Mediziner's Notes: So, something I need to first point out because now that Radiant Prism is in the United Kingdom, Englisch has become the main primary text language meaning it won't be bold anymore (Again, I'm not like other folks who write it out and add translations at the bottom or top, just imagine the language in your imagination as if they're speaking it.) but Japanese will now be in bold like every other foreign language. Secondly, I've decided to make The Leader Within marked as Mature because I believed that some of the scenes in previous chapters are a little too dark for Teen audiences so hence why I've swapped it out for that. I think that covers everything... But jeez, I'm gonna be using a lot of google maps to sort of get some places in the UK more accurate. For those that don't know, Brave Police has some realism but not fully, such as famous landmarks, cities, etc. Those bits are usually the realistic things I include for surrounding environments along with a few other things.
Another thing to note is that I'm working off of the information my beta-reader, Erilmadith-Everyoung, has provided from archived information alongside a friend of theirs about the Scotland Yard while some bits of it is fanmade for the Scotland Yard. King and Ace speak with a standard English Accent, Rook and Pawn speak with a Scottish Accent, Jack speaks with a Cockney Accent, Ten's accent is Northern English, and Bishop speaks the standard English Accent but in reality his accent is actually Welsh because it's too thick for anyone to understand him, thus uses the other accent he self-taught himself so others can understand him.
The British actually don't go around carrying guns like most other countries do irl unless the situation of the crime is dangerous enough. The Scotland Yard Brave Police do carry around their own handguns (Think the appearance of the Glock 17 rather than the other one model the Japanese BP are seen wielding) but prefer their melee weapons over using them. Read more on their DA page about the Scotland Yard. I think I've covered everything now...
The Leader Within Cover Art is drawn and commissioned by Erilmadith-Everyoung on DeviantART. You can also find Radiant Prism's full reference there, too. The remaining chapters are also being beta-read by them, too.
Enjoy!
...
With the last of the air cargo straps undone, Radiant Prism was given the all-clear to slowly roll out of the cargo plane she'd arrived in. Once she was out, she extended her landing gear back to their normal height and changed out of her aerial form, relieved she could move freely again. 'Ugh, being put in that uncomfortable crouched position felt like the joints to my landing gear would give away under my weight at any moment...' She thought, straightening out her back as she scanned her surroundings. 'But now that I'm here in England- Wait, where's...?' Radiant Prism could have sworn that the pilots of the cargo plane had updated her hours ago that she'd be meeting one of the Scotland Yard members to be escorted to their station on arrival, but she wasn't detecting anyone nearby.
'...I hope this does not mean that I'll have to put myself in a similar situation akin to when Drill Boy found me during my... Theft of the fuel needed to keep myself going...' She thought, relocating elsewhere to get out of the others' way knowing Heathrow is one of the busiest airports in the world. To pass the time, Radiant Prism observed the many planes taking off or coming down to land on the runway. Being in the presence of an airport made her happy, perhaps maybe not much of a place for an aviation enthusiast but she still appreciated the commercial planes every now and then. The German Brave soon perked up when she heard her badge go off, causing her to look around, until when she saw a green jet flying above her, immediately identifying him as none other than Rook. "Hey, you! Sorry for making you wait; I was helping my team wrap up the remainders of a case we just solved!" Radiant Prism watched as the green coloured jet came to a land next to her, which made her uncomfortable at how he just casually descended in the middle of an airport. "I'm Rook! Well... You already know that of course. Welcome to the United Kingdom! ...Or England to be more precise!"
"You really shouldn't land anywhere within airspace of an airport, lest you scare the pilots out of their skin trying to avoid you... It would prevent the humans from getting heart attacks if you simply walked here." Radiant Prism scolded uneasily, then sighed as she shook that topic aside. "But... What you said, I can understand. Cases can happen without warning even when waiting for a guest to arrive. But please, don't give me a scare doing that again, alright?"
"Ah, sorry I didn't mean...!" Rook yielded, putting his servos up. "Won't lie, you're just as snippy as King when he gets into work mode..." He muttered silently to himself, intending to get back at her later with a prank, for now he quickly perked up. "But, let's get going! The others are eagerly awaiting your arrival, R.D. included!"
The two left Heathrow Airport and made their way towards London. Radiant Prism had to listen to when Rook said that he planned to show her what England had to offer, especially London which he promised to bug King about getting permission to show her around when neither of them were on duty. She tried to explain that she doesn't want King to think she's neglecting her duties but he announced that they were at the station. AS they reached the station's exterior, Radiant Prism half expected it to look similar to the Japanese Division yet... This wasn't like the one back in Japan, save for the usual large door off to the side indicating the repair bay. What Radiant Prism immediately took notice was that rather than sporting the brave police crest with the Asahikage, it instead had the flag of the United Kingdom in place. As they landed in front of the garage, one of the mechanics greeted Rook, asking who the unknown Brave accompanying him was. "Oh, this is-"
"Radiant Prism of the German Division, stationed in Dortmund." She introduced herself briefly, then turned her attention to Rook. "Apologies Rook, but King is expecting me and I don't want to keep him waiting." Radiant Prism moved towards the lift. Unsure what to take of this sudden brief moment, Rook awkwardly followed behind, keeping quiet all the way until when they get to the main office. He noticed the foreign Brave eventually stopped near the entrance, unaware that she stopped due to what sounded like a serious conversation was taking place. "Don't worry too much about waiting. Come on, let's go!"
"Rook, I can wait, they're-" Without warning, Radiant Prism quickly planted her feet more firmly into the ground as Rook told her no can do as King needs to know she's here. "Wh-What are you doing!? Stop! I said I'll wait!" Trying to prevent herself from being moved. "Rook, they're in the middle of a-" Rook had managed to easily push her right into the office. On being seen, she'd forgotten what she was doing and both aerials fell to the floor with a loud crash when she froze.
