Three: "Solaris VI"
You return to your room to do a little thinking about what Madoka told you. Magic? Existing? You know you're a bit young but... you grew out of fantastic stories like this years ago. The only 'magic' you acknowledge anymore is the power money has over people. It's been a long few days, and you decide it would be best if caught an early night. You might be able to wake up in the morning and laugh the whole 'magic' conversation off as a crazy dream.
Unfortunately, sleep doesn't come to you easily that night, nor is it a dreamless sleep. When you finally manage to close your eyes, you find your mind plagued by a menagerie of horrific sights. Cities left in ruins, people running and screaming, some dying horrendous deaths at the hands of some unknown force. Just as you are about to see the source of such death and destruction, you are suddenly jarred awake by your own lingering fears of seeing the creature. Awoken with a start, you scan the area. Nothing. Peering out the window to your left, you find that night had fallen over Outreach, the clock at your side confirming that it is, indeed, eleven at night. With a shaking hand, you wipe the sweat from your brow and push the soaked covers off of you.
This is embarrassing. You're a Mercenary, you're not a kid anymore. Nightmares don't scare you. But this was no nightmare. This made nightmares look like dreams of kittens and puppies all having a hard time falling asleep. No, this kind of nightmare makes you wish for the kind of dream where you question whether or not you're even still alive when you wake. You get to your feet and stumble into the bathroom to wipe the sweat and the sleep from your eyes. Something burns in the back of your mind, something intangible. You've got to tell someone. Madoka needs her sleep, so you best not bother her, Homura's acted like you murdered her parents since you got here, so she's out of the question, and you don't really know Sayaka or Kyouko enough to bother them. Sorry Mami. You're it. You stumble over to the keypad and push her room number in, and after a few minutes, you see Mami's face, her hair falling gently across her back, appear in the screen. Her face, despite how tired she looks, still manages a smile when she sees you. "Good evening." She greets you with a gentle word.
You tell her about your dream, rough detail first, and with each word, her smile slowly fades. "Hold on one moment." She begins. "I'll be over in a moment, we can talk better face to face." You nod and turn off the screen, turning the lights on low and having a seat at the table.
Mami arrives about ten minutes later, carting a tea pot in one hand and two cups in the other. "I made you some tea. It always helps me when I can't sleep." This girl's too kind to you. She sits down at the table across from you and sets the cups down, one in front of each of you, and pours the tea. It's warm to the touch, not too hot not too cold, and soothes your nerves marvelously. "So, tell me about this dream you had." You slowly begin to repeat what you told her rather frantically over the intercom, going over each detail as clearly as you remember it, Mami nodding and bobbing her head gently as her eyes were closed loosely. She's not tuning you out, quite the opposite, she's tuning everything but you out, ignoring everything around her except your words.
You continue for about twenty minutes, extrapolating on your words, telling her all the parts that freak you out, all the bloody, gorey details, and even start to break down into a frantic fit of crying as your conversation with Mami starts to come to a close. "Ssssh..." She gently shushes you, her smiling face soothing you. "It was just a dream. Nothing's going to hurt you, nothing's going to happen to you." Her words comfort you, but you are still, understandably, unnerved by the dream. As you try to calm yourself, one detail resurfaces that was forgotten earlier. A name.
"I'm... sorry, could you repeat that?" She asks you. In your reverie, you must have spoken it. You repeat it once more, Mami blinking. "Clan Barrier Witch? That's... not one of the major clans... and it's not one the Inner Sphere's had dealings with in the past... What is this 'Clan Barrier Witch'?" Her words seem genuine, which after being lead around for the past week is refreshing. She finishes her tea about the same time you finish yours, your nerves much calmer now and you feel sleep ready to take you at a moment's notice. Standing, you bow to Mami and apologize for the inconvenience. "Oh, nonsense. I'm always willing to help a friend." She stands herself, collecting her own cup. "I'm going to leave the pot of tea here. If you want some in the morning, all the better." She bows as well, her long hair falling about her face. As she rights herself, she pushes her unruly locks behind her ears. "Good night." She turns and leaves, giving you a little wave as she closes the door. Slipping back under the covers, you pull them over you and close your eyes, sleep overtaking you in moments.
