Chapter 40
CE 74, March 22nd, Nantes Underground Garrison surface region, Nantes, France, Eurasian Federation
Afternoon 14 36
"Hunter Leader to Lance Leader! We'll break through the front and destroy their cohesion!"
"Understood!"
The enemy line shattered as Ray Feric and the Vanguard Gladius charged forward, beam rifle and shoulder-mounted beam gun answering the enemy barrage as he closed the distance; following closely behind were the Dagger Ls of Lance Squadron, Major Andre Faroque leading them. Ray had timed his charge with the return fire from Lance Squadron; as the rate of fire from Ray's allies slackened off, the Atlantic Federation 17th Division's Dagger Ls emerged from behind their cover of the nearest blast door, just as Ray stepped into melee range.
The first Dagger L staggered backwards as the Vanguard Gladius chopped down, the beam sabre barely missing the unit's entire right arm as it backpedaled; instead, the front half of the Mk. 39 bazooka it carried spun into the ground, the severed end capped with an angry red glow where the energy blade had ate through the weapon. A shield bash from Ray followed up almost instantly, sending the Dagger L reeling away from the edge of its cover; meanwhile, Major Faroque caught up from behind, running the enemy mobile suit through with his Dagger L's own beam sabre.
Now caught in a melee, two more Dagger Ls stepped forward to bar the bath forward, heavy weapons thrown away for beam sabres and shields. Ray, rounding the corner, barely slowed down, as the boosters on the Vanguard Gladius flickered for a brief moment before pulsing a brilliant blue flame in the near-darkness. The two Blue Cosmos Dagger Ls were brutally shoved aside as the heavier Vanguard Gladius barreled over anything in its way; Ray had only one target in mind.
The Vanguard Gladius stopped short as the Blu Duel met its frontal charge, both mobile suits slamming shields against each other. Ray was forced back as the Blu Duel shoved against the impact, beam sabres flashing to life in both hands. Both melee weapons lashed forward, but Ray was not without a defence; the first blow from the Blu Duel was turned to its side as the Vanguard Gladius deflected the strike with its own beam sabre, and the second met its shield, the energized plasma reacting violently with the anti-beam coating on it to produce a blinding display of electrical arcs.
The lightshow lasted for all of a second as Ray pushed back, forcing the Blu Duel to backtrack to avoid having the beam sabre on its right turned against itself, as it sought balance against the Vanguard Gladius' push. The Blu Duel slackened, intending to let the Vanguard Gladius overextend and stumble, but Ray pulled back at the last moment.
The two combatants stalked each other warily, Ray tightening his grip on the controls. The sounds of battle behind him were still ongoing, mixing in with his mobile suit's proximity alarms, but he dared not spare more than a second glancing at the motion sensor.
The Blu Duel, likewise, was hunched, beam sabre on its left hand still alight, its right side with its shield presented towards the Vanguard Gladius. For an instant, both mobile suits froze; then the Blu Duel raised its right arm, its handheld beam gun deployed as it fired.
The shot left a scorch mark on the Vanguard Gladius' shoulder armor as it ducked and answered with its own shoulder-mounted beam gun. As the Blu Duel held off the shot by presenting its right-mounted shield, the Vanguard Gladius surged forward again.
Sparks burst from the Blu Duel's shoulder joint as it disengaged its shield mount, its right arm beam gun retracting to allow it to hold the larger equipment; but by that time Ray had already closed the distance. The Blu Duel's railgun swiveled forward only to fire into the ceiling as the Vanguard Gladius, shield held horizontally, smashed into the Blu Duel dead center before striking upwards with the top rim of its shield, throwing off its aim and its stance.
The Blu Cosmos mobile suit staggered backwards, stance smashed wide open by the Vanguard Gladius. The mobile suit was not regarded as a special unit for nothing, however; in less than two seconds the mobile suit had righted itself through nothing but brute force and thruster power, countering with its left arm swinging downwards, beam saber aimed straight at Ray. The blade of energy scraped the surface of the Vanguard Gladius' shield, arcs of energy trailing the blade as the strength of the Blu Duel's strike carried it past the sidestepping Manhunters unit.
The Blue Cosmos' mobile suit turned its head, CIWS guns flashing as the pilot realized their terrible mistake in letting instinct take over. With the Blu Duel shackled by momentum, the Vanguard Gladius only had to let its opponent past it by as it dug in its right foot, allowing it to twist its body around faster than the enemy could react. The Blue Cosmos mobile suit's frantic attempt to stop, front foot grinding against the ground and sword arm in a half-swing to its rear, availed to nothing as the Vanguard Gladius' beam sabre reactivated and it charged, and Ray stabbed upwards and through the torso of the Blu Duel from behind.