"Back with Radiant Prism, R.D.!" Rook cheered loudly.
"Rook!" Regina scolded the green jet. "You shouldn't do something so juvenile as to force her inside against her will!"
"Hey at least I'm giving our guest a pass on the pranks, Regina! ...For now at least-"
"Get off of me!" Exclaimed Radiant Prism, instinctively switching to German as she shoved the jet off of her as she scrambled back up to her feet. Jack was quick to shoot a quip in Rook's direction that he should've kept his bad habits to himself, but soon his focus turned to their new guest. Radiant Prism quickly saluted and introduced herself in full, station and everything. Despite that they didn't need to, the others reintroduced themselves out of being polite with Ace being more formal as they'd never met. Regina herself also introduced herself in full, knowing they hadn't had a chance to properly do that over the earlier communications. The blonde then got back to business, informing her team that they would discuss the current situation later and now that Radiant Prism was present, they were to help her in any way possible until the time came for her to return. "King, if you could please present her the badge? She will need it if she's going to assist us for the time being."
King did as told, standing from his seat as Radiant Prism approached. "Here you are, Radiant Prism." The firetruck said, handing her the badge of the Scotland Yard. "Like when you were in Japan working with Deckerd and his team, you'll need this if you're going to work with us. This authorises you to assist the public on things that can be tackled on your own, later I can teach you a little bit of our laws, fortunately you won't have to go to the same length as you did with the others. For now, I think for the first few days you work alongside us, you might want to work with an assigned partner so the public doesn't start bombarding us with questions."
"Understood, I'm also aware that you're in charge so whatever you need of me, I'll be at the ready to the best of my abilities." Acknowledged Radiant Prism, accepting the badge. King nodded, then turned his attention to Ace. "Ace over here is my Second-in-Command." the firetruck told her. "In case I may not be readily available due to whatever has my attention, let him know whatever urgent trouble needs attention and he'll know what to do." He explained as Ace gave a nod. With the basics set in place, Regina regained the attention of the two leaders, but her focus was solely on Radiant Prism when she asked if she had any particular melee weapon on hand. Radiant Prism asked why and the blonde was quick to point out that unlike Japan and Germany, the United Kingdom's laws functioned very differently, in that she can't be seen going around with a handgun out unless the situation is serious enough to require them. "Uh... No. I have a melee weapon of my own when I'm in my combined form but I won't be seeing that for a long while after it was destroyed in combat against the criminal Bruno Ackermann but as far as just myself, no, I only have my dual handguns."
"I see." Regina's expression shifted to a more serious look, her gaze fell onto her desk, needing to think things out. She then stood from her seat shortly after. "King, Ace, please start assigning everyone their routes, I need to go speak with the Commissioners about our guest."
Both Braves acknowledged with a nod and began getting to work. Radiant Prism then regained Regina's attention, hesitating for a moment then speaking. "Regina, before you leave... Actually, there's something I need to discuss with you that you should be-"
Radiant Prism was suddenly turned around after hearing King shout Jack's name as this strangely multi-coloured Brave started flirting with her. "You know, for someone who looks like a guy, you don't look that half-bad yourself, you know that?" He purred, bringing a servo to move one of her flexible pilot hat flaps out of the way as she tried to move away uncomfortably. Regina was already scolding Jack, but her words fell on deaf audios as his attention remained on the foreign jet. "Why don't we go patrol together? I'm sure you and I would make quite a team-"
"Jack!" King placed a servo on Jack's shoulder. "You'll find your patrol route at your desk, I advise you go see what it is and leave."
"Sod off, King." Replied the tri-coloured Brave, shrugging his servo off. "I don't take orders from you." Jack scoffed as he turned his attention back to Radiant Prism.
King was about to say something but when he took notice of Radiant Prism's crest, it gave him a devious idea. "Well if you're not going to take orders from me, will you instead be willing to take orders from Radiant Prism, then? She may be a foreigner, but she still technically outranks you by default. And yes, I can authorise this."
"Nice try, King." Jack snorted, turning his attention back to Radiant Prism. "She has no-" When Jack did take notice of Radiant Prism's crest, he was taken aback at first but when King added that he can allow her authority if he wants to, it was enough for him to finally back off and snap directly at the firetruck stating he doesn't need his patrol routes and he's going to do his own patrols instead as he stormed out of the office. Radiant Prism wasn't sure what had just unfolded but King told her to pay him no mind, but says he'll permit that if she has to really put him in his place, he'll look the other way.
"King!" Regina scolded, soon straightening herself and turning her attention back to Radiant Prism now that the tri-coloured Brave was out of everyone's hair for the time being. "What did you need to discuss with me, Radiant Prism?"
"Just a moment, please." She said, then turned her attention to King as he seemed to be waiting. "Ringo Diamond King, may I request that after this, can I patrol Heathrow Airport?"
"Er, Heathrow..." King was stunned, not only was it odd for her to address him in full, but to choose her patrol preference to watching over an incredibly large airport was something he did not expect. "If... If you don't mind me asking, why would you want to patrol an entire airport?"
"I work better in an aviation environment." Radiant Prism looked away hesitantly. "I understand Heathrow Airport is an incredibly busy and massive place, but I miss being able to assist those in need in case they might have a problem... It was something I loved to do back in Germany before I had to flee, and I did a bit of that in Japan too but not as much. Of course, I'll take other patrol routes too if needed, but I personally enjoy being around such places where I can keep an eye out for any plane in trouble." King made a small unsure reply, stating that he'll see about her request but he could make no promises. The foreign Brave nodded in acknowledgement and turned back to Regina. "Now that this is settled. Regina, there is something that I need your attention on. It's about Bruno Ackermann, otherwise previously known as the 'Silhouette Man'." Radiant Prism briefly looked towards the two leaders. "King, Ace, you'll both need to hear this too." The three listened to what Radiant Prism had to explain about what had happened in Japan leading up to Bruno's leaving of the country which had been fully confirmed by Kagerou after he'd done some careful scans all over the country. "...I remember that he said that we provided him with data. What sort of data, I'm not sure... But I think he intends to scan the entirety of the Scotland Yard for the same purpose. ...I fear he might be intending something towards not just me, but possibly all of the Brave Police regardless of division. The objective isn't clear but that's my assumption right now if he's gathered that data..."