Meanwhile, in Quistis' office, Madoka and the white-suited woman sat at a table, playing chess. "I still fail to see why you are reluctant to suspend Homura on account of her behavior. Doing so would allow you to pass the vote." Quistis, playing the black side, waited for Madoka to make her first move. Thinking, the pink-haired girl fingered her right Knight and jumped the blocking pawn, moving it one square to the left.
"I'm not going to do it, Quistis, because it's cheap and underhanded." Quistis rubbed her chin as she thought about her move, hovering her hand over the mirroring Knight to the one Madoka just moved, moving it to the square before Madoka's. "And besides, ever since Homura's training accident, she's been... different." Taking the pawn that was in front of her Knight initially, she slid it up one square, which was answered by Quistis taking her Front-Queen pawn and sliding it up two. "More aggressive... almost hostile."
"Hm." Quistis mused as Madoka took the right-side Bishop and slid it two squares to the upper right, Quistis instantly answering by capturing it wit her right-side Bishop. "Perhaps you should call a meeting of the others... Mami, Sayaka and Kyouko. Perhaps they can offer some counsel." Madoka stared hard at the board before either moving or answering. Quickly sliding the pawn before her Queen forward one space, she continued to speak.
"I could." Madoka responded as Quistis moved the pawn before her King forward one square. "But what do I tell them?" Madoka slid her Queen up one spot. "That I want to contract the girl, but I want to do it without Akemi-san's approval?" Quistis pushed her King-side Bishop up-right two squares.
"You tell them the truth." Quistis muttered, interlacing her fingers under her chin. Madoka paused as she pushed her King-Front pawn forward one, Quistis reacting instantly by pushing the Bishop she had in Madoka's territory one rank to the upper right. "Tell them that Homura is being difficult." Madoka answered by sliding her Queen three squares to the upper left. Scratching her chin, Quistis thought. "Tell them she's being difficult, and she's stopping a potentially great ally from joining you." Sliding the Bishop in Madoka's territory to the upper left, she captured one of Madoka's Rooks.
"I don't know, Quistis... I just don't." She slid her Queen down one. "Check." Deftly, Quistis moved her Queen-side Knight in the way of Madoka's check. Sliding her Queen-side Bishop to the upper right, Madoka sighed. In response, Quistis captured Madoka's King-Side Knight.
"You're getting sloppy." Quistis remarked, the pink-haired girl moving her Bishop up left one square, allowing Quistis to Castle her King. Madoka moved her last Knight out of the back rank, right behind her Queen, allowing Quistis to move her King-Front pawn forward one.
"I know..." Madoka responded, sliding her Knight to the spot to the upper right of her Queen, Quistis putting her own Queen-Side Knight next to Madoka's. "I get sloppy when I get worried." She moved her Queen out of danger, putting it behind her Knight, to which Quistis responded by moving her Knight two down and one to the left.
"Check." Quistis mused with a soft smile. Forced to move her King out of check by moving it one to the right, Quistis slid her Knight back to capture her Queen. "Very sloppy indeed." In mild frustration, Madoka captured Quistis' Knight with her last remaining Bishop which was, in turn, captured by Quistis' Bishop. Madoka moved one pawn up one rank, which another Pawn captured. Sliding her last remaining Rook two squares away from the King, Quistis' Queen slid down to capture it. "If I'm not mistaken... Check Mate?" Madoka nodded and stood from their game. "I think you should get some sleep. Think on it." Madoka nodded at this.
"Thanks for the game, Quistis. Even if you are better at it then I am."
