Author's Notes
It took a lot longer than I thought to edit and put this chapter up, but I hope you like it!
Thanks to Oribird for looking over it for me!
Copyright Info: SD Gundam Force is produced by Bandai and Sunrise. My OCs mentioned or present in this chapter are Aleda, Titan, Miku, Ace, Mary Vaughn, and James Vaughn. All other characters and settings are created by Bandai and Sunrise.
Chapter 29: Escape
Two shadows danced in the tower, one whirling and slashing, the other blocking and stabbing. The torches flickered in their wake. Titan's bulky form darted in at every pause of the scythe, his movements quickened by flight magic.
Another swing of the scythe passed. He lunged, jabbing at the nebulous body with the blade at the base of his shield. He scraped no metal or flesh, but a squawk came, and the beady eyes blinked out for a second as if Deathscythe were cringing in pain. I hit! Somehow, I—!
The next second, Titan was in the wall, his shield and frame stuck firmly in the stone, the torch beside him tilting, the whole sconce loosening from its hold. The Gundam croaked.
"How dare you..." he heard Deathscythe hiss.
In the midst of the pain and dizziness, Titan clenched his right hand. Good, his shield was still there. In the blackness ahead, there was movement. It rushed in—a pair of white pinpricks approaching like a hungry nocturnal beast. He brought his shield over his face.
"How dare you!" The scythe cut across, gashing the shield further. "I'm going to tear you apart!" Another high-pitched scrape. "I'll carve agony into your core!" Titan grunted as the hilt jabbed his shield. "You'll be begging me to kill you!" Then with a flick, the scythe wooshed through the tilted torch, catching its flame. "You will burn!" The fiery blade swung down at his head.
Titan ducked. The shield cracked and smoked. With a jerk, a piece of it snapped off. The flames hiccupped from the sudden movement.
"You should have given up while you had the chance!" Another slam carved a jagged peak in the metal. "Now I'm going to make sure your death is painful!" Thunk! "Excruciating!" Thwack! "So every piece of you is screaming!" Shink!
Titan's defense was quickly dwindling. Pieces of the shield were falling away so fast. He was losing Master August's gifts. Would he lose his life, too?
The fire on the scythe snuffed during the wild swinging. Hot steam wafted from the edge as it swept in again. Titan pushed, shoved it away, and, as best as he could while embedded in the wall, lashed out with his shield remains. Deathscythe pulled out of reach. The faint hum of that fiend's body—could he be using the same magical flight as Titan?
"So you are not invincible. I'll make sure…" Titan yanked forward, scraping against the stone to get a shoulder out of the wall. "…you're the one screaming in the end!" The other thick shoulder came out, as Deathscythe's blade raised again to strike.
A loud, bestial roar reverberated above from outside. It echoed down the tower, rattling the old stone bricks, and both combatants stopped.
"What is that?" Titan said.
"The Feather Dragon."
"What?"
"The Feather Dragon." The villain's voice was soft and distant, as if the beastly cry had entranced him. Then his beady eyes narrowed, and the scythe raised. "I don't have time to play anymore, little squire. So if you'll excuse me—" He swung, splitting Titan's disfigured shield in two. "—I have somewhere to be!" A red magic circle appeared under Deathscythe as half of the shield clattered on the steps.
Titan stared down after the broken piece only a second before noticing his opponent was fading. "No!" He reached, and a net of glowing lines spread. The magic circle popped, and Deathscythe solidified—if his apparent form could be called solid.
"What?!" Deathscythe glared at the bars surrounding him: made of magic energy, they formed a glowing, crackling cage. "You dare use binding magic on me?!"
The last piece of shield in Titan's hand phased out, disappearing into magical storage. "I'm not letting you interfere with my lady's rescue!" He floated closer to the cage, positioning himself boldly close to the enemy. "You're not leaving."
Surely Deathscythe wouldn't stay quietly, though. Titan stared, waiting. And as expected, Deathscythe's blade began to whirl inside the barrier. With a motion of Titan's hand, the cage suddenly shrunk, catching the hilt so it couldn't turn.
The Gundam smirked. "You'll stay right there, Deathscythe, until we've recovered Lady Aleda."
"You can't keep me in here!"
"Try and get out, then."
His pinprick eyes flashed. "I will. I'll get the Feather Dragon one way or another."
