face. A green visor covers his left eye. What seemed to be a microphone is placed near his lips. His left ear is covered with a near square shaped box to where the visor and the microphone are attached to and a small antenna is straightened out from it.

"That's a unique device you got back there, young man," the Head Judge said.

"Oh, you mean this one? This is a special data scanner and communicator for me and the pilot." Ryoga replied. "It keeps me in touch with her while she is in the cockpit, as well as keeping me informed of the overall status of the mecha from the main computer handled by my friends, Hime and Rena." The Head Judge was impressed from what Ryoga has said. He is surprised that a group of young individuals were able to design a device that is simple and compact than the ones used by the Earth Federation, where most of the military personnel when in battle communicate one another thru the use of bulky communication backpacks as well as transmitters from bases and inside vehicles. The Federation, since the end of the One-Year War, has not made any advancement in communications simply because they have put all the attention on the research and production of the Gundams after the successful performance of the First Gundam, the RX-78, in the One-Year War. The Federation is also giving attention on the research of "NewTypes" --- human beings with the ability to communicate on very long distances by thought alone. Research has shown that NewTypes have other unique abilities that made them very valuable especially on the fields of battle. The basis and proof of this was in the case of Amuro Ray, the pilot of the RX-78 Gundam and one of the heroes of the One-Year War. Despite him being a civilian with no military experience whatsoever, Amuro Ray was able to pilot an experimental Mobile Suit, took out a huge number of Zeon Mobile Suits, him and the crew of the White Base which were made responsible for the major victories for the Federation, and the only man that can stand up against the most feared ace pilot from the Principality of Zeon: The Red Comet, Char Aznable.

"RYOGA, YOU SKUNK! WHAT THE DEVIL TOOK YOU SO LONG!?!" Daisuke suddenly shouted at Ryoga. "YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO HELP OUT HERE WITH THE GROUP! WHERE IN BLAZES WERE YOU!?! CAN'T YOU SEE THE JUDGES ARE HERE!?!"

"Err...sorry, Daisuke. I got a bit carried away by the anime marathon at the other side of the Convention Hall. You guys should see it! They're cool!" Ryoga replied as scratched the back of his head. The judges were quite surprised by Ryoga's sudden change of personality. Ryoga sounded so serious at first, and then began to sound a little silly. The Head Judge wasn't all that surprised since Ryoga is still a young man.

"I'd stuff you with nuts and bolts if you don't get to work! Now move it!" Daisuke then leaves and consults the two mechanics. Ryoga just nods and as soon as Daisuke turned his back, Ryoga's expression changed back to seriousness. He got pretty upset after being treated like that and grumbled. Uriko then spoke to Ryoga via the communicator.

"Relax, Ryo-kun. Dai-kun only wants to win the first prize very badly, so just keep your cool."

"Yeah, I know. I'll try my best not to let 'that' out and cause any trouble." He then makes a sigh and places his left hand on the communicator while he slowly moves in beside Hime and Rena. "How about you? You sure you can pilot it?"

"I'll be alright, Ryo-kun. Don't worry."

That's what I'm worried about, Ryoga thought. Although both he and Uriko have never actually piloted before, Ryoga was more experienced in handling flight controls than Uriko thanks to his long period of taking Flight Simulations in the arcades, but was denied to pilot the Daisuke Special thanks to his what he calls the "Rage of The Beast", which grants him pure determination and concentration at the price of having the personality of a hot-blooded tough guy. To his friends' knowledge, Ryoga's overall personality was the result of several events Ryoga has experienced in his past life, which is why Ryoga has a habit of sudden change of moods from time to time. Whatever those events are, nobody really knows. Despite this, Ryoga's relationship with Uriko and the others are very close and he is determined to take care and protect them at even at the least of his ability.

A minute or two has passed and Daisuke calls attention of the judges and informs them that the Daisuke Special is ready for action. All of Daisuke's members headed for their positions. Ryoga then informs Uriko to standby as Hime and Rena to monitor the robot's stats in general. The two mechanics then leave the robot alone and gives Daisuke, who is standing next to the judges, the thumbs up. Daisuke then tells Ryoga to tell Uriko to start the mech.

"Ok, Uriko. You may start." Ryoga said to Uriko.

Uriko took a very deep breath as she activates the robot. She then begins to hear the engines of the robot running as she looks at the indicators on her control panel light up. Her body starts to shake thanks to the vibration from her seat followed by the fast beating of her heart. She then begins to breathe heavily as she holds the control stick tight. Ryoga could hear Uriko's breathing and can tell that she's becoming nervous of the situation. Now it is Ryoga's turn to help Uriko maintain calmness.

Minutes passed as Ryoga continues to help Uriko maintain her focus while at the same time giving her instructions on moving the Daisuke Special. Uriko does her best to do her part as she follows the instructions Ryoga has given to her. When the performance test finally came to an end, Uriko sighed with relief as she shuts down the Daisuke Special and leaves the cockpit. And though she receives a lot of nags coming from Daisuke, everyone else complimented her.

After nearly an hour of waiting, the participants of the Junior Robot Competition were called to attention as the judges begin to announce the winner. The Head Judge now stands in the Winner's Platform with the 750,000 Yen check and the Special Access Card to the Photo-Atomic Research Institute in one hand and a small sheet of paper in the other as he makes a speech before announcing the winner. Daisuke's group waited with nervousness as to who will win the competition, most especially Daisuke, who is chewing his gloves as he loses patience.

"And now, the moment you have all been waiting for! The winner of this competition will receive 750,000 Yen as well as Special Access Card to visit the Photo-Atomic Research Institute! And the team that will win the prize goes to---" Before the Head Judge could announce the winner, a loud siren was heard in the Convention Hall. Everyone came to absolute silence as the siren continues to make its noise.

"WHA~~~~T!?! WHO!?! WHO THE HELL WON!?!" Daisuke shouted, but his voice was taken out by the sound of the siren. Despite this, Daisuke continues to shout to the Head Judge demanding on announcing the winner of the competition despite Roi and Yui's efforts to keep Daisuke calmed down. Hime, Rena, and Uriko looked into each other with worries on their faces. Ryoga, on the other hand, kept his worries hidden by maintaining quiet and serious as he looks at his friends, for he and everyone else in the Convention Center clearly understood what the sound of the siren meant.

Hokkaido is under attack.

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Part 2

As the sound of the siren echoes within the city, the giant mother ship known as the "Guul" slowly hovers over. The people below came into shock as the giant ship, which looks a bit like a large white Stegosaur with wings, looms over them. Inside the bridge, the half-man, half-woman individual known as Baron Ashler sits patiently as a soldier makes a report.

"Baron Ashler! We are here!"

"Excellent!" replied Ashler's female half. "Launch Garada K7 and begin the search operation! We must get that unit as soon as possible for Dr. Hell!"

"Understood, Baron Ashler!" replied the soldier. Within seconds, the hatch doors of the Guul opened and the robot known as Garada K7 leaves the mother ship and lands on the streets of the city. The robot is colored with shades of light purple with the body being human-like with the exception of its red colored chest being slightly well armored and a head modeled like a human skull with two giant sickles attached to it. Immediately after it's landing, the giant robot does what it does best --- destroying everything in sight.

There was no time to evacuate.

All the people within several meters away from Garada K7 were wiped out in seconds by the mecha's missiles that come out from its eyes. The buildings were no longer safe as the killer robot simply turns each one into rubble with its fists, destroying everything and everyone in it. The speeds of the transport trains are not enough to escape by Garada K7's giant boomerangs. Even with the aid of the Japanese Military and Air Force, which arrived minutes later, they were nothing more but mere bugs for the giant robot and they were wiped out just as easily as its other victims.

Inside the Convention Center, it was full of panic, confusion, and frustration as everyone tries to head to the entrance door. They knew that staying inside the building is too dangerous. There were lots of pushing, shoving, and even applying physical injuries among the crowd all just to stay alive. This chaos has separated Ryoga from his friends as he is being dragged away by the crowd. Try as he might, he is unable to push himself free.