Radiant Prism looked away with a frown. "I fear that considering what Duke informed me of how the Scotland Yard fight, I recommend that if we have to engage Bruno, we need to fight solely with a strict tactic- Something you can come up with considering you know your team better than anyone else, because he's going to throw just about everything at us to force your team to inadvertently give him what he wants."
"I see..." Regina narrowed her eyes just slightly. The idea that some criminal wanted to get their hands on the information of her team made her uneasy. It wasn't the first time someone wanted her team's information to better combat against them but while the current goal of this Bruno criminal was at the moment fully unknown, it most likely meant that whatever his intentions were, they were by no means good and could be far more dangerous than what the others would have had to deal with. "If he's that dangerous, then we'll go in armed rather than with our usual tactic. ...I think as long as we don't show our prowess in close quarters combat, we might have a chance against him but I can't say for sure. I can also see that at the same time, this also leave us at a disadvantage if King cannot use his combined forms without the risk of being scanned."
"What do you mean?" Radiant Prism asked.
"Unlike Deckerd who can only combine with his support and ultimately with Duke Fire, King is capable of taking on two separate forms." Regina explained, moving towards her desk to type in input commands onto the computer as the large screen changed the display, showing the combined forms that King could take on and explaining that she wanted to make sure that there was a means of fighting both on the ground and in the air. Radiant Prism was surprised by this as the displayed design somewhat reminded her of what she saw Redlight could do when she'd watch some of the clips he'd sent to her in the past that had been recorded by the media. "The behaviour heavily makes me think of Red Streamline's ability to take on multiple forms while combined. Of course this can come later but I can understand what you mean by this... We can't let him see these combined forms... Damn, this puts us at a disadvantage unless we have something to prevent him from gathering your team's data..."
"For now, I have to think about this after I speak with the Commissioners about you working alongside us for a while and make that exception that you lack a close combat weapon." Regina pointed out. "I need to go do that now. Do as King and Ace ask of you, and welcome to the United Kingdom." When Radiant Prism acknowledged, the blonde turned off her computer and left.
Radiant Prism paused, unsure what to do. She'd only just got here and now she has to get to work, but since she wasn't authorised to head on out, she would have to see about asking King about if Rook would help her as he promised. Turning her attention to King, she saluted and was about to ask if she could get some assistance from Rook to show her around London, but King put a servo up. "I understand you're eager to work, Radiant Prism, but for now I'd like for you to rest. A long flight can be quite exhausting and considering you flew on a twelve-hour flight, your joints might still feel sore after being put in that crouched position for such a long period of time."
The German Brave couldn't help but flinch backwards slightly. "How did you-"
"Rook has to be put in the same position when he's being flown somewhere when he has to go to a country too far for him to fly to on his own." Ace replied. "He's told us multiple times in past investigations that it's very stressful on an aerial to be put in that position for so long."
"Yes, that is correct... Er- Well, I'll admit that it was my first time experiencing being flown somewhere by plane actually rather than use my own wings." She saw the two mechs start to stare at her in disbelief, deciding to retreat for the time being. "...I'll take my leave for now. I'm going to the rooftop to think things out."
...
In an unknown location, Bruno was currently looking over the images of the Scotland Yard he'd extracted from the trio that had dealt with the Scotland Yard previously back in Japan, along with whatever bits of extra information he'd gathered from Shapeshifter before it's demise. "Ringo Diamond King, John Bishop, Paul Rook, and George Pawn. The original Scotland Yard that fight with weapons over firearms... I already have data on their former member who represents another chess piece." The screen shifted to a small collection of pictures of the red and white ambulance. "Duke Knight, who was deployed to the Japanese Division years ago after that tragic incident when the Chieftains destroyed the first Brave Police unit otherwise known as 'Deckerd'." The man pushed a button on his computer, the screen now displaying to three other members of the Scotland Yard. "And then the trio the Scotland Yard also have with them, the so-called 'Card Fighters'." Bruno mumbled to himself, pondering as he continued to stare at the images. "Only information about them is Jack, who represents the 'Club' card and Ten, who represents the 'Heart' card. There's no information from the one that's said to represent the 'Spade' card... The leader obviously represents the 'Diamond' card as indicated by his full given name..."
The sound of echoing footsteps drew his attention away from the screen as one of his lackeys addressed him. "I do not mean to disturb, Boss. I come to confirm that Radiant Prism is now in the United Kingdom. I'm sure she intends to aid the Scotland Yard in putting a stop to whatever we intend to throw at them." The man said.
"That won't be a problem." Bruno grinned, straightening his gloves. "Not since I destroyed that form of hers. With it reduced it to nothing but twisted metal, she won't be of any threat to us. Backing the United Kingdom's division into a corner will be but a simple task and they will be forced to throw whatever they can muster at us, allowing me to read them like an open book."
Bruno's attention turned back to the images of the Card Fighters, pondering for a moment then turned to his lackey. "You there, assemble a small handful of men and find me images of the Card Fighter that represents the 'Spade' card, but do not engage. The targeted objective from what I'm informed is a green coloured Brave, gather as many images as possible from all angles."
"R-Right away, Boss!" The lackey quietly left the room, the metallic footsteps could be heard until the sound grew quieter and eventually they no longer could be heard.
