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Super Robot Quest G
- Thread starter Basarin
- Start date
- Original Sci-Fi
Day of Destruction! - From the Jaws of Defeat
- Location
- USA
[] Kill Adds First
-[] Perseus
--[] Focus on the two remaining kaiju. They have their number, though there's no telling what effect the third kaiju will have on them.
-[] Pegasus
--[] Focus exclusively on the Pterawing swarm. This close to Mercury's activation, we cannot allow any interference.
-[] 25th Air Wing
--[] Form up around the Falcon Mobile and protect the Mercury's pilot. We do not need to stress how disastrous losing him would be despite his enthusiasm.
-[] Perseus
--[] Focus on the two remaining kaiju. They have their number, though there's no telling what effect the third kaiju will have on them.
-[] Pegasus
--[] Focus exclusively on the Pterawing swarm. This close to Mercury's activation, we cannot allow any interference.
-[] 25th Air Wing
--[] Form up around the Falcon Mobile and protect the Mercury's pilot. We do not need to stress how disastrous losing him would be despite his enthusiasm.
1601, 22 November A.D. 2072
Siege of the Yukimura Institute
Not tested, not quite ready, used anyway. If the circumstances were any different, Oscar Tellison would have been annoyed at Major Devin and the engineering team - but as it was, neither he nor Zhang wanted to even think about what would have happened if Perseus wasn't deployed here with a small team.
The Arc Blade crackled as the Perseus swung it in a wide arc, catching a burst of flame from one of the Crocalisks. The flames seemed to dull and arc their path on impact, but that was all - Oscar was already having to shift focus, trusting Xiu Ying to keep at it with the sword arm as he held out the right arm to hold the second Crocalisk at bay. One claw still dug deep into the Perseus's shoulder, with sparks and smoke wafting from the wound as Perseus's hand grasped the other claw. "Back off!" The remaining gunports on the right arm triggered, blasting the Crocalisk in the face and causing it to recoil-
-allowing Oscar to reunite his focus with Xiu Ying as their sword arm slashed downwards, biting deep into the Crocalisk's claw.
Oscar and Xiu Ying immediately yanked the blade away, but acid was already starting to seep into the blade's composition. Remnants of the Arc Blade's electric charge were fighting off most of it, but some damage was still going to linger. Didn't think that part through about fighting kaiju, and it's not like we can install the Spark Caliber. Still, the blade was still functional for the moment and they had one gun left.
Xiu Ying grunted, shaking her left arm around as if she had been the one to personally swing the Arc Blade. The movement was only slightly spoiled by the bulk of the K-Suit she was wearing. "One's still behind us," she grunted, "and one's down a claw."
Oscar's left hand was clenching and unclenching in a similarly sympathetic reaction fed into him by the Man-Machine Interface linked to his own K-Suit, as he replied, "Not looking in great shape ourselves."
"We can take them."
"Yeah, probably." Both pilots grinned, a mix of grim determination and confidence crossing both their minds. "We got this, don't we, Perseus?"
The engine revved in response, and Perseus was already taking a step forward just seconds before either pilot could give the command. As the chipped and worn Arc Blade flashed forwards, the skies above them flashed in fire and alien energies, lighting up the horizon like a fierce thunder cloud.
"All hands, this is the bridge!"
The skies in front of the bridge's display port were literally darkened by the masses flying on leather wings, brightened only by the tracers of the Pegasus's point defense systems. Engineering reports showed the last of the Shard ready reserves sliding into place for the gun batteries, readying for a final few salvos as the time to fire ticked down far too slowly for her liking.
"We are diving straight into the Pterawing swarm. Weapons free, and fire at will!"
Words that Diana never expected to hear herself say in her life. But here she was, leading a likely suicidal charge into what was left of the Pterawings. Which was still too damned many, but if Mercury wasn't online, then they might as well just give up now.
Diana's processes were running overtime, her field of vision jumping from point to point as positioning, speed and optimal targeting solutions were constantly uploaded to the human bridge crew's systems. Idly she could sense the onboard security preparing weapons, not taking the chances that the flying monstrosities outside didn't try to force their way aboard if they could throw enough of their spares into the line of fire as ablative armor - another precious microsecond was spared to provide recommended chokepoints and shelters to the brave souls. The point defense rotary cannons were swaying back and forth, no longer concerned with accuracy as much as simply getting something up into the air, shredding more of the Pterawings in droves. Yet despite the tangible difference they were making, there were still more.
'-Batteries 1, 3, 5, ready to fire-!'
Diana's attention fixed forward, seeing the latest rally of the swarm. "Batteries 1, 3, 5, prepare for snap shot volleys on designated targets. Fire!"
Bright red and pink lights flooded the viewport as the forward batteries opened fire, smaller spheres of destructive force shrieking outwards in staggered volleys. A significant number of the horde disintegrated, leathery hide and acid burning away before their very eyes as giant holes were torn through the once cohesive mass. One 'lucky' Pterawing seemed to have made it through that hell - until it collapsed directly onto the prow, one wing still burning as it tried to claw its way to Battery 1-
-until a familiar looking jet shrieked just above the turret, the backwash of its passing sweeping the Pterawing off of the prow and fluttering in irregular circles downwards to earth in a shriek that sounded far more annoyed than anything.
"Let's go, let's go, let's go!" This - this was definitely different from his usual experiences. Sheol usually never bothered with sending a whole damned army at them! Yet as he screeched past the Pegasus's top layer and sent one of the winged nasties down to earth, Hiroki had a grim grin on his face.
Diving down below the dropship, his radar pinged a bunch of signals - his expert calculation placed it anywhere from 'lots' to 'too many' - chasing after him. Well, fair enough - they had to recognize he was the pilot for Mercury to begin with. But if that was the case…
"Diana, about to try something," he radioed in. "Get ready!" He then accidentally-on-purpose cut off the communicator before banking left, making a large turn as he shifted a lever forward. "Maximum thrust!" The engines' whine took on a higher pitch, and the Aeon particles shone an even brighter blue as he then began to lead the flying kaiju on a merry chase. "C'mon, I'm right here!" he taunted them, seeing the Pterawings bunching up in a nice gaggle. Straightening out his flight path, he again turned on the communicator. "Now's a good time to-"
He immediately pulled the accelerator and twisted the flight stick right, forcing the Falcon Mobile into an incredibly sharp turn that the Ptero-pteri-whatever Diana called them couldn't catch in time - and another bright flash of pink and red light washed past him, momentarily triggering heat hazard warnings on his console as more of the creatures were blasted out of the sky. "A little more warning next time?" a stressed and slightly peeved voice asked.
"Hey, it worked!" Hiroki blinked as spines shot past the viewport. "Uh, mostly." Looking over his shoulder, he saw a few of the survivors chasing after him, probably about as pissed off at him as Diana was. "Give a sec-"
The flyers shuddered as gunfire shredded through them, and a trio of the jets screeched past. One of them was already reconfiguring into mecha form, its fist slamming through another flyer. More of them were forming up behind him, even as others were also momentarily perched on the Pegasus itself, lending their rocket and gunpods to the point defense's constant firing. "Uh, thanks?"
"They'll keep you alive," Diana grumbled, "if they don't get themselves shot down first."
"Oh for-!" Ozawa stared at the Yukimura Institute - which was noticeably still standing. Sure, parts of it were on fire, lots of the cannons and infrastructure looked like they were torn apart by the big eggs like they were supposed to, and she was seeing the wreckage of fighter jets and bits of flying warship around, so at least the unit behaviors were behaving like she expected them to.
But there was a distinct lack of burning and wrecked Institute itself! There was a big flying battleship thing, fighter jets (did some of them even have Aeon particles!?) and most of her flying units were dead! She even stepped on a few of them coming here!
And the freaking Falcon Mobile was up there too-okay, that explained the Aeon buildup there. For a moment, she was tempted to grab something and chuck it at the smug prick flying it while he dogfighted with the murders above, but she held herself back. Won't matter if we can actually wreck the Institute like we're supposed to.
Grumbling, she closed her eyes and grit her teeth for another update-
-the murder was greatly depleted, still hounding the flying dagger-
-giant mechanical monsters with big guns pushing their way out of the cordon-!
-and Ozawa gasped as the link was utterly severed. "You're kidding me. They got all of them!? What the hell are those things!?" Ozawa brought back a blurry image of the infiltrators' last collective memory before it all went pear shaped. Plenty of fleshy humans, sure, but there were these big ass power armor stomping around with crew served guns! The infiltrators would have been fine if those weren't there-!
Another shriek that abruptly cut off echoed loudly across the burning fields - and Ozawa felt another presence utterly severed from the neural network.
"You."
Another giant robot - this one looking similar to the ones she'd stomped with the Titanosaur. It was two-vs-one-ing the cracked Eggs, and even though it looked utterly beat up, with gouges deep in its plate and its funky headdress thing partially cut off, she had looked towards it just in time to see it charge with a sword of all things.
And watched as the metal stabbed its way through the Egg's throat. Ozawa could still slightly hear through the other Egg's link a gurgling sound emanating from its throat, the creature's death spasms still swinging wildly at its killer as fire fought with bleeding acid to pour from its maw. The giant robot tore away, pulling its sword back-
-well, okay. Ten percent of it back - the blade snapped with a great crack! as the hilt snapped away from the rest of it, leaving the blade lodged in the throat.
"This would have worked," Ozawa snarled, "if you weren't here!" She was going to have a long discussion with the boss about why she hadn't been warned about this - sure the surgery to improve her took like five years or something so it wasn't like she was keeping up with news but 'oh, by the way, the Union also has giant robots, so watch out for that' never came up in planning-!
She forced herself to calm down, exhaling sharply as she held up a finger. "This is fine," she growled, trying to repeat her words as a calming mantra, "this is fine. It doesn't bother me, it doesn't bother me-"
A scaled fist abruptly slammed into the side of the fleshy cockpit, eliciting an annoyed huff from the Titanosaur. "-IT BOTHERS ME A LOT!"
Her attention turned back towards the Yukimura Institute. Despite the distinct lack of power along most of the grounds, even those weird cannon things (she was sure that was what they were supposed to be, anyways) looked like they were starting to run out of juice. But…that was a lot of Aeon buildup over there…
"I don't have time to deal with you." The command interface momentarily flipped - and a holographic mouse and keyboard superimposed itself as she click-dragged what was left of her forces, right clicking on the EUDF robot. "So they will."
At once, she saw with satisfaction the remaining murder and the remaining Egg immediately began to turn their attention towards the EUDF robot. "Aggressive behavior, direct attack and then move-to-attack move, aaaaand that should do it for now." The controls then receded as the joysticks reemerged, with her scaly hands gripping them tightly. A puff of air from her mouth blew away a few strands of the hair that had managed to survive the transformation into a kaiju (hey, perks of being the old man's intern!) as she shifted the Titanosaur's direction to the real juicy prize.
And this time she received no guff from the Titanosaur as its genetically installed target laid in its sights. "We'll be killin' all the humans when we come!" The Titanosaur roared as Ozawa laughed in glee, as the footpedals spurred the Titanosaur into a purposeful stomp towards its target.
"Shit!"/'Shit!" The Perseus threw the remaining hilt of the Arc Blade at the Crocalisk's head, but it was already sprinting towards it. Perseus tried to move around it, but abruptly found the Crocalisk already moving to body block them, its mouth wide open and a blast of fire emerging from its throat. Both pilots instinctively raised the control sticks as Perseus guarded with its arms-
-only to be slammed into by Pterawings from behind. Perseus tried to shift its focus, but then felt its arms heat up significantly, even as more and more claws from above were beginning to slash against the Perseus's back.
Xiu Ying tried to find something, anything to use, but her radar was absolutely cluttered with contacts. "We need-" She winced as one of the swipes dug deep into their left shoulder, and a hydraulic cable was already dangling, spewing hydraulic fluid catching alight from the flames. "-we need a fire support mission-!"
"-we can't take the splash damage!" Oscar retorted. "We have to get clear-!"
"-there's nowhere to go!"
For the first time in the fight, Perseus was locked in place. Frozen. Uncertain as its wills, once united in purpose, could not agree on what to do. It could not move. It could not fight like this, not when it was surrounded by foes with little way to fight back-
Perseus's eyes flared brightly. It could not fight this way. And that was unacceptable. Not when the great prize was charging towards what they swore to protect.
Despite having tried it only once before, the Perseus pressed back against its twin wills. Those-That-Seek - surely they could lend aid-?
"-One! Chimera-One! Or whoever's out there!" Oscar wasn't sure where the idea had come from, but now he was going to kick himself later for not thinking about it when they were panicking. "Perseus needs a hand here! I say again-"
Both of them finally synched their movements as the fire died down, and with a mental command, Xiu Ying triggered the infrastructure panel they were standing on. The hydraulics shuddered to life, as what remaining power hadn't been sucked dry by the Mercury's reactivation sent a signal downwards-
-and Perseus was catapulted over the Crocalisk.
"Change!"/"Change!"
Perseus slammed against the ground once, then twice, before its body began to twist and turn, folding once again into a Buckler as its treaded tires squealed, digging into the remaining earth, fully intent on chasing after the giant kaiju. Its movement was sluggish, and it was not going to push its top speed anytime soon with the cut hydraulic and the damage they've suffered - but it was that or stay inside what was becoming a killzone.
"-say again, this is Perseus!" Xiu Ying continued as Oscar took over the wheel. "We need support!" Already, in the battered and cracked rear view mirrors, she could see the Crocalisk already chasing after them. "Any support!"
She also could have done without seeing the classic message about objects being closer than they appeared.
"Diana-!"
"Listening." It was taking more and more concentration for Diana to effectively hijack her way into letting Xiu Ying manipulate what few infrastructure panels were remaining in addition to nursing what little blaster energy or point defense ammo she had left, and her speech was probably a little more terse than she meant it to.
"I've got a plan I'm about to try." That would have sent warning bells blaring in Keiko's mind - but Diana didn't know that at the time. She was as pressed as anyone, and she didn't have the bandwidth to spare for new plans. "But I'm gonna need your help with the Pegasus."
"Will it work?"
"No idea, but it might buy the old man another minute."
Diana would bash her head in the AAR after this. But that was future Diana's problem. The Diana of right friggin' now needed something immediately. "...do it."
"Cool." Glancing quickly to the side, Hiroki found the communicator panel and adjusted the dial to the frequency Diana had fed to him. "Hey, pilots!" he called out. "Who wants to join me in doing something stupid?"
The cheers of the pilots as all remaining nine Seekers seamlessly formed up around him for another go was only matched by the exhausted and resigned sigh coming from Diana.
Oscar's hand on the wheel twisted left as the Perseus's Phalanx mode was thrown into a power drift, making a wide turn to the left as Xiu Ying was activating as many obstacles as she could find. Traffic blockers. Storm sirens. Anything to momentarily throw off the Crocalisk's chase - not that that would do anything for the damned Pterawings!
More and more of them were throwing themselves in the line of travel, with giant rows of teeth biting against them when they could make contact or diving slashing attacks with their claws. A few of them had even tried to gather enough of a critical mass to lift them!
Thankfully, they far outmassed the Pterawings, and at their present speed they messily found out what happened when vultures tried the same thing with normal cars. But it was growing harder and harder to maintain speed with the damage the Perseus had incurred - oil pressure still mattered, and while they had thankfully managed to 'cauterize' the leaking hydraulics, they were still slowing down-!
"Guys! Think fast!"
Both pilots blinked as they instinctively reconfigured back into the Perseus and presented their good shoulder. The next moment, the Falcon Mobile shrieked over them in the opposite direction, a bright burst of Aeon particles tearing its way through the Pterawings behind them. A moment later, all of the Seekers were right behind them, partially hidden by the stormclouds of contrails firing from their missile ports.
The Pterawings shrieked in anger and pain as more of them disintegrated or were outright frozen, collapsing to the ground and shattering like delicate ice sculptures-
-and suddenly there were no more Pterawings, as they all began to chase after the Falcon Mobile. Xiu Ying was certain she could spy glowing red glares of murderous intent from their eyes as they chased after their hated enemy, not even bothering to pay attention to the Seekers flying after them in mecha mode as they picked off the edges of them and keeping them herded.
"Just leaves this bastard."
Xiu Ying nodded. "We'll make this quick then."
The Crocalisk charged, but this time it was just one on one. And Perseus already knew it could win this one, near thing as it would be.
"What now-!?"
Ozawa blinked as she saw the murder flying away from the Union's robot. "No, no, nononononono!" Forcefully pulling the keyboard back up, she tried to redirect them. "You're supposed to-!"
-MERCURYMERCURYMERCURYMERCURY-
"-stopstopstop-!" She then looked up as the Falcon Mobile - she swear she could see the cheeky bastard inside!-fly past her along with the other jets. Then-
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" She didn't notice how the controls reverted as the Titanosaur brought its arms up, Ozawa's entire vision clouded by her own damned units! She couldn't see anything - just flying masses of leather and teeth and they were all screeching around her head! "Get-get away, you're getting in the way-!"
