Evanglion: You Shall (not) Win This Time
Episode 21: Electro Powered (havoc)/Episode 11's (altered) Canon
(Warning: All intellectual properties belong to their respective original creators/current copyright holders. EVA to Studio Khara, Reality Warpers to Yoshi3000, you get the idea.)
(Opening Theme: "Reverse/Re:Birth" by Hiroaki Iwagana and Asaya)
To say that Bishops was unhappy that his vacation which was supposed to last a whole week was promptly cut short due to an army of Warper communists not knowing their place would be an understatement. He. Was. Angry. Such anger was on display when addressing the higher ranking staff of NERV in regards to what happened.
"I leave for just three days, and the city can't keep itself from being targeted in another alien invasion gone wrong. There better be one good thing to come out of what happened that you have to tell me right now before I just hunt down those masked vigilantes that assisted in the thwarting of these invasions and just offering them your jobs."
Maya of the bridge bunnies, obviously worried about the future of her career answered "Would having the means to fully reverse engineer cold plasma shields, large scale Vertical Take Off and Landing and human scale plasma weaponry along with FTL space travel be considered a good thing?" to which Bishops pinches the bridge of his nose and responds "You all get to claim paychecks for more time….for now." before turning his back to them and bluntly going "I'll be in my office trying to figure out a way to salvage the rest of the week that was supposed to be a job shadowing experience for the students in my apprenticeship program. I. Am. Not. To be. Disturbed unless absolutely necessary. Is. That. Understood?", earning a frightened group response of "Yes, sir." as he left the command bridge.
Now alone in the confines of what was Gendo's office, the level 10 had plenty on his mind to comprehend: Uzumaki Corp's HQ universe getting attacked, a new Warper company rising up from a RWBY cluster, Jade Company disbanding, the rise of the Black Air Force sneaker wearing renegades and their recruitment of Kenji Blackthorn, an awful lot to digest. Well, if a potential ally is in trouble, might as well extend an olive branch, which is what Bishops did when he started composing a statement to be shared with the Warper community:
"To all the refugees of the recent attack by Rendo Nexus that was under the protection of Geist Fox, Naruto Uzumaki,
In an act of defiance against the shared enemy that is Rendo Nexus, Earth Dimension EVA-12385267 hereby extends sanctuary to any survivors looking for safe haven, along with the opportunity to begin the forging of a coalition with the sole intent of eliminating the culprits responsible for the destruction of your home in initial mind. Together, we can defeat this fearsome enemy, but whether or not you wish to be part of making that day a reality is up to you.
Signed,
Desmond Bishops, leader of the Knights of Ryujin"
One problem down, next was to deal with his equally unamused that their vacation was ruined team by calling a meeting within the confines of the GARD.
"I know, I know, I'm pissed that our week off was cut short." went the team leader before going "I have full intention of making it up to you guys in the future, but in the meantime, only light training for the rest of the week. You guys deserve to at least relax at home for what time we have until the next event of canon."
After dealing with a disgruntled team, Bishops decided to take a walk through the mountains in order to vent his own frustration in regards to the situation, and for the most part, it was working…..until an unknown energy signature was sensed, causing the level 10 to swiftly block an oncoming strike with his leg. The aggressor: a version of one Eren Jeager from the series Attack on Titan, noticeably wearing a pair of black Nike Air Force Ones.
(Track Change: "Watch Out Samurai" by Brandon Yates- Death Battle Season 5 OST)
The disguised leader of NERV opened a portal to a barren mesa before using the leg currently occupied by the fist of his attacker to hurl the assailant within and commencing pursuit.
"I figured you bastards would've come for me soon enough." went Bishops as the titan slayer turned cataclysm causing militant responded "Gotta build up cred somehow, and there's no better way than going after the biggest names in the Warping community. So do me a solid and make this a good enough fight for me while I pound your ass into the dirt."
"Funny" went Bishops before responding "I was about to tell you the exact same thing." as he charged his opponent to engage with a series of haymakers. The vengeful giant killer managed to dodge the attacks before countering with his own flurry of strikes in a furious cycle until Bishops and Jeager both managed to land a firm right hook to the other's face, sending them back a few feet.
Bishops says "You know, you caught me in a really bad mood today, but I'm willing to strike you a deal: let me use you as my personal punching bag for a bit, and I might just be inclined to let you leave outside of a body bag.", an offer which the renegade Warper chuckled at and responded with "I got a better deal for you: you get your skull caved in, and if you give me a good enough fight, I might just put in a good word for you with the guys…..if you survive, that is." before charging at his opponent again who swiftly dodged the next attack in time to enter a 2x Kaio Ken and delivered a powerful kick to the spine.
Erin was quick to recover and grab the leg of Bishops before beginning to swing it around, releasing it and the person attached to it as they went flying into a nearby rock basin. This wouldn't be enough to stop the Knight of Ryujin for long, only making him angrier as he charged towards the glorified gangbanger with a rapid succession of punches that Erin swiftly counters, ending with both fighters fists meeting with such velocity, a crater was formed from the kinetic force of their bout.
As the two land on the ground at opposite ends of their shared work, Bishops asks the Rumbling causing zealot "Ready to piss off yet, or have you not had enough?" before Jeager responds "Oh please, that was just a warm up. I'm just getting started." as he draws blood from his hand with his teeth, triggering the transformation to his Titan form. With his new gigantic visage towering over the Knights of Ryujin leader, he boldly declares "Hope you got your affairs in order, because you ain't leaving here alive now." before going in for a thunderous stomp with the iconic shoes that had managed to change size upon the transformation…..only for his foot to be stopped with heavy resistance, revealed to be Bishops who had transformed into a Super Spiral.
"I'm getting pretty tired of this, just give up quietly, and I just might still let you go with your tail between your legs." went the level 10 Warper before flashstepping out from under the giant's foot and right in front of its face in order to deliver a swift punch to the nose that forced his enlarged foe to be pushed back by a few hundred feet.
