After the meeting was over, Belzegaas and Arsene began dividing the Uniques into those who would accompany Abaasy and Daedala on the aerial strike mission and those who would remain behind to defend their territory on the Bionis. Most of the flying Uniques volunteered for the mission, led by Illustrious Golteus, although a few of the non-flying Uniques managed to convince their flying friends to give them lifts in their talons or in Nopon baskets, and Unreliable Rezno was forbidden from joining them because of the concerns that he might accidentally fly right into one of the Bionis' cooling fans. They were divided into ranks based on their power levels and species while Belzegaas went over the plan with them all again.
They were going to wait for the next scheduled attack by the allied armies of the Bionis on Sword Valley (Arsene's spy network had been busy), so that the majority of the Mechon would be distracted, then sneak around the back of the Mechonis and through a service hatch that led into the Central Factory, where the majority of the Unique Mechon lived. One party would then ride the elevator up to Agniratha while the other used the communications systems in the factory to get a message down to the Mechonis Field and Galahad Fortress, to give them the address of a safe sanctuary for Mechon that had been cleared out in the areas of the Ether Mine that couldn't be accessed by humans. It would be a matter of doing as much good as they could within the time limit, and getting a clear communication across, and hoping nobody alerted the main forces.
Upon Arsene's signal, the Unique aerial division lifted off from Three Sage Peak. Marcus waved at them and wished them good luck, then his Gloria Sloboses helped him shoo the rest of the crowd off the mountain top. The small army of assorted flying creatures made their way up to the clouds until the golden streams of ether that laced Valak Mountain looked like twinkling lights in a busy cityscape. Eventually, the Bionis looked almost small enough for Abaasy to eat it if he tried really hard, and the Mechonis loomed into view. It was moving. Only once in Daedala's entire existence did he remember seeing the Bionis move. As it moved, an outcry went up from the armies in Sword Valley, so far away that they looked like milling ants or swarming flies, but the panic still audible. A lot of people on either side moved too slowly and plunged to their deaths. Some of the Homs and Mechon tried to retreat to their own lines, others tried to press the advantage, all of them ran in some direction, desperate to get out of the battlefield that had moved away from under them. All semblance of an organised plan had been flung away, and if they weren't entirely different life forms, it would have been impossible to tell which side was which. Already, Daedala could tell how much had gone wrong since he left.
Only a few scout patrols challenged them as they wheeled around to the back of the Bionis. The small scout Mechon were quickly dispatched by a unit of Nebulae led by Inferno Heinrich before they could raise the alarm. Abaasy led them to a service hatch near the Mechonis' left armpit. It was harder to direct everyone through it than he expected, as they were trying to lock on to a moving target and the hatch doors had been closed slightly to stop dust getting in, making them too small for Abaasy to fit through. Eventually everyone was crammed inside and they followed the pipes down to Central Factory. The Factory was much busier than Daedala remembered it, the clanging and whirring almost overloading his audio receptors, the production lines churning out Mechon so that they could be replaced by an entire unit more, the second one of them fell in battle. It took Abaasy a few moments to locate the first Unique, a harassed-looking industrial Mechon called 'Synchronised Gaheris'. She was small and could fly, so Abaasy told her to zip around the Factory and fetch the others.
"Majestic Mordred might be a while, there were dangerous intruders," she commented, "Apart from you lot, I mean."
"I have a good idea who they are," said Abaasy.
"You do?" asked Daedala.
"I probably should have warned you about them before, but it isn't something I like discussing with those who aren't properly sworn in. They are... very dangerous enemies," said Abaasy, "Would you be okay with using the internal communications, or do you wish to go up to Agniratha? You would be more effective at manipulating the systems than me, but I understand if you want to go and see what has happened to Agniratha. It isn't pleasant, though."
"I will be recognised by the security systems if I use the terminals," said Daedala, "Also, I know my way around Agniratha. If you give me descriptions of the Uniques and their roaming grounds, I will easily find them."
