Knights of Rebellion

Chapter 4

Now we'll get a bit more of how Han, Ernie, and the rest of the Silver Phoenix crew are reacting to the recent turn of events. Especially the twins. Also you'll see what Han thinks of Ernie in this chapter. So on with the show.

(No POV)

"You just let them take him!" Addy shouted to both Edgar and Dietrich. After the battle in the Ponamu mountains, the knights of the Silver Phoenix regrouped at Veineta. Both commanders were nursing a few injuries as were a few of their subordinates. The ones who made it back anyway.

Dietrich sits up first and explains that he wanted to rescue Ernie. "But Edgar stopped me. As mad as I was and still kind of am, he was right. We couldn't take that monster of a knight. That red machine ripped through Ernie's machine almost easily." All of the eyes widened at hearing that.

"You're lying! Ernie's machine was the best he'd ever built! And he's the best knight runner ever! There's no way he'd LOSE!" Addy shouts while trembling. Her eyes welling up with tears. Kid grabs his sister and tells her to calm down. "As skilled as Ernie is, he's usually had the fact he can fly and has a powerful knight himself as his biggest advantage. His opponent closed that gap with his own knight, and then found some weakness in the way Ernie fights."

This doesn't placate Addy, but it makes her stop for a moment. She then asks the General Scuderio what he knew about the Red Knight. "Unfortunately, only as much as you know. The fiery comet like knight that showed up before was difficult enough, and this one is more powerful than we believed."

"I can at least tell you who you are likely fighting. And who defeated your friend." The one saying this was Martin Ritternato, the commander of the knights in Veineta. All of the Silver Phoenix members look to him in confusion, while Scuderio has an idea. "Your son. Right?" "Yes. It's likely that my son, Han, was the one who defeated your commander. He's always been a talented Knight Runner. And…. He was the one who developed all of the technology of the Rebellion."

Eyes were wide again from the Silver Phoenix side, as they couldn't believe that one person had the same ideas as Ernie. Given he seemed like an odd prodigy as is. "You saying that…. Your son is just like our Ernie?" Edgar says while turning out of his bed. Martin nods before telling a bit of his son's accomplishments.

While the Gurrabesti forces know most of this, the Silver Phoenix group can't help but compare and liken it to the what their own commander had done in his days as a student. "Hey how much you want to bet their guy is a short genius just like ours." A few others have a chuckle at that. Martin just snorts before saying his son was as tall and solidly built as he is. And he grew early, being able to pilot at Silhouette Knight when he was 11 years old.

Hearing that each of them look over Martin Ritternato again. The man was six foot five and had powerful muscles under his armor. His black hair was fading a bit, with a thick beard and piercing brown eyes. "I taught my son the basics of piloting and combat as a knight and knight runner. And he could match me in strength when he was 13 years old. Not to mention he had talent in tactics."

Edgar looked down before saying, "Ernie has capabilities as a strategist and tactician. But he's often stuck to overpowering and surprising our enemies. Developing weapons to counter their overconfidence." "Like the javelins. Zaloudek's forces didn't bet we'd be able to make a weapon that could hit their flying ships, so they came at us with all of their ships." "And we were able to advantage of that and their plan to attack at night." Dietrich and Helvi finished.

"But Ernie has never fought anyone who could fight on his same level. I don't think the Vyver could really count." Kid says with a scratch of his chin. As well as noting that Ernie was more talented at making machines than he was at fighting. David even mentions that even some of the demon beasts didn't count quite the same, given he still needed help to finish off a few of them. While the rest have been discussing these matters, Addy had been getting more and more frustrated.

And she finally popped with a "SO WE JUST LEAVE HIM!? HE WOULDN'T ABANDON ANY OF US!" "No one is saying we are. But we can't do anything with no information on where he is or how to fight the Rebellion." Helvi says while giving Addy a look to say that they are ending the meeting for the time being. But the younger girl isn't willing to let the stand and plans to slip away and save Ernie.

Speaking of, Ernie had started to wake up in a cell in the hidden city of Tūmanako. "Ah. What happened? Where am I?" "Probably no where you want to be little boy." Ernie turned to see the bars to his cell. And just beyond them is Ezio sitting with a smirk. The dark-haired young man was just sitting in a chair with a book on the table next to him.

Ernie is about to ask what he was doing in a cell, until he remembers the battle. His duel with the red knight of the Rebellion. And his defeat at said knight's hands. "Ikaruga… I poured everything I could think of into making it. It was my partner." Ernie says while looking down at his hands in shock. Ezio just snorts before asking if he was really that surprised that he lost.