"Persistent to the end, kinda inspirational." went Bishops' giant opponent before adding "You know, if I wasn't sent to take you out, chances are that you'd probably be asked to join our crew. Too bad you're about to die." as he prepped a massive orb of Ki. Right when he was ready to fire it off, Eren received a communication from an outside source:
"Jeager, change of plans. Return to HQ at once, those Rendo Nexus bastards have decided to take the fight to us for a change and I'm sure you wouldn't want to miss any skullfucking."
Redirecting the blast into the air, the Air Force wearing mercenary reverts back into his human form and tells Bishops "It's your lucky day, you get a temporary stay of execution. Kill you later, you limp dicked loser!" earning an "Oh no you don't!" from the level 10 Warper before he added "Tell your leaders that I don't care if you tear all of Rendo Nexus limb from limb, but I am making one thing perfectly clear: Gendo. Is. Mine. You and your cavalcade of 'I ran out of fucks to give and I'm gonna take it out on everyone' can wholesale slaughter the entirety of that faction, and I wouldn't give two shits and a popsicle. In fact, you'd be doing me a big favor. But if any of you bastards so much as leave a scratch on the dipshit before I get my pound of flesh, there will be hell to pay. Is that understood?"
The only answer Erin gave was "Then you better get to him before we do." as Bishops bluntly responded "Just spread the word to your buddies." before the giant killer returned from whence he came, leaving Bishops to portal his way home, more unamused than he was going into this fight.
(P.O.V. Shift: Rendo Nexus)
Deep in the heart of what would be the newest addition to their territory, Gendo accompanied by a squadron of Rendo Nexus operatives were in the midst of a rundown with both Gourdar, the Never Ending and his new second in command: Dr. Frogg. The former member of the League of Super Evil began a proper conversation by saying "Despite the declaration of RN being classified as a terrorist cell after the multiple attacks on significant Warper territories, the empire has come to the conclusion that remaining in an alliance with your organization is favorable to any alternative when it comes to the long term stability of Gourdian territory. You will have access to a branch of the Subjugation Fleet, a sizeable division of Squash Droid forces to pad your numbers, and free access to imperial trade routes."
Anime's bastard king simply responded "You've made a wise choice, you live to fight another day." before the leader of the empire added "Splendid. Than by the glory of Plank and the sacred Gourdian gospel, let's celebrate our forged union by giving those accursed Knights of Ryujin what for with another invasion!" to which Gendo answered to with "You've already failed with your invasions twice, what makes you think the third time will be the charm?"
The mad scientist in the room replied with "Obviously we've underestimated their tenacity when factoring in the number of troops we've sent in the past, but not this time. Across five supply ships, fourteen patrol ships, eight destroyer escorts, four destroyers, three light battlecruisers and a carrier, we've amassed an invasion force of a million Squash Droids ready to go in for another attack on your old stomping ground. And as for those pesky Dai Gurrens, we've prepared an identical counterpart of the Tokyo 3 forces to keep them busy long enough to overrun the Knights of Ryujin and allow for proper Gourdain occupation."
Gendo's response: Increase the number to three million units for each. They'll obviously be expecting your forces to return in greater numbers, you might as well prove them correct." as the renegade commander of the infamous Warper organization then added "And what of the loose cannon within your ranks?" before Frogg responded "We were able to locate Dr. Weird's vessel….or what was left of it along with the black box recordings of what happened. You and your Rendo Nexus buddies might want to see this, as it might be a considerable threat to all of us."
The center of the table soon lit up with the sights of a holographic display involving the horrors that befell the Subjugation Fleet force lead by the Gourdian Empire's version of Aqua Teen's Dr. Weird. The footage began with sight of Weird within the confines of the lab he had built into the ship, which took the place of a standard Squash Droid standby bay with what seemed to be a version of the Earl of Lemongrab from Adventure Time on a table, enhanced with cybernetics. The mad "doctor" had begun laughing maniacally in standard supervillain fare before going on a monologue for an audience of no one.
"Gentlemen, BEHOOOLD! I have taken this lemon mutant freak, and augmented it with powerful machines that I have systematically made love to! Muwhahahahahahahaha! And now, to use this strange green substance that I obtained off the black market to power it to serve as my walking litter box!"
The substance mentioned: a vial of modified Fusion Matter mixed with an unholy combination of Reagent from Reanimator, the T-Veronica virus from Resident Evil and what can be debated as a Klintar from the Marvel Multiverse.
"Now, litter box freak, lie still while I…..STICK IT IN YOU! Muhwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
It was in that instance that the would be disgrace of a mad scientist brought forth a new terrifying threat as the modified lemon mutant sprang to life what what its kind would refer to as a flaccid howl, screaming while flailing its arms that had broken free of their restraints.
"HHHHHWAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHAHEEHEEEE! The path of lllllemonhate is clear to meeee! I must assimilate all non-lemons! Assimilate! AAAAAASSSIMMMMILLLAAAAAAAATTEEEEEEEEE!"
From there began the true carnage as the creature ensnared its creator in a mass of mutated lemon flesh, sealing Weird's fate by becoming one with its demented creation. The creature's next move: use its cybernetic appendage to smash the controls keeping it sealed within the lab, in turn setting off an emergency protocol for all Squash Droids on board the ship to dispose of the oncoming threat from within. Their effectiveness left a lot to be desired as a good chunk of the initial attack wave was quickly either consumed by the ungodly lemon or torn to shreds by its various attacks, including beam attacks that had breached the special shielding of the bridge and causing significant damage. However, said attacks didn't do their damage quick enough for the Squash Droid in charge of operations to issue the following order:
"Danger! Danger! All Subjugation Fleet vessels firing range are to open fire on the command ship at once. Emergency protocols have failed to contain a high level internal threat, and destruction orders are in place to allow either the threat to live or to allow data stored on the command ship's systems from falling into enemy hands. Repeat, a destruction order is now in place for the command ship to all Subjugation Fleet vessels within firing range. This is not a dril-"
While the other ships in the fleet did comply with opening their full salvo on the doomed command vessel, that didn't stop the demented creation powered by an unholy cocktail, as the Lemongrab had jumped from one of the holes made when the ship's hull was breached, setting its sights on a new victim as the feed was promptly cut.