And then she and the Titanosaur felt pain.
Okay, more like a baseball landing on their head. A really, really solid and fast baseball that was bright pink and red.
The fliers all vanished as the light overtook them, and the Titanosaur roared in annoyed pain as Ozawa was forced to look away, the light blinding her momentarily. "Gah! Son of a-!" God, that stung! What the hell was-?
Her vision cleared - and she saw the damned flying battleship. "Okay, just for that-!"
The turrets were clearly preparing for another go - but they came too close this time. Wrenching the left control stick, Ozawa forced the Titanosaur's arm upwards into a massive backhanded swipe, intending on swatting the damned thing from the sky. "GO AWAY!" she roared as she turned her attention back to the Institute, ignoring the pattering of bullet impacts digging against the Titanosaur's skin. She was going to make something go damned right today!
"Committing hard turn to starboard!"
"All power to portside engines!"
"We're not going to make it!"
Diana grit her teeth from inside the mainframe as she saw the kaiju's massive arm hurtling towards them with a speed that still seemed somehow slow for its size. The human crew were doing everything they could, but unless something changed, they might well see the whole bridge swatted out of the sky-!
Initiate emergency burn - increase heading to 299 - divert remaining power from turrets to engine-
Diana did every little million and one things she could to help the human crew, but these were odds that a supercomputer could not calculate, not even in realtime-!
Just pray, child. Pray, and have some faith.
Doctor Ignatov's words echoed in her mind, almost incongruously - why would she be thinking about that now!? Yet despite that, in the microseconds that the memory played back before her, she was already subtly shifting from panicking at their oncoming death, to reckoning with the fact that they had objectively done everything they could to slow the kaiju down.
All of the kaiju.
Just one part of that memory bothered her. How do I pray-?
At once, her connection momentarily severed from the rest of the ship. Forcing herself to stay calm despite her processes running at a speed Adriana would have been envious of, she sighed in relief as her connection reasserted itself-
-and winced as she felt the massive arm just barely miss them, but for the sideswipe of its claws that had managed to slam into the rear-portside of the ship in its passing. The crew lurched, thankfully most of them having buckled themselves in or braced themselves against something, but if they were lucky they'd only have to deal with concussions or broken bones after this. The readouts of the ship were an angry, deeper shade of red, and the portside engine was already flickering, online only due to the raw amount of power shoved through its now leaking core-
"This is the bridge!" Diana called out. The crew seemed relieved to her hear voice - and given the sparking, mangled console where she normally appeared, she supposed she couldn't blame them. Yet she surprised herself with her next words: "We are back online - stay with me, and we will make it through this!"
Power to the lights cut off as a wash of emergency red lights flooded the whole of the interior, with firefighters and mechanics momentarily halting operations as they strapped themselves in or helped others who couldn't do so on their own power. "We are setting down for an emergency landing!" Diana would find time to ask Doctor Ignatov about what he meant later. The human crew were all pushing forward, working harder despite the horrible conditions they were in, and not knowing that success was possible anymore. Was this what he meant?
"I say again, all hands prepare for emergency crash landing..!"
"Resetting power now, Doc!" Daichi's voice came through the crackling radio. "Mercury's stopped hoggin' all the juice - I think it's as good as we're gonna get!"
"Thank you, Daichi." Rin Yukimura sighed, wiping off sweat from his balding head with a well worn handkerchief that had seen far too much use today. "Miss Diana, are you still with us?" Still waiting for her response, Rin nodded as some basic functions of the central computer began to come back online.
Launch bay: online.
Catapult system: online.
Mercury: 100% charged.
Facility Power: Onli-
At once, all of the lights flooded back into the Institute. The hangar bay surrounding Mercury's frame was…it was an appalling mess. "Good god, George," he muttered to himself, color fleeing from his cheeks despite the horrors he had been inured to by now. "What have you done?" The EUDF's mecha that had so bravely volunteered to help with the defense of Mercury were delicately picking their way through the charnel pit that the area had become. Once ordinary people had become bloodthirsty, mindless zealots controlled by whatever insane directives George had implanted into them, wielding everything from homemade weapons to stolen surplus, to even just newgrown claws or bits of sharpened metal.
And they had all - as far as he could tell at the moment - been killed in their mad charge. All so they could try to kill him. His staff. Keiko. Daichi and his team. Hiroki.
Once again, Rin forced himself to harden his heart, and remind himself that the George Sheol he once knew, and the George Sheol he was now fighting were not the same person. They never would be.
"Doctor!" Keiko's voice came through. "We're doing a sweep with the EUDF's mechs now! Generator is secured - just get Mercury out there!"
"...yes. Of course." Nodding, even though she couldn't see, Rin looked down at the camera interface - at least seeing through the cameras that hadn't been outright destroyed in the fighting. The sight of the EUDF's forces being whittled down, desperately fighting alongside Hiroki who had taken to the Falcon Mobile to buy him time, even knowing how much danger he had put the boy in-
The sight of the dropship by which they had come crashing into the earth, screeches of sparks and metal burrowing deeply against the earth, caused him to clench his fists hard enough to draw blood. "Miss Diana," he muttered, "you fight as hard as anyone of flesh and blood."
Turning towards his staff, he raised his voice, and all signs of frailty disappeared. "Prepare to launch!"
The creature was pinned beneath Perseus's foot. Writhing with enough force to shake the earth, it shrieked upwards in defiance, its throat still attempting to conjure more of the foul flames it had spawned into this world with.
With one final downwards motion, Perseus's right fist slammed directly down its maw, its final remaining rounds of ammunition sliding into place.
"GO-!"/"-DOWN!"
Despite already being eaten into by the acidic blood, Perseus fired its weapon one last time - and the resulting explosion disintegrated the kaiju's head, sending flesh and acid exploding around it. The corpse twitched a few more times - but ultimately it stilled, its corpse already beginning to seep more of its blood to disintegrate it.
There was no time to claim its husk as a prize, though.
"Shit. It's almost there."
"Has to be something we can use-!"
Perseus turned its head, one of its glowing eyes cracked and shattered from the fighting - but it could see as clearly as when they had begun. Its twin wills provided all of the vision it needed.
And the mangled remains of the Ones-Who-Seek was mostly dismantled nearby, save for-
"The missile pods! They're still intact!"
"That thing's not gonna feel that-!"
"Better than nothing, we might draw its attention!"
Perseus nodded, and was about to charge towards the fallen warrior, but then it paused, turning its attention to the fallen kaiju.
"Perseus, what-?"
It knelt down. If all they needed to do was to draw the great beast's attention, this one's corpse might be useful for one more thing.
Ozawa had suffered through the EUDF roadblocks, the JSDF adjacent roadblocks, the utterly bullshit arrival of new EUDF robots, and let's not forget, the flying goddamned battleship.
She was not happy.
But as the Titanosaur loomed over the Institute directly, well within range to finally stomp the damned nuisance into the ground, she grinned. She was finally, finally going to put these bastards out of business.
Which made her extremely happy.
"Alright," she hummed as she queued up some commands, "time to-"
And then she paused. She couldn't even call what she had just experienced damage, even if they were high explosive and had scarred the scale armor slightly. More like tiny pinpricks, or the feeling of someone who had just had a paper airplane flung at her from behind in the lecture hall.
She slowly turned the Titanosaur around, incredulity rapidly growing into something more visceral.
The EUDF robot stood, freshly fired missile pods being responsible for the pinpricks she had just felt. But in its hand, held high, was the remaining Egg. Or rather, the mangled remains of its head, still bleeding acid even as the robot held it up like a grisly prize.
Ozawa felt a vein pop in her head.
"GO AWAY!" The Titanosaur roared, and the sensation of lighting surging upwards through the kaiju's body intensified. The robot was already trying to dodge away - but the Titanosaur bellowed, and lightning blasted out of its mouth, slamming directly into the robot and forcing it to the ground.
The Titanosaur reached down to grab at the robot. It tried to rise to its feet, but the electric shocks still surging through it was interrupting whatever controls it had - and then the kaiju's claw was gripping tightly. She felt some parts of it give way, and she was fairly certain she wasn't imagining the sounds of something cracking and shattering outside.
"I am sick-!"
The Titanosaur slammed its fist into the ground.
"-and tired-!"
It slammed down again, and significant chunks of the robot's armor was simply crushed in the impact.
"-of you GETTING IN THE WAY!" In a final burst of pique, the Titanosaur's arm swung towards the Institute - and released the robot mid-swing. The robot crashed into the west wing of the Institute, in a crash of collapsing steel, concrete and glass as the building parted like a children's toy set.
"Okay, now where were we!?"
"-up. G…get…up!"
Oscar coughed weakly, his senses slowly filtering back to life. Through the normal way, not the Psychic Theater. He could vaguely feel Xiu Ying shaking at him, however weakly - and he could feel the huge gashes in the K-Suit, along with the bits of shrapnel that had once been part of the cockpit sticking out of him like a pinata. "I'm-" he coughed, feeling the distinct taste of blood in his mouth, "-I'm here. How long-?"
"Just half a minute. I think." Then Xiu Ying winced herself - Oscar could see her arm twisted in an angle the human body was not meant to have. "Since when could they do that?"
"Hang…hang on." The Perseus's Man-Machine Interface was already starting to reboot. Which was weird - they hadn't initiated the reboot sequence. But at that moment, the kaiju was still there, and was turning back towards the Institute. "Resynch…ready. You up for this?"
"Have to. I'll complain after we're done."
"Okay." It wasn't, but neither pilot were in a good position to worry about that. "Prepare to-"
And suddenly, there was light.
The Yukimura Institute began to shake. The central hall began to unfold, the roof sliding outwards or just outright collapsing where the damage had been done as it extended towards the hangar. The Steeds still on the roof and still firing at the big kaiju had already reconfigured and were driving away to a safe distance.
Hiroki had nearly lost it as he saw the Perseus getting flung into the Institute like a baseball. Those pilots - even Diana - had gotten hurt badly just to give them this chance. But despite everything, that final bit of distraction had been just enough.
DOCKING LINK - ONLINE
And before the kaiju could do anything, an explosion erupted from the central hall -
- and Hiroki grinned as he saw Mercury's frame being launched into the air. They'd gotten the new catapult system working!
"Okay, Diana, Perseus," he growled, shifting the levers into docking mode. "You gave everything you all had for this one shot! Now it's my turn!" A severe, almost manic, grin crossed his face as his eyes narrowed and he lined up the Falcon Mobile.
"FALCON-!"
He twisted the Falcon Mobile one-hundred and eighty degrees, to the point that he was flying upside down. But he wasn't worried. He had done this so many times, he could do this in his sleep.
"-CONNECT!"
And he knew in his heart that Mercury wouldn't let him down.
The Falcon Mobile began to fold in on itself. The wings began to fold in on themselves and twist around, forming the face plate. The tail fins folded upwards, forming the head-crest that everyone on this battlefield knew. Hiroki felt the comforting sensation of the cockpit canopy twisting upwards ninety degrees-
-and then power surged in as his old friend's eyes blared to life.
"MERCURY!"
Powerful arms spread outwards, fists clenched, as the body flared to life, a bright blue light cut through the red of the burning fires around him.
"V!"
All at once, the soothing light of the Aeon particles flared across the battlefield. Hiroki's grin intensified as he felt power surge through his oldest friend's frame. Like everything was going to be okay again.
It was just up to them to make sure that was the case.
"Kaiju! Listen up!" Hiroki's voice projected loudly, almost as if he barely needed the PA system built inside the head. "You can pull all the dirty, underhanded tricks you want! You can hurt us, you can try to kill us! But!"
Mercury took a step forward, and its chest plates began to glow even brighter as the generator began to absorb the ambient Aeon Particles hanging in the air.
"You will never win! You hear me!? As long as Mercury V is here, as long as there's people who believe in Mercury V, you will never win!"
Once laid low by means most malevolent.
The Black Guardian of the Northlands once again rises to face the foul Devourer of the Depths.
Behold, humanity's first Super Robot!
Its name!
MERCURY V!
The Black Guardian of the Northlands once again rises to face the foul Devourer of the Depths.
Behold, humanity's first Super Robot!
Its name!
MERCURY V!
Despite everything, despite the costs involved, the DFRI's primary objective has been met.
Both Crocalisks have been destroyed by the Perseus, and the remaining Pterawing murders have been reduced enough in number that they no longer present as a significant enough mass to pose the threat they once did. However, as a result, the 25th Marine Air Wing have been significantly reduced in operable Seekers, and the Pegasus has crash landed and is no longer mission capable. The Perseus has also taken a significant amount of damage, and even more after delaying the Olympic-class one final time.
The giant command kaiju - dubbed 'Olympic' by Diana shortly before the Pegasus crash landed - was just on the cusp of destroying the Yukimura Institute. But thanks to the sacrifices made by the DFRI's defenders, Mercury V is now online - and with it, a chance at victory.
Both Crocalisks have been destroyed by the Perseus, and the remaining Pterawing murders have been reduced enough in number that they no longer present as a significant enough mass to pose the threat they once did. However, as a result, the 25th Marine Air Wing have been significantly reduced in operable Seekers, and the Pegasus has crash landed and is no longer mission capable. The Perseus has also taken a significant amount of damage, and even more after delaying the Olympic-class one final time.
The giant command kaiju - dubbed 'Olympic' by Diana shortly before the Pegasus crash landed - was just on the cusp of destroying the Yukimura Institute. But thanks to the sacrifices made by the DFRI's defenders, Mercury V is now online - and with it, a chance at victory.
The Perseus is badly damaged, having gone toe-to-toe with two Crocalisk-class kaiju and attempted to delay what appears to be the pack leader equivalent. The pilots are still alive - badly injured but still with the intent to support the fight.
The Pegasus has crash landed, its ammunition and energy stores utterly depleted. But its crew - and Diana, the Super AI leading and coordinating them - have punched well above their weight.
They have suffered two-thirds attrition, but not a single soul has passed. Morale is high - and higher yet now that the Super Robot has emerged thanks to their efforts.
- [] Perseus - can still fight!
- [] Not all of the prototype cannons were destroyed. Surely Perseus can still use one of them?
- [] Focus on rallying the remaining Steeds on the ground. There's enough Seeker wreckage that something could be jury-rigged.
- [] Withdraw to the Institute. It has done everything it could have been asked and more.
- [] Write-in
[]Pegasus- The Pegasus has crash landed, and is in no position to assist with the battle further.
- [] 25th Air Wing
- [] Hunt down what remains of the Pterawings. There aren't many left, mind.
- [] Assist the Pegasus. Perhaps they can at least get some of it back online in time for the battle.
- [] Write-in
QM Note: The page is telling me I have a novella in progress at about 6k words. I think that's a first for me.
Oops?
Still, this was the scene that was bugging me during the time I was not able to fully write this quest. And now that it's almost over and we're at the end sequence for this fight, I feel so much better. I had a lot of fun writing this out and finally putting this to post - I hope you enjoyed reading it.
Also, credit for the artwork for Mercury V linked above goes to Filippo Angelotti.
Oops?
Still, this was the scene that was bugging me during the time I was not able to fully write this quest. And now that it's almost over and we're at the end sequence for this fight, I feel so much better. I had a lot of fun writing this out and finally putting this to post - I hope you enjoyed reading it.
Also, credit for the artwork for Mercury V linked above goes to Filippo Angelotti.
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Vote closed
Day of Destruction - The Harder They Fall
- Location
- USA
[x] Perseus - can still fight!
-[X] Focus on rallying the remaining Steeds on the ground. There's enough Seeker wreckage that something could be jury-rigged.
--[X] Not all of the prototype cannons were destroyed. Surely Perseus can still use one of them?
[X] 25th Air Wing
-[X] Assist the Pegasus. Perhaps they can at least get some of it back online in time for the battle.
-[X] Focus on rallying the remaining Steeds on the ground. There's enough Seeker wreckage that something could be jury-rigged.
--[X] Not all of the prototype cannons were destroyed. Surely Perseus can still use one of them?
[X] 25th Air Wing
-[X] Assist the Pegasus. Perhaps they can at least get some of it back online in time for the battle.
1620, 22 November A.D. 2072
Siege of the Yukimura Institute
"Chimera-One up - somehow."
"This is Five. Wing's a bust, ground mode's still up."
"Chimera-Twelve here, still mission capable."
So on and so on. The remaining Seekers of the Twenty Fifth were all chiming in, and by Oscar's reckoning they had accountability of about eight left. Everyone else was inside of the Institute - and whichever engineer decided to make the cockpit of each of the Seekers a Steed was seeing that decision validated, as nobody was dead. Just really injured.
It still wasn't enough to do anything to the Olympic-class. But as Perseus's vision narrowed in on the titanic battle taking place right outside of the Institute, he decided that it was probably a good thing the entire defense didn't fall on their shoulders. The Olympic's claw came crashing down onto Mercury's head - and for the briefest of moments, the blue light was diminished, covered by the enormous claw.
"HAIL STORM!"
