Spacebar Second Stage: Episode 11 – Crash and Burn
A Jemu Nekketsu Fanfic
DISCLAIMER: Standard disclaimers apply.
PREVIOUSLY on the SpaceBar: The dastardly Char Aznabel has begun to send our beloved space station into a deadly descent down through the atmosphere. What can the beleaguered crew do?
"Change to re-entry configuration!" Jemu ordered BOS.
"Negative, sir," BOS answered, "We've sustained to much superficial damage, and there are four foreign objects buried in the hull. We could transform even with the surface damage, and let the rest of the external plating ablate during re-entry, but the hull sectors will not move what with those four mecha stuck in it."
"Char, you bastard," Evang said through gritted teeth. "BOS, how fast can you scrounge the hammerspace graveyards for the Dominion?"
"Given our current condition, fifteen minutes, at the best."
"And how many minutes before we begin re-entry?"
"Ten."
"Retro-rockets?" Natarle asked.
"Brought off-line by those energy blasts from the Ash Saver's Halberd Launcher."
"Focus the gravity wave beams to create a gravity well sufficient to hold us steady – divert power from the chronosphere if needed be," Jemu ordered.
"Sir! With your permission, the Better Robo will try to push you back up and out of the gravitational field of the earth," Tsukumo suggested.
"Denied. What with you busy with pushing us up, what do you think will happen when Char notices a strange pressure?" Jemu asked him, sliding his gaze over to Mwu, then back to Tsukumo. "I cannot risk losing three of my crew in an instant."
Silence fell on the Main Lounge, broken by BOS's announcement, "Power from the chronosphere has been diverted. Chronosphere is offline. Gravity well created."
"Will it hold us?" Ayame asked.
"By my calculations, if that thing is strong enough to oppose Earth's gravity, it should also prevent the Red Comet from leaving the vicinity as well," Kaji reported.
"That's just great – get blown to bits from our friendly neighborhood psycho, or get burned during re-entry," Evang muttered darkly. Sariko put a hand to his shoulder. "And to top it off, what are we going to do with those four Shadow Mirror clowns?"
"If only the SpaceBar had Machine Cells like the Thrudgelmir, or the bio-energy linkage of the Soulgain, re-entry would be no problem. All we have to do is batten down the hatches, brace for impact, and in less than a day we'll be good as new," Jemu mused.
"Yeah, if we were only Borg, that would be a snap." Evang sighed.
"That's it!" Jemu cried out, startling Fllay. "Assimilation!" He hurried out of his chair.
"What are you up to?" Evang asked.
Jemu ignored him. "BOS, the last time I checked, the Boson artifact and the Radichavel are still in the same room. Are they still?"
"In the Heart of the SpaceBar? Yes, sir. Oh, and Tangram is there for a short visit."
"What's Tangram doing in here?" Evang asked, horrified.
"I called him up for a visit."
"You WHAT!"
"I get lonely, and my correspondence with Tsunami/Sasami isn't enough sometimes. I miss talking guy talk, you know?"
Fllay spoke up. "I understand how you feel, BOS. When I was on the Archangel, everyone was acting like hardcore military otaku – even kids from my age group. I never felt so lonely."
Natarle bit her tongue to keep her comments unaired.
"Where's Commander Jemu?" Kaji asked. Everyone else was surprised at his question, save BOS, who replied, "He's in the Heart."
"The damned fool is going to sit in the Radichavel, link up with the Martian artifact and Tangram to try and assimilate the Shadow Mirror machines," Evang declared.
"How do you know he'll do that? Do you have mental powers?" Mwu asked.
"In a manner of speaking, yes. We're clones, true clones, and are aware of each others' thoughts sometimes. But being clones, we're very much alike, and if I were in his shoes, with no one to cry for his misfortune or loss, that's what I'd do to save this station," Evang finished quietly.
"He's going to die?" Gai asked haltingly.