Then suddenly, a hand reached out to Ryoga and pushes him further backwards until he was finally out of the crowd and into a nearby wall. He then could feel his back hitting hard against it. The second his back touches the wall, it suddenly gave way and Ryoga falls into the darkness. Before the darkness covered his eyes, he could see for a second as to who pushed him into the wall and into the darkness.

It was the Head Judge himself.

And as the darkness finally covers his vision, all Ryoga could felt was his body falling in mid-air. After a few seconds, he could he a very loud thud as his back hits the ground hard. And Ryoga passes out...

Time passed by after Ryoga falls unconscious. Whether it is seconds, minutes, or even hours, Ryoga has no idea for sure. As he stays motionless on the ground as though he was dead, a vision came to him. In his vision, there was nothing for him to see but bright white light surrounding him. The light was so bright Ryoga placed his arm over his eyes to shield them from the blinding light. Afterwards, a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him. As he lowers his arm to take a better view, he could see that the shadow was a giant standing several meters tall. The giant figure was as tall as the buildings in the city. The shadow then slowly kneels down to Ryoga and offers its hand.

Ryoga became slightly hostile at first as the hand slowly draws near him. But after looking at the shadow carefully, he began to have a feeling that this shadow is offering a sort of aid or friendship. After some hesitation and thinking, Ryoga finally decides to accept the shadow's offer and jumps right onto its hand. As the shadow's hand slowly lifts Ryoga off the ground, voices suddenly called his name.

"Ryo-kun! Ryo-kun!"

"Wake up, Ryoga!"

"Don't lie there as though you are dead, idiot!"

"Pull yourself together, Ryo-kun!"

"Please, Ryo-kun! Wake up!"

"RYO-KUN!"

Ryoga turned his head to find the direction as to where the voices came from. Suddenly, he notices he was no longer standing at the hand of the giant shadow. He is once more in mid-air. The white light became darkness once more.

And he starts to fall…and passes out.

Time passed by once again and Ryoga opened his eyes. The white light is still there, though not as bright as before. He can still see the shadow in front of him. But this time, it wasn't the shadow of a giant, but a shadow of a human.

A girl.

Uriko.

"Ryo-kun...thank goodness...thank goodness you're alright!" Uriko cried in tears as she hugged her friend tightly around the neck.

"Uriko..." Ryoga replied. "You're...cutting off my breathing..."

Uriko quickly lets him go with redness in her cheek. "Sorry, Ryo-kun..." she said as Ryoga gasps for some air. Uriko then helps Ryoga up on his feet.

"You ok, Ryo-kun?" asked Hime

"Yeah, I'm ok. How about you guys?"

"Same here." replied Roi.

"How did you all get here? And what is this place?"

"We have no idea, but we came here by accident." replied Yui.

"We got here thru some sort of secret passage while we were trying to leave the Convention Center with the Daisuke Special." Rena added. "Unfortunately, we were arguing as to whether we should look for you or leave. Uriko got distracted over the matter and we hit something. Then we---" before Rena finishes her story, a loud explosion was heard from above followed by an earthquake and the sound of rubble which lasted several seconds. As Ryoga and his friends fell to the ground from the shock of the earthquake, he noticed an object coming out of his shirt pocket and falling to the floor, but was unable to identify what it is thanks to the earthquake.

Finally, the earthquake and the sound of rubble stopped. Everyone then got up afterwards. Ryoga stayed down for a moment to pick up the object he dropped during the earthquake.

The object he picked up was the Special Access Card.

How come I am holding this, he thought to himself. Ryoga then remembered the Head Judge pushing him to the secret passage and assumes he placed the card in his shirt pocket as he fell. Before he could think further as to why the Head Judge gave him the card, Uriko started to speak.

"The explosion...was it...?"

"Above...from above..." Roi replied

"Does that mean...?" asked Hime

"Oh no..." Rena gasped. Then silence surrounded the entire room for several seconds. Ryoga turned his free hand into a fist and grits his teeth as he silently curses the attackers for doing such a cruel action. The explosion and earthquake clearly indicates that the attackers hit the Convention Center and the rubble meant the collapse of the entire building itself. Now, only 7 young individuals are left alive and trapped in an unknown area below the now destroyed Convention Center.

Finally, Daisuke broke the silence.

"This is no time to be mopping around! We have to get out of here or we'll be next!"

The rest were unable to speak back after this, for they are still in shock from what happened from above.

"Daisuke is right." Ryoga then replied calmly. "We have to find a safer area and fast. It's most likely the attackers will find this place as well."

Then Yui spoke.

"There's...there is a door located east of here. It seems to be the only door we can enter if we are to find our way out. But it's locked and requires some sort of card key."

"Card key?" Ryoga asked. Suddenly, he had a feeling coming from his head. It was a feeling that he could not explain, nor describe. Not a feeling of pain, nor is it comfort. Not even worry, anger, sadness, or joy. It was a feeling Ryoga has never felt before. And the feeling is a strong one. Then, he had a flash image of the giant shadow once again. He then makes a move.

"Let's go!" Ryoga called to the others as he starts to walk briskly ahead of them.

"Go? Go where?" Uriko asked.

"To the only place that may get us out of here." Ryoga replied. He then led the way and everyone followed him, with Uriko riding the Daisuke Special. All were wondering what Ryoga is planning. When they finally reached the locked door, which is big enough for the Daisuke Special to go through, Ryoga inspects the lock carefully.

Yui was correct. The lock is a small, green box with a red light on and a wide slot shaped to fit a card in. Ryoga then pulls out the card from his pocket. Daisuke looks carefully at the card Ryoga's holding and wonders how he got it, but then changes his thoughts as he recognizes the card.

"Wait a minute! Isn't that the Special Access Card!?! How the devil did you get that!?!"

Ryoga simply ignored Daisuke's ranting as he inserts the card into the lock. After a few seconds, a beep was heard. The red light that was glowing suddenly turned blue. It was then followed by loud clicking sound coming from the locked door. Then slowly, the door opened by itself.

"How...? I thought the Special Access Card is only for access to the Photo-Atomic Power Lab?" asked Roi, who like the others, were surprised at what they have just seen.

"...or that was just a cover-up." replied Ryoga.

"Cover-up?" asked Yui

"It all makes sense now. What's going on, why Hokkaido is attacked, and why we are here." said Ryoga.

"What do you mean, Ryo-kun?" asked Uriko.

"I'll explain later. Right now, our top priority is to get out of here." replied Ryoga as he entered into the darkness. The others were a bit confused over what is now happening. Nevertheless, they followed Ryoga.

Inside, they stand on a metal platform. The whole area is completely covered in utter darkness and all they could see are the rails from the front and sides of the platform they're standing. After a few seconds, the platform then started to move downward slowly. When it came to a stop, the lights around the area were turned on. Ryoga looked around as the darkness turned into light and noticed that the area is huge and the platform he and his friends are standing on is still several meters off the ground. The rails from the left and right sides of the platform give way, revealing two paths. Ryoga's left leads to what seems to be a metal door at the very far side of the area. On his right, the path leads to a room with glass windows. Using his scanner, the green lens began creating a duplicate image of what Ryoga sees and magnifies it like using a pair of Binoculars. Ryoga then switched the magnified image displayed from his lens into Infrared X-Ray Mode, allowing him to see the insides of the room. All he sees inside the room is a huge control panel loaded with buttons, levers, and display screens. He then gets the impression that he's looking at a Control Room and the entire area he and his friends are in is some sort of a large docking/storage room.

Ryoga uses the scanner once again to zoom in on the door at the end of the left path. The door seemed big enough for the Daisuke Special to fit through. The X-Ray showed that the door leads to another area. He then assumes that the door may lead the way out.

"What the...What the heck is that!?!" Daisuke shouted and points to the thing that is facing in front of him. When the others looked, they were surprised to find a giant robot standing, several meters tall, in front of them. The robot is humanoid looking and is blue colored with gold and silver trimmings on several parts of its body. Both its head and large chest area are shaped like that of a star. The arms are a little bulky and appear to be heavy armored while the legs seem to be slightly less armored from the rest, probably to give it more agility. Cone-shaped objects on what appeared to be engines like those of conventional airplanes are attached to each shoulder with wings on each side stretching towards the rear. A large tailfin and four boosters are attached on its back. Everyone is shocked at what they see, but Ryoga is shocked the most.