The former member of the League of Super Evil then added "It didn't end with Weird's ship, the entire fleet dispatch in that universe all met the same fate. As for the current location of the lemon mutant, we have Squash Droid teams and hired bounty hunters combing the entire multiverse for it with a kill on sight order in place." before Gourdar replied "I knew that psycho was a fool for playing god, but I never thought he could create something like this. It'd be wise for you to have members of your forces scour your territory too, just in case it comes your way. We'll also be sending you a copy of the footage in case your people need to know what they're dealing with."
Gendo then got up from his chair before going "This information will prove useful in the event this abomination makes its way into our territory. If that will be all, I must take my leave." and exiting the room. The bastard king then pulled out a cellphone and got on call with the leader of the newly declared terrorist group, a being now only going by the name of "Kotetsu".
"I take it that your buddies within the Gourdians were more than willing to knuckle under?" asked the malicious leader as the former head of Bishops' version of NERV answered "They did, but we have a problem involving them. One of their higher ups created some kind of lemon mutant slight to every religious text and it's gone rouge. Have strike teams be on the lookout in case it winds up in our territory."
"Which one was it?" asked Kotetsu, earning the answer of "Their now former version of Dr. Weird from that show with the sentient food freaks that fuck around in New Jersey."
Kotetsu's response "Did they give you something to give you an idea of what this thing might be capable of?" as Gendo answered "They just did. Sending you the footage now." after receiving the notification that the footage was delivered to him. After a moment of silence, Kotetsu responded "Dear god. Fusion Matter, Reagent, T-Veronica and possible symbiote, not even I'd be that insane to mix the three together. I'm putting the order out now: if this thing enters our territory, kill on sight because it's clearly beyond being controlled. Alright, since we have the Gourdian Empire in our corner, return to base for now. We have plans to make."
As the call ended, Gendo made his way to his personal ship: a modified Sith Infiltrator from Star Wars and set the autopilot to return to base, all the while plotting his revenge on both his son and bastard that usurped his position of power.
(P.O.V. Shift: Lilac Storm Pirates)
It had been a rather constructive 48 hours for the newly founded and renamed unification of the Blue Lilith and Queen Sohryu pirates. Within the short time since the long thought impossible alliance's founding, the two crews had not only laid siege to multiple lesser guarded Rendo Nexus outposts in search of the answers the Asuka who once walked among their members sought, but had begun the process of uniting additional Warper pirate crews into a larger scale swashbuckler confederation with one goal made true to the public: keep RN from dominating the spaceports so piratekind may prosper. Though the supposed act of liberating the stars from the common enemy of the Warper community was only a side goal for them, their primary objective: seek out the answers that the formerly mind controlled Shikinami had in regards to her past, most likely housed deep in the heart of now enemy territory while turning her former master's means of producing an army against him. The current whereabouts of both the Crimson Wind and the Super Spiral's Triumph: deep in the Andromeda galaxy of Remnant Dimension RWBY- A4-2180-Gamma, another of Rendo Nexus' sources of monetary support by means of cloning the characters for either war or for more depraved means. The two crews mission was multifold involving a firm set of objectives:
1: Obtain any and all information to regarding Rendo Nexus from whatever computer networks or additional means they could
2: Pilfer the ill gotten gains stored on that universe's Remnant, including the girl characters kept in cultivation tanks for cloning
3: Cripple RN's means of making money from this universe for as long as possible
Onboard the Crimson Wind, the two united captains and their crews were in the confines of the ready room, discussing the battle plan once they reached their destination.
"Alright, this operation will be conducted on multiple fronts. Sailor Senshi and Bonyu will be providing covering fire from long range while Valkyrie, Ginyu, Toaster Girl, Kingdom Hearts, Disney Princess, Cinder, and Olivia Newton John provide distractions. Meanwhile a team composed of myself, Arc, Wonder Girl and Kabuto will be going from mainframe to mainframe to extract the info we seek. Once all enemy forces have been cleared out, we regroup and begin the process of plundering whatever isn't nailed down and claiming their main source of income: the people in the cloning facilities. Understood?" explained the Asuka of the Crimson Wind with the others nodding in agreement before one of the consoles in the room pinged.
Upon observation, the former leader of the Ginyu Force amongst them responded "We're approaching the target, but it seems like we're going to have company: four Gourdian supply vessels accompanied by a trio of destroyer escorts. How do you want to handle this change of predicament, captain?" as the two EVA pilot candidates turned space pirate leaders considered their options and came to a solution.
"Ready the weapons and prepare for battle. We've made it no secret that we are warriors of the Super Spiral's will, and the Gourdians have become one of our more powerful adversaries." answered the Gendo cosplaying leader of the Blue Liliths with Asuka adding "Call it pirate's intuition, but I have a strong feeling that hunk of wood worshiping freak isn't sending their forces just to pick a fight with RN. The plan remains, we're just going to have a bigger distraction to make."
With the two crews back to manning their respective ships, the Super Spiral's Triumph was quick to make its presence known as the distraction, opening fire on one of the escort ships, causing some damage to the engines. With a distraction in the stars in place the main ground force distraction made landfall while the snipers and information gathering team stayed onboard their vessels to provide covering fire. After hunkering down in the now barren Patch, the distraction force were planning their assault on the academys where RN's resources were being housed when the Rei dressed as FGO's Parvati took a bite out of a pastry fresh from the almighty toaster she held so dear.
"Strawberry. This fight will not be an easy one, and will not end in a complete victory."
