Mobile Suit Gundam: Harpoon

[NephyrisX]

Callista couldn't help but let a low whistle of admiration at the sight of undoubtedly highly confidential and top secret components before her. Giant handheld weaponry that wouldn't look out of place on a Zaku, parts and actuators that look suspiciously like leg joints and towering cylinders that greatly resemble the housing of mobile suit reactors.

It's blatantly obvious California Base were fabricating and testing mobile suit components here. Federation-made ones, home and grown.

Callista snorted. No wonder the brass was desperate enough to send a bunch of pilots and their escorts knee-deep in captured territory. They're going to leave all of it for the Zekes with a pretty bow on it! Fortunately for the brass, they sent the right team to pull a fast one on Zeon.

Callista surveyed the now exposed hangar in its full glory, the stationed Medea and a helicopter-looking thing mmediately catching her eye. Guess she found her proverbial loot van and literal point of escape.

@Kensai @tankdrop24 @AlphaD @Sushi

"Hey guys," Callista called out to her fellow men, "unless you all want to drag all multi-ton stuff by hand, I suggest we start up the Medea and the other transport ASAP. I'm gonna check them out, but I need hands to start moving things. Volunteers, anyone?"

 

[Sushi]

@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____One of the Zeon soldiers dived out of the way. The other slammed into the armored hood of the vehicle with a muffled thud before being thrown clear. Their momentum carried them all the way into the cargo bay, stopping just short of crashing into a pile of ammunition crates.

_____They had been looting the place clean. A trio of enemy soldiers were bent down, scooping up handfuls of Federation equipment with their rifles still slung on their back. The soldiers froze in place at the sound of the arriving vehicle, blocking their path to the Medea's cabin.

_____A pair of Zeon troopers patrolled the catwalks above, spinning around at the sight of the new arrival.

_____Lieutenant Revelle cracked the top hatch open, and tossed a stun grenade right into the midst of the three enemy soldiers.


@Kensai @tankdrop24 @NephyrisX @AlphaD
Main Hangar
_____"It's a place where a great deal of experimental materials were protected, yes, and one of the prototypes is similar to a tank," said Bishop. She looked to Mack in a tired way. "-we weren't informed on a need for a third cannon."

_____A Type 61 MBT only came up to the top of the tracks of the thing. Little of the chassis could be seen behind the enormous slopes of the main tracks, and the frontal armor was hidden behind a smaller section of track that seemed to be mounted on an articulated arm for rough terrain. The body looked like an angular, oversized tank turret, a large-caliber gun mounted to the right side.

_____Cauldron-like shoulders connected a pair of cylindrical arms to the main body, the forearms terminating in a quartet of cannon barrels each. Whatever space wasn't taken up by track links or cannons was taken up by numerous retangular missile launchers.

_____The researcher stepped over to the hulking, tank-like weapon. "The prototype in front of you was scheduled for destruction once the base defenses fell. Federation HQ deemed this weapon obsolete… it's called the RX-44, and you will find it's more than a match for a Zaku.

_____"In the absence of communications with HQ… I have deemed it appropriate to take out the RX-44 for combat."

_____By then, a slow stream of wounded researchers and other Federation personnel had begun streaming toward the transports, filling into the rotor-winged aircraft first. "You are correct, ensign," the colonel said. Her eyes were cold as she looked to Callista. "We will use the RX-44 and all available resources to halt the enemy while these materials are evacuated."

 

[NephyrisX]

@Kensai @tankdrop24

"Ooo, you hear that Ach, Mack?" Callista cooed with a clearly exaggerated swagger, "You get to play with the big spanking new shiny tank while poor ol' me gets stuck getting the two birds to fly. Lucky you."

Callista sighed, her expression dropping the mirth and adopting a more stern expression better fitting the atmosphere at hand.

@Sushi

"Seriously though, we're against the clock here. We're gonna have to start hoofing it and getting the tranports up and running and getting the material all packed up. Colonel, I suggest you start pointing out the most crucial components in order of expendability and send some of your-" Callista shot a quick glance at the rescued eggheads , who have definitely seen better days, "-healthier people to pack them up for transportation."

Callista swiveled towards the back of the hangar, where the two transports were sitting nice and clean. "Send anyone with knowledgeable with aircraft to me. We're gonna get these birds up, or this mission goes up in smoke before it even started."

 

[Carol]

_____Cania felt the enemy soldier crash into the front of the armored car. The sound was unpleasant: a meaty bang as a broken set of limbs was flung away. She had seen people die previously. Not by the car itself though. Her enthusiasm diminished from the macabre spectacle. Before she could say anything, the lieutenant popped out of the hood and threw her addendum to the situation. When the stun grenade floated in the air, Cania got her head back in order.

_____"Us or them," she said. Her mood swung toward violence. She shuffled forward—almost slithering her way past Revelle—to man the machine gun after the flash bang. "I'll handle the gun."