The tremors of the enemy mobile suit hitting the ground barely registered in Ray's mind as Sheryl's Lightning Gladius joined him at his side, the glow on its beam rifle barrel a bright orange. Behind, the rest of Major Andre's squadron stood over the fallen Blue Cosmos Dagger Ls.
A warning siren brought Ray's mind back from the fight, as he moved the Vanguard Gladius to appropriate the Blu Duel's shield from its former user. "A seismic alert?"
"Originating from in front…" Sheryl said. "What kind of blast could produce that kind of signal?"
"Hache Leader to all, I trust that the data-link is working," Colonel Len Kadinger said, her Launcher Dagger L striding forward. Seismic alert at 2 kilometers forward; worst case, it's the exit doors opening on manual. We need to intercept them now!"
Ray eyed the remaining length of the tunnel receding into the distance. "Hunter Three, what's your combat status?"
"We've got light harassment from the rear by powered armor forces, nothing heavier than that," Guy said. "There's a lot of them, however; almost half a platoon, and they keep ducking behind heavy cover."
"Don't bother with the Agni," Ray replied. "Link up with me. We're going to intercept and stop them first. The other squadrons should follow behind with all best speed."
Lieutenant Colonel Len Kadinger's voice interjected as Guy's Launcher Gladius appeared around the corner. "Are you sure about this, Hunter Leader? It's far too hefty a task for just the three of you to carry the front charge by yourselves."
"We'll manage, Hache Leader," Ray answered. "Time is of the essence; an ordered advance will take too long. We'll split any group down the middle; I'd appreciate Lance and Hache Squadrons on second approach."
"Understood," Lt. Colonel Kadinger said. "Sabre Squadron, what's your status?"
"Battle damage to Sabre Three; 70% operational capability," Major Jahn Heres reported. "Others are green."
"Understood. Bring up the rear line, keep the harassers at a distance." Lt. Colonel Kadinger ordered. "Lance Leader, we'll join up and keep within close distance of Hunter Squadron. Lead the way, Hunter Leader."
"Got it," Major Faroque said.
"Acknowledged," Ray answered. "Manhunters! On me!"
With all attempts at stealth abandoned, the OMNI mobile suit group covered distance at triple their original pace, the strides of the multi-ton war machines kicking aside abandoned carts and scattered detritus as they sought their targets. Ray led the way in the Vanguard Gladius, leading the group around the closed blast doors, shield always held forward as he rounded corners as fast as he could without exposing vital areas on his mobile suit. Behind him were Guy and Sheryl, Launcher and Lightning Gladius units keeping a steady pace with their medium-range beam weapons at the ready. Some time in-between, both ground and ceiling alternated between level ground and gentle upward slopes several times; as they crossed yet another slope, the data-link alerted all of them that they had passed the last incline structure in the main tunnel, and the fork in the path was now right in front of them.
Rounding the last blast door that obscured the way forward, Ray beheld a team of twelve Dagger Ls of varying configuration were arrayed across the path split. The Manhunters claimed first blood as the Vanguard Gladius braced its shield and charged, beam rifle and mounted beam gun answering enemy fire with their own to carve a hole into one of the Dagger Ls' torso. From behind the Vanguard Gladius' cover, Guy and Sheryl opened up with their own weapons fire, forcing the Dagger Ls to either duck behind what cover they had or risk getting shot down.
The Dagger Ls fought back with tenacity, but to no avail. Flames wreathed the front of the Vanguard Gladius as a pair of bazooka shots streaked into its shield; a second later the OMNI mobile suit charged, tossing the last of its battered shield aside as a beam sabre snapped to life on its now-free left hand.
Ray struck into the midst of the enemy group, barreling through the small gap between two of the centermost Dagger L units. Thruster fire momentarily erupted from the Vanguard Gladius' left side as it pivoted to slash through the waist segment of a Dagger L, beam rifle and mounted gun blowing holes through the other. The other Dagger L turned to keep the Vanguard Gladius in its sight, and received several beam gun shots on its right from Guy, the blasts searing off exposed limbs and punching holes through the unfortunate mobile suit, as the echoes of the resultant explosions thundered around the combatants.
Broken, the enemy group fell in short order as the rest of the OMNI units assaulted their position. The last remaining Dagger L retreated down the left fork; a second before both Sheryl and Ray dismembered the mobile suit, it aimed its beam rifle at a spot on the wall, and fired.
The shot left a charred hole where it had hit. The Vanguard Gladius backtracked to survey the damage; there was nothing else there but a blackened hole. Ray panned his mobile suit's head sensors around; he could see a dual lift platform arrangement on sloped rails, but the lift platforms themselves were missing.
"They got some brains amongst them at the last moment, at least," Sheryl cursed. "That must have been the manual control panel."
"We now know which way they intended to use to escape," Lt. Colonel Kadinger said, her Dagger L joining them at the left fork, stopping before the left wall. "Lance Leader! What's it look like on the other side?"
