The ground shook near the estate, keeping the kids on high alert.
Akita narrowed his eyes as he scanned the surrounding location, his guns held at the ready while Miku hefted her sword, trying to inch closer to her friend.
Both kids weren't sure as to where or when the Grimm would show, but they knew it was out there.
His eyes hardened as he inched closer to Miku, looking left and right.
"What kind of Grimm do you think it is?" Miku asked.
"Honestly, I have no idea," Akita admitted. "But whatever kind it is, we have to be ready for it." He flicked a switch on his left rifle, and a fire Dust round loaded into the chamber. "Especially now."
He had no idea how right he was.
The next thing they knew, the ground below their feet began to bulge and Akita looked down, his eyes widening. "JUMP!" he barked to Miku.
The rabbit Faunus didn't even hesitate. She crouched and sprang off the ground, flipping and landing atop the fence surrounding the property, balancing on its edge as Akita leapt back and grabbed onto the metal weave of the fence. He had holstered his right gun and was using his right hand to cling tightly to the fence in a death grip. He aimed his left gun at the ground, only to stare in shock as a large tree root extended from the ground. His eyes narrowed as he gritted his teeth, preparing to fire as it came right for the two of them.
(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: N700A NOZOMI
The fifth unit to be brought online, the N700A was developed for close quarters combat. Unlike most other units, the N700A has no long range weapons, being primarily used for hand-to-hand combat. In the right hands, this unit is a devastating weapon. It is capable of equipping an extra car for extra armor, dubbed Advanced Mode.
The N700A stands at 27.5 meters in height in humanoid form and in default and battle forms, it weighs 100 tons. It is armed with twin energy knives, and its Advanced Mode is armed with the Dragon Knuckle, a projectile attack using its Advanced Arm. The unit is also armed with a shield in this mode.
The driver of this unit is Ryuji Kiyosu.
CLOSING FILES
TERMINAL ENTERING STANDBY PHASE
"Close combat is a good way to fight if you are in tight spaces. But what if you are forced into a fight where you have to use whatever you can get your hands on? That is also a method of combat. Except in this situation, you have to rely more on your brains than your brawn." The figure waved to a nearby monitor, the images showing the elite military unit training against their much larger allies. "And sometimes it's best to think outside the box. After all, you never know what you could learn to use to your advantage in combat. And that can sometimes make all the difference in the world."
CHAPTER XIV - ASSAULT
Tsuranuki grunted as he vaulted over a pile of piping, making his way towards the Marunouchi Building close by. Beside him, Shinobu ran as fast as he could, easily keeping pace with the other youth.
The duo made their way to the elevator shafts, unaware of what was lurking close by...
At least until Tsuranuki heard something off.
His eyes snapped up and he looked around, his body tensing as he reached for his drill. His hand curled around the grip as Shinobu paused. His ninja training was telling him that there was danger afoot. His hands clenched around a pair of kunai knives, his eyes narrowing.
"We're not alone..." he mused.
Tsuranuki said nothing as he nodded.
A loud hiss startled the two teens and they whirled around, Tsuranuki's drill whirring as he thrust it forward, barely missing the black snake as it coiled around him. Tsuranuki gasped as he clawed at those thick coils, trying to keep himself from being suffocated to death by this thing. It turned its head around and it hissed, flaring the hood and bone flaps wide open.
The boy pried open an eye, his teeth gritted as his hand clenched around his drill. Memories of a Cobrafang nearly devouring his baby brother came to his mind and he gritted his teeth, his Aura flaring in response to his feelings. Tsuranuki drew back his drill, and as the King Cobrafang dove down for a bite, he thrust it up, the tip penetrating the top of its mouth. A screeching hiss escaped the King Cobrafang as it dropped the youth and his fist last out in a punch, colliding with the face and stunning it. "Shinobu, go!" he barked to Shinobu, who was surprised. The ninja blinked as Tsuranuki called out again. "GO!"
Shinobu yelped and scrambled off, throwing a kunai at the snake's tail to pin it long enough for him to escape.
The ninja bolted for the elevator shafts and Shinobu glanced back at Tsuranuki as he watched in worry. He was concerned for the other kid, but he brushed it aside. He could hold his own. He knew he could.
He hoped.
He grabbed onto the elevator cable and began to slide down the shaft. His last glimpse of Tsuranuki was of him fighting the King Cobrafang, his drill driving itself into the snake's face, black smoke oozing from the wound. He tore his gaze from the door as he slid down the cable, his eyes pricking with tears. He didn't want to leave his friend to die at the figurative hands of that thing, but... What else could he do?
Shinobu finally took in a breath and calmed himself. Maybe Tsuranuki would get lucky and defeat the thing. Or at least buy time for him to join the ninja. He finally landed on the bottom of the shaft and bolted out, heading for the pod room door. He darted in and slammed the door, locking it tight. Of course, there was no way it would hold against a King Cobrafang for long. So in truth, this was a desperate situation.
He bolted for his pod and slipped in, closing the pod's cover and grabbing the helmet propped on the back of the seat. He placed it on his head and he leaned back as the visor began to glow with power. A faint tugging sensation filled his brain briefly before it settled down and he could sense the tendril as it formed.
"Shinobu, it's Futaba. I'll be in command of this mission," came a familiar voice.
"Hai. Standing by," the ninja replied.
"Good. I assume that Tsuranuki will be joining you shortly?" Futaba asked.
"..." Shinobu was silent for a moment before he answered. "Yes."
"Okay. We just got word of a new Kaiju Grimm that's surfaced inland." Her voice was dead serious as she spoke. Shinobu's eyes widened beneath the visor, all worry of Tsuranuki driven from his thoughts.
"What?! A Kaiju Grimm surfaced inland?!" he blurted
"Yes. It's been spotted near the Sanban Estate," Futaba explained. "Unfortunately, we can't get a good visual on it due to all the trees in the area, but we have code-named it Misertree due to the sudden complaints of people collapsing from depression in the area."
Misertree seemed like a fitting name. But what did it look like? Shinobu pursed his lips as the visor flashed 100% in his vision, showing the gauge was at full power. "You are to try and help the others in the area, as well as keep the Kaiju from destroying the Sanban Estate. That is your number one priority."
