Deep within the Darklands, Sammael smirked as he watched the Grimm vanish in a cloud of smoke.

Beside him, I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. flared his optics as they flashed red.

"I see the Coal Walker failed," Sammael mused. "Such a shame..."

"Yes. But now comes the unexpected..." the huge Gundam rumbled. He folded his arms across his broad chest as he watched.

"That was no ordinary Coal Walker, was it?" the voice of Moloch hissed out of the shadows.

"You'd be right, Moloch," Sammael said casually. "This one was a brainstorm by I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. But I have to admit. What kind of ability did you give it?"

"It's not an ability, per say," the Fallen Gundam remarked. "Instead..." He held up a hand and those metal scales seethed over his fingers into a smaller version of the Coal Walker. "These... these here are the key. As long as they exist, new versions shall be formed. And... let's just say that those who encounter them are in for an explosive surprise..."

Moloch's eyes flashed within the darkness. "Very cunning... and perhaps a trait to be admired," the Beast of Darkness purred. "I'm actually impressed by you. Sammael was wise to choose you to join our ranks then."

I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. rumbled as he dismissed the scales and looked into the orb showing the fight. "Yes... Yes, he did..."

(Shows a pair of eyes opening before the eyes morph into optics)

START Kaitei no Orchestra (Precious Time) (ROMI)

(The optics flash as the camera pans out to show six shadowy mecha before they leap towards the camera, brandishing their weapons)

Hiroi aoi kono basho de tokiga nagarete yuku my precious time (The image fades to show a cat Faunus boy with brown hair and magenta eyes walking down a street close to the ocean, looking down at an image of his mother in his hand. He perks up as he spots a rabbit Faunus girl with light green hair and eyes hugs him, making him yelp. A boy with brown hair and brown eyes joins the girl on the cat Faunus's other side, and gives a thumbs up. A boy with dark purple hair and eyes approaches from the left and smiles a bit before a ninja youth leaps down on the right, his dark grey hair and purple eyes standing out with the purple highlight on the right side of his bangs. The five look up at the sky as a shimmering image of a cheetah Faunus with blue hair and eyes appears behind them. The title appears below them all.)

GRIMMFALL: SHINKALION RISING

Itsu no manika kiete shimatte kakegaeno koega (The image fades to show the cat Faunus standing beside his mother's grave, his eyes fixed on her name)

Tsumaranai hibimo sorega sukide ikitetanda (Memories of her and his family march past as he bows his head)

Higa sashiteru tokomade omoikkiri hashitte (A wind blows past and he perks up as he sees something ahead of him, making him break into a run to try and reach the shadowy, winged humanoid shape as it looks back with yellow optics, holding out a hand)

Shinjirarenai koto bakari menomaeni okiru (The two embrace hands and then a flash of light engulfs the screen, fading to show a large Kaiju-class Grimm being attacked by a blue and white mecha wielding a drill before the two clash)

Taiyou no hou wo miagate tachiagaruno tsurakute (The impact throws off a light that engulfs the screen, dissipating to show the cat Faunus, but battered and wounded, looking at the sky, the sun shining down on him as he reaches up a hand, as if grasping at it)

Susumu koto dake omouto (He tries to stagger to his feet, only to collapse briefly before he lifts his gaze, a yellow optic forming in place of his eye as it glows brightly)

Setsunai tabiwo tsuzukeru kawatta me no okuniwa (The light of the optic fades as the camera moves out to show a green and white mecha armed with a sword and wings on its back attacking a porcupine Kaiju-class Grimm in close combat, only for the Kaiju to fire off a slew of spines from its legs and back, making the mecha block with a shimmering tri-colored Aura)

Natsukashii itoshisa wo motomete (On my way) (Behind the mecha appears an image of a cat Faunus woman, and the mecha lunges forward, its sword glowing as it traps the Grimm in an energy cage before slicing it in half)

Kizutsuke attanowa nikui wake janai nosa (The Grimm explodes before a Faunus Ultra gorilla lunges from behind, making the mecha spin to block with its sword, images of a peaceful world appearing behind it before punching the Faunus Ultra and sending it staggering back)

Sokoni kibouga arunonara my precious time (The images coalesce around the mecha's chest as it fires a blast of green energy from a hidden chest cannon at the screen)

Itsukaraka onaji keshikini kakomarete sugoshite (The screen comes back into view, this time showing the cat Faunus as he stands atop a building in Tokyo, his friends beside him as they eye the distant horizon, a shadowy shape behind Mt. Fuji in the distance)

Akinonai koega sukoshizutsu chiri hajimeta (The boy looks down at an image of his mother in his hands, his friends placing their hands on his shoulders to comfort him as tears streak down his cheeks)

Ameni utareta mamade omoku seouno tsurakute (The camera zooms in on his eyes before panning out to show him looking at the window, the same green and white mecha on the other side, both touching their hands to one another before it shifts to show the cat Faunus's mother as a transparent image behind the mecha)

Ushinau koto dake omouto (The camera zooms in on the mecha's face before panning out to show two Faunus, a fox woman and a bull man, standing atop a hotel in downtown Tokyo)

Togirenai omoino nakade hisshi ni tsukamunosa (The two Faunus lunge for the mecha, only to be blocked by a red and white mecha with two guns and a purple and white mecha wielding two shuriken in its hands Beside them is a white and green mecha armed with a sword and the blue and white mecha with the drill is close by)

Dokomademo dokomademo sagasunda (Find your way) (The five mecha charge towards a large shape as it looms out of the shadows of the two Faunus, and behind them is the shape of a white and blue mecha armed with twin energy blades)