Salem's ex power hungry apprentice was about to go "Okay, why do we even listen to her and that damn toaster?" before the Blue Lilith's mage shot her a look of "Don't even ask, just accept the fact that she's right. It'll save you plenty on migraine medication."
Target one: Shade and Oscuro academy in Vacuo. Energy scans showed that only a handful of the Squash Droid forces that made landfall were stationed there, and in fewer numbers compared to Haven, Atlas and Beacon. With such few numbers, it was decided that a team of Ginyu and both the Blue Liliths' massive sword wielder and mage would be enough to deal with the forces housed in the two schools. Reaching the confines of Shade academy's main hall, the three pirate squad used Ki sensing to figure out how many Squash Droids they were dealing with, only to hide when a duo of standard grunts entered the area.
"Why send a regiment into a desert sector without providing proper joint protection field emitters? It's as if that Frogg guy is trying to clear out us older models for those version 2s." went one of the mechanical soldiers when its companion responded "Ah, those new gen units won't know the hassle we went through while conquering multiple universes in the name of the sacred gospel of Plank. Let's check the next floor's monetary storage rooms, it'll be taking a while with just the two of us here."
That was all the trio needed to hear as the former Ginyu Force leader Death Beamed both Squash Droids, giving his team free reign to raid the ill gotten gains within the conquered school. Obscuro was similarly quick to clear out, only having a total of five Squash Droid commandos to dispose of. With Vacuo cleared with no one being the wiser, it was decided that Haven would be next on the chopping block. Meanwhile in Remnant's orbit, the ship distraction team was dealing with the Gourdian vessels as quickly as possible before reinforcements could be brought in. Surprisingly, they weren't alone in this endeavor. Out of seemingly nowhere emerged a trio of futuristic fighter jets from the Macross franchise which began attacking the supply ships while the Super Spiral's Triumph was occupied with the escorts: a heavily armed VF-1 in green, red and white, an orange, black and purple YF-21 and a yellow, red and blue VF-31. It wasn't too long before the Blue Lilith galeon had picked up an emergency broadcast from one of the Gourdian supply ships:
"Our enemies the Eds have attacked the fleet dispatch sent to Remnant Dimension RWBY-A4-2180-Gamma. They're seemingly collaborating with the Blue Lilith pirates. We are requesting emergency reinforcements from any available nearb-"
Of course hearing this, captain Rei had to make a few calls, starting with her ground forces.
"Be forewarned, a trio of fighters have joined in assaulting the Gourdians, but the enemies of the Super Spiral have put out the call for additional forces. We'll need to expedite our efforts here before they try anything to impede our mission here."
Next call was sent to the nearest fighter in the area, which had converted into a humanoid mech.
"Three E Gourdian Busting and Bounty Hunting Services, this is Double Dee speaking. May I inquire the reason for your call, or possibly reschedule your call, for I'm afraid my comrades and I are in the midst of a very important assignment at the moment." answered the pilot that picked up the call with the blue haired leader answering "This is captains Ayanami Rei and Asuka Langley Shikinami of the Lilac Storm pirate fleet. State your reasons for interfering in our operations in this sector."
Another voice chimed in by responding "Lemme take it from here, sockhead." before adding "Ladies, we honestly had no idea you and your crews were in the area. We're only here because we heard there was Gourdian activity in this sector and since it's in the company name, we're simply here to do our jobs. But maybe we can help each other out."
Asuka responds "What are your terms?" as the Eddy of the trio answers "If the Gourdians are here, than this place has to be of some form of importance, right? Which means that there's something down there that they want, stop me if I'm wrong."
Rei responds "You'll receive a 30% cut of what monetary finds we obtain in exchange for keeping our enemies busy while we conduct our raid on the surface. And from what our forces have found so far, it shall most certainly be a significant pay day for you if you take our offer."
The reply from the other end: "Lady knows how to strike a bargain. 35% and we're in." as the blue haired swashbuckler answers "Very well, now get to work." before closing the comm lines.
The co leading Asuka then turns to her blue haired counterpart and goes "We need to make landfall now, the schools in Vacuo have already been cleared out, and the ground forces are already mostly done with cleaning out Haven. The sooner we can get to the two big ones, the better." with the Gendo cosplaying leader responding "Agreed, take Mr. Kabuto with you to Shade academy, Mr. Arc and I will deal with the mainframes in Obscuro before regrouping with the others at Haven."
With that, the Super Spiral's Triumph made its way down to the planet's surface before being put on auto pilot with course set towards Vacuo. The contents of the Vacuo mainframes: nothing substantial, but possibly worth something in the right hands. When the data collection team had made their way to Mistral, the rest had already begun the advance on Atlas and were in the midst of clearing out the recon forces hidden in Mantle, allowing for an easy job once again. The results this time around were a bit more fruitful: the revelation that Mistral was going to be converted into a Gourdian shipyard to expand production of vessels for the Subjugation Fleet. The two captains made a mental note to come back and do some collateral damage on their way out of enemy territory.
Asuka quickly got on to her earpiece commlink to reach out to the main assault team, asking "Data collection in Mistral is complete, how's the fighting in Atlas in going?" with Bonyu answering "Mantle is clear, but we're facing more heavy resistance towards Atlas academy and the Schnee mansion. What's your ETA to provide assistance?"
The former Rendo Nexus controlled clone responds "Shouldn't be more than two minutes, we're making our way out of Haven now." as the captain lead squad quickly rushed out of the now ransacked school formerly lead by a pathetic excuse for a leader.
The fighting in the courtyard of the Schnee mansion was in a fierce stalemate with a team comprising of the Sailor Mercury cosplaying sniper Alice, Nora, Ginyu and the Blue Lilith's chef were in the midst of combating a category: Golem Squash Droid accompanied by a squad of Commandos and a category: Ogre. The 90's fashion clad blonde had managed to aim a Ki blast into the main gun of the Ogre unit, causing its explosion before being hit with a fit of her impromptu Future Vision while ducking for cover. One of impending doom for one of the ground assault team.