For the shape of the robot is similar to the giant shadow in his dream.

"A...a...a giant robot!?!" shouted Hime "But...why here?"

"I can't believe it..." said Rena as she observes the robot closely. "It's a Grungust!"

"Grungust?" asked everybody but Ryoga, who still stares at the robot.

"It's a special type of robot created by Tesla Reich Labs. The Grungust was used during the days of the One-Year War." Rena explained.

"How did you know all this, Rena?" asked Roi

"From the net. Some guy posted some info on this and even has pictures of it straight from the Tesla Reich Laboratory." She then goes back looking at the robot "But...it's the first time I've seen one in real life. Furthermore, this model looks a little different from the one I saw on the net." She then notices that Ryoga is still staring at the robot and not making a move, or a word, since. Before she could ask him what's wrong, Yui interrupted her.

"If what you say is true, Rena, does this mean that this, 'Grungust', is what these attackers are after?" she asked.

"Bingo." Ryoga finally spoke.

"Then, the card, the Convention..."

"…is merely a camouflage to hide this vicinity and to assure that the robot doesn't fall into the wrong hands. From the looks of things, this place has been around for quite some time." Ryoga then turns around to face his friends. "But it seems these attackers are willing to destroy the city and everyone in it just to find this thing."

"Then let's give it to them so they can get their butts out of the city and leave us alone!" Daisuke suggested.

"Are you out of your mind!?!" Rena objects. "If they get their hands on this one, they'll surely turn the city and the world into rubble with it!"

"Hey! I'm the leader of this group so don't criticize me! I say we give this to them!"

"And I say we DON'T!"

"Enough, you two!" Hime interrupts. "This is no time for arguing!"

"She's right!" said Roi. "If they want this robot badly, I say we USE it against them!"

"Not a bad idea, Roi!" Yui agrees. "We can have Uriko pilot it!"

"Me?" Uriko asks.

"That's right!" replied Roi. "You did well controlling the Daisuke Special, so you should do well piloting the Grungust too!"

Uriko thought about it for a moment. For the most part, she doesn't have the desire to pilot the robot simply because she hates wars of any kind and she doesn't want to be involved in it in any way. But knowing that her life, the life of her friends and the city is now at stake, she has to pilot the robot. Just as she was about to tell everyone that she is going to pilot the Grungust, another explosion was heard followed by another earthquake. Ryoga, who is standing at the edge of the platform, was unable to grab hold of the rail in time as the earthquake shook off his balance, causing him to fall off over the metal bar.

"RYO-KUN!!!!!" Uriko screamed.

Now in mid-air, it would take only a few seconds before Ryoga hits his body hard onto the ground, which are several meters above him. With nothing for him to hold onto, he curses himself for getting off-guard from the earthquake. Had he reacted sooner and grab hold of the rail, it would have kept him from falling off the platform. Fear and frustration; panic and anger; Sorrow and despair; these now surround Ryoga's mind and body as he yells in mid-air falling to the sure end of his life.

Finally, Ryoga's body landed.

But it wasn't the ground. For if it was, Ryoga would have been dead. Instead he landed on something else. And it broke his fall to the ground.

He landed on another platform. And it's moving upward back to meet up to his friends. Ryoga was relieved to see that Uriko and the others are all right. However, he noticed that they have the look of shock in their faces. When Ryoga looked at his friends, he can tell that the disbelief and shock from their faces didn't come from him being alive and well, but from something else. Then, he noticed that there's something not right about the platform he is on. Aside from its blue color, Ryoga noticed that the platform was in a shape of something --- a hand. As if he already thought of something, Ryoga quickly turned around to see where the arm of the hand shaped platform came from. It was as he thought.

The hand was from the Grungust.

As Ryoga looked up to the face of the robot, a feeling surrounded his body. It was the very same feeling he felt back at the room where he fell from the secret passage from the Convention Center. This time, the feeling is stronger than ever. Then suddenly, the feeling was gone. Ryoga now wonders what the feeling meant, but before he could make assumptions on it, the eyes of the Grungust began to glow. Then, its hand, where Ryoga is standing, began to move slowly towards its near star shaped chest. Then Ryoga made a thought.

"Are you...are you the one who is giving me this feeling?" he asked at the robot in front of him. He could not make an explanation to himself as to why he asked such a question. A robot, he knows, is nothing more but a machine with no life of its own. But why did this, 'Grunngust', appear in his dream? And a bigger question: why did the Grungust react when he fell and saved him and how? All these questions he had made, Ryoga knows he cannot expect an answer. He now turns his attention back to the Grungust as the giant robot slowly opens its chest, revealing an empty seat with control sticks located on its sides -- a cockpit.

"Ryo-kun!" called out Uriko. "What's going on?"

"I have no idea!" replied Ryoga. "But I have a feeling this robot wants me to be its pilot!"

"You a pilot!?!" shouted Daisuke. "You'll just trash the city if you---" before he could finish his sentence, yet another explosion was heard and another earthquake was felt. Ryoga, not letting the earthquake take him off balance again, quickly leaped right into the cockpit. As soon as he is seated, he gives a quick observation of the cockpit area before the opened chest then closes. The cockpit isn't much. It only consists of two control sticks located on each side of the seat. They look the same as the ones used in the arcade machines except that what appear to be gloves are attached around them and transparent orbs surround the sticks. A wide slot is easily seen below the base, allowing the pilot to literally pull the sticks back and forth like levers. A pair of foot pedals is attached below the seat, but they turn up in such a way that the pilot can move the pedals so freely like they're part of his own feet aside from pressing and depressing them.

As the cockpit doors finally close and Ryoga is now covered in pure darkness, the feeling returned again to him for a brief moment, then vanishes. Afterwards, a series of holograph-like computer screens begin to light up around him. The screens displayed a series of data, but they scrolled so fast that Ryoga is unable to read them. After a few seconds, the data and the screens disappeared except the one in front of him. The data in the front screen disappeared and is replaced with words. The screen read:

"GRUNGUST NISHIKI READY FOR ACTION"

"Grungust Nishiki…a 'Type II' Grungust…is the name of this robot?" Ryoga asked.

"Ryo-kun! Ryo-kun! Can you hear me?"

"Yes, Uriko, I hear you." Ryoga replied as he placed his hand over the communicator. "Are you and the others alright?"

"Yes, we're fine. What about you?"

"I'm ok here, but the robot is now up and running."

"Up and running? You mean it's active and operational?"

"Right." Ryoga then paused for a moment and begins to look back at the events that happened to him from the vision of the shadow up until recently. After some careful thinking, he made a wild guess that somehow, the Grungust has made contact with him. How and why, Ryoga has no idea. In any case, the Grungust may be the only thing that can stop the destruction of the city and the loss of any more human lives. With that in mind, Ryoga talked to Uriko once again.

"Uriko, you and the rest of the guys get back to the Daisuke Special and get out of here! I'm going to take the robot to the surface!"

"The surface?" Uriko was shocked from what she heard from Ryoga. "You're not going to battle against the attackers, are you?" Before Ryoga could answer, the screen in front of him now displays Uriko with a worried look on her face. The others begin to rant on what Ryoga said. Unknown to them, Ryoga could hear what they are saying, but not from his communicator, but from around the cockpit. The words "OPEN COMMUNICATION ENABLED" appeared in the lower-right corner of the screen.

"He must be joking! It's too dangerous!" said Roi.

"He could get killed!" Yui followed.

"Heh! He's only doing that so he could be the 'Hero of The Day'" said Daisuke.

"I heard that, Daisuke!" a loud, echoed voice was heard. It was Ryoga's voice coming from the Grungust. "Listen, guys! We have no time to argue! I'll try to hold them off while you all get to safety. Once that's done, let me know via the communicator and I'll catch up with you."

The others went silent after this.