"He may, or he may not. He may just go mad from the Radichavel because he isn't a Whispered, or be consumed by Machine cells, be absorbed by Tangram or the Boson jump black box, none of which are going to be very pleasant for me. Oh, shit!" Evang cursed, crumpling into a heap.
"What is it?" Sariko asked, helping Evang up from the floor.
"He- he just cut our psychic link – I can't feel him in my head anymore," Evang breathed. "I can't even tell if he's still alive now."
Something was wrong, Jemu thought as he looked at the Martian Artifact-Radichavel amalgam. It was as if something more sinister was in the chamber with him. It was definitely not Tangram that he felt – Tangram's drives were simple, to say the least. Its sole motivation was to survive through any means, and to thrive when the opportunity presented itself. Tangram was also sentient, as far as AIs could be sentient, and had concluded that getting entangled with the other two devices in the Heart of the Spacebar on its own volition would not be favorable. Of course, that was what Jemu intended to do in the Heart, the reason for his visit, but paranoia had gotten the better of him.
He wished he hadn't cut off his psychic link with his clone. He admitted openly that when it came to this supernatural metaphysical stuff like premonitions and feelings of wrongness, Evang was in his element. He preferred to stick with sci-fi mumbo jumbo himself, and his gut was telling him what was in the room with him didn't belong to that category of weirdness. "BOS, how is everything up there?"
He was surprised that BOS could still hear him and reply, "It's working, sir. Char couldn't push us down into the atmosphere, and is having difficulties leaving the area. Kaji has managed to get the point defense lasers up with the Coordinator's help, but as it is the gravity is going to skew them."
"I see. Well, compensating and adapting are supposed to be Coordinator trademarks, so you should be fine. By the way, do you have a lock on me, just in case I need a quick yank-out?"
"I'm trying to get a fix on you sir, but you're so deep into the Spacebar that the hammerspace is starting to mess up my sensors. Coupled with the gravity well we're generating, it's a miracle we could talk at all."
Jemu sighed. "I was afraid of that."
A dark figure rose from the shadows behind the Radichavel. "You'd do better to be afraid of me," it said in a raspy voice.
"Will Char realize what we're doing and attack us for it?" Ayame asked, looking worriedly at the Sazabi through the view screen.
"I think he's realized what's going on, but is in a hurry to get out of here. He's probably scared that we might pull out Amuro from whatever hell he's staying in right now and sic him," Evang mused.
"Sir, what do you propose to do with the four enemy units who have made a home for themselves in the station?" Natarle asked.
"Hmm, that's a biggie. Ms. Allster, can you show us where the four units are at, right now? We need it to plan our next move."
Fllay punched a few buttons on her console, bringing up a holographic map of the Spacebar which showed where the Shadow Mirror mecha hit the station, and where they probably were right then and there.
"What would you suggest, Ms. Fujieda? I must confess I'm out of my depth here. I bow to your superior experience in this matter," Evang said.
Ayame bowed slightly to him. She was experienced in commanding and orchestrating the operation of small units, especially Koubu units. "A search around these areas," she pointed at specific points of the map, "would be the most logical step. Shipwrecked sailors don't stray too far from their vessel, as it might be spotted by rescuers but more importantly some vital material might remain intact or must not be taken – they could have emergency supplies on board their vehicles, or some piece of technology or information; whatever the reason, they will want to stay close, where they can watch over their vehicles without being spotted easily."
"Those are the places I have pointed to in the map. Those are the places we will search first, then the crash sites themselves. Actually, since the four crashed in close proximity of each other – one of them crashed on top of another – we can treat it as just one site, simplifying the operation. For this operation, though, we will need a tactical leader, and in my preference, personal armor. We know the enemy has good pilots, but we don't know if they are good soldiers as well. I'd rather we not suffer unnecessary damage in the process of finding out," Ayame finished.
"You'll watch over the search party, right?" Evang asked. At Ayame's nod, he volunteered. "It's my backyard, after all, and I have a right to see what's what." No one argued with him. "As squad leader, I will handpick my team. Better Team, Kaji, Sariko, we're going to the hangar and shrink some of the Mobile Troopers for our use. Come on."