"Hai." Shinobu closed his eyes and focused on the tendril leading him to the E3. He felt a slight sense of detachment, followed by a tug, and then he was speeding down the tunnel towards oblivion.
For Tsuranuki, he was doing fairly well, but not as well as he would have liked.
The King Cobrafang flared its hood before it dove in, intending to bite him on the leg, but the boy crouched and flipped, springing off the wall and slamming his drill into its left eye. A screech escaped from it as it pulled back, smoke spilling from the socket. It looked up, flaring its hood again. Tsuranuki got into a fighting stance, deciding to try a few moves he had picked up from a more recent Gundrazer episode. In truth, he wasn't sure if they would even work, but then again, what choice did he have?
He gritted his teeth and charged forward, a cry escaping his throat as he shoved his drill forward, as if intending to pierce the chest of the King Cobrafang. The thing lunged, slithering towards him, mouth open to meet him halfway. But the boy then crouched, and as the Grimm prepared to snap its jaws shut, he sprang off the ground mere centimeters before it could grab him in its jaws. He flipped, his right foot lashing out in a kick. He drove his foot into the wounded eye, earning another screech as the Grimm thrashed in its agony. Tsuranuki flipped back and skidded on his free hand and feet, his drill held out to the side. His eyes were hard as he got to his feet, feeling the burning aching in his palm and knees.
The Grimm shook its head to try and dispel the pain, but in its thrashing, it lashed out with its tail, the thick limb smashing into Tsuranuki's chest. He threw up his Aura at the moment before impact, causing him to only get the air knocked from his lungs. He was sent rolling from the force of the blow, but he managed to come to a stop close to the elevator shaft. He staggered to his feet and looked back, spotting the hanging cable. He glanced back at the Grimm, and then an idea spawned in his brain.
Tsuranuki grabbed the cable closest and cupped one hand to his mouth. "Hey! Snakeface! Over here!"
The King Cobrafang perked up at the sound of his voice and slithered towards him, its fangs gleaming for its first - and last - meal. But Tsuranuki was not about to let this thing get him, or his friends. He tensed, placing his drill back on his belt and gripping the cable in both hands. His teeth were gritted and his eyes were hard like bronze. He tensed his muscles, waiting for the right time. If he was off, then he was a goner. And he was not about to let some snake get the better of him. Not when there was so much on the line. And especially not right now!
The boy crouched and leapt towards the snake Grimm, a cry escaping his throat.
The Grimm curled itself into a coil, intent on capturing the boy for its meal. But Tsuranuki dodged to the side, and using the momentum of his charge, snapped the cable out in a whip-like fashion, the middle of it forming a sort of loop that wound up around the King Cobrafang's mouth. With a grunt, he pulled on the cable, binding the snake's mouth shut. He tied off the cable and smirked as he stood up. "Good luck eating your way out of that!" he quipped.
He turned and bolted back to the shaft, grabbing onto the second cable and sliding down to join Shinobu.
SANBAN ESTATE
Miku grunted as she flipped over an incoming root, landing on the ground and looking back at the large shape as it loomed over the grounds.
Standing at an imposing fifty three meters in height, the large Kaiju Grimm was much bigger than the normal Kaiju, but it was in no way as large as the Coal Walker had been. It consisted of a mass of tree roots and branches fused into one entity, with a pair of reddish eyes glaring back at the two kids. Its mouth was made of massive pointed roots that gnashed and chewed at the air, as if anticipating an easy meal. It moved thick branch-like arms with long root-like fingers, and it slowly inched along the ground, using its roots to move.
Beside her she could sense Akita as he landed in the tree above her, his eyes narrowed as he studied the Kaiju Grimm. "This is bad..." he muttered. "How in the hell are we supposed to beat that thing?"
The rabbit Faunus chewed her bottom lip as she pondered. She looked around, but nothing was visible. In fact, the only real advantage they had was the fact that this Grimm moved much more slowly than any others they had fought so far.
The Misertree looked at the two teens and roared, sending out a wailing screech that seemed to sap all their will to fight. Both teens flared their Auras, deflecting the worst of the screech from them and they retreated, trying to lure the thing away from the estate.
"C'mon... when are we gonna get some backup?" Akita muttered.
His phone rang at that moment, and he grumbled as he pulled it free from his pocket, after holstering one of his guns, of course. He pressed the talk button. "Go."
"Akita. It's Futaba. What's your situation?" Futaba asked.
"Long story short, this thing is trying to reach the Sanban Estate," Akita explained. "We're trying to lure it away, and so far it seems to be working. But who knows for how long?"
Futaba was silent for a moment, and then she spoke again. "We're planning to fire a capture field at Misertree, hopefully trapping it. But given its ability, it could be a risk to you and your friends."
"I would highly advise against that," Akita said harshly. "At least until we know more about it!"
"Your suggestion is noted, but until the director says otherwise, we're still going to fire it anyway. We have to contain it somehow," Futaba said. "I'm sorry, Akita."
The boy growled, but admitted she did have a point. They did need to contain it somehow and prevent it from reaching a city. Especially Tokyo. He looked up at the Kaiju Grimm as it waved those branch-like arms and fingers, splitting apart the trees as it moved past them towards the Sanban Estate again.
"Okay! Do it!" Akita shouted. "It's not stopping, nor is it following me and Miku anymore!"
Futaba barked something to one of the other techs on the other side and then she directed her attention to him again. "Akita, I suggest you and Miku get back here. Tsuranuki and Shinobu have already been deployed, but we may be needing your support too."
"No can do," Akita said. "We're too far out. And we won't get there in time. We'll try and stall this thing as much as we can, hopefully buy some time for them to arrive."
The young woman's voice trailed off before she sighed. "Very well. You two are to try and stall Misertree from approaching the estate by any means necessary. When Tsuranuki and Shinobu arrive, we'll fire the capture field. Hopefully we'll have more intel on this thing at that point as well."
The boy nodded. "Understood."
He hung up the phone and turned to face the Kaiju Grimm as it drew closer to the Sanban Estate.
"Okay, Miku. You ready?"
The rabbit Faunus nodded. "Hai."