Major Faroque's own Dagger L rounded the corner to rejoin the group, along with Major Heres' Lance Squadron catching up. "Same story. Lift platforms are gone, controls are toasted. For better or worse, a leftward hike is our best way out."
Ray advanced the Vanguard Gladius, its sight angled towards the lift shaft's exit. Beside him, Guy's Launcher Gladius hefted its Agni hyper impulse bazooka. "We'll make it work. No need to be concerned about ammo now; we'll march up and break through whatever they have up there."
The group began a hurried trek across the sloped access tunnel, wary of any possible attacks that might be hurled their direction. Sharp snapping sounds echoed as the reinforced surface spikes attached to each mobile suit's foot punched and tore through floor plating and concrete to give the machines additional purchase on the incline.
Brief bursts of static obscured the comms channel as Ray approached the end, each spike in the radio signal growing stronger as their distance with the exit closed. The group pushed their mobile suits forward through the ruined rails and tunnel walls, stopping short just of the lift platform that now blocked their way.
"Hunter Three to all," Guy said, the Launcher Gladius digging in its feet, Agni bazooka pointed forward. "Watch out for debris."
The brilliant light of the multi-phase plasma blast from the Agni bazooka momentarily lighted up the lift platform and the floor of the exit level with artificial lighting, for the last time; Guy swept the bazooka back and forth, the blast melting the entire platform save for the four corners attached to the transport rails, then focused his fire on the shut doors that would lead to the outside world once more. As he sliced an exit open, sunlight streamed into the tunnel as the group fell into formation and broke through to the surface in a last burst of speed.
CE 74, March 22nd, Nantes Underground Garrison surface region, Nantes, France, Eurasian Federation
Afternoon 15 11
The first thing that caught Ray's attention was the crowded skies, the tell-tale sign of missile and rocket entrails slicing the blue skyline along with several different comms channels activating at once. His attention was shortly after diverted by the flurry of open communiqués that crowded the radio feeds, as three Spearhead fighters screamed overhead in a fast pass, headed towards their strike targets. The three fighters were hardly alone; higher up, the evidence of air combat was all too present, the two Rosso Aegis units of the 17th Division dominating the air-to-air theater, while the OMNI Spearheads attempted to keep them at bay. The ground around the lift exit was littered with wreckage; a handful were Dagger Ls, but most were Linear Tanks. Ray shook his head as he realized that all but one of the downed mobile suits carried the insignia of the French Regional Guard.
"I've reestablished contact with command!" Lt. Colonel Kadinger said. "Air recon shows that our targets are 6 klicks east!"
A waypoint appeared on Ray's display, and far off, the shapes of mobile suits and a handful of armored vehicles moving towards the shore with all due speed was evident from the dust and debris clouds trailing behind them. Explosions momentarily obscured Ray's view of the escaping units of the 17th Division as anti-air fire shot down several air-to-ground missiles; the Spearheads that had passed overhead moments ago veered away as the enemy group counterattacked.
"Manhunters! Engage pursuit immediately - "
A warning chimed before Ray could give any orders. A heavy missile streaked overhead, approaching the position of the OMNI group; to Ray's horror, however, the spark of missile covers blowing off could be seen on the magnified view as the missile deployed its cluster munition payload.
Guy was the first to react. "Cluster munition! Impact in five seconds!"
The OMNI group scrambled from their positions, shields held overhead, as the swarm of explosives struck home. A wave of explosions washed over everything within a quarter kilometer of the exit tunnel as the submunitions slammed into the ground and detonated.
Even through the cockpit, Ray felt his hearing being smothered by the multiple explosions that ripped up the land, each impact jarring his bones and catching his breath in his throat. The Vanguard Gladius stumbled out of the inferno, armor pitted by shrapnel and scorched; thankfully, no direct hits had occurred, although the warped surface of the pilfered shield it held told of a close encounter.
"H… Hunter Leader to all! Report!"
Sheryl's comms channel opened first, her coughing subsiding as the Lightning Gladius approached from behind. "H… Hunter Two is still active! Lost the fire radar, however. I won't be able to return fire at maximum range."
"Hunter Three is still active," Guy added, the Launcher Gladius joining the pair. "Looks like we were close enough to the edge of the blast zone."
There was a burst of static as a new channel established itself on Ray's intercom. "Argo Leader to Hunter Leader! What's your status?"
"Hunter Leader reports all active. The mission is still ongoing." Ray looked up, the auto-magnifying function on the display catching sight of the support aircraft that circled overhead. "Requesting overall situation report!"
"An enemy Orcinus-class submarine has surfaced in the Bay of Biscal, advancing to an estimated position roughly 6 kilometers offshore. They're supported by three Delaware-class attack submarines and enacting counter-air tactics. Fire drones are present; the enemy is contesting both air and naval local supremacy."