_____Her body slid into position awkwardly. Never trained to shoot the machine gun, Cania had received the Federation special: no theory, all practice. That is, get thrown out and learn on your own. The old gunner lost his head over it. She counted on her luck and pluck to avoid missing hers.

_____"Take this, Zekes!"

 

[tankdrop24]

Main Hangar
_____"It's a place where a great deal of experimental materials were protected, yes, and one of the prototypes is similar to a tank," said Bishop. She looked to Mack in a tired way. "-we weren't informed on a need for a third cannon."

_____A Type 61 MBT only came up to the top of the tracks of the thing. Little of the chassis could be seen behind the enormous slopes of the main tracks, and the frontal armor was hidden behind a smaller section of track that seemed to be mounted on an articulated arm for rough terrain. The body looked like an angular, oversized tank turret, a large-caliber gun mounted to the right side.

_____Cauldron-like shoulders connected a pair of cylindrical arms to the main body, the forearms terminating in a quartet of cannon barrels each. Whatever space wasn't taken up by track links or cannons was taken up by numerous retangular missile launchers.

_____The researcher stepped over to the hulking, tank-like weapon. "The prototype in front of you was scheduled for destruction once the base defenses fell. Federation HQ deemed this weapon obsolete… it's called the RX-44, and you will find it's more than a match for a Zaku.

_____"In the absence of communications with HQ… I have deemed it appropriate to take out the RX-44 for combat."

_____By then, a slow stream of wounded researchers and other Federation personnel had begun streaming toward the transports, filling into the rotor-winged aircraft first. "You are correct, ensign," the colonel said. Her eyes were cold as she looked to Callista. "We will use the RX-44 and all available resources to halt the enemy while these materials are evacuated."

Click to shrink...

Mack couldn't help but whistle. "Wooow. That is a looot better than just another gun." Mack's eyes went wide, trying to digest every single aspect of the vehicle. "I betcha if we can start cranking these Four-Fours out, we can wipe them Zekes off the Earth pronto. If we figure how to make 'em fly in space, Zeon will be a distant memory."

"Seriously though, we're against the clock here. We're gonna have to start hoofing it and getting the tranports up and running and getting the material all packed up. Colonel, I suggest you start pointing out the most crucial components in order of expendability and send some of your-" Callista shot a quick glance at the rescued eggheads , who have definitely seen better days, "-healthier people to pack them up for transportation."

Callista swiveled towards the back of the hangar, where the two transports were sitting nice and clean. "Send anyone with knowledgeable with aircraft to me. We're gonna get these birds up, or this mission goes up in smoke before it even started."

Click to shrink...

Mack nodded. "I take it I'm also gonna need someone to help me drive this big thing."

 

[Hoshino Yumemi]

_____Cania felt the enemy soldier crash into the front of the armored car. The sound was unpleasant: a meaty bang as a broken set of limbs was flung away. She had seen people die previously. Not by the car itself though. Her enthusiasm diminished from the macabre spectacle. Before she could say anything, the lieutenant popped out of the hood and threw her addendum to the situation. When the stun grenade floated in the air, Cania got her head back in order.

_____"Us or them," she said. Her mood swung toward violence. She shuffled forward—almost slithering her way past Revelle—to man the machine gun after the flash bang. "I'll handle the gun."

_____Her body slid into position awkwardly. Never trained to shoot the machine gun, Cania had received the Federation special: no theory, all practice. That is, get thrown out and learn on your own. The old gunner lost his head over it. She counted on her luck and pluck to avoid missing hers.

_____"Take this, Zekes!"

Click to shrink...

Maion waited for the furious staccato of the machine gun to sound before making his move. "Shall we?" was his only cue before displaying a sudden burst of speed and heading for the door. He wanted to get to cover under the machine gun as he went for his rifle. His plan: he wasn't the best shot outside a cockpit, but mayhem was the great equalizer.

He saw a line of fire being drawn from the barrage, then cast his eyes upwards. Boots, and guys definitely not dressed as Federation troops prepping for a fight.

Best not to let them dictate it, then, he thought as he pulled the trigger and tried to engage the right catwalk occupant with a few controlled bursts.

 

[Sushi]

@Kensai @NephyrisX @AlphaD
Main Hangar
_____"Load the Gunperry first," colonel Bishop said. "It stands the better chance making it out of here undetected. Put all the staff on it first, and then any of the high priority cargo."

_____A sweat-streaked member of the ground crew urged Callista and the others to follow along. "If anyone's handy with an engineering vehicle, we need some help with the heavy stuff." As Callista's gaze moved to where the ground teams were hurriedly moving, she spotted a stocky, open-topped worker machine that resembled a miniature mobile suit. It was a model she recognized as being somewhat notorious during the initial days of the independence movement; many a space colonist had seen a riot quelled at the hands of machines like these.


@tankdrop24
RX-44 Prototype
_____"You won't just need help driving it. That machine has a nuclear reactor inside it." The researcher talking to Mack couldn't have been much over legal conscription age. His thick-rimmed glasses were dirty with soot, and his lab coat, torn, and stained dark brown in places with blood. "I'll ride with you. Come on."