The two teens burst into a run, making their way towards the estate gates, hoping to stop the Grimm from breaching them.
Lola was terrified.
Sure she had been expecting a Grimm, but nothing like this.
Her very body shook in her horror as it drew closer to the manor's gates.
Beside her, Lady Sanban stood as calm as ever, her eyes fixed on the main monitor showing the gates. She held out a hand and spoke into a small microphone on her suit. "All security, prepare for Anti-Grimm combat!" she ordered.
Alarms began to wail as Lola looked at Bugs. "Bugs... what'll we do?" she asked.
The Duck's Burrow owner placed his arms around her and she buried her face in his chest. "Let them handle it, Lola," Bugs told her reassuringly. "Lady Sanban and the rest have it under control."
Deep down though, he wasn't too sure. A Kaiju Grimm of an unknown nature... what were its abilities, if any, and what other powers did it have? Bugs looked out the window of the office, his eyes hardening into obsidian shards. He felt tempted to grab his shotgun and go out, but something wisely told him to stay back from this thing.
The Misertree roared as it thrust those arms towards the fence and gate surrounding the property.
The limbs started to wind around the fence, only for the guns to emerge from their hiding spots and swivel on their mounts to face the Grimm. Not even seconds later and they started to fire, striking the Misertree at point-blank range and making it back off with a roar of agony. The Kaiju Grimm leapt back, those roots pushing it off the ground with surprising strength. Lola peered around Bugs' shoulder and her body shuddered. That thing was downright creepy, and dangerous.
Genki was silent as she observed the sight. The Misertree roared again and thrust those limbs towards the gates. She pressed the mike on her lapel and spoke into it. "Raise the blast gates."
The monitor showed the large metal slabs rising out of the ground, the branch-like fingers entwining themselves on the metal gates before the blast gates lurched upward, tearing off a good portion of those fingers before they retreated, allowing the thick metal gates to finish covering the main entryway. Genki watched seriously as the Kaiju Grimm roared and thrust its other arms forward, those branch fingers driving against the thick metal, leaving sparks as they raked along it. All along the rest of the manor's perimeter, guns swung around and came online while the metal fencing became engulfed in electricity as a deterrent.
Lola wasn't sure how long they could hold out against this thing. But she was praying to Glob for a miracle.
And one was on the way, whether she knew it or not.
The guns roared, sending shells right for the Misertree as it tried to claw its way past the fences. A few shells exploded close to it, sending shrapnel into its branches and thick bark. But much to their shock, it brushed off the attack, and just lashed out again and again with its limbs, trying to force open the front gates.
"All guns, aim at the roots!" Genki ordered.
"NO!" Lola cried. "You do that, and it will just jump right over the rounds!"
Genki looked to her, only to suddenly hear the guns fire a second time, this time for the roots. She turned her gaze back to the monitor, and her eyes widened in shock.
Much to Lola's word, the Misertree just...crouched... for lack of a better term... and sprang up into the air, those roots propelling it above the rounds as they sped beneath it and struck the ground further back. The Misertree's roots lashed out and drove themselves into the ground, pulling it back to earth with a jarring thud. Lola winced.
They were so doomed...
Or so they thought.
TOKYO SDI HEADQUARTERS
LAUNCH BAY
Esebu grunted as he revved his engine a few times. Beside him, Fumikiri was silent, but he could sense the other Shinkalion was just as tense as he was.
"Okay, you two. We have reports of Misertree in the vicinity of the Sanban Estate. Your objective is to take it down, but given its ability, we're hesitant to fire a capture field against it. So you are to fight as best you can in the area of the estate," Futaba said over their comm systems.
"I can understand the hesitation then," Esebu replied with a final rev of his engine. He unlocked his brakes and started to roll forward a bit on his wheels. "What of the others in the area? How are they faring?"
"They're holding their own so far, but the Misertree's durability is giving the estate's gunners a real hard time," the acting director said. "Plus, Miku and Akita are going to try to provide what assistance they can. So be careful."
"Somehow I think we'll be needing more than just their help alone," Fumikiri remarked. His engine revved once. "Is that... Seph... still around?"
Futaba was silent for a moment, and actually, Esebu realized that Fumikiri did have a point. Was Seph still around? Personally, he hoped so because they could use all the help they could get against this thing. Especially given its ability.
In truth, he was more curious about the man's whereabouts than if he was actually even in Japan. But he didn't have much longer to wait. Futaba's voice resonated in his processor a few minutes later.
"Yes. I just caught a glimpse of him via a traffic camera walking back to the Tokyo Station Hotel. I can get a call in if you'd like," she said.
"Not yet," the lead Shinkalion replied. "Plus, no doubt he'd be watching the news or something." In all honesty, it was a gamble. But then again, some of his other plans had been gambles, too, right?
He brushed the thought aside as Futaba gave them the go ahead to deploy. The signal turned green and Esebu put more power to his wheels, Fumikiri right behind him.
"Esebu, E7 Kagayaki..."
"Fumikiri, E3 Tsubasa..."
"Shuppatsu shinkÅ!" both Shinkalions declared.
The two sped out of their docks, heading into the tunnels. As they entered, the doors slid shut, sealing the path back. Esebu flicked on his lights and revved his engine, pouring on the speed as he gave a blast of his horn.
MARUNOUCHI BUILDING
BASEMENT LEVEL
Ryuji grunted as he looked back over his shoulder, having seen the King Cobrafang finally escape its binds.
He knew it was down here.
He had seen it come down this way after it slithered down the elevator shaft.
A soft hiss reached his enhanced hearing, and he looked back, his hand clenching into a fist as his Aura swirled around it. The Grimm lunged from the shadows, intent on getting a bite in on the cheetah Faunus, but he rolled to the side and whipped his foot out, colliding it with the Grimm's left eye and making it screech. His eyes hardened as he retreated from the thing's long body, landing a bit further away from it than he intended. He gritted his teeth as his tail swished behind him. "C'mon..." he muttered. "How hard is it to take this thing down?"
The snake Grimm hissed as it lunged for him, but the boy leaned back and flipped, his feet lashing out in an upper kick that collided with the chin, making it bite down on its own tongue. That gave him the chance to leap to his feet and run for it, bolting for the nearest room.