Otagaini motomeatte kakera wo tsunagunosa (Shows the six mecha as they stand in a line, each of them holding their weapons at the ready before they charge forward; the green and white mecha fires off its chest cannon as the blue and white mecha spins its drill up, a blue aura engulfing it, the red and white mecha fires its twin guns in a rifle configuration as the purple and white mecha uses its shuriken as weapons, the white and green mecha swings its sword as heat radiates from the blade and the white and blue mecha swipes with its energy blades, releasing a shockwave)

Sokoni kibouga mierukara wow oh wow (The blasts combine to generate an explosion as it hits something before the smoke parts to reveal a scenic image of the city of Tokyo, the tendrils of Satyra retreating from it)

Kimiga tsukutta monogatari saikou no omoide ni nattanda (The image shifts to show the cat Faunus looking down at a photo album of his mother and his friends and family, tears pricking at his eyes before he sees his friends beside him and they hold out their hands, a smile crossing his face as he takes their hands and they pull him out of the darkness into the light)

Bokurano nakani ikitsuzukete soshite arigatou wow (They all hug before a flash of light envelops them, fading shortly after to reveal the six mecha, this time images of the six kids behind them as they charge at a shadowy shape as it looms over them)

Setsunai tabiwo owarasunda miraiwo kaete tsukuruno sa (The image pans to the right to show them all charging, this time transparent scenes of new enemies marching past them - Dr. Robotnik, Sammael, and Moloch - before fading to show the city of Tokyo at sunset, a light shining in this darkening world)

Istumademo akiramezuni oistuzukete (On my way) (The green and white mecha with the wings thrusts its hand out towards an image of the cat Faunus's mother as she reaches out, and their hands clasp before it shows the green and white mecha firing off its chest cannon, the beam this time a shining gold color)

Tashikani kanjitanda kimiga kureta yuuki wo (The blast strikes the enemy before them - Dr. Robotnik - before it shows the mecha with its companions as they join in on the attack with their own moves)

Bokuno subete wo gisei ni torimodosunda bokurano precious time (The image fades to show the six kids standing in front of Tokyo, the title of the series appearing below them)

GRIMMFALL: SHINKALION RISING

OPENING FILES:

CLASSIFIED

DECRYPTING...

FILES DECRYPTED

OPENING FILES: E6 KOMACHI

The fourth unit to be activated, the E6 Komachi is built to be a long range support unit. It's the most mobile of the units, surpassed by only the E3's agility. While not as strong as the others, the E6 makes up for it with incredible mobility. The unit stands in humanoid form at twenty-five meters in height and in both battle and default forms weighs ninety-five tons.

The E6 has on the sides of its feet two sets of wheels, much like the E7 has treads on either side of its ankles. These give the E6 its incredible mobility on the battlefield, making this unit a very effective adversary against long range fighters. The E6 is equipped with two guns known as the Railway Crossing Guns. These can be upgraded into the Railway Crossing Cannon, a mode in which both guns rest on the E6's shoulder guards.

The driver of this unit is Akita Oga.

CLOSING FILES

TERMINAL ENTERING STANDBY PHASE

"When it comes to gathering things, humans have mastered many techniques and tricks." The figure in the seat adjusted themselves before gesturing to the monitor showing several soldiers working together to complete a mission, their machines keeping back enemy machines as several other soldiers led civilians to safety. "Such as gathering allies or friends. That happens in times of war, and sometimes even in peace."

The figure then snapped their fingers and the image changed to show a farmer harvesting crops. "Or gathering food from a good harvest." An image of several fishermen came up next. "Or even gathering fish for the people to consume. It all depends on what it is you wish to gather."

Then the image changed to showcase several children held in cages while others were being experimented on. "In one case, children were gathered to create super soldiers to combat the genetically enhanced. Such things were deemed illegal within the universe where this took place, and those behind it were locked up or stripped of all their rights and left to fend for themselves in the streets." The image then faded from the monitor as the figure leaned back in the seat. "So, what is it you wish to gather? Friends? Family? Model kits? Money? It's your choice."

CHAPTER XI - MINE

The beams struck home.

An explosion rocked the battlefield, and Esebu was thrown off the track he was on by its sheer force. He flipped around as the capture field began to waver from the concussive force of the blast wave alone. He hoped it wouldn't go down.

"Esebu! Can you hear me?" Futaba asked.

"Yes, I can," Esebu responded. "Why?"

"The capture field... it actually formed?" she asked.

"Yeah. I'm not sure how, but... I'm just glad it did," the Shinkalion said. "Anyway, we defeated the Coal Walker, so the town below should be returning to normal, right?"

"Yes. The smog has begun to vanish, and radar scans along with satellite imagery has shown that the power plant has returned to its original state and location," Futaba replied.

"Good. Let's just hope we don't have another one like it..." Esebu responded.

Futaba was about to speak again when a loud screeching came from the smoke.

The group of six was surprised at this, all of them turning to face the thick smoke cloud. Several smaller shapes suddenly burst out of the smoke, leaving trails behind them as they landed atop the rails encircling the platform. Esebu was stunned to see that these new entities were not Grimm, but small robots that stood about half the height of a Shinkalion frame. Their faces were more skull-like and they had no eyeballs or any organs, really. They looked more like living skeletons. But their bodies were made up of some kind of... scales? Esebu's optics dimmed a shade. "Okay... this is new," he mused as he hefted his drill.