The Knight Gundam raised an eyebrow. Interesting. Feather Dragon was known to be a powerful Spirit who aided warriors to safeguard Lacroa. Deathscythe obviously wanted it for his Summon Spirit, but how could he hope to achieve that? With the young Gundamess? "You're after Feather Dragon? What do you plan to do with it?"
"That is not the concern of a maggot like you!"
"I understand, now: you're just like Tallgeese, using Lady Aleda as bait for the Spirit."
"Though I use her for the same purpose, I am not as shortsighted, nor as stupid." He leaned in closer to the bars. "You deserve death for getting in my way, but I could overlook your slight if you allow me to capture Feather Dragon. The Gundamess can leave safely with you, too. As curious as she is, I am much more interested in a stronger Spirit."
"You are saying… if I let you go, you will let all of us go?"
"Yes." The scythe's hammerhead end pushed against the energy cage. "But if I have to get myself out of here, our deal is off!"
The cage began to spark. Titan edged back. He could feel his spell wavering. This was a powerful foe, and doubtless also deadly. If his cage couldn't hold him, he didn't have much left to defend himself with. Could he afford to let Deathscythe go? Take Aleda and leave the rest of them to fight over the Feather Dragon?
But then the Savior would be without his partner, wouldn't he?
"I'm warning you...!"
What would Master August want?
"I will destroy you! I have more power than you can imagine!"
Titan clenched a fist. Deathscythe's magic circle had reappeared. Though he was seeing no results, yet, the energy from whatever spell he cast radiated through the barrier. It was like a magical furnace. And in the reddish light Deathscythe looked quite like the devil he was.
What would he do when certain death loomed over him?
"And be assured that the Gundamess, too, will follow once I have no more use for her. Unless you let me out now."
A snarl left Titan. "You think I would release you when you threaten Lady Aleda?"
Master August had sacrificed himself for those he cared about. And the kingdom he cared about.
He would want Lacroa to be saved.
"I'm not letting you out!" Titan declared. "Even if I have no weapons to fight you with, I will stand between you and your prize with everything I have!"
Deathscythe muttered something.
"What?"
The Knight of Darkness continued mumbling as if he didn't hear him. He wasn't talking to him. He was chanting. Titan swallowed.
Suddenly, cold seized his central cables and he shivered. Something huge swept past, and the torches blew out. All Titan could see was a shadow darting across the light of his spell, and all he could hear was the drumbeat of large wings. "What—"
It threw his back into the staircase. The steps cracked under his weight, and he fell, his body rolling in midair until he smacked face-first into the next flight.
Deathscythe was shrieking. "Don't pay attention to him, fool! The Feather Dragon! Get it!"
Titan heard a roar and the loud thrump, whump, of wings. The magic aura was huge and chilling, like a blizzard. Wind beat his back as he tried to push himself up, and dust buffeted his armor. Another cry of it sounded from farther up. He still couldn't turn to see what was happening. It was too strong, too cold.
A last drum of the wings fluttered his cape. The loud pounding dimmed and the chill dissipated. It had left the tower. Its screams reverberated outside. It had spared him, but what would happen to Lady Aleda and the Chosen One?
I can't let it get to them! Titan hefted himself off the stairs. Could his feet hold him? Could he fly? On catching sight of his captive again, he painfully rasped, "What did you do?!"
"I sent my monster out there to obtain the Feather Dragon for me." The scythe jerked down to split one rung of the cage. "You didn't think you were the only one with friends in Lacroa, did you?"
Titan's eyes widened. His enemy was indeed no mere lap-dog, with a pet like that and enough strength to work through the binding spell.
Deathscythe's beady eyes scrunched, but this time in a way that resembled a cheeky grin. "Oh? You're scared now? Just wait until I get out."
...
Across the Castle, up on the cliffside bordering the petrified lake, the Dark Axis was observing events from the Komusai. Zako Red sat in an elevated chair, his single eye staring at the monitor in the front of the bridge.
Zapper Zaku and Destroyer Dom were absent: he'd sent them on a hunt for any signs of hidden Gundams in the surrounding canyon. A few green Zakos stood at environment readouts and battle stations, but most were on light sleep mode in the barracks to save energy. And Grappler Gouf stood at Zako Red's left, making various faces as the conflict above the castle played out. His camera lens widened and shrunk with the shifting fates.