"Trust me, guys. I'll live. I promise."

"...Alright, I understand." Uriko finally spoke. "Just promise us you won't die, ok?"

"Are you sure about this, Uriko-chan?" Rena asked. Uriko simply nodded.

"Well, he is right, after all. We have to get out of here." Hime said. "Ok, guys. Let's get back to the Daisuke Special."

"I'll assist Ryoga in launching the Grungust." Yui said and runs to the Control Room. "Roi! I need your help here!" she cried out.

"Right!" Roi immediately replied and followed Yui.

The screen in front of Ryoga now showed Uriko and his friends taking action. Uriko, Daisuke, Rena, and Hime began preparing the Daisuke Special while Roi and Yui head for the Control Room. Ryoga smiled as he sees watches, then closes his eyes and sighed. He knows very well that what he will be doing is very dangerous and that this is no arcade game he is playing. This time, there's no high score, no power-ups, and no continues. This is a real-life battle. A simple mistake could mean 'game over' --- permanently.

"Heh. Looks like we're in deep muck this time, eh?" Ryoga spoke to himself as if he was talking to the Grungust.

"Ryo-kun! Can you hear me? This is Roi."

"Loud and clear, Roi." Ryoga responded.

"We're opening the hatch exit now. Once it's open, the launch pad will lift you and the Grungust up to the surface. You'll come out a few blocks away from the Convention Center. It's going to be a rough ride, though, so hold on tight."

"Be careful up there, Ryo-kun" Yui said.

"I will, Yui. You guys too."

"Alright! This is Roi. All systems are good and in operation!"

"This is Yui! Opening hatch exit...now!"

"Hatch exit opened! Launch pad liftoff begins in T-minus 5 seconds!"

"4 seconds!"

"3..."

"2..."

"1..."

"This is Ryoga! Grungust Nishiki, LIFT OFF!!!"

------------

Part 3

"Baron Ashler! Baron Ashler!" called out a soldier.

"What is it?" Baron Ashler replied.

"I am picking up something coming from the north! Something is rising up to the surface from underground!"

"The north? Could it be...?" Baron Ashler then made a thought. "Soldier! On-Screen and pinpoint the location!"

"Yes, Baron Ashler!" the soldier replied and begins typing a set of commands on his keyboard. Soon after, the Bridge Display Screen, which currently shows Garada K7 destroying more buildings in the city, changed its view to the very area where the said unidentified object is rising to the surface. It was nothing at first except a few smashed buildings, but then the ground suddenly began to open up and a giant robot appeared afterwards. A surprise came to Baron Ashler as the giant robot is the one he/she is looking for.

"I cannot believe it. It is the Grungust Type II!" said Ashler's male half.

"Well, well. Looks like the fools have finally decided to give it up to us. Dr. Hell will be very pleased." Ashler's female half grinned, then waved the staff he/she is holding and is about to give the order to capture the Grungust when a small screen was displayed from the bottom left of the Bridge Display Screen showing a young boy sitting in a cockpit gasping for his breath.

"Man...that was...much scarier...than the Superman Ride at the amusement park...!" the boy panted.

"What the...? Who is that boy? And where is the transmission coming from?" wondered Ashler.

"Source of transmission is coming from the Grungust, Baron! The boy must be its pilot!" reported a soldier.

"WHAT!?! FROM THE GRUNGUST!?!" yelled Ashler.

Back at the cockpit of the Grungust Nishiki, Baron Ashler's yelling caught Ryoga's attention. As he lifted his head up to look at the screen, he stared at the individual holding a staff and wearing a robe with two colors: one side is colored dark blue. The other, colored purple. Ryoga was a little shocked when he looked at the face of Baron Ashler, who stared back at him: Half of Ashler's face was that of a female and the other, a male.

"You...are you the one who's destroying this city?" Ryoga asked.

"Whatever we are doing is none of your business, boy! If you don't want to get hurt, surrender the Grungust Type II right now!" Ashler responded.

"Surrender!?! After what you've done to the city!?! I won't forgive you for what you've done!"

"I asked you nicely, boy! And if you don't cooperate, I WILL show you what pain is all about!"

"Hah! If you really want this robot, it'll be over my dead---" before Ryoga could complete his sentence, Garada K7 executed a tackle on the Grungust from the side, sending it crashing into one of the buildings. Spit came out of Ryoga's mouth as he felt the shock of the impact.

"Baron Ashler, Garada K7 has now engaged the Grungust," reported a soldier.

"Good! Make sure the Grungust doesn't suffer too much damage. We need to deliver it to Dr. Hell with as minimal damage as possible!" Ashler's male half ordered.

"What of the pilot?"

Ashler did not answer immediately. Instead, he/she returned to the Captain's Seat and closed his/her eyes for a brief moment. Then opened them and replied to the soldier's question in a deep tone of voice.

"Kill him."

Inside the cockpit of the Grungust, Ryoga grumbled not just from the pain he suffered from the shock of Garada K7's attack, but also for making the mistake of challenging the attackers with a robot he had no idea how to control. But before he could make any more thought about his actions, a screen was opened on his right, displaying what seems to be radar showing an object that is approaching the Grungust Nishiki. Ryoga immediately looked at the Front Screen to identify the incoming object: It was the Garada K7, now airborne and is extending both of its feet, about to stomp the fallen robot. Try as Ryoga might in moving the control sticks, the Grungust remains motionless. Ryoga grunted in pain as Garada K7 landed both of its feet hard on the Grungust's chest, sending the shock of the Foot Stomp to Ryoga as well. The shock felt as though a giant rock fell down fast and hard on his body. Garada K7 followed up its Foot Stomp with a series of punches to the chest and face, sending even more shockwaves to the cockpit through Ryoga's body.

"Aaargh! Darn it!" Ryoga said to himself. "I'm being pummeled here and I can't even move!"

Then another blow from Garada K7 landed in.

"Come on, Grungust! Move! I want to hit that piece of junk right in the face!"

And came yet another blow...

"Argh! Move, Grungust Nishiki! Move! Let me at it!"

And another...

"Let me at it!"

And another...

"MOVE!"

And then, the feeling returned. Simultaneously and subconsciously, Ryoga's left hand releases the control stick as Garada K7 threw another punch. This time, the punch didn't land on the chest of the Grungust, but on its hand. Then, as Ryoga grasps tightly the right control stick, he pulls and pushes it forward, allowing the Grungust to throw a right hand to the jaw of Garada K7, sending it aback. As it fell back stunned from the blow, the Grungust slowly got back on its feet.

"What the...? What happened?" Ryoga asked himself from the sudden turn of events. Baron Ashler asked the same question as well. As Ryoga tried to figure out how he moved the Grungust Nishiki, Garada K7 has recovered from the blow to the jaw and began firing a series of missiles to the blue robot. The missiles connect, and Garada K7 continues firing until everything is engulfed in smoke. Then it stopped and waited if the missiles did the job. Baron Ashler watched as the smoke slowly clears. He/she was shocked to see the Gurngust Nishiki still standing. The arms were crossed over its head and chest to block the missile attacks. Inside the cockpit, Ryoga was surprised to see that the Grungust Nishiki reacted the way he wanted to react as though the missiles were aiming at him. Ryoga also recalled having the mysterious feeling again just as he was about to take action.

"This feeling...does that mean...you and I...?" Ryoga asked as though he was talking to the Grungust itself. As he looked at the screen, Garada K7 pulled out one of the giant sickles attached to its skull-shaped head and begins a Charging Overhead Strike. Ryoga quickly made a hunch as to how to move the Grungust the way he wanted to move.

"I hope this works, or else..." Ryoga said as he patiently waits for Garada K7 to get closer. When Garada K7 is finally close enough, it strikes its sickle down to the Grungust's face. The Grungust immediately countered the attack, grabbing Garada K7's striking arm just in time before the sickle barely touches its face. Then, it dragged Garada K7's arm downwards, causing the robot to lose its balance and dropping its weapon. The Grungust immediately executes an Elbow Strike to the face afterwards. Then grabs the head and drives it down to the knee sending Garada K7 to fall back from the knee-to-head strike. The Grungust then followed a One-Two Punch in the face, and finishes with a Forward Kick to the gut, sending it flying backwards and crashing into one of the buildings. But the skull robot isn't out yet as he slowly gets up from the rubble. Ryoga quickly makes his move as he picks up the giant sickle from the ground and throws it back at his enemy. Garada K7 grabbed the sickle as it approaches him, but the blades hit its gut severely, revealing its wires, gears, and other mechanical parts, stunning the robot.