Abaasy ordered some of the Uniques to follow Daedala and the ancient Mechon sped off towards the elevator. A vicious battle had taken place in the corridor leading up to the elevator. Four maintenance Mechon were straining to lift the armour plating of what must have been an enormous war Mechon, possibly a Face. They ignored him as he led the Unique force down the corridor and into the elevator. As it rose silently, his destination came into view through the glass panels. Agniratha was deserted. Telethia corpses littered a ravaged landscape of collapsed walkways and piles of metal debris, still telling the tale of the horrors of the first war. Maintenance and Security Mechon swarmed over the ruins, looking for salvage or signs that their enemies still lived. They had already cleared away all the Machina corpses. Incoming signals told him that the central plaza was still intact, broadcasting requests for information, demanding to know when the repairs would be complete and reminding him that the market was still open for the traders that would usually have arrived by now. The system identified him as soon as he walked up to it. Egil hadn't reprogrammed it yet, so it demanded to know why he wasn't dealing with the multiple security violations and maintenance concerns that had been flagged up. He asked it to stop broadcasting his whereabouts until further notice, for security reasons, and to identify unusual elite Mechon in the area for him. Searching its data banks, it soon found matches to all the individuals he looking for. He uploaded the information and set off to look for the closest one.
"Sentimental Flamral?" Daedala called out, hovering up to the first floor, "Is there a Sentimental Flamral here?"
After a few minutes, a large insectoid Mechon with giant pincers scuttled from behind a pile of wreckage, "Daedala? That you? Man, it's been a long time!"
"Flamral, I need you to help me locate all the Uniques..."
"You're into the Unique business now?"
"I am the head of the Mechonis division."
"The big guy still trying to get everyone to leave? Tell him I like it here."
"The Mechonis is no longer a safe place for anyone."
"We Mechon ain't meant to be in safe places!"
"Needless involvement in situations that are likely to cause our deaths is highly irrational."
"It's our home! That don't mean anything to ya?"
"This is a ruin, not a home. Our people are scattered. We are exiles."
"Well, I'll ask the others, but you ain't gettin' anything out of..."
Suddenly, the ground jolted violently, a tremor that sent Flamral clattering across the floor. Seconds later, Daedala heard Abaasy's voice in his head.
"Leave now. Bring everyone you've located, don't try and search for any more. It's an emergency."
"What is making the ground shake? Is the Bionis moving faster?"
"Worse than that. You need to leave now or you're all going to die."
Alarm sirens went off in all directions. The tremors became more violent, so that the more mobile Mechon had to grab those who kept falling over and half-lift, half-drag them over the wreckage. Behind them, the tattered foundations of Agniratha had begun to crumble. One unfortunate Mechon was hit by a girder but the heavily armoured Unique survived with only a few dents. Soon it became difficult for even the flying Mechon to keep their balance. As he passed a status terminal, Daedala saw that it was reporting critical damage status for the Bionis structure itself. It must have been targeted in the battle, he thought, are the two Titans going to fight each other directly again?
The Agniratha division rejoined the Factory division and they set about fitting people back through the hatch, now an even more difficult job. Several of the Uniques had gone missing, some of them trying to go further than they could quite get back. Gaheris had picked up a clipboard and was darting around, yelling out people's names.
"What is happening," Daedala demanded of Abaasy as the dragon stared at the main view screen of the communications system. He was watching a small unit of Nebulae who had somehow gotten all the way to the Mechonis Field. At Daedala's approach, he switched the view to the Mechonis Core. Daedala had only been to the Mechonis Core once, when he had been introduced to Meyneth. Egil was wired to the Core now. He was slumped down onto the console in a pool of blood, and as the view zoomed in, Daedala soon realised that he was dead. Standing over him with a sword that he recognised as the Monado was a young male Homs.
"That is Shulk," said Abaasy, "The leader of our greatest enemy. The people who have been deliberately and specifically training to kill us. This is what he is already capable of. When you are made a Sage, you will be taught to defend yourself against Shulk's party, as you will inevitably be targeted by them."
"The Mechonis cannot function if its operator is slain," said Daedala, "Many of the Mechon will be burnt out just from the feedback of the improper shutdown. If the Core controls are damaged..."
"The Mechonis cannot be saved," replied Abaasy. "This is why we are evacuating people."
"We will not be able to save enough," said Daedala, before running towards the hatch and jumping through it. Abaasy didn't try to stop him, but watched him on the view screen as he hovered up to the Mechonis' head, from which smoke was now pouring, and jumped in through one of the grilles on its face.
"Come back alive," ordered the dragon, then he turned around and led his force away from the Mechonis.