Author's Notes:

Hey guys, here's the new chapter for Iron Stratos.

I apologize for the lateness of this upload. I'm currently having an exam and it is messing with the writing. It would be another month or so until I can get the next one up.

Without further ado, let's start the chapter!

=Chapter Start=

Part 1

Ichika suppressed a yawn as he made his way to the 6th arena at the stadium. It was a little early, just past 7 a.m., but he figured he should try to tweak his unit as best he can before breakfast. That, and the fact that he woke up to a naked Laura (again) and decided that rather than throw a fuss, he might as well get up and do something productive.

Like the past few days, that day was supposed to have lessons, but it got cancelled due to another meeting and so got regulated for IS maintenance. Since Chifuyu gave him extra time for deal with the paperwork, Ichika decided to spend some time on the maintenance of Byakushiki Setsura. After arriving and checking the arena for the tools he needed, he grabbed his right hand and concentrated on the metal gauntlet to call up Byakushiki Setsura.

He sighed as his unit took its time to materialize from the data stream. It had been quite some time since the attack on IS Academy, but the damage was still present in both his and everyone's IS Units. Even for a complete novice like him, he could tell the materialization speed was taking too long; his fastest was 10 seconds flat, not considered the best for top cadets, but that was his personal best. Now it took 20 seconds just for the leg armor to show up, and the arms had barely started to show a glimmer of its shape.

Actually, the team from Kuromochi Research Center, the place where Byakushiki was created, had examined the unit and suggested to get it sent for repairs and overall maintenance, but with the present situation where every single unit, be it personal or mass produced, was so damaged, they ended up getting swarmed like the other companies. So Ichika tried handling the maintenance until they were ready, giving them occasional updates on his progress just so they got a general idea of what to fix when they do meet.

As the unit entered its final materialization phase, Ichika started to examine the unit's exterior. At the least, the areas where the damage had been the most severe have been restored; only the left leg armor and the wings still showed some battle scars from the attack. It seemed that the system had given precedence to the repairs of Setsura and Yukihira, so now they were more or less functional, but the power output was a lot lesser than before. After that check, Ichika opened the small window of the system to get to the real problem: the internal systems.

It was one thing for the armor to be repaired; it was an entirely different situation with the internal systems. Since Kuromochi was unable to deal with the repairs, Ichika had tried to handle it himself with the occasional help from the others. But as Charlotte put it bluntly after checking both their IS units, "Forget fighting, we should be lucky that the units can still move after that battle". Apparently, the internal systems took a lot more damage than was expected, so there were the occasional bugs that would either harmlessly cause the IS Unit to stop hovering for a few hours, to the near fatal fall to the ground several feet from the ground.

Fortunately for him, it seemed that his was less damaged as compared to the rest, so his bugs fell under the harmless, but embarrassing category. Ichika suppressed the memory of the second time he tried to get his unit working. It was the type of memory that he swore would take that to the grave, even if the girls tried to persuade him.

Shaking his head, he continued to examine the system while making some changes to the code. With help from Honne, Kyouko, Fee and occasionally Kanzashi, he was able to understand the coding enough to get a general feel of what to fix. That being said, the internal systems really took a major beat-down; he only accessed the first layer and was already having to purge 20% of it because it had become corrupted from the damage that went to the core. Though the core was still in one piece, it seemed to have sustained a bit of damage ('Nothing the machine cannot fix, it just takes a while' Ichika thought privately), so he had to be careful on what to delete to avoid any mishaps.

While carefully sorting through the system coding, Ichika let his mind wander back to the night before. It was unusual for Chifuyu to just leave without punishing him for breaking the rules, even how minor it was. It must have been something rather urgent to just walk away immediately. Did it by chance have anything to do with 'Raptor'? It seemed to be rather important to have to classify a unit as 'Top-Secret' and possibly under surveillance.

A beeping sound knocked him out of his thoughts and put a frown on his face as he hit a part of the system he still had trouble trying to access all this time. It was one of the safeguards of the system to ensure no false tampering of the core, but it made for a very lengthy bypassing that could be more damaging. Honestly, it was times like this he could really use the others' help in fixing this problem.

"And here we are then, Orimu~!"

"Wah!" Ichika jumped slightly at the voice that came from the back, nearly deleting a core part of the system by accident. His heart beating wildly, he turned to find not only Nohotoke Honne waving to him in her usual clothes, but also Kyouko and Fee smiling at him as they drew closer. Seriously, what was with their timing?

"So you girls here to do maintenance as well?" Ichika asked as he hovered out of the way to make room for them. At least the hovering mechanism still worked without any issues, he would not want to lug around a huge lump of metal around.

"Hai, we too have our reputation to uphold as the maintenance crew in IS!" Kyouko raised her fist in the air as she made the claim. If this were a sentai show, Ichika would most certainly see fireworks exploding behind her. 'Well, she probably won't look too out of place in that type of setting.' Ichika thought privately.

"You just thought I would not look out of place in a sentai show, right?" Kyouko gave a wry smile at Ichika's expressions as he shook his head furiously. Seriously, can he not have a moment's privacy with his own thoughts?!

"Oh well, it is not just that." Fee smiled as she turned her head to a spot behind Kyouko. "Kanzashi-san, why don't you come out for a second?" There was small "epp" that came from behind Kyouko, then slowly, the timid face of Kanzashi peeked behind, her face flushed red at seeing Ichika. "Oh, good morning, Kanzashi" Ichika smiled as he greeted her. Kanzashi gave another shy 'eep' before she slowly moved away from her hiding spot and bowed her head. "G-good morning, Ichika-san" She stammered her greeting back while twiddling her fingers.

"We are here to help her with her IS repairs." Fee put her arm around Kanzashi while explaining. "Considering Uchigane Nishiki was based on the old Uchigane, we figured we helped her out a little while repairing our own."

"And it looks like it was a good choice, since you are here as well!" Kyouko said as she approached Ichika and gave a quick look at the IS. "It seems you have some problem yourself regarding the suit again huh?" Ichika nodded sadly, pretty much given up on trying to access the system. It did not help that Byakushiki was somewhat finicky with any changes to its equipment or programmes that contradict with its 'behavior'.

"Hmm, well it seems you have managed to purge some of the corrupted data, but you would need to readjust the settings and recalibrate the entire weapons' controls in order to utilize them properly." Kyouko muttered as she continued scrutinizing the unit's system. 'That's the maintenance crew for you' Ichika thought privately 'one glance and she already knows what I had to do next.'

