Chapter 64…

According to Ashley's understanding, the Legion titan's signature "Predator Cannon" was introduced not long after the destruction of Demeter. The dark haired woman did not remember seeing such a weapon during her early days with the IMC. Back then, artillery weaponry had been the preferred option for most Ogre class titans.

The predator cannon was as long as a city transit bus, with eight gatling barrels hooked up to a belt-fed drum. Coiled carefully inside of the belt-fed drum was the predator cannon's ammunition; 30mm rounds, to be exact. They were bullets bigger than Ashley's closed fist and strong enough to chew through titanium plating like tissue paper.

One could go for days about the specifics of the predator cannon. It's exact length, it's monstrous rate of fire, it's carefully designed independent-barrel cooling system…

Of course, everything was secondary to the feeling of pants-shitting terror of having a Predator Cannon point directly at you…

And Ashley was going to need a new pair of pants…

The woman was currently speeding down the communication tower's cable like a zipline, her pistol clasped in her hands as a makeshift handle. Below her, the multiple optics of the Legion titan glared up at her with malevolence. The barrels of the predator cannon were speeding up…

…meaning Ashley only had seconds to make her decision.

If she continued down the length of the zipline, her body would be torn to shreds…

If she jumped off of the zipline and veered to either the left or the right, her body would be torn to shreds…

If she released her grip on her weapon and allowed gravity to pull her back down to the ground… well… she might have bought herself a few more seconds before her body would be torn to shreds…

There was no right option… only one that had a greater chance of success…

Ashley sucked in a breath of musty-scented air, still paying attention to her breathing exercises despite the terrifying situation she found herself in. Her fingers trembled inside of her gloves, every single muscle in her body quivered in anticipation…

'Well… fortune favors the bold…'

Not waiting a second longer than she could afford, Ashley released her grip on her pistol. For a moment, gravity took hold of her, the sticky rain of Lyra-1's climate pattering against her armor as she was dragged down to the ground.

'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'

The large afterburners of Ashley's jumpkit flared once… twice… three times as Ashley cranked up the bulky device to full burn.

Ashley was no longer falling…

With a sinister whine the jumpkit roared to life, it's metal frame shuddering from the stress of it's sudden activation. Ashley could feel the intense heat radiating off the back of her hips and down her legs. She would probably have some minor burns later, but a few hours of discomfort were far better than a bullet-riddled torso.

Ashley had decided not to veer right, veer left, or fall towards the ground… she had chosen to blast herself straight towards the Legion titan.

Below her, the predator cannon had completed it's necessary spin up and was already releasing a hail of death. The sound of the monstrous weapon was deafening - to the point where Ashley could not hear either the whine of her jumpkit or the screaming of her teammates through her helmet mounted radio.

Ashley's angle was, luckily for her, perfect. Her sudden arc upwards into the air had put her briefly outside of the Legion's firing angle; it's clumsy armored body struggling to lean backwards to nail her out of the air. Within three seconds she was behind the titan entirely, with the Legion fumbling around on it's oversized legs in an effort to locate her.

'ISHIKARA!' Val screamed over the radio, her voice worming it's way into Ashley's ear. 'DO YOU COPY?'

"I'm a little bit preoccupied!" Ashley hissed back before cutting off her radio.

The dark haired woman, still mid-air, cut off her jumpkit for the briefest of moments. She quickly twisted and articulated until she was facing the Legion again. The imposing titan was in the middle of turning around, it's multiple red optics blinking and shifting as it tried to locate her.

Firing her jumpkit at full blast again, Ashley felt her bones rattle as the sudden impulse of speed counteracted her built-up momentum. She flew straight towards the Legion again, cutting off her jumpkit at the last moment and thrusting her legs outwards.

If there was one thing that the enemy pilot wasn't expecting it was for Ashley to land on the predator cannon. The woman's boot-clad feet touched down atop the rotary cannon's top rail, her hands flying out to quickly steady herself.

Much like how it was on the zipline, Ashley had only seconds to make her move…

Dashing up the length of the weapon and towards the Legion's chassis, Ashley endeavored to get off of the cannon as quickly as possible. If the barrels started spinning up while Ashley was still a passenger she would be ground into paste.

Air was rushing to Ashley's left, so the woman spared a quick glance in that direction. In a desperate bid to knock her off of the Predator Cannon, the titan had reared up it's left fist with the intention of swatting her away…

'Perfect…'

The massive metal fist flew in Ashley's direction, but the woman's jumpkit proved to be faster. One quick impulse of speed was all it took for Ashley to narrowly avoid the flying fist and leap off of the Predator Cannon. To her luck, the sudden punch had thrown the Legion off-balance, giving the dark haired woman the opportunity to scramble up the titan's slick metal chassis.