Only for the claw to meet resistance - and then get pushed back, as what looked like a short-lived localized tornado, swirling violently kicked around air and shards of ice, erupted from Mercury's face plate. The Olympic was pushed back in a stumbling recoil, and even as the face plate was sealing itself back up, Mercury's back flared to life as Aeon-powered boosters propelled Mercury upwards, its fist reared back as a Tritonium-clad fist slammed into the Olympic's jaw.
The resounding impact echoed like a gong across the battlefield, and Mercury rode the creature's form down as it momentarily toppled onto its back, its fists already rearing for another punch. "That's not gonna hold it for long," Oscar muttered.
"So what's the plan?" Xiu Ying and Oscar were already linked back together via the Psychic Theater - she likely already could sense his thoughts, but she had to vocalize for the benefit of the Marine pilots. Her left arm was still horribly dislocated, and it was going to need treatment sooner or later. Perseus's HUD had very angry rashes of red splotching across its hull - and even though he wouldn't have minded taking the fight back to the kaiju, exposed bits of K-Mesh along the chest and the left leg were already just barely holding the internal machinery together, to say nothing of the hilarious lack of hydraulic fluids left inside after the Pterawing chase.
The other Seekers, functional or not, were also all sorts of beat up. Chimera-One's unit was lacking its head, yet the Seeker was absentmindedly undergoing its gun pod's functions check and ejecting spent casings from the chamber - admittedly it was fumbling just a little bit. More than a few of the others had giant gaping holes in the wings due to the 'rocket pods' the Pterawings were sporting. Chimera-Eighteen simply didn't have her right arm anymore - he tried not to look too closely at how her mecha mode had it casually slung over its left shoulder as if she'd used it as a bludgeon.
"We're not fighting that thing," Oscar declared. "Not head on, not in our current condition, and sure as hell not with the Pegasus mission killed like this." Perseus turned its head towards the crash landed form of their dropship. Smoke was billowing from the rear of the ship, but thermals were not picking up direct engine fires or anything - he had to trust until they got there that Diana could keep it under control.
The Perseus turned its head back towards the fight - and his HUD pinged the various wreckage of the other Seeker chassis that had crashed down to the battlefield. "Okay. Plan." It wasn't much of one, but a plan was better than no plan. "Chimera-One. You and three of the worst off are coming with us. We're going to get back to the Pegasus and see what we can do to get something back up and running." Turning his attention to the more intact Seekers, he then instructed, "Scavenge what you can from the other Seekers that crashed and rendezvous with us back at the Pegasus. We might not be able to hurt the damned thing right now. But we can distract it long enough for Mercury to land something a bit more permanent."
Even as he spoke those words, Mercury's form was already hurtling across the landscape, bouncing several times off of the ground before it regained its footing and already scrambling back up to its feet. The Olympic-class was already chasing after him, lightning blasting from its maw while in motion. Mercury's arms crossed together, absorbing the worst of the lightning that had so fried Perseus before shrugging it off and leaping into motion to meet the kaiju's charge.
We have so far to go yet.
"Scavenger team, you've got five minutes, then meet us back at the dropship. Those with us - reconfigure to ground mode and form up on us. Let's go."
Hiroki grimaced as the kaiju's tail slammed into Mercury's form. The frame shuddered, but didn't yield even as he was flung backwards again. "Okay, fine, that's not gonna get old or anything," he grumbled. Wrenching the control sticks, a targeting reticle overlaid itself over the canopy as Mercury's left forearm braced itself against the clenched right, and a low growl began to escalate into a high pitched whine of rocket engines.
"Eat this! GALE-!" The targeting turned green, and Hiroki depressed the button on the control stick. "-PUNCH!"
With a mighty kick and a roar, Mercury's forearm blasted outwards, screaming towards the kaiju in a shriek of rocket engines and displaced air. The kaiju looked up just as it was positioning itself for another attack when Mercury's fist violently made contact with its face, and a loud snap echoed loudly across the field as the fist rebounded, already flying back towards Mercury.
Hiroki was already breaking Mercury out into a dead sprint, only extending his right arm enough for its fist to reattach itself. "Aaaaaaand here's another one-!"
Mercury was already leaping off of one of the infrastructure panels that the maniacs in the Perseus had used as a ramp, and just as the kaiju's face was turning back towards him, Hiroki was already jamming the right control stick forward. With a mighty lurch, Mercury's fist smashed into the same spot the Gale Punch had just impacted against - and he had the satisfaction of seeing teeth shatter on his way down.
What he wasn't expecting was to hear a voice blare out at him.
"Oh for-gaaaaaah! This is such a pain!"
Hiroki blinked. "What?" It was almost enough to distract him from the spines that were blasting out of the kaiju's hide. Mercury spun to the side on its left heel, and Hiroki had a moment of de ja vu as some of the spines just barely grazed past Mercury's face. Flipping the PA system, he asked, "Since when do you all talk?"
"Since we decided someone with a goddamned brain needed to plan how to deal with you Yukimura bastards!" The kaiju reared its head back, lightning crackling around its battered jaw. Its eyes glowed an ominous yellow as a bestial growl was modulated oddly under the influence of the electricity building around its throat. "I had this all planned out perfectly! I was gonna personally stomp you and the old man into mashed potatoes!"
The growl escalated into a full throated roar as lightning erupted from the kaiju's throat, forking off into hundreds upon hundreds of different concentrated arcs towards Mercury. Hiroki forced its arms upwards to absorb more of the attack - the fresh Tritonium plates were holding up very nicely as the electric blasts scorched burns on the surface, even if lightning wasn't exactly what they were meant to deal with.
"But no! The friggin' Union just happened to be building giant robots and getting in the way! Now I have to deal with you the hard way!"
"Whine, whine, whine," Hiroki taunted back. "You didn't hear me the first time? Fine, I'll say it again!" Mercury once again threw its fists forward, meeting the rapidly descending claws head on. "I don't care how many dirty tricks you pull," Hiroki growled, Mercury's fists trembling due to the opposing physical force it was trying to match against. "As long as there's people out there who believe in Mercury V, we're gonna get right back up again to take you down!"
Hiroki's hands flipped open a panel to his left side, and his fist smashed against the button as the missile port on Mercury's stomach slid open. "STORM MISSILE! GO!" An enormous missile, almost more like an unguided rocket, barreled straight out of Mercury's stomach and slammed into the kaiju's exposed belly.
"Gah! Sonuvva-!" The resulting explosion forced the kaiju back. "JUST LAY DOWN AND DIE ALREADY!"
Hiroki snorted as Mercury's eyes began to glow a brighter blue. "You first."
"Damage to the hull isn't critical, but we don't have time for a battlefield fix-!"
"-shard generator is back online, but we're running on 65% efficiency-!"
"-leaks are being patched up, but we can't push the engines back to combat speed-!"
"-good thing some of the Seekers came back, we needed the help with heavy lifting-"
Diana grit her teeth at what she was seeing. On the whole, the Pegasus was doing alright. All things considering what it just went through. But combat with the Pterawings had seen a lot of damage build up in a million and one ways she just wasn't paying attention to in the heat of the moment. Getting swiped by the Olympic-class kaiju was just the icing on the cake that forced them all into a crash landing.
"-medical bay is reaching capacity-"
"-get damage control teams on Turrets Two and Four-"
"-fires have been contained near the starboard anti-air batteries-"
And the fight was still going between the Olympic and Mercury V. It was clear why Mercury had so much success - it simply would not go down. Attacks that had ultimately crippled the Perseus and the Pegasus were being shrugged off as inconveniences by the black and blue giant, and in turn it was returning what it received in equal measure. Lightning and claw met Tritonium alloy and Aeon Particles, and it was a rapid back and forth engagement for entities so large.
"And that's the problem," she muttered to herself. Mercury could take it and dish it back. But the kaiju was recovering just as quickly, with the added 'bonus' that its pilot - and that had surprised her to hear a sentient voice as the two pilots traded barbs - was incredibly annoyed. Hiroki was using that to his advantage, goading the kaiju into overreaching and landing devastating attacks - but the kaiju could recover quickly, and couldn't be pinned down long enough to land the knockout strike.
If she were flesh and blood, she might have just punched the wall out of frustration. They were knocked out cold - what could they do-?
"-ay again, Pegasus!" The AI 'looked' up, and a momentary pang of relief washed over her as she heard Tellison's voice. The Perseus was on approach, along with several of the Seekers. They were all reconfigured into ground alt-modes, all laden down with what looked like bits of scavenged Seeker wreckage. "Pegasus, this is Perseus. Please tell us you're alright!"
"This is Pegasus," Diana replied, "We have you on short-range now. A little on fire, but nothing we can't fix with time."
"Good." Zhang spoke up as well. "We're here to help get the ship online if we can. There's got to be something we can do-"
"Not unless we can get at least the turrets back online," Diana said with a grimace. "The wiring's still mostly intact, but the turrets took a beating and the Shard generator doesn't have enough juice for a sustained barrage."
"Does it have enough for one?" Tellison countered. Already the Seekers were reconfiguring back into mecha form, and were helping to offload the various satchels and wreckage slung to the Perseus's Phalanx mode. "We can't hurt the kaiju but we can at least distract it for Mercury to kill, right?"
"I thought of that," Diana remarked. "We have enough power for one strike, yes. But we need a weapon that can concentrate that power, we need something that can stand in for the turret, and-"
Diana's train of processes was thrown off as she saw another brilliant flash of blue pierce the battlefield. "CHILL GLARE!" Two brilliant beams of concentrated Aeon particles erupted from Mercury's eyes, clashing against another burst of lightning from the Olympic's maws. Incredulously, the two energies were canceling each other out, despite the fact that Ivanna would likely have a forced shutdown from how 'that doesn't work that way!' had she seen that. If only they could-
Her vision then landed onto the wrecked stand of a turret stand. One of the ones she helped to set up, in fact. It focused…Aeon…Particles…
The cannon was still intact.
"Tellison. Zhang." A moment later, an external signal was roped in as well. "Dr. Yukimura," she added. "I have an idea. Can Hiroki keep its attention on him for five minutes?"
Ozawa had to admit. Despite everything, even with overwhelming force, either Mercury was just that much of a stubborn little cockroach or it received upgrades at the right time. Either way, it just wasn't going down. Begrudgingly - begrudgingly - she could see why Dr. Sheol's earlier kaiju were having so many problems with the damned thing.
With a flick of the controls, she grouped what was left of the flyers - I should come up with a name for them eventually - and group attacked them onto Mercury, hoping to distract it for a little bit while she either could land a pinning attack or just skip him and go straight for the Institute anyway-
Several contrails of missiles erupted out of nowhere, and the remaining flying units were utterly shredded out of the air. At this point, Ozawa wasn't even surprised - she had just been comparing Mercury to a cockroach, but these little EUDF vermin were proving to be just as annoyingly persistent-
"GALE SPIKE!"
-and the Titanosaur winced as another of those damned flying punches slammed into its frame. An icicle spike had formed on the end of it this time, and even managed to puncture shallowly into the kaiju's scales before exploding, peppering the rest of the impact area with high velocity ice fragments as the fist returned to the little bastard. "Come on, is that the best you can do!?" The pilot was just taunting her now.
And damn her if it wasn't working. "I'm gonna turn you into paste!" The wider control scheme abandoned, Ozawa gripped at the now warped control sticks as she charged the Titanosaur at Mercury, determined to start stomping it into the ground. Repeatedly!
"I go best over pizza!" Hiroki taunted back, Mercury's face plate already opening for another Hail Storm. But he flipped the communicator open, and pulled up Diana's frequency. "Okay, she's pissed off at me more," he confirmed. "If you're gonna do something, make it quick!"
"Right on time," Diana confirmed. As she looked over the jury-rigged monstrosity she had ordered built, she winced at one thought. "Lana is going to defrag me for this," she muttered.
What they had created was something the Westphalians might have tilted their heads at. Perseus was in its mecha mode - but the Grand Mercury prototype cannon was fully strapped to its chest, its arms clenched tightly into hastily drilled handhold units. Some of the pilots running distraction duty alongside Hiroki had taken the initiative to ferry over some of Dr. Yukimura's engineering team - and once they had learned what they were about to try, they were all onboard for it. Wiring from the destroyed turret base had been run towards the Pegasus's shard generator, and all those wires in turn had been run straight into Perseus's engines.
The sad thing was, Perseus was already so cracked and damaged, it hadn't taken long for the human engineers aboard the Pegasus to remove enough of the plating to run the wires into. Which in turn led to another issue that Diana knew was going to come up eventually.
"Diana." Dr. Yukimura's voice was calm. "That armor meshing…I understand now is not the time. But in the future…"
"...the best person to answer your questions on that, Dr. Yukimura," Diana sighed, "is Dr. Sam Carlson. He is the one who helped make Perseus and Beowulf possible, and it was the Science behind this that helps make it even run."
"SCIENCE!"
Diana blinked. "Okay, who brought the interns with us?" she muttered. Dr. Yukimura just looked bemused, so she pushed on. "I'll bring it up with Major Devin, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind a discussion between you two if it helps put your concerns at ease."
"I would greatly appreciate it." That seemed to placate him for the time being. "I would press further, but…I would not be in a position to question it if it weren't for your assistance."
"One thing at a time, Doctor." Diana then glanced over at the readouts, and saw that they were as ready as they were going to be. Just in case, though… "Status check?"
"Aeon Particle…hookup…thing…good to go! As good as it's gonna get!"
"Shard generator running at 65%! Bridge, we have enough for one shot!"
"Aeon Particles are being routed to Perseus now. Stand by…"
Oscar exhaled - exactly at the same moment as Xiu Ying. Both of them glanced at each other and snorted, both trying to shake off the jitters as best they could. The big eff-all cannon that they had deployed had just been strapped to Perseus's chest. And if they understood this fully, they were about to be used as an impromptu turret to try and pin down the Olympic just enough to give Mercury a shot at finally killing it.
"This is Perseus!" Oscar called out. "Readouts look good, we're charging at 30% and rising." The outside of the cannon began to glow the telltale blue of an Aeon Particle buildup, with strands of barely perceived energy slowly coalescing inside the 'barrel' of the cannon.
"This is insane," Xiu Ying muttered. "But this whole day's been crazy carnival, hasn't it?" She paused. "'Crazy carnival?'" she then questioned herself. "That's something you would say."
"And you'd be saying something like…"
"废话." The phrase came from both their lips readily. Which was strange enough for Oscar, not knowing a single word of Mandarin.
"...I'm gonna bring that up with the ESP folks later."
"Same." Xiu Ying paused. "And what about Perseus?"
Oscar glanced down at the controls, then at an external camera showing Perseus's scarred, beaten face. Claw marks, a gouged out eye revealing only the camera unit beneath - the poor guy had been run through the wringer, and the glowing bright blue light and shadows of the cannon only emphasized the fresh war wounds it received. And yet… "It did good," he opted to say. "We'll bring up the…I don't even know what to call it. But Perseus is a scrapper. He's done good."
The engine thrummed just slightly. Almost like a growl of… "He sounds content," Xiu Ying commented. "Perseus never showed anything like this before."
"Well, either way." Oscar patted the console. "Welcome to the team, Perseus. You had one helluva debut."
The console blared back, and Oscar's attention turned back to the mission at hand. "Pegasus, this is Perseus. Cannon is at 81%!"
"Mercury V, this is Pegasus!" Diana's avatar had fully materialized back at Rin's console, and her form was leaning forward as if she were gripping at the rails. "Perseus is just about ready to fire!"
"She's not-!" Mercury shuddered as a scaly fist slammed into Mercury's face. Rin winced at the sight, but Hiroki spun right back around and slammed back at the kaiju. "-she's not exactly cooperating with the plan-!"
"Hiroki!" Rin called, clutching the microphone. "Grapple the kaiju's claws!" Ignoring for the moment Diana's questioning glance, he pushed, "Grapple its claws and initiate the Gale Spike protocols!"
"R-right!" It took a few more close engagements, but eventually, Hiroki was able to goad the kaiju into exactly what they were hoping.
"And if this works the way I hope it will," he muttered…
"Gotcha!" Ozawa grinned as the two claws finally managed to pin Mercury's arms, and slowly force them backwards. "That was a lot of energy you spent there," she taunted. "But you have to be running just a tiny bit low now, aren't you? Finally have you right where I want you!"
"Funny," the pilot replied. "Was just about to say the same thing!"
"What-?"
"GALE SPIKE!"
At first, Ozawa couldn't comprehend what he was doing. The attack couldn't work like that! There was no space for the attack to-
And then the Titanosaur reared back, trying to disengage. But it was too late - their arms were frozen solid together - and Mercury V was furiously wrenching all its strength to force it there. "What are you doing!?"
"Distracting you! HIT IT!"
"This is Perseus! We are at full charge!"
Diana's face held a grim smile. "Grand Cannon!" she called out. Her arm shot forward. "Fire!"
"FIRE!/FIRE!"
For the briefest of moments, Perseus's optics glowed a bright blue as Aeon Particle supercharged through its frame. Through all of its cracks and gouges, bright blue light spilled forth as the energies required flowed through it and into the cannon, as the barrel practically blinded everyone who witnessed it. The cannons were apparently never meant to produce this much power-!