The Knight Gundam had merged with the giant Feather Spirit thing, and now pretty Angel Knight was arguing with Tallgeese over his girlfriend. And then—Oh, look! The girlfriend got away! Ooh, not quite... Oh! There she went, and—
Grappler cringed as Zero swat Tallgeese into the tower. "Ouch."
Zako Red snickered. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the sight of his ally being thrashed. But Grappler, though he had no attachment to Tallgeese himself, was at least concerned about damage to an asset of the Dark Axis.
"Uh... Zako Red, sir," he interrupted.
The Zako's eye swiveled to him.
"Shouldn't we help fight the Gundams?"
Zako Red turned his camera back to the screen. "No, zako. Let's wait and see how the situation plays out. This is giving us valuable intel, zako." His vents stretched in a sneer. "Also, I want to let Tallgeese be reminded of how useless he is without us. Let him struggle, zako."
Grappler caught himself before he could breathe an audible sigh of relief. He could see the energy readouts on the monitors: the Knight Gundam's output gave Sola Diorama's sun a run for its money. The only reason Tallgeese was still in one piece—as deeply entrenched in that tower as he was—was because of Griffin. As much as Grappler hated to admit it, he had no desire to fight Zero in that form. What could they do to counter that? They'd have to get another Spirit.
If those two bozos get caught in this...
Oh, wait, something else was coming. The bars in the charts were shooting up again.
Zako Red smirked as Zero wheeled and flew away from the tower with his girlfriend in tow. "Wait and see..."
...
Zero was descending toward his enemy, sword in hand. "You shouldn't have underestimated her twice, Tallgeese."
His target was battered and barely standing, his armor close to falling off, his crest bent, and his chest creaked like a crumpled soda can. But he'd hurt Aleda. He'd almost killed her.
"Zero…"
The bright feeling in his chest, cool and light like a clear breeze, faded. His synchronization with Aleda had come undone. She didn't like this. She'd never seen him end a life before. But he had to. Tallgeese was too dangerous to leave alive. He'd come back from defeat twice; only death would stop him forever. Zero squeezed the hilt of his sword.
One swing was all it would take. He'd cut him right in half.
Then Zero's wires tingled, and he stopped. Fenn.
The Feather Dragon hissed loudly in his CPU.
"It's coming!"
He attuned his Spirit-aided senses. Something was rapidly closing: something big as a thundercloud and dark as a demon. Like the static before a storm, malicious energy gathered in the air.
He shot the opposite way, grabbed Aleda's hand as he passed, and pulled her.
"Zero, what—?"
The Thing screeched as it phased through the tower. It was a dark shadow with heavy wings and wide jaws, which opened to snap them up.
Zero jerked them to the side and twisted to slash. The creature's scaled hide split. It screamed in pain. When it flew past, it bore a long white scar.
Thwack! Something swung from the side, knocking them into a spin. Aleda gasped. They fumbled and flapped. Zero grabbed her shoulders. With effort, he straightened his wings, and they righted. "Aleda, hid—!"
The rest of his words were drowned in the shriek of the giant shadow as it doubled back for more. Its leather wings beat quickly.
A spell came to Zero's mind, the same one that he and Fenn had used in the magic square against Tallgeese. Murmuring, he moved in front of Aleda and raised his sword. It wasn't until the beast's cry died that he could hear himself. "Super Spirit Magic..."
Another hand grasped the hilt, small yet reassuring. His Little Wing. A tendril of red snaked around the sword's length, joining with his and Fenn's power. Warmth and strength swelled in him. Her eyes looked in his, the green tinted with flames, and he nodded. He had two partners in this fight. Yes, let us do this together. I've denied and doubted you long enough, Little Wing.
The beast sprung. The wings flared.
Zero squeezed the hilt. "Infinity Winds!" The Buster Sword gleamed blindingly bright. The creature screeched and reared back, revealing the outline of golden horns and a reptilian jaw. Zero held himself in the face of the monster and moved to swipe.
The beast whipped around, throwing its tail, and they ducked. Zero curled his wings over Aleda and himself, but only wind gusted against his feathers. He parted them and looked up, lifting his blade again, but the wide, curved tail was shrinking as the beast flew away. It was retreating?
"Where are you going?!" he yelled after it.