"This game is older then I am, Madoka. I've been playing for a very long time." She paused as she looked over the board. "It's a game of sacrifices, you know." She continued, Madoka pausing. "Sometimes, the key to winning is knowing which of your Kings... are really pawns." Madoka swallowed hard, unable to truly grasp the nature of Quistis' words. "Knowing which needs to die to get-"
"No one's dying, Quistis. Trust me." She walked out of Quistis' office with a gait in her step, as if what Quistis had said unnerved her.
"I trust you... Madoka. But I do not believe you." The woman in white spoke to no one as she packed up the chess set.
'Mech Bay 18
"Quistis has always been a little out in left field, Madoka, don't let her get to you." Jake mused, wiping a smudge of grease off his face as he peeked his head from the inside of his 'Mech's Left Arm. "I mean, girl's got creep in spades, and I've never seen a girl keep her face that straight who didn't have pointy ears."
"Pointy ears?" Madoka asks with a pique in her eyebrow. Jake answers this with a blink.
"Yea. Pointy ears. Vulcans? Star Trek? Do you even watch television, Madoka?"
"Not... if I can avoid it, no." Jake shakes his head and brushes her comment away.
"Either or, I wouldn't let anything she said bother you. She does good work, which is the only reason we keep her around, right?" Madoka, who was sitting on one of the support frames of a scaffold, her legs swinging freely beneath her, only nodded. "How'd your chat with Homura go? I take it she was dismissive again?"
"Mm. It didn't end well. She finished it by screaming I 'didn't understand her' and running off, tears following suit. I think I finally have to suspend her. She's not combat fit in this state, and I'm afraid she might... turn her guns on the kid, or something." She ran a hand through her cotton-candy colored hair. "And our newest contract... it calls for five active 'Mechs..."
"I'll go with you." Jake answered quickly.
"I can't ask you to do that, Jake. You've got your own duties to attend to, it's bad enough I have to rely on you as much as I do..."
"Nonsense." The man responded, moving to the edge of the scaffold as Madoka spoke. "You're my closest and best friend, Kaname. Everyone else in Ultanos takes second fiddle to you, alright?" She chanced a look at him and smiled, a blush forming on her cheeks.
"Thanks..." Leaning forward a bit, he gave her a little kiss on the cheek.
"Anything for you." Pulling away, he laughed a little. "Uh oh, got some grease on you..." Reaching a hand out, he moved to wipe it away.
"H-Hey! Don't do that you'll-"
"Oops.. yea, I... I made it worse..." The small grease smudge was now a great big smear across most of her forehead. Madoka laughed as he blinked dumbfoundedly at it.
"I'm sure that'll come out in the shower." Madoka smiled, giving him a hug. "You try to catch some sleep tonight, alright? I'll see you in the morning."
"Yep." The man answered, slinking back behind the armor panel, into the 'Mech. "You too."
"No promises."
-The Next Morning-
You're awoken the next morning by a knock on the door. "Kid, come on, get up. We gotta high-tail it to the Mitakihara on the double. Madoka's got another contract for us." Through your sleep-adled mind, you manage to make out the voice as Kyouko, slowly getting to your feet and rubbing the sleep from your eyes.
Having dressed as quickly as you could muster, you follow Kyouko out to the docking bay where the Mitakihara is being outfitted, a heavier Vindicator 'Mech being loaded right behind Mami's Hollander, the Tiro Finale. As you and Kyouko find where Madoka and the others are, Kyouko pushes you gently in front of her, Kyouko slipping next to Sayaka. "Ah, there you are. Good morning, sorry about the rude awakening, but we've got another contract, this time on Solaris VI. The Lyran Alliance has a job for us, and they're paying out the nose to get it done."
"Better pay our fuel cost. The Solaris system is six jumps away." Sayaka muttered, crossing her arms.
"The Alliance is paying eleven and a half million C-Bills for the completion of this contract, and are willing to pay for any and all ammunition and fuel costs to get us there and back. They've even sent us a JumpShip to expedite that." You think you see Sayaka and Kyouko fist-bump at the mention of paid ammunition expenses. Madoka pauses as she looks at all of you. "There's a catch."