"Hold on a sec," Ayame said. The six turned to face her. "SUT operations require seven members in the unit. You're one short of the prescribed team."
"Does that matter?" Natarle asked. Ayame gave her a look, one that asked if she had just been born yesterday.
"Of course it does. Point Man, Team Leader, Ranged Suppression, Heavy Support, Demolitions, Medic, and Tail Guard – each of those slots need to be filled. You lose one, your mission is in jeopardy. You lose two, give serious thought to aborting the mission. Lose three, pack up and go home. So, who's your seventh member?"
"That's easy enough," Evang replied. "BOS, Code B-O-S-K-I-L-R!"
A jumble of battlesuit parts and weapons flew in from nowhere, assembling themselves into a humanoid, albeit headless weapon platform. BOS solved that problem by dropping a collection of sensors from the ceiling onto it, which suspiciously looked like a Geshpenst head.
"BOS Killer, ready for action, sir," the newly assembled robot replied.
"Okay, we have our seventh member, now let's see what goodies we have in the hangar," Evang said to Ayame.
"Not so fast. Which positions will each of you take? Decide here and now – it will cut down on deciding which equipment you're going to take," Ayame advised.
"Do I have to assign that as team leader, or do they volunteer for whatever fits best?"
"That's entirely up to you. Keep in mind the various knowledge and experience your teammates have," Ayame replied.
"Okay, then. Mwu, you take point, as you're the Newtype with the premonitions. BOS Killer, you're the heavy weapons guy – literally. Sariko, since I don't want you getting into dangerous close-in shoot-outs, you're going ranged. Gai, you're demolitions – I'm sure you'll love it – and Tsukumo, since you're very trustworthy, you'll guard the rear. Kaji, since you aren't a fighter, you'll play doctor. Any objections or suggestions? None? That's it, I guess."
Ayame finally relented, and the six went off to the hangar. BOS was left to go over details with Ayame, since he was a robot and wasn't likely to forget anything, minor or major.
Evang picked a black Geshpenst variant called the Double G Super. Predictably, the Better Team took their respective Better Machines – Mwu with the Schutzwald Commando, Tsukumo with the G-Sword Kai (a Geshpenst with a katana), and Gai with the Wildschwein Mk-III. Kaji was assigned the Neue Eisenwurger, and Sariko was left with the Wild Ritter.
"Right then, we've made our choices. Okay, Nicol, hit the switch," Evang said into the intercom.
"Roger. Initiating micronization process," Nicol replied. He was watching from behind the glass windows of the hangar observation center as the selected Mobile Troopers gradually shrank to human size, creating lots of white steam in the process. Without being asked, he switched on the exhaust fans to get rid of the billowing white stuff.
The smoke cleared, revealing scaled-down versions of the MTs. They were still 3 meters tall, though, roughly a head or two taller then BOS Killer. "Wow, that is super kawaii," Nicol commented. "I wish I could do the same with my Blitz, so it wouldn't consume too much power when I use the phase shift armor."
"You might get your wish – we'll have you and your shrunken Blitz play security guard for Ayame and the others left at the Main Lounge while we go meet our uninvited guests. No sense leaving the command center defenseless, right?" Evang asked, smiling as Nicol's eyes lit up.
A floating communication window popped up, revealing Fllay's face as she delivered her announcement. "We don't know how he did it, but Char Aznabel has managed to attain escape velocity from the gravity well and is leaving the sector."
"We'll pay him back next time. We have more urgent matters to face now. Ah, Fllay, also, tell the others with you not to panic if someone who looks like Nicol cosplaying as his Gundam walks into the Main Lounge and declares himself as your guard."
"C- Cosplay?" Fllay asked, startled.
"Who's there?" Jemu demanded. Already, he was starting to manipulate hammerspace, slowly backing up toward the door so as not to make his intent obvious.
The figure stepped out of the shadows and into the light, and his jaw dropped as he recognized who it was. "Sada-chan?"