The beast angled toward the moons. Its wings cast a batlike silhouette, a ghostly blot over the natural light, before the clouds eclipsed it. A shriek echoed behind the cover, the last lingering note of its presence.
When the clouds passed, it was gone. Lacroa was left silent again.
The Buster Sword dimmed, and Zero lowered it. "What was that?" Aleda asked, barely above a whisper.
"I don't know. But Fenn says we frightened it away, for now." A brief shudder passed through him. His vents were still whirring loudly. That monster had a strong magic aura that had shaken even Fenn. He could feel the Feather Dragon's alarm, as if he were physically whimpering into his audio receptor. No need to tell Aleda that, though. She was already frightened enough. He could feel her hand trembling; they both were still holding the sword.
Zero edged Aleda's hand off the hilt, giving a light squeeze before releasing her. "Thank you, Little Wing." He turned to glance down at the roof. An angel-shaped dent in the tower was the only trace left of Tallgeese. Not a single feather remained. Crumbled rocks and cracks traced a path down to the edge of the roof.
Zero clenched his fists. "He ran away, that coward!" He floated over until he could see the landing beneath. A body outline dented the stone where Tallgeese had landed. Where had he gone from there? Into the castle? Or had he flown off into the wilderness?
"Was he..." Aleda swallowed. "... eaten by it?"
"No, or we would have heard his obnoxious screaming." Zero scanned for him in vain. "Where is he?"
Aleda started to look around, too, lowering to the landing and staring into the open doorway of the tower. There were sounds of battle drifting through, stomach-churning screeches and cries.
Titan is still fighting down there. Could Tallgeese have gone that way? Zero wondered as he gave another visual sweep of the grounds outside the castle.
"Ah…!"
Zero wheeled. Aleda was clutching her chest, her face stretched in pain.
"Aleda!" Quickly, he jet beside her and pulled away her hands to see the injuries a second time. The gold aeration vents covering her chest had been ripped off on one side, exposing bare white frame casing underneath. Normally Zero would have been quite flustered at the sight, but too many other things pressed his mind. It was enough that nothing underneath had been pierced.
Her GunSoul was the greater concern. Though her gem still shone, the area around the mark had dimmed. She was trembling with the effort not to grab it again. Zero sucked in his breath. "This looks quite painful. Our synchronicity must have kept the pain at bay until now. Hold on, milady, I'll help ease it." He held a hand over her chest, and with his magic circle hovering over them, the energy seeped in.
The crack sealed, her trembling stopped, and her breaths evened. When Zero removed his hand, a blotch of dimness remained, but otherwise he left no mark.
"Thank you," Aleda whispered.
"My magic only repaired the surface for now, so the crack will not grow nor pain you, and we can escape to find you better treatment. And we will also..." He circled behind her and snapped his fingers, and his red cape popped into his hands. "... temporarily, cure this, as well." He looped the garment over her head and under her arms, then tied it around her to cover her torn armor.
The wing decals on the side of her helm reddened. "Isn't this the cape the princess gave you?"
"Yes," he said, allowing himself a slight smile. "But she would understand. It is being used to honor a lady." With a final tug of the knot, he released it and surveyed his work. "Is it too tight, milady?"
"No."
He took her hand. "Then let us rejoin the others. Titan and our allies are fighting."
She looked at him anxiously. "There's another Gundamess here, named Miku—"
"Yes, she is also in battle, with another Knight Gundam beside her. We'll bring her too, don't worry. Let us go help them."
With a nod, she followed him down to the tower balcony, where the sounds of snaps and cracks and scrapes still echoed up.
Zero clenched his sword, bracing himself. His wings quivered. In his mind, Fenn rumbled in anticipation. He wouldn't let his guard down. This time, he wouldn't fail.
...
Roars thundered, and magic erupted outside like a volcano; Titan could sense the heat even from within the tower. Milady! Zero! He wanted desperately to help them. Zero would have his work cut out for him with both Tallgeese and that beast both on his plate.
The young knight was going to lose. Lady Aleda would be taken for experiments, or whatever else they did with Gundams, if nothing happened. But Titan couldn't go to them with Deathscythe still ready to fight. The nebulous fiend had shown himself to be a considerable threat. If Titan left and let Deathscythe break free, who knew what horrors he'd unleash on them?