"There's always a catch." Comes Mami's reserved response.
"The contract calls for five full members of a Mercenary Company... no halfsies." You swallow your stomach.
"How's that a problem. Last I counted, there were five of us." Kyouko muses. "No offense, kid." She drones to you as an after thought.
"Here's where the problem comes in..." Madoka turns to Homura and inhales, holding it for a time. "Akemi-san... in light of your uncooperative behavior, and your general unwillingness to be a team player, I'm forced to put you under suspension."
"What?!" The words flow out of her mouth like poison from a cobra's.
"I've tried to talk to you about your issues, and you've pushed me away. Until you're willing to talk to me, you're not going with us. You'll be staying here."
"You... you can't do this to me, Madoka!"
"I'm sorry, Akemi-san. It's been done." Homura closed the distance between the two in record time.
"Madoka... please, reconsider... if you need five in your unit, and you're suspending me, then there's only one person who you'd be filling my spot with, and I-"
"What, Homura? Do you want to vent all this shit here and now? Because we can. What the hell kind of problem do you have with her?" Homura froze at this, her mouth hung open fighting for the right words. "Well? Come on."
"If you bring her into this unit, you will die." She speaks almost lower then anyone can hear. Madoka seems dumbfounded for a moment, but only smiles, rubbing Homura's head.
"Akemi-san... you're a good friend to me, and I value your opinion... but really? I think I'd be more likely to die without her in the unit. My mind's made up, she's coming." You see Homura's hands tighten into fists of rage at this, though she nods and backs away.
"Very well... Madoka. You're the boss." She turns on her heel and walks away, her hair waving behind her.
"In the meantime, follow me." Madoka collects everyone, yourself included, and leads you towards the Mitakihara. "Alright... I didn't want to do this, because it does devalue Akemi-san's opinion but..." Madoka turns back to everyone assembled. "I'm calling another vote to let the kid into the Unit fully." You see everyone's hand shoot up. "Well, that covers it." She takes your hand and shakes it. "Welcome to the Magi Mercenary Unit. Once we clear this mission, I'll need you to speak to Quistis. She has something for you." You nod to her, relieved that you'll finally be able to figure out what everyone's been neglecting to tell you for the past week now... but that'll have to come after a six week flight.
-September 3rd, 3059-
The Lyran Alliance JumpShip Armarad exits FTL drive over the planet Solaris VI after a long flight from Outreach. "Alright everyone, get suited up." You're in the 'Mech Bay when the Armarad exits FTL for the last time, prepping the Vindicator (which you discovered to be your new 'Mech) for combat. It's Madoka who tells you it's time to prepare, the girl still wearing her strange, frilly pink neural suit around the Mitakihara (you're still not exactly sure how that could be qualified as a neural suit, but she wears it in her 'Mech so... what else can it be?) as she claps to get the attention of everyone in the 'Mech Bay, which happens to be you, Mami and Sayaka. Dropping the clipboard you were looking at, you climb down the ladder and onto the 'Mech Bay floor, walking near Madoka as she continues. "Gather 'round for briefing." She's kept the details of the contract quiet since leaving Outreach, and you're starting to get a little irate at her for it. From seemingly nowhere, Kyouko materializes at the far door and slides down the stair railing, flinging herself off at the end and sprinting over to hear the briefing as well.