The man took his time to go over the images and information once more, before deciding to head out of his quarters and towards the hangar that contained his new mecha. The lackeys he'd encounter along the way would quickly get out of his way and greet him. He'd stop when one of them asked for an update on the given assignment about what to do about the old equipment once the installation progress of enhanced anti-radar has completed construction. Which he dismissively stated that once the new gear is up, the old must be dismantled to avoid it bugging out and make a mess of things as they cannot risk being found by the Brave Police. Once they got their answer and left, it didn't take Bruno long to get to the hangar yard, seeing as his newly built mecha was almost finished.
'Larger, lightweight but still very much sturdy. A hundred and twenty percent more agile than the previous mecha I piloted, and twice the firepower. Just what I'd like to use on them, and it shouldn't take too much effort for the country's division to go into survival mode.' Bruno deviously chuckled. His expression then darkened, eyeing his accomplices carting a set of missiles towards his new machine. 'Some may call it insane, I call it ambition. To watch the country fall into despair, losing the trust of the police force once they see criminals have destroyed what is supposed to be their most powerful firepower against us... That is, and will always be, a criminal's dream to destroy what seems impossible.'
Bruno narrowed his eyes. 'No machine can truly match a human's brain one on one, not even a Super A.I. no matter how much information is fed into them. I will enjoy our encounter, Scotland Yard.'
Meanwhile, as night fell upon the country, Rook had just returned from his patrol ready to head down and refuel. Just before he could head inside, he stopped when he noticed something in the corner of his optics just off to the side of the lift, spotting Radiant Prism whom was in deep recharge. 'Huh? Why is the lass recharging there? Did Ringo forget to assign her one of our spare quarters...?' He thought to himself, looking up at the dark skies then back to Radiant Prism. 'If what Ringo told the others and I are true, better bring her down where she can rest safely.' Approaching the recharging female Brave, Rook knelt down and attempted to pick her up bridal style like he'd seen some of the men do to women in advertisements and other content he's seen involving that particular carrying method. Unfortunately, because of how different Radiant Prism was in terms of physical appearance, it looked awkwardly strange, putting her back down carefully. 'Okay, so that didn't work... I guess I'll have to do something else to get her down, but what?'
An idea then struck the green jet. 'Of course! George can help me out!' He then called up his twin Brother to come up to the rooftop to help him with something. When inquired as to what sort of help he needed, Rook explained that he needs help getting Radiant Prism inside and into one of the guest quarters.
-Fine, I'll be up there in a moment. The mechanics are just about almost done with my checkup. Try not to do anything ridiculous to her when she's recharging, Paul.- Pawn replied.
"Thanks, see you soon!" Rook cheerfully exclaimed as he ended the call. It took a lot of will to keep himself from just eagerly scribbling a couple of silly swirls and other marks as his playful prankster side was out in full. Fortunately, it wouldn't take long until when Pawn came up to the rooftop, quickly spotting where Rook was, along with the recharging foreign Brave. It puzzled Pawn as to why Radiant Prism chose this particular spot to recharge, but didn't really bother asking. He moved over towards Radiant Prism, splayed her out with the floor against her back, then hauled her up onto his shoulder with little to no effort.
"...I don't think that's how you treat a lass, Pawn, but I guess it's better than what I tried. I'm surprised the jet lag is enough to really knock her out for who knows how many hours since she hasn't stirred when you picked her up like that."
"Let's just get her back inside so I can put her down in one of the spare quarters." Pawn said dismissively, moving towards the lift.
A couple of hours would pass as Radiant Prism began to stir. "Where...? A room...?" She muttered to herself, sitting up as she paused to think for a moment, then got up. "I could've sworn I was out on the rooftop taking in the scenery then I... Don't remember what happened. But more importantly, who brought me in here...?" Heading outside, she decided to get to the bottom of this, moving around through the station until eventually she found what appeared to be a break room similar to what the Japanese Division had, except everything had the iconic blue of the Scotland Yard and the placement of furniture was different.
"Hey, glad you're up!" Rook called out cheerfully. "You've been out for a while so Pawn and I brought you inside before you get rained on." Rook turned his attention to his twin Brother all while his Scottish accent began to thicken. "See Pawn? I'm not wrong when it comes to weather! An aerial knows when it's going to rain or not! Otherwise the lass would've been soaked to the frame!"
Pawn chose to say nothing, choosing to distract himself with some paperwork he'd brought with him when he and Rook relocated themselves here a while ago. When familiar heavy footsteps entered the room, his younger twin had immediately spotted and called out to King, scrambling out of his seat and towards the red firetruck. "Hey King, mind if I can show Radiant Prism around the city? She'll need to know where the station is should she need to come back to make a report or update during patrols. Also, because we're technically both aerials, it might be easier on everyone if I showed her around."
King was a little surprised, he'd intended to take Radiant Prism himself to a lot of important key points of the city and to make sure that she'd seen just about every angle of the city. At the same time, considering that Rook was another aerial like her, perhaps it would be better than trying to walk her way around various streets like navigating an incredibly long, complicated maze until she found the exit. "Alright, I'll allow this." Rook cheered as he was about to go ask Radiant Prism if she's got enough energy to fly but King placed a servo on his shoulder, stopping him. "In the morning, Rook. Not now." Rook immediately searched for the clock, noticing how late it had gotten compared to earlier, then told the two that he's going to recharge early so he'll have time in the morning beforehand to plot out places of interest and how to navigate a much larger city. Once he was gone, he then gestured Radiant Prism to sit with him at one of the vacant tables.