"What the hell are those?!" Dani asked as she powered up a ghost ray.

"No clue. I've never seen them before," Seph remarked. His wings arched themselves as he hovered closer to the three Shinkalions. "And I've seen a lot in my lifetime."

Esebu cocked his helm a bit at the emphasis on those two words, but he brushed it aside as he sensed one of the skeletons coming their way. It lumbered and lurched, moaning as it reached out its metallic bony hands. Haifu was the closest one, and she yelped as she backed away, only for the thing to collapse on its chest.

But what happened next sent shudders down their spines and spinal struts.

The skeleton exploded.

The group was forced to dodge the shrapnel as it peppered the platform, only to vanish into smoke seconds later.

Akita's eyes were wide as he looked down from Dani's grasp. "I... I did not see where this was headed!" he muttered in horror.

Esebu looked at the smoldering spot on the platform, horror filling his optics. "Good God...!" he whispered. "This... This..." He gulped audibly as he glanced at the other robotic zombie skeletons coming towards them.

"Okay... I think I know what to call these!" he muttered as he stood up. "Skeleton Mines."

"An appropriate name," Seph mused as he flexed his wings, "given what they can do and all." He was very tempted to let loose with his explosive energy feathers, but he opted not to because of the danger that the human would be in if he was hit by them or grabbed by a Skeleton Mine before it exploded. And something about those scales... just seemed... off... to him.

He frowned, but brushed it aside as being unknown to him. There was still stuff he was learning every day, and that was saying something given how long he had lived so far.

Esebu finally seemed to come back to his senses as he looked to Fumikiri. "Fumikiri, I need you to get Akita out of here and back to Tokyo!" he ordered.

"What!? Why?!" both blurted.

"Look. As much as you want to stay and help, Akita, it's just too dangerous," Esebu said as he looked to the boy. "I don't want you to get hurt, so it's best you go back home. But if you still wish to help, go to the Marunouchi Building. Go there and get reinforcements."

Akita was confused by the order, but nodded. "I'll see what I can do," he said.

Fumikiri turned to Esebu. "Please... be careful," he said.

"We will," the lead Shinkalion said with a nod.

The purple and white Shinkalion shifted into his shinkansen form and opened the door for Akita. The boy darted aboard and within minutes they were moving, exiting the capture field in a flash of light.

Esebu could only hope that Akita did as he suggested.

Right now they had their own mission to focus on. Esebu hefted his drill and looked at the incoming mines. "Any ideas?" Dani asked as she drifted down.

"Try and stay on the move," Esebu said. "They seem to need to get close in order to damage us. So we'll have to rely on movement to give us a fighting edge."

"But if they get in close and explode, we can't exactly fight them," Haifu pointed out.

Seph rolled his shoulders before his silver eyes flashed. "Me and Dani can take 'em from long range," he explained.

Esebu nodded, a plan forming in his processor. "Right. You two will do what you can to take them out. Haifu and I will keep on the move and prevent them from getting close to us." He turned to look at the rails around them. "But we have to also make sure we don't damage the field. If it gets damaged too much, it will lose its cohesion and shut down the optical camouflage to keep itself going." He never felt so glad for remembering that bit of information.

"Hm. I can see why the need then," Seph mused. "We'll do our best. But we can't guarantee that we won't damage the capture field, as you call it."

Esebu dimmed his optics as he tried to come up with a solution. But as it stood, what they really needed was a gunner. And he could only hope that Fumikiri was going to reach Tokyo in time.

One of the Skeleton Mines roared as it staggered towards him and he leapt back before it fell into range. It caught itself and resumed lumbering around. He landed atop a rail and looked to the others. "Let's just stay on the move for now!" he ordered. "Better than getting hit by those things!"

The group nodded and started to move.

TOKYO SDI HEADQUARTERS

MAIN OFFICE

Hokuto narrowed his eyes as he observed the fight.

"Skeleton Mines..." he muttered.

He pressed one of the buttons on his desk and a recording of the mine exploding was paused. He hummed to himself as he studied the scaly metal as it flew through the air.

"What in the name of Monty Oum is this?" he asked himself.

"Sir?" Futaba looked over. "Something the matter?"

"Just trying to figure out what the hell these things are made of," the director said as he looked in her direction. "These Skeleton Mines have some kind of scaly metal that makes up their bodies. I don't know what it does, or what it even is, but something tells me it's far more dangerous than it seems."

Futaba frowned as she made her way up to his desk and peered at the image. Her eyes widened a bit. "Okay...? What is that?"

"That..." Here Director Hayasugi pointed to the material. "...is what they are made up of."

Here Futaba narrowed her eyes as she studied it. "Hmm... It does seem metallic in nature... But... hold on!" She leaned in, surprising the director as her fingers flew over the keyboard. She selected the frame of the scale flying through the air and zoomed in on it, adjusting the range and focus of the camera to hone in on what seemed to be little needles on the edges. "I don't think it's just a scale..." she muttered. "Because no scale would have these on its edges! Least of all ones that were laced with the Dark Substance!"

Hokuto's eyes went wide as he looked at the enhanced image. Sure enough, he could see that they were made up of the Dark Substance, and he gaped. "What has he created...?" he whispered.

Futaba looked to her boss in confusion, but the cat Faunus was already looking down, worry flooding his features. "Great Glob..."

However, Honjo's exclamation caught their attention and both looked up. "Holy shit! That was close!"

Futaba ran down to join him. "What's happening?"