Perseus braced itself one last time - and then there was light.
Luminous, blue energies screamed as a pillar of light speared through reality. This was not the simple volley of the cannons as they were - a pure, blue concentration of light slammed into the Olympic's back, bleaching all of the color from the world around in its immediate vicinity. Slowly, but then rapidly, ice began to form all over the kaiju's body, its scales almost growing brittle from frostbite as it tried to writhe in pain.
"Mercury, this is Perseus!" Oscar called out.
"Now's your chance!" Xiu Ying called out.
"FINISH IT!"
Hiroki grinned as the raw Aeon Particle buildup flowed back into Mercury. "I was waiting for this!" he cheered, his hands already moving in a dance and song that had been burnt into his mind for years. "Let's do it, Mercury V!"
The ice connecting Mercury's arms with the kaiju's snapped and shattered. Bits of the kaiju's arms simply fell apart with the ice, shattering into millions of pieces upon impact with the ground. Hiroki slid the dial forward, and a thrum of power began to cross Mercury's chest as panels began to glow ever more brightly, one by one.
"The killing strike!" Mercury's arms spread outwards, its legs braced as the kaiju was helpless to move anywhere. Even as the cannon's energies began to die down, it was far too late for it.
"BLIZZARD!"
Mercury V's chest panels pulsed rapidly, one last hint of what was to come.
"BLAST!"
Bright, blue energy erupted out of Mercury V's chest panels, slamming into the Olympic-class kaiju with enough force to send it recoiling. The light kept going, biting deep into the kaiju's chest before violent lights began to crisscross their way across the kaiju's form. The cracks began to grow brighter and brighter, as shards of ice began to burrow their way deep into the kaiju's body and organs-
-and detonate inside.
What sounded like the violent collapse of an iceberg echoed loudly from the kaiju's body as it exploded in segments. Its tail shattered from the inside. Its claws and arms soon followed, and it abruptly fell to the ground as its legs completely shattered from the knees and down-
-but the head abruptly exploded, and for the briefest of moments, a winged figure could be seen rapidly fleeing from the explosion-
-and the Olympic exploded, as bits and chunks of the once dangerous creature practically rained down onto the sky. Once the light began to clear and the colors of the world began to return, aught but a frozen, iced over crater where it once stood.
"You think you've won!?"
Hiroki blinked as he saw what looked like one of the Ptera…wings…things. But aside from the wings themselves, it looked like one of the infiltrators that had snuck into the Institute - but leather wings flapped, keeping the figure afloat while it cradled what looked like a computer panel.
"Fine, fine. Enjoy your 'w' while it lasts, scrubs. Old man Sheol's got more in the works anyway." With a rude gesture from her finger, the figure abruptly snapped away - and as she disappeared, the booming echo of something piercing the sound barrier followed.
"Who the…heck was that?" Hiroki wondered.
EUDF VICTORY
Yukimura Institute: Rescued
Mercury V: Operational
Yukimura Institute: Rescued
Mercury V: Operational
And so winds down the Siege of the Yukimura Institute. There will be a vote on a post battle loot in the next post, but I'm a tiny bit under the weather, so I'll do my best to get that out to you all tomorrow.
I hope everyone has enjoyed the new format that combat takes place in - I definitely had fun hamming it up in the best Super Robot show style that I could.
I hope everyone has enjoyed the new format that combat takes place in - I definitely had fun hamming it up in the best Super Robot show style that I could.
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Day of Destruction - Cessation
- Location
- USA
I would have gone with a title referencing something about Canceling the Day of Destruction, but that was probably a bit too much on the nose.
1800, 22 November A.D. 2072
Yukimura Institute
"What a mess."
Hiroki sighed, looking over the pockmarked ruins that were once nice, grassy, and green. Most of it was now cratered dirt, with the old underground infrastructure jutting outwards as if it had become unearthed ruins from a long time ago, if it weren't still sparking and sputtering out the odd bit of fire.
Most of the fires along the grass had burnt themselves out by now - maybe the ashes would help feed the growth of some new trees when they got around to planting them - but Dr. Yukimura's place wasn't going to be winning any tourist attraction awards anytime soon.
Shame. That one tonkatsu place was talking about opening up nearby too!
Hunger fixations now focused almost entirely on the tasty pork cutlet dish, Hiroki guided Mercury over to where the Pegasus was still crash landed at. He could see Sendo's team combing over the hull, doing their best to help out with some of the immediate repairs. The Seekers - and smaller versions of them, it looked like - were also all over, lifting heavy pieces of equipment to help the smaller human teams weld on unsightly patches of metal, more like bandaids rather than actual repair jobs.
And then there was Perseus. It had long since been disentangled from the mess of wires that had rigged it to the Pegasus and the cannon, which was laying off to the side. The EUDF robot was still perched right along the ground, where a mobile repair station had been stacked up and already had servo arms hard at work fixing…whatever was in it. Should ask the doctor if we could make something out of cannon again, he thought. Still, he guided Mercury to kneel next to the hull, and Hiroki popped the canopy open, letting him grab the tethering wire and lower himself to the ground level.
"Watch your step there," a voice called out. "Kinda crater-y here." Hiroki looked over, and saw two pilots wearing what looked to be really, really bulky suits. The voice in question had a clean cut, but now very sweaty, matted mess of brown hair. The woman next to him was similarly clad, with longer black hair tied back into a ponytail. Her left arm was being looked over by technicians and a medic - and Hiroki winced, seeing just how badly her arm had been dislocated.
The woman saw his gaze, and shook her head. "Don't worry," she said. "It-" She winced as the technicians pried the armored sleeve open, leaving just her pilot fatigues underneath. "It looks worse than it actually is," she assured him.
"Fair enough?" Hiroki had seen worse than this one years ago - a dumb fight instigated by some punk wearing dark glasses - but it wasn't by much. "You two the pilots?"
"Yeah," the man responded. He raised a hand, and Hiroki reached out to grab it. "Oscar Tellison. That's Xiu Yin Zhang." Any attempt for the woman to introduce herself or initiate a handshake herself was cut off by the medics wrenching her arm back into place - Zhang hissed, but didn't complain as they then began to set her arm for future treatment. "And the big guy back there, well, you know him."
"Yeah." The armored giant looked like it had gone a few rounds with kaiju all by itself - because it had. "You guys fight hard, you know that?"
"Yeah, we do," Xiu Yin said. A crooked grin crossed her face. "We took down two while you were focused on one."
"Hey now!" Hiroki shot back. "That thing was worth easily three of the ones you guys were dealing with!"
"And we still had to help you with the big one," Oscar replied with a similar grin, which only grew wider at the exasperated look on Hiroki's face. "Still, glad you were able to launch in one piece."
"I wouldn't have been able to if you hadn't tanked them all for me," Hiroki acknowledged. "I appreciate it."
"You damned well better!" a voice huffed from the repair station. Hiroki jerked his head, slightly startled. "I don't believe this! First Ichiro, now Perseus! Are all the pilots trying to make me annoyed!?"
"...that-that's Lana," Oscar said slowly, as if unsure of how to introduce her. "She's-"
"If she's anything like Diana, then I get it," Hiroki waved aside.
"I am, and that's not exactly right, but I'm a little busy here."
"Still." Hiroki decided to leave her to it. "Owe you guys. Anytime you need a hand, I'm down. Just let us know."
"Appreciate it." This time, Xiu Yin extended her right fist, which Hiroki bumped back. "But one thing…who the heck was in the kaiju?"
"I really wish I knew." Hiroki turned his attention back towards the direction where the 'pilot' flew off. "But it sounded like she had something to do with planning today's attack."
"If Sheol is developing intelligent officers," Oscar said slowly, "then things are going to get worse before they get better…"
"...well. Sounds like you all had a hell of an engagement."
Diana nodded from her segment of the Institute's mainframe. In realspace, her avatar had materialized on the center of the conference room table - still intact, somehow, incongruously so when you took into account all of the bullet pockmarks and burns from the previous room to room fighting. Dr. Yukimura was seated behind her, and Keiko Hamakawa to his left and Daichi Sendo to his right. Almost like our own team, Diana thought wryly. Research, military and engineering.
Her avatar stood at-ease, her arms clasped behind her back and her legs at shoulder width. "That's correct, sir," she replied smoothly. "To sum it up: the Yukimura Institute was subjected to a multi-pronged attack. Human-sized 'infiltrators' armed with crude melee weapons and small arms attacked in human wave style rushes, while the kaiju - designated 'Crocalisks' - attacked from the ground while carrying 'Pterawing' flying units."
Holo images of each kaiju and attacker displayed on the screen as she presented the information. "In addition, the command and control unit, dubbed 'Olympic,' had likely come in expecting to just conduct mop up operations. However, Perseus, the Twenty Fifth Air Wing, and-" She winced at this next part, "-the Pegasus itself were able to delay it long enough for Mercury V to launch. We then cooperated to enable Mercury the chance to kill it completely."
Major Devin nodded, sipping from a thermos that Diana was convinced was growing larger every time she saw it. Caffeine didn't seem to work on him anymore, but he drank it regardless. Yet this was also the man who wrangled together the talent and the minds who made the Perseus even possible. Clad in a United States Army uniform with EUDF insignia augmenting it, dirty blonde hair obscured green eyes that had deep shadows underneath it - likely not helped by the time difference involved. Major Devin wasn't that old by human standards, but it was likely this job was going to prematurely age him. Much the same way that it seemed to with Dr. Yukimura.
"They've never worked on this scale before," Devin pondered. A few fingers were drumming a beat on his desk. "Correct me if I'm wrong, Doctor, but normally Sheol sends out one kaiju, maybe a pair, to destroy infrastructure and military bases without any followup."
"Correct. Much of it seems to be for the purpose of luring Mercury V into a battlefield of their choosing so that they might destroy it." Dr. Yukimura grimaced. "Or perhaps it is in the vague hopes of destroying public support and…surrendering to him. Not that this has worked at all, thankfully."
"So we're dealing with an unprecedented change." Major Devin wrote something down on a notepad in front of him. "And the intelligent 'pilot…'"
"If I'm reading into what we recorded of her dialogue earlier right," Keiko chimed in, "She probably had a hand in planning out some of the attack. Almost like an officer or leader operating independently of Sheol except for resources."
"Them infiltrators were different from usual too," Sendo added. "The last few times they swung by, they knew just enough to sneak in and try to claw your face off. These bastards? They all knew how to use guns. Heck, they even were trying to override some of the machinery, but we put a stop to that."
"Which means that Sheol realized at some point his previous approach wasn't working."
"A paradigm shift, if you will," Dr. Yukimura sighed. "Additional resources, more complex planning, and independent leaders to organize them."
"But you all stopped it." Diana was then taken aback by the next words from his mouth. "Diana…excellent work." Diana blinked at the praise. "Don't beat yourself up over the Pegasus crash landing. You aggressively fought your dropship, kept the kaiju from destroying the Yukimura Institute, and helped land us the biggest victory over Sheol we've had in recent memory. You and all of the pilots and crew have something to be proud of."
"I-" Diana almost stammered, before she forced herself to calm down. "I-Thank you, sir!"
"Don't thank me too soon. You still have to help with cleanup after all." Ignoring the crestfallen look of panic on her face, Major Devin turned his attention to Dr. Yukimura. "And I appreciate your understanding, and your discretion, about Diana."
"She fought as hard as anyone else," Dr. Yukimura responded. "Her digital nature is of no trouble with me."
"Still kinda weird." Sendo scratched his head, but shrugged. "Not sayin' it's bad, just sayin' it's gonna take some time gettin' used to. But you're alright with me."
"I was thinking you were a machine when you were giving me tactical readouts," Keiko huffed. "Didn't expect to be right, but you're still ahead of some of the officers I've had to work with before." She offered Diana a grin. "You definitely helped make our situation better down there. Thank you."
"That said," Yukimura continued before Diana could die of embarrassment from the praise. "I understand your machines work off of…"
"Reverse engineered kaiju materials." Major Devin was rather matter of fact about it. "I understand your concern, but I can assure you that it is perfectly safe."
"So far," Dr. Yukimura countered mildly. "Are you certain it will stay that way?" His eyes glanced over to the viewport overseeing the battlefield remnants, where many of the Seekers and their Steed counterparts were collecting various pieces of the leftover kaiju. "Sheol's creations have a habit of subverting even the best of intentions."
"It involves nothing invasive," Major Devin replied. "Diana has also brought to my attention your concerns. I will need to clear it with higher, but if it gets approved, I'm more than happy to have you visit Dr. Carlson to answer any questions you might have."
"That…that would help, I think." Dr. Yukimura still looked unconvinced, but he was mollified for the moment. "Sendo's team will help get your dropship air worthy again. But…"
"Can we get some of those Steeds?" Keiko leaned forward, a glint in her eye. "I would've killed for those in my active duty days."
"Wouldn't mind having 'em for my team too," Sendo added. "Would make patch jobs a helluva lot easier."
Major Devin seemed to have a thoughtful look on his face. "Again, let me make some calls," he said. "But I personally don't see why not." He drained the thermos of coffee, set it aside out of view of the holocall…and pulled a fresh thermos right back in.
"Sir, your coffee intake-" Diana tried to say.
"Is my problem and my concern," he replied. Diana just sighed, knowing a losing battle when she saw one. "And thank you again for letting us take the battlefield samples. If I get that trip approved, you can get front row seats on how we reverse engineer these things so long as you don't openly talk about them."
"NDAs. I am aware."
Major Devin grinned at the dry response, then turned his attention back to Diana. "For the record then, Diana. What did we get our hands on?"
"As you can see, sir," Diana began as holographic images of the battlefield salvage appeared. "Thanks to both the Aeon Particles freezing some pieces, and our ability to send the Seekers and Steeds out with the freeze containment units, we were able to salvage the following before they could self destruct in time."
QM Note: due to how the battle played out, you all are going to get a lot of salvage from the kaiju regardless. But this is your chance to highlight what specific qualities you were able to identify from a glance. What did you all specifically salvage from each Kaiju? See the following, and vote by plan.
[] Olympic (Pick Three)
-[] Some of the organs that seemed responsible for the lightning breath were able to be salvaged. Even while being frozen, there is a lot of static charge building up...
-[] The 'cockpit' of the Olympic-class was detonated by its pilot, but bits of brain matter were still semi-frozen. Sam might be able to make some use of it - if nothing else, to study the command and control 'structure' of the kaiju.
-[] The entire hind leg of the Olympic was still miraculously intact. Who knows what monstrous new invention Sam could concoct out of a full analysis of the kaiju skeletal and muscular structure of a limb?
-[] Teeth. Lots and lots of teeth were knocked out, and there's enough that we might be able to salvage them. Diana isn't sure what Sam could do with these, but...
[] Crocalisks (Pick Two)
-[] The Arc Blade was still wedged in the Crocalisk's throat, and the acidic breakdown had eaten away at most of the blade before the head itself was somewhat severed. The brain looks to be a wash, but the throat - and the fire glands - seem intact.
-[] Chunks of the Crocalisk's hide and scales were mostly intact enough to contain into freeze containment units. Diana is convinced those hollowed sections were where the Pterawings were 'carried' on - she's pretty sure Sam wouldn't mind getting a look at it.
-[] Claws - not quite the whole thing but enough pieced together from the two of them - could be salvaged. If past patterns are anything, they might be able to work some weaponry out of it.
[] Pterawings (Pick One)
-[] There is very little of the Pterawings left. But there's enough samples of the wings available to collect and study. How could something so large be easily kept airborne?
-[] Grisly as it is, the rocket pod analogues - the 'spike launchers' based on the clawed feet - were salvaged. The Build Team might be able to fashion some projectiles out of this with some study...
Right after this, the Inspiration of the Insane interlude takes place.
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Vote closed
December, Year Three - One Foot In, One Foot Out
- Location
- USA
The Inspiration of the Insane interlude takes place right before this.
1152, 1 December A.D. 2072
Engineering Bay
"Oooof." Adam winced as he looked at the returned Perseus. "That does not look any prettier up close."
"It's impressively worse," Henry added. A gust of wind blew past them, prompting him to place a hand on his beret. "But the combat data should do us some good."
"I mean, yeah," Wilde agreed. "But this thing is gonna be down for...what. A month? Two?"
"One," Henry replied confidently. A thoughtful expression crossed his face. "If the major doesn't mind us extending that to two, we could definitely start with upgrades now."
"We'd appreciate it." Oscar was still walking gingerly around the base, but only under supervision. "Perseus put one hell of a show out there, but...yeah." The pilot looked over the Perseus as it stood upwards, held up only by the support struts. Its shoulder plates looked as if it had been practically peeled open - which it had been - and torn K-Scale meshing was visible through the gaps. Even the eyes had been punctured, gaping and jagged voids peering through shards of dull green. It could have been Adam's imagination, but it was almost as if Perseus was sagging just a little bit, even as deactivated as it was.