"What happened to the pursuit fleet? What are the movements of the escaping Blue Cosmos units in Nantes?"
"The Eurasian Federation pursuit fleet is currently engaged in combat with a screen of submarines backed by sudden reinforcements of Blue Cosmos warships in the Celtic Sea region; data estimates paint their point of origin as the Northern Atlantic open waters. Enemy MS units are proceeding towards the shoreline. Data-link shows that you have a waypoint active."
"Understood," Ray said, switching the channel back to the local allied band. "Hunter Leader to all forces? Can you read me? What's your general status?"
Static marred the responses as the various French OMNI units attempted to reply. "… you … reporting…" Colonel Kadinger's voice sounded out. "Hache Squadron… down one member, two on yellow. Lance Squadron is all-yellow. Sabre Squadron is yellow-red and down one; Sabre Two's unit is immobile, Sabre Three's gone."
Ray clenched his teeth at the deteriorating situation, forcing his mind to clear out the data he couldn't control. "Hunter Two! Can you hit them from here?"
Even as Ray finished his sentence, the Lightning Gladius had already taken firing position, weapon raised, its railgun unfolded. Blue light began to run across the interior of the gun barrel, arcs of lightning occasionally escaping containment, as Sheryl searched out her first victim. "I'm well within range for the small fry. Not a problem."
Ray's intercom buzzed again as a parallel channel activated. "Hunter Leader, this is Argo Leader. We've detected a second heavy missile launched and inbound to your general location. T-minus 15 seconds to your immediate zone."
"Hunter Leader to all, a second inbound missile has been detected. Evacuate as best as you can!"
Even amidst shouted orders to evade the bombardment, Lt. Colonel Kadinger managed a reply. "What are you planning to do?"
"We're going to close in and mix it up, the submarine support fire will have to shut up or hit all of us then. " Ray switched the intercom settings, the Vanguard Gladius already moving towards the escaping remnants of the 17th Division. "Manhunters, we're going to shut the door on these shitheads! Engage boosted jump! We'll mix it up with the enemy so that their submarine can't provide support fire! Hunter Two, give them a welcome call, then follow me in!"
Both Guy and Sheryl's replies barely registered in Ray's mind as he led the charge, his psyche focused on only the final objective. The three mobile suits charged forward, thrusters flickering for a brief moment before both the Vanguard and Launcher Gladius launched themselves forward on pillars of thruster fire. The Lightning Gladius paused just long enough to let off a single railgun shot before it followed, leaping into the air in a boosted jump.
From his elevated position, Ray saw Sheryl's first round cut down a Dagger L where it stepped, the impact of the shot blowing off everything on its upper torso, its weapons and shattered parts tossed to the ground like plastic beads spilled across the floor. The armored vehicles and mobile suits of the 17th Division turned towards the direction of the shot, shields forward and weapons poised for retaliation towards an opponent they had yet to see.
Ray's first target was a Dagger L that stood on the periphery of the group, which turned upwards just in time to see the Vanguard Gladius plant its armored foot onto its head unit, the momentum pushing the Dagger L into the ground with a messy beheading that shattered its head amidst a curtain of loose grass, dirt, and mud. The mobile suit flailed about on the ground, dropping its beam rifle to reach for a beam sabre, but the Vanguard Gladius turned around to dismember its arms with twin strikes of its beam sabres.
Guy's Launcher Gladius landed in front and to the side of Ray's, beam guns and shoulder vulcan guns answering enemy fire in earnest with well-placed shots, as Ray ripped the disarmed Dagger L's shield free of its arm and took up position beside Guy, with both beam rifle and beam gun deployed and adding to the counterfire effort. Enemy mobile suits ducked behind shields; the armored vehicles, most of them anti-air AFVs, had no such defensive countermeasure as Guy and Ray's heavy fire ripped through their formation, tearing up most of them within seconds.
Another Dagger L exploded into a spray of parts from the waist up as Sheryl claimed another target mid-jump. A third mobile suit turned towards Sheryl's direction in response, a movement that momentarily left its side open to Ray; a pair of beam shots detonated its left shoulder, the force of the blast causing the Blue Cosmos unit to stumble onto its side. Left wide open, Ray wasted no time in perforating the enemy with several more shots, leaving the smoking metal corpse to topple onto the ground. Beside him, Guy forced a Dagger L backwards as it put as much of its silhouette as it could behind its shield, the defensive equipment slowly crumpling under the assault of the Launcher Gladius' shoulder-mounted vulcan cannons.