The cheetah Faunus glanced back over his shoulder, only to gape in shock as the thing regained its senses and chased after him, its eyes flashing red in its fury. Ryuji vaulted over a pile of rebar, his hand grabbing onto one of the pieces and pulling it loose from the pile. He whipped his body around, Aura seething down the rebar as he thrust it forward, the tip jabbing into the eye he had just kicked. The King Cobrafang hissed and screeched in agony, recoiling from the blow. The rebar was torn from Ryuji's hand, and he took the opportunity to run for the nearest open door. He dashed inside, not even noticing the Grimm grasping the rebar in its tongue and whipping it free from its injured eye. The right eye pulsed as it slithered into the room, looking for its prey. Its tongue flicked out, as if tasting the tension in the air that Ryuji gave off. Behind the nearest pod, Ryuji's eyes were hard as he stood absolutely still, not even breathing for fear of the snake finding him. He could feel the sweat running down his face as he eyed the Grimm coming for him.
The King Cobrafang slithered into the room, tasting the air as it sought him out.
Only to stop as it looked at the pods.
Ryuji could see from his hiding place that two of the strange pods, whatever they were, were active and powered up. The others were without power. Much to his surprise, four of them were colored and only two were slate grey. He brushed the thought aside though as he saw that there were two people inside two of the colored pods, and a jolt of fear raced through him as he heard an acidic hiss on the floor.
Around the same time, alarms began to blare and Ryuji looked up as he saw the Grimm moving to the blue, white, and gold pod, its remaining eye fixed on the form within.
"No!" he shouted, leaping out of hiding as he whipped his left foot out in a kick, dealing more damage to the wounded left eye. The Grimm hissed in agony, its tail whipping out to try and connect with Ryuji's chest. But the Faunus youth landed on the ground and sprang into action, his right hand seething in his Aura as he drove it into the King Cobrafang's chest. His other hand whipped out and grabbed its tail, pulling it close and then, in a desperate gamble, he shoved the end of the tail into the King Cobrafang's mouth, causing it to gag and choke the further he stuffed it down. It was like the old adage of a snake eating its own tail, he noted as he watched the Grimm squirm and writhe as it tried to get air into its lungs... if it had any. But the motion was all too similar, he mused. He kept that tail in its mouth, and slowly, as he stuffed more down its throat, its struggles began to get weaker and weaker. It also helped that its fangs had penetrated its hide, poisoning it and causing thick smoke to coil up from its wounds.
He wrapped his legs around the squirming mass of Grimm, keeping his hands around that tail as it remained in the Grimm's mouth.
Finally, the struggles ceased and the King Cobrafang began to disintegrate into smoke.
Panting, Ryuji got off the Grimm, looking down at it with disgust and fury on his face. He hated Grimm like this. Especially considering what it tended to do with people, Faunus, and Mobians. He gave the body a last kick for good measure before he turned and looked around the room, the alarm blaring in the background outside in the hallway. The pods were clearly important, he figured as he knelt beside one. His eyes narrowed as he picked out the words N700A Nozomi on the side. He glanced back at the door before he frowned and pried open the top.
Inside he could see a seat of some kind, and perched atop it was a helmet of some kind. The top of the helmet was primarily blue, but on the front was a head crest that looked in a way like the Dragon of Denver's V-fin. The top spikes were gold, and the side spikes were pure white. In between the golden spikes was a silvery-white command fin, much like on the titular mecha in Gundrazer. The visor itself was a deep blue color. Ryuji wasn't sure why, but something just... it seemed like something was... calling out to him... telling him to take this seat and don the helmet...
He brushed it aside and snorted, preparing to close the pod's cover.
Only for footsteps to echo as he looked back at the door. The cheetah Faunus looked at the pod, then acted by clambering in and closing the lid. He wasn't even sure why he was doing this. It wasn't something he wanted to do, but since he was in some top secret facility, he figured, he needed to avoid being spotted. He huddled down in the seat in a ball, only to look back at the helmet. Its visor pulsed once in the emergency lights as they kicked on; he shot a glance back at the acidic spot on the floor, noticing that the acid had eaten a hole through the metal and into the wiring below. A sinking feeling filled his gut as he drew closer to the helmet. He didn't even get why he was doing this to begin with. He should just leave.
But his hands curled around the helmet, and he plucked it off the seat.
Ryuji wasn't sure what would happen when he put it on. He didn't know what to expect.
But one thing was certain.
He was not expecting things to go dark.
EN ROUTE TO SANBAN ESTATE
Esebu's systems were racing as he pushed his frame to the limit.
He could already see the results of Misertree's attacks the closer they drew to the grounds of the Sanban Estate.
His metallic feet pounded the ground as he ran. It was too risky to ride the rails, he figured, given that the estate was nowhere near the rails to begin with. And with the ability it possessed, it was much safer to go on foot.
Beside him, Fumikiri ran through the trees, being as swift as he could. His lighter frame was an advantage to give him greater agility, but even he was not as fast as Matagi. Esebu shoved those thoughts from his processor as he turned his fierce green optics onto the hulking shape of Misertree as it loomed before them.
"Remember to mute your audios!" Futaba instructed. "I don't want you guys to be affected by that thing's screeches!"
"Roger that!" Esebu replied over his internal COMM.
"Hai," came Fumikiri's reply. Esebu focused on his audios and willed them to be shut down as the Misertree finally sensed their approach. It turned to face them, those branches twitching as it swiveled away from the estate's main gate.
Its red eyes flashed and it opened its mouth, no doubt letting loose a screech. But thanks to Esebu and Fumikiri shutting down their audios, they heard nothing. No screeching, no birds, nothing. Nothing but silence.
And it unnerved Esebu. He had never expected to have to turn his hearing off altogether. And being in total control of that was enough to make him shudder against his will. Too bad he couldn't hear his armor rattling against his metallic hide. But he sure as hell could feel it.
Off to his side, he noticed Fumikiri also shuddering a bit. But he brushed it aside as he turned to look at the Misertree as it noticed that its screech had no effect on the two mechanical beings before it. Its red eyes widened in shock and disbelief as it screeched again.