King had moved towards the fuel storage while Radiant Prism sat down at the chair, her gaze briefly onto the window, staring at the raindrops hammering lightly against the glass as most of what could be seen outside was heavily obscured from all the droplets building up on it. "Here." King's voice snapped her back to reality as she looked at the canister, seeing the word 'jet' plastered on the canister despite most of it was obscured behind King's servo. Taking it, she thanked him. As King sat down, the two would talk for a long while until there was nothing more to say on the particular topic they were on. King then thought of something from earlier, then addressed Radiant Prism. "Something I should bring to your attention, if Jack ends up being a royal arse whether he's annoying you or trying to start something you don't want, I don't mind if you have a go at him." King smiled. "If you must ask, he won't keep his servos to himself unless you beat some sense into him." He then leaned in to whisper. "He might be a womanizer, but he won't strike a lady even if you stunned or angered him."
"I'm not sure, Ringo Diamond King..." Replied Radiant Prism, an uneasy look surfacing as she continued. "I really don't like to strike foreigners, it's... Not right. Won't I anger this country if a Brave from another Division just suddenly came up to someone and struck them? I also don't want to risk Regina becoming angry with me for attacking others."
"Please, do call me just by King, or Ringo. You don't need to address me by my full name." The firetruck chuckled. "And no, it's already been known to just about eighty seven percent of the population and the remainders of the other percent are small amounts of people from other countries and yes, even that annoying womanizing idiot will go after tourists much to our team's annoyance. About Regina, she won't bat an eye if she sees you give him what for."
"I see... Very well I'll keep that in mind if I have to... Strike him. I can't count on Jack not striking back since my appearance... Well, you know." Radiant Prism's attention was drawn back to the window again, the hammering of the raindrops were becoming more louder. "...The weather's getting worse. I admit, I'm glad Rook and Pawn brought me back inside before I got soaked. But I'll admit, it's been a long time since I've seen it rain so heavily like that..." Radiant Prism lowered her helm, staring at her canister as King asked what about the rain is making her upset, to which she simply replies that it had to do with her failing to stop the trio back then. "Fortunately they're behind bars at Japan for the time being, expressing fear that the accomplice they were working with would come for their lives if they were deported back to Germany."
King was stunned. "That-"
"Ringo! Ringo!" Cried out a frantic voice as heavy yet small footsteps paced as they grew louder, skidding to a stop was the young light blue coloured Brave, John Bishop. "What is it, John?"
"There's trouble!" He panted, letting cool air seep into his vents. "There's a criminal causing damage i-in the heart of the city, they're firing missiles a-and-"
"Please tell me it's the criminal we're looking for." King asked, standing from his seat. "The one that stole from the Bank of England." He added.
"Not this time, George said that it's within the City of London district but it has no interest in the bank!"
"It must be Bruno. If I know what little information I have about him, he doesn't seem interested in money, just my Super A.I." Radiant Prism said, standing from her seat after she finished the remainders of what was left in her canister. "King, allow me to-"
"No, you need to stay here and that's an order. I don't need you wearing yourself out, my boys and I can handle it from here." King said, turning to Bishop. "Let's go-!" Just before King could start running, Radiant Prism placed a servo onto his shoulder. "King... Whatever you do, do not take on any of your forms and let Bruno scan you if it is him. If he gets any info on even one of your combined forms, we're going to be facing an even more difficult foe. You'll know it's him if he speaks German."
King's expression fell, helm tilting so that his optics couldn't be seen. "I... Cannot promise this. I'm sorry." When Radiant Prism's expression fell as well, she let go as King started to move when Bishop called for him to stop stalling and get moving.
...
King was horrified, so much damage had already been done in such a short time which made his fuel run cold, memories flashing back to when the Black Chieftains destroyed the city of London like it was nothing during the Fahrzeug attack. The large Brave shook his helm, shaking away the fear that threatened to overtake him. 'All this damage... Tch, it has to be Radiant Prism's criminal she mentioned earlier...'
"AAAGGGGGGHHHKKKK!" Cried out the others as they were sent backwards by the shockwave caused by the criminal attempting to squash some of the members under it's titanic sized feet. "Yes, Brave Police! Scream! Tremble under the might of my power!" Bruno shouted in German, laughing as he continues to unleash another barrage of missiles. "Look out, King!" Shouted as both of them changed form, getting away from the incoming missile as it exploded near them, knocking them forward as they swiftly changed form, preventing themselves from being flipped around or over. Ace called for King's assistance while Rook further added that they can take him on as Chess Master. King was just about to call for his three teammates to combine, but he then remembered what Radiant Prism said. 'Damn... Of all criminals, we can't take him on as Chess Master... There has to be- Wait... Of course!'
"Ace, this is King." He said, bringing out his badge. "Did the mechanics install in that upgrade Regina developed for your spy circuits? The one about improving your stealth systems as well as Royal Flush's."
-King, why do you need to know that right now...-
"This is important, Ace!" King said, becoming more serious as Ace, after a brief pause, confirmed that it was installed not too long ago but it hasn't been tested yet. "...Then we'll put it to the test as Royal Flush."
"Royal Flush!?" Bishop exclaimed. "King, y-you can't! Royal Flush isn't suited for full on combat, not like Chess Master! We need all the firepower we can throw at this guy! That armour looks too sturdy for Royal Flush's daggers!" King narrowed his optics, explaining that he knew that fully well but he didn't have much of a choice. He explained to Bishop that he wanted to put the new system installed in Ace a test, hoping it would prevent the criminal from scanning at least that combined form. He soon sprinted out of cover, running towards the Card Fighters. "Ace! Jack! Ten! To me, now! We're taking this criminal on as Royal Flush!" Ten and Jack were quick to exclaim that they couldn't win against a bulky looking machine as Royal Flush but King still gave the order and that they couldn't risk Chess Master being scanned. One by one, Ace, Jack, and Ten sprinted towards King, all of them bore a worried look knowing this was a bad idea. "I really don't like this, King... Not one bit..." Ten frowned.