The easy part was almost over, however. Now that they had closed in, Ray could make out their unit composition; standing in the middle of the formation was the 17th Division's special units, the Manhunters' advance having bypassed the remaining line of Dagger Ls arrayed across the land to guard their rear. Ray had downed their Blu Duel earlier; with the air battle keeping the Rosso Aegis units busy, that left a Verde Buster, and a pair of Strike Es outfitted in Sword and Launcher equipment.
The Launcher Gladius shifted its stance as its Agni hyper impulse bazooka swung forward on its assisting arm, head unit focusing on the last group of targets. "Looks like all that's left are the bosses!" Guy remarked.
"Last leg; let's crush these assholes and end this farce!" Ray replied, the Vanguard Gladius holstering its beam rifle. "Engage targets at will!"
Both the Launcher Strike E and the Verde Buster took aim at the Vanguard Gladius, while the Sword Strike E stalked in from the side, circling Ray like a prowling hunter. Before either ranged unit could fire, however, Sheryl and Guy sprung their attack; the Verde Buster was thrown backwards as a railgun shot made contact with its Phase Shift Armor, while a blast from the Launcher Gladius' Agni bazooka forced the Launcher Strike E to evade or risk being destroyed.
The Sword Strike E charged forward, anti-ship sword held straight and pointing front; the Vanguard Gladius sidestepped at the last moment, turning the blow aside with its shield. Ray resisted the urge to slash at the passing Strike E instead of maintaining its block; the GUNDAM fired its thrusters, and slashed rightwards, its anti-ship sword lashing out to scrape pass the Vanguard Gladius' shield a second time.
The Sword Strike E backed away, thrusters flaring as it weaved around the shots sent its way by the Vanguard Gladius' shoulder-mounted beam gun. Left arm reaching across itself, the Sword Strike E grabbed the handle of its right arm-mounted beam boomerang; a second later the weapon left its owner and slashed through the air, aimed straight at Ray.
The Vanguard Gladius met blades with the beam boomerang, sending the thrown weapon careening off-course as it closed distance with the Strike E again. The Sword Strike E cut its thrusters; feet digging into the soil, it swung its anti-ship sword with both hands in a fast horizontal slash. Beam sabre deactivating, the Vanguard Gladius braced its shield with both arms a second before the blow connected, and a blinding flash emanated as the anti-ship sword's beam edge sparked against the coating on the shield surface.
Dirt and soil billowed around the two mobile suits from the impact of the strike and both units pushing against each other to maintain their stances; as the Vanguard Gladius' beam gun angled to fire, the Sword Strike E set itself against its weapon and pushed back hard, throwing Ray backwards. The Vanguard Gladius stumbled, its aim thrown off, but it didn't fall; The Strike E followed up with a rocket anchor from its left hand as it passed the grip of its anti-ship sword into its other hand to draw a beam gun, and the claw clamped onto the Vanguard Gladius' right hand.
Ray cycled his controls as the Vanguard Gladius dug its heels, trying to keep from being pulled off-balance and into the ground, where he would be easy picking for his opponent. The Vanguard Gladius' beam gun adjusted its aim, but there was no way to fire; beam shots splashed against its shield as Ray blocked the Sword Strike E's attempts to hit something vital with its beam pistol. The Vanguard Gladius' beam gun answered with its own shots, but the Sword Strike E kept itself mobile, and the two mobile suits continued to scuffle against each other's attempts to destabilize the other.
One of the Vanguard Gladius' hip-mounted rocket anchor swiveled forward and fired. The Sword Strike E saw the blow coming, and bashed it aside with its gun arm to keep the anchor's beam edge from hitting anything vital, but the wired blade projectile's microthrusters fired so that it wrapped around the Sword Strike E's right leg instead. Sparks sprayed from the winch system on the Vanguard Gladius' left hip block armor as it sought to rewind the metal composite cable that the rocket anchor was attached to, and the Strike E stumbled forward as the sudden force momentarily threw it off-balance. The Vanguard Gladius reached for the rocket anchor clamped onto its right arm; ignoring the pressure warning alerts as the device increased its grip pressure, Ray wrapped the anchor's cable around his mobile suit's arm; first once, then twice.
Thrusters flared as they fought for balance against each other, the distance between them closing slowly but surely as the Sword Strike E's greater strength pulled in the Vanguard Gladius more than it could to the Blue Cosmos unit. From the corner of his eye he saw a Dagger L charge in from the side; the Vanguard Gladius' back-mounted beam gun swiveled to force the newcomer back with a continuous salvo of beam shots. The Sword Strike E continued firing its beam pistol, the weapon's shot splashing its plasma energy over the Vanguard Gladius' shield. Ray watched as the Blue Cosmos mobile suit reared back, trying to pull him forward and off-balance. With a single breath, Ray released his mobile suit's stance to let the Sword Strike E pull him forward.