Esebu felt a twinge of pride in his chest as he straightened up, standing tall and proud. He smirked his thoughts. "What? Surprised we can't hear you?" he said; though he couldn't hear himself speak, he felt the vibrations in his vocalizer and his processor translated that into words inside his internal COMM.
The Kaiju Grimm roared as it thrust those arms towards him. Esebu crouched and leapt up into the air as Fumikiri unleashed a smoke bomb, vanishing as soon as it went off. Esebu expanded his radar and picked up the ninja Shinkalion behind him, crouched in the trees behind the estate fence. A risky, but well thought out move, he mused as he landed.
Esebu turned to look back at the Grimm and flared his optics as he summoned his Wheelset Drill to his hand. "Okay, twigface! Time to chop you into matchsticks!"
The Misertree lashed out its branch-like arms, the fingers twitching as it reached for the Shinkalion. Esebu crouched as they neared his position... and then he jumped. He leapt into the air, twisting his frame into a flip as he whirled around, delivering a nasty drop kick to one of the limbs, shattering it as his foot connected with it. The Kaiju screeched as it pulled the injured limb back, flailing what remained on its arm. Esebu smirked in his thoughts as he landed on the ground before shoving his drill towards one of the eyes.
Only for one of those roots to wind itself around his foot and throw him back. Esebu screamed as he went flying, landing on the ground close to the manor's front gates as dust settled around him. He groaned as he started to push himself into a sitting position. "Okay... bad idea...!" he grumbled to himself. "Better not do that again..." Esebu got to his feet, brushing off his armor briefly before locking gazes with the Misertree. He hefted his drill and started to circle, trying to find any spot to jab it... any spot not within reach of those roots.
Or those arms.
Esebu frowned in his thoughts. 'Okay... maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all...' he thought to himself. He swore he felt a large sweatdrop run down the side of his helm at how he had just charged in.
However, the moment was disrupted when he sensed the Misertree lunging with its roots towards him and the gates. His optics flared as he braced, flaring his Aura as he spun up his drill and thrust it forward towards the trunk of the Grimm.
Akita slowly lowered his hands from his ears as he looked out of their hiding spot.
Beside him, Miku unfurled her rabbit ears from her head and slowly stuck one up fully. She listened, but there was no sound of the screeching from the Misertree. Both kids didn't put down their Auras though, just in case.
She slowly lowered her ear and turned to look at Akita. "No sign of it," she muttered.
"Best to be careful anyway," the boy mused as he hefted his guns. "Esebu and Fumikiri may be holding it at bay, but they're going to need some backup."
The rabbit Faunus nodded as she gripped her sword.
Both broke out of their hiding spot, running for the gates.
In front they could see Esebu fighting against the Misertree, his optics pulsing as he thrust his Wheelset Drill in front of him as the Grimm launched itself towards him using its roots. His Aura flared as he channeled it into his drill, a roar escaping his vocalizer as he spun up the weapon. "RAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The Aura streamed off his drill as it impacted the Kaiju Grimm in the trunk.
Or rather its mouth.
Akita was surprised at this, and so was Esebu apparently, because he pulled his drill out, smoke oozing from its mouth, along with that dark sludge they knew all too well as being the Dark Substance. The Shinkalion pulled back just as the stuff nearly touched his foot; no one was willing to take a chance on it touching them in any way. And that included Team Shinkalion.
The blue and white Shinkalion landed a ways off, but not by much as he hefted his drill, examining it critically as he raised it to his face. He apparently spotted something on it because then he flicked the drill a few times and Akita saw a few drops of the Dark Substance fly away from its tip. Esebu finally looked up, his optics pulsing.
"Okay... That was pushing it!" he muttered lowly. "No one does that and gets away with it!"
Esebu crouched, only to lunge forward again, this time using his caterpillar treads to avoid the incoming roots. He wove around them like a needle threading a stitch shut. He held his drill off to the side as he zoomed in towards the Misertree again, and this time as it attacked him with those front roots, he crouched and leapt up over them, his left hand lashing out and closing around one as it tried to wind itself around his throat. A chuckle escaped his chest as he planted both feet on top of the Kaiju Grimm, pulling the root taut before he drove his drill into it and broke it. The Grimm tried to screech in pain, only to emit a raspy sound from its throat. Apparently Esebu's drill had damaged its vocal cords, Akita mused as he scrambled for a nearby tree to take up a sniping position.
The Shinkalion leader apparently realized it too, as he finally shook his helm. "Damn... That's the last time I'm shutting down my audios!" he muttered.
Akita's phone rang at that moment and he answered it. "Go."
"Akita, it's Futaba. How's the battle going?" she asked.
"So far so good. Esebu apparently damaged the Misertree's vocal cords because it can't screech anymore," Akita noted.
"He did?" Futaba's voice was filled with shock. "That's good news then! We're about to fire the capture field then!"
"I would highly recommend against it," Akita said. "The field would be seen by those inside the Sanban Estate, and aren't we supposed to be doing this thing in secrecy?"
Her voice trailed off as she pondered this.
That gave Akita time to hang up. He could worry about his little insubordination later. Right now there was a battle to be won.
TOKYO SDI HEADQUARTERS
LAUNCH BAY
For his part, Ryuji just didn't know what to make of the situation.
He looked down at his now mechanical hands, flexing them as he tried to piece together just what had happened. One minute he was getting into a pod of some kind, and next thing he knew, he was... this... whatever this was. And for that matter, where was he?
He raised his gaze from his hands as he let them fall to his sides. He slowly looked around, his new optics picking out the logo of the SDI (whatever that was) on the back wall, right underneath an observation deck of sorts. Six bays stood off to the side, and a trio of parking spaces for the trains lined the area below the SDI logo. He could also see several tunnels, two of which were closed.
Three other trains were parked close by, and he could see that two were undergoing maintenance while the third was dark and untouched. A few other technicians were observing him and if it were possible, he would've narrowed his eyes. But instead his optics dimmed a shade.
He took the time to examine his new frame a bit more, only to perk up as he heard an unfamiliar voice reach out to him from speakers hidden in the ceiling.
"Unit N700A, can you hear me?"