"Good, everyone's here. Today, we've got a reconnaissance mission, as well as a Destroy-At-Our-Leisure mission. They also happen to be one in the same. Three months ago, a Lyran Alliance 'Mech Detachment walked out to our mission zone on patrol and came under fire by an unknown 'Mech guarding an unknown facility. Our job is to recon the facility and destroy it if we deem it necessary. If they fire upon us, we are allowed to defend ourselves if needed." Your hand goes up. "One moment kid, I'll take your question when I'm done." You drop your hand. "Now, the last transmission from the Lyran 'Mech squad said that the facility was small, five buildings and an airstrip, guarded by only one 'Mech, so it shouldn't be too hard." She nods to you now. "Sorry kid, go ahead now." You ask her how a single 'Mech could take out an entire detachment of military 'Mechs. "A very good question, one I don't have an answer to. Maybe they got sloppy, maybe there's more to this then we know. Needless to say, the Lyrans aren't willing to commit more men, and in their train of thought bodies, to this installation, so they've called on us." Your hand goes up again as she nods for you to continue. You ask her how, if the military 'Mechs failed, how Mercenaries are supposed to succeed.
"Suffice to say kid, there's a reason for everything. The Magi Mercenary Unit is different from other Mercenary Companies in a menagerie of ways. We have our methods of doing everything. Now, here's what's going to happen. We're going to be splitting up into three groups. Group one, which will be Kyouko and Sayaka, will patrol the area around our mission zone, just to be sure there are no extra surprises. I was told of a target of interest seven and a half clicks away by a liasion I have on Solaris VI, and I'm going to go check it out. Mami, I want you and the kid to go after the facility directly."
"Madoka, if I may, wouldn't it be wise to assign... more experienced 'MechWarriors to the base recon and assault? I'm not questioning her piloting skills, it's just things could get... dicey."
"If things get 'dicey', Mami, do what you do best. This is a gloves-off operation, ladies. Which means smoke 'em if you got 'em."
"Oh. Good then." Mami seemed to smile at this. You're not sure what she meant by 'gloves-off', but something about it rings strange. Mami's hand goes to your shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll be fine with me." You tell her you're not worried about your own safety, but the safety of Madoka, who seems to like to go off alone all the time. "Madoka works best alone. She finds she worries more if she's got to watch out for someone else. Don't you worry about her, kid, just watch your own back, and mine, and we'll be out of here before dinner." You nod and start towards your 'Mech. Climbing into the cockpit of the Vindicator you power it up, the computer chiming in with it's usual start up check list of what's online. Looking around, you check every aspect of the 'Mech's cockpit, just to see if anything's left. Reaching under your seat, your hands find the ejection lever, thankfully still in tact and hopefully operational. Just in case. Your central MFD clicks on to show Madoka's cheery face adjusting a microphone headset on her head.
"This is Goddess, everyone check in."
"Champion reporting in." Sayaka answers.
"Crimson Fury here ready to lay down the pain." Comes Kyouko's response.
"Big Sister here. Green down the board, ready to go." Mami chimes in, her sweet voice different from the other's more abrasive, aggressive words. You confirm that you're ready to go as well.
"Excellent. You all have your objectives, so when the Mitakihara touches down, I expect you to fulfill them to the best of your abilities. Oh, and kid. If things get too dicey for you, hang back and let Mami take care of things." Toggling your weapons display, heat and a few other combat displays off from your HUD, you tell her that if not for you, Mami would have bitten it last mission.
"Oh, that's an overstatement, I had everything under control." Mami responds with a gentle smile. Nonetheless, Madoka nods to your statement as the Mitakihara jerks, the sound of four fusion engines cooling proceeding the large metal ramp dropping, allowing everyone off.
Goddess is first, her pink Catapult bounding out of it's berth and into the dying light of Solaris VI's atmosphere, she is followed by the blue Cauldron Borne of Sayaka's, and the red Grim Reaper of Kyouko's. You follow Kyouko out of your own berth as Mami files in behind you. Madoka turns left almost instantly and begins heading south as Sayaka and Kyouko turn right and begin heading north on their patrol. You and Mami start heading slightly west north west towards your own nav points. It's a ten kilometer trip, so you decide to pass the time.
