Chapter 31: Fire Youngman
The firefight in the hangar was only getting worse as more enemies rappelled in, using the rubble from the drone attack as cover. Making matters worse for the Norma, a shot from a grenade launcher slammed into the emergency elevator, completely collapsing the structure in on itself.
"Dammit, now we can't bring down Para-mails!" Mei cursed, ducking away from a spray of fire.
"Alain, you going to do the thing or not?!" Hilda shouted.
"Coming through!" Alain shouted as Wyvern lifted off its launch pad, the rifle shifting to the ready. A flash of green from the muzzle, and both the rubble and the soldiers hiding behind it were blown away. When the smoke cleared, the entrance was cleared for takeoff. "Hell yeah!"
"How much worse would it be if he'd used explosives?" Naomi chuckled.
"Damn glad that machine of his uses beams." Hilda said.
"Everyone alright?!" From the side corridor, Ange suddenly came running onto the tarmac with Momoka behind her, the girl looking across the area and taking in the remains of the battle. "Looks like I got here late."
"No shit!" Hilda snapped. "What took you?!"
"No time! Look out for Momoka for me!" Hurrying over to Villkiss, Ange climbed in and took off through the side openings of the hangar.
"She's being kind of impatient." Alain murmured. "The rest of you good to take off? I'll head off first to help Tanya's team!"
"Ready as ever!" Naomi said, already clambering onto the Halberd as Wyvern shot off into the air. "Hilda, how's your shoulder?"
"I'll be fine." Hilda said, despite cradling her wound. "I've been through worse. This won't stop me from flying. Besides, I can't save anyone if I let something this small stop me."As the rest of the team were mounting their machines, Salia hurried down from the same stairway as Ange. She looked around, glaring when she spotted Villkiss cresting off into the air. 'Like I'd let you.' She thought. 'I'll drag you and Villkiss back here even if I have to shoot you down to do it!' Loathe as she felt with the idea of damaging the Villkiss, Salia knew what her mission was. She'd see it through no matter the ends of it.
Topside, a group of soldiers were running towards a waiting transport. In the arms of one, a short girl of about fifteen with short vermillion hair was being carried. It had been a spot of luck they'd managed to capture one of the priority targets. Now they just had to return to the fleet. Or that was at least the plan before the transport blew up right before their eyes. From behind them, Tusk took advantage of their shock to launch a surprise attack. The sudden appearance of the unknown boy distracted the soldiers just long enough for Tusk to take out the first four with his gun before leaping over the shoulder of the one carrying Vivian and stabbing him through the back of his neck.
"Tusk coming in, I'm topside." He still had an open line to Jill so he was going to be sure to use it even if he was following Leon's request. "Where's Ange?"
"About that." Jill said, just as the familiar roar of Para-mail engines caught his attention. Tusk turned just in time to spot Villkiss shooting out of the hangar with Wyvern hot on its tail.
"Geez! That crazy woman!" Tusk sighed.
"Potato chips…" someone murmured, making Tusk turn back to the girl he had rescued. 'Well, no better option. I can at least get her somewhere safe first.' Gently picking the girl up, Tusk started off towards his Air Runner. 'I'll trust Alain with Ange for now. He's up there, so it'll be fine… let's hope Dission gets here in time to bail us out.'
Julio's patience was starting to run thin. The progress of the invasion had been far from what he would consider successful. 'This should have been easy!' he grimaced. 'They're just bloody Norma! Why do these idiots keep dying?!'
"We've captured a few Mail riders in the sky." The CO reported. "As well as a few captures within the base."
"I don't care about those!" Julio snapped. "Priority One is Angelise! Priority Two is Villkiss! Where are they?!"
"Object coming in at high speeds." The helmsman said. An Mana window was opened to reveal a white Para-mail racing right towards them, a gray and blue one coming right up behind it. "It's Priority Two and Priority Four!"
"Hehehe… so she's coming to me." Julio chuckled. "Cipher!"
"Yes?" The masked man appeared on the video comm.
"You and your men have permission to take off. Villkiss and Wyvern are coming to us."
"Understood. Enjoy the show, your Highness. I'll show you why it is those dissidents christened me 'Nightmare of Farbanti' ten years ago."
"That man has such a title?" One of the crewmen murmured.
"I heard he participated in the subjugation of Solus ten years ago, during that Norma uprising." Another said. "Apparently he works directly for someone beyond even the leaders of the kingdoms."
"Never mind!" Julio ordered. "Cipher will handle her. Focus on acquiring the other targets." 'But if what Master Embryo said is true, then Cipher is powerful enough to make this easy.' He thought. 'Oh it will be a joy to watch him take down that wretched thing.'
No sooner had Ange and Alain emerged into the furball involving the drones and remaining uncaptured Para-mail, the disks mobbed them as soon as they were in range. Back to back, the two machines changed to Assault Mode, rifles and swords taking down scores of the drones that attacked them from all angles. As they were volleying through the seemingly endless buzzing cloud, a sudden burst of gunfire came from behind as Salia's Arquebus charged in at Villkiss.
"Ange, return now!" Salia shouted. The moment an opening appeared in the assault, Salia placed her machine in front of Villkiss, rifle raised at the cockpit. "Why don't you get it?! That you were chosen! By Alektra, by Villkiss!"
"Salia, now is not the time to be making an issue about this!" Alain shouted, getting between the two. A sudden mob of the drones took advantage of the distraction, forcing Alain to divert his attention to keep the two girls from being swarmed. "I think we have bigger problems right now don't you think?!"
"Why are you taking her side again?!" Salia screamed. "My role, my place – she took all of it! And she doesn't even care! I won't let her just throw it all away!"