On instinct, Ryuji adopted a fighting stance, one hand held up, the other cupped at waist level. His shoulders tensed and he slowly shifted his weight to his rear leg as he settled into a martial arts back stance. He cast his gaze around the hangar as he finally spoke, surprising himself with the sound of his new voice. "Who are you? And what has happened to me?" he asked. Ryuji was surprised as to how deep his voice was now. It was in no way rumbling or booming, but it did have a rather calm tenor to it. However, he shoved the surprise aside as he waited for the speaker to continue.
Only silence reigned at first. It made Ryuji's frame tense, and he swore he felt his new hydraulics tightening in anticipation of a coming fight.
But much to his surprise and relief, a familiar voice came over the speaker next.
"Ryuji Kiyosu."
His helm snapped up to face a camera observing him, though he didn't relax his stance yet. "Mr. Hayasugi?"
"Yes. It's me... I'm sure you heard of me from your father before... before he got attacked?" The Faunus's voice was tinged with grief and worry as he asked this.
Slowly, Ryuji lowered his arms and stood up straight. "I knew of you, yes. My father did tell me about your efforts to help further the Central Intercept System's upgrades," he said cautiously.
"I was in charge of that for a short time, yes. But as of late... I've been involved in trying to develop new projects for the defense of Japan," the cat Faunus explained. "And right now... well... you're currently... for lack of a better word, you're currently possessing a part of one such project."
Confusion flooded Ryuji's optics as he looked down at his hands again and turned them over to examine them from the back. "..." He was silent for a moment.
"And... just what is this project of yours?" he asked.
Mr. Hayasugi hesitated before he sighed. "Project SKL. At least, that's the official name for it. In truth, it's really called Project SHINKALION. It stands for SHINKAnsen LIberates Our Nation. I am sure you are aware of the history behind the shinkansen, right?"
Ryuji nodded, wondering where this was going.
"Well, to put it simply, Project SHINKALION is a project that was devised to use the shinkansen as our greatest weapon in combat against the Kaiju Grimm that have been plaguing Japan for fifteen years now. As a result of this, we are constantly being whittled down in terms of the number of Hunters that can be deployed. It's gotten to the point where the SDF has to get involved as well, now. And frankly, Japan's people are also losing hope," Hokuto explained grimly (no pun intended). "You and five others - my son and his friends - have been chosen for this project because of the fact you six have larger than normal Aura reserves and lack a Semblance. And frankly, to be honest, we're in desperate need of individuals who can go toe to toe with Kaiju Grimm. In other words, heavy hitters. Plus... if the shinkansen gave Japan a chance to become a technological powerhouse, who's to say it can't be used to liberate us from despair as well?"
Ryuji stood there, pondering what he had heard and learned.
While it was possible this was just a ploy, he knew that his father had known Hokuto for a long time; hell they had even gone to university together! And he knew Hokuto was a passionate man when it came to his hobbies, his job, and his family. But after Sakura's death... well, he only became more driven to protect what family he had left. And now this project... Perhaps he was channeling his grief into it, so as to prevent more losses like that of his wife?
It did seem possible. And the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He himself had been trying to become a Huntsman so as to get back at Satyra for injuring his family and leaving his mother to struggle... only to be rejected on the grounds that his family needed him more than anything. And that made him clench his metallic hands into fists.
A low growl escaped his new vocalizer and he looked up. "And there is no catch?" he asked.
"No catch," Hokuto said. "All that you have to do is fight against the Kaiju Grimm when we call you."
Ryuji looked to the rails, then back to the observation deck. "Where do you need me first?"
EN ROUTE TO DRACON'S HOTEL
"Man...It's sure good to just kick back for a while..." a deep male voice mused, the metallic edge giving away the speaker's identity, no matter how much they hid themselves in that tattered cloak.
The limo was comfortable, he had to admit as he placed his feet on the seat in front of him.
To Joseph 'Dracon' Matthews, a vacation was sorely needed, especially given how he was still recovering from the fight against Sammael atop Cheyenne Mountain. His hand drifted to his chest absentmindedly and he rubbed the scar there, feeling the welded groove in the metal as he fingered it. The Gundam shuddered briefly as he remembered how exposed his reactor core had been; Sammael could have easily finished him off, but he hadn't, and that unnerved the Gundam more than anything.
A grunt escaped him as he shook his helm. The last thing he needed was to have those kinds of thoughts disrupt his vacation time.
"Guess I need this vacation more than I realized..." he muttered as he removed his hand from his chest armor.
He looked out the window, observing the scenery with a calm gaze in his violet optics. Or at least as calm as he could get.
A snort escaped his vents at that. He really needed to relax. Hell, it had been years since he had a real vacation!
Dracon leaned back a bit further, lacing his fingers over his chest as he closed his optics to enjoy the smooth ride. It was good to get away for a while, but in truth, he had no idea as to what to do here in Japan. Sure he could take tours and even maybe see the Central Intercept System, but that was just... boring. He was a mech of action and he preferred to explore, to learn new things through experience than just through tours and explanations.
A small chuckle escaped him. 'Maybe I could learn to make a Japanese dish or two...' he thought in amusement.
And actually, it wasn't a bad idea on his part. Tina always did like to try new foods whenever she went to new countries. Hell, she even said that she wanted to visit the Kingdom of Rodigan one day. Except Dracon wasn't too thrilled about that idea. And for very good reason, since Europe was becoming infested with larger Grimm. That alone made Dracon suspicious.
He shook his helm, trying to dispel the thought. He was on vacation, for Glob's sake!
And yet... he still couldn't shake the feeling like something big was about to happen...
And he was right.
He just didn't know what.
His optics opened as he looked out at the street traffic as it started to grow more congested. "Dammit..." he muttered.
The driver looked back over her shoulder. "Dracon-sama, I am sorry. But the traffic is not as good as it usually is," she apologized.
"Don't worry about it," Dracon remarked as he waved a hand. "Just what's going on, anyway?"
The driver bit her lower lip before she looked at the map flashing on the GPS screen. "There is a K-Alert out right now."
Dracon cocked his helm to the side briefly. "A K-Alert?"