"I see...I think I'm getting the hang of it now." Ryoga said. Then he looks back at the screen stares at the giant ship that is hovering behind Garada K7. Again, moving the control sticks and pedals subconsciously, he positions the Grungust Nishiki as if it's ready for combat.

Back at the Guul, Baron Ashler is very upset on the turn of events. Just as he/she was so close to retrieving the Grungust Nishiki, the boy pilot suddenly changed the pace. Angered at the current situation, Baron Ashler swings the wand to the side as he/she gives out an order to the soldiers.

"Launch Daburas M2 and Mechasaurus Bird! The Grungust Nishiki must be captured at all costs!"

With the order now called out, the hatch doors of the Guul opened again and out came two more robots. The first one, Daburas M2, is a green colored robot with humanoid-like arms and legs similar to that of Garada K7, but having two dragon-shaped heads rather than a skull-shaped one. The other, the Mechasaurus Bird, is a Pterodactyl-like robot with missiles mounted on its wings. Both now stick side-by-side with Garada K7, who now holds both boomerangs in its hands.

"Three against one..." Ryoga said. "Nice odds..."

"Now let's see if you can pull through this one!" Baron Ashler laughed.

"Baron Ashler!" called a soldier.

"What is it?" Ashler's female half asked.

"Two unidentified units from the far north are heading this way at a very fast speed!"

"What's that!?!" shocked Ashler's male half. "On-Screen!" Immediately, the screen moved from the Grungust Nishiki to where the unidentified units are coming from. Baron Ashler held the staff tight and grumbled, cursing at yet another turn of events. Although the soldiers could not recognize the incoming units, Baron Ashler, on the other hand, does, for he/she has seen the units in action during the One-Year War.

"Curses! Those are the Gespensts..."

Back at the cockpit of the Grungust Nishiki, the radar detected the unidentified units as well. Ryoga turned the robot around and looked at the two units approaching to him at a very fast speed, and then made a quick halt. The two black units look like Mobile Suits, but the designs are different. The head, when looked from the top view, is near triangular shaped and has visor-like eyes. The two fin-like ears appear to be the antenna of the unit. The arms were slightly large and almost round shaped, with white cylindrical objects attached to the left arm. The boosters in their backs were the ones that made them move at a fast speed as well as additional thrusters within the robots' heavy armed legs. One of the units is holding a rifle in its arm. The other one is bare handed. Ryoga has not seen the two units before and thus he is uncertain if they are the enemy or not. If they are, he thought, then he knows he is in major trouble.

Inside one of the Gespesnt units, Irmgardt Kazahara carefully observes the Grungust Nishiki from his monitor. Pressing several buttons from his left armchair, one of the smaller screens in front of him displayed an individual wearing a mask. Grinning, Irmgardt talked to the individual. "Now this is an interesting situation. Someone has piloted the Gurngust Nishiki."

The masked individual remained silent, almost giving no emotion.

"Heh. I know what you're thinking. In any case, our priority is to protect the Grungust Nishiki from falling into enemy hands, so be ready. I'm will make contact with the pilot." Irmgardt then begins pressing several buttons from the armchair.

Back inside the cockpit of the Grungust Nishiki, a beeping sound was heard followed by a text display message showing on the lower-right corner of Ryoga's front screen monitor. The message read: "INCOMING TRANSMISSION"

"Transmission?" Ryoga asked. "But from where?"

Then from his front screen monitor, two small windows were opened, showing two individuals. One seems to be wearing a gray pilot suit with some light purple trimming, but with no helmet. His hair is long and is colored with a mixture of blue and green. Has dark eyes, and judging from how his eyes are formed, Ryoga observes, he is somewhat of a mix of Japanese and Western. The other individual also wears the same pilot suit as the previous one and is without a helmet, but his entire face is covered in a mask.

"Well, well. Now this is even more interesting. A boy as its pilot!" said the green-haired individual.

Ryoga kept quiet for a moment as he looks at the two individuals. From their appearance, Ryoga thought, they don't seem to be coming from the attackers side. These individuals may belong to another group or faction. But the question remains in his head: Are they the good guys or the bad guys?

"Are you...are you with the attackers of this city?" Ryoga asked.

"Now, now. That's not the way to treat with your 'Backup'!" laughed the green haired individual.

"Backup?" Ryoga is confused with the pilot's reply, but before he could ask for an explanation, his radar suddenly detected movement from behind. Ryoga immediately moves the Grungust around to see the Daburas M2 now airborne and heading towards the robot with a Flying Kick. Ryoga is already too late to make another move, but fortunately for him, a beam came from behind the Grungust, hitting the Daburas M2 and sending it to the ground before its kick even comes close to the blue robot. The Grungust then turned sideways to see that the beam came from one of the Gespesnt that is holding a rifle.

"See?" said the green haired pilot. "Told you we're your 'backup'!"

Then Ryoga noticed from his monitor that the Daburas M2 started rising up. He quickly responded by moving the Grungust Nishiki backwards so it can be side-by-side with the two Gespesnts. The Daburas M2 moved back as well to its other two robots. The two teams then began to stare one another.

"So...now we're even." Ryoga said.

"Don't be reckless just because the match is even, kid. These Metal Beasts are not to be underestimated," replied the green haired pilot. Ryoga got a little irritated by what the pilot said to him, so he remained quiet.

Then the Mechasaurus Bird makes its first move. Flapping its metal wings in the air and giving a loud roar, it starts the attack by spitting 3 fireballs in its beak, each one aimed at one robot of the opposing team. The two Gespesnts quickly take action by dashing in opposite directions. The Grungust does a double back-step to avoid the impact of the fireballs. The fireballs missed their targets, but all hit the ground bringing up a huge puff of smoke and flame, temporarily blinding the Grungust Nishiki. Then suddenly, beams and missiles came out of the smoke and fire and hit the blue robot by surprise. The Daburas M2 quickly dashes out of the flames and lands a series of Right and Left Hooks at the stunned Grungust, followed by a side kick sending the blue robot off the ground and finishes with a series of Laser Beams from its two dragon-shaped heads and missiles from its chest. The Grungust crashes hard on one of the buildings after that attack.

"Ouch..." Ryoga grunted. "That was one sneaky tactic..."

Then Ryoga's monitor showed the Daburas M2 now in mid-air and is about to go for a Diving Kick. Quickly, Ryoga moves the Grungust out of the way by rolling over to the side. The Daburas M2's kick missed as it hits deep in the rubble of the crushed building. Its foot stuck and unable to move, the Daburas M2 is now wide open for the Grungust's counterattack. The Grungust Nishiki quickly gets up and begins a series of punches to the chest and gut of the Daburas M2, followed by knee strikes to the side. The Daburas M2 tries to counter by firing its beams from its two heads, but the Grungust grabs both heads and slams them at each other. The Grungust ends its attack by helping the Daburas M2's foot out of the rubble with a hard Spinning Side Kick to the gut, sending the Daburas M2 flying in mid-air, and landing hard on the ground.

Meanwhile, the other two robots of Baron Ashler are fighting the two Gespensts. Irmgardt, who is piloting the Gespesnt with a rifle, continues to fire rounds at the flying Mechasaurus Bird, but the Mechasaurus evades the beams and counters by flying close to the ground and flapping its wings hard, causing the rubble from the buildings to fly from the wind and hitting the Gespenst. The flying rubble caused the black robot to drop its rifle and blocking Irmgardt's vision. Seeing its enemy stunned and wide open, the Mechasaurus Bird quickly flies above and behind its target and fires its missiles from its wings. Irmgardt's radar detected the missiles and quickly activates the boosters giving the Gespenst a fast, forward dash. But rather than the missiles hit the ground, they changed course and continue to follow its target.