"I liked it, you know." Ange suddenly said. "I liked it here. This wretched, shitty, atrocious place. Everything tasted like shit, and sometimes the people were no better. But I liked living here. And he destroyed it! That's why I'm going!"
"Ange what're you…" before Alain could finish, Villkiss shot forward, rushing towards Salia and severing the Arquebus's arms before Salia could even counter. "Ange what the hell?!"
"If either of you get in my way, I'll kill you!" Ange said as she kicked Salia aside and shot off towards the fleet. Alain growled and sent Wyvern into a dive, catching Salia's unit before it could crash into the surf.
"Damn her and that attitude!" Alain cursed as Villkiss started to glow. But rather than golden like before, this time it was red. A flaming aura coated the body, moving down along its sword to form a blade of energyu, the now extended sword slashing through the drones with ease. "She's unlocked another mode for it huh? She really is…"
"Damn her… damn her!" Salia shouted. "I won't just let her run off with the victory! Ange you… you fatass!"
"Salia calm down!" Alain snapped. Salia's tear filled glare on the monitor didn't sit right with him. "Why in the hell are you so stuck on this? Why is Villkiss so damn important to you?"
"Why don't you get it?!" Salia yelled. "I just wanted to be useful! I wanted to fulfil my promise, to do what Alektra couldn't. And I… I wanted to be able to fly alongside you. To be equal with you! I can't do that as I am now. I need more, I need something better… but she… dammit!"
"Salia…" Alain felt a pang in his chest as Salia broke down into tears, and he looked back to Villkiss as it became a bolt of red in the sky. "If you can still fly get back to base and to the Aurora. After this battle… let's talk it out. Put aside anything about being an ace, duty, or anything. Just… talk. Alright?"
Alain didn't get an answer, but the Arquebus's engines flickered to life, and the damaged Para-mail was able to initiate a hover. Alain sighed and let her go when new alerts pinged on his radar, and a beam shot from afar forced him to dodge. 'The same type as before…' Alain turned towards the direction of the beam. His jaw tightened as the brief glare of the sun gave way to the descending Siegfried, surrounding by four Glaives that all gleamed with bright green lines of Mana across their frames.
"We meet once again, young pilot." The crimson machine's pilot said. "Though I'm positive you've been anticipating this as much as I have. I do hope this will be more interesting than last time. Because unlike then, there won't be a last minute change of plans to save you."
"Is that so?" Alain muttered. He felt his arms shaking, the memory of the beating he'd taken the last time he'd fought the Siegfried coming to mind. And now it had backup. 'But… this'll be different than last time. I won't lose control like before. And I won't be on my own. I just need to hold out.'
"Alain." Wyvern said. "I am as ready as you are to face this foe again. In order to protect the Norma and move on. I wish to defeat this foe. I wish for you to overcome the despair it instilled in you and your allies."
"Heh, thanks big guy." Alain mused. "Alright then… let's fly!" With a wave of its arms, the Siegfried signaled its allies to charge, and the Glaives blasted off towards Alain who met them head on with the ignition of a beam saber splitting the air.
"Hilda, cleared for launch!" Mei retreated as the rest of the Para-mails were finally ready to go, throwing an arm up to signal to the armorers. "Once they're off we're pulling out! Carry what you can!"
"Let's not let Ange and Alain have all the fun!" Naomi said, the Halberd's engines flickering in time with her anticipation.
"Let's go… Captain." Chris looked across to Hilda's Glaive, the redhead nodding from the comm line.
"Garm Squadron, let's go!" Hilda commanded. 'Being Captain is a bit different. I'm fine with it.' She admitted. All those times she'd bickered with Salia over her command style came back to Hilda, and she suddenly understood the pressure she had been under. 'Guess that's another one I'll have to apologize to.'
Liftoff slower than usual since they had to exit from the sides of the bay but at least there was room to spare and not an enemy in sight. But, as they began pulling out, one of the drones swooped in from the right side. Hilda, Rosalie, and Naomi's machines were already exiting the hangar as the drone entered at speed, sparking from damage and missing most of its blades. And it aimed right for Chris's Howser pulling up the rear, ramming into the Para-mail with every last charge of energy it had, sending Chris the careening into one of the support beams.
"Chris!" The other three shouted in unison as they pulled their machines back. But the drones that were swarming around the island were keen to get in their way.
"Hang in there Chris!" Rosalie shouted. "We'll save you!"
"Thanks… Rosa-" only to be cut off as an explosion flared out from the hangar. Rosalie's eyes widened in horror as she saw the remains of Chris's Howser falling through the rubble, a charred shell of what it had been. And worsening the feeling, the cockpit almost totally blown out.
"God damn it…" Rosalie growled as she pulled her machine back, pulling away from the drones surrounding her, Hilda, and Naomi and swept her rifle across the storm. "I'll kill all of you bastards!"
As the fighting raged above, Chris was still clinging onto life, but just barely. 'It's hot… it's painful…' she thought, her thoughts feeling as muddy as her vision. 'I… didn't think this is what dying would feel like. It's… worse than I thought. But… Rosalie said she'll save me…' a weak smile tried to form on her face despite the pain. As everything started to go black, she could also swear someone was singing as a muddy shape appeared in her vision…
Ersha's rifle buzzed as she took aim for the last few soldiers between her and the primary class. She knew the children had likely been stuck there since the fighting bad begun and she couldn't rest easy until she knew all of them were safe. As the noise of combat died down a bit, Ersha heard the off tune tinkling of a music box. A feeling of dread took her over as she broke off in a run. As she entered the room, the hope Ersha had for things died as she slowly took in what was in there. The entire room was burnt to a husk. And at the window were the burnt bodies of the children. Ersha fell to the floor as she felt something inside of her break.