"Not to mention, your flight controls would need resetting to counteract the weight distribution from your damaged armor." Fee added while looking at the damaged parts of his suit. Ichika suppressed a smile at their display of knowledge. Just a couple of minutes in and they were already discussing on how to help him improve his unit.

"Right then, let's get to work, shall we?" Ichika asked as he went to grab a system tuner for readjustment. "Yah!" The girls responded with much gusto; even Kanzashi raised her arm half-way to show her support.

For the next few minutes, the maintenance crew alternated between Ichika and Kanzashi, occasionally gathering at either one for a while to ascertain particular adjustments. Thanks to their help, Ichika was able to bypass the safeguards and managed to get back 40% of his original power back. He could almost feel the difference in the flexibility of his limbs as he continued testing. Before the armoured limbs felt like they were being weighed down, making the movements sluggish; now, he could almost do some of his kendo moves easily, with the more difficult styles not yet attainable due to the damages of his armour.

"Kanzashi, how's your side hanging on?" Ichika turned to her as he asked that question. Kanzashi gave a nervous nod as she focused on the readjustments. She was doing what Ichika had seen her do the first time he saw her unit; handling multiple monitors and keyboards with her 4 limbs. It was somewhat hypnotic to see her do so.

"Erm, how's yours doing?" Kanzashi asked shyly as she paused in her typing. She still remembered the state he was in during the assault on IS Academy, and despite attempts at repairs, she knew that his unit had one of the worst damages done, proven by the brief sessions they had to try and overhaul Byakushiki with spare parts, while purging corrupted data.

"Well, at least my unit is getting back to its old performance." Ichika shrugged as he deactivated some parts of his armour to save power. "But I would need the staff from Kuromochi to do a thorough repair job on it before I can use it like before." Turning back to her, he asked again. "You sure you don't need help? I can at least help out with the heavier equipment." Kanzashi blushed heavily at the sight of his smile. 'Eh, is she having a fever?'

"It… It is fine, really!" Kanzashi stuttered as she waved her arms. Unfortunately, her arm accidentally hit the monitor at her side, and with a loud "Beep!" and a few commands appearing on the screen, her boosters flared to life, and she was sent flying straight at him while screaming. "KYAAA!" Kanzashi flailed her arms as she attempted to regain control. "Kanzas-?!" Ichika let out a gasp as he caught her in his arms barely in time, his stomach baring the full force, before sending them both to the wall hard, hitting his head in the process.

Ichika groaned while clutching his head, before feeling a warm breath in front of him. He opened his eyes to find himself in a rather precarious position: Kanzashi was pressed against him, and with their chest plates removed for easier maneuverability, he was feeling two lumps on his chest that was making his heart go nuts. Furthermore, their faces were practically right in front of each other; they could feel each other's breath as they exhale.

"Oh, nice going you two!" Kyouko gave a leer as she let out what could be described as a dirty old man's laugh, something which was followed up by Honne and Fee. 'This is dangerous!' Ichika thought as he attempted to move away from Kanzashi. Apparently, in the nick of time.

"ICHIKA!" A familiar shout and a weapon thrown in between them and embedding itself in the wall was all Ichika needed to identify the twin-tailed Chinese as she made her way towards them. And to Ichika's despondence, the other girls came right behind her in hot pursuit, their expressions being absolutely terrifying at that moment. He swore he could almost see a black cloud behind them.

"Ichika, I was trying to find you at your room, and you are here flirting!" Houki brought out her katana that she was carrying in her hand, the glint of the cold steel being very evident in the morning light that was shining off it as she drew closer to him. Wait, for that matter, why would she carry that sword with her so early in the morning?!

"Really, Ichika-san, a gentleman really should not be such a gigolo so early in the morning." Cecilia smiled as she called out Starlight Mark 3, the barrel being unusually shiny in the morning. "Mou, Ichika should not be so ecchi, perhaps I should get it out of your system?" Charlotte gave her 'angel of death' smile as she materialized twin pistols in her hands.

"You are my wife; you should not be fraternizing with other women!" Laura slowly drew the dagger from her leg sheath with deliberate intent in her eye. "That's right, so let's kill him!" Rin gave a soft evil crackle as she flexed the left gauntlet, the metallic joints creaking a little loud in the arena. Ichika gulped audibly at the face of what promised to be a major beat down. He really needed some help!

"You girls are noisy." "Smack!"

The arena got filled with the sounds of the attendance book hitting their heads, with a louder smack reserved for Ichika, leaving him seeing double for a while. Their hands clutching their head, everyone turned to face the disciplinarian whose eyebrows were twitching a lot more than usual, and with a super thick attendance book in her hand.

"So then, whose idea was it to go around trying to use unauthorized usage of IS weaponry?" The girls gave a loud "eep" at the aura that was issuing from Chifuyu's figure. One could almost see a white figure in the background with a giant blade in its hand to deal out punishment.

"Honestly, can you girls ever get more annoying than ever?" Chifuyu said with her all famous glare turned up to 120% intensity. At that point, all the girls were automatically sitting in seiza with their heads down. As for Ichika, he was practically sprawling on the ground, like he was at the mercy of the 'Final Boss' in a video game. No one dared to go against the woman who could effectively shut them up with just an attendance file! On a side note, Honne and the other 2 girls managed to get away from the wrath of Chifuyu Orimura, grabbing Kanzashi on their way to escape.

"And you, Orimura! Stop bringing so much trouble all the time." Chifuyu growled at the trembling Ichika as she tapped her foot furiously on the ground. It seemed she was in a particularly bad mood for the morning and for good reason: she has slight bags under her eyes and her hair was little ruffled from her running her hand through it too many times. Seemed like something kept her up all night, and she was venting all that frustration on them.

After a few minutes of lecturing and few more hits on the head, Chifuyu finally let up on her attacks and gave out a deep sigh to ease her nerves. The others slowly got up, wincing as the multiple hits started to take its toll on them. Ichika himself was clutching his head to stop his vision from going upside down as he stood up on shaky legs.

"Orimura-Sensei?" Ichika tentatively asked, catching himself in the nick of time from calling her by her other name. That seemed to attract her attention and somewhat relaxed her further, as she directed her tired eyes at him. "Is everything okay?"

