Seriously, why the hell did I have to be one of the only commanders who had to fight things that could actually beat him. WHY?!

"Boss, stop thinking out loud."

Sorry.

"No problem. Now, what do you want to do now?"

"Can you send in my commander?"

"...Are you sure that is a good idea after what happened last time?"

"Good point, boss. Alright, well, I do have one bit of good news."

"And that is?"

"It looks like whoever is helping eclipse decided that the need for secrecy is over - I've picked up several of their signals and have marked them for your viewing."

Without hesitation I put an eagle eye over those coordinates. To my surprise, all of the machines seemed to be clustered around one area. Why they would fall back here was beyond me, and I was almost certain that this would be a trap.

"...That's totally a trap."

Thank you for the obvious, Synais.

"I can feel the sarcasm. So, what's the plan?"

Whatever air and orbital assets I have, I'm sending them in to soften up the targets. Then, I'll move in with my ground forces...wait, I forgot about the Nora!

"Already handled that, boss - sent in some doxes to help cut down the Eclipse numbers. Aloy shouldn't have any problems taking out HADES and Helis, even without our help."

Good, good. Now what else did I need to consider...Oh yeah.

"Coeus, how are the humans in your base doing?"

"Excellent. Also, some are beginning to awaken from stasis."

"...I see."

What the hell am I going to do with them? With how their world is right now, just leaving them to integrate with the tribes is a no-go.

...Well, more people for the hub. Even if for once, I wish there was some place else I could send them.

"Um, boss, back to beating the enemy?"

Oh, right. "Are we detecting anymore portals in the immediate area?"

"...No. None. You think these guys are responsible?"

"Pretty sure they are - they're the ones who opened a portal to the Pokémon world, so it stands within reason that they opened most of the other portals...though I still wonder how that one to Prehistoric Park opened up."

"True. Alright, I'm going to have Fide and Kathikon on standby to direct the Tenno and some other personnel groups and machines incase things go south."

"Hopefully, we won't need them."

"Yeah, hopefully...oh fuck."

Oh, what now?

"Some kind of energy shield just popped up, its completely enveloped the machines' base."

At least it was something I could understand. "Any beads on power sources?"

"Standby...Looks like they're coming from a few Eclipse Outposts. And from the looks of it, all of them need to be knocked out to shut down the shield. Also, I'm detecting some kind of tower that has the machines' signature signal emitting from it. The tower appears to be analogous to a corruptor. There are several copies of this tower located around Shadow Carja territory. I would suggest disabling them before attacking the base."

"How many forces will we need to do this?"

"We have enough, but I have a feeling we should hold off on disabling everything just yet."

...Why?

"I'm inclined to assume these bots will have secondary shield in their base meant to lock us out, or perhaps lock us in so that we can be forced to watch them complete their plans. Perhaps we should lull them into a false sense of security by disabling all but one of the bases, then striking when the Eclipse attempts to achieve HADES' goal.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So it was that the day passed, as we waited for the Eclipse to attack. Vivian had ordered Adeline to assist in the defense of the Spire, with several Tenno joining her. As for the bases of these...Infernal Machines, most fell to our onslaught. The furthest one from our target, however, was approached but not taken. Instead, the team assigned to destroy it traveled up an underground river and set charges underneath the facility, and then waited for the signal to bury it.

My forces also harassed the Eclipse force, though we only got in a few hits before other Infernal Machines forced a permanent retreat. Still, a victory is a victory. Besides, what remained were weak enough that the Nora could still be expected to overwhelm the Eclipse on their own power.

As night fell, though, a sense of unease washed over me - somehow, I knew this wasn't going to be an easy fight.

"Yeah, but it might be easier if you get some sleep."

No need to state the obvious, Viv.

"Maybe, maybe not. Though I will admit, you're a very strange commander. Just about every other commander would fight using bots, or avatars of some sort, yet you lead from the front. Why?"

I shrugged. "Recklessness, restlessness, misguided heroism, take your pick. I just don't like waiting for things to happen. Though I admit I'm not entirely sure myself as to why I do this. Maybe all the power is going to my head, even after the defeats I have suffered."

"Maybe. So, you think we'll ever go to a world with knights and dragons?"

The tone of the statement immediately set off alarm flags. "Why?"

"Because the qualities you mentioned sound like ones that would describe a knight, though chivalry is also needed. And frankly, I think you'd easily fit the role of a knight who would rescue a princess."

Oh really? "Aren't you a princess."

The amusement fled from Viv's face. "Formerly."

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't have any interest in marrying into nobility - politics are annoying as hell."

"No shit. So, ready to call it a night?"

"Yep. Try not to snore."

XXXXXXXXXX

We waited until the beginning of the Eclipse assault on the Spire to launch our offensive. As soon as the word was given, the last power base shut down, leaving the stronghold exposed. The Eclipse thugs, Kestrels, and Corrupted Machines guarding the base were no match for our onslaught. In only a matter of minutes, we were within the heart of the stronghold, where we found what looked like a transmitter.

Instantly, a shield came online. Without hesitation, a Nova-wielding Tenno opened a wormhole, allowing us to teleport past the barrier and wreck the transmitter.

That was...too easy.

Apparently, Viv agreed. Immediately, her Equinox gestured to our fellow Tenno.

"That was likely a decoy. Search around, let's see if we can find the real target."

"I'm happy to say you never will," intoned a familiar feminine voice.

Suddenly, the inside of the building came to life, and in moments, a massive surge of energy sent us flying outside. There, I found my former captor, standing atop the facility.

"I do believe we have not been formally introduced. I am Void, and I cannot allow you to destroy this facility."

A moment later, said facility started to glow, as pylons along its roof began to light up...oh crap.

Viv groaned. "Let me guess, that thing is a massive portal device."

"Correct," confirmed Void, just before the pylons fired off a set of beams that converged above the portal, forming a massive orb of energy that started pulsing.

"Boss, we have a problem."

"I know, I can see the portal."

"...Portal? As in singular."

"Yes...there's more of them?"

"Um, I'm picking up portals opening all over the remains of the United States."

...FUCK!

"Oh, so it seems you found out our secret plan. Took you long enough. I do suppose I can afford you some details: we don't have any target universes that are too dangerous, and you need not worry about disabling the device - the thing you destroyed was its off switch, and since it is running on overdrive, it should burn itself out in a few minutes. Of course, there is keeping all of the new arrivals from killing each other..."

Deciding she was done with us, Void opened a portal behind her and disappeared. A moment later, a trio of corrupted bellowbacks and a hoard of corrupted sawteeth emerged from hiding, ready to fight us. A deathbringer also appeared, likely as backup.

Just as we prepared to engage them, though, a portal opened above us. Out fell a boy and a girl, wearing black clothing and blindfolds, accompanied by a pair of sentinel-like drones...wait, I know this game.

...YorHa is probably going to get really worried about this...

XXXXXXX

AN: Read and Review! This is Flameal15k, signing off!