"I'm sorry." Ersha sobbed as she fell to her knees. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry." As the young woman bawled her eyes out, there was also a rhythmic humming in the air as someone approached, a sad air about them as they overlooked the carnage.
Alain hadn't been too sure of what he'd expected when he saw Para-mails powered by Mana. In terms of performance the Glaives he was fighting were certainly above what was usual for the machine. And the Mana controls meant their response times were near-instant like when he'd fought the Siegfried. But, unlike the masked man, the pilots of the Glaives weren't nearly as experienced as he was. And Wyvern darted through the air, rolling around its enemies and flipping through the sky, the four enemy machines clearly had a difficult time trying to keep up with what Alain could manage.
"Come on, don't go telling me this is the best the Nations could throw at us!" Alain mocked, dodging past a stab from one of the Glaives, bringing his beam saber around and through its torso. He darted away as the remaining three opened fire with their rifles, another going down with a precise shot to the cockpit from Wyvern's beam rifle.
"I can't say I was expecting them to keep pace with you." Cipher leaned on a hand as he kept track of a data feed on his monitors. "However, if you believed there was only four with me, perhaps you should've paid more attention." Alain glanced at his radar as more pings went across it. Taking just a moment to look away from his engagement, he saw more of the Glaives in different colors shooting from the other carriers in the fleet. Some of them went straight for the Villkiss only to be cut down by its extended sword.
"Talk about coming out in force." Alain growled. As he swerved around the remaining two Glaives of the first wave, cutting both down with quick slashes of the beam saber, a sudden pause hit him. He felt his chest tighten suddenly, his head throbbing as he heard faint voices, and feelings of anger, grief, and fear suddenly rushed him all at once. "What the… what the hell?!"
"I wouldn't advise hesitating!" Alain flinched when the Siegfried shot up in front of him, a leg slamming into the Wyvern and sending it careening to the side. "Perhaps you should know something as well. I'm under orders to capture you and that machine. You should feel fortunate, Child of the Old World. In the end you have factored into Master Embryo's plans for this world, at least in some form."
"When I send you back to him, tell him to go to hell!" Alain snapped, the air sparking as he slammed his saber into the Siegfried's rising beam axe. And as the clash began, Alain saw a new ping on his radar again. But this time, the signal was different, and came alongside his comms buzzing.
"Hope the wait wasn't too long!" A grin split Alain's face when Chopper's voice came through. "This is an open line to Arzenal forces! The cavalry has arrived!"
"About time you assholes!" Alain laughed as he looked off towards the signal, the waves near the fleet starting to surge.
Ange still wasn't entirely sure what was going on with Villkiss, but she wasn't questioning it. Especially when it was making it so easy for her to rip her way through the swarm of drones between her and the fleet. Not even the surprise Para-mails that had come from some of the carriers were able to obstruct her path to the fleet, cutting through anything in her way with the massive beam blade her sword projected. She'd just managed to cut through most of the missiles of a barrage coming her way, but two got through from behind. She tried to shoot them down but the last one got through and slammed right into Villkiss. But rather than going up in a ball of fire, Ange barely felt a thing as Villkiss's red glow only intensified.
"A barrier huh?" She murmured. "Well then…"
Shifting to flight mode as the drones swarmed in, Ange charged right through. The barrier sent any that crashed into the Villkiss up in flames, the machine a flaming meteor in the sky as it dove towards the ship. Any anti-air fire was also stopped by the barrier, and Ange brought her machine charging right through the center of the ship. Villkiss burst out from the other end of the ship, which went up into a ball of fire as the glowing Ragna-mail crested back upwards.
Ange repeated the process through another of the ship and shot towards another as Villkiss shifted forms. The sword extended again, and Ange bifurcated the ship right down through bridge tower. But as she headed for the ship, a new ping stopped her as something came surging up through the waves. And what came with that surge was a massive black vessel breaking the surface, its prow ramming through the smaller ship like it was made of paper mâché before slamming back down onto the surface and kicking up waves.
"What the hell?!" Ange was about to take a swipe at the ship, assuming it had to be a new enemy if it had just rammed through another ship. But then her comm buzzed, and she was met with the face of one of the young men that had helped Tusk save her in Misurugi. "Wait, you people?!"
"Whew! Glad I caught you before you swiped at us!" Chopper laughed. "What, not catch the open line I sent out? Or am I just not your type?"
"What are you doing here?!" Ange said.
"Bailing your asses out that's what!" High Roller said, and the top bay of the black vessel opened up. "You just keep on doing what you were Princess! Leave those flying buzzsaws to us!" Ange watched as from the open bay, a horde of Para-mails shot out and joined the fighting as Ange turned back to the core of the fleet, her eyes locking to the central ship. 'There he is. I know that ship.' Ange pulled Villkiss around and shot right for the Murakumo. 'Stay there Julio. I'm coming for you!'
As much as Alain wanted to be elated about CROSS's arrival onto the battlefield, keeping his focus on the Siegfried was holding his attention above all else. 'This'll be different than the last time, it has to.' He thought. 'Don't lose your focus and take this guy down!'
Of course he still also had to contest with the Mana Para-mails that had joined the engagement. And having an enemy like the Siegfried mixed into this new furball meant the demand on his attention was something else entirely as Alain rolled the Wyvern through a volley of gunfire and missiles while keeping an eye on the crimson Para-mail throughout it all.