Another bar fizzled out. Sweat ran down Titan's helmet. It was a losing battle. The hole in the energy cage was nearly big enough for Deathscythe to slip out. Even so, he kept trying to fix it, feeding more of his energy to the spell. "Oh, Mana, bind away this evil!" A tendril of light snaked around the hole, weaving to repair the mesh. New bars spread.
But the scythe cut them like butter. "Such a waste of energy," Deathscythe muttered. "Why delay the inevitable?" Slice! "Especially when the Feather Dragon is eluding me!" The bladetip hooked on the square rim. "Let me go this instant, and I might let you live!"
"Never!" Titan spat. But he was right. It would be mere moments before the brute chopped through the rest. Then I'll be… And what of Aleda?
A zap, a cut, a twist, and a shove, and Deathscythe burst free, sending shockwaves of dispelled energy rippling out.
"No!" The cage flashed out. Titan blinked as his cameras adjusted to the dark, and held up an arm to defend himself. He could hear a whistle, something rushing in.
"Deathscythe!" a voice shouted.
Titan breathed. When he felt no whoosh of a scythe, he lowered his arm and peered up at the tower opening.
The young knight was there, wearing shining wings, with Aleda just behind him, and Zero's blue eyes were narrowed at a specific point in front of Titan. "Your fight is with me!"
So the upstart could see him, or at least sense his magic. Tallgeese was nowhere to be seen, either, so Zero must have defeated him. This was quite an improvement from a couple of days ago, when the boy was nearly killed.
As Titan watched, Zero darted down a few feet away, spread his wings, and swiped, locking blades with a heretofore invisible scythe. The shadowy knight's whole shape materialized.
The scythe strained. "Feather Dragon! I won't let you leave!"
Zero pressed down. "You don't get a choice, traitor!"
Titan was distracted from the fight by somebody tugging his arm. He turned to see Aleda studying him with concern. "Are you okay?"
He let her pull him away from the combating warriors as he replied, "Yes. A bit strained and aching in my joints, but nothing serious." He rolled his shoulder to demonstrate.
"Thank goodness…"
"Agh!"
The cry jerked their eyes to the battle. Deathscythe was cringing and backing away from the Winged Knight, his body flickering like a dying torch.
Zero readied his sword for another strike, but he slipped aside to avoid his blow, and then, with a flash, he vanished.
"Where is he?" Zero scanned the tower shaft for any sign of the Knight of Darkness. "I can't see him!"
Aleda edged closer to Titan. Her rigid shoulders betrayed her fear.
All in the tower jumped when a voice echoed through. "You stung more than I expected, Winged Knight. I'll take my leave for now, but know that this will not be the last you see of me..."
The echoes faded, but still the Gundams stood frozen, waiting. Far below, loud cracks and bangs could be heard. Their breaths were heavy, pushing and whistling through their vents. The flight booster bubbles were the loudest, forming a thrumming, pounding rhythm in time with their cooling cycles.
"Where is he?" Aleda's whisper carried loudly through the stone chamber.
Zero shook his head. "...He's not here, anymore. His presence has disappeared completely. He's flown."
Titan sighed in relief. "That was a harrowing experience." He looked at Zero. "You've made terrifying enemies."
The knight smirked. "You, too, now."
That smile tugged at the edge of his own mouth, too. Not that Titan would ever show it. "Hmph."
Zero's giant wings carried him over to the Lady with the slightest of flicks. "We should leave, before either he or Tallgeese recover. Lady Aleda, too, needs healing." He reached and grasped her hand tightly.
Titan followed his gaze to her bandaged chest and swallowed, clenching his fists to try to hold in his anger. "What did Tallgeese do?"
"He aimed for her GunSoul."
She nodded.
Titan snarled. He was decidedly not smiling anymore. "That good-for-nothing...!"
"And I wish I could deal him back double for it, but she needs care as soon as possible."
"Yes, of course..."
While he'd been holding off Deathscythe, his charge had nearly died. He should have been there. He should have pushed past Deathscythe to reach her. Perhaps he could have stopped Tallgeese from hurting her.
Titan turned to face the spiraling staircase. With those two out of the way, that left only the two weaker henchmen. How had the other Gundamess and Knight Gundam fared? "Let us go meet our allies."
They nodded and descended.
...