"That last Skeleton Mine almost infected Esebu!" he said as he turned to look at her. "Thankfully those scales or whatever they are vanished before they could even touch him."

Hokuto hummed to himself at hearing that. "So it appears that whatever they're made of tends to vanish after an explosion if it doesn't reach a host or target in time..."

That made it all the more apparent for the close range Shinkalions to avoid them.

Deep down though, he wasn't sure they could even win this one...

He had no idea help was just half an hour away.

UNKNOWN LOCATION

DARKLANDS

Sammael smirked.

"I have to admit. This is rather turning out to be interesting, especially given the fact that those Skeletons are infused with your essence," he said to the large Gundam.

The Devil Gundam couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in his chest as he folded his arms. "Yes. After all, given my Semblance, it makes sense to use the bodies of the deceased..." A low chuckle came from him. "Especially since I was the one who killed them before my transformation."

Sammael recalled the battle that he had seen some time ago with I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. in his cyborg form in Japan, and he licked his lips. "Yes. Their fear was succulent," he remarked. Then his face became serious. "But there is also the matter of those Elementals."

"Hmm?" I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. tilted his helm. "What about them?"

"I have plans to try and talk to them. But... it wouldn't hurt to have an added advantage." He turned to the Gundam. "Perhaps, if you are not detained by your... experiments... you could assist me, yes?"

I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. hummed as he looked down. He wasn't too keen on parting from his experiments to try and create a more powerful Grimm, but then again, Sammael had offered him a chance to take down Minovsky. As well as those brats that did this to him. And truth be told, he was a little curious about the Elementals...

He looked up, and his optics flashed red. "I will do what I can," he said. "But..." He raised a hand and summoned forth a sword of those scales. "I wish to use my Semblance to show them how dangerous we Fallen are."

Sammael pursed his lips at this. He knew of his fellow Fallen's Semblance, and it was perhaps the most dangerous Semblance he had seen. Able to infect organics and turn them into Pseudo-Fallen, Infection was able to give him a veritable army at his beck and call. And that was what made him such a threat. Sammael was no fool. But so far, the Devil Gundam had only used it to gather intelligence and build up his forces for an all-out assault on his former colleague. So perhaps his drive was what kept him from possibly turning on Sammael.

He finally nodded. "As you wish. I can provide some targets to infect, of course." A small smile played across his lips. "And maybe the Elementals can be a test subject..."

Now I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. was interested. "Oh? Well... then this could be fruitful for both of us..." His optics flared red at the thought and he chuckled. "One scientist to another, I think this could work out indeed."

TOKYO

MARUNOUCHI BUILDING

Akita couldn't believe it.

He was finally going to get some help for those aliens, but why was he ordered to come here? The place was undergoing renovations, wasn't it?

Unless there was one aspect to the story he wasn't seeing.

Or more like multiple, he mused as he ran past one of the startled security guards as he called after. "Hey! Kid, it's dangerous!"

Akita looked back and swore to himself as he vaulted over some piping and ran for the closest location to hide, which turned out to be a maintenance stairwell.

He bolted for it as the security guard gave chase. "Hey! I said stop!" he called. "Get back here!"

"Sorry, pal, but no can do!" Akita muttered as he threw open the door and ran down the stairs, his shoes pounding the metal staircase. He could hear the security guard above barking into his walkie-talkie and the boy swore under his breath.

He needed to find a place to hide.

Akita darted down a nearby hallway that was partially undergoing renovation, ducking past cables and wires that hung down. Behind him he could hear the security guard following, and he cast his gaze around for any place to hide. A glint caught his eye and he bolted for it, spotting a door that looked like it was cracked open partially. He grasped the door and threw it open before running inside the unknown room and closing the door behind him. He stood behind the door, panting as he heard the security guards running past his hiding spot, his ears straining to pick out their voices.

"..sure he came down this way!" the guard muttered. He stopped and Akita held his breath. The guard began to walk, his footsteps coming closer with each second. Akita's heart leapt into his throat and he gulped softly. Sweat began to form on his face and he had to bite his lower lip in order to prevent a whimper from escaping him.

Static crackled in the air and Akita braced for what he assumed was the guard with a taser. But instead a voice that sounded distant resonated.

"Just forget the kid, Damian. Kids come and go from here all the time, given how we're not really moving along on progress due to that last Grimm attack," the voice, clearly female, said. "If he's not doing anything wrong, then leave him be."

"Fine... Just wish kids wouldn't come down here..." he muttered as he turned and walked off, his voice fading along with his footsteps.

Akita stood stock still for a few more moments, straining his ears and senses to their limit to try and see if the guard really had left. The seconds ticked by into minutes, and after several minutes had passed, he let out a sigh of relief and slumped back against the door, sliding to the floor in obvious relief. Now that he was safe, Akita opened his eyes and looked around his hiding spot.

His eyes widened in shock as he found himself staring at several pods, each one clearly designed after the front end of a shinkansen. Three of them were dark grey, with no sign of power. And three of them were clearly active. The first of the three was a blue and white one with golden lines on it, and its cover reminded Akita of the cockpit for the E7. The second pod was purple and white with reddish-orange accents on it, and its cover was modeled after the E3. The last of the trio possessed a green upper half and white lower half separated by a violet stripe. The cover for this one reminded him of the H5 he had seen once before on vacation to Hokkaido with his grandfather. The pods were lit up with power, and Akita swore he saw someone in one of them.

Curiosity overcame him and the boy crept closer. He leaned in, cupping a hand to see through the darkened glass.

A yelp escaped him as he recognized the occupant inside.