"Damn!" Irmgardt cursed. "They're Homing Missiles! It looks like these guys have gotten better than they were back at the One-Year War!"

Moving the control stick, Irmgardt stops the Gespenst's dash movement and quickly turns it around in front of the incoming missiles. Then the Gespenst's right arm quickly raised forward.

"SPLIT MISSILES, FIRE!!!" Irmgardt shouted.

Missiles were then launched from the Gespenst's arm and collide with the missiles of the Mechasaurus Bird. When the smoke cleared, Irmgardt finds the rifle of the Gespenst not too far in front of it, but before he could move his robot to pick it up, a fireball came from above destroying it completely. Irmgardt looked up in the sky to see the Mechasaurus Bird flapping its wings and roaring. Irmgardt grits his teeth and curses as he holds the control stick firmly.

Despite the damage taken from the battle with the Grungust Nishiki, Garada K7 continues to launch a series of strikes and lashes with its twin sickles against the other Gespenst, controlled by the masked pilot. The masked pilot kept his Gespenst on the defensive, dodging and back stepping from Garada K7's attacks. Then Garada K7 does a Dashing Thrust attack with both sickles pointed forward. The masked pilot, as if he anticipated the attack, quickly activates the boosters of the Gespenst while simultaneously executing a jump move, resulting in a missed attack for Garada K7. Now in mid-air and its opponent wide open, the Gespenst counterattacks by executing a Dive Kick. Unexpectedly, however, Garada K7 lowers its arms, and then quickly throws the sickles upwards. The sickles made contact and although the impact didn't give much damage to the Gespenst, it was enough to knock it back and send it falling to the ground. But the skull head-shaped robot wasn't done. It immediately follows up its attack by launching twin missiles from its eyes. The missiles hit the Gespenst's boosters, damaging it badly before the black robot lands hard onto the earth. With the Gespenst now lying motionless, Garada K7 leaps into the air raising its arms and is about to throw the sickles again. However, the Gespenst fires a large, yellow beam coming from its visor-like eyes. The beam hits Garada K7 hard on the chest, canceling its throw attack and knocking it back and crashing onto a nearby building. Then the Gespenst slowly gets back on its feet and pulls out a saber-like weapon whose blade is glowing in a red beam-like energy --- the Plasma Cutter. Then, holding the weapon with both hands, the Gespenst runs towards the fallen Garada K7 and makes an Overhead Strike. However, the attack was cancelled as large electrical waves suddenly hit the Gespenst and causing it to drop its weapon. It was Baron Ashler's Guul now making its move.

Irmgardt's Gespenst continues to dodge left and right from the fireball attacks made by the Mechasaurus Bird, using the Split Missiles to counter the Homing Missiles. Then the Mechasaurus flies low to the ground and flaps its wings rapidly once more, causing the rubble to fly towards the Gespenst. However, Irmgardt is prepared this time, and counters by doing a high jump in the air with the help of the Gespenst's boosters, then fires another series of missiles towards the Mechasaurus. The Mechasaurus counters back by releasing another of its Homing Missiles. Both missiles collide and smoke blocks the vision of both units. Irmgardt's Gespenst pulls out a Plasma Cutter and makes a quick Charging Thrust through the smoke using its boosters and towards the Mechasaurus Bird. The Mechasaurus, however, flies backwards and avoids getting its own body cut. Irmgardt grinned despite his missed attack, and quickly his Gespenst raises its right arm and fires off its Split Missiles. The missiles this time hit the last of the Mechasaurus Bird's Homing Missiles before they were deployed producing a large explosion and sending the Mechasaurus down to the ground.

"I'm growing tired of you..." Irmgardt said to the Mechasaurus as he lets the Gespenst do another high jump and performs the Charging Thrust for the second time. Unexpectedly, the Mechasaurus Bird started moving again and counters by firing ripple-like rays on Irmgardt's unit, sending it down to the ground. Irmgardt grunted as the shock from rays keeps him from moving.

Although Ryoga has no idea that the Grungust Nishiki has weapons of its own, he is able to keep the Daburas M2 down thanks to his knowledge of the Martial Arts. Ryoga continues to move the Grungust on the offensive, launching several punches and kicks against the Daburas M2, making sure the Metal Beast doesn't fire its beams and missiles. The Grungust Nishiki then does a Shoulder Tackle, knocking down the Daburas M2 to the ground yet again. With the Daburas M2 now down and seemed out, the Grungust Nishiki looks around and saw the two Gespensts pinned down by Baron Ashler and his/her Metal Beasts. Ryoga quickly takes action as he moves the Grungust Nishiki towards the Gespenst piloted by the masked pilot, which is the nearest. However, on his way to the pinned Gespenst, Garada K7 blocks his way and attacks with its Twin Sickles.

"I've got no time for you, skull-face!" Ryoga shouted as he moves the Grungust Nishiki to dodge Garada K7's attacks.

Garada K7 attacks the blue robot again using its missiles. The missiles hit the Grungust Nishiki and Ryoga for the moment, was stunned from the attack. Garada K7 now follows up its attack by throwing its Twin Sickles. Ryoga, however, quickly snaps out of his stunned state and lets the Grungust grab both sickles just in time before they hit the blue robot. But instead of throwing them back at Garada K7, the Grungust Nishiki throws the sickles towards the Guul. The sickles hit deep inside the Guul, causing it to cease firing its ripple-like beams on the Gespenst. Now wide open and off-guard, Garada K7 makes its move by throwing a hard right straight on the Gurngust Nishiki. However, Ryoga saw the punch coming and the Grungust blocks the attack. It then counterattacks by landing a hard straight of its own at Garada K7, knocking it down to the ground. Suddenly, green colored arms slip underneath the Grungust's arms and locks on the head. It was the Daburas M2. Try as Ryoga might, he cannot move the Grungust Nishiki out of the Daburas M2's lock.

"Shoot! I can't move!" Ryoga shouted. Then Baron Ashler's face suddenly appeared on the monitor.

"Boy! You will pay dearly for what you've done!" Baron Ashler shouted. "Now you shall feel the wrath of Baron Ashler and the Kyouryuu Empire!"

"What did you say?"

Then suddenly, Ryoga's body received a shock. But this time it wasn't a shock made by the force applied by the enemy's attack. Rather, a shock that's even more painful...and deadly.

It was an electric shock.

In just less than a second, electric shock from the Daburas M2 surge throughout the Grungust Nishiki and into Ryoga's body. Ryoga screamed in pain as electric current surrounds his body. On Ryoga's monitor, Baron Ashler simply laughed as he watched the young pilot scream in pain.

"You should have surrendered the Grungust Type II when you have the chance, boy! You are a fool to think you can defeat my forces! You are nothing more but a worthless human being! Now die a slow and painful death!"

As Ryoga continues to scream from the pain, Baron Ashler's words continue to echo on his mind.

"...a worthless human being!"

"...a worthless human being!"

"...worthless..."

"...worthless..."

"...worthless..."

------------

Part 4

"...worthless..."

"...worthless..."

As Baron Ashler's words continue to echo inside Ryoga's mind, images began to appear. There, he sees himself standing in the middle of a road. Cars and other vehicles are parked on the sides, but most of them are either crushed, or burning in fire. The small buildings that were once filled with life and people are left abandoned and silent. Some are burned from fire. Others were left in rubble.

As Ryoga slowly walks and observes the buildings around him, he soon discovers that they are not just ordinary buildings. The buildings, regardless of their current state, are all too familiar to him. He came to a halt when he saw lots of capsule-sized toys, toys small enough to fit in one's pocket, scattered on the ground. To his left, a gumball machine that is smashed open. Behind the smashed gumball machine, he saw the remains of a building. Though already in rubble, Ryoga can see the huge neon signboard lying on it. The sign read:

"Slam Buster's Arcade"

Ryoga was shocked at what he sees. The now rubble building which he stands before is the very remains of the arcade he once spend time when he was just a child. He turned his head to the right to see the other buildings and he recognized each one of them. The Barber Shop where he used to have his hair cut. The bakery where the owner gives him free bread every day he visits it. And the mini-market where he used to spent lots of time looking at magazines and cassette covers.