"Hmm?" Mami answers as you address her. You ask, now that you're a full member, what membership entails. She hesitates for a moment before finally speaking. "I'm not really supposed to tell you, as Madoka might get mad but... it's going to happen anyway, so I'll tell you. Each member of the Magi Mercenary Unit is special; very special. I don't just mean that we're a family, or that we watch over each other, we do, but that's not what I mean. Do you remember what Madoka told you? About Magic exisiting?" You nod to his. "Well... each of us had to-" She's cut off by a beep on her radar. You're still nine clicks away, so you can't imagine what it's detecting.
"Mitakihara to Tomoe. Come in." An unfamiliar female voice, probably Hitomi, the Mitakihara's pilot, speaks.
"This is Mami. Go ahead, Mitakihara." Mami answers.
"I've been doing some preliminary scans of the facility you're going to be looking at... and judging by the heat signatures and smoke coming from one of the buildings, I'd say it's a refinery of some kind."
"Refining plant? That doesn't make any sense. Solaris is a gaming system, not a manufacturing system..."
"True, but Solaris VI is a planet rich in a lot of minerals, most of which are used to make BattleMechs." Mami seems to go quiet.
"I'm not sure what it means, but this unsettles me." Eight kilometers. "Keep scanning, Hitomi. The kid and I'll send back whatever information we find." Mami shakes her head. "I'm sorry to cut this short, kid, but I need to think. I'll tell you more when we're on our way back." You mentally swear at all this situational convenience, keeping you from the answers you want, but you nod to her nonetheless.
You slowly close on your destination, finally the facility comes into view, just on the tail end of a large, dense forest. "There it is..." Mami muses, coming to a stop. "Smoke stacks, chemical smelter... yea, that's a refinery alright. Let's get closer." You've been moving the whole time, coming within eight hundred meters of the facility. "That's strange... we're well within radar range by now, and not a single contact... where are the defenders?" You shake your head, uncertain how to answer. "Maybe it's their tea time..." Suddenly, something pings on your radar. It's a ghost at first, not a certain signature, but something's there. You tell Mami you picked up a ghost, which unnerves her. "Radar ghosts are bad... that means whatever it is is too small to be detected... or it's got a jammer..." You turn your 'Mech to face the direction of the ghost, only to spy a 'Mech coming towards you full tilt. You call to Mami to be on alert just as a barrage of laser fire peppers your 'Mech. Mami manages to get out of the way of the shots coming for her, but you take most of them to your torso. Your armor doesn't react much to the hit, but you can hear a few armor panels come flying off.
"Freebirth 'MechWarriors. You are trespassing on Clan Barrier Witch territory. I, Gertrud of Clan Barrier Witch, order you off our ancestral lands, or you will be destroyed."
"Clan Barrier Witch?" Mami pales as do you.
"Yes. Turn and leave now, or I will be forced to destroy you."
"Gertrud, you are neck-deep in Lyran Alliance space. What right do you have to claim Solaris VI as your ancest-"
"Impudent Freebirth! Solaris VI does not belong to the Lyran Alliance! It is one of the Promised Ten, promised to us by our founder! You do not belong here." You scan the target 'Mech, which turns out to be an Uller, and chuckle at her loadout. Three ER Small Pulse Lasers. But what disturbs you most is you can't seem to get a lock on her. You decide to take the reins from Mami at this point, telling the 'MechWarrior that you have orders to kill on sight, and you're not afraid to follow them. "HA! Try to kill me and fail, as did those before you. Solaris VI does not belong to you."
"Well, I think the opening spray of laser fire judged her as being hostile, yes?" Mami chimes to you. "And we were told to attack if attacked so..." A PPC blast streaks towards the Uller, the 'Mech taking the hit surprisingly well, the blast slamming into the ground to it's side. "Huh?"
"Fools. You cannot harm me. I am protected by the Goddess!" You scan her 'Mech once again, and find her armor comprised of mirrors. Mirrored armor? You tell Mami this.
"Mirrored armor? Well, shit that puts me right out." You line up and dumbfire some SRMS at her, the missiles intercepted by an AMS. "Shit, an Anti-Missile System. This is just great, she's got us..." Missiles and energy weapons are useless.