"Well, it's just peachy." She gave another sigh while massaging her head. "Let's just say that last night was not one of the best nights I had." The other nodded to show their sympathy for her, hoping to ease her tension enough to let them off.

They did not know it, but Chifuyu had spent the last few hours directing the staff to check the systems for any other invasions from 'Raptor', while ensuring the information was untouched. She did not know how 'Raptor' found out who was watching it, or how it managed to hack in real-time to the system, but thanks to it she only got a couple of hours to sleep before getting up for the de-briefing. And to add to the fire, she had to handle this fiasco started by Ichika (She firmly believed it to be his fault.)

She was about to say more when a ring tone from her phone blared out of her side pocket. Chifuyu frowned as she picked up the device and put it to her ear. The frown became a scowl that the others instinctively flinched away in fear. It seemed whatever news she got was not a good thing, as she quickly turned off the phone and turned to them with a glare.

"For now, your punishment would be to run ten rounds around the track with your IS strapped to your backs." She barked at the girls before turning to Ichika. "And as for you; you are to clean up this mess and the other two arenas with your IS strapped to your back as well." Ichika could only cry mentally at the face of such punishment. If he knew what was going to happen, he would have just gone back to the council room and just stay there!

"And lastly." Chifuyu took this moment to take a deep breath and let out her tension slowly. "After your punishments, please come to the conference room at Block 6B. There's something I need you guys to be around for."

At that statement, everyone stopped lamenting their misfortune to stare at her. The conference room at Block 6B? That was in an area restricted only to the staff, so why were they being asked to go there?

Part 2

"Honestly, how long do we have to wait until we get there?" A sound of a bored male drawled out of one of the cabins that Catherine was drawing near to. She stopped while giving a grimace. Of all the people to be at the conference, this person had to be there!

"Like seriously, couldn't we have done this damn meeting on the video conference? All this travelling and waiting is really making me bored." The voice drawled on, with a loud yawn accompanying afterwards.

Catherine grimaced again as she purposely drove clear from the cabin it was emitted. It was not like she was an impatient woman who had a dislike for certain things and people, nor was she the type who would be violent, but to hear the voice from its owner was something that made her sorely tempted to bring out her guns and shoot a couple of holes into that person.

The plane had landed in Dallas for a quick pit stop, and to pick up some of the representatives and the other council members for the meeting in Japan. Some of them Catherine knew well enough to be on good terms: Senator Bill Coulson from America, who often helped her and Cynthia out with their equipment maintenance with his contacts; Representative of Africa Adisa Beily, a woman who often talked to them in matters ranging from ordinary (like the latest fashion) to the serious work matters (once asking their opinions on security details); and perhaps the favorite for the Anderson family, CEO from one of the Italian IS Company, Genaro Blandelli, who was pretty much the friend of the family. He helped them out along a difficult path when Annie's husband died a few years back, and was around for so long that the three daughters affectionately called him "Uncle Blandelli".

Not that he would allow anyone to call him that. Catherine and Cynthia were lucky enough to get on his good grace that he allowed the two of them to call him that. Anyone else would get the first-hand experience of his love towards wrestling, as one guy found out the hard way. Catherine still smiled at the memory of the guy who rudely tried calling Genaro that, and ended up in a position that had to be almost impossible to do without breaking a few bones and dislocating a couple of joints.

Then there were the people Catherine had trouble restraining her hatred: Lawrence Cabel, a representative from the Canadian company who made no pretense in his ideas of 'forceful intervention' when it came to matters that could advance his career; Natalia Kimblee, a representative from a small IS company of Monte Carlo who had a rather 'raunchy' way of making things go her way, and the woman who often got in the way of ideas presented by Annie.

Lastly, the owner of the voice she hated instantly the first moment she heard it: Justin Dain, CEO of Omega-Dain IS Corporation, and one of the 6 CEOs alongside Genaro to appear at the summit. This guy was one of the top engineers in the IS Research Field, and he spared no effort in making sure everyone knew that. Not to mention the moment they met, Justin declared he would take her as his girlfriend, something that Cynthia herself was a little tempted to beat the crap out of him.

And then there were other male representatives, both young and old, who held no inclination to hold back their desires for women. Since her, Cynthia and the Anderson family were on the plane, they were prime targets for their lust. She did not know what Cynthia might do in situations like this (probably steer them to do some jobs for her before giving them the boot), but for herself, she would very much like to introduce them to her plasma blaster.

Catherine sighed as she made her way towards the cabins she and the rest were allocated. At the very least, their cabins were away from the passenger side where her least favorite people were at, and at least Genaro was around. He was very passionate in protecting her, Cynthia, Annie and the three daughters; Catherine had occasional images of him standing at the Anderson Estate fully equipped with guns and grenades to ward off any guy who wanted to court them. That thought perked her up as she reached the cabin where the three daughters were being seated. After they left Dallas Airport, Annie and Cynthia went to check on them, with Catherine going around to confirm who were on the plane with them. She knocked to alert them she was coming inside, before opening the door.

"Nice of you to join us, Miss Beal." Catherine turned her head to the left, where the three daughters were currently sitting. The voice came from the eldest daughter seated closest to the door, with her glasses dangled by her neck with a chain and a small book in her hand. Catherine greeted back as she made her way to the empty seat on the right side where Annie and Cynthia were seated. She gave a contented sigh as she lay back on the chair, before directing her attention to the three daughters.

As the oldest at the age of 20, Floris was a woman who seemed to have adopted Annie's strictness in clothing and her womanly charms. Her long brown hair went past her shoulders and got tied at the end in a small ponytail. Her face had slightly hardened features that came from working in a serious environment, but was still gentle enough to make people relax around her. Her figure was definitely eye-catching, having curves in the right places and having a rather impressive bust-line. That figure got accentuated by the business clothes and the skirt complementing it. With the glasses she had on sometimes, she was what some guys might call the 'sexy secretary'.

Not that any guy would dare to tell her that to her face. Floris worked as the head of one of the departments in RAD-IS Corporation back in Europe, and she was known to be a bit 'merciless' when it came to certain rules regarding work ethics or dealings with other companies. Her strictness and moral ethics had helped out a few times, particularly when there were a few men in the past who tried to offer an 'alternative payment' when the company needed certain materials for frame development. She outright refused them on the spot and went to find a separate supplier. In a humorous twist, those men were often investigated and found guilty of certain crimes like black market deals and higher management corruption. It became a sort of unofficial rule for the police and private investigators to probe anyone who got refused by Floris.