After lobbing a grenade towards the opposition, Nora sees that her current main flapjack factory is in a debilitated state and goes "Cover me, guys. I think Juliet just got hit with a vision." to the rest of the squad before rushing to the blonde and asking "Hey, what's wrong? What'd you see this time?"
The chef's answer: "I fear one of our own won't be leaving this universe alive, but I couldn't see which one."
Nora was quick to answer "There's always the chance we can change the future, but we'll need everyone's help." while grabbing Juliet's hand and helping her get back into the fight. Meanwhile in Atlas academy's courtyard, Bonyu, Cinder, the Snow White attire clad swordfighter Shizuka, and the Kingdom Hearts cosplaying mage Reppu were fairing in a similar manner with a portion of the Gourdian forces stationed there remaining. The former commander of Salem's forces was able to pierce the armor of a Golem, causing it to detonate and take out the Commando units around it before almost getting the receiving end of an Ogre's for lack of a better term "full load", only to be saved by Shizuka and the Gendo garb clad Rei giving it a few cuts to its systems to finish it off.
Ms. Fall bluntly responded "Do not expect a thank you from me, I had that bucket of bolts right where I wanted it." with Shizuka answering "Sure you did." as the party had managed to enter the school to do their respective jobs. Over with the home of the once proud richest family in Remnant, Asuka and Kabuto had made contact with the party in the main hall as the now six pirates got to work. The mainframes of the mansion were located in a secret room connected to the office of Jaques with data collection going off without a hitch while the other four party members raided everything of value from the mansion. The plans hidden within the frozen wastes of Atlas: blueprints to convert the kingdom above the tundra into a Squash Droid production plant while using the dust mines as an additional source of income for RN. Obviously this was not to stand, but that would have to wait. One more attack target remained: Beacon. To say that the biggest facility in all of Remnant would be the most heavily guarded would be an obvious understatement. The brunt of the landing forces were stationed within the main hall with weapons drawn while the larger units were hiding within the confines of the Emerald Forest. Once the two ships had reached the outskirts of the city outside the school, that was the call for the large scale units to begin their counterattack by opening fire on the Crimson Wind with the Super Spiral's Triumph returning fire in retaliation. The fighting had become intense, and the pirate forces hadn't even made landfall yet.
The fight above the planet's surface was by no means a cakewalk either as the Eds were dealing with the reinforcement ships consisting of multiple landing craft, destroyer escorts, a quartet of destroyers and a heavy frigate leading the charge. After unloading a fresh Kawamori missile blitz, the Eddy in charge asks "What's taking those guys so long? We could use some extra firepower right about now." with Double Dee answering "Signs show heavy beam concentrations around the area of Beacon academy. One would assume that since it's such a major location in the RWBY lore, it would be safe to surmise that it would be the most heavily guarded by the Gourdians." while sniping the engines of one of the destroyer escorts.
"Than whatever's in there must be worth some serious bank if it's giving those guys this much of a hard time getting to it." responded the short leader before the muscular powerhouse of the trio added "Maybe it's the secret to creating the ultimate toaster with built-in butter spreader, guys." while dealing significant damage to a chunk of the Gourdian landing party's dropships.
Eddy's response: "Get real, Lumpy."
Down on the planet's surface, the fighting around Beacon had continued to escalate with both of the Lilac Storm ships setting the Emerald Forest ablaze with the explosions of large scale Gourdian troops and doing significant damage to the outside campus where the ground forces were fighting tooth and nail against the remaining troops before reinforcements could arrive. Nora and Parvati were unloading in a hail of minigun and grenade fire while Ginyu and Cinder used a mixture of Ki and magic glass with Alice and Bonyu providing support from a distance, all mowing down Squash Droids left and right to the point where an opening in the enemy defenses had been made for the data collection team to go in and do their job. With the designated quartet fighting their way into Ozpin's former office, they had gained access to the secret sublevels of the school, housing not just the cloning operation, but also the central RN mainframes.
"Alright" went Asuka before ordering "Blue and Arc can tend to the cultivation tanks, Kabuto, you and I are on info gathering. Grab whatever you can while we have the chance because we don't know if those three dolts in the transforming fighter jets can hold off the Gourdians in space completely."
The former RN agents began their work while the Blue Lilith crew members got to theirs as Jaune got to the tank containing the body of his counterpart from that universe and got a bit unnerved, only for Rei to go "You get used to it, now hop to it, Mr. Arc. Time is of the essence."
The fighting had reached the point where the assault forces could actually get into the school and start raiding with different crew members taking individual rooms to speed up the process. Cinder got the idea to see if any of Team RWBY's belongings were still in what was their dorm room, if only to take them as trophies of "fuck you, I'm moving around and doing shit while you're naked in tubes being cloned for horny degenerates.", unfortunately luck wasn't on her side this time as upon entering the room containing their makeshift bunk beds, a series of rigged supercharged paper bombs were activated, blowing a good chunk of the adjacent dorms to smitherines.
Hearing the explosion, both the assault team and the data collection team became increasingly concerned as Orochimaru's former minion shouted "Data extraction complete, let's get the Hell out of here!" just as Rei and Jaune had finished rigging the last tank to be moved. Meanwhile, the surviving members of the assault team had reached the blast zone and bore witness to the carnage where all that remained of the power mad black glass wielding pyromancer were a few ashes along with her Flames of Creation escaping into the aether. They didn't get the chance to mourn (or in Nora's case, celebrate) as the order came from the two captains: "We have what we came for, the time has come to fall back and make our escape."
It wasn't long before both the Crimson Wind and Super Spiral's Triumph were filled with their crews sans one as they made their escape while doing as much damage as possible as a final middle finger to the universe to cripple RN's operations. The Gendo cosplaying Rei then contacted the Eds who were still in mid-fight to deliver the following message: "Your services towards this mission are complete and you are free to retreat. Payment will be sent to you within the next 24 hours." as all five ships made for a quick escape.