_____The young researcher waited for Mack to follow, and stepped onto a small platform connected to a winch at the cockpit. It was just wide enough for each of them to put a single foot upon it. The two of them were hoisted up to the front of the boxy main body of the RX-44. There was a single hatch for both of them to climb in through, and the interior reminded Mack of a two-seater fighter plane more than a tank… screens surrounding his position, a pair of hand yokes to control gunnery. The driver seemed to sit in front of, and just below the gunner's position.

_____A thick armored shutter protected a forward-facing vision block. Once it was closed, the thing felt all the more like a coffin.

_____The researcher slipped into the front seat and took a helmet dangling from a monitor. "The startup controls are duplicated. Big red switch on the left, that's master power. Switch that, and the main generator controls will light up. Just press them in the order they light up, left to right."


@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____There was blood on the machine gun when Cania pulled it against her shoulder. There were still rounds loaded when she squeezed the trigger. The belch of automatic fire echoed off the metal skin of the Medea, like a giant drum around them. The initial kick of rounds knocked her off target, but when she brought the recoil back down, the tracer rounds ripping through the air showed the other rounds found their deadly mark.

_____One Zeon soldier folded over with a grunt, slamming into the floor as the two others behind him were bowled over by the incoming rounds. Clutching at bleeding wounds, the two soldiers gripped their fallen comrade by the arms and heaved him out of the line of fire, their bodies hunched behind a storage crate.

 

[AlphaD]

Main Hangar
_____"Load the Gunperry first," colonel Bishop said. "It stands the better chance making it out of here undetected. Put all the staff on it first, and then any of the high priority cargo."

_____A sweat-streaked member of the ground crew urged Callista and the others to follow along. "If anyone's handy with an engineering vehicle, we need some help with the heavy stuff." As Callista's gaze moved to where the ground teams were hurriedly moving, she spotted a stocky, open-topped worker machine that resembled a miniature mobile suit. It was a model she recognized as being somewhat notorious during the initial days of the independence movement; many a space colonist had seen a riot quelled at the hands of machines like these.

Click to shrink...

Leto eyed the rust-coloured suit with a mixture of curiosity and trepidation before speaking up. "Well, I'm calling dibs on the Perry. I'll get her all nice and warmed up so we can get her out of here as soon as we can. That, and I'm pretty sure I'd be breaking a few of those uh... workplace safety rules if I tried my hands on that thing. Good luck, you two."

With her piece said, she stepped around her two fellow squadron members and continued to make her way forward towards the Gunperry which was beginning to become a small hub of activity after the colonel's words.

 

[Sushi]

@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
_____For a moment it felt like putting the pipper of a Saberfish on a target and squeezing off a burst, but as the weapon rattled against his shoulder, he couldn't even see where the rounds were impacting. To kill an enemy fighter was much more clinical; once the sight was on a target, the computers took care of everything else.

_____Trying to kill each other with guns was anything but clinical. The Zeon soldier leaned out from his scant cover and fired back, rounds tearing up the deck at Maion's feet. It was deafening with the two rifles chattering, back-and-forth, the sounds beating into the young pilot's skull.

_____When Maion braced his weapon and expended the rest of his magazine in one deafening burst of fire, the rounds ripped through the air and stitched the enemy soldier across the chest. He slammed into the wall with a grunt and slumped down, out of sight.

 

[tankdrop24]

_____"You won't just need help driving it. That machine has a nuclear reactor inside it." The researcher talking to Mack couldn't have been much over legal conscription age. His thick-rimmed glasses were dirty with soot, and his lab coat, torn, and stained dark brown in places with blood. "I'll ride with you. Come on."

_____The young researcher waited for Mack to follow, and stepped onto a small platform connected to a winch at the cockpit. It was just wide enough for each of them to put a single foot upon it. The two of them were hoisted up to the front of the boxy main body of the RX-44. There was a single hatch for both of them to climb in through, and the interior reminded Mack of a two-seater fighter plane more than a tank… screens surrounding his position, a pair of hand yokes to control gunnery. The driver seemed to sit in front of, and just below the gunner's position.

_____A thick armored shutter protected a forward-facing vision block. Once it was closed, the thing felt all the more like a coffin.

_____The researcher slipped into the front seat and took a helmet dangling from a monitor. "The startup controls are duplicated. Big red switch on the left, that's master power. Switch that, and the main generator controls will light up. Just press them in the order they light up, left to right."

Click to shrink...

"Ah, they made it nice and simple. Just like ridin' a horse." He grinned, until he missed a step in the instructions and the light went haywire. Fortunately a quick restart fixed things, and his second attempt went smoothly. "Sometimes you get bucked off." He laughed nervously. I was testing you, anyway. So, got a name, kid?"