As she scrambled up the chassis, Ashley used one hand to pull her CAR off of her back. Holding the weapon in the same hand, Ashley quickly emptied the magazine into the Legion's optics. The small rounds failed to penetrate the bullet-resistant glass casings of the swiveling optics, but served their purpose as a distraction.

'ISHIKARA, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!?" Valentina's voice screamed into Ashley's radio.

"Giving our reinforcements some much needed breathing room!" Ashley yelled back into her headset. As she said this she reached the top of the titan, her hands reaching out to steady herself. "Give me cover!"

With her hands a few steps ahead of her brain, Ashley withdrew the last satchel charge from her pack. Tearing off the adhesive strip, the woman slammed the explosive charge onto the Legion's slick metal plating.

Not waiting around for the Legion titan's OS to catch up and snatch her off of it's chassis, Ashley leapt into the whipping rain. With a sputtering whine her jumpkit flared to full power and pushed the woman far away from the hostile titan. Ashley could imagine the thick trail of putrid smoke the jumpkit left in its wake. The model was considered archaic by the beginning of the Frontier Conflict; but for what it lacked in refinement and safety, it made up for in sheer power.

Ashley spotted a gap in the large trees which ringed the IMC digsite. Hoping that she had built up enough momentum to carry her the rest of the way, Ashley cut off her jumpkit and twisted mid-air so that she was flying backwards. Her hand flew to her breastplate pocket, her fingers deftly working out the detonator for the satchel charges. Ashley's thumb flicked against the translucent plastic safety cap covering the detonator's trigger…

Through the thick sheets of rain, multiple red optics sliced through the fog. The Legion titan would not be easily shaken, even with Ashley's abrupt movements and tricky tactics.

But the enemy pilot certainly wasn't expecting what was to come…

Ashley squeezed the detonator.

Without a moment's delay, three bright explosions bloomed in sequence behind Ashley. First, the top of the communications tower. Dishes and relays flew in every direction with the top metal strut folding outwards like a blooming flower. The series of cables which anchored the tower to the ground snapped from the sudden stress, leaving the structure unsupported.

Second, the base of the tower. Following the immediate sound of the explosion was the creaking, wailing groan of metal beginning to teeter. In an instant the entire tower began to teeter and tilt as it began its descent.

Third, the satchel charge Ashley had slapped onto the Legion's titan's chassis. The titan's red optics disappeared behind a hellish flare of fire and smoke - temporarily superheating the air around the titan's bulky chassis. Although the satchel charge would undoubtedly damage the Legion, Ashley knew that the titan certainly wasn't out of play. The thick metal of the Legion's armored plating was designed to mitigate close range explosions.

Twisting back around, Ashley let the now-useless detonator fly from her grasp and fall to the ground. She was still flying at high-speeds towards a cluster of trees, and the last thing that she needed in this situation was a shattered spine.

Threading the needle between the trees, Ashley thrust out her legs and activated her jumpkit again. This time, the already warmed-up jumpkit flared and fired without issue, counteracting Ashley's momentum and slowing the woman down. It would not be a gentle touchdown, however, as Ashley's boots were quickly sucked in by the mud of the swamp. With a painful tumble, the woman rolled along the muddy ground before finally coming to a skidding stop on her rear.

Scrambling up into a sitting position, Ashley peered upwards at a long, massive form shifting in the rain and fog. The growing wind carried the disturbing noise of metal groaning and shifting…

Ashley's eyes widened behind her helmet as the shadowy form of the communications tower grew wider and wider…

'Fuck…'

With a crashing sense of realization, Ashley realized that she had forgotten to account for the strength and direction of wind speed. The tower was about to flatten her.

Scrambling back up to her feet, Ashley tried desperately to run to the side and to a safe distance. Her feet slipped against the slick mud of the swamp - the almost knee deep water heavily impeding the woman's movement.

'Faster!'

Ashley could feel the air rushing above her head and the skin raising up on the back of her head. A wide shadow was stretching along the ground as the tower nearly finished it's descent.

Something rock hard smashed into Ashley's back, sending the woman flying…

Skidding into the mud face-first, the camera lenses situated on the exterior of her helmet became obscured with filth. Ashley tentatively pushed herself up into a kneeling position - one hand wiping against the face of her helmet to clear away the debris.