Titan took a moment to pick up his remaining intact shield once they reached the base of the tower. The loud clashes of battle had stopped. Who had won? Zero looked at the others before sliding into the open, the front atrium of the castle. Aleda and Titan crept behind him; Aleda was quite hidden by Zero's big wings, but Titan loomed in the back.
They came across Miku, Ace, and the knight brothers, the latter lying unconscious on the floor. Miku braced her foot against Vayeate s wind fan to tug free her dagger. The blue knight wheezed out a barely audible groan but didn't rise.
Ace slipped his lance out of Mercurius's shoulder. "They won't be waking anytime soon," he said, standing to face his fellow Gundams. "I see you fou... " He paused at the sight of Zero's extravagant armor. "What have you been doing?" Miku also did a double-take, scanning his feathered wings with wide eyes.
"It's a long story," Zero said. "Suffice to say I have a strong Summon Spirit."
Ace tore his cameras from the shiny wings and nodded. "Where is Tallgeese?
"Wounded, but he lives. Some other beast attacked us, and he escaped while I warded it off."
"A shame you couldn't kill the brute. But we must make haste, and leave before the Dark Axis notices our invasion." He turned to the nearest window, his lance raised. "Stand back."
The rest of them stepped away just as he threw it. The stained glass smashed into a waterfall of colored shards, as Zero gaped in horror. Once the pieces had settled, they moved to jump through the opening.
"A priceless work of art, crafted hundreds of years ago," Zero murmured regretfully as he drew Aleda to the window. But then he met his lady's green eyes. She was looking to him, watching his every move for a hint of what to do next. She'd lifted toward the glass hole but still stared at him and never let go his hand, as if worried he wouldn't follow. He tightened his grip and led her out over the stone sill, folding his wings to fit through.
Titan levitated above the colorful razors, and Ace approached Miku. "It will be faster for us to fly, milady."
"Yes, probably." She leaned into his proffered arms and he, cradling her, floated across the windowsill, into the open air. The black sky greeted them, and the moons winked at them behind thin clouds.
"You may fly faster, Sir Zero and Sir Titan," Ace said to the knights ahead. "I am carrying Miku, so you need not worry about walkers."
They made no reply, but steadily accelerated. The Gundams ducked into rows of stone bushes. The moons were still high. They had a long night ahead.
...
"Heh," Zako Red snorted. "There he goes. Look at that coward run, zako!"
It wasn't until the Zako spoke that Grappler tore his eye from the mesmerizing dance between the Knight and the shadow. On the edge of the viewscreen, he could see Tallgeese roll off the edge of the tower, splat spread-eagle on the balcony below, then jump. He plummeted towards the other rooftops of the castle but caught himself just before he could crash.
"He's not going to get far like that, zako," Zako Red said.
Tallgeese flew in a wobbly trajectory down to a lower floor of Lacroa Castle, around to a side window, cut the bars open, and wedged himself inside, golden wings and all.
"What should we do now, Zako Red, sir?"
"The Knight Gundam seems to have done well for himself, zako." His single eye swiveled to Grappler. "But we can't let him or the others get away. We still need more Gundams for the General, zako." He pointed at the twisted spires ahead. "Bring us closer and prepare to deploy the Zako soldiers, zako!"
...
During their quick, low race behind the line of bushes, the clunks of mechanical footsteps swelled into a noticeable din. "Pawn Leos," Zero hissed.
Sure enough, little brown heads poked around the corner. "The intruders!" one shouted.
Zero yanked Aleda to the wall and folded his wings in front to shield the group, Titan coming beside him to join and form a short shield barricade. Ace darted behind them with Miku just as a barrage of arrows whizzed by. Clank! One bounced off Zero's wings, and another against Titan's shield. Zoom! Zoom! Click! Clack!
"We need to find another way!" Zero shouted above the din of clinking arrows.
"I can take us!" Ace said. "We need to break away first—!"
Dust blew and capes fluttered. A steady whine rose. They looked up to see a dreaded purple ship hovering above them. "The Komusai!" Zero said.
"Main cannons!" a voice blared from the external loudspeakers. Nozzles aimed, and the Gundams flinched back. "Prepare to fire!" The Pawn Leos started to scoot away.
"Get behind me!" Zero yelled. He spread his wings and swung sideways to cover Titan as well, as his shield appeared in his hand.