 

[NephyrisX]

@Kensai @NephyrisX @AlphaD
Main Hangar
_____"Load the Gunperry first," colonel Bishop said. "It stands the better chance making it out of here undetected. Put all the staff on it first, and then any of the high priority cargo."

_____A sweat-streaked member of the ground crew urged Callista and the others to follow along. "If anyone's handy with an engineering vehicle, we need some help with the heavy stuff." As Callista's gaze moved to where the ground teams were hurriedly moving, she spotted a stocky, open-topped worker machine that resembled a miniature mobile suit. It was a model she recognized as being somewhat notorious during the initial days of the independence movement; many a space colonist had seen a riot quelled at the hands of machines like these.

Click to shrink...

The sight of the Draken-E was a familiar one. These miniature mobile suits are a common fixture in industrial fields and, more infamously, riot suppression. Equipped with power loaders that could snap hardened steel in twine or manipulator arms that handle delicate tasks more deftly that one might expect of a worker unit, rioters didn't stand a chance of overpowering a Drak short of heavy weaponry.

Fortunately, this unit's role was far more benign, if equally shady. Callista shot the ground crew a thumbs-up and climbed into its cockpit, its controls and seating wonderfully intuitive to handle and egronomic to command. With a twist of the key already inserted into the startup panel, the lights and icons in the cockpit lit up like a Christmas tree with the familiar hum of the engine reverberating the hull like white noise. Callista gripped the controls and tested the manipulators; open, shut, grip, release, crush. All accounted for.

Steadily, with her neck craned outwards of the cockpit for a better view of her surroundings, the ensign gingerly but steadily approached the contents stashed away in the dark corner of the hangar, carefully stepping on the stream of researchers and crewmen scurrying and haphazardly grabbing whatever they can into the Gunperry. With a practiced motion, Callista grabbed the closest components she could see; nondescript crates and boxes hidden underneath a tightly wounded tarp. Those look important, right?

With a shrug, Callista ferried the items into the Gunperry. The boss lady can sort it out later.

 

[Sushi]

​

@AlphaD
"Gunperry"
_____As Leto moved to the unfamiliar machine, she was struck by the sheer height of the thing. The chassis straddled a tall, pyramid-shaped container, which had to be at least ten meters tall and twenty meters long. The exterior of the aircraft had been hurriedly modified with racks for missiles the size of telephone poles. Four jet engines were mounted just forward of the tail, while a trio of ducted rotor blades seemed to provide a VTOL capability for the ungainly thing.

_____The sides of the main container started to tip open as Leto got close, and the missiles mounted to the bulkheads came uncomfortably close to the ground. The superstructure now revealed was mostly empty, the space dominated by the partly-dismantled skeleton of a mobile suit laying upon the floor of the cargo hold.

_____Her boots thumped on the stairs, and she passed several Federation soldiers clambering into the bubble-like shape of the anti-aircraft turrets. One paused as Leto went past, grimacing over a cigarette.

_____"Hope you didn't lose that eye in a flying accident, ensign." With a grunt, the trooper charged the anti-aircraft gun and swung up into the seat. He gave the crowd of personnel a side-eye.

@NephyrisX
_____Callista gingerly lifted the containers up with the Draken, turning around to slide the pallet into the awaiting bay of the transport. The skeletal remains of a mobile suit took up most of the hold. Callista saw at once it was a type she didn't recognize; it lacked the characteristic steel frame of a Zaku, nor the power pipe fittings of any other Zeon design.

_____The container thumped down, and the tarp shifted heavily. For a moment the material fluttered up, and Callista was able to see right into the open top of the container. The sight made her skin crawl.


@Kensai
_____"Wish we had time to repair the arm." An alert softly chimed within the cabin of the Zaku, complaining about the amputated arm. It was a far cry from the cabin of an old Zaku, or even their EMS-04, more spacious, substantially more monitors filling the space around Achilleia.

_____But it was close enough. The ordnance tech tugged on Achilleia's shoulder straps and strapped down a bag stuffed to the brim with spare magazines and hand grenades. "You got a full drum for that Zaku one-twenty. Good luck out there, lieutenant."


@tankdrop24
RX-44 Prototype
_____Mack felt a tingle in his skin as the machine shook and rumbled to life, the reactor whining just beneath their feet, gently rocking the cabin from side to side as all the monitors came to life at once. Once the main display came on, the ghostly, translucent shape of the gunsights overlaid the view of the hangar in front of Mack. The status monitor showed that the main gun was indexed for 155mm HEAT rounds.

_____The young researcher finally let out a breath as the machine started. "Martel. And I'm glad we didn't get 'bucked' by a nuclear fusion reactor." After another moment of quiet, he added. "… and, what's your name?

_____"How bad is it? Being in combat? Fighting the Zakus?" Martel spoke rapid-fire, hardly giving Mack the chance to introduce himself. "They have us pour over all the technical data for the enemy mobile suits, day and night. It's hard not to think about it."