Then, Ryoga remembered that not far from the mini-market, there is a flower shop where he knew a close friend of his used to work. Immediately, Ryoga dashed his way to where the flower shop is but as he nears it, he suddenly stopped as he heard a very loud sound coming from the sky. He looked up and saw a group of green fighter planes flying above him. Ryoga quickly recognized them as Dopps, fighter planes used by the Principality of Zeon. Shortly after the Dopps flew by, a group of yellow fighter planes followed. Ryoga also recognized them as Fly Mantas. This time they are Earth Federation fighter planes.

"YOU!" a child's voice suddenly cried out. Ryoga then moved his head the direction of the boy's cry only to see a punch coming to his face. He was too late to react and the punch connected, sending him down to the ground. As Ryoga slowly tries to get up, he noticed something about his hands. They were not his own hands but rather, they are the hands of a child. Then Ryoga heard the voice of a child crying. He turned his head towards the direction of the child's cry and there stands a young boy staring at him. Tears continue to fell from the boy's eyes, yet his face reveals his anger.

"How could you...how could you do this?" asked the boy. Ryoga, shocked to see the boy, could not respond.

"I trusted you! I had faith in you! Now look what you have done!"

A loud, explosion was then heard. But to the boy, it meant nothing to him as he continues to stare at Ryoga with anger.

"WHAT KIND OF A FRIEND ARE YOU!?! I WILL NOT FORGIVE YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID YOU WORTHLESS HUMAN BEING!!!"

"WORTHLESS!!!"

"WORTHLESS!!!"

Those very words struck Ryoga from deep down inside him. The feeling is like his body being hit by several arrows. Ryoga could only bring his head down as though in shame. His inner self filled with nothing but pain and sadness. When Ryoga saw the boy leaving, he reached out his hand to him as the boy disappears from his sight and darkness slowly covers his vision.

And then there was nothing but silence. Not too long thereafter, a voice called out Ryoga's name.

"Ryo-kun! Ryo-kun! Can you hear me? Please answer!" Ryoga heard a voice within the darkness. It was Uriko's voice. Ryoga then slowly opened his eyes barely and finds himself back in the cockpit of the Grungust Nishiki. However, all he could see are the controls in front of him and nothing more. The rest is all pitch black. Then he noticed that he could not feel anymore of the electric shocks released by the Daburas M2. However, Ryoga could feel a warm liquid coming down his face. He knows that it's not sweat, but it's blood...His own blood. He also noticed that the lens from his communicator is now broken, which, he thought, might have contributed to the bleeding in his face. Luckily, the audio from the communicator is still working as he could hear Uriko's voice.

"Ryo-kun! I've managed to get the monster's attention! Please answer me!"

Much as Ryoga wishes to even speak, he could not as he felt so weak as the result of the Daburas M2's electric shock. Then a beep was heard followed by another person's voice.

"Uriko-chan!" Rena called. "What are you doing? Even with the Daisuke Special, it's too dangerous for you to get right unto those monsters! You must head back, now!"

"No, I won't!" Uriko replied. "I won't let Ryo-kun give his life away so he could save us! He promised he would catch up with us once we're safe! I won't let him die!"

"But Uriko! You don't stand a chance against those---" Rena's voice was suddenly cut short by a loud explosion. And then the audio became silent.

"No...Uriko..." Ryoga thought.

"WORTHLESS!!!" the young boy's voice echoed in his mind. Ryoga's body then begins to shiver as he breathes heavily.

Inside the cockpit of the Daisuke Special, Uriko slowly pulls herself together from the shock of the missile blasts that hit the ground in front of her robot and knocking it back. As she looks at what's in front of her, she came to a shock as two gigantic hands slowly comes close and picks up the Daisuke Special. The next thing she sees is the face of Garada K7 staring at her. Then a creaking sound was heard. Frightened at the events that are occurring, Uriko could only shiver in fear as Garada K7 slowly crushes the Daisuke Special with her in it.

"WORTHLESS!!!" the young boy's voice echoed in his mind once again. Then Ryoga somehow could feel Uriko's fear as well as hearing her own words to his mind.

"Ryo-kun...somebody...please help me..."

"WORTHLESS!!!" repeated the voice of the young boy.

"Ryo-kun..."

"WORTHLESS!!!"

"...please..."

"WORTHLESS!!!"

"...help...me"

Back at the Guul, one of Baron Ashler's soldiers was shocked at what he sees on his monitor and calls out his superior.

"Baron Ashler! Baron Ashler!"

"What is it?" Baron Ashler replied.

"The...the Grungust! It's moving!"

"WHAT!?!"

Then suddenly, the hands of the Grungust Nishiki quickly grab the necks of the Daburas M2 and begin squeezing them. The Metal Beast tries to retaliate by shocking its enemy once again, but the Grungust Nishiki's hands were squeezing the necks so tight they're already crushing them, causing a malfunction to Daburas M2's AI system and preventing it from releasing its electrical surge. The Grungust then lowers its body as it swings its arms forward, slamming the Daburas M2 to the ground. Then, with hands still gripping the necks, the Grungust Nishiki stomps one foot onto the Daburas M2's chest area and tries to pull off both necks away from the green robot. As a desperation move, the Daburas M2 opens its abdomen, revealing the missiles and simultaneously its mouths glowing, about to fire its lasers. But before the lasers or the missiles can be fired, the Grungust grips the necks real tight and pulls hard until finally, both heads of the Daburas M2 are detached from its body along with their necks hanging, causing it to cease its function. Then laser beams suddenly come out of the Grungust Nishiki's eyes, hitting the missiles of the Daburas M2, causing the body of the Metal Beast to explode.

The explosion caught the attention of everyone in the battlefield, especially Baron Ashler, who is shocked to see the Daburas M2 destroyed. He/She is even more shocked to see the Grungust Nishiki slowly stepping out of the flames and still holding both heads of the Daburas M2 on each hand complete with their necks hanging. Gripping his/her three-pointed metal staff tight, he/she waved it to the side and shouts.

"What are you waiting for, Garada K7! Mechasaurus Bird! Stop the Grungust Nishiki!"

Immediately, the Mechasaurus Bird ceases its attack on the Gespenst piloted by Irmgardt and swoops towards the Grungust Nishiki. It begins its attack by launching fireballs from its beak. Ryoga's Grungust counters by throwing the necks of the Daburas M2 onto the fireballs. The Mechasaurus tries another move by flying down between the Grungust, and Garada K7, who stops its crushing of the Daisuke Special. Then, facing the Grungust Nishiki, the Mechasaurus Bird flaps its wings, allowing the rubble to fly towards the blue robot. The Mechasaurus Bird continues to flap its wings, but no matter how many pieces of rubble are hitting the Grungust, it remains standing and unmoved. When the Mechasaurus Bird could flap its wings no more, Ryoga slowly positions his robot sideways and raises one arm sideward, its fist pointing towards the Mechasaurus Bird. Then suddenly, half of the arm is separated from the Gurngust Nishiki and quickly flies toward the Mechasaurus Bird. The Mechasaurus Bird tries to counter by launching a fireball, but it was too late as the flying punch hits its beak and punches a hole at the back of its head. The flying punch then returns back to the Grungust and connects with the other half of its arm. The Mechasaurus Bird falls to the ground and remained motionless.