"No more. Sada-chan is no more. That name, as well as my past, I have cast aside! I now exist for the sole purpose of bringing you to your knees!"
Somewhere in the depths of the SpaceBar, lying unconscious in the cockpit of a Machine Cell-infested Grungast III, a masked man frowned, as if having a disagreeable dream. Meanwhile, Jemu stood transfixed with reluctant awe (or perhaps common courtesy) as the female in front of him brought her introduction to a close.
"My name is Saaya! Saaya Ogura! The evil that cleaves perverts!" she declared.
Wodan Ymir groaned himself to consciousness, feeling than someone was ripping him off again. Damn rippers-off! If only he could get his Thrudgelmir out from under the Soulgain…
"Uh, are you sure that it's not the pervert that cleaves evil?" Jemu asked.
"Of course it's not! Who'd one to admit that he or she is a pervert?" Saaya demanded.
"Hey don't take my head off, it was an honest question. So, Saaya Ogura, what brings you here? Why did you take Sada-chan's place in the cast & crew? In short, what are you?" Before Saaya could reply, Jemu cut in. "I know! You're supposed to be the shrew I'm supposed to tame and turn into a willing, submissive slave, ready to fulfill all my evil desires!"
"ZANKAN-TOMAHAWK!" A very, very large axe, the one that medieval foot soldiers might have used to cleave castle gates and armored knights open, materialized from nothingness and buried itself into the chamber floor. Saaya grasped the handle with both hands and pulled it free. The crescent moon head gleamed evilly. "Tame this!" she cried, swinging the huge axe diagonally, aiming to slice Jemu from shoulder to the opposite thigh.
Jemu decided to use diplomacy one last time. He hopped back, and spoke. "Look, couldn't we just skip this gratuitous violence and get on with the taming stuff and the evil desire things? I'm not given to violence –I'm a writer, not a fighter."
"Hmm. Well, maybe we can skip the violence part, but only if I get to do the taming on you and perform my evil fantasies as well. I've always wanted some sort of human furniture, you know. So, how about it? I spare your ass, and in turn you spend the rest of your life kissing mine. What do you say?"
"Just your ass? Can't it be your wonderful bosom?"
"Sorry. It's eye for an eye, or in this case ass for an ass. Take it or leave it."
"Um, sorry, but no deal. The way I figure it, I'm better off with the violence bit. Besides, I'm a boob person – not that I have anything against shapely bottoms, but they don't get to me like boobs do."
"Okay then. You want the violence bit? I got your violence, here!" Saaya took another great swing, this time attempting to separate his torso from his waist."
Jemu was running out of options. It wasn't that he didn't know how to fight women – in fact, he knew a most satisfying way to get the upper hand when fighting females – but he didn't want to. Was this how Evang ended up with Sariko? He was pondering this as he pulled out a BFG-40K. "Sure you don't want to be my slave instead? I'll make a kind master, I think."
"No. My mind is made up. One of us is going down once this is through." She raised her zankan-tomahawk for another attack, as Jemu brought the man-portable starship sub-cannon to bear.
"No hard feelings, then." Jemu pulled the trigger, and the business end of the BFG-40K spat out energy similar to a Hyper Tronium Buster cannon. Saaya, suddenly finding herself face to face with a wall of destructive energy, altered her grip on the zankan-tomahawk and spun it like a majorette to use as a shield. The blast hit the spinning shield head-on, and there was an explosion powerful enough to rock the entire station; the roar of the explosion could be heard all throughout.
The man who previously went by the pseudonym Axminster sat up. "Ow, dammit, my head hurts."
"Commander Arma, are you alright, sir?" asked a worried face on his console.
"Huh? Commander Arma? Are you talking to me?" he asked back. Then he laughed. How could a face on an instrument panel answer back? He didn't remember any instrument panel that looked like the one he had in front of him. He was surprised when a second face appeared and spoke. "Axel? How are you holding up?"