"Damn mobs, get out of my way!" Alain shot past a Mana controlled Howser and flipped around, missiles firing from his shield and sending it up. As he was pulling away, a beam arced from the Siegfried's rifle, piercing right through the shield. Alain growled as he hit the switch to disengage the item, pulling away as the remaining missiles in it exploded all at once. "Shit!"
"Having a bit of trouble there, Trigger?" Alain looked back in time to see a grey Howser rushing towards him as another Mana Glaive was trying to get at his back. The bulkier Para-mail rammed a fist right into the enemy machine, a shoulder cannon locking down and blasting its core to pieces. "Sorry about the wait." Chopper broadcast. "Had to get through that wall the Princess was dealing with."
"Took long enough." Alain chuckled, looking around as two more of the enemy Glaives were quickly dispatched, the source being a black Arquebus even higher than they were. "Nice shots Huxian!"
"Let us handle the drones and these new guys." Huxian said. "Can you hold off that Nightmare until we can back you up?"
"I can try! Go help the girls fighting around the island, they'll need it more than me if they're going to break through that swarm!"
"Roger!" The machines broke off into their own fights and Alain rushed back to the Siegfried, beam edges slamming into each other again as he swung.
"Sorry for the pause." Alain said. "But looks to me like this is going a bit badly for you guys."
"In a way." Cipher said. "I will admit the Princess unleashing more of Villkiss's power is a surprise variable. But not one we didn't foresee. Master Embryo has ways of getting that which he desires. Tell me, do you really think you'll be able to stop me? Last time we fought you hardly landed a scratch."
"That was different!" Alain growled as he rushed away from a slash from the beam axe, firing back with his beam rifle as the Siegfried spun through the air. "This time it won't go that way!"
"Then prove it! Show me that you have the resolve you lacked before!" The Siegfried began to glow green as Mana lines coursed across it. Alain tightened his grip as it began darting around even faster, those irregular patterns throwing off any attempt to lock onto it.
"Wyvern, let's beat this bastard!"
"Affirmative. Access granted, ARISE Mode, activating."
Wyvern gleamed red as its particle drives whirred to life, shooting after the Siegfried at full tilt. The two machines beam streaks of red and green across the sky as they clashed. Streaks that shot through the ensuing furball of CROSS's forces and the remaining drones and Mana Para-mails in the sky. Alain felt his arms and legs grow heavier from the speeds they were maneuvering at, a strain he hadn't felt in a while even with Wyvern's inertia dampeners kicking in.
"So this is ARISE." Cipher mused. "Master Embryo was right, that machine does bear quite the power. But… you're still lacking. Don't tell me this is the extent of what you and this machine can do!"
"Shut up and fight dammit!" Alain snapped, the air heated from another clash of beam axe and saber. "What the hell does Embryo know about this thing?!"
"More than enough to want it." Cipher replied. "I'm sure he knows more than you and your ilk could ever hope to. Why don't you tell me though? Why do I feel like this lack? Why does it feel as if this machine, this demon made to combat a "God", isn't nearly as mighty as it should be?"
'Because we haven't had the time to find out how the Twin Drive even works!' Alain kept the thought to himself as the weapon lock broke. The Siegfried countered by forcing out it's right arm, and what looked like a Freeze Bullet launcher extended out. But rather than a freeze shot, the shell that rammed into the Wyvern burst into a gout of flames across the shoulder and torso.
Alain growled as the flames obscured his cameras, barely able to see where he was going as he avoided the follow up strike from the Siegfried. A quick roll was able to dissipate the flames, but the new damage warning on his monitor showed that shot had done more than enough damage.
"Dammit, that was a cheap shot." Alain growled. He glanced at the screen that also showed the status for ARISE Mode, clicking his tongue when he saw it getting lower by the second. "Only a minute left. Fine then. I'll make that minute count! Wyvern, full throttle! Even if it strains the frame, give it everything we've got!"
"Disengaging safety limiters to enable maximized output."
Alain grit his teeth as the sudden increase in speed that came with it only made the weighty feeling on his body grow. But that was just something more to fight through as he blazed towards the Siegfried, shots flying from his beam rifle until it overheated. The beam shots were blocked by the Siegfried's shield as Wyvern rushed in, and when Cipher pulled the shield away, he was met with Wyvern baring down on him with both beam sabers at once. He responded in kind with the second beam axe flipping out from the shield, Siegfried's open hand grabbing it and raising both weapons, stopping the beam sabers in their tracks.
The two machines carried the melee exchange through the air and down, both coming down on the surface of Arzenal hard. Alain growled again as Wyvern jolted to a stop. He throttled forward as the Siegfried did the same. Beam sabers and axes flew forward to meet each other again… and in the moment the weapons collided, Wyvern's empowered glow faded. 'Dammit!' Alain's eyes widened as the weapon lock was swiftly broken through by the Siegfried, one of the beam axes shooting forward and slamming the side of Wyvern's torso. Alain yelled as he was sent flying back, the armor on that side of the cockpit being breached and sending shards of metal flying around as Wyvern was sent crashing into the ground.
"So, it runs on a time limit." Cipher sighed in disappointment as the Siegfried loomed over the Wyvern, Alain wincing through the pain of a few cuts and blood flowing over his eye as he gazed up at the machine through the gash in his cockpit. "I will admit however, even when lacking you put up a decent fight this time. If circumstances were different, and you were fighting me with that machine at its true power, perhaps you could have prevailed over me today. But seems fate has other plans. However… I've never been one to leave things to luck."
From the Siegfried's other arm, a port opened from which a net launched out to cover the downed Wyvern. A flash of light followed, and Alain screamed as an electric charge was sent racing through the net and into Wyvern to shut it down.