"Well, we'll get 'im fixed up, Oscar," Adam replied cheerfully. "Make him good as new."
"What do you think?" Henry asked, the thoughtful look on his face having yet to clear off. "Could be time to get the Argonauts fitted for combination, if that's how the major wants to go."
"How about the C-Crystal?" Henry gave him a questioning glance, and Adam shrugged back. "Why not? Assuming the worst Oscar's ever done is run a traffic light, he should be fine-"
"-but the power output could be a bit too much, almost like a pressure washer in a camping tent-"
"-so let's give him some more weapons to vent it on, Perseus could use them-"
So caught up in the discussion, Adam Wilde never noticed Oscar slowly back away from the conversation.
1230, 1 December A.D. 2072
DFRI Commandant's Office
"Perseus is...?" You are Major Johnathan Devin, and you have yet another interesting development in a library full of them. "...sentient? Becoming its own mind? Something of the two?" You look at your resident experts, and make a questioning gesture. "Am I anywhere close?"
"We do not know." Dr. Boris Ignatov is running his hand through his hair, his eyes deep in thought. "We knew the Psychic Theater Link could have some side effects, but this is somewhat more extreme than I was anticipating."
"Mental thought bleedover, that part we sort of expected," Sam chimes in. "Picking up languages? I still have bits of French and sudoku puzzles stuck in my head. Haven't tested it personally for months, so it might not stick." You just choose to ignore that part as he continues, "But Perseus acting on its own?" He shakes his head. "That is new. Might have something to do with extreme emotions under stress. We get plenty of that here in lab conditions but nothing like an actual battlefield."
"And previous examples have just been the single pilot," Haruko adds. "1LT Callaghan has reported that it feels as if the frame responds to him, but at the time that was simply taken for metaphor or pilot affectation."
"And we never thought it was literal." You lean back in your seat and sigh, glancing up at the ceiling as if it held the answers.
It didn't. Just a spinning ceiling fan going round and round like a record.
"Either way, I want it looked at," you decide. "First, just make sure that it's not impacting either Tellison's or Zhang's mental health. Perseus isn't going anywhere while it's undergoing repairs, so just keep an eye on them and let me know if anything comes up."
Boris and Sam nod. "We will have a proposal on your desk soon," Boris promises.
"And plenty enough from my neck of the woods," Sam adds. "Considerable kudos to those two for everything they brought back. Kaiju studies is going to have a lot to do, and that's on top of the K-Fang."
You all exchange some more last minute administrative taskings before they're both out of the door. Once the door is closed, you just exhale sharply. "It's always something, isn't it?" you mutter.
"And always something new," Haruko replies in as glum a voice as your own. "Brigadier General Peters has sent us a note about the end of year evaluation."
"What about it?" you ask warily.
"That it won't quite be the same format and it will be more of an open discussion," came the cryptic but equally confused reply. "...this is rather different."
You just sigh, and reach for your coffee. "Lovely."
A Note About Advisors
They work a little differently than before (I'm going to be saying this a lot, but bear with me). Projects and availability are still a thing - you conduct projects after you assign a specific advisor team to them. However, each advisor can now be assigned two projects, letting you cover more ground (and this is my effort to try and avert the option bottleneck that existed before).
The rolling system will be mostly the same: each project will roll 2d6 by default. If you assign someone who you can be reasonably sure would do better at the job (say, Wilde and Henry with anything related to Variable Configuration or Max with Xenotechnology), you will add 1d6. I am not giving success thresholds anymore, as I am taking a new approach to that:
Your advisors are good enough that they will likely succeed at what they're trying to do. The difference now is degrees of success. There will be exceptions (liaison duties, for example, still will have some degree of failure states), but I will no longer cut off options the players want to try based on what they already have or newly discovered. Advisors performing projects where they would reasonably excel at will add 1d6 - those who don't do not get a bonus but can attempt it anyway.
Some restrictions still apply. Aside from Katarina, who still retains her ability to help out wherever she is needed, each advisor still remains within 'their lane.' Sam and Max will always be research, Wilde and Henry will always be engineering. But if the players can justify why someone should be able to cross over, make the pitch and I'll consider it - it just won't be available by default. If a project is also multi-turn, that one action will still remain locked with it until it is completed - but if they still have a free action, they can take on another duty.
This is something of a fresh start for us, so let's see how well this works!
They work a little differently than before (I'm going to be saying this a lot, but bear with me). Projects and availability are still a thing - you conduct projects after you assign a specific advisor team to them. However, each advisor can now be assigned two projects, letting you cover more ground (and this is my effort to try and avert the option bottleneck that existed before).
The rolling system will be mostly the same: each project will roll 2d6 by default. If you assign someone who you can be reasonably sure would do better at the job (say, Wilde and Henry with anything related to Variable Configuration or Max with Xenotechnology), you will add 1d6. I am not giving success thresholds anymore, as I am taking a new approach to that:
Your advisors are good enough that they will likely succeed at what they're trying to do. The difference now is degrees of success. There will be exceptions (liaison duties, for example, still will have some degree of failure states), but I will no longer cut off options the players want to try based on what they already have or newly discovered. Advisors performing projects where they would reasonably excel at will add 1d6 - those who don't do not get a bonus but can attempt it anyway.
Some restrictions still apply. Aside from Katarina, who still retains her ability to help out wherever she is needed, each advisor still remains within 'their lane.' Sam and Max will always be research, Wilde and Henry will always be engineering. But if the players can justify why someone should be able to cross over, make the pitch and I'll consider it - it just won't be available by default. If a project is also multi-turn, that one action will still remain locked with it until it is completed - but if they still have a free action, they can take on another duty.
This is something of a fresh start for us, so let's see how well this works!
Defense Force Options
Captain Haruko Sasaki
- No Projects Assigned
DFAI-01 'Diana'
- No Projects Assigned
DFAI-02 'Adrianna'
- No Projects Assigned
- No Projects Assigned
DFAI-01 'Diana'
- No Projects Assigned
DFAI-02 'Adrianna'
- No Projects Assigned
[] Reaction Force Monitoring: Kaiju
- [] Which Advisor?
- The kaiju have seemed relatively quiet after sieging the Yukimura Institute - but that's no reason to be lax.
[] Reaction Force Monitoring: Westphalians
- [] Which Advisor?
- If the Westphalians have proven anything, they will almost always find some way to strike where you least expect it.
[] Reaction Force Monitoring: Free Brothers Kausen
- [] Which Advisor?
- So far, Galbinus and his Legion have managed to keep the Free Brothers fully engaged. It wouldn't hurt to check for blind spots if they exist, though.
QM Explanation
The Reaction Force Monitoring action is the DFRI's method of finding and detecting problems before they have time to develop into Crises. You will always conduct a basic roll for each specific threat. However, by assigning an advisor to specifically monitor for a particular threat you have a greater than normal chance of finding something or someone and putting them on your radar earlier than if you had not been looking.
By assigning an advisor, you furthermore can have additional details of the threat revealed to you. Even if you find nothing, you will likely learn something additional about the threat in question.
- [] Which Advisor?
- The kaiju have seemed relatively quiet after sieging the Yukimura Institute - but that's no reason to be lax.
[] Reaction Force Monitoring: Westphalians
- [] Which Advisor?
- If the Westphalians have proven anything, they will almost always find some way to strike where you least expect it.
[] Reaction Force Monitoring: Free Brothers Kausen
- [] Which Advisor?
- So far, Galbinus and his Legion have managed to keep the Free Brothers fully engaged. It wouldn't hurt to check for blind spots if they exist, though.
QM Explanation
The Reaction Force Monitoring action is the DFRI's method of finding and detecting problems before they have time to develop into Crises. You will always conduct a basic roll for each specific threat. However, by assigning an advisor to specifically monitor for a particular threat you have a greater than normal chance of finding something or someone and putting them on your radar earlier than if you had not been looking.
By assigning an advisor, you furthermore can have additional details of the threat revealed to you. Even if you find nothing, you will likely learn something additional about the threat in question.
[] Australia - The Weird and the West(phalian)
- Adrianna had stumbled across not just team Valiant - as a whole they also stumbled across something involving a complicated chain of submarine paths and probably Westphalian involvement of some kind. Erika Drake is set to get to the bottom of it. You can send help. Adrianna is keen to 'crack the case!' as she puts it, but with the Pegasus under repairs, the Thunderbolt remains your best option to send more direct help - and it wouldn't be a bad way to get Satsuma some experience.
QM Explanation
Deployments are exactly as they sound, and work much the same way. These are threats that you have identified in one way or another, and you may choose to deploy a Super Robot team to deal with it. These do not remain stagnant, however - leave something for too long, and it may develop into a full blown Crisis. Alternatively, one of the other defenders in the world may deal with it on their own - but at the moment, that is not a reliable method of risk mitigation.
- Adrianna had stumbled across not just team Valiant - as a whole they also stumbled across something involving a complicated chain of submarine paths and probably Westphalian involvement of some kind. Erika Drake is set to get to the bottom of it. You can send help. Adrianna is keen to 'crack the case!' as she puts it, but with the Pegasus under repairs, the Thunderbolt remains your best option to send more direct help - and it wouldn't be a bad way to get Satsuma some experience.
QM Explanation
Deployments are exactly as they sound, and work much the same way. These are threats that you have identified in one way or another, and you may choose to deploy a Super Robot team to deal with it. These do not remain stagnant, however - leave something for too long, and it may develop into a full blown Crisis. Alternatively, one of the other defenders in the world may deal with it on their own - but at the moment, that is not a reliable method of risk mitigation.
SCR-03E Thunderbolt
NOTE: None others currently available due to lack of mobility
NOTE: None others currently available due to lack of mobility
[] Liaison: General Li/GDF
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- You're not exactly close with the Ground Defense Force general, but there is no doubt that General Li greatly appreciated being the first to field the Centurions. It could be worth your while to follow up and see how they're doing, or if there's anything else that needs doing.
[] Liaison: Colonel Kim/FRC
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- The Jackals have by now become ubiquitous across the North American District, and more are being seen being produced and fielded elsewhere. Colonel Kim's enthusiastic endorsement of the frames were partially responsible for that - it could be worthwhile to check in, and see if he's uncovered anything that you can use.
[] Liaison: Colonel Bernard/MEF
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- It may be prudent to have a meeting of some kind with the MEF. The unofficial rumor mill in the wider EUDF is already abuzz about the Seekers. The 25th Air Wing performed fantastically, and providing a face to face evaluation of them to their senior boss wouldn't go amiss.
[] Liaison: Captain Dana Candler/NDF
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Candler seems to have convinced enough of her superiors, and the Sergey Gorshkov is looking to become its own task force…which you have been hearing is now in dire need of reorganizing and reconstitution. At the moment, you also have a dropship that is locked down for repairs after the Kyoto operation - perhaps you could work out a trade?
[] Liaison: Dr. Yukimura/Yukimura Institute
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Dr. Yukimura is somewhat busy with the cleanup right after the Olympic-class's attack on the Institute. He's very grateful for the assistance, but you may want to check back in with him later.
[] Liaison: Mander/MSS
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Mander is well aware of Erika's gallivanting. If you choose to cooperate with Erika to take down the plot that's brewing down there, it might be prudent to open a dialogue out of courtesy.
- You owe them a favor from a previous operation.
[] Liaison: Galbinus-R/Legio Galbinus
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- The DFRI and the Legion get on like a house on fire. After saving Cavalier, building the Enclave and helping them with Variable Configuration, you are as close as can be with Galbinus and his crew. Why not check in with your friends from the stars and see what else needs doing?
[] Liaison: Major Lenora Jenkins/Ground Pound
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- It's been about half a year since you've heard back from Jenkins. Assuming that the Fulgur Particles or the nanomachines haven't eaten them all just yet, it might be time to see what's changed since you checked in on them.
QM Explanation
These are the known personalities that are, if not friendly to you, at least neutral enough to be willing to discuss things with you. To initiate dialogue, assign an Advisor to the specified contact, and then write in a topic of discussion. This can be anything from floating ideas, to offering additional support, or even giving them information discovered through the Reaction Force monitoring that they can act on (which is usually welcomed). You can also try to work out a trade of sorts if you know they have something specifically that they can offer, but be ready to offer something in exchange if you do.
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- You're not exactly close with the Ground Defense Force general, but there is no doubt that General Li greatly appreciated being the first to field the Centurions. It could be worth your while to follow up and see how they're doing, or if there's anything else that needs doing.
[] Liaison: Colonel Kim/FRC
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- The Jackals have by now become ubiquitous across the North American District, and more are being seen being produced and fielded elsewhere. Colonel Kim's enthusiastic endorsement of the frames were partially responsible for that - it could be worthwhile to check in, and see if he's uncovered anything that you can use.
[] Liaison: Colonel Bernard/MEF
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- It may be prudent to have a meeting of some kind with the MEF. The unofficial rumor mill in the wider EUDF is already abuzz about the Seekers. The 25th Air Wing performed fantastically, and providing a face to face evaluation of them to their senior boss wouldn't go amiss.
[] Liaison: Captain Dana Candler/NDF
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Candler seems to have convinced enough of her superiors, and the Sergey Gorshkov is looking to become its own task force…which you have been hearing is now in dire need of reorganizing and reconstitution. At the moment, you also have a dropship that is locked down for repairs after the Kyoto operation - perhaps you could work out a trade?
[] Liaison: Dr. Yukimura/Yukimura Institute
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Dr. Yukimura is somewhat busy with the cleanup right after the Olympic-class's attack on the Institute. He's very grateful for the assistance, but you may want to check back in with him later.
[] Liaison: Mander/MSS
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- Mander is well aware of Erika's gallivanting. If you choose to cooperate with Erika to take down the plot that's brewing down there, it might be prudent to open a dialogue out of courtesy.
- You owe them a favor from a previous operation.
[] Liaison: Galbinus-R/Legio Galbinus
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- The DFRI and the Legion get on like a house on fire. After saving Cavalier, building the Enclave and helping them with Variable Configuration, you are as close as can be with Galbinus and his crew. Why not check in with your friends from the stars and see what else needs doing?
[] Liaison: Major Lenora Jenkins/Ground Pound
- [] Topic of Discussion?
- It's been about half a year since you've heard back from Jenkins. Assuming that the Fulgur Particles or the nanomachines haven't eaten them all just yet, it might be time to see what's changed since you checked in on them.
QM Explanation
These are the known personalities that are, if not friendly to you, at least neutral enough to be willing to discuss things with you. To initiate dialogue, assign an Advisor to the specified contact, and then write in a topic of discussion. This can be anything from floating ideas, to offering additional support, or even giving them information discovered through the Reaction Force monitoring that they can act on (which is usually welcomed). You can also try to work out a trade of sorts if you know they have something specifically that they can offer, but be ready to offer something in exchange if you do.
Engineering Options
'The Duo' - 1LT Adam Wilde & SFC James Henry
- Assigned to Beowulf Refit (Axiom-class Combination)
- One more project can be assigned
'Build Team' - Anthony, Greg and Kelly
- No Projects Assigned
Jiro Yukimura
- No Projects Assigned
EAI-01 'Lana'
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Boris Ignatov
- No Projects Assigned
- Assigned to Beowulf Refit (Axiom-class Combination)
- One more project can be assigned
'Build Team' - Anthony, Greg and Kelly
- No Projects Assigned
Jiro Yukimura
- No Projects Assigned
EAI-01 'Lana'
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Boris Ignatov
- No Projects Assigned
[] Construct Super Robot/Support Units
- [] Write-In Concept
QM Explanation
If you want to make additional Support Units or a new Core Super Robot, this is where you go. As straightforward as this sounds, I will explain further:
Core Super Robots are the basis for new Super Robots. The Beowulf, the Perseus, the Thunderbolt and Ichiro Banner are all examples of this. They can be modified later to stand alone, or be refitted into combination units.
Support Units is a much more broad category. This can cover everything from supporting Combination candidates, to a band of extra guns (such as the Seekers from the previous deployment). This is also a valid option for the creation and dissemination of a brand new frame for potential wider use across the EUDF.
Dropships also count in this respect - building a new Dropship is a much more time intensive endeavor, but the Pegasus has been proven to work as a concept so if you wish to invest your Advisor's time in it, this is where you go.
All of the above must be within your capabilities. You can only produce what you have already researched and developed. The more complex and powerful the idea, the longer it will take. I will promise that nothing will take longer than Four Turns but keep in mind your ideas vs how long it may take to make them a reality.
- [] Write-In Concept
QM Explanation
If you want to make additional Support Units or a new Core Super Robot, this is where you go. As straightforward as this sounds, I will explain further:
Core Super Robots are the basis for new Super Robots. The Beowulf, the Perseus, the Thunderbolt and Ichiro Banner are all examples of this. They can be modified later to stand alone, or be refitted into combination units.
Support Units is a much more broad category. This can cover everything from supporting Combination candidates, to a band of extra guns (such as the Seekers from the previous deployment). This is also a valid option for the creation and dissemination of a brand new frame for potential wider use across the EUDF.