The first thing that greeted Ashley was a shining blue optic.

"Hey, Ashley," Elijah warbled in his computerized tone. The simulacrum offered Ashley his open metal hand, which the woman accepted, allowing herself to be pulled back to her feet. "Still all in one piece?"

"Yeah…" Ashley coughed, wiping her hands to push some of the mud off of her armor. "Mostly. Was that you who pushed me?"

"Yeah, sorry about that… I don't always know how to moderate my strength…" Elijah let out a noise similar to a chuckle. Gesturing with an outstretched arm, Elijah pointed his clamp-like hand to something behind Ashley. "Good timing on my part though, eh?"

Looking over her shoulder, Ashley saw what Elijah was pointing at. Occupying a long stretch of ground and already half-sunken into the swamp were the twisted remains of the communication tower. If Elijah hadn't intervened… Ashley would have gotten crushed beneath the metal scaffolding.

"How did you get here so fast?" Ashley asked.

"I have a hat full of tricks…" Elijah playfully tapped the top of his metal head. "Maybe you'll get to see some of them…"

The simulacrum tapped a small cluster of controls on the side of his metal head, his digits manipulating his built-in radio.

"Val?" Elijah spoke into his radio. "I've got her… no missing pieces. Orders?"

"Our cover's blown… but we've stuck to the plan so far and we'll continue to do so," Valentina's voice crackled through Ashley's earpiece. "We've got to deal with that titan before our reinforcements show up. We only have minutes to take it down."

"Consider it done," Elijah chuckled. The simulacrum turned to face Ashley, his blue optic glowing with an almost mischievous light. "You ever tangled with a Legion before, Ishikara?"

"I've seen them in action…"

"Well, prepare yourself for an experience that you'll never forget."

"Great…"

"This way!" Elijah quickly sprinted past Ashley, one robotic hand reaching to his back to withdraw his Flatline. Boosting himself upwards through the use of his built-in jumpkit the simulacrum scrambled atop the fallen remains of the communication tower. "You coming?"

Sucking in a breath of air and tasting the musty scent of her helmet's rebreathers, Ashley followed behind her teammate. Her jumpkit sputtered slightly as she reactivated it and Ashley was beginning to grow nervous about the amount of fuel she still had for it. Jumpkits, even the older models, were designed for quick-bursts to allow for precise changes in direction; Ashley's reckless maneuvers had probably left the fuel tanks nearing empty…

Scrambling atop the fallen communication tower, Ashley closely followed behind her teammate. The soles of her boots slipped and slid against the twisted metal struts of the tower's length, but Ashley quickly found her footing as she and Elijah rushed in the direction of the dig site.

"Val!?" Elijah's computerized voice warbled as he ran. "Do you have eyes on the titan?"

"It's heading in your direction!" Valentina's voice scratched back.

Two sounds began to dominate over the whipping wind and hammering rain. One, the slow warble of an emergency siren. The second, the ground-shaking sounds of two massive metal feet impacting with rock and soil.

As Ashley and her teammate continued to run along the length of the fallen tower several red optics glared through the fog. They drew closer and closer, the hulking silhouette of the Legion titan growing in size and definition by the second.

"Ishikara, jump left!" Elijah called over his metal shoulder. "I'll jump right! On the count of three, ready!?"

Over the hammering sound of rain, the sinister whine of a predator cannon winding-up could be heard…

"Three!"

'Inhale, exhale, inhale , exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'

"Two!"

'Inhale, exhale, inhale , exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'

The sinister whine of the predator cannon came to an abrupt stop. In the fog, Ashley watched in horror as the barrel suddenly turned counterclockwise, the individual barrels pulling in and "curling up"...

"One!" Elijah cried.

Kicking off with his powerful metal legs, Elijah activated his jumpkit and flew off the side of the communication tower.

And just like that… he disappeared…

Ashley did not understand how. Even with the rain and the fog she should have been able to spot him and the flaring of his jumpkit. The woman's camera feed scrambled for a moment from an unknown interference as Elijah vanished into thin air.

'What the hell?'

But Ashley didn't have the time or opportunity to stand around and contemplate Elijah's sudden disappearance. Operating as if on auto-pilot, the woman leapt to the left and off of the communication tower's length.

It was good timing on her part…

The barrel of the predator cannon erupted in a single flash of light, spraying a wall of metal shrapnel in the direction of where Ashley had just been standing atop the tower. With the sounds of metal shearing, the shrapnel blast sliced the remains of the fallen tower into two unequal halves.