@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____The non-stop exchange of gunfire seemed to end. Brass casings rattled down all over the interior of the vehicle, smoke filling the space as they ducked down. They could see Maion bolt from the door of the vehicle, making a run for the right flank, exchanging shots with a Zeon trooper on the way.

_____The crack of a rifle boomed out from the armored car as lieutenant Revelle fired a string of aimed shots at the fallen soldiers.

_____Cania felt Revelle's hand squeeze her shoulder. "I'll take over the gun," she said, softly adding. "Good work with those soldiers. Go, back up Maion," she urged. "I'll cover you."

 

[tankdrop24]

"… and, what's your name?

_____"How bad is it? Being in combat? Fighting the Zakus?" Martel spoke rapid-fire, hardly giving Mack the chance to introduce himself. "They have us pour over all the technical data for the enemy mobile suits, day and night. It's hard not to think about it."

Click to shrink...

"Mack Robbins." He answered quickly. The young researcher's second question slammed into Mack hard. Hard like the image of his shattered Texas colony had been burned into his mind. After a second of consideration, Mack said, "Combat, it's like a drill on your chest. Slowly chipping away at you until it reaches your hearts. It's a race, you know, to get it over with before that happens. But even when it's done it leaves it's mark." Then he forced himself to put on a smile. "But don't worry, you're not really in combat. You're just my special guest helper for today. My and my friends, were gonna get you and all your buddies out of this nice and safe, Martel." He said with such gusto he almost believed those words.

 

[Hoshino Yumemi]

​

@AlphaD
"Gunperry"
_____As Leto moved to the unfamiliar machine, she was struck by the sheer height of the thing. The chassis straddled a tall, pyramid-shaped container, which had to be at least ten meters tall and twenty meters long. The exterior of the aircraft had been hurriedly modified with racks for missiles the size of telephone poles. Four jet engines were mounted just forward of the tail, while a trio of ducted rotor blades seemed to provide a VTOL capability for the ungainly thing.

_____The sides of the main container started to tip open as Leto got close, and the missiles mounted to the bulkheads came uncomfortably close to the ground. The superstructure now revealed was mostly empty, the space dominated by the partly-dismantled skeleton of a mobile suit laying upon the floor of the cargo hold.

_____Her boots thumped on the stairs, and she passed several Federation soldiers clambering into the bubble-like shape of the anti-aircraft turrets. One paused as Leto went past, grimacing over a cigarette.

_____"Hope you didn't lose that eye in a flying accident, ensign." With a grunt, the trooper charged the anti-aircraft gun and swung up into the seat. He gave the crowd of personnel a side-eye.

@NephyrisX
_____Callista gingerly lifted the containers up with the Draken, turning around to slide the pallet into the awaiting bay of the transport. The skeletal remains of a mobile suit took up most of the hold. Callista saw at once it was a type she didn't recognize; it lacked the characteristic steel frame of a Zaku, nor the power pipe fittings of any other Zeon design.

_____The container thumped down, and the tarp shifted heavily. For a moment the material fluttered up, and Callista was able to see right into the open top of the container. The sight made her skin crawl.


@Kensai
_____"Wish we had time to repair the arm." An alert softly chimed within the cabin of the Zaku, complaining about the amputated arm. It was a far cry from the cabin of an old Zaku, or even their EMS-04, more spacious, substantially more monitors filling the space around Achilleia.

_____But it was close enough. The ordnance tech tugged on Achilleia's shoulder straps and strapped down a bag stuffed to the brim with spare magazines and hand grenades. "You got a full drum for that Zaku one-twenty. Good luck out there, lieutenant."


@tankdrop24
RX-44 Prototype
_____Mack felt a tingle in his skin as the machine shook and rumbled to life, the reactor whining just beneath their feet, gently rocking the cabin from side to side as all the monitors came to life at once. Once the main display came on, the ghostly, translucent shape of the gunsights overlaid the view of the hangar in front of Mack. The status monitor showed that the main gun was indexed for 155mm HEAT rounds.

_____The young researcher finally let out a breath as the machine started. "Martel. And I'm glad we didn't get 'bucked' by a nuclear fusion reactor." After another moment of quiet, he added. "… and, what's your name?

_____"How bad is it? Being in combat? Fighting the Zakus?" Martel spoke rapid-fire, hardly giving Mack the chance to introduce himself. "They have us pour over all the technical data for the enemy mobile suits, day and night. It's hard not to think about it."


@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____The non-stop exchange of gunfire seemed to end. Brass casings rattled down all over the interior of the vehicle, smoke filling the space as they ducked down. They could see Maion bolt from the door of the vehicle, making a run for the right flank, exchanging shots with a Zeon trooper on the way.

_____The crack of a rifle boomed out from the armored car as lieutenant Revelle fired a string of aimed shots at the fallen soldiers.

_____Cania felt Revelle's hand squeeze her shoulder. "I'll take over the gun," she said, softly adding. "Good work with those soldiers. Go, back up Maion," she urged. "I'll cover you."