Dropships also count in this respect - building a new Dropship is a much more time intensive endeavor, but the Pegasus has been proven to work as a concept so if you wish to invest your Advisor's time in it, this is where you go.
All of the above must be within your capabilities. You can only produce what you have already researched and developed. The more complex and powerful the idea, the longer it will take. I will promise that nothing will take longer than Four Turns but keep in mind your ideas vs how long it may take to make them a reality.
[] Refit and/or Repair
- [X] Perseus is currently undergoing mandatory repairs (One Turn). You may also designate additional technologies to be added at the cost of one additional turn of duration.
- [X] The Pegasus is currently undergoing mandatory repairs (Two Turns). You may also designate additional technologies to be added at the cost of one additional turn of duration.
- [X] The 25th Marine Air Wing is undergoing repairs
- [X] The Beowulf is undergoing finalized prototyping for the theoretical Axiom-class Combination.
- [] Choose which Super Robot will be chosen for an overhaul, and with which pieces of equipment.
QM Explanation
Refit - This is your chance to take newly developed equipment and bolt them onto the Super Robots. A fully repaired Super Robot will typically only take one or two turns at most to incorporate the new additions. This also includes modifying a Core and Support Unit to Combine.
Repairs - If a Super Robot or Support Units mostly comes back with minor damage, it will be abstracted as having been fixed up. More severe damage (such as Perseus's first major outing) will place them into varying states of repair - usually one or two turns. If you are willing to extend their repair time, however, for one additional turn you can also incorporate new equipment and designs.
Repairs will happen automatically. However, assigning an Advisor to prioritize the actions will reduce the time required - always by One Turn, and high results will reduce it further. However, they cannot reduce the duration below One Turn.
- [X] Perseus is currently undergoing mandatory repairs (One Turn). You may also designate additional technologies to be added at the cost of one additional turn of duration.
- [X] The Pegasus is currently undergoing mandatory repairs (Two Turns). You may also designate additional technologies to be added at the cost of one additional turn of duration.
- [X] The 25th Marine Air Wing is undergoing repairs
- [X] The Beowulf is undergoing finalized prototyping for the theoretical Axiom-class Combination.
- [] Choose which Super Robot will be chosen for an overhaul, and with which pieces of equipment.
Candidates for Refit
- SCR-01 Beowulf (undergoing Axiom-class combination refit)
- SCR-02 Perseus (In conjunction with Repair operations)
- Pegasus Dropship (In conjunction with Repair operations)
- SCR-03E Thunderbolt
- SAI-01 Ichiro Banner
- The Argonauts (SAI-02 Charlie, SAI-03 Frankie and SAI-04 Iris)
QM Explanation
Refit - This is your chance to take newly developed equipment and bolt them onto the Super Robots. A fully repaired Super Robot will typically only take one or two turns at most to incorporate the new additions. This also includes modifying a Core and Support Unit to Combine.
Repairs - If a Super Robot or Support Units mostly comes back with minor damage, it will be abstracted as having been fixed up. More severe damage (such as Perseus's first major outing) will place them into varying states of repair - usually one or two turns. If you are willing to extend their repair time, however, for one additional turn you can also incorporate new equipment and designs.
Repairs will happen automatically. However, assigning an Advisor to prioritize the actions will reduce the time required - always by One Turn, and high results will reduce it further. However, they cannot reduce the duration below One Turn.
[] Experimentation - Practical Applications
- [] Select Technology Base/Equipment Base
– [] What do you want to try developing?
QM Explanation
As a reference, here is a link to your currently known technologies. You are rolling with a bonus based on the expertise of those involved. I am no longer going to restrict you all based on options I strictly provide. If you have the technology at least slightly figured out, then your engineers can run whole-hog with it.
For example, if you want to develop a new type of melee weapon with the K-Fang as a base, write in what you want to try making based off of that. Same for existing technologies - if you want to try refining something based off of Kausen Energy Blasters, write in what you want to attempt. Low rolls will not result in failure - at worst, you will get a mostly functional version of what you were aiming for with some caveats. At best, you will either get something truly spectacular, or something not quite expected. Go nuts. EXPERIMENT.
(I would say for science but this is the wrong department for that)
- [] Select Technology Base/Equipment Base
– [] What do you want to try developing?
QM Explanation
As a reference, here is a link to your currently known technologies. You are rolling with a bonus based on the expertise of those involved. I am no longer going to restrict you all based on options I strictly provide. If you have the technology at least slightly figured out, then your engineers can run whole-hog with it.
For example, if you want to develop a new type of melee weapon with the K-Fang as a base, write in what you want to try making based off of that. Same for existing technologies - if you want to try refining something based off of Kausen Energy Blasters, write in what you want to attempt. Low rolls will not result in failure - at worst, you will get a mostly functional version of what you were aiming for with some caveats. At best, you will either get something truly spectacular, or something not quite expected. Go nuts. EXPERIMENT.
(I would say for science but this is the wrong department for that)
Previously attempted projects (which you may retry based on existing technologies)
- Project Funnel
- Technology bases: ESP Theory, K-Class
- Project Pilebunker
- Technology bases: K-Class
[] Super AI Development
- [] Base AI Personality
- [] Super Robot AI Personality
- [] Special Project
QM Explanation
The Super AI work slightly differently in this version of the new system. As before they all are active characters involved in the story. You still choose a human personality as a template, and then let them develop for a few months/turns before they are ready.
The Base AI Personalities no longer provide bonuses in the same way as the previous quest, but you can still assign them to projects as before. Much like normal advisors, they can provide slight bonuses to what they work on (Lana has a history with prototyping new units alongside Jiro, for example, in spite of/despite their bickering). Without spoiling anything, Base AI development will have more story-based purposes and reasons for developing in the future, but not at this time.
The Super Robot AI Personalities are exactly as they sound. They are tied specifically to a Super Robot Frame, and can be switched around and upgraded via Refit.
- [] Base AI Personality
- [] Super Robot AI Personality
- [] Special Project
QM Explanation
The Super AI work slightly differently in this version of the new system. As before they all are active characters involved in the story. You still choose a human personality as a template, and then let them develop for a few months/turns before they are ready.
The Base AI Personalities no longer provide bonuses in the same way as the previous quest, but you can still assign them to projects as before. Much like normal advisors, they can provide slight bonuses to what they work on (Lana has a history with prototyping new units alongside Jiro, for example, in spite of/despite their bickering). Without spoiling anything, Base AI development will have more story-based purposes and reasons for developing in the future, but not at this time.
The Super Robot AI Personalities are exactly as they sound. They are tied specifically to a Super Robot Frame, and can be switched around and upgraded via Refit.
Previously attempted projects
- Base AI Development
- An initial candidate was identified within the Mainframe, but a baseline personality has yet to be chosen. This can be resumed at any time (write in).
- Drone Support (based off of analysis of wrecked Free Brothers Drones)
- Boris's study of the Drones has given him some ideas about potentially coopting the technology behind the Drones for the Institute's own ends. Naturally, he's not going to even think about going for the semi-lobotomized nature of the Free Brothers' hordes - Zulu is already an uncomfortable enough example of what that entails. However, could we create our own Drones with the added capacity to learn and grow? Not only could this lead to additional help, this may help ease the introduction of the Super AI concept to the wider Union with healthy, well adjusted citizens...or at least, as well adjusted as the DFRI allows.
Enemy Wreckage Analysis
[] Enemy Wreckage Analysis
- [] Beast 'Mega Blaster'
QM Explanation
Any enemy wreckage or equipment you salvage from deployments will go here. Straightforward enough - look at anything unusual they left behind and figure out how it works. If nothing else, it will also show you just how far the enemy are coming along in the arms race this conflict has become.
[] Enemy Wreckage Analysis
- [] Beast 'Mega Blaster'
QM Explanation
Any enemy wreckage or equipment you salvage from deployments will go here. Straightforward enough - look at anything unusual they left behind and figure out how it works. If nothing else, it will also show you just how far the enemy are coming along in the arms race this conflict has become.
SCIENCE! Options
Dr. Sam Carlson
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Maximiliane Brand
- No Projects Assigned
SCAI-01 'Ivana'
- No Projects Assigned
Zulu
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Mary McCullough
- No Projects Assigned
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Maximiliane Brand
- No Projects Assigned
SCAI-01 'Ivana'
- No Projects Assigned
Zulu
- No Projects Assigned
Dr. Mary McCullough
- No Projects Assigned
[] ESP Theory
- [] Write-In
- ESP Theory is at something of a standstill at the moment. After the dramatic successes of the Psychic Link and the MMI developments, there hasn't been much progress in this field. What else could be developed from this?
[] Mental Merger
- [] Which advisor?
- [] Write-In
- Perseus displayed some odd behavior during the defense of the Yukimura Institute. Both pilots seem mostly fine from the experience (physical injuries notwithstanding), but the mental bleedover and the odd independence showcased by Perseus is worth examining further.
- [] Write-In
- ESP Theory is at something of a standstill at the moment. After the dramatic successes of the Psychic Link and the MMI developments, there hasn't been much progress in this field. What else could be developed from this?
[] Mental Merger
- [] Which advisor?
- [] Write-In
- Perseus displayed some odd behavior during the defense of the Yukimura Institute. Both pilots seem mostly fine from the experience (physical injuries notwithstanding), but the mental bleedover and the odd independence showcased by Perseus is worth examining further.
[] Kaiju Biotechnology
- [] Study Remains - Olympic-class
- [] Study Remains - Crocalisk-class
- [] Study Remains - Pterawing-class
- [] Experimentation - K-Scale
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - K-Fang
– [] Write-In
- [] Study Remains - Olympic-class
- [] Study Remains - Crocalisk-class
- [] Study Remains - Pterawing-class
- [] Experimentation - K-Scale
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - K-Fang
– [] Write-In
[] Xeno Technology
- [] Experimentation - Kausen Equipment
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - C-Crystals
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - Kausen Equipment
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - C-Crystals
– [] Write-In
[] Faedium Crystalline Structures
- [] Experimentation - Faedium Crystals
– [] Write-In
- [] Experimentation - Faedium Crystals
– [] Write-In
Previously attempted projects
- Empathic Booster
- ESP Theory, Xeno Technology (Varulne)
- Blaster Miniaturization
- Kausen Technology
QM Explanation
I am being much more free about how you all do your Science, as you can see from the Write-Ins. For the newly discovered samples, you can leave it as a generic 'what does this do?' or you can poke and prod at it for a specific purpose. For the existing technologies, experimenting with them will let you know the limits of what you can or can't do.
Go nuts, is what I'm saying. The worst I'll do is tell you to try modifying it slightly. I won't answer every specific question about where this leads, but I will give hints.
Special Projects
AI-01 'Katarina'
- Note: She can take on two projects of her own. She can split between different sections.
- Note: She can take on two projects of her own. She can split between different sections.
[] After-Market Special - Surplus Rocket Engines
- [] Which Advisor?
- [] Write-In
[] After-Market Special - 'Saddle' Cargo Helicopter
- [] Which Advisor?
- [] Write-In
QM Explanation
Special Projects are an exception to the Advisors restriction rules. If this option ever appears, anyone can pitch in and take it on as a project regardless of specialty.
- [] Which Advisor?
- [] Write-In
[] After-Market Special - 'Saddle' Cargo Helicopter
- [] Which Advisor?
- [] Write-In
QM Explanation
Special Projects are an exception to the Advisors restriction rules. If this option ever appears, anyone can pitch in and take it on as a project regardless of specialty.
Sorry for how long the post took. I'm still sure I missed something, so if I did, don't hesitate to point it out. I'm going to go relax now, let me know if you need anything.
Remember to vote by plan. Thank you!
Remember to vote by plan. Thank you!
Last edited:
Vote closed
December, Year Three - Defense Force Results
- Location
- USA
Reaction Force Results
Adrianna is slightly hyper in the leadup to the mission supporting MSS and Valiant.
Just slightly.
You ultimately decided to give the human operators manning the stations half-shifts, as Adrianna is constantly flitting around the consoles doing her damndest to try and find something, anything to nail down further potential Westphalian activity. Understandably, she's quite specifically looking around the Oceania District, and she's even been trying to cross reference the submarine traffic lanes she identified the other month ago. Without you asking, even. Katarina couldn't stop beaming in happy pride at that.
But unfortunately, despite her best efforts, she's found nothing beyond what your analysts have already nailed down. There is a Westphalian cell operating on the Australian coast, and there is enough evidence pointing to the fact that a cell of kaiju infiltrators similar to the ones the Pegasus and Perseus teams fought off in Japan are present. Which suggests that there possibly might be another 'officer' type independent enough running negotiations on Sheol's behalf, but that is just guesswork based on existing knowledge.
Diana, however, has had more interesting results. Her recent experiences have left her somewhat hyper focused in regards to the kaiju - and that was something you simply couldn't blame her for. With a newfound appreciation for the many different angles Sheol's creations were now displaying, Diana lent her processing power to Adrianna's efforts to try and find anything kaiju-related. Her efforts on that front were unsuccessful - after having expended that many resources against the Yukimura Institute, it seems that relatively small-scale operations like the Westphalian meetup are all Sheol willing to commit to.
Logistics: Which leads you to wonder just what Sheol's resource intake and expenditure must look like. Your own methods to refine K-Class materials are hardly the 'original article' as it were, but it takes you a good long while to get anything out of them. And this is after Sam and the Biotechnology team have more or less figured out the 'right' way to process and refine kaiju samples into K-Class - it's the work of months. In between everything else, one note manages to remain noticeable in your notebook - keep closer tabs on kaiju cells. Easier said than done, but it's something.
Diana, however, has had an interesting ping. The strange signal that seems to have been bouncing along the very edges of the defense outposts' perimeters seems to be honing in from the northeast, from the relative direction of Mt. Saint Helens. Diana has finally managed to isolate the signal - it is vaguely Kausen in nature, but it does not match any of the SAI personalities in the DFRI, and Patch had confirmed in a conference call that it was not any of the Legion's.
What's more worrying, however, is the fact that seismic activity is now being mentioned in the same breath as the signals. The perimeter outposts have started to mention vague tremors, enough to send various flocks of birds flying into the air and even sending some packs of ground wildlife running - but nothing literally earth splitting yet.
Diana, however, is confident that if the DFRI headquarters is hit, it would be accidental. She's fairly sure that it's after another target further north:
The Legion Enclave.
Liaison Results
"I wasn't expecting another house call."
Haruko just raised an eyebrow at Dana Candler, who in turn just returned the most gormless grin she had ever seen anyone make - and that was from both biological and mechanical lifeforms.
Candler raised her hands in appeasement. "Sasaki, learn to relax a little," she jabbed. "Your own advice even, or something along those lines." She glanced out the window of her office overseeing the flight deck of the Sergey Gorshkov - and as Haruko followed suit, a raw sense of satisfaction crossed her mind.
Various men and women, all in engineering jumpsuits, were crisscrossing the flight deck in what her superior would call 'organized chaos.' People were constantly getting in each other's way, reassessing work, losing things, finding them, promptly losing them again only to realize it was mostly where it needed to go. Pallets of ammunition skated across the deck on forklifts, while V-33 units - interestingly repurposed for cargo hauling duties in their VTOL form - were lowering tanks of AVGAS aviation fuel.
"The Naval Board finally decided to let me have an independent command." Haruko turned her attention back to Candler, who had a strained smile on her face - albeit one that was far more relaxed than the one she saw right after the launch ceremony. "The Unity Station inquiry reviews were starting to get to them, I think. I gave the suggestion of letting me try and literally write the rough draft on supercarrier doctrine - I think they wanted good progress so they could brief that to the Unity Station offices for a change."
"I'm glad to hear it, ma'am." And Haruko was being absolutely sincere. Between Major Devin and Major Jenkins, she had seen what having freedom of movement being constricted was like, to say nothing of having someone micromanaging you right at your shoulders even from a distance. "To that end, I have an opportunity to help you with that, and a favor to ask."
"Name it." Candler leaned forward, a curious expression on her face.
"Our own dropship was recently damaged last month," Haruko started.
"Yukimura?"
"Yes."
"Heard about that." Haruko would notice, for the first time in the conversation, that the wall behind Candler's desk was now populated with various mementos of her career. A plaque emblazoned with the Kanji for Yokosuka Naval Base was placed towards the top. "I didn't envy whoever had that job, but it sounds like the junior officer you sent had it pretty well handled."
Haruko decided to let that description of Diana stand. Candler wasn't wrong, per se. "She more than earned her victory," she opted to say instead. "The Marines too - my superior put some of them in for commendations. But that leads me to my point - we are about to follow up on a lead against a Westphalian operation in Australia, and we need a method of transport."
Candler 'hummed' at that, and her eyes momentarily went blank. Haruko recognized that look - the sign of a person whose focus was firmly on mental math. Her attention immediately snapped back. "As long as you don't mind us making a pitstop at Fleet Base East on the way back, I don't see why not," she allowed. "Manifest?"
Haruko brought up her data pad, and slid a copy of the data to Candler's. "One Super Robot and a support team," she replied, simply lumping Ocular along with the Argonauts for now. "Along with maintenance personnel."