"Well yeah! I….. haven't really lost a battle before." "Then you might want to take this a learning moment. In the meantime, Han wanted to talk to you." Ezio says before leaving the prison section. Before he fully leaves though, Ernie asks if it was Ezio who defeated him. Ezio just chuckles before saying, "it was a commander vs commander fight between you. And I guess ours was the better one at the end."

Ernie just sits back while processing what happened and where he is now. 'Alright. I'm captured. Ikaruga was destroyed. The enemy still has others in reserve. And they may have technology developed or adapted that the Silver Phoenix hasn't made yet… Yeah this isn't looking good.' Ernie starts trying to put together a plan to escape when the door opens again. And Han walks in.

Han had been sparing with a few other members of the Rebellion to keep his skills sharp. So, he showed up with a tank top over his large chest. With his flame red hair pulled back in a ponytail. Ernie felt annoyed at the size and what he believed to be age difference between the two, so he tried to taunt Han. "Did you enjoy knocking around a person smaller and younger than yourself? Let alone how you destroyed my machine."

Han gives Ernie a raised eyebrow before saying, "what are you talking about? I don't know how old you are. And you don't know how old I am." "Oh please. You've gotta be in your 20s at least. Especially with that build and height." Ernie says with a pout as he turns away. Han just facepalms because this isn't the first time someone has assumed that.

So with a sigh he just asks Ernie how old he is while pulling up the chair that Ezio was using earlier. "I'm 16. And yes, I am aware how small I am. And that most assume I'm a girl because of my features." Han gets a chuckle at Ernie's admission, but what he says next really gets under the smaller boy's skin.

"Yeah, I only recently turned 16 myself. Guess I was luckier than you when it came to the build and physical side of things." Ernie's eyes were wide as he asked Han to stand, while he did the same. And he found he was looking quite a ways up at the young man who was younger than him. Ernie pouts again before saying, "I bet you didn't have to wait or build your own knight to pilot."

"Yeah….. I think the first time I piloted one for myself, I was 11. I was already decently tall. Had to hotwire the thing to put out more than most thought possible, let alone it being a test unit I helped design and then stole to take out a Cyclops." Han says with a smirk directed at Ernesti. But he drops it when he decides to bring up a different thought he had.

"Where were you originally born? And I don't mean Fremavia. Given the people here…. I think only a Gundam or other mecha nerd might know as much." Hearing this, Ernie's ramblings are brought to a halt. He slowly turns to look over the pilot of the machine that defeated him and puts together that the two are the same. "I'm… My soul or memories I guess you could say are originally from Japan."

Han hums a moment before saying, "yeah that makes sense. Especially the name you gave your machine. Ikaruga? Based on the game? Guess it makes sense given bosses. Though I guess your bird couldn't match up well enough against my Fenyx." Ernie was wide eyed again, but he asked his captor to explain himself.

The two trade a couple of stories back and forth about who they were and what they had done when they awoke in this new world. "Guess it makes sense on how you could force the machines to work for you. With your programing skills. Though you never seemed that skilled in the air. While most probably saw you as a bird, frankly you seemed more like a lame duck."

Ernie chuckles a bit at that before saying, "yeah it's no wonder it looked that way to you. You flew for real. Both as a soldier and in civilian life. I wondered why it seemed like you could read me so easily." "Your flying compared to mine was only part of why I beat you. You play around too much. Treat battle like its a game. Even though I flew overhead, I still had to read the battlefield. To make sure on where, how, and when I could hit the target."

The smaller reincarnated boy nods, acknowledging that he did just enjoy flying or examining new technology or devices. "Like those floating ships?" "The levitate ships, yeah. That wasn't something we developed. That was done by Gabriel Cojas. His designs are impressive." Ernie notes while tapping his chin.

Even though the two reborn heroes have been having a pleasant conversation, they both know they are enemies. With Ernie noting, "you know my friends are going to try and free me. Or I'll just try and break out myself." Han gives Ernie a wry smirk before saying, "you can try. But…. It won't go as easy as you might have thought." Han stands after saying this and telling Ernie that someone will bring him some food later.

"One last thing. There is an offer we've made to a few of the other prisoners. You beat a commander in our sparring matches….. we'll take you close to one of the other cities." Ernie is suspicious of this offer and narrows his eyes at Han. "And how many have managed to do that?" Han just looks back at Ernie with a smile before walking away.