Carissa was a couple of years behind Floris, and her attitude and dressing all pointed to her current rebellious period. Her hair was cut short to barely reach her shoulders, and her face seemed to have settled in a permanent frown, though she could smile at times. She too had a figure that could compete with many of the women in the present company, and adopted clothing and style that was similar to Cynthia's dress code. She wore a small T-shirt that was straining against her bust-line, black mini-shorts that hugged her hips and a jacket to complement it.

Villian, the youngest at the age of 16, was perhaps the most ordinary, and also the most different of the three. She had long blonde hair from her father's side tied into a bun, and had a pale complexion that combined with her gentle features, made her look rather fragile. Compared to her sisters' more womanly charms, she had a very slender figure that gave her a fairy-like 'cuteness' which in itself was pretty dangerous for a shy girl like her. Adding to the light coloured dress she was currently in, Villian looked like a typical princess right out of a fairy tale.

With that in mind, it was surprising that Cynthia was appointed as her bodyguard when they went on trips. Initially Catherine had some fear that Cynthia was going to corrupt Villian's innocence, but remarkably, Cynthia seemed to have taken to Villian enough that she actually refrained from teaching her 'naughty' things, tidied herself up properly, and also to protect her from any unscrupulous males. In fact, when any guy tried to approach Villian with bad intentions, Cynthia promptly handed them their asses to the point that Villian had to plead with her to hold back.

With such varying attitudes and appearances, one would be forgiven for thinking they were not related to each other at all. But that may be expected, Catherine thought sadly, considering how the death of their father played a part in their current roles. She was not around at that time, but she could somewhat relate to the impact of that loss.

"So, what has got you down?" Floris question brought Catherine out of her thoughts, realizing that she was getting gloomy in front of them. She shook her head, while thinking of something to talk about.

"No, it's just that I found out we are going to have some of the least liked people for this meeting." Catherine gave another grimace remembering the voice from the cabin she avoided. She was so going to be far away from Justin when they land in Okinawa Airport. Last thing she needed was Justin coming right at her with an arsenal of 'romantic dinners', 'honeymoon' and (she suppressed a major shudder at this point) MARRIAGE.

Oh God, she was going to need all the luck she could get!

"Anyone in particular we should avoid?" Carissa asked with a smile tugging at her lips, as if guessing what was going on in her head. The girls themselves were no strangers to the different people from the IS Council, and thus had their own preferences for different representatives. Coincidentally, she shared the same dislike of Justin Dain as Catherine, so the two often discussed how much of a low-life he was.

"Several come to mind." Catherine sighed as she laid herself back in the cushioned seats, thankful for their softness. She took a glance at Annie who smiled at her to continue as she continued sorting through some documents for the meeting, before turning to face the daughters. "But there is one person you probably do not want to meet at all. Maverick Kane" And with that name, the atmosphere turned a little sour. Cynthia hit the side-rest a little too hard; Annie's smile dimmed a little; Floris clenched the book a little tighter than needed; Carissa gave a very big and angry scowl as she crossed her arms; even Villian bit her lip at hearing that name.

Maverick Kane was the CEO of AXEM Enterprise, one of the leading firms in IS Frame designs. He was a man whom, in their opinion, would be willing to make a deal with the devil himself just so he can get ahead of the competition. Crudely nicknamed the "Iron Monger" after the character from the comic book for his ties to the military, Maverick made no pretense in his showing of power and wealth obtained from his dealings with the military and the IS Community. Catherine and Cynthia had met that man a couple of times, and frankly, they wished they never met him at all. To say that he was dismissive of women was a major understatement.

For the daughters, it was a different type of dislike that could motivate even the frail Villian to kick him in the shin if she got the chance. Maverick apparently had an eye out for Annie even before the IS appearance, and did not hold back in trying to woo her even after she was married. This created a fair bit of friction between him and Howard, Annie's husband. But what really got to them was how the guy intensified his efforts after his death. The man had the nerve to do that when Annie was feeling vulnerable. Floris who was 16 back then aggressively drove him out of the house with the help of some of the staff who shared her sentiment.

Although Annie had told them that all was fine, Catherine and Cynthia made a fair bit of effort to keep an eye on him whenever they got word of any meeting involving Annie to have to meet him. He was getting too brazen for his own good, and they were not taking any chances with that man.

In an effort to change the mood, Annie spoke while going through the documents. "Well that person aside, I'm sure there are some others who we are comfortable with?" Catherine took a deep breath as she sifted her thoughts in her mind. 'Think positive' Catherine mentally spoke as she settled for some names.

"Well, there is Senator Coulson and Mrs Beily for the meeting." Catherine replied back to Annie's question, holding back a look of relief as she watched the daughters relaxed somewhat from her words. "And then we have Mr Grayson of QM-Core Firm, and David Ledger of YMA Enterprise." Catherine continued calling out more names as she watched the girls relax even more. It was a good thing she had the names memorized in her head, it was at least those who were on good terms with them that the girls would feel comfortable with.

That aside, it became clear to her how major the issue regarding the mysterious units was. Many of the corporations involved were the giants in the IS Field, and some of the people coming along for the ride were the big names that would make smaller firms quake in their shoes.

"Okay, but I guess apart from those you just mentioned, I am guessing there are those who we don't like?" Carissa quirked an eyebrow as she asked. She too was no stranger to the males who often courted her and her sisters, and in tune to her rebellious attitude, she would at times make an example of those who tried to approach them wrongly. Catherine could only give a sigh as a response.

"I can only hope that the three we are meeting in Japan are not like those guys." Catherine massaged her head as she muttered softly. Guess she was going to be doomed to find a young man of her taste.

Annie must have overheard her words, as she lifted her head and removed her glasses. "Ah, you do not need to worry, Catherine" She smiled at her as she started to give her opinion about the people coming in Japan. "Douvin is the representative of Kamiya Industries, though his boss is a little on the shrewd side, Douvin has always been helpful when it comes down to political matters, and he gives me a generous discount for some of the materials for our company." At this point, Catherine was sitting up very straight while listening to Annie, her headache forgotten. It was not often one got to hear about any of the new or current players that were in the IS market, so she might as well tried to get as much information as she could.