Candler looked at the manifest herself - and nodded. "Send me your timelines when we're done," Candler said. "Time to let the old bastard fly."
Haruko's other appointment that month was not quite as successful as she had hoped.
Colonel Bernard Henri, formerly of France before being seconded full-time to the Marine Expeditionary Forces, expressed his regret that he couldn't spare more pilots to form another Wing as Major Devin had hoped. However, he was quite pleased to hear that in their first combat engagement with the new Seeker models - against the kaiju, whom he wasn't aware even had aerial assets like the Pterawings - had not only not lost a single pilot, but had performed superbly.
"I am, however, noticing a slight pattern here," Henri commented dryly. Haruko made a questioning gesture, and the colonel read off the citations. The glow of the datapad highlighted his weathered face, skin dried from years of exposure to the sun in field conditions contrasting heavily with the sharp and precise cut of the Troupes de Marine - itself a French Army formation technically, but Haruko was willing to bet Henri had seen off all potential attacks on his credentials long before today.
"'For suicidal bravery.' 'For reckless gallantry in the face of the enemy.' 'For displaying ingenuity via ground vehicular combat at high altitude conditions.'" Henri just lowered his datapad - and then snorted. "God help me if that doesn't sound like my pilots." Despite his clear bemusement, there was a touch of pride in his voice, even if it didn't show on the man's face. "I cannot spare you more men - but I can keep the Twenty-Fifth with you. For the indefinite future."
Haruko nodded in appreciation. Not quite what they wanted, but more than they dreaded. She would take it.
"I don't drive people this batty. Do I?"
Patrick remained dutifully silent. Erika's eyebrow twitched slightly at the insinuation - even when she knew Patrick didn't actually say anything. But the air of amusement around her old friend and mentor said volumes more than any amount of words could.
Erika just shot a withering glare at Patrick, and just huffed when he continued to stoically remain unwithered.
That digital girl - Adrianna. If no one had told her that she was AI, she would have thought her to be an incredibly young - and slightly annoying - woman who consumed far more sugar than was healthy for anyone. Hell, if they'd told her she was an AI anyway, she might have just dismissed the claim.
That was harder to do when she personally met one. And she was still slightly peeved that she hadn't caught on earlier.
'But I'm right here' indeed.
That said, she couldn't deny that Adrianna was incredibly helpful. Erika and Patrick had already started to isolate a few of the operatives of this cell from one another - and Adrianna, mostly unbidden, but timely nonetheless - had already foiled a few counter ambushes before they could even take place. Mostly by infiltrating their own databases and effectively neutralizing them in a feedback loop - 'Blue Screen of Death!' in her own words, whatever that meant - but it made their first few forays successful-
"Hello~!"
"Think of the devil and she'll appear, apparently." Erika had long since stopped jumping whenever Adrianna appeared, and just raised an eyebrow. "Morning, Adrianna. What've you got for us?"
"Good news - my boss is sending backup!" Adrianna looked and sounded incredibly pleased, whether it was with herself for delivering the news, or the news itself Erika just wasn't sure. "They're coming by soon, and I'll be facilitating the linkup!"
"Most excellent news, miss," Patrick stated, neatly cutting off Erika's snarky reply. "Have you had any success in penetrating the main cell's networks?"
"Eeehhhhh~no." The sunny disposition faded to mild annoyance. "After the first few times, I think they just ripped themselves out of the airwaves entirely and went analog. They're still emitting signals, nothing'll stop that, but aside from this-"
The image of the last remaining warehouse they had yet to attack was displayed, all with various vehicles 'parked' around it.
"-I've got nothing. Pretty sure they're circling the wagons now, though. You didn't even need to break out Valiant!"
"Considering what they're probably hiding in there?" Erika commented. She glanced outside, where Valiant laid dormant in the support vehicle covered in tarp. "Probably not going to last terribly long."
"We do have a run of bad luck with covert operations," Patrick commented. "Something to do with the fact that both sides' first method of resort tends to be giant robots."
"...when it's all you've got, I mean, why not?"
This time, Patrick had the decency to look sheepish alongside Adrianna as Erika glared at them. "This," she complained, "this is why we never get the covert bonus from Mander!"
Deployment Preparations
"Allll riiiiight!" Jessica just sighed in amusement at Charlie's cheers all the way to the drop ramp of the supercarrier. "Our first mission! Oh man, ohmanohmanohman this is gonna be great!"
"You don't have to be so loud." Iris's voice was much softer than Charlie's yet it carried all the further as a result. Her form was hilariously lopsided compared to the looming form that was Charlie - all three of them had just recently conducted a change to their new bodies. The slender, more agile form of Iris in its mecha configuration from the Steed chassis had to walk just slightly faster than normal to keep up with the idle, but large steps that Charlie's Phalanx chassis carried him in his enthusiasm. "And what did we say about being overconfident?"
"Slow and insidious." Frankie was adjusting his arms and shoulders - he was still getting used to the Shade's configurations. His particular form had been rigged for engineering - various tools, earthmover outlets, and more replaced the sensitive sensor suites that the Intelligence packages tended to have. "We haven't even trained with these yet. We were just in Jackals last month!"
"Guys, we'll be fine." Jessica stood on the gantries alongside the massive loading bay of the Sergey Gorshkov. "I'm nervous too, alright? I'm barely getting used to all of this." The C-Crystal hung along her neck, glowing faintly in the bay's lights. "And Charlie, try to calm down a bit? You're not supposed to advertise that-"
"-that I'm SAI-04, I know." Charlie thankfully reduced the boisterous body language a little, but he was still visibly shaking in excitement. "But, c'mon, Jessica! This is what we were made to do, y'know? I mean-"
A burst of sound and static interrupted Charlie's speech as Ocular landed on his shoulder. The beaked form of the mini-Kaus's head poked at Charlie's head before what sounded like record scratches and corrupted recordings emitted from his beak.
"Whoah, Ocular, chill," Frankie called from behind. "We get it, we understand." Another chirp of communication shot back. "N-no, but-"
"We will do our best." Iris's voice seemed to cut through again. "Jessica and Ocular will also do their best. So will Valiant and Adri. That's all there is to it."
Jessica just smiled as she saw Ocular and the Argonaut siblings bicker with each other. It was a different dynamic from the Legion's, but it had a familiar, comfortable feeling to it as well. She grasped at the C-Crystal as she glanced at the Thunderbolt, still being tied down by support crew in its gunship form to the loading elevator. "Let's do our best," she whispered to herself.
The C-Crystal glowed faintly.
Adrianna is slightly hyper in the leadup to the mission supporting MSS and Valiant.
Just slightly.
You ultimately decided to give the human operators manning the stations half-shifts, as Adrianna is constantly flitting around the consoles doing her damndest to try and find something, anything to nail down further potential Westphalian activity. Understandably, she's quite specifically looking around the Oceania District, and she's even been trying to cross reference the submarine traffic lanes she identified the other month ago. Without you asking, even. Katarina couldn't stop beaming in happy pride at that.
But unfortunately, despite her best efforts, she's found nothing beyond what your analysts have already nailed down. There is a Westphalian cell operating on the Australian coast, and there is enough evidence pointing to the fact that a cell of kaiju infiltrators similar to the ones the Pegasus and Perseus teams fought off in Japan are present. Which suggests that there possibly might be another 'officer' type independent enough running negotiations on Sheol's behalf, but that is just guesswork based on existing knowledge.
Diana, however, has had more interesting results. Her recent experiences have left her somewhat hyper focused in regards to the kaiju - and that was something you simply couldn't blame her for. With a newfound appreciation for the many different angles Sheol's creations were now displaying, Diana lent her processing power to Adrianna's efforts to try and find anything kaiju-related. Her efforts on that front were unsuccessful - after having expended that many resources against the Yukimura Institute, it seems that relatively small-scale operations like the Westphalian meetup are all Sheol willing to commit to.
Logistics: Which leads you to wonder just what Sheol's resource intake and expenditure must look like. Your own methods to refine K-Class materials are hardly the 'original article' as it were, but it takes you a good long while to get anything out of them. And this is after Sam and the Biotechnology team have more or less figured out the 'right' way to process and refine kaiju samples into K-Class - it's the work of months. In between everything else, one note manages to remain noticeable in your notebook - keep closer tabs on kaiju cells. Easier said than done, but it's something.
Diana, however, has had an interesting ping. The strange signal that seems to have been bouncing along the very edges of the defense outposts' perimeters seems to be honing in from the northeast, from the relative direction of Mt. Saint Helens. Diana has finally managed to isolate the signal - it is vaguely Kausen in nature, but it does not match any of the SAI personalities in the DFRI, and Patch had confirmed in a conference call that it was not any of the Legion's.
What's more worrying, however, is the fact that seismic activity is now being mentioned in the same breath as the signals. The perimeter outposts have started to mention vague tremors, enough to send various flocks of birds flying into the air and even sending some packs of ground wildlife running - but nothing literally earth splitting yet.
Diana, however, is confident that if the DFRI headquarters is hit, it would be accidental. She's fairly sure that it's after another target further north:
The Legion Enclave.
Liaison Results
"I wasn't expecting another house call."
Haruko just raised an eyebrow at Dana Candler, who in turn just returned the most gormless grin she had ever seen anyone make - and that was from both biological and mechanical lifeforms.
Candler raised her hands in appeasement. "Sasaki, learn to relax a little," she jabbed. "Your own advice even, or something along those lines." She glanced out the window of her office overseeing the flight deck of the Sergey Gorshkov - and as Haruko followed suit, a raw sense of satisfaction crossed her mind.
Various men and women, all in engineering jumpsuits, were crisscrossing the flight deck in what her superior would call 'organized chaos.' People were constantly getting in each other's way, reassessing work, losing things, finding them, promptly losing them again only to realize it was mostly where it needed to go. Pallets of ammunition skated across the deck on forklifts, while V-33 units - interestingly repurposed for cargo hauling duties in their VTOL form - were lowering tanks of AVGAS aviation fuel.
"The Naval Board finally decided to let me have an independent command." Haruko turned her attention back to Candler, who had a strained smile on her face - albeit one that was far more relaxed than the one she saw right after the launch ceremony. "The Unity Station inquiry reviews were starting to get to them, I think. I gave the suggestion of letting me try and literally write the rough draft on supercarrier doctrine - I think they wanted good progress so they could brief that to the Unity Station offices for a change."
"I'm glad to hear it, ma'am." And Haruko was being absolutely sincere. Between Major Devin and Major Jenkins, she had seen what having freedom of movement being constricted was like, to say nothing of having someone micromanaging you right at your shoulders even from a distance. "To that end, I have an opportunity to help you with that, and a favor to ask."
"Name it." Candler leaned forward, a curious expression on her face.
"Our own dropship was recently damaged last month," Haruko started.
"Yukimura?"
"Yes."
"Heard about that." Haruko would notice, for the first time in the conversation, that the wall behind Candler's desk was now populated with various mementos of her career. A plaque emblazoned with the Kanji for Yokosuka Naval Base was placed towards the top. "I didn't envy whoever had that job, but it sounds like the junior officer you sent had it pretty well handled."
Haruko decided to let that description of Diana stand. Candler wasn't wrong, per se. "She more than earned her victory," she opted to say instead. "The Marines too - my superior put some of them in for commendations. But that leads me to my point - we are about to follow up on a lead against a Westphalian operation in Australia, and we need a method of transport."
Candler 'hummed' at that, and her eyes momentarily went blank. Haruko recognized that look - the sign of a person whose focus was firmly on mental math. Her attention immediately snapped back. "As long as you don't mind us making a pitstop at Fleet Base East on the way back, I don't see why not," she allowed. "Manifest?"
Haruko brought up her data pad, and slid a copy of the data to Candler's. "One Super Robot and a support team," she replied, simply lumping Ocular along with the Argonauts for now. "Along with maintenance personnel."
Candler looked at the manifest herself - and nodded. "Send me your timelines when we're done," Candler said. "Time to let the old bastard fly."
Haruko's other appointment that month was not quite as successful as she had hoped.
Colonel Bernard Henri, formerly of France before being seconded full-time to the Marine Expeditionary Forces, expressed his regret that he couldn't spare more pilots to form another Wing as Major Devin had hoped. However, he was quite pleased to hear that in their first combat engagement with the new Seeker models - against the kaiju, whom he wasn't aware even had aerial assets like the Pterawings - had not only not lost a single pilot, but had performed superbly.
"I am, however, noticing a slight pattern here," Henri commented dryly. Haruko made a questioning gesture, and the colonel read off the citations. The glow of the datapad highlighted his weathered face, skin dried from years of exposure to the sun in field conditions contrasting heavily with the sharp and precise cut of the Troupes de Marine - itself a French Army formation technically, but Haruko was willing to bet Henri had seen off all potential attacks on his credentials long before today.
"'For suicidal bravery.' 'For reckless gallantry in the face of the enemy.' 'For displaying ingenuity via ground vehicular combat at high altitude conditions.'" Henri just lowered his datapad - and then snorted. "God help me if that doesn't sound like my pilots." Despite his clear bemusement, there was a touch of pride in his voice, even if it didn't show on the man's face. "I cannot spare you more men - but I can keep the Twenty-Fifth with you. For the indefinite future."
Haruko nodded in appreciation. Not quite what they wanted, but more than they dreaded. She would take it.
"I don't drive people this batty. Do I?"
Patrick remained dutifully silent. Erika's eyebrow twitched slightly at the insinuation - even when she knew Patrick didn't actually say anything. But the air of amusement around her old friend and mentor said volumes more than any amount of words could.
Erika just shot a withering glare at Patrick, and just huffed when he continued to stoically remain unwithered.
That digital girl - Adrianna. If no one had told her that she was AI, she would have thought her to be an incredibly young - and slightly annoying - woman who consumed far more sugar than was healthy for anyone. Hell, if they'd told her she was an AI anyway, she might have just dismissed the claim.
That was harder to do when she personally met one. And she was still slightly peeved that she hadn't caught on earlier.
'But I'm right here' indeed.
That said, she couldn't deny that Adrianna was incredibly helpful. Erika and Patrick had already started to isolate a few of the operatives of this cell from one another - and Adrianna, mostly unbidden, but timely nonetheless - had already foiled a few counter ambushes before they could even take place. Mostly by infiltrating their own databases and effectively neutralizing them in a feedback loop - 'Blue Screen of Death!' in her own words, whatever that meant - but it made their first few forays successful-
"Hello~!"
"Think of the devil and she'll appear, apparently." Erika had long since stopped jumping whenever Adrianna appeared, and just raised an eyebrow. "Morning, Adrianna. What've you got for us?"
"Good news - my boss is sending backup!" Adrianna looked and sounded incredibly pleased, whether it was with herself for delivering the news, or the news itself Erika just wasn't sure. "They're coming by soon, and I'll be facilitating the linkup!"
"Most excellent news, miss," Patrick stated, neatly cutting off Erika's snarky reply. "Have you had any success in penetrating the main cell's networks?"
"Eeehhhhh~no." The sunny disposition faded to mild annoyance. "After the first few times, I think they just ripped themselves out of the airwaves entirely and went analog. They're still emitting signals, nothing'll stop that, but aside from this-"
The image of the last remaining warehouse they had yet to attack was displayed, all with various vehicles 'parked' around it.
"-I've got nothing. Pretty sure they're circling the wagons now, though. You didn't even need to break out Valiant!"
"Considering what they're probably hiding in there?" Erika commented. She glanced outside, where Valiant laid dormant in the support vehicle covered in tarp. "Probably not going to last terribly long."
"We do have a run of bad luck with covert operations," Patrick commented. "Something to do with the fact that both sides' first method of resort tends to be giant robots."
"...when it's all you've got, I mean, why not?"
This time, Patrick had the decency to look sheepish alongside Adrianna as Erika glared at them. "This," she complained, "this is why we never get the covert bonus from Mander!"
Deployment Preparations
"Allll riiiiight!" Jessica just sighed in amusement at Charlie's cheers all the way to the drop ramp of the supercarrier. "Our first mission! Oh man, ohmanohmanohman this is gonna be great!"
"You don't have to be so loud." Iris's voice was much softer than Charlie's yet it carried all the further as a result. Her form was hilariously lopsided compared to the looming form that was Charlie - all three of them had just recently conducted a change to their new bodies. The slender, more agile form of Iris in its mecha configuration from the Steed chassis had to walk just slightly faster than normal to keep up with the idle, but large steps that Charlie's Phalanx chassis carried him in his enthusiasm. "And what did we say about being overconfident?"
"Slow and insidious." Frankie was adjusting his arms and shoulders - he was still getting used to the Shade's configurations. His particular form had been rigged for engineering - various tools, earthmover outlets, and more replaced the sensitive sensor suites that the Intelligence packages tended to have. "We haven't even trained with these yet. We were just in Jackals last month!"