Onboard the Super Spiral's Triumph, Nora had pulled Jaune aside to inform him of the good news.
"So Cinder got blown up, so we got that going for us."
The blonde of team JNPR responds "We'll celebrate later when we can get away from the rest of the crew."
Meanwhile within the ship's medical bay, the Rei that had taken on the name and style of Naoko Akagi was observing their newest living acquisitions with a forlorn look on her face as the captain entered, asking "How are our newest residents?" with the doctor answering "They're stable. Do you wish to continue with their cloning, or shall we liberate them?"
The captain answered "The Super Spiral's will shall determine their fates, but I am certain that out of all of them, we shall have at least one new member amongst our ranks."
After a brief pause, Naoko-R got on her knees and went "Forgive me, sister. I could not save Ms. Fall." before Rei had crouched down, lifted the medic's chin to her eye level and answered "You have done nothing that requires asking for forgiveness. We were all caught unaware that certain rooms within that school would be rigged with booby traps. I'm sure that if we did know what awaited us in there, you would've done everything that you could and made the Super Spiral proud." and pulled her counterpart in for a caring embrace. To many, the leader of the Blue Lilith's was many things: crass, blunt, crafty, pragmatic, to the point, but to those were able to enter her inner circle know that among everything else, she gave a damn about the people under her command unlike the being she chose to take on the garb of.
"Captain, you might wanna report to the bridge, there's something that I think you'll want to see." came from the voice of Juliet on the intercom as Rei returns to the bridge to see what was so important: someone had increased their bounties.
Blue Lilth Captain- Rei Ayanami Quatro: Bounty currently increased to 540,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Greatsword- Shizuka Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 510,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Sniper- Alice Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 520,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Medic- Naoko Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 459,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Chef- Juliet Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 490,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Mage- Reppu Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 500,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Oracle of the Toaster- Parvati Ayanami: Bounty currently increased to 530,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Sword of Remnant- Jaune Arc: Bounty currently increased to 300,000,000 Dimensional Credits
Blue Lilith Hammer of Remnant- Nora Valkyrie: Bounty currently increased to 320,000,000 Dimensional Credits
"No doubt the work of the Gourdians and Rendo Nexus." responded the captain before another beeping sound came from the console Shizuka was stationed at.
"Incoming frequency from the Geist Fox Relocation Fleet: In light of the recent invitation to Earth Dimension EVA-12385267 by one Desmond Bishops, we are requesting escort to the supposed safe haven along with protection while we set up shelter. Uzumaki Corp is willing to pay for these services once everything is settled."
Rei was quick to respond "Set course to rendezvous with the fleet and send a response saying that their offer was accepted. With these efforts, we give rise to the possibility of the Super Spiral spreading his divine influence in our crusade against those who dare to stand against him." before Shizuka asks "Shall I inform the crew of the Crimson Wind of this development?"
The captain's answer "Do so in case they did not receive the same contract as we had. While there might be some ill will towards them for their past actions, this will give them the perfect opportunity to atone for those actions."
Well the Snow White cosplayer didn't even need to send a message to their associates as a hail quickly came from the Crimson Wind with Asuka going "I take it you got the message regarding those Geist Fox refugees and accepted on our behalf." with Rei answering "The message is still being drafted, but the intent to take up the contract is shared amongst my crew. Perhaps this would be the perfect chance for you to rebuild your reputation among their forces."
The former Rendo Nexus agent simply goes "Yeah yeah, 'Super Spiral's Will' and all that, How's the pay?" before Shizuka answers "If this is anything like the prior escort mission we were involved with, it should be significant, even more so when factoring in the knowledge that the amount of those being escorted has been increased multifold."
"Tell 'em the Lilac Storm will take the job." responds the captain of the Crimson Wind before adding "Kabuto is looking into the data we've extracted from the academies as we speak, and my crew is debating on who we're releasing to replace Cinder now that she's dead."
"Very well." replied Rei before adding "Inform us of any information you come across that would be of value. May the Super Spiral's will guide you."
With both ships receiving a new mission, the Lilac Storm pirates set off to build their legacy further.
(P.O.V. Shift: Tokyo 3)
Bishops was expecting a genuine scorcher during the day where the next Angel would strike, but he wasn't expecting to have come home while the whole of Japan was in the midst of a heat wave with temps in the high 90's on a good day. Currently he was sitting in his office with the air conditioning on full blast figuring out what to do next both with how to handle Rendo Nexus, but also how to explain any Warper Leaf Villagers that decided to take his offer for safe haven when Jessie had pressed the door chime.
"What needs dealing with now, Ms. Musashi?" went the level 10 Warper when his assistant responded "Your message has reached the people it was meant to, and they've accepted the offer. We should be expecting the first ships to arrive within the next 24 hours."
Bishops replied with "Great, now I need a good enough alibi that doesn't draw suspicion and blow my cover wide open before the time is right." before Jessie asked "I have to ask, sir: why even bother with the cover anymore? Gendo's currently off world, the world governments aren't 100% on board with the existence of the Knights of Ryujin as a vigilante group, and people are going to catch on that things aren't what they seem to be after enough attacks from outside forces that aren't the Angels, be they Rendo Nexus, the Gourdians or otherwise."
Bishops' answer: "I know, but with that big of an influx of people learning the secret all at once, I can't tell how much havoc that would bring. Sometimes people can be stupider than a sack of hammers, with that kind of information in the hands of who knows, I'd rather bide my time before I absolutely have to spill the beans."
Before Jessie could give her two cents on Bishops' reasoning, the power had gone out, signifying that it was showtime. The Knights of Ryujin leader sighs and goes "Time to go to work." before sending the signal to the others, turning to Jessie and saying "You and I will have to stay behind for the time being to help get the EVAs into action for the big guy."
The Warper assistant's response: "Figured as much, how quick do you think all three of them will regroup?"
Her employer simply answers "Hopefully quick enough."