Click to shrink...

It all happened at familiar, breakneck speeds. Instinct took over as soon as the first shots went wide and Maion began drawing lines with bullets like he was in the cockpit. Bad habits paid off as Cania, Revelle and Maion's fire did its work. Then just like that, Maion's gun went dry as the bolt locked open.

He scanned the walkways and took stock as the short lull in the action became deafening. The noises of the stricken Zeon soldiers rasping their last filled him with an uncomfortable something sticking in the back of his head.

He shook it off, trying best he could to bury the thought in his job. As he surveyed the damage, he saw what he needed to move on. There, he thought as he drew a line from the remaining Zeon soldier he could see to the catwalks, to the cabin at last.

"Sir, I'm going for it!" He took the opportunity to get to the Medea's controls and was off like a shot, his slender form turning gazelle-like even under the armor and the vest.

 

[NephyrisX]

​

@NephyrisX
_____Callista gingerly lifted the containers up with the Draken, turning around to slide the pallet into the awaiting bay of the transport. The skeletal remains of a mobile suit took up most of the hold. Callista saw at once it was a type she didn't recognize; it lacked the characteristic steel frame of a Zaku, nor the power pipe fittings of any other Zeon design.

Click to shrink...

Callista piloted the Drak on auto-pilot, her mind elsewhere, her features were set into narrowed eyes and a grim frown from what she'd witnessed under the tarp.

What was that? She only had a split-second view under the tarp as it was being loaded onto the Gunperry, but the questions were swarming her mind. What was that? Needles? Rings? A weapon? Power source? What were they messing around here?

Callista let herself stewed in her inner space. She doubt the people here would silence her for taking a peak at their fancy-schmancy disturbing little thing, but unlike the stools at Granada, she wasn't braindead enough to reveal confidential secrets to the whole wide world.

Mechanically, Callista picked up the next batch of goods; this time, a far less sinister collection of...weapon parts? She could only surmise from the disassembled mess of tube-like barrels, parts that resembled weapon triggers and the occasional magazine large enough to house anti-armour munitions.

 

[Carol]

_____Cania felt powerful firing the machine gun. It was pure destruction: lead spat out uncontrolled at first and then with deadly precision. Her aim caught one and left the others scrambling for safety. Their fear was as palpable as the damage to her hearing. The bursts of her gun continued regardless. The pain would have to be patched up later.

_____She would have continued until the last click before the lieutenant interrupted her. Nodding with reluctance, Cania said, "Treat her right, alright?" The thought she had to go back to her peashooter was a disappointment.

_____Any attempt to delay the move outside was preempted by Maion's charge. A lissome frame like his was incongruous with the bloody scene. Obviously, someone had to back him up. Cania departed the armored car with a run of her own toward Maion.

 

[Sushi]

@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____Maion ran past the body of the fallen soldier and took the steps up toward the main cabin, two at a time. The thud of boots behind him turned out to be Cania, close behind. When the chatter of automatic fire eventually stopped behind him, they saw lieutenant Oseni slumped against the side of the armored car, a red streak down the armor. A rifle with smoking barrel sat in his hands. Revelle clambered down from the gunner's seat and knelt by the man, her face inscrutable and hard.

_____As they rounded the next corner and made for the cabin door, they could see lieutenant Revelle step over the trio of wounded Zeon soldiers. A pair of gunshots echoed out as they burst into the cockpit.

_____The pilot's seat was empty, helmet hanging off the headrest. There was a body slumped down in the copilot's seat. All the cabin lights were still on, and the indicators showed the engines were still warm, having only recently been shut down.

_____They had accomplished the simple part of the plan, but now they had to make it to the main hangars to pick up the rest of the team...

@NephyrisX
"Gunperry"
_____"Is something the matter?" The colonel spoke from just behind and below Callista's Draken, her voice just barely reaching her through the open hatch. Technicans strapped down the weapons components and crammed smaller boxes wherever they would fit. "I think we're done with this one, thank you. Please turn your assistance to the Medea, next."

_____Callista was again left to her thoughts as the clicking of heels faded away. The massive cargo doors of the transport tilted upward, hiding the interior, and that particular container from view.

@AlphaD
_____The indicator lights in the cabin turned from red to green, signaling that the main hold was now sealed and could be pressurized for flight. Up ahead of them, they could see the squat tank-like mobile weapon shuddering, steam gushing from vents upon its back as the reactor powered up.

@tankdrop24
RX-44 Prototype
_____Martel looked a shade paler as Mack spoke, touching a hand to his chest reflexively. "I-I hope so. Whatever it takes," said the young researcher. "To keep these out of the hands of the Zeon. That's going to make this whole ordeal worthwhile."

_____Martel's hands squeezed the controls tightly as their Zaku stomped past. Without its left arm, it struck an even more gruesome and terrible image. Achilleia piloted the machine beside the main entrance, and soldiers got into place behind whatever cover was available, all awaiting the signal to move.