Inside the cockpit of the Grungust, Ryoga breathes very heavily while holding the control sticks tightly. The sign of rage reveals from his eyes. Seeing from his monitor that there is only one enemy robot left, he slowly moves the Grungust Nishiki forward, but comes to a halt as he sees Garada K7 holding the Daisuke Special in front of him --- and Uriko is still inside. Suddenly, a black robot appeared out of nowhere and cuts the hand of Garada K7 with its glowing sword, releasing the crushed Daisuke Special. It was Irmgardt's Gespenst. Quickly, Irmgardt moves his unit and grabs the Daisuke Special and, using its boosters, gets out before the Metal Beast could even react. Ryoga quickly charges the Grungust Nishiki forward and throws a hard right punch inside Garada K7's damaged gut. Garada K7 could only shiver as it receives a greater deal of damage. The Grungust throws a left hook punch to the face followed by a right, then two straight punches to the chest area followed by an uppercut. Several more punches were thrown to the body, each one thrown faster than the last until the Grungust throws a flurry of punches so fast, thru the naked eye, one can see a series of punches thrown at the same time from one hand. With each punch connecting, Ryoga shouts in anger. Then, the Grungust Nishiki throws an uppercut, sending the Metal Beast into the air. As Garada K7 flies helplessly in the air, the Grungust Nishiki crosses its arms over its near star-shaped chest.

"NOW YOU DIE~~~~~!!!!!" Ryoga screamed in his fury as he quickly moves the Grungust to jump after the falling Metalbeast. Resting the right arm on the side, the Grungust lunges it upwards, hitting hard on the Metalbeast's chest that a hole was punched through, destroying the engine that runs the skull robot. In seconds, Garada K7's metallic body is engulfed in flames and splatters out as it explodes in the air. The Grungust then lands with both feet on the ground, unscathed by the explosion.

Back inside the Guul, one of Baron Ashler's soldiers informed him/her of the current situation.

"B...Baron Ashler...all three of our robots are...destroyed..."

"It...it cannot be..." whispered Baron Ashler's male half. Then a loud explosion followed by a shockwave sent him/her fall to the floor.

"What's going on!?!" asked Baron Ashler's female half.

"It's the other Gespenst! It's attacking us!" replied a soldier, as he reveals to the main screen the Gespenst, piloted by the masked pilot, firing laser-like beams from its visor-like eyes.

"Quickly! Turn this ship around! We must retreat!" Baron Ashler ordered.

"B...Baron Ashler! The Grungust! It's heading towards us!" said another soldier.

"What's that!?!" shouted Baron Ashler. Immediately, the main screen showed the Grungust Nishiki making a dash towards the Guul and jumping high into the air. Then, surprising the Baron even more, the Grungust Nishiki suddenly changes its shape. The legs were split in half and slowly raised upwards, forming wings. The sides of the feet were extended slightly further, making vertical wings. Arms were raised and lock in on the rear shoulders, the hands changed into rocket engines. Both the tailfin and boosters are raised as well to horizontal positions. And lastly the head slowly sinks into the chest, leaving only the eyes and star-shaped helmet visible.

"No...he's not...!"

Ryoga screamed in his rage as he charges the fighter-mode Grungust Nishiki at the Guul at maximum speed. Then beams of light surrounds the fighter and takes the form of a drill as it collides and enters into the Guul from the front and comes out from the rear. Fire is then spurted out of the holes and the giant flying fortress then bursts loudly in flames. Pieces of it rained down on the ground. However, the dinosaur-like head of the Guul detaches itself from its body just in time and then flees the city. Inside, Baron Ashler looks at the remains of his/her ship and curses the one who destroyed it.

"Dr. Hell will not be pleased. Curse you, boy! I swear I will get my revenge!"

------------

Part 5

Minutes passed since the city in Hokkaido is under attack by the forces of Baron Ashler. About half of the city is reduced to rubble thanks to the attack of the Metal Beasts and the Mechasaurus Bird. Although Ryoga's Grungust Nishiki and the two Gespenst units defeated Baron Ashler's forces, it is not without the huge loss of life of people within the city as well as those from the Japanese Army.

Near the remains of a large building where the Convention Center once stood, the Grungust Nishiki stands before the two Gespensts in front of it. Uriko stands on the hand of one of the Gespensts as she is offered to the blue robot. The Grungust then gives up its hand palm up, allowing Uriko to step onto it. The hand then slowly moves towards the chest of the Grungust Nishiki. The chest slowly opens, and Uriko can now see Ryoga sitting in the cockpit, face down and breathing heavily while gripping his hand on the control stick. Blood continues to drip down from his face. Shocked and in tears, Uriko covers her mouth as Ryoga slowly moves his head up to look at her. As she now looks at Ryoga's face, she notices a strange look in his eyes. She can easily tell from Ryoga's eyes that he is still in the state of the "Rage of The Beast". But then, Ryoga's rage begins to fade and his eyes changed to the way they were before the attack.

"U...Uriko..." said Ryoga. Uriko then jumps inside the cockpit and hugs Ryoga tight while crying on his shoulders. Ryoga closed his eyes and smiled, then wraps both arms around Uriko. A voice is then heard from outside.

"OOOOOIIII! RYOGA! URIKO!" shouted Daisuke from the ground. The head of the Grungust then moves to look at Daisuke and the others. Ryoga's voice is then heard from the Gurngust Nishiki.

"Daisuke! Rena! Roi! Yui! Hime! You guys are alright!"

"How about you two? Are you ok?" asked Rena.

"Yes! Ryo-kun and I are alright!" responded Uriko.

"Thank goodness..." Rena sighs in relief.

"I hate to break this reunion..." Irmgardt interrupts via Open Communication Mode. His voice is being heard as well by Ryoga's friends. "...but I'm afraid you will have to come with us, Grungust pilot."

"Huh? I don't understand. Why does he have to go with them?" wondered Yui.

"I assume you know that what you are piloting is a property of the military and we cannot simply let you go off the hook. And try not to resist us." Irmgardt explains.

"Now hold on a minute! After he saved the city, you guys are going to arrest him? That's stupid!" shouted Hime.

"Yeah!" seconded Roi. "C'mon, Ryo-kun! Beat the heck out of those pieces of junk!". Just then, the head of the Gespenst piloted by the masked pilot looks down at Ryoga's friends. Roi and the others stepped back slightly, staying close together.

"Relax, Daiken." Irmgardt said to the masked pilot. "I'm pretty sure the pilot knows the situation. He will choose the right decision to take."

Back at the cockpit of the Grungust Nishiki, Ryoga closed his eyes and thinks deeply as Uriko gently wipes away the blood on his face. It is true that he is well aware of the Federation Military Protocol involving the use of any military property by a civilian, most especially, when it comes to secrets. Although he doesn't know the fate of those who knew military secrets, he knows for sure that those who knew cannot return to their normal lives ever again. When Uriko finally finished, Ryoga opened his eyes and looked at her. She looks back with concern on her face.

"You're not going, are you?" Uriko asks.

Ryoga sighed and nodded.

"Ryo-kun...I..."

"Don't worry. I'll be ok. That I promise you and the others."

Uriko began thinking for a moment. For the most part she really doesn't want Ryoga to go, especially in the condition he's in. But as she looked at him one more time, she could tell from his face that he has made his decision and that nothing would make him reconsider. She then finally nods in agreement with Ryoga and slowly leaves the cockpit. The Grungust slowly sets her down to meet Daisuke and the others. They then looked up at the chest of the Grungust Nishiki that is still open to see Ryoga one more time. Ryoga gave his friends a smile and a salute as the robot's chest slowly closes.

"Wise choice." Irmgardt said to Ryoga via private transmission.

"Are you sure that we can get to our destination?" Ryoga asks. "Your units are in bad shape after the battle with those attackers."

"You're very observant, kid." Irmgardt responds. "What's your name?" he asks.

"Kazehino. Ryoga Kazehino."

"Very well, Kazehino-kun. Since it is true we won't make it to our destination in this condition, we will stop over at the Photo-Atomic Power Laboratory for repairs."

"The Photo-Atomic Power Lab?"

"That's right. We will first proceed to the military airbase northwest of the city where our transport to the lab will be waiting for us. We can get to the Photon Lab from there."

"I understand."

"All right. Let's get moving."

"Yes sir. Grungust Nishiki, moving out."

The three units then began walking, leaving the city and are on their way to the airport. Ryoga's friends remained as they were as the three robots slowly fade from view. Uriko placed both hands on her chest as she closes her eyes.

"Please, my Lord." Uriko prays. "Keep Ryo-kun safe from harm..."

End of Chapter 1