"Huh? Now I'm Axel? This – um, she called me Commander Arma, and now I'm supposed to be some guy called Axel too? This is very confusing. Mind telling me who you are?" Now I get it, he thought, this is one of them video-conference thingamajigs. Anyone could barge in anytime and talk. "Say, this is some pretty nifty technology. Really advanced, y'know what I mean?"
The first woman who spoke to him bit her lip, and the second one frowned. "Echidna, I believe we have a serious problem here. Wodan? Are you awake as well?"
"Bloody thieves. I'll get them all, I swear by Magus I will," said a third face, a man this time, wearing a mask.
"We can't worry about that now, W15. Commander Arma has amnesia, it seems," said the second woman, who seemed to be in charge. "We're trapped in enemy HQ, and I don't know what caused that massive explosion we felt a few minutes ago. I don't like this at all."
"Enemy HQ? What's this all about? Who's this amnesiac Commander Arma you keep talking about?" the man formerly known as Axminster asked. "More importantly, is there a john nearby? I need to relieve myself."
"He sounds more senile than amnesiac to me," Wodan muttered, adjusting his mask.
"Pay attention, everyone" the woman in charge said. "What is your name and your designation? Answer!"
"W15, Wodan Ymir. I am the Sword of Magus!"
"W16, Echidna Isaki. Nothing more, nothing less."
They were waiting for him, the man formerly known as Axminster realized. "My name- uh, let's see- ah, it's, it's – argh!"
"We better talk," Echidna said. "Let's head outside, this atmosphere in the cockpit is too stifling."
"We're approaching the crash site, sir. Still no sign of energy sources," BOS Killer reported.
"Acknowledged. Mwu, Sariko, see anything?" Evang asked.
"Evang, Mwu's gone," Sariko replied.
"He's probably just scouting ahead," he replied nonchalantly.
"No, I mean really gone. My Ochstan targeting unit can't pick up any of his signatures."
"Crap." This was bad. "Report in, team."
Evang counted the replies. It was true – Mwu was missing. "What in the hell could have happened?"
"I'm betting it is Fukuda's fault. What with the release of Seed Destiny where they're up against a blonde Newtype ace, who is later revealed as Mwu, that must have yanked him out of the SpaceBar."
Everyone stared at Kaji.
"What? You think that's surprising? You don't know the meaning of the word. The stuff I've seen, the things I've done, now those are amazing."
"So, we've lost our lead scout. Someone inform the Main Lounge of this development. The rest of you, I want the sneakiest, stealth-experienced among you to take up lead scout position," Evang ordered. It was soon decided that Kaji and Tsukumo were the two sneakiest. One snuck on board the Nadesico, and got out alive (as if that was very difficult), while the other was a double agent between two sinister agencies back in life.
"How do we settle this?" Tsukumo asked.
"By using cold, hard logic. Given your track records, we'd rather have you for the medic than Kaji as tail guard. But you don't put repair units out front, so we'll have you and Kaji switch your Mobile Trooper suits."
"Sure. Can you find us a place in this wasteland – because that's what the interior of the SpaceBar reminds me of – where we can shuck these digs and trade?" Kaji grinned.
"It reminds me of a massive ventilation shaft where wiring is also run," Tsukumo offered.
"And the dust is terrible," Sariko complained.
"Meh. We'll have to make temporary camp here. BOS, assist them with their suits. The rest of us will keep watch. Gai, I want you to set up a defensive perimeter – nothing too fancy, just something that will alert us of anyone approaching." So they went to work.
"Let me get this straight. My name is Axel Arma, this bossy lady Lemon Browning is supposed to be my genius girlfriend, and this guy with the mask, Wodan Ymir, is definitely not crazy. So what does that make you, Echidna?"
"I'm one of your genius girlfriend's creations. You could say I'm a 'doll' she made. Oh, by the way, you also hate 'dolls' and would very much to do cruel, nasty, and painful things to me, out of her sight, of course."
"Ah. About these 'cruel, nasty, and painful things' - "
"Not now, Axel." Lemon shot Echidna a glare. "It is highly probable that this station has sent out a search and recovery party for us and our machines. We cannot let them fall into enemy hands. Therefore we must use Code ATA to prevent this from happening."