As the Vanguard Gladius lurched forward, its rear thrusters flared to life, the mobile suit hurtling forward with its shield held in front. The Sword Strike E barely had time to swing its anti-ship blade when Ray's mobile suit smashed into the enemy, throwing the GUNDAM into the ground and forcing the weapon from its grip. Rolling with the blow, Ray came up standing, and reaching for the hilt of the heavy blade weapon, the Vanguard Gladius swung the anti-ship sword in a horizontal rightward slash that saw the weapon bite deep into its former owner just as it rolled over and pushed off the ground.
The Sword Strike E staggered sideways, its right arm missing with an anti-ship sword embedded in the left side of its torso, as the Vanguard Gladius pulled out one of its own beam sabres and stabbed deep into the mobile suit. The unit spasmed for the last time as the beam sabre sheared through vital circuitry, its primary drive systems, and the cockpit block.
Pushing the Sword Strike E off, Ray surveyed the remaining forces left in the area. Sheryl's Lightning Gladius stood over the Verde Buster with beam rifle and sabre in hand, the GUNDAM a smoking corpse; of Guy's target, there was no noticeable intact mobile suit around the Launcher Gladius and the wreckage that surrounded it, as it swept its Agni hyper impulse bazooka to take aim at the encroaching Dagger Ls.
The Manhunters were spared the trouble of counterattacking as beam rifle shots slashed through the air to down the forward-most Dagger Ls. The remainder turned towards the new threat, only to see as new OMNI troops closed in; eighteen Dagger Ls of the French Guard, with over a dozen Spearhead fighters speeding overhead to join the air battle. Ray watched as a second squadron of eight Skygraspers streaked past overhead, splitting up after the two remaining Rosso Aegis units left in the skies.
"Hache Leader to Hunter Leader!" Lt. Colonel Kadinger's voice came over the intercom; Ray easily picked out her unit from amongst the approaching Eurasian Dagger Ls by the battle damage it carried, even amongst the well-worn forces of the French Guard. "Hope we aren't too late for the rest of the fight!"
"Argo Leader to Hunter Leader," Argo Leader's voice added. "First wave of reinforcements from Dover are on-site. Mobile suit reinforcements will follow shortly."
"Good that someone else will handle the cleanup," Sheryl sighed, as the mobile suits of the French Guard engaged the remaining units of the 17th Division, quickly destroying the enemy formation now that they no longer had any specialist mobile suits to back them up. "I think this is quite enough for me."
"There's still a submarine carrier sitting in front of us," Guy said. "Unless they throw the fight and run…"
The last of the enemy resistance fell away around the Manhunters as the reinforcements secured the area, one of the Rosso Aegis trailing smoke and headed for the ground while the other had broken off and was now speeding towards where the submarine carriers were at. Ray looked towards the sea, his mind on the enemy naval forces still active in the region, and noticed several streaks of smoke reach out towards the skies.
Almost immediately, Argo Leader's voice cut through the intercoms again. "Argo Leader to all forces! Heavy missile launch detected!"
Lt. Colonel Kadinger's voice could be heard on the comms. "All forces, spread out! Cluster munitions incoming!"
Ray glanced through the tactical map. "Forward! Head for the shore!"
"Oh for fuck's sake-" Sheryl started, her Lightning Gladius crouching in preparation for a boosted jump. "I guess there's no easy end to this!"
"Air forces are diverting to intercept." Argo Leader said. "All forces take note, enemy air recon drones have been sighted!"
"They won't make it," Guy said from between clenched teeth, as several more lines of smoke reached into the air, chasing after the regrouping Eurasian fighter jets. "There's heavy anti-air munitions in there as well."
The Eurasian Federation fighters veered off to avoid the anti-air missiles sent their way as two cluster munition missiles streaked across the skies, disgorging their deadly payload. The Manhunters and a few other Eurasian Federation Dagger Ls thrust themselves into the sea, just out of range of the bombing area, waves opening from the thruster force of mobile suits landing from boosted jumps before rushing back in, as the fiery explosions of submunitions thundered behind them through the OMNI forces.
"Fuck! We can't do anything about that monster from here!" Lt. Colonel Kadinger grimaced, her Dagger L knee-deep in the sea; the mobile suit listed left and right as it fought to keep stable footing against the soft sea floor, the sand swirling around the mobile suit's feet up to its ankles. Around her, the other mobile suits had also met with the same issues, most of them crouching to maximize their balance. "If the fleet had been able to force their way through…!"
"I can't see them at all on the active sensors. They must be almost flush against the horizon," Sheryl said. "Even if I had the fire radar, I wouldn't be able to get a clear shot."
"Radar isn't going to cut it," Guy said, the Launcher Gladius' back-mounted fire radar extended to its maximum height. "They're flickering; they must have some pretty decent ECM capabilities."
"Fire data… traj-" Ray stopped his muttering as he turned to look at the Lightning Gladius. "Hunter Two! If you had the data… could you make the shot?"