"The second is also the representative of another company, Leeroy Anthony Gibbs. He used to be a Marine, but got scouted out by EXCOM Dynamics due to his officers giving high recommendations for his radical designs on cybernetic frames. He also doubles as the bodyguard for the boss." Annie did another innocent pose by putting her finger on her chin as she thought of any additional information to give. "He is a bit hard to get along, because of his strictness, but once you get on his good side and look past his tendency to be a little trigger-happy, he is quite a nice fellow to talk to." Annie giggled suddenly as she called one small titbit. "Just make sure you don't ask him too much about current technology. I think he may have been born in the wrong century, he does not seem to realize that cloud storage is a lot faster to transfer stuff than a CD."

The three daughters and Catherine paused for a moment, before laughing at the idea of a guy who was baffled at all the computer stuff in front of him. Truly, a guy born in the wrong century.

"Then how about the third fellow, the young man who is the CEO?" Cynthia asked as she straightened up to listen in on their conversation, just in time to see a rather interesting reaction from Annie. At that question, she started blushing and turning her head towards the window, displaying a smile that was more radiant than normal.

"W-Well, he is rather new in the field of IS research, but he is fairly capable in dealing with the IS core." Annie stammered as she tried to get her thoughts in order. "He and his friend used to be in the medical technology sector, but they both got the skills that made them some of the leading researchers in the core research. After his friend passed away, he took over and worked his way to the top and become the CEO. He still handles the medical side, but has used the knowledge from the IS research to create prototypes for more convincing prosthetics." Annie got her hands on her face as she recounted more of the guy. "Despite all the successes he had, he never lets them go to his head; if anything, he takes it as a challenge to push himself further. He is also such a gentleman; he does not have any bad habits or hang out with the wrong crowd. Honestly, he would make any woman proud!"

Catherine and Cynthia stared at the side of Annie they had never seen before; even the three daughters had a look of surprise. Annie had never acted this way towards a guy, apart from accounts Catherine had heard when Annie was with her husband. But the way she blushed and smiled while talking about this guy, it was almost as if…

Wait, it cannot be!

"Oh, you have a crush on the boy!" Cynthia squealed loudly as she barely held back her excitement at the way Annie was expressing her thoughts about the boy. That got her attention; she paused from recounting what she knew about the person, before she went absolutely red from embarrassment. "No, it isn't like that! It's just that he's a really nice young man, who could be a good son for any women out there?!" She clapped her hands on her mouth as she flushed even further, to the point Catherine was a little worried if she would pass out soon.

"Oh, it is fine, Annie!" Cynthia purred as she directed a teasing leer at her. "It's fine for you to have a crush on a young man who could make you feel good in more ways than one" The expression on Annie's face was indescribable; it was remarkable how she arranged her features to perfectly convey shock, horror, mortification, anger, fear and bemusement.

"Cynthia, you should not be saying such things!" Catherine scolded her, her face flushed at the implications Cynthia was saying at Annie, and at the same time embarrassment at the image she had of Annie 'doing it' with a young man. Damn it, what was she thinking?!

"Miss Aleston, I knew you are a woman who enjoys the company of men, but this is a new low even for you." Floris frowned with great displeasure at Cynthia, who gave a sheepish smile. "Indeed, although I can understand your preferences of males are wide ranging, to say that of our mother is a little much." Carissa gave her agreement with a big scowl, making Cynthia turn her head to the side. "Cynthia…" Villian gave the final blow to Cynthia's behavior as she stared at her with teary eyes.

"Oh come on, I was joking!" Cynthia tried to lighten up the mood with that statement. Then her face turned mischievous as she added a little more. "Besides, I think you girls would need to be open for these type of things, and …"

"Miss Aleston" a voice stopped the accusations that were about to ensue, with Cynthia not looking too excited as she did earlier. Slowly everyone turned their heads to face Annie, who was giving off a bit of pressure despite the smile and the closed eyes. "Are you insulating that I am an amorous woman who preys on young unsuspecting men?" She was being polite when she asked that, yet there was a certain tone hidden in the words that made Cynthia wince and the daughters to quiver. Catherine herself was feeling cold sweat on her neck; it had been a while, but it seemed that Cynthia had finally succeeded in doing the one thing that nobody should do: make Annie angry. If she were to be angered, 'that' comes out.

"No, Mrs Anderson" Cynthia say that in a very soft voice, trying to play up her manners to appease Annie. "Oh" Annie continued to smile while talking. "Yet you seemed rather determined to paint an image of me being the type who wants to go after young men." At this point, one could almost see a black aura coming from behind her. There was a squeak of terror, but no one could tell who it was; they were too busy focusing on the black aura that was building behind her.

"Furthermore, to do that in front of my little girls, that is very naughty of you, Miss Aleston" Annie's smile got a little thinner as the haunting sounds of church bells started to ring out of the black aura. That was the cue for everyone to move; Floris being the closest to the door, got up quickly to open it, and followed by Carissa and Villian shortly after. Catherine, wanting no part in the ensuing bloodbath that was to come, started to rise from her seat, only to be grabbed by the hand by a very frantic Cynthia.

"Wait, Catherine! Please don't leave me behind!" Cynthia pleaded as she held fast on Catherine's arm. Catherine was torn between helping Cynthia and just leaving her behind, but that decision got taken up by Annie, who placed a hand on Cynthia's shoulder, making her jump. "Ara, Ara, you shouldn't be getting others involved. Catherine at least knows when to fold and what to say, so you should not drag her into your mess." As she said that, one could see a hooded figure starting to appear from the dark aura she was exuding, with a creepy tone of laughter emitting from it. Cynthia paled and loosened her grip on Catherine's arm. Catherine wasted no time; she moved her arm away and quickly got to the door.

"It has been a while, Cynthia, but I guess a reminder is in order." Annie's voice got creepily more cheerful as the sounds of church bells and laughter got louder. "Wait, Mrs Anderson, I am so sorry! Please don't bring that one out!" Cynthia wailed as she huddled in her seat. Catherine managed to get to the other side where the three daughters were hugging each other for comfort, and started to close the door.

"Let me remind you again, that saying such distasteful things about me and giving my daughters bad influence is strictly…" Catherine sped up the closing process, ignoring the whimpering from Cynthia like she was being condemned to be in a room with a psychopathic killer. "Prohibited." Catherine managed to close the door in time to hear the final word of Cynthia's doom.