"Can't we fight them instead?" Wodan asked.
"Our units can barely move, but the Code ATA system is very much intact. Shadow Mirror machines are like that," Echidna replied.
"We shall activate Code ATA, and destroy all traces of our units," Lemon concluded.
"But my Thrudgelmir does not have Code ATA. Furthermore, it is not a Shadow Mirror machine. The Machine Cells could restore it, given time."
A crazed look entered Lemon's eyes. "There is not enough time! The Thrudgelmir must be destroyed as well! The Soulgain is still lying on top of it, so all we have to do is to bring the Ash Saver and Laz Angriff near it and initiate all three Code ATA systems at once!"
"NOOOOOOOO!" Wodan roared, the sound echoing to places far, far away. "I cannot allow it!"
Jemu surveyed the damage his BFG-40K dealt to Saaya and smiled. She was still standing, still in one piece, but her clothes weren't. The long white garment she wore was in tatters, shamelessly exposing a lot of leg and arm. Shreds of the fabric glittered on the chamber's steel floor like a cluster of stars. There were tears and rips in the remainder of the garment that steadfastly clung to her body. The zanakan-tomahawk was unscathed. There was no indication that it had met head on with a force powerful enough to crush an Abrams tank in one hit, not even a whisper of smoke. The dim light in the chamber made the blade gleam dully.
Looking up from the mess of her dress, Saaya saw him smiling and pulled her lips back in a feral grin. "This pervert can sting, it seems. What an interesting turn of events."
"This pervert can do more than sting." Jemu pulled back the charging lever of his gun, and flicked the fire control switch to a different setting. Without warning, he fired at Saaya again.
Expecting the same big blast, Saaya took a flying leap, and was horrified to see a pillar of energy following her flight, tracing her path as she fell. "My, my, somebody is compensating for a little shortcoming, isn't he? That's some sword you got there – are you sure you know how to use it?"
It was, indeed, an oversized plasma cutter, but Jemu wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of knowing that she was right. With an effort he swung the BFG-40K like a big chainsaw – and felt the shock as Saaya parried the energy blade with her zankan-tomahawk. Them to his horror, she forced the blade down, back toward him, forcing him to retreat as well. His face twisted with exertion, while only a slight tightening of her lips betrayed her effort.
In the next instant, the BFG-40K exploded as the energy it projected was forced back onto it, knocking Jemu backward and sending him sprawling facedown on the floor. Saaya seized this chance and pounced, burying the huge crescent blade into his spine. "I got you now – huh?"
She lifted the axe, and Jemu's body, or rather a log dressed up in Jemu's clothes, came up with it. She reached her hand out to free her stuck weapon, when the log, clothes and all, exploded in a flash.
Jemu looked down, one hand holding a claw-like device that anchored him to the ceiling, a hand-held personal force field projector (also known as a shield gun) in the other. He was looking through the translucent green barrier that the shield gun protected him from the blast with. "Whew, that Naruto boxed set was worth it! Especially the 'How to Create and Customize your Own Jutsus!' So, how do you like my Explosive Log Substitution Technique, Ms. Pervert Cleaver?"
When the smoke and dust cleared, Jemu was delighted to see that Saaya's raiment was now totally nonexistent. She noted his scrutiny, and gasped at her state of undress. Letting go of her zankan-tomahawk, she covered herself as best as she could with her hair, arms, and hands. "H- Hentai! Ecchi! Sukebe!"
He dropped from the ceiling to land in front of Saaya, balancing on the balls of his feet and the knuckles of one hand like a ninja. "That's me, your friendly neighborhood pervert." He raked his gaze over her naked form. "Yummy. It sure looks good enough to eat. Don't mind if I help myself." He noticed her death glare. "What, are you gonna stare at me all day long hoping I'll drop dead?"
"If looks could kill-"
"Yeah, yeah, you've got a killer body, too bad it's not a fatal one. You want a piece of my hide? Go and use that overgrown heat hawk of yours, if you dare."