While those reborn to this world have been getting acquainted, and while the rest of the Guerrabesti and Silver Phoenix forces were regrouping, Addy was taking her silhouette gear and heading out towards the Ponamu Mountains. "I can't just leave Ernie captured like this. I'll swoop in just like we did to rescue the Princess. Bit of a role reversal here though. He heh he!"

When she arrives at the former base, Addy takes to checking around for any clues on where to go next. And she eventually finds it. Spreading out from a few different points were a series of cart tracks and claw marks from the Lupas units. So Addy now has a direction to travel, and a few possible leads.

"I'd like to follow this right away, but… the sun is setting. I'd be better off setting up camp for the night." Unbeknownst to her though, she was being watched. A few members of the Rebellion who were descended from the native people had slipped back to check in on any bases that had been abandoned. "As we thought. Some did come back to follow our tracks." "I'll head back to tell the rest. Keep an eye on her as best you can."

The one saying this was the commander of the intelligence forces, Aihe Neho. She had darker skin and hair compared to her fellow commanders, but she knew many of the lands better than they did and was an expert tracker and hunter. Leading her to be part of the stealth corps, for surveillance and assassination. And while she wasn't as capable in a Silhouette Knight compared to her compatriots, the device she saw this young girl using gave her an idea for herself and her fellow trackers.

Addy would follow the trail she found for four more days to try and find where the enemy was based. All the while being watched by the trackers and spies of the Rebellion. In Ernie's case he waited until his wounds had healed to try his hand at what Han had offered. First challenging the opponent he assumed to be of the same size and strength to himself, Marianna Brante.

Only to get knocked around and tossed into walls over and over because he couldn't compete with the strength she had. "Okay, that's not fair! I thought you were the same as me!" Ernie complained after getting tossed into a wall for the tenth time. Marianna just smirked at him before rolling up the sleaves of her baggy shirt. And showed off the ripped physique underneath.

"I'm the same height as you, but I'm not as weak. My guess, you've relied on magic alone to carry you through the battles. But what happens if you don't have your weapon or something to channel magic into? You have to rely on your physical capabilities. Of which….. you don't seem to have as many." Marianna explained with a chuckle as she walked away from the ring.

Han and a few others later escorted Ernie back to his holding cell. While some other prisoners tried to best the fighters of the Rebellion. "Why do you hold these matches? Some of them aren't even trying to fight the commanders like you, so why do they keep trying?" Han just has a light laugh before explaining that some are looking to improve their own skills. "Or they've gained respect for some of our other members and want to see if they can keep up with those they may compare to."

Ernie wasn't sure what his fellow reincarnate was talking about. All he was looking for at this point was a way to break out or away from the enemy base. And hoping to take one of his opponent's machines. 'I hate to copy those thieves from Zaloudek, but I'll have to do it to get out of here.' Ernie thought after nursing some of his injuries after food was delivered.

He tried two more days to try and best a commander or find an opening to escape. He even tried to best Han in a match, taking advantage of his smaller size to attack the larger teen's groin and knees. Only to be met with a strong punch to the face and then a grab slam to the ground after Han shook off the initial pain. That knocked Ernie out for another day.

'Shouldn't have tried to take him on. I heard some of the others say he and that short girl I tried to beat are the best hand to hand fighters in the Rebellion.' Ernie thought after waking up and listening in on the guards gossiping. Meanwhile, Aihe had arrived and reported on what to expect in a few days.

"I was wondering what that bit of data we pulled from the remains of the Ikaruga was about. So the kid developed small mechs for interpersonal fighting and stealth operations." Bartalo said after listening to the report. Aihe brought up that she and her group could use those to get to battle fields and mission zones faster. "Not to mention it would give us a leg to stand on in larger battles."

"I agree. The girl is already headed this way. It won't be much longer, and we can take her on and down to capture the machine." Han nods with a scratch of his chin. Andrea though is worried about the possibility of her getting away. "If she manages to escape, she could tell her allies and their forces roughly where we are." "And then lead a full-scale attack on this town we've built." Marianna mentions from her seat above the rest.

Ezio then brings up that they do still have some advantages. "We've kept the Halius units hidden, let alone those new pieces and machines we've built from the ships Han wrecked. It's taken her a few days to get here, and the Guerrabesti forces would have to organize to attack us. Even with those horse and rider things. So we'd have time to set up ambushes on the ground and prepare to hit them from the skies." The other commanders think it over and eventually agree to capture Addy and her Silhouette Gear.