At this point, the creepy laughter and the church bells were deafening, only to be matched by the cries by Cynthia. "Oh my god, anything but the bleeding eyes!" Catherine brought her hands out and did a small prayer. 'Cynthia, your sacrifice will not be forgotten!'

"Amen!" The three daughters muttered as they crossed themselves.

"What is going on here?" A voice made the girls turn to view a comforting sight. An old man just walked out from one of the nearer cabins and was now walking towards them. For a man reaching his 50s, he was seriously built; his frame was taking up the entire corridor. He was dressed smartly in an office suit that was somewhat straining against his muscular frame. His natural black hair, unusual for any Italian, was stricken with several strands of silver at the sides. He had a hard looking face that showed his years, but all that was somewhat softened by his eyes that conveyed a joyful light as he saw the girls in front of him.

"UNCLE BLANDELLI!" The three daughters squealed and dashed to hug him, causing him to step backwards a bit and grabbing the handle bar at the side to stop himself from falling.

"Hey, you girls! Haha, you girls have grown so much!" Genaro gave a loud chuckle as he beamed on the three girls. It was obvious to anyone that the girls pretty much have Genaro wrapped around their fingers, but in a good way. Genaro for his part was willing to dote on them provided they don't try to abuse that right. That was unneeded, since the girls adored him and so they don't ask much from him. Even Carissa dropped her frown and showed a very radiant smile at him.

"Good day to you, Mr Blandelli." Catherine greeted while offering her hand. "Hey, Catherine, you have grown too." Genaro gave a smile at her as he shook her hand. "I hope you girls been eating right, it won't do you good if you were to skip meals now." The girls all nodded as he gave another loud chuckle. He always tended to say things out loud about their health and stuff, but it was in a good way, so they took it in stride.

"So where are Annie and Cynthia?" Genaro asked while twisting his head to see where they were. "Cynthia is currently getting a lecture from Mrs Anderson, with a side help from 'that'" Catherine gestured with her thumb and grimaced again at the thought of her getting it from Annie.

Genaro's face froze at that statement, before glancing at the cabin where the sounds of Cynthia's whimpering could be heard alongside the now diminishing sounds of mournful church bells. "So, Cynthia brought 'that' out of Annie?" Catherine gave a grin of sympathy at the expression on Genaro. It would appear that Genaro had first-hand experience of the terror Annie could give once she was angered.

"Let's head to my side then." He turned rather quickly despite his bulk and head back to his cabin, with the girls trailing behind him. For a man of his size, he moved quite nimbly in the tight corridor leading to his cabin. Despite the jet being one of the new air bus models, meaning they have more room to make the individual cabins and passage room, the corridors were not made for a man of Genaro's frame size. Still, it did not take long to get to his cabin that he had all to himself and slide the door open for them to go through, before coming in after them.

"So, how is it going for you girls?" Genaro asked as he sat next to Catherine, opposite of the 3 sisters. "We have been doing okay, Uncle" Carissa replied as she reclined in her chair to get more comfortable. "Villian has managed to pass the IS Entrance exams, so if it works out, you might see her with her own suit." Villian looked down in embarrassment as Genaro beamed at her. "Oh, congratulations Villian, I hope that I can see you in an IS suit." Genaro smiled even further as Villian gave another shy smile in return, before turning to Catherine. "So, how are things at your end?"

For the next few minutes, Catherine and Genaro talked about small things like how Cynthia managed to get new equipment or how the girls were handling civilian life. Occasionally one of the sisters put in a comment about certain matters happening; even Villian added a word or so to the occasion. It was nice to have relaxing chats without having to be serious for work. Or dodging bullets for that matter.

"So what can you tell us about this meeting?" Floris asked suddenly, making Genaro and Catherine pause in their conversation. Technically, the girls were supposed to be on holiday, while the meeting was supposed to be top secret, so Catherine could not tell them so much about it. Genaro being one of the few with direct ties to that matter was obviously not in a position to say much.

Perhaps their uncertainties were shown on their faces, as Carissa said with a bored tone. "Oh, you don't need to hold back too much on us, we know about the five supposed IS Units already." Genaro and Catherine snapped their attention to her so quickly they popped a bone in the sockets. 'How the heck did she know that?!' Catherine thought while wincing as she massaged her neck.

"I kind of check the papers that mother left on her desk the other day." Carissa continued with her bored tone. 'After that, I ask Floris about it if she knew anything. And it was pretty obvious, considering all the big names in the IS Field and military are gathering together so as to deal with some IS matter. And if a senator and Uncle Blandelli had to be in on this together with a few other CEOs, it had to be pretty major." Carissa gave something of a victory smile at the awe-struck faces on the adults. "So spill the details for us?"

Genaro gave a bit of a resigned chuckle as he shook his head while clutching it. Catherine herself closed her eyes to focus her mind and decide on what to say. Never mind the fact that Carissa sneak a peek at confidential information, she was able to deduce the severity of the issue at hand. It was in a way obvious to anyone who has a hand in the IS Field that something must have turned up if the big names are coming together to deal with the situation.

"If you really want us to tell you, there are some conditions for you to adhere to." Catherine gave this statement as she exchanged a glance with Genaro. "Firstly, we can only tell you certain parts of the information we have. Secondly, you are not to tell anyone of this. Is that understood?" The girls nodded as they gave their attention to them.

How messed up can this situation be?

"Okay, that's quite a problem." Carissa said a little lamely after Catherine and Genaro finished explaining.

Despite their reservations, it would appear that the sisters took the news a little better than they anticipated. Nevertheless, it was clear that they did not expect the situation to be this severe. Floris for one was taking it a little hard; being someone who was privy to certain trade secrets, she was not pleased at the idea someone was able create new cores and frames, and just send them out for no known purpose.

"Now you see why we can't tell you; we cannot be sure of who is responsible, or for that matter, we are not even sure of whether these are truly IS units." Genaro said as he took a sip of the apple cider that was at his side.

"Erm, I don't know much about all of these serious things." Villian said a little softly. "But the fact that those machines came out to deal with the border attacks and the incident at Dakota, would that not make whoever built them on our side?" Since she was the least in touch with IS matters, she was not too affected by the idea of new units appearing.