Meanwhile Shinji, Rei and Asuka had made their way towards the outer entrance of NERV HQ almost as instantly as the power went out city wide.
"We will have to use the manual entrance." went Rei before making her way there with the intent being the other two pilots followed when Asuka said something that managed to unsettle both her and Shinji:
"Probably not the best time, but once this is over, Makinami and I wanna have a few words with the leader of your little Knights of Ryujin club of vigilantes. Don't even try to deny it, both of us know everything you clowns have been up to when it comes to diverting canon with your Warper bullshit."
All Shinji and Rei could wonder mentally is "Who squealed?" when the Third Child responded "Kill the giant freak of nature first, than we can deal with…..this."
The trek through the inner workings of NERV was silent, and eventually they reach the hangar where a crew was in the midst of setting up mechanisms to get the pilots into the EVAs so they can be deployed with what little operation time they would have without drawing power from the city. As the two girls of the trio went to change into their pilot outfits, Shinji managed to find Bishops' energy signature and mentally tell him "Sohryu and Makinami know about us, and they wanna talk to you." before the Knights of Ryujin leader responded "Great. We'll deal with that when we deal with it, right now suit up and get in the damn Eldritch horror so we can get the canon of this episode over and done with. The other Knights have intercepted the herald, and I'll be joining them once you guys are deployed."
(Track Change: "Lord of the Speed (Instrumental Version)" by Rider Chips- Kamen Rider Kabuto OST)
With one set of Warpers readying themselves for a fight, another consisting of the other Knights of Ryujin now joined by Johanna were in the midst of one of their own as the Angel's herald who was somehow attacking at extremely high enough speeds that they barely had any time to react.
"You Lillin filth may have disposed of my brethren in the past, but you stand no chance against me." boldly went the herald before going "With the power I possess through Lord Matarael, Angel of Rain, I bear the strength of a raging storm and the speed of crashing lightning. Your deaths will serve as the tipping point for our glorious triumph as we reunite with Lilith and allow your kind to fall in the Third Impact."
While the herald went about on its diatribe, what it didn't notice was Johanna sneaking around from behind and actually placing a single finger on its body, activating her abilities as a Unitrix and temporarily replicating the powers of her opponent in enough time before Matarael's herald caught wind of it and swatted her away.
"So, you wish to be the first of your fellow warriors to fall?" went the herald before a surge of bio-elecricity surged around its body to prepare for another speed blitz, only to be caught by surprise when the Unitrix was able to not only dodge its attack, but counterattack at a similar speed as it.
"Impossible." went the creature before going "Not only were you able to match my speed, but your power has increased. How is that possible?" when the newest Knight of Ryujin answered "You have your abilities, I have mine. And through my abilities, I was able to figure out how you were able to combat us so swiftly, and why it involved the city losing power: your master absorbed the electricity within the area in order for you to harness it, supercharging your molecular structure to a point where it allows you to enter a state of what is uncommonly referred to as "HyperTime". With such an increase to your natural speed, it would be no wonder that our abilities to strike you were inefficient."
The herald chuckled before replying "You may have found out the method of my power, but it won't save your teammates. You won't be able to defeat me alone."
Johanna's response: "I needn't defeat you on my own, I simply need to keep you occupied until my master arrives to dispose of you, just as they shall dispose of your master." before the two began to engage in a furious high speed fight all across the city.
Meanwhile with the fight against the actual Angel, the battle was going exactly as it did in canon, only with Bishops hiding behind Unit-00 in full vigilante gear armed with his custom Unmaker. And right when the now blue armored Evangelion was about to pull the trigger on the pallet rifle it was armed with, the level 10 Warper shoots his own shot in time for both the A.T. Field destroying beam and the standard giant bullets hit at the same time, bringing the four legged giant eyeball down for good with Bishops using a little bit of Ki to vaporize the remains of the way down. Asuka was gonna confront the leader of the Knights, but she didn't even get the chance due to Bishops using Instant Transmission in order to join in the fight against the herald with Shinji and Rei fully intending to join him once they finally can get out of the EVAs.
(Track Change: "Storm Eagle Stage"- Megaman X1 OST)
Back with the fight between Johanna and Matarael's herald, the Unitrix was unfortunately dealt a blow hard enough to send her out of Hypertime with her opponent exiting the state in order to what else but gloat.
"You were a fool to challenge me. Any final words before I leave you and your fellow warriors as lifeless shells for your precious master?"
As if the universe was pulling the trigger for a hype check, Johanna simply answered "Yes actually: prepare to join your master in Hell." right as Bishops manifested to deck the herald with a well timed punch to the face, sending his new opponent flying.
The Warper leader asked "What're we dealing with here?" while helping his Unitrix to her feet as Johanna answers "The herald has the ability to increase its natural speed to a state where it seems like time has been stopped."
"Hypertime huh?" responded Bishops before adding "Guess I'm just gonna have to hope my punches connect fast enough." when the herald became the target of his attention.
"If you couldn't already guess, I've already got rid of your master. And since you've been giving my people more flack than they need, especially in this heat, it should be safe for you to assume you're next on my list."
His opponent's response: "You wretched fool! I shall avenge my master by painting wherever you're harboring Lilith with your blood. If you think you can match the speed of my strikes, than you're sorely mistaken!" before charging the absorbed electricity again to reenter its state of extremely heightened speed.
The herald managed to start the fight by getting a consecutive series of good blows against the Warper leader while unbeknownst to anyone, the Metsu Sol Emerald housed in Bishops' body began glowing beneath his costume. The effect of this mysterious glowing was soon activated as Bishops began to be able to block hits from the creature while the world around him seemingly began to slow to a complete halt as he was not only able to counter a crucial blow from his opponent, but go on the counterattack with a Ki charged punch to the gut.
"How?" went the Kaijin who was now attempting to comprehend the recent development in the fight before adding "How are you able to match my speed as well as your minion?"