The night of the fourth day of Addy's tracking, she feels she is finally getting close. It was a cloudy night and she had taken paths then ended up leading to nowhere, but this last one felt like she was getting close. 'My Ernie sense is tingling! Just kidding. But this path does feel like something is different. And I'll be able to get Ernie out of here!'

Right as she is thinking this, a wire pops out of the ground and trips her up. She rolls for a while screaming all the while. "OW! What the heck?! What did… I?" Right as Addy is saying this, she finds herself surrounded. Aihe was commanding the rest while most of the members were wearing dark clothing to better step into the shadows.

"Take her down!" is the command given and a dozen members of the stealth corps rush the younger girl. "Think it'll be that easy!?" Addy shouts as she stands up and tries to blast away. But Aihe had been expecting this from the spies' reports. Magic blasts are fired from the forest and damages her jets. And Addy crashes down to the ground again.

After shaking off the impact, she quickly stands and uses her Scorpius to keep her enemies at bay. The damage shocks a few gathered, but she misses her targets. 'Oh man! I can't land a hit! It's too dark and they're all fast enough to basically disappear into the trees.' As she is turning around to get a target, Aihe is sneaking up on the girl.

She leaps in knees the young girl in the face to disorient her. While a few others use wire launchers and the like to try and restrain the suit. When Addy shakes out of the pain, she can see Aihe standing on the shoulder of her gear, with a blade pointed at her face. "I suggest you surrender little girl. You can't win."

"Like Hell I'll surrender!" Addy shouts before firing her Scorpius again. The shots are random, but the knocked-up ground and impacts are enough to loosen the wires holding her. She swipes and kicks at Aihe, but she avoids the girl's wild attacks. "Han. She should be out of ammo soon. Feel like stepping in?"

Han smirks from his vantage point on a cliff above the battle ground. "I was just going to let you do this. You wanted that machine for your group after all." "I know. But I think you'll surprise her more than anything. Let alone what you can do with those gauntlets of yours." Aihe says after attacking a few more times to make Addy waste ammo.

After firing a few more shots, Addy realized her Scorpius was out of ammo. And the hit and run attacks done by the stealth corps had done some damage to a few other systems. "Can't jet up into the air, I'm out of ammo, and the Wire Anchor and Lighting Flail have been damaged too. This is looking pretty bad."

"Doesn't hurt that we've known you were coming for a few days now. Not to mention all of the gear and weapons you likely had." Han said as he was walking out into the semi clearing Addy had made from her random shots around her. Right as he was though, the light from the moons was peeking through.

She saw the broad-shouldered teen walking up with his hair almost looking like a bonfire in the light. He had light plate armor on his body and his gauntlets and greaves on. And the smirk directed her way made the girl angry. "Where's Ernie?!" She shouted while glaring at Han.

Han just let out a dry chuckle before saying, "you mean the short thing I smacked around after he challenged me? Probably licking his wounds." Addy's face is one of shock, and then it morphs into a ferocious one. She roars as she charges at Han. Not realizing this was exactly what he was counting on.

He dodges a few swings and kicks sent his way by the girl, before deflecting one wild strike from her arm. And then following it up with a knee to the girl's face. He then strikes a few more stress points on the gear, causing a few more hairline cracks to appear. 'Just a few more seconds.' Han thinks as Addy attacks him again.

This time though she does grab his leg and throws him. But the warrior had learned how to take a fall well, and quickly rolled out of the way of her follow up attack. And with another wild swing from Addy, Han has his moment. He slides inside of her guard and unleashes a strong punch (using a mixture of strengthening, acceleration and hardening magics) right to the knee joint of the Silhouette Gear.

The blow shatters the leg of Addy's machine. Shocking her and leaving her open to another strong blow from Han. This one from his left to the center mass of the gear, and using explosive and impact magics. The impact sends Addy flying and crashing into the cliffside. Knocking the girl out. "Sorry if that was a little much Aihe." "It's fine Han. We should still be able to put it together based on our own research and developments." Aihe said with a smile directed his way.

Han nods as the pair walk up and remove the armor from around Addy. With her restrained and a new weapon gained, the members of the Rebellion feel like they've made a big step towards pushing back the Guerrabesti forces. And making their home independent of other nations. A few though, wonder if there would be others who followed the same path that Addy did. And how much longer their hidden town would stay hidden.

I know, no mech battle this time. But I wanted to show other things that were missed or could be overlooked with a war. Like how stealth groups would know the land better and therefore be able to get information back faster. Or how the Silhouette Gears might be strong, but they could still have exploitable weaknesses. Anyway, please review.