"Shinobu?!" he blurted. The sight of one of his friends resting in this pod, with some kind of helmet on his head, was enough to make him worry. What was going on? What were these pods? And what was happening to his friends?! Akita backed up, unaware of the pod behind him. His foot bumped against it and he tripped, falling in and landing on the seat. He groaned as he sat up, only to stare as a helmet colored in red and white with black accents fell over his head. He grasped it and pulled it off, examining it.

The helmet was an interesting design, with what appeared to be two red protrusions on the top, and its visor was red with green optics on it. A wire snaked back to the pod's top and he glanced back at it. "Hmm..." He hummed to himself before he put the helmet on his head and adjusted it, now curious as to what it did.

He leaned back in his seat and the pod's cover began to hiss closed.

Akita braced for whatever was going to happen.

He did not expect things to suddenly go dark.

TOKYO SDI HEADQUARTERS

MAIN OFFICE

"The E6 has just come online!" Futaba declared.

"What?" Hokuto spun around in his seat to face her. "It has?!"

"Yes, sir," she confirmed. She turned to look out the observation deck windows. Hokuto stood up and watched as the new unit came online. The lights within were brought online and he turned to look at Futaba.

"Who activated it?" he asked.

"Akita Oga," the technician read off.

Director Hayasugi eyed the red and white shape as it began to shift and try to move. He wondered what was going through Akita's mind as he experimented with his new body.

And actually, he was concerned for the others as well. Just how they were faring wasn't far from his mind right now. But he had a new warrior to introduce.

He turned to Futaba. "Keep in touch with the team," he said. "I have a new Shinkalion warrior to debrief."

Futaba nodded as she turned back to the monitor showcasing the situation within the field.

HITACHINAKA BATTLEFIELD

Esebu glanced back as he growled to himself at the sight of the Skeleton Mines making their way down one of the rails. Haifu was using her agility to stay ahead of those following her, and Seph and Dani were doing their best to pick them off with their long range attacks, but it was easier said than done given how they had to be careful to not hit the capture field and their allies.

"Dammit! We could really use some long range support right now!" he muttered. "And I mean real long range support!"

He hated to admit it, but he wasn't even sure that Akita had followed his suggestion or advice. The boy tended to do things on his own sometimes, and he was hoping to Glob that wasn't the case.

The Shinkalion flipped over another Skeleton Mine in his wake and he landed on the other side before he crouched and sprang off the rail to a lower level. He turned and watched as two Skeleton Mines grasped onto the edges of the rail he just left, and the Grimm began to swarm over its edge, forming a sort of makeshift ladder.

"Man, I hate that!" he muttered. The only good thing was that it took time for the Grimm to climb up their fellows as they were slow, so that gave the team time to catch their breath before a new session of 'Cat and Mouse' began.

"Esebu, how are things looking?" Futaba asked in his head.

Esebu directed his attention to it for a few minutes; the Skeleton Mines would take that long to reach his level anyway. "We're doing okay, but it's a lot harder than it seems to remain on the move," he relayed. "The only good news is that when climbing or slouching up the ramps, it takes time so that gives us a bit of a breather. But we are going to run out of power."

"Just keep them busy a bit longer. Help should be there soon," Futaba said.

"Hey! Esebu! How much longer?!" Dani blurted as she fired off another ghost ray at a Skeleton Mine creeping up on Haifu, exploding it a good distance away from her. The green and white rabbit-eared Shinkalion turned and gave a nod to the hybrid girl as she flew off to assist Seph in trying to corral a larger cluster on the platform below.

"Tell Dani that help will be there within a half hour," Futaba advised. Esebu nodded and the comm went dormant.

"Dani, my superiors just told me that help will be here within a half hour," he said.

"Okay! Because these things just keep coming!"

Esebu knew what she meant. The Skeleton Mines, they had discovered, had a tendency to spawn more of themselves if enough time passed. And that was why they needed a long range fighter: to keep such a thing from happening to begin with. As it stood, there were already over one hundred of these things roaming about, and although the field was large, it was only a matter of time before there were too many to avoid.

The lead Shinkalion growled as he watched two new Skeleton Mines emerge from two of their compatriots and he hefted his drill.

UNKNOWN LOCATION

DARKLANDS

Sammael hummed as he watched the Skeleton Mines prowling.

"I must admit, your little plan has ambition. But so far they have not allowed them to get close," he purred.

"I am fully aware of that," the Devil Gundam rumbled. "But this is nothing. It is merely a test to demonstrate my skills... as well as my Semblance." His optics flared red as he held up a hand and brushed it on the screen before him.

One of the Skeleton Mines seemed to shudder as another grew from it. "My Semblance has given these minor Grimm some very special abilities. One of which is the ability to regenerate. In this case, it serves as a cloning ability, so there can be more made to make it hard for them to avoid," I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. explained. "And as an added bonus, they have been given some semblence of intellect. Not enough for sentience, but enough to give them the ability ti come up with solutions to problems."

Sammael nodded, taking in the Devil Gundam's explanation. "A keen mind sees all opportunities to try and perfect their skills, honing them to a razor's edge. Much like the Dragon of Denver continues to do as well."

The Fallen/Gundam growled lowly in his chest at the mention of Dracon, but he brushed it aside. "Yes. It does," he rumbled.

Sammael smiled. "As I have said before, your talents will take you far, my friend. And I genuinely mean it."

I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. was startled enough to look at the Fallen. "..."