Landing on the ground and tucking into a roll, Ashley ripped her CAR off of her back and slammed a new magazine into the bottom of the weapon. She did not get the chance to pull back on the firing pin as the ground around her was peppered with massive 30mm rounds. Just one would be enough to liquefy her - armor or not.

Veering left and running in a zig-zag motion, Ashley used the dense foliage and thick tree trunks of the swamp to her advantage. Wood bark crackled and tree limbs snapped as the barrage of 30mm rounds ripped into the treeline. Kicking off into a jump, Ashley fired her jumpkit and scrambled up the nearest tree trunk; she crawled onto the side opposite that of the encroaching Legion, feeling powerful vibrations in her fingers and toes as the other side of the tree was reduced to dust.

"Hello!?" Ashley cried into her radio microphone. "Anyone out there!?"

"-on my way," Valentina's voice was masked by the barrage of heavy gunfire. "Hold tight… keep distracted…"

Ashley was not feeling optimistic about her chances.

Scrambling up and atop a stable limb, Ashley pressed her back against the trunk of the large tree. The roar of gunfire and teeth-chattering vibrations continued as the Legion emptied it's magazine into the other side of the tree. Licking her lips underneath her helmet, Ashley once again weighed her options. The Legion was most likely equipped with a whole host of environmental scanners - scanners designed to sniff her out no matter which way she went…

Whipping her head left and right, Ashley took note of the thick foliage and dense groupings of trees in her area. If she had any advantage over the Legion - it was mobility. Ashley's considerably smaller body could navigate through the trees with ease, the Legion could not. Going low to the ground would be a death sentence for her.

Ashley had an idea… she just needed an opening…

Thankfully, Elijah gave her one.

The dark haired woman heard and felt the firing pattern of the predator cannon come to an abrupt stop. There was the sound of a computerized voice whooping in the distance - followed by the crackling noises of arc grenades detonating.

"Get out from behind the tree, Ashley!" Elijah's voice clicked over Ashley's radio. "I only have so many arc grenades! Break right and then regroup with me!"

Ashley didn't hesitate. Veering to her right the woman took off into the trees. Firing her jumpkit in short bursts, Ashley made the most of what the treeline could offer her. The dark haired woman sprang off of tree limbs and kicked off of trunks to continuously build up her momentum. She traveled in a ring around the distracted Legion, circling the enemy titan like a bird of prey.

The enemy pilot had made a grave error - they had isolated themselves in the swamp. Legion titans excelled in wide-open combat spaces but were ill-suited for close quarters combat. Ashey and Elijah had two distinct advantages - plenty of cover and the ability to strike from any direction.

Speaking of Elijah, the simulacrum had ended his attack run. Ashley's camera feeds temporarily scrambled as the simulacrum repeatedly vanished and reappeared in different locations - each time hammering the Legion titan with ordnance.

"How are you doing that!?" Ashley cried into her radio. The dark haired woman could recall seeing something similar once during the IMC's attack on New Vladivostok; Cozbi's titan, a Ronin, disappearing and reappearing at will. What had Cain called the maneuver? Ashley couldn't exactly recall his words…

"Like I said, I have a hat full of tricks!" Elijah crackled back over the radio. He vanished and reappeared again, firing a wingman revolver at the Legion's optic as he did so. "Here's another one! To deal with legion titans, aim for the ammunition belt feed on the side of the cannon! Go!"

Leaping out from the ring of trees, Ashley rocketed towards the still-distracted Legion. Ashley watched as Elijah pulled something small and spherical from his waist-mounted belt - a fragmentation grenade.

To Ashley's surprise, the simulacrum lobbed the piece of ordnance at her like a softball.

"Catch!" Elijah's voice cracked over Ashley's radio. "Remember what I said! The ammo belt feed!"

Reaching out her arm and feeling her joints strain, Ashley caught the grenade. She tucked the explosive device into her vest pouch and pulled in her limbs to increase her speed. With a pained huff Ashley landed against the Legion's thick shoulder armor, her boots sliding against the slick metal surface.

Scrambling up onto the top of the titan's chassis, Ashley steadied herself for a moment. Elijah was continuing to circle around the Legion's head, his jumpkit firing to allow for quick impulses of speed and changes in direction. Wherever the simulacrum flew, a stream of bullets followed. The enemy pilot within the Legion was trying desperately to shoot Elijah out of the air like he was a particularly stubborn insect.