"Yes. A Kaiju Alert," the driver informed him. "I assume you know of the Kaiju Grimm, yes?"
The Gundam hummed to himself as he nodded. "Of course. Who wouldn't?"
"Then you know that whenever a Kaiju is spotted, an alert is sent out for people to stay away from the area where it is being contained. That means that people are not allowed within fifty miles of the area, lest the damage become too great to contain." The driver was serious as she said this. "So roads have to be rerouted, and that can take up to hours, and it affects everyone."
Dracon crossed his arms. "I see..."
The next thing he knew, an intense pain seared across his helm and he cried out as he grasped it, doubling over and making the driver look back in worry. "Oh, my! Are you all right?!" she blurted.
"Yeah... Just my psychoframe acting up," Dracon admitted as he sat up, rubbing his head. "I... Just take my stuff to the hotel. I gotta find out where that feeling of dread came from."
SANBAN ESTATE
Esebu grunted as he rolled to the side, the Misertree's eyes flashing as it thrust those limbs towards him and Fumikiri.
So far things had been going well, but now?
Now the thing was proving to be even harder to defeat. As soon as he had damaged its voice, the Kaiju had started to go on the offense, making it was more of a threat, and to make things even worse, it was trying to grab onto Miku and Akita as they fired on it from afar using Akita's guns.
The bullets weren't doing too much damage, which was a disappointment for Esebu. He had actually hoped they'd do more damage, since this thing was made of wood and all.
But much to his disappointment, Akita hadn't even loaded up fire Dust bullets into his guns. So they were stuck with mere ice and wind Dust bullets. Although he did note that the ice was having a minor effect in comparison to fire.
Esebu rolled to the side as a flurry of roots came his way and he held up his drill, unsure of what to do now. "Glob... Now what'll we do?" he muttered.
Fumikiri landed beside him holding his shuriken. He looked at his leader with worry in his blue optics. "Unfortunately, nothing comes to my mind," he admitted.
Esebu swore that had he been human, his mouth would've fallen open.
'Oh... shit...' he thought. 'We're so screwed...'
What they did not expect was a sudden blast of a horn...
Or a bright blue laser to lance out from the top of the gate.
The Shinkalion leapt back as the blast barely missed his armor (not that it would've done much damage anyway, but still), striking the roots as they came at the gates. The bluish white laser scorched one and the Misertree rasped in agony, its remaining limb flailing before it doubled over, seeming to bulk up in size before it flared its reddish eyes, making the defenders shudder against their wills. Esebu looked back, only to stare in shock at the figure perched atop the main gate of the Sanban Estate, recognizing him as the man he had been shown by Director Hayasugi. His left arm was aimed right at the Kaiju class, the barrel of a blaster glowing with bluish white energy. His red eyes were narrowed as he fired a second shot. "Howling Laser!" he cried.
The blast fired again, only this time right for the Grimm's eyes. The left eye got nailed and the other one flared in shock and agony, before a flash of blue and white caught him off guard.
"GET DOWN!" came a male voice, but slightly deeper than his. His optics flashed as he ducked underneath the newcomer, a fist lashing out to collide with one of the Grimm's roots and the other slamming into the ground, a crack forming in the very earth below. The crack wasn't too large, but it was enough to cause the Misertree to stumble and Esebu seized on the opportunity.
He held up his drill and charged at the Grimm. "RAAAAAAAAAH!"
Only for several roots to lash out from behind the tree-like Grimm and catch him in their clutches. Esebu screamed in agony as they began to squeeze his joints, trying to break them into pieces.
The newcomer didn't even respond to his predicament.
But someone else did.
A barrage of explosive feathers rained down from above and exploded against the roots binding his joints and limbs, causing the Misertree to retract them and Esebu collapsed to the ground, feeling his limbs aching. "D-Dammit...!" he muttered. "That was way too close for comfort..."
"Yeah? Well, good thing I was in the area then," came Seph's voice.
Esebu's helm shot to look at the winged man as he hovered down. Akita and Miku joined them as Fumikiri approached, his shuriken now a bit scarred from having blocked several roots at once from grabbing the ninja Shinkalion's throat.
"Good timing then," Fumikiri remarked as he eyed the winged figure.
"Seems we got ourselves an overgrown weed," Seph noted as he narrowed his silver eyes. "And I don't mean that lightly."
Esebu nodded. "Yeah. We got to take that thing down before it tries to regenerate its vocal cords," he said.
"Well, then I can at least help provide some backup until the real help gets here," Seph said as he looked to where the large Grimm and the newcomer were fighting. "And I don't mean that other one of your kind..."
Esebu finally looked over in that same direction and his engine ceased to hum just for the briefest of moments as he stared in shock at the white and blue mecha - no, Shinkalion - that clashed with the Misertree.
This one was mostly white, with blue and gold accents on its frame. Its lower legs were mostly blue, but had some golden accents on the upper legs and white on the lower legs. Its chest was made up of the nose of its shinkansen mode, and its upper arms were completely grey with blue forearms, and the armor on its forearms was white. Its shoulders were primarily white with a blue stripe on the middle, and on that stripe was a sort of stylized A, and in front of that was the designation N700. The helm was primarily blue with what appeared to be a golden V, much like the Dragon of Denver's, but narrower. A white V-crest extended from below the golden one, and a silver command fin stuck out, much like the command fin of Gundrazer itself. The optics were light blue in their glow while the faceplate was a pure white color.
And it looked to be slightly taller than he was.
The new Shinkalion lashed out a punch in the direction of the Grimm's face, only for that remaining limb to collide with its - no, his - chest, earning a pained grunt from him. He slid back from the impact, but he didn't fall.
Esebu turned his gaze back to Seph. "Okay. So we'll need to-"
Seph suddenly reacted with surprising speed, his hand flashing silver as he fired a silvery blast at a pair of roots coming up behind the two Shinkalions. "Be careful," he cautioned.
"One thing you have to keep in mind!" a voice snapped behind Esebu. He almost squeaked if he didn't catch himself in time. He looked down at the fence, only to see the white armored figure from before standing there, arms folded across his chest. "And with this thing, we need to be extra careful!"
"Gee, ya think?" Akita drawled.