"What, and give you a free show? Not on your life!"
"I see. So you're going to spend the rest of this episode covering yourself like some naked virgin in front of a leering pervert?"
"Anyone in their right minds would cover up when faced with a leering pervert."
"Touché. But tell me, are you a virgin that you would cover yourself so? My friend told me once that only two types of women cover themselves up in that way - virgins and harlots. Which one are you, I wonder."
"My maidenhood is none of your concern. I'm surprised to hear you have friends though. I thought your kind was the solitary sort."
"You know what they say - no man is an island."
"True, but what makes you think you are among their numbers?"
"You doubt me? You mock me?" He locked gazes with her, letting her see what he saw, her nakedness. "Shall I show you proof that I am indeed a man?" He loosened the buckle of his belt, then removed it entirely. "Do you wish firsthand experience of my manliness?" He shrugged out of his vest and cast it aside, not breaking eye contact with her.
She hastily scuttled back as he took a step toward her, still covering herself. His intent was clear; the demonic gleam in his eyes was evident. "Stay away from me! Touch me and you die!"
He continued his determined approach, stopping when he reached her abandoned zankan-tomahawk, and stooping to grasp the weapon's haft. The scent of burning flesh filled the air, and Jemu hissed in pain, which terminated in an angry roar as he flung his arm back. The huge axe spun through the air, whistling, before it buried itself in the steel-crete wall near the Heart's doors.
He took one look at his singed palm. "Witch," he spat. "I've had enough of your games. Be mine, or die. This is your last chance."
"I'll not be owned by the likes of you - nor by anyone! I'd rather die first!" she cried defiantly. His rejoinder chilled her to the bone, or perhaps it was the long, jagged, barbed spear of bone that Jemu was creating out of thin air.
"Then, die, and be mine."
Q: What the heck? Jemu's also a necromancer? I thought Evang was the magical one!
A: Yes, Jemu IS a necromancer. In case you haven't caught on to it yet, the SpaceBar is basically a massive Spirit Spool (try saying that fast fifteen times), which he uses to draw souls in for his evil purposes.
Q: Then what's with his techno-babble?
A: Necromancy is rather compatible with other spheres of knowledge, but not with other spheres of magic. You won't see Jemu throw fireballs or lightning. If he was inclined, he could be as good a bio-chemist as Evang, but he chose to stick to devices. He's a competent kit-basher.
Q: So this hammerspace thing...
A: Jemu and Evang can control hammerspace in different ways. Evang primarily uses hammerspace to teleport himself without error. Jemu uses hammerspace to pull weird-ass devices and instruments out of hammerspace to him.
Q: But that still leaves a lot of holes!
A: Pipe down, you! Can't you tell author avatars when you see them?
"Holy shit! Aaarrgghh!" Evang cried out as he twisted on his knees, clutching his right arm. Sariko and Kaji were at his side immediately. Gai and Tsukumo looked up in alarm, as did their four tied-up prisoners. BOS Killer swiveled an eye to the back of his head to see what was going on, while the other eye kept watch on the captives.
Captives? What captives, you may ask. Well, while Jemu was trying to get Saaya naked, Evang's hunting party decided not to take chances and sent BOS killer to investigate after Sariko had performed an initial visual sweep. The rest of the party took up mutual fire support positions and monitored BOS Killer's progress as he made his way toward the place where the four machines were lumped together.
Once she saw BOS enter the blast area, Lemon – as crazy as any Browning that ever lived – activated the triple Code ATA sequence and destroyed the Thrudgelmir, and a large chunk of the SpaceBar with it. Miraculously, BOS was merely thrown back, the hull material reasserted itself immediately (making Wodan mutter "Machine Cells? Impossible" while lurking), the only major effect being the loss of the gravity well the SpaceBar was generating to stay afloat, so to speak.
All these things didn't pass by unnoticed by the Main Lounge and its inhabitants. After she, Nicol (still wearing his Blitz powered suit), Ayame, and Natarle had picked themselves up and dusted off, Fllay patched the proper surveillance cameras to display on the main screen. They were treated to a fast and furious melee. Ayame quickly passed popcorn around.