"That would be nice if that were the case." Genaro gave a patient smile as he started explaining. "But the fact of the matter is, someone has built units that have the firepower and potential strength to go toe-to-toe with some of the strongest IS units and representatives around. Not to mention the motives are unknown as of now; they could be doing all of this just to show off the fact they can do all of that, and that no one knows who is the one who did all of it."

"There's also the issue we do not know the number of these units there are, or if they are even IS units." Catherine added as she put down her bottle of juice at the arm-rest. "So far we know there are 5 units, each with specific weaponry and functionality. What we can tell you is that they have the capabilities to go anywhere, even in water." Catherine gave a grim expression as she gathered her thoughts for the next part. "As for whether they are IS-units? That has problems on both scales. On the one hand, if they are IS units, that would mean that someone had the capabilities to create the frame and possibly replicate an IS Core to do so. On the other hand, if they are not IS units, that would mean someone had enough knowledge to reverse-engineer the technology and created something that could go against IS, basically an 'anti-IS' unit."

"So that's why you called for this meeting?" Floris asked as she straightened in her seat. "You wanted to test them to see if any have any motives to do such a thing?" Genaro nodded at her questions. That was the other reason, to see if any of them had some reaction regarding the news of the units, and to see if any of them had the right areas of expertise to build them.

The sober mood soon got broken by Carissa stretching her arms and turning to Genaro with a mischievous smile. "Speaking of which, what can you tell us about the young man who is to appear at the summit?" The glint in her eyes made Catherine a little wary of her. When she has that glint and that smile, that usually means a lot of teasing.

"Hmm, you mean that Craig kid?" Genaro raised an eyebrow at the question. "He is one of the CEOs coming over due to his research in the IS Core. His area of expertise included the medical background he has." Genaro folded his arms as he contemplated on whatever information he had on him. "He is a bit of a rising star in the IS Field, mainly because of the breakthroughs that he and his former partner were able to make in the frame and core research. And unlike those fools" He gave an annoyed expression. "Who insisted on developing the IS to maximise their military strength, Craig is the only one who tried a different approach to helping others. He used his research to create a totally different range of prosthetics and even prototypes on artificial organs to give to the disabled and patients in need of organ transplant." Genaro gave big smile as he said that. "I remembered meeting a couple of his guards and staff who worked for him; each of them had some type of attachment or organ that he gave to them free-of-charge, and regularly maintains them. I do know that all of them are really grateful to him, so they insisted on paying him back by working for him and helping him out at areas he is not familiar with."

He gave a chuckle at this point. "Oh yeah, that one time I happened to meet him, he was having a small argument about this woman trying to repay him for helping her son. He insisted she does not have to do so, but she would not take no for an answer, so after my visit she apparently became an assistant for one of the departments in his company."

"I see." Carissa said thoughtfully as the girls digested the information that was given. Then she gave a teasing smirk at Genaro. "Well Uncle, I think you may have some competition when it comes to getting mother's attention."

Catherine had to admit, she got to give Carissa some credit for timing that statement; it was just as Genaro was taking a big gulp of the apple cider. The end result was him spitting the liquid across the cabin, missing Villian by an inch, and him getting into an extended fit of coughing.

"Bhh.. Bhh, what do you mean by that?!" Genaro nearly shouted that in embarrassment. It was clear to everyone that Genaro had some form of attraction to Annie, but he held it back in regards to his friendship to her and Howard, even more so after his death. Still, Catherine and the others often mused at the sight of him being a little flustered in front of her when Annie unconsciously complemented him or done something that got past his defences. Carissa and Cynthia in particular enjoyed teasing him on that part.

"Hmm, it seems that mother has a bit of interest in this Craig person; she was praising him quite a bit." Carissa started explaining with a keen eye on Genaro's expression. The other girls were not bothering to hide their curiosity as to how Genaro would react to her teasing; even Villian was leaning forward slightly to see it. "So I'm just wondering how you would react to it, Uncle Blandelli"

The retort that was to come out of Genaro's mouth got interrupted when the jet suddenly lurched violently, temporarily lifting everyone from their seats before they crashed onto the floor hard. Villian nearly knocked her head against the arm rest if not for the timely save by Genaro who braced her head with his hand.

"What the hell was that?!" Carissa swore as she struggled to entangle herself from the small pile of bodies on top of her. Normally Catherine would scold her for using such language, but in this case she herself was a little tempted to let off some steam. "Is everybody alright?" Catherine asked as she massaged her aching head. She could feel a bump starting to form where her head hit the ground, which was thankfully covered in thick carpeting.

"Apart from a few bruises, we should be fine." Genaro replied as he got the sisters seated back to their chairs, before going to his and getting out a chilled bottle to place at his forehead. Catherine laid her head back on the cushion to try and lessen the pain. She guessed the jet must have hit some turbulence that caught the pilots off-guard, so they were unable to avoid it completely. But still…

Any other thoughts got interrupted by the change in the humming sound that came from the jet's engine. Normally she would ignore it, but the suddenness of the volume and the slight feeling of slanting made Catherine look to the window next to Genaro. To her surprise she could see the ocean at her seat, with the occasional clouds covering the window.

"Why are we dropping altitude? We shouldn't be there for another 3 hours." Catherine frowned as she reluctantly got up from the seat to get to the window. True, this was one of the latest sonic jets made for continental travelling, and despite Justin's complaints, the jet was already halfway to its destination. That being said, it was still too early for them to have arrived at the airport.

"Maybe we better have a word with the pilot or the staff; there could have been a problem from that earlier lurch." Genaro replied as he got up from his seat and headed towards the door. But just as he was about to grab the handle, the door suddenly got pulled back hard enough to nearly get dislodged from the rail hinges. That barely registered in everyone's head before the sound of metallic clicking brought their eyes to the object the man at the door was holding in front of him. With a jolt, Catherine recognised the ponytail and the tattoo sticking out of the collar of his shirt. This was the flight attendant she bumped into earlier when they left the airport.

"Forgive me ladies and gentleman, but I'm afraid I would need you to come with me for a short while." The guy coolly stated his words as he pointed the gun straight at Genaro's chest. This was not the same nervous man from earlier; he was completely calm and determined to take them as hostages. "Oh, and just so we are clear." He stepped back a little to give himself room in order to deal with any mishaps.

"This is not a request; you will be coming with me now."