"You have assaulted a member of Clan Barrier Witch, and will die for it!" Her 'Mech opens up in a surprisingly heavy volley of small laser fire, peppering your 'Mech mercilessly. Your eyes dart to your weapon display. An LBX AutoCannon... Cycling to the AutoCannon, you open your comms once more, asking her how much bad luck you'd get if you broke her mirrors. "I doubt you could." You bark back that she better think twice, then unload with a stream of LBX AutoCannon fire, the shells striking the Uller's armor, sending chunks of glass flying in all directions.
"Way to go, kid! Keep hammering her!" Mami lines up for a second shot, the end of her gun lighting up in a brilliant blue hue. "Time to end this!" Another cluster-fuck of PPC blasts streaks towards the Uller, the damaged mirrors doing nothing to reflect the blast, shattering the 'Mech in half.
"G-gah!" Gertrud growls as sparks fly in her cockpit. "You – I will not forget this!" Damaged beyond repair, you watch as the top of the Uller opens into a small pod, the pilot ejecting. As the Uller falls face-first, it erupts into a brilliant display of flame, smoke and flaming debris forming the shape of a beautiful butterfly through the remains.
"Scratch one. Now on to the base." Mami turns to the base and begins to fire PPC blasts into it. It takes her about ten minutes to finish off leveling each structure in turn, and the pair of you start back to base. "Damn glad you had that AutoCannon. Without it, we'd have been added to her kill count." You shake the comment off, not liking that train of thought one bit. You tentatively ask her if you should tell Madoka about this 'Clan Barrier Witch' thing now.
"I don't think we have a choice now, kid. Snap a few pictures of the image on the side of the smelter before you flash it. She'll need proof." You zoom in your cockpit's view and do as asked, snapping a good few pictures of the large image on the side of the smelter, a black orb with a lattice work of beautiful silver inlay around it, a point coming off one corner as a florette design comes off the opposite corner. You and Mami lay into the base, PPC, AutoCannon and laser fire puncturing large holes in the armor, eventually the main buildings erupt into a fireball of nuclear fire.
"Well, that's that. Let's head on back to the Mitakihara for debriefing." Mami seems happy as you start your walk back to the Dropship.
"Crimson Fury to Big Sister! Shit, you've got hostiles incoming! One mad-as-fuck Vulture coming your way! It's hard to miss. It looks like a walking candy bar." You blink at this, turning to Mami.
"Think you've got one more in you, kid?" Nodding, you turn your 'Mech to face the direction Kyouko feeds you, seeing something appear on your radar.
"So. Someone finally shuts that loud-mouth Gertrud up! Credit where due, girlies, I did not think anyone had it in them! But now I'm afraid I'm going to have to kill you!" A face appears in your MFD, her eyes swirl with a strange pink, blue and white hue. Whatever is causing her strange eye coloration, it's NOT normal. She grins a toothy grin, her teeth gritted as the Vulture charges. An LRM streaks from the left missle rack and slams into Mami's shoulder, the cannon on her 'Mech exploding.
"Gah!" She cries over her radio, the din of her computer running off every system that's gone. "She's... she's taken everything out! Retreat!" Mami continues. You bark at her to make a break for the Mitakihara as you draw her fire. "No! I can't do that!" You continue, shouting that in her current state she'll only get in the way. You watch her fight with further protest before she sighs and nods. "Don't die. Do you hear me, kid? Don't you dare die on me!"
"She is no threat to me." The unknown pilot continues. "And neither are you, girl." You fire the last few remaining AutoCannon shells at her, a few slamming into her torso while the rest go wide. "I do hope you have got more then that." You grit your own teeth in frustration, thinking exactly how bad of an idea this was. Another LRM from the Vulture streaks your way, and you just manage to turn your torso enough to be grazed by three or four of the twenty missiles. Recentering your torso, she opens up with an unusually powerful Large Laser, the glowing-hot blue beam slices effortlessly through your torso, severing your arm.