With weapons set to stun, the hunting party opened fire as the two W-series entities and a red-haired hotshot amnesiac (who was rumored to be have survived being punch simultaneously by a Tranzer pilot and a King of Hearts, both Super S-class martial artists) ambushed them from three directions. Lemon, in a rare display of lucidity, decided to hang back, hiding behind some wreckage as the battle raged.
Being part of the W-series, Echidna and Wodan were nearly as tough as Axel was. Wodan also had the advantage of being a Sanger Zonbolt clone, meaning he was a legendary swordsman minus the pedophile tendencies. But while he was able to bat away stun rays and stun grenades with his sword, his companions fell prey to these, being armed with hand-held blasters. (The stun rays, not the grenades – Axel and Echidna were able to shoot them down handily.) Once the hunting party picked up on this fact (after successfully stunning Axel and Echidna), they set their weapons to demolish and fired at Wodan once more. Wodan tried to do the Jedi thing and ended up with a disintegrated sword. A volley of knockout gas grenades spelled his downfall. From there, it was a simple game of hide and seek for Evang and his companions to snag Lemon, and then it was over.
"What's wrong, Evang?" Sariko asked, dropping to her knees beside him.
"It's Jemu – he's trying pull off some major necromantic crap. I can sense it through our link – more importantly the link works perfectly once more."
"Can you ask him to stop whatever he's doing that's causing you pain?" Kaji inquired.
"It's gone now. He's – ah, I think he'll be alright now," Evang finished. Sariko and Kaji looked at him strangely. What he didn't tell them was Jemu was having the time of his life, and that it was taking all of his willpower to keep himself from purring.
Fortunately, he was saved from further explanations by an important announcement. "Main Lounge to capture team. Come in, capture team," Ayame's voice said over the intercom.
Evang nodded to Tsukumo, and Tsukumo responded. "Go ahead, Main Lounge."
"The SpaceBar's gravity wave emitter has been taken out of commission. We suspect it was caused by the self-destruction of the Shadow Mirror machines. As a result, we will be entering the atmosphere in a dramatic fashion soon."
"How soon is soon?" Gai asked the question no one wanted to hear the answer to.
"According to our calculations, twenty minutes."
"With your permission, master, I shall now return to my housekeeping modus operandi and see if anything can be done," BOS Killer intoned. Seeing his master nod, BOS Killer's components flew back into their hammerspace storage places. Up into a ceiling recess went his head.
"It looks like that simultaneous triple ATA wasn't wasted, after all," Lemon gloated as the Three Gunned Men led the prisoners away; the other three remained silent. Kaji expressed his desire to get out of his armor and left, leaving Evang and Sariko alone.
"Let's get out of these things, Sariko, so we can return them to their real sizes," he suggested.
"I'm in agreement with that. So, what do we do after that?"
"How about mad, passionate love in hot tub? Good?"
"What about the catastrophic re-entry? Or interrogating the prisoners? Or checking up on your, um, alter ego?"
"BOS will figure out a way to stop our descent, and Jemu can take care of himself. The prisoners can wait – I can't." He said the last in a husky whisper.
"Well, if you want it that bad, we're all alone now." She batted her lashes coyly.
"Stop – we're still in armor. I don't find mecha sex kinky – I'm not Jemu, you know."
Jemu sneezed once, causing Saaya to look up from the task she was absorbed in. "Is there something wrong, Master?"
"No, someone was just talking about me, I suppose. Carry on, my pretty little slave."
"Yes, Master," she replied happily, and proceeded to get busy once more, causing Jemu to sigh. He wondered briefly if reviving someone he had recently slain to become his plaything made him a necrophile to boot as well as a necromancer, then decided he didn't care. "Better a necrophile than a pedophile," he said to no one in particular, laughing evilly.
Saaya made no comment to this, being raised up well and learning that it wasn't good manners to talk when one's mouth was full.