"For once I agree with Ten, Ringo. This is bloody insane if you think we can beat that large mecha as-"
"Enough! We have to do as King asks... Even I don't like this." Ace frowned, lowering his helm slightly. The other two were reluctant that whatever tricks King had thought up wouldn't work but agreed to combine.
"Begin the combination!" All four Braves left into the air as they began shifting into specific body parts, all combining together in such a short amount of time. The form was like that of a fully armoured knight, standing tall and proud as Royal Flush withdrew it's signature daggers. Bruno was delighted at the sight. 'So this was one of the team's combined forms, eh? Well, let's see what delicious data will my beautiful machine give me!' As he began scanning the data immediately, the man confused when nothing popped up after a moment, realising that the scans could detect nothing from the large form, save for the other three Scotland Yard members that were still taking cover. "What!? Nothing!? Tch, this form is loaded with protective systems that prevent it from being scanned..." The criminal growled, not expecting the combiner to be equipped with even more powerful anti-scanning systems.
"I can tell that your attempt in scanning me has failed, criminal!" Royal Flush said, seemingly blurring out of sight and then reappearing from behind with the intention of striking from behind but missed when the criminal moved just in time to dodge. "I cannot be scanned that easily, try anything and you'll be easily detected!" Once more, Royal Flush blurred out of sight as Bruno begins to frantically search for where the combiner had gone, using all of his visual cameras at his disposal. "Where!? Where the hell did you- Gaagghhhk!" At that moment, Royal Flush had appeared from above, landing a double kick onto the mecha down below. "Damn you! I will reduce this city if I have to until you drop that field disruptor of yours!"
Without warning, a barrage of missiles began firing out all at once, alarming the entire team at how many missiles had been unleashed. "Th-There's no way I'll be able to take all of them out, and those blasts are enough to nearly trash Royal Flush..." Rook paled, knowing he'd have to try regardless but soon heard the sound of a machine gun going off followed by multiple missiles exploding mid-air.
"Rook, this is Regina! Please assist Radiant Prism!" The blonde cried out as Radiant Prism turned her attention onto the next set of missiles as she could see Rook joining in on lowering the number of missiles as fast as possible. Royal Flush, surprised that Radiant Prism had left the station to join them, called out to her via comms that she should've stayed put, but the female Brave explained that she acted on Regina's orders.
"So there you are, Radiant Prism. I would've thought you'd remain in hiding until your toy gets rebuilt but apparently even as you are, you still decided to follow me after all." Bruno laughed. "You're nothing without your combined form!"
"Nothing would falter me from chasing you to the ends of the earth until you've been defeated, cuffed, and thrown behind bars!" Radiant Prism snarled, switching to German.
As the criminal was distracted with both Radiant Prism and primarily Royal Flush, Pawn knew he had to do something to allow Royal Flush to land the finishing blow, taking notice of where it stood, close to the edge of the Thames river. Narrowing his optics, he now knew what to do. "Bishop, I'll need your help!" He called out as the little blue Brave acknowledged, listening to the quick explanation then watched as the gold coloured tank moved into position straight into the water as he began drilling into the side of the wall until when the criminal noticed something was off, then yelped as his mecha loses it's footing when the wall had crumbled underneath, falling into the river. Delighted that the criminal had fallen into the river, he quickly called for Bishop to quickly use the ice to hold the mecha in place.
"O-On it!" Bringing out his staff, Bishop focused his energy into his staff as he ran towards the river, bringing his staff to touch the very surface of the water. "Flash Freeze!" In an instant, the staff glowed as trails of ice began to swirl from the staff and around the mecha in a short amount of time, forming a rough circle as it then began freezing the inner part of it in an instant, capturing the criminal.
"Hurry Royal Flush, before he breaks free!" Bishop cried out, quickly moving to get out of the way.
Reappearing a small distance away, Royal Flush tightly gripping his daggers as they began to glow before blurring forward into a zig-zag motion. When he neared the target at the edge, he leapt into the air. "FINAL..." The glow intensified as he prepared for his attack. Bruno however noticed what was about to happen, not wanting to let his most newest machine go to waste, he struggled harder, the ice breaking as he continued until he managed to free an arm. "ENOUGH OF THIS!" Shouted the man, firing a spray of bullets from the mecha's forearm, easily shooting Royal Flush out of the sky and cancelling out his attack the moment he came crashing down. Bruno quickly broke another arm free, immediately delivering a swift punch as Royal Flush cried out as he sailed across the Thames River and into a set of buildings on the other side.
The sight of the failed finishing attack horrified Pawn, Bishop, Rook, Radiant Prism and Regina. All of the times they've defeated their criminals was a hard hit for the four in particular as Radiant Prism cursed to herself, saying if she had her combined form, she would've been able to provide help. "Radiant Prism, even if you did have your combined form, you wouldn't have the ability to block being scanned like Royal Flush is capable of." Regina told her.
"He's already scanned me alongside with the Japanese Division." Radiant Prism replied, dodging an incoming barrage of bullets as the criminal was focused on shooting her out of the skies. "There's no need for me to hold back when I'm combined. Look, over there." Radiant Prism had to make a careful turn so that she could give Regina the best view of Royal Flush slowly getting up.
The two could see that despite being clearly banged up and dented, Royal Flush managed to stagger back up onto his feet. "This is bad." Regina frowned, noticing something. "Despite that they can still fight, it's becoming clear to me that with how sluggish their moves are, the Card Fighters aren't in proper harmony with one another... Ace, Jack, and Ten know too well that Royal Flush isn't capable of combat like Chess Master is. The only problem is unlike Royal Flush, Chess Master does not have the systems the other has, which prevents the combiner from being scanned. I'll have to talk with King once we finish this fight."