"Critical Hit: Shoulder Actuator." Your computer chimes in after an alarm. Stopping within reach of your 'Mech, the pilot comes back over your radio.
"Face it kid. You have met a better pilot this day." Muttering a prayer to yourself, you have another moment of clarity.
"The hell I have." You respond, reaching out and, with your still-functional arm, grapple the Vulture in the gap between it's right torso and center torso, jamming your 'Mech's hand in the gap, stopping her from moving.
"What? What are you doing?" You flick switch after switch on your console, your MFD lighting up with the words 'Explosion Imminent' as your 'Mech's core temperature rises. Reaching down, you take hold of the eject bar. "Stravag! You'll kill us both!" Without another word, the top of the Vulture opens up in an escape pod, the smoke rising in the air. You try to do the same, but an alarm sounds.
"Automatic Ejection System: Offline. Please preform a Manual Ejection." Fuck manual ejections! Fingers flying across the console, you prep the cockpit bolts to blow. Ten seconds until you're a bad memory. Five.. three...
PACHANG! The pod rockets out of the top of you Vindicator a few precious seconds too late. As the 'Mech erupts into a nuclear explosion, you're caught in the tail end. Your head slams hard into the side of the pod, causing you to black out.
Some Unknown Amount of Time Later...
"...un. Fighting you was fun. Killing you would have been too good for you. No... I'm glad you survived, little morsel. I shall take pleasure in eating you." You manage to come to, the swirly-eyed visage of the strange pilot looking you over like a kid looks over a chocolate bar. "Oooh, you are awake finally. Good. It would be no fun if I ate you when you were asleep." Ate?! She... doesn't mean that literally... right?
"Bested Gertrud and nearly bested me. I have to admit, you are formidable for a Freebirth. Resourceful and cunning. I would love to have you as a member of our family but... alas, I cannot. I believe I shall have to make do with simply adding your strength to my own." You can't move, the throbbing in your head and the pain in your legs stopping you from even thinking. Straddling you, the pilot licks her lips, her sharp teeth the only thing you can see. Opening her mouth wide, she clamps down on your shoulder, a spike of pain rocketing throughout your body, causing a scream to leave your lips. Shit! She DID mean that literally! Mustering all your strength, you put both arms on her shoulders and push, trying to get her off of you. Gods damn this headache... After a second spike of pain, this one considerably more powerful then the last, the strange pilot comes up and glares at you, blood staining her teeth and mouth.
"Don't fight it, cutie. It'll only make it hurt more..." You udder a silent plea to anyone who could hear you. Opening her mouth once more, she's interrupted by a streak of yellow light slicing through her body. "Gyaah!" She shrieks, the force of the blast knocking her off of you. "What is this?!"
"Get the FUCK off of her you bitch!" You hear a familiar voice call. The strange cannibal hisses at the voice, gets to her feet, and runs. The sound of heels on grass coming closer is all you have to focus on as your vision swims and fades randomly. "Can you hear me!? Oh gods..." You make out a face, in your dillusion. Mami. She looks left, from where she came from, and shrieks one word before you black out. "Quistis!"
"...ook at me." A voice pulls you from your dying dillusion, your head rolling about as your eyes try desperately to focus on something, fucking anything. "Look at me..." The voice continues. You manage to make out red eyes and white hair... You choke out a name who you think it might be, the figure giving a short smile. "At least you know who it is. Listen to me very carefully, are you listening?" You give a lazy nod. "Repeat after me. 'Quistis Black, I wish you to save my life.'" You mumble something incoherently in response, the woman shaking her head. "Not good enough. Say it. 'Quistis Black, I wish you to save my life.'" Through great trial and tribulation, you manage to force these words from your mouth, Quistis nodding. "Good. Now rest." A hand covers your eyes and you black out.