Having no other options, Ashley slid down the front of the Legion's chassis. Stretching her free hand and extending a finger, the woman flipped off the optics as she rocketed past, her boots making contact with the top rail of the predator cannon. Noticing her presence, the Legion abruptly stopped firing - the sudden change in force making Ashley's knees abruptly buckle. Steadying herself, the woman crawled towards the ammunition belt of the predator cannon.

The dark haired woman didn't get the chance to jam the grenade into the belt feed. An irritating screech filled Ashley's ears as the sensitive electronics of her helmet radio went haywire, nearly sending the woman toppling off of the enemy titan. For a few terrifying seconds her camera feeds went black before being replaced with a scrambled flash of lights as they rebooted.

"-arc grenade…" Elijah's panicked computerized tone fought through the static interference. "Sorry… hold on!"

Wrapping her hands around what felt like the top rail of the predator cannon, Ashley held on for dear life. Unable to see what was going on around her, Ashley's body flailed around like a ragdoll as the Legion tried desperately to shake her off. Across the inside of the video screen of Ashley's helmet, a small progress line representing a rebooting sequence had begun.

"What the fuck is going on!?" Ashley cried into her radio. "Hello!?"

"I'm sorry, I tossed another arc grenade! I forgot about your helmet!" Elijah's voice crackled back. "Do yourself a favour and hold on! Trust me!"

Ashley could faintly taste the scent of ozone in her helmet rebreathers…

Still holding on, Ashley watched as the infuriatingly slow progress bar continued to crawl along. After what felt like minutes the cameras on the exterior of Ashley's helmet rebooted, twisting and aligning until Ashley had a view of what was going on. The woman's entire world was shifting as she was flung about, the Legion vigorously shaking the predator cannon in an effort to get her off of it.

Fighting down the feeling of bile rising in the back of her throat Ashley shook her head and reassessed her situation. To her luck, she could see the ammunition belt of the predator cannon out of the corner of her vision.

'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'

Ashley wanted to vomit and retch. She continued to fight the bile now halfway up her throat as she reached out her other hand to crawl her way up the length of the predator cannon.

'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'

Her world continued to twist and spin as Ashley reached the ammunition feed of the cannon. Fumbling the grenade out from her vest, Ashley looped her forearm under the cannon's carrying handle and used her now free finger to tear off the pin. Not hesitating for even a moment, Ashley jammed the explosive into the belt feed.

The dark haired woman didn't bother to hold on. Releasing her grip on the exterior of the predator cannon, Ashley allowed gravity and momentum to carry her away from danger. She could feel the heat and hear the noise of the grenade going off as she flew.

For the second time that day, Ashley landed with a tumble into the swamp. Mud soaked every inch of her body and water rushed into her helmet's rebreather.

"HOLY SHIT!" Elijah's voice screamed over Ashley's radio. "YOU DID IT! ARE YOU STILL ALIVE!?"

Ashley tasted bile in her mouth as she pushed herself off of the ground. "Unfortunately, yes…"

Coughing and sputtering under her helmet, Ashley turned her head to spot her handiwork. The once fearsome predator cannon was now a smoking wreck - the grenade having set off the rest of the bullets inside the ammunition belt like a chain reaction. The Legion titan's red optics stared down at the twisted hunk of metal in its hands with a neutral look before unceremoniously tossing the remains of the cannon to the ground.

'Serves you right, asshole…'

Swiveling and squinting, the red optics of the Legion titan turned to stare down at Ashley's still-prone form.

For the second time that day, Ashley felt pants-shitting terror.

"Ashley…" Elijah's computerized voice garbled through Ashley's radio. "Run…"

The dark haired woman didn't need to be told twice. Scrambling to her feet, the woman bent her legs and fired her jumpkit.

But she did not ascend up into the air into safety. Ashley's dark eyes widened as the burners of her jumpkit weakly flared and died out.

She was out of fuel. Her gas-guzzling maneuvers had come back to bite her in the ass at the absolute worst of moments. Not far behind Ashley, the Legion titan pushed off into a sprint, it's metal legs aimed to stomp the woman flat. The Legion did not move particularly fast, even when sprinting, but it's wide steps allowed it to traverse long distances with ease.

Ashley took off, beginning the most terrifying chase of her life. As she ran Ashley's hand flew to her waistline, where an emergency tank of fuel for her jumpkit was located. It was the size of a large baseball and contained just enough fuel to get her airborne - all she had to do was replace the spent tank.