Managing to keep himself together, Royal Flush sluggishly wobbled out from inbetween the buildings. "This was a terrible idea, Ringo." Jack's voice could be heard. "I might be sturdy but nowhere near as sturdy as you and George- Let alone Chess Master of all combinations!"
"Royal Flush isn't meant for combat the same way. Even if we tried again we're just going to get more and more beaten up." Ten whimpered. "If we get hit like that again, we won't be able to maintain this combined form!"
"I'm sorry, sir. I did not want to voice my opinion on the matter..." Ace added sadly.
"There wasn't any other choice... It was either the criminal gets what he wants, or we fight at a disadvantage." King growled. "But you three are right, we need Chess Master, but unlike this combined form, the other-"
"King!" Ace called out as Royal Flush saw the criminal charging at him, quickly attempting to blurr out of sight once more. However, this time he didn't go far due to the injuries sustained added three of the four Braves' moral were faltering, their movements weren't as fluid and graceful as before, forcing Royal Flush to evade instead of blur.
On the other side of the Thames River, Bishop and the others were at a loss of what to do. They'd never expected to have tackled on such a dangerous criminal like any other, and after experiencing what this man was capable of doing, they would certainly need to think out their strategy should they manage to either win or cause the criminal to retreat. Bishop was scared of what would happen, but then he'd notice something on the mecha's back, zooming in to get a better look. 'Wait, that part of the armour's damaged. Did it strike something sharp at the bottom when Pawn knocked it into the river?' He took a moment to think, glancing at the opening, then at Pawn and then the part about drilling into the opening gave him an idea. 'Of course!' He thought, bringing out his badge.
"Rook, Pawn, Radiant Prism, I have an idea. Come to my location and I can explain everything." He told his friends. Fortunately, because they weren't too far away, they gathered to his location in such a short time knowing he'll have to explain everything. "So, I think I might know how we can beat that criminal." He managed to say, knowing he'd have to hurry he started to explain everything from pointing out the small chink in the criminal's armour where Pawn is going to be used to drill into while Rook hauls his Brother up to try and get him to drill into the opening. Pawn however stops him. "You're missing something important, lad. Rook can't carry me up into the skies on his own. I'm far heavier than he is."
"He's not going to be the only one helping you up in the skies, Pawn." Radiant Prism spoke as she stepped forth. "I'll also be helping Rook so he isn't doing all the heavy lifting."
"...Fair point, lass." Pawn frowned. "But I'm saying this now: I do not like this idea, that criminal moves quite fast."
-I'll be sure to inform Royal Flush about the plan.- Regina said over the comms badge. -I'm going to instruct them to keep the criminal distracted as much as possible while you guys prepare for this team attack plan. I'm going to say this once, all of you have one shot at this, so be careful.-
"Understood!" Acknowledged the four Braves, immediately getting to work. Both Radiant Prism and Rook worked together to attach the cabling to Pawn, who had changed into his drill tank mode, the latter having to show Radiant Prism how to do so with heavier loads. "I'm going to assume doing something like this this makes the humans jealous of us that some of us aerials can perform something like this that the regular military jets... Normally can't do." Radiant Prism commented as she gets her end of the cable secured while Rook did the same.
"I'm sure they will get a little jealous. Scratch that, very jealous is the correct answer, lass. But don't forget, we're not built to really behave like the real deal since we can perform better than them!"
"I'm still not thrilled about this." Pawn complained. "Radiant Prism, I swear if you drop me into the bloody Thames-"
"Hey now, don't make it sound like she's the only one carrying your heavy arse into the heavens..." Rook pouted.
Slowly, Radiant Prism and Rook worked together as Bishop observed the scene, keeping hold of their cables to ensure extra security. When the two jets have Pawn up in the skies, Bishop then made his report to Regina, then hung back as the two aerials began hovering over the river with Pawn in tow.
Meanwhile Royal Flush had just been barely holding his ground. He'd made sure the criminal hadn't succeeded in landing a hit on him, but the intense injuries received from earlier was slowing him down even more. -...Did you get all that, Royal Flush? Try to knock the criminal back into the river.- Regina asked, having just finished explaining what the others are up to.
"Yes, I'll try but I can't make any promises I'll be able to keep him in the river- Nngh!" Royal Flush flinched slightly as something in his right shoulder was starting to act up. 'Damn, I don't have much strength in my arm to use my weapons at full capacity.' He thought, realising that while they didn't carry ranged weapons in combined form, there were times where he felt like something against a dangerous, powerful criminal like the one in front of him would certainly help turn the tides even by just a little without needing to get up close and personal where he'd put himself at possible risk of further damage. He briefly took note the river was behind him.
"Looks like you're out of steam, Brave Police." Bruno chuckled. "Your attacks thus far have been pathetic, and despite our size differences, you can barely make a dent with those toothpicks you call daggers!" As Bruno continued to taunt, Royal Flush caught a glimpse of his teammates hovering into position were in position. Narrowing his optics, he sheathed his daggers, causing the criminal to be puzzled at how he seemed to be surrendering. "You may not be Radiant Prism, but you'll do nicely for me to make an example out of you to show the rest of the world their own mistake in yours and all other Brave Police's creations!" As Bruno lunged, Royal Flush quickly swiveled out of the way, quickly bringing a singular dagger out and thrusting it into one of the mecha's thrusters, causing it to go tumbling right back into the river. 'So there's the weak point there...' He thought, catching a glance of the chink in the armour the others are intending to aim according to Regina. 'But if I'm going to let them get to it, I'll have to sacrifice my speed and get in the water.' He thought, blurring once more and reappearing with a splash, noticing the two aerials moving out of immediate view. He tried to take flight by using his thrusters to take him airborne, but due to the damage, he was forced to land back into the water with a pained grunt.