B-BOOM! Green blasts fired, and Zero brought up the shield. Blue energy spread in front of the beams, which slammed the magic shield and harmlessly skipped across its surface. It collided with the petrified surroundings instead. A stone tree cracked near the base, and an adjacent bush shattered. The earth quaked, and Pawn Leos staggered, some bursting into black and yellow dice.
After a few seconds, the blast subsided. The shield was still as intact as if nothing had ever touched it. Most of all, nothing had made it past him. Zero lowered it, eyeing the Komusai.
"Impressive work so far, Gundam Force," boomed the scratchy commanding voice from the ship.
"Get out of our way!" Zero demanded. His sword glowed.
"Not a chance!"
The guns hummed.
Zero charged in, sword swinging. One cannon tip fell off and thunked on the rocky ground, and the other fired.
The boom came. That was expected. The crackling and crashing from behind wasn't.
Zero wheeled.
Castle bricks smashed, split, and fell. Rock and dust rained, clouding his view. There was a cry in the smoke."Aleda!" Where? Where were they?!
"Back up! BACK UP!" the commander in the Komusai was ordering.
"No!" Zero dove into the rockfall. Debris was still sliding. A chunk landed on his wing, and another on his helm. "Ack!" He held his shield overhead as an umbrella, and it caught a clod of dust. "Aleda! Titan!" It stopped, leaving a grey impenetrable cloud. "Where are you?!"
The Komusai edged backwards, and its thrusters blew the smoke aside. Zero could see them huddling: Titan held his shield over Aleda while they ducked under a larger chunk of wall, Miku had pressed herself under an overhang, and Ace was shaking his head clear after a knock from a brick.
Titan shoved off the stone slab, and Aleda lifted her head. She was safe. They were all safe, clearly, since they were scrambling to their feet. But Zero realized he was shaking. That rattling was from his fingers clacking on his sword hilt. I can't protect them.
Even with Fenn, he couldn't attack and defend from the Dark Axis at the same time. He had to get his teammates out of there.
They had to run.
"Lock on with the remaining cannon!"
Zero whipped around. The Komusai's gun swiveled and centered to point square at his chest. He held up his sword and shield. "Everyone, run!"
Flight boosters blipped. Cannon fire roared. A blue magic screen bloomed from Zero's shield. The blast hit, and he grunted as he pushed against it with all his might.
"Zero!" She called.
The beam died, leaving only steam rising off his shield. He shouted again, "Run!" and spread his wings. The moonlight glistened over them, like the surface of rippling waters; and as he angled them inward, curling them to face the enemies, the light narrowed, intensified, and grew, until it formed a blinding spotlight on the Komusai.
The eye-like main camera of the ship squeezed shut, as if cringing from the light. "Ahh! My eye!" Grappler Gouf's scratchy voice cried.
"Run!" Zero shouted again. He waited, keeping the Dark Axis at bay with the reflecting radiance. He felt tiny pulses of magic as the others took flight.
"Milady, he'll be right behind us," he heard Titan saying.
The pitters of their boosters faded. The Dark Axis was flying blind, knocking into the castle wall. More grinding, cracking, and crumbling. He could hear Zakos groaning.
He finally turned around to join the retreat. By the time the ship's cameras were working again, the Gundams were gone.
...
"Lacroa…" Mary twirled a lock of her hair as she sat on the bed. "Are you sure they didn't make it up?"
James turned from the nightstand where he'd set his watch. "Who? The SDG? Or one of these other 'Gundam' robots?"
"Any of them." Her brown eyes looked at him intently. "How do we know we can trust what they say? What if they're just trying to use her?"
The couple was in one of the living quarters on the SDG base, winding down for bed (or at least trying to). Mary had changed into a set of loose pajama pants, and James to a floppy t-shirt and shorts. Their room was sparsely furnished: only a firm double mattress on a frame, a small nightstand, and a short dresser. All of the furniture was bolted to the floor, and everything, from the sheets to the doorframe of the attached bathroom, was plain and white—stoic.
Mary wondered what Aleda's room was like. As plain as this? Or perhaps even barer, as many thought would suit a robot. How had they been treating her? What did she do in this place?
"Of course the SDG is using her," James said. "She's another asset. They're sending her out in battles, and she was taken as a result." Scowling, he sat on the bed next to Mary. "But I don't know yet about this Zero and Titan. We can't really judge that until we meet them. If we get to meet them."