"I must admit it is hard to find someone who could even impress me as much as you. You are perhaps the first whom I can genuinely say I admire and respect as an equal, not a superior or inferior. I may be older, stronger, and wiser, but your ruthlessness and single minded drive is what I admire. Even I cannot match it. And your frame's unique abilities offers numerous advantages that I know not a thing about," Sammael admitted. "Plus, I will be honest and say I was getting a bit bored with using the same Grimm. Your brilliant mind has crafted new Grimm for me to use, and I respect that. That Kaiju with the coal power plant was downright brilliant, if I must say." He smiled towards the Gundam. "And, I hope we can work well together for a long while."

I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. looked into his eyes, green meeting red. Sammael was being serious, he realized. And actually, having someone to respect his work was... good... It was thrilling to be seen as an equal instead of a quack and ridiculed by the scientific community.

And he couldn't ask for anything better. He held out a massive metal hand. "I am thankful you have seen me as someone who is an equal. I... I am honored to be among your ranks."

Sammael smiled widely. He clasped the Gundam's hand.

And so an unlikely, if not dangerous, friendship had been forged.

TOKYO SDI HEADQUARTERS

SHINKANSEN HANGAR

Akita stared in shock at his hands as he flexed them, trying to comprehend just what the hell had happened.

To even think that this was the result of putting on that helmet was just inconceivable. 'I honestly did not see where this was headed...!' he thought as he looked down at his legs, taking in the locomotive shell on his thighs. He slowly touched it before his other hand went to his chest, rubbing it in disbelief.

He brought his hands up to face level and examined them, turning them over to look at the palms before flipping them over to look at them from the back. Akita could feel the new systems in his arms moving his hands and he stopped flexing them a bit before he looked around, using his new vision to scan for anything that could give him a clue as to where he was.

All he could see were two other shinkansen, with one of them undergoing maintenance. On the rear wall of the hangar was some kind of logo that looked like the front of a shinkansen with a targeting emblem behind it and a wing coming off the front of the train. On it were the words Shinkansen Defense Institute and opposite the logo, right in front of him, were several tunnels, three of which were closed.

'Hmm... it seems I'm in some kind of hangar or launch bay.' Akita thought to himself.

He looked around a bit more, and a soft hum came from his throat.

"Unit E6, can you hear me?"

The voice startled Akita and he yelped, slipping on something on the sides of his feet and landing on his metal butt with a grunt. He looked up, trying to find the source of the voice. His new optics glowed a bit as he strained his new audio receptors.

"Who are you? And where am I?" he asked, a bit surprised at how deep his voice now was. It sounded a bit like Mayor Sebben's, but just a slight octave higher.

The voice didn't answer for a few seconds and Akita wondered if it was because he had offended the speaker in some way. But he had no idea how wrong he was.

"Akita Oga."

Akita's helm snapped up to look at the ceiling speaker in shock. "Wait... That voice..." he whispered. "Mr. Hayasugi?!"

"Yes. It's me, Akita," he said.

"What is going on here? Where am I? And what has happened to me?" Akita asked as he staggered to his feet, flexing his hands.

"To make a long story short, you are now part of a top secret project that was designed and developed to combat the Kaiju Grimm that have been whittling down our number of trained Huntsmen every time they attack," the cat Faunus explained. "You and your friends have been selected to be a part of this."

"..."Akita was silent as he pondered this. He had not expected this at all. Oh sure he could understand why the project was developed, but to hear his friends and he were a part of it? He slowly spoke again, trying to get an idea of what was going on. "What exactly do you mean by that, Mr. Hayasugi?" he asked.

"I mean what I said, Akita. You and your friends have all been chosen to be a part of this project." Mr. Hayasugi's voice paused before he began to speak again. "Or rather, it wasn't my choice..."

Akita let out a questioning hum at this.

"What happened was you kids showed yourselves to be potential candidates due to sheer luck," Mr. Hayasugi explained. "And therefore you became the candidates needed for this project to come to fruition. I was against it initially, but after seeing you in action, well... even though I don't like it, you kids are the only ones who can make my hopes a reality."

Now he understood where this was heading. "Wait... I think I see where this is going," Akita mused. "You didn't want to use us because of our age and the fact that we are just kids with no real training. But given how we are suited for this... project... you have no choice."

"You'd be right, Akita," Mr. Hayasugi said. "The project is, in case you are wondering, called Project SHINKALION, which is the name of the frame you now inhabit. It stands for SHINKAnsen LIberates Our Nation. SHINKALION. After all, why can't the shinkansen be used to liberate our nation from despair like it liberated us from poverty after WWII?"

Akita hummed as he looked down at his hands. "I see..." Then something came to his mind. "Are the others in combat right now?" he asked.

"Yes. And they could use your help..."

HITACHINAKA BATTLEFIELD

Esebu swore as he leapt to the side, landing atop one of the rails as the Skeleton Mine exploded, sending shrapnel everywhere. He was just lucky he escaped the worst of it.

Behind him he could hear Haifu squeal as she almost got nailed by Seph's blast and Dani's ghost rays.

The bad news: there were more Skeleton Mines than they had expected now.

There were close to five hundred as they prowled along the rails. And a cluster of fifty stood in the middle of the platform.

They were running out of time and room.

"Any ideas as to what we can do?" Dani asked as she floated close to Esebu.

The Shinkalion growled as he looked around the battlefield. His optics glowed as he scanned the Grimm as they roamed the rails. "Shit... No sign of any weaknesses," he muttered.

Seph muttered under his breath as he flew over, his wings spread. "To be honest, I've never seen these kinds of Grimm before in my life, and that's saying something given how long I've lived," he admitted.