"Heh, with your movements limited in the water, that will spare me from anticipating where you might strike." Bruno grinned, his anger had converted back to confidence at seeing how the combiner in front of him tried to hover but from the damage they took thanks to him preventing it from finishing him off, they were much slower than before. Royal Flush stared at his opponent for a moment, then charged just as Bruno's mecha did, both locking their servos in a grappling hold trying to overpower one another. "NOW, EVERYONE!" He shouted as the criminal took notice of Radiant Prism and Rook charging in with a drill based tank, identifying it as one of the Braves. Just before he could move, he felt ice suddenly wrap around his lower body, cursing as he struggled even more to get out of the way. "FOOLISH BRAVE POLICE!" Bruno shouted, increasing his mecha's output as he twists it's body just enough to lift Royal Flush and smash the combiner right into the two aerials, both quickly lowering Pawn as they tried to dodge in time, but were struck.
Pawn had managed to free himself from the cables that carried him, tumbling downwards into the water at high speeds with a splash. As he sunk, he quickly angled himself towards one of the mecha's legs and began drilling through the ice and straight into it's leg. It took a lot of effort to cut through that thick plating, but since it wasn't made out of the same material as they were, he was able to get into the wiring concealed within, and eventually the main joint itself. But before he could do any more damage, the remainders of the ice that held it's leg in place gave way and eventually punted him out before he'd severed too many cables. "Damned insect!" Bruno shouted, crushing the Brave right under him. But thanks to the damage done to him, he decided to reluctantly retreat. "Hmm... You have won for now, Brave Police. This was only a fraction of my power but the next time we meet, I will back each and every one of you into using your strongest firepower!"
A bright flash of light was unleashed, forcing everyone to shield their optics. When the light ended, the criminal was already gone. "We managed to chase him off, for now at least..." Radiant Prism commented, managing to climb out of the river. Royal Flush had moved towards the surface and climbed out, from there they disengaged their form.
"I DO NOT want to do that again, Ringo!" Jack snarled. "You hear me!? This was stupidly insane from the beginning!"
"We should get back and get ourselves repaired." Ace told the others. King however shook his helm as he stood up. "You three can head back, I have to help the fire brigade put those fires out." Ace hesitated, worrying that King might be quite sour with losing a criminal but chose not to go against his word. "...Understood." He brought out his badge and called for the others to return back to the station.
...
"Dammit that hurt!" Jack snapped at one of the mechanics, clearly angry that he was in so much pain. Both he, Ten, and Ace were in the middle of getting repaired as they were the most damaged of the entire team. "Can't you be a little more gentle!?"
"Quit your whining." Pawn snapped in annoyance. The gold coloured Brave had been lucky he hadn't been entirely crushed, save for his entire lower leg when he'd been trying to get away. He hated being underwater, while his dislike of water didn't manifest into a fear like that of Drill Boy, he overall just didn't like getting himself wet and it overall slowed him down to the speed of a tortoise walking around on land.
"At least you're lucky you haven't gotten yourself totally crushed..." Rook frowned, sitting on a set of sturdy, empty crates just off to the side waiting for his turn to be repaired. For the moment, the three Card Fighters were first in line, reasonably having taken a whole lot more damage than he and Radiant Prism. "I'd thought that you were entirely crushed after we managed to fend off that criminal."
"I did learn one thing at least. That armour may be sturdy, but it isn't that sturdy. With a bit of effort I was able to penetrate through it but I did ruin the drill as a result. Should have used my axe to further hack more of the circuitry inside and call it more of a victory to get at least a part of the leg off."
Radiant Prism shook her helm. "While the plan didn't work, it's going to take a while to get that leg replaced." She said. "However, I understand King's duty as not just a police officer but a fire fighter is quite strong, he shouldn't be out in that condition..."
"Orders are orders, Radiant Prism." Ace replied. "We must follow them to the letter."
"Oh there you go, stupid cat acting like Knight again you are." Jack rolled his optics, letting his mouth run shamelessly. "It's no wonder he was far better than both you. He's more questionable than your ridiculously loyal sorry arse. He's even better than-"
The lion immediately let out a mechanical roar in warning. "Don't say it!" Ace hissed, getting defensive.
As the two began to bicker, Bishop who had off to the side, quickly started to retreat for the office while Rook got up and brought out a Brave-sized roll of tape, easily ripping out small pieces as he'd approach both Jack to apply it over his mouth, and did the same with Ace. "You both are giving me a headache." Rook narrowed his optics. "Look, we shouldn't make one another worse just because we got beaten around as if we were nothing."
"Rook is right." Radiant Prism sighed as she got up. "I'll go talk with King and see if I can convince him to come back and get repairs before he makes himself worse, I don't think he can perform his other duty in that condition. Card Fighters, right? Just... Just try not to move around too much so the mechanics can work."
The others watched as Radiant Prism leave and the repair bay fell silent. Jack was still trying to complain through the tape applied over his mouth but because he couldn't really do anything while he was being repaired, he eventually settled. Ten, who had remained silent eventually spoke. "Rook, Pawn..." He began, gaining the twins' attention. "I... Think now I understand how you two went through while under the control of those waves back then." He said. "It's... Not fun. While Ace, Jack, and I weren't controlled... I think we can all agree that now we know the pain you and the others went through during that attack when we fled into the Chunnel on Ace's order. Yes, it's a terrible call to fight as Royal Flush against that criminal earlier but... We..."
Neither twin said anything, none were interested in bringing back the memory of what they were forced to do against their will, but from the sight of the Card Fighters looking so torn up did remind them both about what they did remember before they'd been totally destroyed. At least the Black Chieftains had left their black boxes alone after they'd had their fun in seeing them destroy one another, and they dare not think about the alternate outcome if they'd done more than just watch them destroy each other.