 

[NephyrisX]

@NephyrisX
"Gunperry"
_____"Is something the matter?" The colonel spoke from just behind and below Callista's Draken, her voice just barely reaching her through the open hatch. Technicans strapped down the weapons components and crammed smaller boxes wherever they would fit. "I think we're done with this one, thank you. Please turn your assistance to the Medea, next."

_____Callista was again left to her thoughts as the clicking of heels faded away. The massive cargo doors of the transport tilted upward, hiding the interior, and that particular container from view.

Click to shrink...

"Uh huh, sure. Whatever." Callista fumed in her cockpit and out of earshot of the Colonel. The tone the Colonel used with her reminded her far too much of Kycillian high flyers back on Granada, and she could barely tolerate their foppish aggrandising and self-important patronisation even on this side of Earth. Callista silently prayed that Federation officers aren't bred from the same stock.

The last of the cargo was fortunately situated near the Medea, and they're far more discernible that the previous two packages. The military green plating, pipes and curves of the metal were intimately familiar to her; various parts of the Zaku platform were laid out before her disassembled and ready for transport, obviously tested and studied by the eggheads here. Let it not be said that Callista wastes good equipment when she sees it, and she practices that motto by grabbing what she could and stuffing it into the Medea in record time.

With all the material in the hangar exhausted and transports well-fed with it, Callista dismounted the worker suit and made her way towards the cargo bay of the Medea. She has a plane to take off.

 

[tankdrop24]

@Sushi @NephyrisX @AlphaD @Kensai

With a hand twitching ever so slightly, Mack reached down and flicked on the Guntank's shortwave. "Alright gang, I'm good to roll out now. If someone could open that there door I'm going to lay down some pain on whatever's on the other side of it and clear us a path out of here."

 

[AlphaD]

_____"Hope you didn't lose that eye in a flying accident, ensign." With a grunt, the trooper charged the anti-aircraft gun and swung up into the seat. He gave the crowd of personnel a side-eye.

Click to shrink...

"Well, how good are you at accepting empty lies that were meant to clearly appease you?" Leto snarked over her shoulder as she made her way into the cockpit and dropping heavily into the pilot's seat, glancing over the controls and taking a moment to familiarise herself with the Gunperry's control scheme. All in all, not too dissimilar compared to her Saberfish so she could probably fly this thing without immediately nosediving into the ground.

A beat of silence passed by before Leto remembered to call back to the trooper. "For the record, that was a joke! I didn't lose it in an accident but I was definitely flying at the time!"

That ought to inspire confidence in them.

_____The indicator lights in the cabin turned from red to green, signaling that the main hold was now sealed and could be pressurized for flight. Up ahead of them, they could see the squat tank-like mobile weapon shuddering, steam gushing from vents upon its back as the reactor powered up.

Click to shrink...

With all of that said and done, Leto began flicking the switches and felt an odd sense of apprehension and anxiety creep up on her as the Gunperry hummed to life. The last time she flew, really flew... It was during that One Week. She could only hope that there wouldn't be a repeat performance so soon.

Leto reached down to pick up the headset lying across the controls and fitted it carefully onto her head. Immediately, she heard the kid— his name was Mack— broadcast from the Guntank.

Right. Showtime then.

"Lanzetta here," She spoke into the mic. "Just performing some final checks but looks like I'm all green up here. Ready when you are."

 

[Carol]

_____Cania wanted to fly the big, beautiful beast she was in despite the harsh conditions of combat. The Medea was the queen of transport planes. Her cargo hold was so large that even a couple of Zakus could fit, not to mention people.

_____Entering the canopy-style cockpit, Cania took the pilot's seat. "Tough luck," she said to the former copilot. "Mine now."

_____The nonchalant facade was not convincing as she refused to look at the body. Instead, she buried herself in the controls. After a minute of her fiddling, the take-off sequence began: eleven engines roaring to the tune of pure muscle. It was the sound that made the sky tremble and gravity shake. Drew the attention of every living soul in the base to the Medea too.

_____"Take the guns. Don't care if it's a pea-shooter. Buy me time to get this baby off the ground safely."

 

[Hoshino Yumemi]

Maion scuttled to a stop as he heard Cania call it out. He could feel the fight closing in on him from all directions like the jaws of a large predator. Leaning on the copilot's seat, he debated clearing the seat for the body, then dragged the corpse over to a jump seat, strapped in so as not to go rattling around the cabin during combat. He mused on how darkly funny the idea was, but shook his head and pushed the thought away. Now wasn't exactly the time for jokes. He made do with a thumbs-up to tell Cania he was secure.

He dropped himself into the copilot's seat and looked for any controls to do with the defensive systems. He raised his hands over the controls like a pianist preparing to take position and searched for Cania's request, running through his own checks along the way. Warnings, advisories and helpful figures plastered on the yoke and near the instruments guided his way.