"What the… what the hell?!" Alain yanked at his controls and tapped at the control panels, but he didn't get a hint of response from his machine. "Wyvern?! Come on! Talk to me!"
"An EMP pulse." Cipher said, his machine lifting back up into the air. "It's totally disabled now. You'll be retrieved soon enough, so just sit tight until then."
"Dammit, dammit!" Alain cursed as he kept trying to get a response as the Siegfried shot back into the furball above. "Come on… do something! You said you wanted to win, right Wyvern?! So do something dammit! If you say you're not going to lose then commit! COME ON!" Alain slammed a fist to the main panel as despair threatened to take him over. "Come on, move! If we don't, how many more people are going to die!? You said you'd help protect the people I care about if something happened didn't you?! Even with Ange, Embryo might be out there! And that damn Nightmare is up there too… come on… we can't let them win again. DO SOMETHING!"
His hands slammed onto the central panel as he shook with restrained sobs of desperation. The lack of a response did nothing but frustrate him more. Wyvern had been his almost lifelong partner, and even if it was an AI he almost felt there was nobody else he could trust me. And now even that was failing. 'Why? I can do more than this! I refuse to let the events of ten years ago repeat. Not again.'
As his hands settled back onto the controls, the console pinged. Alain's chest swelled at the hope of a response, but what flashed onto the screen wasn't Wyvern's usual multi-colored image. Instead, it was a video, blurry and probably long corrupted, the person in front of the camera barely able to be made out.
"This is a message." Said a woman's voice. "One being made for a humanity I may never know. If you're receiving this it means the AI aboard this machine has recognized someone able to undo all of the locks we have been forced to place on it. So, please… listen to what I have to say."
There had been the slightest of lulls in the battle as Cipher and Alain had dueled each other. The sight of the Siegfried and Wyvern blazing through the sky. The skill on display from the two opposing pilots was enough to draw awe from both sides of the conflict for a few brief moments. But that exact awe is when the tides began shifting. When the Wyvern was taken down from falling out of its empowered state first, the Norma in the air felt an immediate drop in their morale. Alain was, after all, the admired Ace of Aces. Many of them considered him unbeatable, the best pilot among them. To see him go down even after putting up a fierce fight was an immediate blow to them.
"Don't go losing focus!" Hilda shouted over the comms. "He's still alive down there so all of you idiots get your heads straight!"
"First Chris and now… like hell you bastards are taking someone else from me today!" Rosalie screamed, her remaining canon roaring as she fired it into the crowd of drones and Mana Para-mails.
"Make an opening for me!" Naomi said. "I'll get to the Wyvern and see if I can help!"
"Hope we can help with that!" someone said over the comm. 'I recognize that voice!' Hilda looked around at hearing Chopper, spotting his Howser rushing into the fray and blasting away some of the drones surrounding them. He was followed up by a dark green Glaive. Rifle fire from above shot through more of the drones, Huxian's Arquebus swooping by. "Well if it ain't some of Alain's gal pals. How you been since getting back here eh Red?"
"I've been better." Hilda said. "So, I'm not saying no to help. Also isn't there supposed to be four of you?"
"Shamrock is pulling AWACS duty." High Roller said as he appeared on the comms. "He's wayyy up there right now keeping track of things."
"And you guys need to keep working." Shamrock said, High Roller wincing. "The swarm is thinning out but there's still too many. The ships carrying the captured Norma are also already exiting the AO. Sorry, but we won't have much of a chance of saving them."
"Then we fight all the harder to keep anyone else from being taken!" Hilda shouted. She whipped her rifle around and swept it through the drone swarm, an opening to Arzenal being cleared. "Naomi, step on it! Get Wyvern moving or get it out of the way!"
"I'll be as quick as I can!" Naomi shot off towards the island, her gaze following the Siegfried as it shot past. 'That one's not joining the fight? Then… where is it going if it's not helping its allies?'
Julio's mood aboard the Murakumo had been dropping by the moment as the battle began changing its pace entirely. The Villkiss tearing its way through the fleet and the ill-timed arrival of those dissidents was barely balanced out by the news Cipher had taken down and secured the Wyvern. But, Julio wouldn't feel satisfied with any of it unless his wretched abomination of a sister was finally taken down.
"How are those fools losing!" Julio growled. "It's just one damned-" his rant was cut off as the front of the bridge suddenly fell away to reveal the Villkiss hovering in front of him. Julio screamed in terror and fell back, not even noticing Riza had vanished through the rear door of the bridge. Villkiss's cockpit opened and Ange rose into view, and when Julio saw her going for her gun he flinched.
"Angeli-" A gunshot was followed by a flare of pain in Julio's leg, the young man screaming as he clutched at the new wound.
"Call off the massacre and the rest of your men. Now!" Ange demanded.
"Ngh…" Julio groaned as he opened a mana screen. "This is Holy Emperor Julio I. All units, cease combat and retreat from Arzenal."
"Retreat? What about the Norma?" Julio didn't reply to the captain who'd answered as he closed the window.
"There. I called them off. Now get me a doctor!" Ange's reply was to lower back into her machine, Villkiss raising its sword to strike. "W-Wait! I'm sorry! I'll do anything you ask! I know, I'll reinstate you into the royal family! Angelise, please! It's not a bad offer, isn't it?! Please don't kill me!"
"You worthless scum." Ange growled. "Go to hell!" Julio shrieked as Villkiss's blade came down, only to be stopped by a diamond shaped beam shield. Appearing as if from nowhere, a black Para-mail marked in purple hovered between Julio and Villkiss, its head bearing a far more face-like design than the norm. And standing on its shoulder was the man Ange had seen in Arzenal.