The Lightning Gladius braced itself against the waves, railgun held with barrel pointing up and above the water. "At here? We're just barely in the max range, but we're in. The shot is not a major problem. But the fire data-"
"I'll get you that data," Ray said, flipping the intercom switch as fast as he could to the Manhunters' air support. "Argo Leader, Hunter Leader here. Request that you pipe all available air reconnaissance data to Hunter Two. We're going to try and hole the enemy superheavy submarine."
There was a pause, then the reply. "Argo Leader copies. Data-link active, finalizing channel."
Sheryl shook her head with a smirk. "Now this is the kind of plan we excel in. Alright, I'm ready."
"Argo Leader to Hunter Leader! Superheavy missile launches detected; one missile is headed to your new position!"
The Launcher Gladius, its fire radar raised, hefted its Agni hyper impulse bazooka, taking up position in front of the Lightning Gladius. "Hunter Leader to all!" Ray spoke. "We'll clear the area forward of Hunter Two. Set your target acquisition to maximum sensitivity and plug it into Hunter Three's data-link; follow up on Hunter Three's sweep with ranged counterfire!"
"Receiving fire data; link is green," Sheryl said, the Lightning Gladius kneeling, waves reaching up to its waist. "Give me twenty more seconds max! The link integrity is in flux thanks to all the fucking jamming going on out there. Adjusting trajectory and angle… "
In no time, the telltale sparks of the cluster munition missiles disgorging their payloads in midair were sighted on the pilots' magnified visual settings. "Hunter Three to all forces!" Guy said. "Initiating sweep!"
The mobile suits were momentarily illuminated by a blinding light as the Launcher Gladius fired its Agni hyper impulse bazooka, torso turning to clear as much of the skies around the area as possible. The brilliant multi-color plasma beam scythed a clear path in front of the group, the premature detonations of submunitions in the skies a hopeful sight of the plan's effectiveness for the other pilots. Arrayed around Sheryl and Guy in a loose semicircle, the Vanguard Gladius and the Eurasian Federation forces with Lt. Colonel Kadinger opened fire, beam weapons and CIWS guns blazing madly as they sought to shoot down as many of the incoming submunitions as they could.
Success was not guaranteed, however, even with their disciplined concentration of fire. The Vanguard Gladius staggered as a submunition made it through the tight web of fire to detonate against the surface of the mobile suit's shield, raised just in time to prevent a near point-blank strike. One of the Eurasian Federation mobile suits, a Dagger L, took a strike that caused it to stagger, shield falling in pieces from its arm mount; the next hit tore its right arm free and gouged a hole into the right side of the mobile suit, the blast force throwing it under the roiling waves. Lightning flashes played across the front of the Launcher Gladius as it fired both of its shoulder-mounted vulcan guns and hip block-mounted beam guns, shoulder-mounted and battered handheld shield positioned in front and facing overhead. One submunition missed the Lightning Gladius' head by a scant meter to detonate behind it; the mobile suit shifted its stance as the impact played havoc with the seafloor, Sheryl cursing silently as she fought to keep the railgun rifle steady.
Ray stole a glance at the Lightning Gladius. "Hunter Two!"
"Still active!" Sheryl replied. "Give me a few more seconds!"
Around the tight grouping of mobile suits, the submunitions rained down, sea spray breaking up the foam lines formed by waves as the deadly rain ran its course, mixed in with falling seawater that showered the group. As the last of the submunitions landed, Ray looked up to see their air support craft trailing fire from its side, its data-link icon flashing yellow.
"Hunter Leader to Argo Leader! Report!"
"Enemy Rosso Aegis is intercepting," the reply came, the cacophony of sirens audible even through the data-link. "Stay on plan; enemy submarine is changing trajectory with signs of enacting submerging protocols. Altering fire data predictions for plus-ten seconds-"
Even from his ground position where the aircraft were just little dots in the sky, Ray could see a red beam sear through the air as the enemy Rosso Aegis struck Argo Leader a second time; moments later the transport aircraft belched an explosion from its frame.
"Altered fire data is sending!" Argo Leader said, the cacophony of warning alarms in the aircraft clearly audible even of Ray's side of the transmission.
"Argo Leader!" Ray yelled. "Break off!"
"Hunter Leader! Tell your air support to pull back!" Lt. Kadinger said. "Fighter support has regrouped and is inbound in five seconds!"
"I have the target's 12-point grid position!" Sheryl hollered. "Argo Leader, break off!"
Whatever reply that may have been forthcoming was terminated, Ray wincing as a burst of static assaulted his ears for a split second. Looking up, the cause was clear; a second explosion billowed in the skies, and from high up, the aircraft that was Argo Leader angled downwards and towards the sea. Ray could only watch in desperation as the heavy transport and support aircraft impacted onto the water surface, barely noticing the Eurasian Federation Skygrasper and Spearhead fighters that had caught up and were now taking the Rosso Aegis apart in a salvo of beam gunfire and missiles.