Bishops' answer wasn't exactly what the creature expected: "Beats me. Maybe a bit of will power, maybe I've somehow mentally learned how to use my own bio-electricity to increase my own speed. All I know is now we're on an even playing field." before transforming into a Super Spiral as a show of force and adding "Well, not anymore now." and unloading on his opponent with a massive barrage ending with a powerful uppercut that sent the herald flying. The level 10 Warper wanted to waste no time in finishing the fight, blasting the herald with one final Death Ball to wrap things up. While the others were celebrating, Bishops could only reach for the back of his neck and wonder "Was that me who pulled that speed boost out of my ass, or was it you?" to the emerald.
(8 hours later)
Asuka and Mari stood in front of Bishops, Shinji and Rei in the outskirts of town under the moonlight when the level 10 went "Alright you two, who filled you in on the Warper's Secret and what business do you have with me other than your NERV duties?"
The bespectacled brunette answers "We figured that one out ourselves out of dumb circumstance. As for what our business is, we want to offer a proposition."
"And what might that be?" asked Bishops before Asuka answered "Simply put, Four Eyes and I are willing to offer our services in the fight against Gendo. We ain't joining your Warper club, but we will be willing to work with you. For the right price, of course."
This of course lead Shinji to respond "So you're basically offering to act as hired mercenaries, but not join our team?" before turning to his employer and adding "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd take the deal. Not only do we get reinforcements, but we don't consistently have to have them around. Win win." when Mari replied with "Oh come on, puppy boy. You know you'd miss having us around all the time, especially with what happened with that final movie in the "Rebuild" continuity."
Of course the Third Child retorted with "You forget one thing: that Shinji and I ain't the same." before Bishops intervenes by saying "Leave this to me, kid. If you're serious about offering your services, we can meet another day to discuss rates along with drafting a contract. Now if there's nothing else, I have other things to deal with."
Asuka confirms that that was it before her and Mari left the scene when Bishops received a call from Ami.
"Master, the Geist Fox's forces have made contact with Ms. Musashi. They will arrive in our territory in an estimated 24 hours, and they have drafted an alibi in order for you to maintain your cover."
"Wonderful, inform them that I'll be expecting them." responded Bishops before hanging up. He was building his forces further and setting himself up for the inevitable war that was about to come to his territory, now if only things could keep going his way for more than a couple episodes.
(Ending Theme: "Aozora ni Naru" by Jon Hashimoto- Kamen Rider Kuuga OST)
Current List of Power Levels:
Desmond Bishops: 87,000,000 (Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)/ 4,350,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x50 Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)/(Super Spiral Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)/ 8,700,000,000 (Super Spiral 2 Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)
Shinji Ikari: 26,000,000 (Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)/ 780,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x30 Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Mana Kirishima: 3,900,000/ 97,500,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x25) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Musashi Lee Strasberg: 4,000,000/ 100,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x25) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Keita Asari: 4,000,000/ 100,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x25) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Rei Ayanami (Rei III): 6,800,000 (Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Toji Suzuhara: 5,600,000/ 168,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x30) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Kensuke Aida: 5,600,000/ 168,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x30) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Sakura Suzuhara: 5,400,000/ 162,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x30) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Hikari Horaki: 5.2
Misato Katsuragi: 5
Wynn Miyabi: 5,210,000 (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Eria Aoi: 5,210,000 (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Lyna Hikari: 5,210,000 (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Asuka Langley Sohryu: 2,450,000/ 49,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x20) (Warper Status: LV. 5)
Mari Illustrious Makinami: 2,000,000/ 40,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken: x20) (Warper Status: LV.5)
Matarael, Angel of Rain: 200,000,000
Matarael's Herald: 100,000,000
Ryoji Kaji: 6
Pen Pen: 3.25
Shigiru Aoba: 4
Maya Ibuki: 4
Mokoto Hyuga: 3
Ritsuko Akagi: 4
Jessabelle Musashi: 7,210,000 (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Fuytsuki Kozo: 3
Gendo Ikari: ?,?,000 (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Ami (Earth Dimension SJ-12639706): 7,000,000/280,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken=x40) (Warper Status: LV. 6)
Kaworu Nagisa: 10,200,000 (Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed)/153,000,000 (Max Safe Kaio Ken=x15 Metsu Sol Emerald Absorbed) (Warper Status: LV: 6)
Johnny "Gourdar the Never Ending" 2x4 (Earth Dimension EEE- Sigma-1451-B): 25,000
Dr. Frog (Earth Dimension LOSE-1018-Tau): 3,500,000/120,000,000 (Battle Suit MK.2 Overclock)
"Johanna": 15,000,000/65,000,000 (Ability Absorbed)
EVA Unit-01: 55,000,000 (Synch Rate: 60%)
EVA Unit-00: 20,000,000 (Synch Rate: 60%)
EVA Unit-02: 31,000,000 (Synch Rate: 60%)
Eren Jeager (Black Air Force): 150,000,000/ 1,500,000,000 (Titan Form)
(Author's Note: Hey look, I got a new chapter out before the year was over. Jokes at my constant fits with not being able to either figure out what I wanna do with the altered events of canon or not being able to actually write what I wanna do with it due to outside interference aside (I have a life outside of this site, you know), I've got some stuff to announce.
1: I'll be spending the rest of the year that isn't diverted towards the holidays to work on the next chapter (which I've already gotten started on as of the time this chapter is posted).
2: I have set up an AO3 account, and I've started posting revised chapters of this story on there, usually at a pace of one per week (I put 2 up this week for the same reasons I listed above).
3: Yes, I have been keeping tabs of Yoshi3000's work relating to Project Reality, and the effects of those stories affect what goes down in this one. Which is why Rendo Nexus is the biggest threat to Bishops right now and will continue to be for the foreseeable future.
Now then, next time brings another bout with the Gourdians, and they came to win. But with the refugees of the universe of "The Geist Within" on Bishops' side, it might just even the odds...if one of the residents with an ax to grind doesn't lop off Bishops' head first.)