"Lord Embryo!" Julio's scream now was one of relief as the two machines drew away from each other. "Kill her! Kill Angelise! Do it now!"
"Embryo?" Ange repeated the name. The same one she'd heard after Alain had fought the Siegfried. The man Tusk had said was the reason behind everything in this world.
"Ange, you are beautiful." Embryo said. "Your anger is pure and white. It rages, its heat unsurpassed. You're like a burning flame rising up against injustice and absurdity. A noble, beautiful flame… I cannot let such a flame be tarnished by burning up things without value. So I will do it instead. I will carry the burden of that sin." As she tried to make sense of what he was rambling about, Embryo's machine flew upwards, turning back towards the Murakumo below as the man began to sing.
The flames of countless lives, fall through and become stars.
They fly beautifully and fade away in the cradle of life and death.
The wings of the black machine opened and revealed the same weapons within the Villkiss's shoulders. Knowing what was to come, Ange pulled Villkiss away as the weapons gleamed, the vortexes of warped spacetime colliding with the Murakumo. And when the flash of light faded, nothing was left of the ship or Julio, just a deep hole in the ocean water quicky began to fill the place of, as if nothing had even been there. As the air remained still in the wake of the destruction, the Siegfried drifted over. Embryo turned to the crimson Para-mail. Its return clearly meant well for the man.
"Master Embryo, the Wyvern has been subdued." Cipher spoke. "It will be collected as with the others before we take our leave. If you wish, I will ensure the Villkiss will come as well."
"Give me a moment, if you'd please." Embryo said. Before either of them could say anything more, a sudden gleam came from Arzenal. The eyes of all three turned to it as the gleam turned into a steady, bright emerald glow. And from that glow, streaming ribbons of particles began spreading through the air, just like when Alain had stopped the red DRAGON Para-mail.
"Why would he use that system now?" Cipher murmured.
"That's not the ND Burst." Embryo said, his expression shifting into one of a gleeful awe. "To think I would actually see it happen. That someone would prove that old theory true. After so many years, that old fool has been proven correct. My… how wonderful!"
Jill leaned back as she felt just the slightest of lulls. There wasn't any more time for her to wait on anything. CROSS had sent out a declaration on an open channel telling her there was at least something of a distraction for her to get the Aurora moving through. 'So no time like the present.' She thought.
"Begin irrigation." Jill ordered.
"Beginning irrigation." Olivier replied, pressing a switch that began to fill the hangar with water.
"No life signs detected within Arzenal." Hikaru said. "All survivors have been relocated."
"Main engine critical in ten seconds." Pamela relayed. "Water levels up eighty percent. All floodgates closed."
"Transmit encrypted rendezvous coordinates to all active Para-mail." Jill ordered.
"Roger."
"Full gauge!"
"Release the restraint arm. Open the gates. Ease ahead!" The ship began to rock as the engines began to whir for the first time in a decade, a hum going throughout the entire vessel. "Aurora, taking off!"
Leon felt a lurch as the Aurora finally took off. He felt bad about being stuck in the bay with the other survivors of the attack, unable to be out there fighting with all the rest. But, it was a situation he would have to make do with for now. 'The best bet is that we link up with Kestrel and any other ships coming in. And I can only hope the pilots out there can make it back. Don't any of you go dying on us.'
Alain's eyes were glued to the active console from the second the message had begun to play. The only thing that took his eyes off it for even a moment was when some drones began to close in, but those had been swiftly shot from the sky. He at least knew the others up there had his back while he was stuck on the ground.
"Well then come on… I'm listening." Alain said, his eyes locked to the blurry speaker.
"I can't know what kind of world whoever this message reaches is." The speaker started. "It could be one of peace, and perhaps you're only hearing this by chance, long after this machine is needed. Or maybe mankind's worst nature has continued to win out, and you're hearing this while fighting in or at the precipice of another war. You may even be faced with the man who had a hand in creating these machines just as I did, someone who would forever destroy and alter the world until it becomes as he desires it. A man who believes mankind as we are is flawed, and must be made to change."
"Is she talking about Embryo?" Alain wondered aloud. For all intents and purposes, that was the only conclusion he could think of.
"This machine and its sister are indeed weapons of war. There's no way to get around what others have intended them to be." The woman continued with a sad tone to her voice. "But I still believe in humanity. We don't need to be forced to change to become better. What we need to do to move forward is to come to a better understanding of each other. Conflict may never truly cease, but I truly believe humanity can move beyond these constant wars. For that reason, I'm ensuring the AI aboard this Varia-mail will be carrying the remnant data of this world, though I can't ensure it will remain intact. If someone can overcome the system locks, then it means it will have recognized that person as someone who can help change this world."
"System locks and remnant data… that's everything Wyvern has been opening up." Alain looked to another screen as it flashed on. And this one had a different reading on it: ND Drive Synchronization Rate. And the meters indicating it were rising quickly as the machine began humming with life again. "Wyvern?"
"So to whoever this message is reaching, I must ask… do not let your heart grow cold. Do not let things like rage and prejudice rule you. I ask only that you continue to have hope in mankind's potential as I do. I do not believe our nature is that of destruction and hate. I believe at our very cores, humans are driven by kindness and the desire to always move forward. So please, continue to do so. Even if you come to unknown skies, please continue to believe in humanity. Please continue to strive to save others."
"Unknown skies…" Alain's jaw tightened as the echo of his father's words came to mind. And as Wyvern continued to power back on, something caught his eye. Drifting down through the gash in the cockpit, a feather came to rest on Alain's hand as he lifted it. The same kind from the sea eagles that rested nearby. "They're still here? Even after everything?"