 

[Sushi]

@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Medea 01
_____The Federation pilot's head lolled against the seat cushions. Blood dribbled onto the floor, a sound that, somehow, could be heard by Cania and Maion over the hum of the engines, the shuddering of the hull as the plane climbed into the sky.

_____There hadn't been any more shots from the cargo bay, not in some time. The panel to Maion's side flickered, turning green as it indicated their armored car was secured in the bay. As soon as it was, Cania took to the skies. The fog clinging to the runway thinned as the huge plane punched upward, doing a lazy bank in the direction of the hangars. Muzzle flashes lit up the fog beneath them, but in seconds they had climbed beyond small arms range.

_____A light came on in front of Maion, beside a monitor and a pistol-grip handle with a trigger. It seemed to be the manual controls for the anti-air turrets on the Medea.


@AlphaD @tankdrop24 @NephyrisX @Kensai
Main Hangar
_____Leto heard the clatter of a machine gun being charged behind her, and the whirr of the turret spinning around. "The guns are hot, we're ready to go." The slow chop-chop of the rotor blades filled the hangar as the Gunperry finished its loading.

_____Callista's Draken stomped from the cargo container to the awaiting ramp of the Medea inside the still-sealed hangar. The tank-like mobile weapon and the Zaku rolled up right to the entrance. Most of the personnel that had been hurriedly taking anything not bolted down to the facility were now safely inside their transports.

_____Soldiers knelt down behind whatever cover was still available, as the thickly armored hangar doors shuddered, then started to slide open, sunlight streaming into the space.

_____In the distance, another Medea transport banked toward their positions. The ugly green shapes of enemy mobile suits begun to stomp their way down the main runway, and the moment of quiet was broken by the thunder of incoming rounds.


@AlphaD @tankdrop24 @NephyrisX @Kensai @Hoshino Yumemi
Medea 01
_____The lieutenant came into the cabin as Cania swung the plane around. "Dead ahead. Enemy below us." A trio of Zakus had emerged from the treeline bordering the main runway, marching back in where a single mobile suit had wandered out before. Zeon troops ran past the lumbering machines, their heads bent low as bullets zipped overhead.

_____One of the Zakus turned and raised its weapon, firing a long burst that sent tracers ripping past the cockpit. The Medea shuddered with the rending sound of an impact somewhere in its body, but continued to fly on.

_____Revelle squeezed Maion's shoulder. "Look fast. Two Dopps, 7 o'clock, half a klick out." The lieutenant moved over to the main console and took up a headset dangling by its cable, punching in one of several frequencies they had all memorized the night before.

_____The shape of a damaged Zaku was visible peering through the hangar, its mono-eye sensor swiveling directly up toward the looming transport plane. There was a long moment where they waited to see if the giant would open fire on the slow, lumbering transport directly overhead.

_____"Zero to all 7 callsigns, we're on scene in a Medea. Be advised enemy forces are closing in. Give them a warm welcome for me."

 

[Hoshino Yumemi]

"Merde." Maion heard clattering, his well-trained body feeling impacts and shudders in places he knew meant bad news. The plane flew up undaunted, as if she was telling him things were okay and he needed to be quiet for now.

After Rev's heads-up, he needed no more prompting. He took the stick, quelled the instinct to start steering the plane and studied his readouts. There were the Dopps, wheeling in and looking for an angle to start shooting, not hard against a large transport.

He read them as they turned, studying them just like he was fighting in a much smaller, more agile machine. He picked his moment at what looked like the apex of their turn, when they presented just too much of their broadest side to his pipper and rangefinder.

"Smile, you son of a bitch!" he hissed as he pulled the trigger.

 

[Sushi]

@Hoshino Yumemi @Carol
Zeon Recon Flight
_____"Hang on, my radar's showing a contact in front of us, big one too."

_____"I see it."

_____"Do we have any transports scheduled to fly in right now? I thought we had the sector locked down."

_____"Damn thing – it's a Federal plane, it's trying to escape the base!"

_____The ungainly, olive green fighter craft sawed through the clouds, nosing downward as they screamed toward their quarry. There were few things that dove as fast as a Zeon Dopp at full throttle.

_____They were upon their target almost immediately. It was a big Federation transport, one that had survived the initial bombardment of the base. The lead Dopp fighter opened first with a pair of missiles, but they flew wide, plummeting past the Medea and exploding in the trees.

_____Gravity tugged uncomfortably at the body of the lead pilot, and he grunted, pulling back on his stick to correct the path of the plummeting fighter. He yawed the Dopp sideways, inverting to pull back, begin a horizontal scissor. At that moment the turrets mounted on the transport came to life, and cannon rounds the size of a man's fist slammed into the Dopp, tearing through the fuselage and throwing the craft into an uncontrolled dive.

_____The rounds chipped away at the wings of the second Dopp before it sharply dipped, banked, and then pulled straight up, vanishing from the Medea's view.

_____"HQ! HQ, this is Mantis 2, flight lead is hit, there's damned Feddies trying to escape the base! They've taken the transports, send reinforcements now!