"So you have no idea as to their weakness?" Esebu asked as he pressed his back to the two hovering organics.

The green-haired man shook his head. "No."

"I got nothing, either, aside from that long range attacks are our best bet," Dani admitted with a shake of her head. "That, and they can't seem to sense things that are intangible..."

Esebu perked up. "Wait... Did you say intangible?"

The ghost girl nodded. "Yeah. Why? I can't keep turning you and Haifu intangible forever!" she remarked as the green and white Shinkalion joined them, her rabbit ear extensions flat against her helm.

"Esebu, any ideas?" she asked as she hefted her sword.

The lead Shinkalion looked down, wracking his processor for any ideas. The only advantage they did have was Dani's intangibility, but it drained her whenever she used it on him or Haifu, as the attack with the Coal Walker had shown.

So how were they supposed to fight without getting hit by those scales or whatever they were when the Skeleton Mines exploded?

"Esebu, just hang on! Help is almost there!" Futaba exclaimed into his COMM. Esebu's helm snapped up at those words.

"How far out?" he asked.

"Not much longer! He should be entering the capture field now," came the reply.

"He?" Esebu's question was cut off when he heard the familiar horn of a shinkansen. He turned to look in the direction it came from and was surprised to see a sleek red and white train entering the capture field.

"Is that...?" His voice trailed off in surprise.

It was.

The E6 Komachi.

The main body color was primarily "Hiun" (飛雲) white with a crimson roof and "arrow silver" bodyside stripe. On its side was the logo of the Japan Railways East Company, a half silver oval with red and black lines on the bottom half that curved slightly, the words "East Japan Railway Company" above those stripes.

The train sped right past one of the Skeleton Mines, causing it to explode. A jolt of fear shot through Esebu's chest as he saw this. "NO!" he cried.

However, he needn't have worried.

"CHANGE! SHINKALION!" came a deep male voice.

For a moment, Esebu was floored. Was that Sebben's voice?! Then he paused, shaking his helm. No. It didn't sound at all like his. While the tone was similar, it was slightly higher than Sebben's.

Then the train transformed. Like with his transformation, the rear and front engines disconnected from the rest of the cars and linked up. The rear engine opened into a pair of legs while the front engine spread its rear end to become a pair of shoulders and arms. The head was the last thing to emerge, a pair of yellow optics flaring on as the new Shinkalion flipped and landed, grabbing a pair of guns that formed in the air above it.

The new Shinkalion was mostly red and white with silver accents on his body. His legs were mostly white with the red locomotive shell of the rear engine acting as additional armor to his calves. In stark contrast, his arms were clad in red armor with the white armor of the shell for the front engine acting as protection on his forearms and upper arms. His shoulder guards were white on the bottom with a silver stripe separating the crimson upper half. His chest was, of course, the nose of his shinkansen mode, with red and white and silver on it. His feet had two pairs of wheels on the sides, no doubt for increased mobility, Esebu mused. But it was his helm that sent a shiver down his spinal struts. It was red on the top with his white faceplate contrasting it. His optics were pure yellow, and on the top of his helm were two protrusions of some kind. A golden command fin similar to the antagonists' mecha in Gundrazer came to his processor. But it was the set of optics above his yellow optics that made him seem like a demon. Or close to it, Esebu thought.

The guns he held in his hands were grey in color, but a pair of lights was mounted atop each one, the top being green, the bottom being red. The gun barrels had on their sides that yellow and black striping used in signal crossings for the railways, and they looked as if they could unfold into a more powerful mode of some kind.

"Who are you?!" Dani demanded, summoning a ghost ray.

The new Shinkalion didn't answer. Instead he aimed one of his guns and fired... right at her! Dani yelped and turned intangible as the bullet sped right through her.

And struck a Skeleton Mine just meters behind her. She heard the explosion and looked up, turning tangible once again. "The hell?" she whispered.

"Keep your eyes peeled," he said. "And the name is Matagi."

"Are you our backup?" Esebu asked.

Matagi nodded. "Yes. And it looks like I arrived just in time..."

The five combatants tensed as the Skeleton Mines began to assemble around them.

Esebu hissed through his vents. "Okay... I think I'm getting a bit of an idea here, but I need to know. What can you do?" he asked.

Matagi looked back over his shoulder. "For one thing, I'm much more mobile than any of you," he explained. "And..." He hefted his guns. "...I'm a long range fighter."

That was all he needed to know.

"Yeah, I got an idea," Esebu said. "But you have to follow my orders exactly."

Matagi nodded as Haifu looked at them. Dani smiled and nodded while Seph rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever," he muttered.

"Okay. Matagi, since you claim to be the fastest of us, your job is to take out those Skeleton Mines on the platform below," Esebu instructed. "Once that's done, we'll join you. Dani, you'll use your intangibility to launch sneak attacks on the ones prowling the rails. Seph, back her up. Haifu, you and I will cover Matagi from the ground."

"Roger!" the rabbit-eared Shinkalion replied.

Dani nodded as she turned intangible and vanished off to do her part. Matagi was silent as he flipped off the rail and landed in the middle of the cluster. Seph flapped his wings and flew above the ghost hybrid, his silver eyes flashing as he held up a hand and threw a telekinetic blast at the closest Skeleton Mines. The blast struck one and caused it to explode, allowing Dani enough time to sneak up on another one and overshadow it, which was downright creepy in Esebu's opinion as those lifeless empty eyes went green.