"Alain, keep fighting. So many of you carry the wills of others on your shoulders. But do not let those wills burden you. So, continue to fly… keep going until you reach those new skies. But do it as you will. Not as we would."
"Dad?!" Alain snapped around as he swore he heard his father. But all he saw as Wyvern's view screens reactivated was the faint image of a sea eagle passing by. Alain closed his fingers around the feather, tears falling from his eyes as a soft chuckle left him. Wiping his eyes clear, he grabbed Wyvern's controls as the machine was now surrounded by an ebbing glow, rising back up as the net fell from it. "You there, Wyvern? I'm not done yet. You're not either, right?"
"Affirmative. Synchronization of ND Drives confirmed. Beginning system startup." Wyvern responded as the synchronization gauge raised to its maximum, the image changing to one of spreading wins as the light streaming from the particle drives increased, ribbons of particles coursing through the air. Wyvern's frame groaned from the damage done to it, but the machine stood strong despite it. "I will warn, due to damage to the frame, operating the ARISE Mode again will be under a stricter time limit in order to preserve the integrity of the frame and ND Drives. But I believe it will be more than enough."
"Then let's fly!" The streams of particles burst away as Wyvern shot back into the air. Alain didn't waste a second getting back into the action, beam sabers igniting as he rushed past two of the Mana Para-mails cutting them down with thin streams of particles coming from the drives as Wyvern flew again, even faster than it was before.
"Alain!" The Halberd came up along his right side, a relieved Naomi appearing on the comm video. "You're okay! What's going on with Wyvern right now?"
"It's that Twin Drive system we found out about. Not sure how but it just activated." Alain said, swerving past machine gun fire from oncoming Mana Para-mails. "But I'm not asking questions right now! I'm going after the Nightmare. I'm due some payback."
"Then I'm going with you!" Naomi said. "Wyvern is damaged and even if that system activated who knows how well you'll do? Don't be reckless, alright? We've been worried enough about you already!"
"Yeah, thanks for that you jackass!" Hilda snapped over the line, Alain wincing as her angry expression came into view. "I'll kick your ass for it later! You two better make it back with us, alright?! If you don't then I'll chase you all the way to hell myself, got it?!"
"Got it. Thanks Hilda. Don't worry, I'll be coming home. So you better do the same!" Alain hit the throttle and shot off, Naomi sticking to his tail as they made way towards the remnants of the human fleet. As they flew off, Hilda looked at her console when a signal came in.
"Coordinates?" She murmured. "And a retreat order… so we're leaving Arzenal behind. Rosalie, you get that?"
"I did! But… what about Chris?" Rosalie said. "We can't just…"
"There's nothing we can do for her!" Hilda snapped. "She's gone and we have to leave, now move it!" Hilda's grip tightened on her controls as she bit her lip. 'Chris,' she thought as she wiped her face. 'I'm so sorry.' "Hey, CROSS guys! We just got a retreat order from the Commander! You going to help us get out of here or what?"
"We're with ya!" Chopper said. "This is Garuda 1 to Kestrel! We're going to assist the Norma pilots in escaping the AO!"
"Reading you Garuda!" The reply came from Ray. "We just had confirmation the Hysterica is also on the field! We're exfiling ASAP!"
"Freaking Embryo's here too?!" Shamrock yelped. "What the hell has this battle turned into!?"
"One we're getting the hell out of dodge from!" Chopper said. "Hey Trigger and pal, don't linger too long!" Hilda took once final look back towards the Wyvern and Halberd as she turned her Glaive and shot off with the others as the enemy machines also began to pull away. 'Make it back you two. There'll be hell to pay if you're late!'
Cipher was focused on the sudden stream of particles from the moment Embryo took on such an enraptured look at the sight of them. Once the ribbons of light had vanished, the masked man had to admit to some surprise as the Wyvern's signal was restored. And when the machine came speeding towards him with another following it, he shifted Siegfried to the ready first and foremost.
"Master Embryo, I doubt he's coming here to follow along with us." Cipher said. "I will be sure he won't get up twice."
"Let's consider this a test then." Embryo said, letting out a giddy chuckle. "Let's see just what it can do now that it's truly awakened."
"Understood." Cipher shot off while drawing his rifle. He fired a few shots off at the Wyvern, which rolled out of the way much quicker than in their first engagement. "So even when damaged, when those drives are in synch with one another it can move like this? Just how much more power does it have now?" Cipher let out a huff as he swung up a beam axe to counter Alain's beam saber, their rifles then whirling and stopping right at the cores of each machine.
"Surprised I'm still kicking?" Alain said. "Looks like that EMP net wasn't quite as useful as you thought it'd be."
"You've just made the plan move along a bit faster is all." Cipher replied. "Don't expect the eventual outcome to change."
"We'll see about that!"
Both machines changed their angles as they fired, beams arcing past them. Alain felt the heat from the passing beam through the torn open segment as he shot off, Siegfried giving chase as they clashed melee weapons and dodged beam shots. 'The frame is responding faster than before. And Mei said from the data the synchronized drives have a squared output, so I'm past double what I had before! And I'm not fighting alone!' As Alain let the Siegfried chase him through the wreckage of the fleet and away from the now descending Kestrel, he kept an eye on Naomi's location. The Halberd had its rifle at the ready, following along the flight path as Naomi waited for a good shot.
"That thing definitely beats me out in performance, so I'll let Alain handle that." Naomi murmured, her finger hovering over the trigger. "And from here, I'll keep it distracted! Fire!"