"Run!" Elijah's voice screamed through Ashley's radio. There was the loud pattering of gunfire as the simulacrum tried desperately to distract the charging Legion titan. "I'll buy you some time!"

Time was exactly what Ashley needed and also something that she did not have. Jumpkits were designed to be taken off for refueling and in Ashley's current predicament that was not possible. Despite this, the woman tucked one hand behind her as she veered through the trees, her fingers attempting to work off the safety lid on her jumpkits refueling nozzle.

Every time Ashley whipped past a tree, the sounds of cracking bark and a snapping trunk followed. The trees of the swamp were the only thing slowing the charging Legion down; Ashley could only imagine the path of destruction the titan left in its wake.

Ashley sucked in a breath of air as her fingers finally worked off the safety lid of her jumpkit. She clumsily tried to attach the emergency fuel tank, but at her angle and speed she could not properly align the two lips.

Above her head, the Legion's hulking metal foot was bearing down on her…

"Hold on!" Elijah screamed through Ashley's radio.

Ashley's dark eyes widened as her entire body was lifted off of the ground. Her fingers squeezed tightly against the emergency fuel tank, not daring to drop it into the swamp where it would be lost. Wrapped around the fabric collar of her jumpsuit was a clamp-like hand belonging to a familiar simulacrum. Elijah's jumpkit screamed and whined as it struggled to lift both the simulacrum and Ashley up into the air.

"Emergency tank! Now!" Elijah's computerized voice roared out of his speakers.

Ashley didn't hesitate. With some minor fumbling on her part she finally lined up the lips of the refueling nozzle and the spare tank. Screwing the tank onto the nozzle, Ashley gave the jumpkit a test fire and was pleased when the burners lit up with a blue glow.

"Hold onto your teeth!" Elijah warned. "This is really going to hurt!"

"What-"

Ashley felt oddly cold all of a sudden - cold and weightless. In an instant her vision went grayscale, with a strange burning sensation gnawing behind her eyes and a fuzzy sensation in her head. The swamp below her looked different in the sudden lack of light. The wind had stopped blowing, the rain had stopped falling.

The sensation of cold was intensifying, in addition to a churning feeling now present in Ashley's gut. Every vein in her body felt like it was swelling - as if her blood was trying to escape from her skin.

The camera's on the exterior of Ashley's helmet began to scramble; her radio emitted a high-pitched static-y whine.

But as soon as the sensations began, they ended… Ashley's vision reverted from the grayscale and her electronics stopped acting up. The strange feelings that Ashley had vanished as if they were never there…

She was also standing on a tree branch now… when had that happened…?

Feeling nauseated and "fuzzy" all over, Ashley nearly teetered off of the tree branch. Elijah's clamp-like hand shot out to stop her from falling.

"Sorry about that…" Elijah muttered in a low tone. "I had no other choice. That place isn't really kind towards organic bodies…"

"What-" Ashley coughed out, confused. The woman could taste bile and blood in her mouth. "-the fuck…?"

Blinking the burning sensation out of her eyes, Ashley slowly turned her head to stare into Elijah's single blue optic. She stretched her jaw underneath her helmet, still sensing the coppery taste of blood in her mouth.

"The titan…?"

"Coming this way…" Elijah looked over his metal shoulder. "Your jumpkit?"

"Good to go," Ashley reached out to give her bulky jumpkit a careful shake. "But I'll need to moderate my fuel usage…"

"Take my spare tank," Elijah pulled his own emergency tank off of his waist and handed it to Ashley.

The dark haired woman tentatively accepted the spare tank.

"Won't you need it?"

"Relax, I've still got plenty of fuel in mine," Elijah waved his clamp-like hand dismissively. "Your kit guzzles gas at a much faster rate, so just hold onto my tank."

"Alright," Ashley nodded, slipping the emergency tank onto her waist.

"Good, now we're going to go for that Legion's batteries," Elijah reached behind him to pull two more frag grenades from his belt; Ashley wasn't sure where the simulacrum had the space for them. "Planting these should do the trick."

"What was that earlier?" Ashley cleared her throat. "And where the fuck do you keep pulling all these grenades from?"

"Like I said, I have a hat full of tricks…" Elijah chuckled in his computerized tone. "Assuming we both survive this, I'll pull a rabbit out for you later."

"Hilarious."

"I try… now let's move it!"

Ashley and Elijah fired their jumpkits in unison and leapt off of the tree limb.

Not far below, a hulking red-eyed form was tearing through the treeline, leaving a path of destruction in its wake as it searched for the two enemy pilots that had managed to elude it.