Matagi meanwhile went on the offense, using the wheels on the sides of his feet to weave and swerve around the enemy as they tried to come close and attack him. He fired his guns a few times, striking a couple Skeleton Mines and they exploded, the shrapnel causing more to explode. He whipped his frame around before he fired off a barrage of shots that peppered the ground close to one of the Grimm and caught it in the blast. The red and white Shinkalion kept this up, and Esebu watched in amazement.

'Wow... He's fast...!' he thought in astonishment. It was like seeing a blur at work. It kind of reminded him of the Living Bullet, but at the same time was not the same. For one thing, Living Bullet used a Speed Dust powered suit. This guy just had incredible mobility.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Haifu cry out.

"ESEBU! WATCH OUT!"

The lead Shinkalion jerked as he heard a loud screeching. He whirled around as he stared at a Skeleton Mine incoming towards him. He summoned his Wheelset Drill on instinct and thrust it forward, his Aura shimmering around his frame as he ducked under the explosive range. He shoved his drill into its chest and it exploded as he rolled to the right off the rail, a surprised cry escaping his vocalizer as he fell.

"NO!" Haifu screeched. She dove off the rail she was perched on, surprising Esebu.

"Haifu! What are you doing!?" he cried.

"Saving your ass, that's what!" Haifu shot back as she grabbed his hand. "After all, we're in this together! And if we're gonna die, then we die as a team! But I'm not planning on dying today! And neither should you!"

Esebu was surprised by this. "But we're not able to fly!" he protested.

The rabbit-eared Shinkalion flared her optics. "Oh, really?" She flexed the wings on her back and, much to his surprise, the pinkish-orange particles he had seen before started to emit from them. He was startled as their fall started to slow and she grunted as she angled herself to the platform below.

Haifu wavered and maneuvered, unsure of herself in the air. But it didn't take them long to arrive as Matagi was finishing up those Grimm on the platform. Haifu touched down, feeling a sense of nausea in her non-existent stomach. She collapsed to her knees, panting as she made a gagging motion with her helm.

"Motion sickness..." Esebu muttered. He knelt down beside her. "Hey, just take it easy. We'll handle this."

Haifu looked up at him. "Y-You need me..." she rasped, but was cut off by her leader.

"No. I'm ordering you to rest," he insisted. "Me and Matagi can handle it from here. You just rest."

She nodded. "R-Right..."

Matagi looked back out of the corner of his optic. "So... you got a plan?"

Esebu nodded as he stood up. "Yeah. You take out the ones on the rails that Seph and Dani have not gotten to. I'll keep you safe on the ground," he explained.

Matagi nodded. "Right." He hefted his guns. "Time to show you my true strength."

He tossed the guns up into the air, and Esebu was shocked to see them unfold into a larger form... no... into a pair of cannons. The cannons fell and Matagi stood beneath them as they latched onto his shoulder guards. He adopted a fighting stance and spread his arms. "Now... time to pick them off!" he muttered.

The barrels began to glow as he started to channel his Aura into them, a swirling red, white, and silver light surrounding him. His optics flared as he braced himself, and he looked to Esebu. "I need some support!" he cried. "Now!"

Esebu gaped before he shook the shock from his processor and ran over, bracing himself behind Matagi's frame and revving his treads as he felt the recoil beginning to push him back. "Hope you know what you're doing!" he shouted.

The red and white Shinkalion didn't answer. Instead he merely braced himself further. "Get ready to spin me around when I give the signal!"

"Right!" Esebu nodded as he gripped Matagi's back tighter.

"Fumikiri Cannon!" Matagi roared. The guns on his shoulders bellowed, sending a pair of reddish orange beams right for the Skeleton Mines roaming the rails above. They were starting to form into a line, and Esebu realized what Matagi was trying to do. He braced himself and spread his legs as he started to turn, grunting as he did so. The recoil was strong enough to push him in a circle as he revved his treads, one in reverse and one in forward. The effort paid off as Dani and Seph retreated from their attacks, allowing the two male Shinkalions to finish off the Grimm as they tried to flee from the onslaught.

UNKNOWN LOCATION

DARKLANDS

"Well... it seems they had a new team member on board," a new voice mused.

"Yes. But that only confirms my suspicions of them," I.O.N.E.S.C.O.U. rumbled as he looked down at the figure beside him. "And for that matter, why are you so interested in them?"

"I have my reasons, dearie," the voice said as the large Gundam hummed thoughtfully.

"Regardless, they will not escape the next time around," he muttered.

"Why not just see how they do, dearie? After all, think of all the data you could gather on them. So far they are only just starting out. And I know a few people are interested in how this project of Japan's plays out," the voice said.

The Gundam knew the speaker was right. But at the same time, something was telling him they were a threat. Still, in the end, his interests and his training as a scientist won out. "Very well. I shall hold off... for now."

"You won't be disappointed, dearie..." the speaker hummed.

KAIJU GRIMM DATABASE:

NAME: Skeleton Mine

SPECIES: Kaiju

CLASS: Ultra

BASIS: Human skeleton

ABILITIES: This Grimm has the ability to spawn more of itself, but it has a time delay of fifteen seconds before a new one is spawned. The Grimm explode upon contact with a weapon or projectile. When they explode, they send shrapnel and scales of metal at their target, infecting them and turning them into Pseudo-Fallen. If the scales do not find a host, then they vanish after five seconds. These Grimm are not very fast, nor are they very smart. They do however have limited strategic skills that can include forming a makeshift ladder or bridge with their bodies.