Cipher glanced to the side as a new warning came around, raising his shield as a hail of bullets came his way. The bullets bounced off of the shield's surface near harmlessly, some leaving larger dents in thinner portions of it. And that momentary pause was capitalized on by Alain. The Wyvern rushed back in, letting loose with the beam rifle to try and catch the Siegfried in the spread. The crimson machine arced up, taking a swing with his beam axe as Wyvern crested upwards. Alain pulled back on his controls hard, grimacing when his rifle was scraped by the tip of the beam axe as he passed over. As the weapon began sparking, he threw it towards the Siegfried like a grenade, the rifle exploding between the two of them.
"Willing to sacrifice a weapon in this situation huh?" Cipher mused, firing through the particle cloud left from the rifle's explosion as the Wyvern rushed through it, getting in close again and bringing both beam sabers down onto the shield as Cipher raised it, deep gouges being cut into the armor. "I doubt your allies have the means to replace that rifle."
"Was busted after that hit anyway!" Alain snapped. "But what the hell are you waiting for huh? Not going to switch over to that Mana system? Or does that have a limit on use too?"
"Don't think the Siegfried and I would be so flimsy." Cipher flicked his hands to switch the controls over, breaking the lock and darting away, turning his direction to the Halberd. "Before much else, why don't I make sure we won't be interrupted?"
"No you don't!"
Cipher flinched as the Wyvern shot up, keeping pace with Siegfried without needing its ARISE Mode to boost its speed. Cipher was forced to stop the beam sabers with his axes, and broke away when Naomi loosed another burst of fire. 'It's output has to be three times… no, four times that of a higher performing Para-mail.' Cipher thought. 'It was already even with Siegfried before… something like that has the power to match the Ragna-mails at their full might.'
"So that's how it is." Cipher hummed. "Well then, show me what that machine can do now in this state! Just how strong are you!?"
"Wyvern, let's do it!" Alain gunned it as ARISE Mode kicked in, its status screen showing the single minute he would have to make use of it. The red glow Wyvern took on was even brighter than before, the particle trails looking more like flames as he rushed after the Siegfried. The air itself seemed to spark as the machines sped over the water. Naomi tried to keep a bead on them both as the clash sped up, but found she couldn't keep a solid gaze on them. 'They're both way too fast…' Naomi thought. 'and Wyvern is even faster than usual. When it comes to speed, I don't think anything else could catch him now. Man… now I just have to try even harder to keep up.'
Alain's eyes saw nothing but his enemy as he chased the Siegfried down. He knew he had the speed advantage now, but his strict time limit didn't give him a window to be slight about it. 'Once it's up I'm a sitting duck. The first opening I see is what I need to take. Just one clean hit is all I need!' The Siegfried rolled back around to take a shot with its rifle, and as it was rolling, Alain saw his chance. He sped up and was already swinging a saber in the process. He could feel everything slow down as he watched the saber swing upwards, the Siegfried starting to roll further in an attempt to dodge. And then contact was made, the beam saber slamming into the inner section of the Siegfried's shoulder and the arm went flying off.
"He was able to hit me?!" Cipher growled as he was sent rolling through the air. The Wyvern shot by as it lost its glow, the frame sparking in several places from the strain as it began to slow down. "Tch, no matter. I know your limits now. As I said, it won't make a difference."
"No you don't!" Another burst of fire stopped Cipher from approaching, the Halberd shooting down and getting between them. "You're not getting any closer this time. Don't think he's on his own!"
"Out of my way, girl." Cipher growled, his machine's remaining arm raising its rifle. "This fight isn't done."
"My, how wonderful!" Embryo laughed as the duel between the Wyvern and Siegfried came to its end. "I knew it would be powerful once the ND Drives synchronized, but I never anticipated this would be the result. Hahaha, oh how wonderful it is for old theories to come to fruition. I simply must reclaim it now."
"What the hell is all this?!" Ange demanded, Villkiss now having long since returned to its neutral state. "What are you?" Embryo gave a soft smile before his machine shifted back, a spray of bullets going where it had been. Ange followed the line of fire back, spotting Tusk's Air Runner rushing across the water's surface. As her image zoomed in on him, she also saw a comatose Vivian strapped to the boy's back.
"Ange, that man is dangerous!" Tusk said over the line, shooting another burst that Embryo easily dodged. Ange wondered how he was even controlling the thing since he was outside of it. "Get away! Now!"
"What an annoying pest." Embryo muttered.
Sing, sing, the two wishes are now one, strongly, strongly shining in heavenly gold.
"Shit!" Ange shot Villkiss downwards as soon as Embryo began singing. The only thought on her mind was those cannons began to charge was stopping them from hurting Tusk and Vivian. She didn't at all see that the Wyvern and Halberd were rushing over as well, the Siegfried pursing both. "I won't let you!"
As Ange screamed, her ring gleamed again. As Villkiss turned to attempt to guard when the cannons fired, its body gleamed blue. And the second before the space warping blasts hit, it, the Air Runner, and the other two machines rushing close vanished in a glint of light. When the blast died down and Embryo saw not a trace of any of them, an amused smile came to him.
"Master Embryo… I apologize." Cipher brought his damaged machine close, Embryo shaking his head.
"Nothing to apologize for, my Enforcer." Embryo said. "They will return in time, I'm sure. And we'll be waiting for them. Though… this is quite a boring plot twist, wouldn't you think? Boring, but not bad."
A/N
Partway through making this chapter I wasn't so sure on going the whole hog with making it so long but then figured, y'know what, it's the big end point of an arc and where the paces of the story take a shit. So why not go for a nearly 10k word chapter to sell it eh?