"Hunter Leader to Hache Leader," Ray started. "I need your-"
"I'm on it," Lt. Colonel Kadinger said. " Hache Leader to Local command! Allied heavy aircraft down, I'm marking estimated position on the grid! Requesting immediate SAR!"
"Hunter Two to all!" Sheryl said through clenched teeth, her mind focused on the only task that mattered to her now. "Firing for effect!"
The blinding lightshow that had taken place earlier paled in comparison to the Lightning Gladius's own, as its railgun rifle, held nearly parallel to the sea surface, launched a single high-powered round, guided by the air-to-surface translated data provided by Argo Leader. The air pressure snap of the round leaving its weapon was both felt and heard as the pressure wave rumbled through all the mobile suits present, its forces momentarily parting the sea underneath the Lightning Gladius far enough to reveal slimy sand depressing under the pressure of a mobile suit's weight; with regular air cooling no longer sufficient, scalding coolant gasses immediately erupted from the railgun rifle's venting ports as the weapon fought to keep its own internal temperature under tolerable conditions.
The sudden snap of shockwaves was felt by Ray even through the armored cockpit of his mobile suit. Nevertheless, his eyes were fixed on the horizon; seconds later a pillar of water rose from the surface, the spray falling back to the sea haphazardly.
"Just water…" Sheryl muttered, as the parted seawater rushed back around her mobile suit in a turbulent swirl. "Was it a miss?"
Lt. Colonel Kadinger hurriedly pressed switches on the comms control. "This is Hache Leader on allied theater band to any air units listening! Requesting aerial confirmation on target enemy heavy submarine!"
There was a fizzle of static, then a reply. "Hache Leader, this is Almace Leader. Stand by." A pause, then; "Submarine had just submerged to outside sight depth prior to impact. Gun cam records the shot going into water. We cannot confirm anything else from up here."
The Lightning Gladius lowered its railgun rifle, the barrel dipping into the water. Steam immediately wreathed the kneeling mobile suit as the seawater boiled against the searing surface of the gun's outer casing, exposed barrel, and its conductor parts. Sheryl breathed out, a long, heavy breath that carried an air of defeat. "With no other result showing, it might as well be…"
"You took a good shot nonetheless," Ray said. "If an active data line could have been maintained…"
Ray felt his subordinates' disappointment, but it wasn't for lack of trying; the enemy had consolidated all of their might to attempt a breakout, and they had given as good as any against all the sudden obstacles arrayed against them. He was about to say something more to Sheryl when the comms interrupted his thoughts. "Almace Leader to all! Enemy submarine is surfacing! I repeat, enemy submarine is surfacing!"
"It got through?!" Sheryl started.
There was a chime as the Vanguard Gladius' screen displayed another video feed piped in via Lt. Colonel Kadinger's Dagger L. The aerial view showed the massive top profile of an Orcinus-class submarine carrier, a jagged gash cut into its portside hull, smoke beginning to stream from its interior. Even with the top view, Ray could tell that the submarine was listing to its port side, the water it had taken threatening to drag it under unless it kept to the surface.
"Shit," Guy said. "That is a good shot, Hunter Two."
Sheryl leaned back into her seat, letting herself enjoy a bit of the feeling of victory. "It's done. We've trapped the submarine."
"Local command to all forces, the Navy has broken through up north. Intercept groups are on the way. Air forces, maintain pressure on the enemy; land forces, secure ground areas and POWs, then retreat from the shore area to the designated holding zones. Missile artillery will set up and provide secondary bombardment. I repeat…"
Rescue helicopters soared past above the mobile suits; far off, air-to-surface missile fire scoured the wounded submarine carrier and the few escorts that had surfaced to defend the wounded Blue Cosmos vessel, ensuring that the vessels were defanged and unable to escape.
"I can see why the Atlantic Federation only sent the three of you, Hunter Leader." Lt. Colonel Kadinger said, smirking. "Any more, and the fight might have been too easy. Especially if they're all led in such a manner."
"I claim no credit for their skills and feats," Ray replied, a slight smile decorating his countenance nonetheless, as the mobile suits began their trek back to land. "Merely that they're willing to stand by my side."
Afterword:
One thing that I did feel was missing from the original series was the post-LOGOS announcement development within the various nations. This particular scenario deals with the Eurasian Federation shaking off the shackles of Blue Cosmos after the enemy leadership had been dealt with at Heaven's Base. It isn't much, and it won't be a full look into the process, since the Manhunters won't be there for the whole way, but I hope it lends a bit of weight to the settings in showing some possible repercussions and long-lasting effects caused by the events of the first half of Destiny.