Esebu pinched the area where his nose would've been had he been human. "Okay... We need a plan. And not just charging in. We need a way to get to the root of this thing - no pun intended - and take it out."
He cast his gaze to the group. "So, any ideas?"
Seph smirked. "One idea on its way." He simply uncurled a finger to the sky.
Esebu cocked his head to the side before he looked up, hearing something in the distance. It sounded much like...
Wait...
His optics zoomed in on something coming in hard and fast... Something clad in brown and blue...
The last thing he expected was to hear the distinct sound of a beam gun firing, one he recognized from hearing it on the news. And this beam was coming in fast!
"MOVE!" he bellowed.
The group didn't even need to be told. The humans and Seph dodged, with Akita and Miku scrambling off to the side and the white armored man leaping back with uncanny agility. Seph merely flitted back using his wings. The two Shinkalions rolled to the side just in time to see the beam magnum's shot hit a root cluster, making it scatter.
The cloaked figure flew past the blue and white Shinkalion, and his optics flashed in recognition of this winged intruder.
"No... friggin'... way...!" he rasped.
The winged figure darted down, flaring its wings wide open before launching what he recognized as fin funnels.
That alone clinched it.
The Dragon had arrived.
For once, Dracon was actually surprised.
Well, mostly at the fact that a Kaiju Grimm was based around a tree this time.
Along with the presence of three massive robots that resembled the Transformers Orion had told him about back in Outpost Prima. And the fact that a Digimon was present, as well as two kids who looked like Hunters-in-training, and a man with green hair, silver eyes, and wings...
He brushed the thought aside as he fired off his fin funnels, launching them at the closest cluster of roots emerging from this Grimm's bottom half, only for one of the robots, a white and blue one with a head crest similar to his own, to lunge in and deliver a nasty uppercut to the thing's cheek.
The Gundam narrowed his optics as the Grimm staggered back, only to regain its balance. It reared its 'head' back and roared, or rather, it tried to.
Instead of a screech, all that came out was a gurgle of sorts. That was enough to make him tilt his head to the side briefly before returning his focus to the matter at hand.
The fin funnels darted around, proving to be hard to hit, and Dracon looked back at the group out of the corner of his optic. "So, mind filling me in on what's happening here?" he asked.
"Long story short, Kaiju Grimm. Code name is Misertree due to its ability to use its screeches to cause people to become depressed and even die from it," one of the robots - the blue and white one who he guessed to be the leader - said in a deep male voice.
"Okay. Why's it attacking here?" Dracon asked.
The robot shrugged his shoulders. "All we know is that it's striking here, and we need to defend the Sanban Estate."
Dracon narrowed his optics as he turned back to face the fight raging. Even from what he could see, the white and blue robot, despite putting up one hell of a fight, was about to be overwhelmed by those roots. "..."
For his part, Esebu was already wracking his processors to come up with a coherent battle plan. He knew Fumikiri's abilities, as well as those of Miku and Akita and Seph. The only unknowns were the white armored man and Dracon. Well, not so much Dracon because of his exploits.
The lead Shinkalion looked at the man as he perched atop one of the guns. "You mind telling us who you are and what you can do?" he asked.
The man narrowed his red eyes. "Just call me the Blazing Light. And you know one of my abilities," he said, holding up his left gauntlet. "But I am also a skilled blade user, if you must know."
Esebu now had an idea as to what should be done. But the newcomer Shinkalion was still unknown. So he had to pray to Glob that his plan worked... and that the newcomer would be willing to work with him and the others.
He finally looked up at the group. "Okay. Here's what'll happen. The Blazing Light and Akita will be the ones to fire from far range. This way they can snipe at any roots that come in close to try and wipe out our friend over there. Miku will be their spotter, using her enhanced eyesight." He jerked his helm at the white Shinkalion, now struggling to keep a cluster of roots from coming up and wrapping themselves around his neck. "Fumikiri will use his ninjutsu to keep the Misertree confused before Dracon and Seph come in from behind, using their long range attacks - Seph his explosive feathers and Dracon his fin funnels - to sever the roots at their base. Then I'll go in and deliver the finishing blow."
"Don't see any problem with that," the Blazing Light replied as he hefted his weapon.
The Dragon of Denver shot a look back at the tree-like Grimm and then at his fin funnels before a smirk appeared in his voice. "That's a smart plan," he said. "Kinda along the lines of my own idea, in a sense."
Fumikiri nodded at once. "Hai."
Akita and Miku looked at one another before looking back to Esebu and nodded once.
Seph rolled his silver eyes as he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose with one hand. "Like I have a choice?" he muttered.
Esebu ignored the snark.
"Okay. Let's do this!" he shouted.
KAIJU GRIMM DATABASE:
NAME: Misertree
SPECIES: Kaiju
CLASS: Ultra
BASIS: Tree
ABILITIES: Misertree has the ability to remove people's will to fight or live based on its screeches. The longer a screech goes on for, the more a person becomes depressed. Repeated screeches can rob a person of the will to live, making them collapse dead on the spot. Its limbs are very flexible, and it can crush through most defenses with them. However, this Kaiju Grimm is slow, moving at only the walking pace of a human being. That makes it easy to outrun, however its slowness is made up for by the flexibility of those limbs, as well as a surprising ability to jump using its roots. Its screeches can be blocked with sound dampening headphones, and Aura as well to a limited degree. It is also vulnerable to fire.
NEW GRIMM SIGHTED: DATABASE UPDATED
NAME: King Cobrafang
CLASSIFICATION: Snake
APPEARANCE: A long, snakelike Grimm. It has a resemblance to the king cobra snake, complete with hood and bone flaps along the edges. When angered, these snap open and it hisses. It is colored black with red accents and red eyes.
ABILITIES: The King Cobrafang has incredible endurance, able to take a pounding due to its thick scales. It is capable of injecting a potent venom into the veins of its prey to kill them before devouring them. It is known to eat young humans, Faunus, and Mobians for food. Some even have seen it eating family pets, or at least attempting to before it was taken down. Its only known weakness is to stab it in the eye with a heat-based blade, or to get it to eat a dummy corpse with a Dust grenade inside, or barring that, stuffing its tail down its throat.