If.
"What are you saying? That they might not come back?"
James sighed.
She saw the darkness in his eyes and the droop of his shoulders. How could he give up so easily?
"...we're developing backup plans in the case that doesn't happen..."
The world closed up around that word. If. "Stop." Shaking, she put her hands over her face. Her eyes were already raw and sunken from sleepless nights. "I don't want to even think about that. Just stop."
He sighed and rubbed his forehead.
"You think we'll never see her again. How can you believe that?"
He put an arm around her. "That's not it..."
"They're all coming back, and she's coming back, like she always has."
"I'm sorry, Mary." He drew her in for a close hug. "You're right. They'll be back with her soon." He stroked her hair reassuringly.
But she wasn't a child, and simple hugs couldn't fix this. "I don't know what to do, anymore."
Her husband hugged her tighter, until she could feel him lightly trembling. His nose sniffed on her shoulder, and her ear felt damp.
So that was it. He didn't know, either.
Their daughter was gone, and neither of them knew what to do.
...
The Gundams had retreated underground during Zero's distraction, jumping into a crack in the stone surface at Ace's guidance. He was ferrying Lady Amane's friend again, as flying was faster than running, and they needed to put as much distance between themselves and the Dark Axis as possible. The tunnels wound down, down, shrinking, then widening. Crystal growths illuminated their path. They came to a branch in the road, and Ace turned left.
Though to all appearances he seemed calm and collected—or at least he hoped he was—he was fighting to keep himself righted and his arms still. His body tingled. No, not now. Just a while longer.
A minute later, he tripped in midair and crashed. His passenger cried out in surprise, and he gripped her tighter to protect her helm. Though the fall was over, wasn't it?
"Miku!" the other Gundamess gasped.
The one in his arms, Miku, was disturbingly quiet as the group ran to check on them. She hadn't been hurt, had she? He felt sore all over, but not from the fall.
Then the Gundamess exploded. "Be careful! I don't want to dislocate a motherboard!" Judging from her vigorous thrashing, she was fine. And angry.
"I'm deeply sorry." Ace loosened his arms so she could wriggle out. With aches in every move, he eased himself up. "My magic is running low. I thought I could hold out for a minute more..."
Aleda was helping the Arkian to her feet. The tigress was unhurt, besides a few new scrapes on her edges, yet she was fuming. "I understand, but please don't use me as a thing to gamble with."
He hadn't meant to drop, though, and he had been flying for efficiency's sake. He had to use magic, there was no other option. It had been a long time since he'd miscalculated during a rescue, too. It just was taking longer than anticipated since they were fighting off Tallgeese, and Deathscythe, and the Storm Brothers. Couldn't she be more grateful?
But he bobbed his head agreeably. "My apologies, milady." He stood, only for his feet to give way again. The big one stepped forward and caught him.
"You shouldn't push yourself," the blue Gundam said.
Miku lost her anger; the angry valley of her eyebrows relaxed. "Are you alright?"
"An amaegic," Zero said. The word felt like a smack to Ace's face. "He doesn't have much magic to draw from at all, and he's used a significant amount of it during our battles."
Ace was panting and leaning against Titan's shoulder. He gave Zero a sidelong look, taking in again his wings and powerful aura.
"You should have told us earlier," Zero added.
He curtly quipped, "I will get you to safety with or without magic, as I have others before you."
Zero broke eye contact. "Of course. We have no other choice."
No, you certainly don't, Ace wanted to snap back. But he held his tongue and pointed down the way. "We're going to take a left there."
They started forward. Ace took halted and wobbly steps and still leaned on Titan. Agonizingly, but surely, they traveled to the fork and turned the way he had indicated, down into deeper, darker territory.
The path was quiet, the stillness marred only by shuffling footsteps and pittering flight boosters. After a minute, a stone clacked, and they froze.
Another click sounded as Miku aimed her pistol into the shadows ahead. "Who's there?"
A shadow behind a boulder shifted and stood.
Author's Notes
I hope you enjoyed! My summer is unfortunately coming to an end in a few weeks, so it may be a while before the next one. I'll try my best, though! I've finished moving into a new place all my own, so I'm better able to do things at my own schedule.
Until next time!
-Penelopi