Part 3

Ichika met up with the others at the conference room located a little away from the stadium. It took quite a while to get there, mostly due to the fact it was in an area students don't frequently go to, and secondly, the conference room was located at the top level of the building that required multiple ID checks to ensure no intruders. It was an impressive room to say the least; this was roughly four times the size of his room, with a large table in the center and chairs around it to sit on. It offered a bird's eye view of the entire west side of IS Academy, and was positioned in such a manner that sunlight can be used for natural lightning, without being overly glaring.

"You're late." Chifuyu said the moment he entered the room. Ichika grimaced as he apologized and made his way to the nearest chair. Honestly, was she expecting him to finish that task in record time? It was impossible to clean up the arena in record time with an IS strapped to your back, let alone 3 in total!

Once, she confirmed everyone's presence, Chifuyu pressed a button at the podium to activate shutters at the roof to dim the lighting, and a second button to project a screen at the wall. A third brought images and schematics to the screen, alongside photos of people.

"About an hour ago, the private jet carrying the representatives of various IS corporations and the IS Council members was hijacked by some unknown terrorists. The representatives were supposed to be coming to Japan for a summit of a certain matter that occurred over the past couple of weeks."

"Currently, we do not know the numbers or motives of the terrorists. They have yet to make any demands. So we are assuming that they are just holding them hostage until they made contact with any of the governments involved with the summit."

There was a bit of silence in the room as the others took a while to digest the information. Ichika was a little confused as the information got streamed to the small screens that were built into the table. Why were they being told this?

"Orimura-Sensei, I don't mean to be rude, but why are you telling us this? Shouldn't the higher authorities be handling this?" Charlotte voiced out the question in everyone's head as they finished processing the information.

"For one thing, the other countries are hanging back to check the situation in case of the terrorists contacting them first, and since the representatives are supposed to be arriving here, we are the closest to reach them if they need assistance." Chifuyu explained as she brought up the sonar maps for the surrounding air space. "Secondly, I and a few others are directly involved with the summit, so I will need to be on hand for this. Lastly, there is a situation where we need to be aware of" Chifuyu made an expression like she sucked on a particularly bitter orange. "Certain third-parties."

Everyone gave a puzzled expression at her statement, but a quick glance at her expression silenced everyone's words. Whatever or whoever it was, it seemed to be putting Chifuyu on edge and the last thing they needed was for her to blow up on them.

"Current location?" Laura asked as she quickly gazed through the information, her face and manner switched according to her military mentality.

"It is roughly 2300 miles from Okinawa Airport, and 23000 feet in the air." Chifuyu replied as she brought up the map for Japan's air space. "Since we do not know the situation with the plane, we have to assume that the terrorists would take the plane to a different location to land or, in the worst case scenario, they would continue flying the plane until it runs out of fuel." The others gave a grim expression at that thought. No one liked the idea of a plane crashing due to lack of fuel and the foolishness of those terrorists.

"Can you tell us about the summit? Maybe that is what the terrorists are after?" Charlotte asked as she brought up the documents on the passengers on board. "Regarding that matter, it is top secret." Chifuyu replied back. "I can only say that it involves matters regarding the current technology and" she paused while giving a quick glance at Ichika. "Certain 'equipment' that needs checking up"

'Certain equipment needing check-ups?' Ichika raised an eyebrow as he caught the glance Chifuyu gave him. 'Is it about my Byakushiki? Maybe they needed to review about my status as an IS pilot? Or is there something else?' Ichika paused in his thoughts as a memory of a certain photo intruded in his mind. Wait; was that what she meant about 'certain equipment' and 'third parties intruding'?

"In any case, we cannot make too many assumptions about this." Chifuyu's voice brought him back to reality as she continued explaining about the situation. "We have been tasked to deal with this, so everyone is to prepare themselves for the operation at hand. I have taken the liberty of calling your respective countries to send over the necessary equipment via speed package, so you can handle the equalizers and packages later."

"All of you are to head to the hangers at Arena 2. I will get maintenance crews to check on your units and get them ready in 15 minutes. Considering the current statuses of your units, we would be taking a cargo plane to fly us near the jet before we deploy. Remember, this is a rescue mission, not a fight. Your units have yet to fully recover, so although we are to do this, that does not mean you should just recklessly fly out there. If you are running low on power or your unit starts to fail, you are to return immediately. NO EXCEPTION."

"DISMISSED!"

Ichika's thoughts were all over the place as he walked out of the room. Never mind the part about them having to go out on a rescue mission without any backup, they had to do it with their IS units still in need of major maintenance! He could only pray that at least some help would be nice in this situation.

Little did he know he was going to get that answer sooner than expected.

In a certain dark room, a small monitor on a desk was the only source of light. A soft beeping tone and words appearing on the screen were the only signs to indicate some type of activity. With a louder beeping sound, a dim light started to illuminate the room, revealing several holding chambers aligned to the wall sides, each marked with a roman numeral and other writing just below it. With a low humming sound, 2 chambers from the left side and 1 from the right started to move away from the wall, guided by a track on the roof. With another beeping sound, the monitor started showing a series of codes and commands, before blanking out for a second, then more text started showing.

[Mission Status]

[The private jet carrying the Anderson Family, 25 security guards, 1 American senator, Company representatives and CEOs has been hijacked by unknown assailants 1 hour ago. Numbers: Unknown. Motives: Unknown.]

[Original destination: Japan's Okinawa Airport. Current situation: Still closing in on Japan's airspace, but possible re-routing of jet to separate airport.]

[Current Location: 2000 miles from Okinawa Airport, 23, 000 feet in the air.]

[Possible interference from IS Academy. Likely targets: first-year IS Representative Candidates. Top Priority personnel Orimura Chifuyu, is to be avoided at all costs.]

[Beginning preparations of following units and insertion of reactor cores]

[Mark 12: Dual. Prepare extra beam clips and retrofit with jet booster]

[Mark 17: JetStream. Prepare leg boosters' attachments]

[Prototype Mark 23 to be used by pilot, top priority provision]

[Launching rescue mission in T-minus 10 minutes]

=====Author's Notes=====

Well then, the story is finally about to get some action! I will be looking through Iron Man movies and Gundam to get some ideas for the action to come. Who knows, maybe I should add in a "Shoot to Thrill" moment? XD.

Hope you enjoy the chapter, and I get a new chapter out soon!