"Guys, we'll be fine." Jessica stood on the gantries alongside the massive loading bay of the Sergey Gorshkov. "I'm nervous too, alright? I'm barely getting used to all of this." The C-Crystal hung along her neck, glowing faintly in the bay's lights. "And Charlie, try to calm down a bit? You're not supposed to advertise that-"
"-that I'm SAI-04, I know." Charlie thankfully reduced the boisterous body language a little, but he was still visibly shaking in excitement. "But, c'mon, Jessica! This is what we were made to do, y'know? I mean-"
A burst of sound and static interrupted Charlie's speech as Ocular landed on his shoulder. The beaked form of the mini-Kaus's head poked at Charlie's head before what sounded like record scratches and corrupted recordings emitted from his beak.
"Whoah, Ocular, chill," Frankie called from behind. "We get it, we understand." Another chirp of communication shot back. "N-no, but-"
"We will do our best." Iris's voice seemed to cut through again. "Jessica and Ocular will also do their best. So will Valiant and Adri. That's all there is to it."
Jessica just smiled as she saw Ocular and the Argonaut siblings bicker with each other. It was a different dynamic from the Legion's, but it had a familiar, comfortable feeling to it as well. She grasped at the C-Crystal as she glanced at the Thunderbolt, still being tied down by support crew in its gunship form to the loading elevator. "Let's do our best," she whispered to herself.
The C-Crystal glowed faintly.
Yeah, I think I'll keep the update results bite sized like this. This is already clocking almost 2.5k words!
Engineering rolls are just about done, but I will post those tomorrow.
Engineering rolls are just about done, but I will post those tomorrow.
December, Year Three - Engineering Results
- Location
- USA
Beowulf Triple Combination
The Beowulf, it seems, has one particular destiny in mind - it gets to test out all sorts of new ideas before any of the other SCR combat models. As a result, it perhaps is the most prototyped prototype of all of your prototyping developments. Even Wilde, the one who uttered that, started to get a slight headache thinking about it.
But he has a point. From effectively being the very first combat viable Jackal frame that proved Variable Configuration's effectiveness, to its incorporation of K-Class Materials and the MMI interfaces, the Beowulf in all of its shapes and incarnations has been the elder model that has seen it all, and tested a good deal of it personally. Perhaps it will never be quite as powerful as later models - but it is the symbol of the DFRI's successes and failures, the one that was always trailblazing the cutting edge so that all other models in the SCR line would benefit from future refinements.
It was the first to combine into a larger Super Robot. It still is technically the only one so far. But with this latest refinement, yet another path to future upgrades has been pushed through for its younger siblings.
Ultimately, the biggest stumbling block: the power source incompatibility issues. The MMI was ultimately able to reconcile two conflicting power sources when in the Foxhound and Timberwolf formations. However, three was beyond the MMI's safe capabilities - even if modifications were made, Boris made it very clear that the MMI's computer would start trying to tap into the human brain more to make up the difference during combat. Not only that, but even under controlled testing, Wilde and Henry discovered that the MMI could not safely manage the delicate balancing act.
Once Faedium entered the picture, however, the classic method of delegating a single point of contact became viable.
Taking valuable time to monitor the very first practical tests, Mary joined the Duo for observing how Faedium operated as a power unifying source. As a radical departure from previous incremental models of the Beowulf, the engine was rebuilt from the ground up. In something of a nod to old hybrid model automotive engines, a conventional engine directly fed into a precisely cut block of Faedium which slotted into the engine itself. The engine in turn would have ports that would connect directly to the V-33 TMU and the Shepherd, with ports that bypassed the engine to feed into the Faedium block directly as to prevent any overlap of the power inputs. As a result, the Faedium block would now serve as the primary source of power.
It took the team time to get the right density and proportions of the Faedium, but even in the failed attempts, the results were promising. And in this month of December, they finally got it right. The actual combination that followed was simple in comparison. The frames were always compatible - it was just making sure they didn't explode during use that was the issue.
The Beowulf stands in the hangar now, currently supported by engineering straps hooked up to the hangar's cranes as a safety precaution. Standing tall in its Timberwolf formation, the V-33's jet form has been split in half horizontally, with its top and bottom halves disconnecting while remaining connected via guidance wires. The top half with its wings spread upwards has been locked to the front of the Timberwolf frame's chest, while the bottom half with both its jet engine ports and its VTOL ports facing the ground. Sadly, the V-33 simply isn't powerful enough to keep the Timberwolf frame flying - but it is strong enough for making a giant jet powered leap in a single bound.
And best of all, the Faedium has been run in multiple tests, both in controlled environments, and in the Proving Grounds. Even during one close call due to a slight miscalculation from the MMI, the Faedium was able to contain the energy burst long enough for the MMI controls to catch up and stabilize and vent the excess.
The Duo are elated. Mary is content with this initial vindication of her life's work. And future combinations have been made that much easier with the prototype Faedium Block Generator.
But what to call Beowulf's new form?
Perseus Combination Compatibility
"Yeah, Richard's been workshopping that one all day." Adam Wilde grinned from his spot along the Perseus's frame as he connected the hose to the tank full of Anti-Gravity Solution hooked to the side of the Shepherd. Ever since Cavalier's emergency operation a few years ago, it amused him to no end that the support truck had become a mix of a gurney and an operating tool table. "He'll probably dig into, I dunno, the Brothers Grimm or go track down a runestone in Europe somewhere for inspiration."
"Wouldn't surprise me." Henry just shrugged as his Steed's hands sprayed down the K-Scale Mesh that hung loosely along Perseus's internals. This time, the taciturn NCO had just not even tried to buff out the scar along Perseus's face after the few new scratches along its eye refused to buff out either. "He's always been enthusiastic over that." He cast a discerning eye towards the K-Scale Mesh one last time, and reached out his Steed's hand and applied a shock - the materials were already curling up around the internal skeleton like particularly stubborn kudzu. "Good to go. How's the new generator?"
"Stress test done." They hadn't exactly told Major Devin that the engine was being replaced, but they had dragged Mary into the mix as well, and she had helped to narrow down the specific density required for a Phalanx-proportioned Faedium Block - though she was slightly annoyed at that particular name, she was mollified in just how much use they were already getting out of it. The Faedium was glowing a pale blue that seemed to verge on light purple, and Perseus's recast eyes were glowing a similar hue. "Conventional engine's already powered the Block, and…it's running purely off of Block power right now. Pretty good I think."
"Add that to the other things to make standard issue for us," Henry grunted. "Now…the hard points."
Adam grinned as he punched in a few controls from his console. "Okay, let's do a quick test!" The chest compartment folded back in on itself, hiding the glowing light of the Faedium as it closed. "First, we've got the Tetra-class." Perseus's arms and legs slowly began to fold in on themselves, until they themselves were more like giant mid-limbs than appendages, with plug in hard points ready to accept combined forms of forearms and boots. Even the back ports folded open slightly, revealing more hard points that could theoretically accept a backpack mounted unit of sorts.
"Tetra-class looks good," Henry noted. "Next, Axiom-class." Rapidly, the Perseus's legs fully unfolded back to their full length. However, this time, the arms fully folded directly into the Perseus's back, with its shoulder pauldrons simply rotating one hundred and eighty degrees back to reveal hard points along its shoulder joints. Clearly this was meant for a whole mecha to form the arm in some capacity.
"Both forms look good." Henry nodded, and Adam commanded Perseus's form to revert back to its standard form. None of the damage from before remained - there was just the solid mass of metal and kaiju-bits that had gone three-on-one with several kaiju and lasted long enough to get Mercury on the field to finish the job. "Now, what to actually give it."
"Shepherd's out," Adam said dolefully. "Perseus's a big boy and a liiiiitle too heavy for that."
"It already gives Beowulf more hitting and staying power anyway," Henry replied. "Perseus doesn't need that. It needs something to give it more options. I'd suggest the TMU, but it doesn't really give enough punch with its available weapon ports."
"I mean, some missiles wouldn't hurt, but yeah," Adam agreed. "We could try the Seekers?"
"If you're trying to make it fly, it's not going to happen," Henry bluntly replied. "But it might not be such a bad option for an arm or back unit."
"Maybe we could go to the Decommissions Yards and look for stuff?"
"It did work pretty well last time, didn't it?" Henry allowed. "Plenty of things from yesteryear that no one's really looking for anymore." He jotted some notes down in his notepad. "It's going to take longer if we want the change to actually reflect on the Perseus, but we might surprise the Major."
"Speaking of. What about the Saddle Major Devin's got lying around?"
"Strong enough for flight, but not much else." Henry and Adam shared a glance. "What about those new things…"
"The Sledders?" Adam scratched his chin for a moment. "Wasn't Lana working on those?"
Phalanx Template for Combination
"...I swear that making a Phalanx form a human pyramid with these things made sense two hours ago."
Lana looked a little frazzled in her corner of the Engineering Bay. A factory standard Phalanx was parked off to the side in APC form, while various computer bays were running multiple sequences and projections. Interestingly, most of them had reached the same conclusions that they had. Adam looked at one, then brought it up to the main window display. "Heeeeey, you got the Faedium Block in there too!" he cheered. "Good call, it works."
"Oh, good." Abruptly, about fifty percent of the other simulations simply shut down and disappeared into the archives. "That saves me a lot of work."
"What's the end state of this?" Henry asked. "It's like you're stress testing to see how far this goes."
"That's the plan, yeah," Lana admitted. "So far, the Sledder on its own isn't great for combat. But if you use it as a combine component, it provides a lot of power. But." Various combat simulations, ranging from a Dragon-class kaiju to a Bandit-class Kaus played out - and the limbs that formed the Sledder almost inevitably were utterly wrecked after a full combat's worth of use. "Almost like the K-Scale. Great for defense and utility, but not to actually hit something."
"Almost fire and forget, right?" Adam commented. An amusing thought crossed his mind, and before he could even consider if he should try to stop himself, he was already speaking it. "Maybe we could make one transform into a giant drill and just launch it Shepherd style for a drill arm or something."
Henry just turned to stare at him.
Lana was also just blankly staring at him from her console.
Adam shrugged. "Just a thought," he said.
"...I am intrigued by your ideas and want to subscribe to your newsletter."
"She's doomed," Henry muttered.
Pegasus-class Construction
"Explain." You are standing in one of the newly constructed expansions of the Engineering Bay, so fresh that you can still actually make out some of the wall's model numbers before they inevitably get caked in soot and oil grease. Engineering must grow to continue supporting Engineering after all, or so the old joke went. But inspecting the state of the bay wasn't the reason why you were here.
No, it was the sheepish trio of the Build Team that was drawing your…ire? Interest? You're still not sure, and you haven't heard a reason why it should tilt one way or another just yet.
"I, ah, think it started with the accidental shorting on the engines," Anthony admitted. Behind him, the massive engine blocks that would have been powering the thrusters to the new dropship had a rather nasty looking fracture breaking right through the center. Anthony's own face was covered in soot and sweat, so he clearly had been busy trying to fix it. "So I was just wondering, until we can get this thing fixed, we could just make the damned thing walk."
"...and the tank treads?" you ask pointedly. Giant treads that are more fit for a supersized tractor - or maybe a superheavy command vehicle - laid stretched out running parallel to the main bay's operating area.
"If the walking bit didn't work, maybe this would help it to move if it ever crashes again?" You pause - then conclude that despite the execution of the idea, the idea itself was not a bad one…but why tank treads? "That and if it's that stable, we could probably upsize the main weapons a little bit…"
"That was probably when we joked about the spider legs," Kelly added, which immediately framed the tank treads as sounding more reasonable to you by comparison. Behind her, the unfinished frame of the new Pegasus-class loomed large, still hollow but structurally it was still intact. And then to her right was a pair of said spider legs - giant, enormous mechanical monstrosities that if you had to guess would fold up into the dropship's hull when not in use. "Stability is kindofanissuethough," she quickly concluded.
"So then," Greg concluded, "I asked Architect and Hotwire when they were over the other day if they had any retroboosters, rockets or the like that could help make the thing hover instead." You look at the last engineer, and thankfully, he didn't have the physical evidence of some constructed attempt around him. Plenty of blueprint sketches, though. "The Pegasus template probably won't work, but I did see what Wilde and Henry were doing with the Beowulf. I know it's not exactly ready, but we could try the Faedium Block…s? Faedium Blocks in a cluster sequence to give it enough power?"
"Why the booster idea then?" you ask.
"I mostly wanted to keep the idea of a flying dropship, not a land crawling video game boss stage."
You glance at all three engineers again, then at the odd, odd things they had requisitioned that had managed to find their way up to you, and why you were down here to begin with. "...has anyone discussed the idea of 'feature creep' with you all?" you ask.
"'Features waiting to happen.'" The response was unanimous from all three.
You just sigh. You suppose you could keep the original aim of the Pegasus-class, or you could try to incorporate one of the new…ideas the Build Team have come up with at the cost of time. "Just…just submit an official proposal for them before you try bolting things on willy-nilly."
Seeker Wing Development
"I told you that was gonna raise eyebrows." Anthony's voice sounded slightly tinny through the vocal radio from the Steed he was operating. The model was stripped completely of any ability to Configure, and instead had been augmented with power loader servos. It was also painted a bright engineering yellow with black stripes, along with enough reflective tape to ensure anyone could see 'engineer working, stay clear.'
"Giant spider-walker dropship is a cool idea and you can't convince me otherwise." Kelly huffed from her position at the crane controls, waiting patiently for Greg to finish loading the next component. "It would work too! Once I figure out how to stop people from getting motion sickness."
"Gonna just agree to disagree there, Kelly."
"Engine up!" Greg called out.
"Loading!" Kelly yanked the lever, and slowly, suspended on a harness, the engines of the next Seeker began to lift upwards from the ground floor. Anthony waited until it was just at the right level, making a circular motion with the Steed's right hand to encourage it to keep going, until he abruptly clenched it into a fist to cease motion.
"Okay, good!" With that, Anthony lifted the first part of the engine and slid it into the unfinished Seeker, before banging his fist on the side to knock loose the wires that needed connecting. "I know some of these are gonna go to the Twenty-Fifth, but what about the rest of them?" he asked. "Heard we didn't get the pilots just yet."
"Something-something-not-available," Kelly shrugged. "You know how those go."
"You know, there is a way around that-" Greg started to say.
"AI again?" Anthony asked, sounding just a little exasperated.
"Now, just-just hear me out." Greg's voice was already going right back onto the argument that had been breaking ground for the last few days. "If we can't get the pilots now to operate the Seekers yet, why not make them AI instead to get them sooner? Just saying, we can do it."
"You just want to make everything a robot," Anthony scoffed as the engine roared slightly through its initial runtime diagnostic.
"And?"
"Well, it is kind of in our job description now," Kelly admitted. "And we've got Ichiro and the Argonauts running around, so…"
"I mean, it's just a thought." Greg shrugged. "What are the odds we're going to get that?"
Drone Support
"The odds are somewhat middling in your favor, I would say."
This was decidedly not the conversation that Greg was expecting to have in the chow hall. Having finished the day's batch of Seekers - thank you God for prefabricated K-Class hulls - he had gone to go grab some food, and was sitting down when he was abruptly joined by Dr. Ignatov.
"You're…using the Drone wreckage?" Greg asked, curiosity nudging him along.
Dr. Ignatov nodded, and set aside his tea as he withdrew a tablet. "The very same wreckage from the operation at Death Valley a few months prior," he explained. "We did not have time to thoroughly examine the wreckage, but much of the 'Drone' processors survived. Inert and with corrupted data to the point that even Patch had dismissed it, but it led me to think." Each 'processor' - effectively the Drone brain - were overlaid next to each other, in varying states of wreckage and disrepair. "It seems the Mekaen denizens do not construct their Drones to last. Relative to Kausen constructed bodies, they are cheap and 'throwaway' as it were. And yet."
Various equations and simulation charts were overlaid to the side, with a series of graphs showing data over time displaying. "In theory - in theory, mind you - with enough time and nurturing, the Drones actually have a remarkable potential for growth as individuals. We have even our own in-house example in Zulu. So what if we were to cultivate and grow our own Drones?"
"And…you want to put them in the Seekers?" Greg, mentally, was very much on board with this idea, but the engineer in him had to raise up one question of practicality as much as he hated to. "Isn't that a step too far for that though?"
"Consider it a test bed then," Ignatov replied. His voice was deep and calm, but there was a certain fire in his eyes at the idea. "Consider if you will. The Steeds have the proper processing power, which can then plug directly into the Seeker frame or any of the others we have or will have at our disposal-"
"-and we could keep them for defense," Greg added, not quite realizing a similar fire was in his eyes. "Even if not the Seekers, we could make them support units to get them started-"
"-with added processing power for true personality growth-"
"-or maybe they could combine into a larger personality and frame-?"
"-I would want to monitor that closely to prevent any longterm damage, but-"
Their chance discussion would eventually culminate into a combined proposal for the new Seeker wing on Major Devin's desk, just in time for the New Year…
Mega Blaster Analysis and Energy Blaster Miniaturization
"So." Jiro is briefing you in the safety of his office. In the corner of your eye, you can see Lana and Wilde discussing something with a lot of hushed whispers and intent, but you return your focus back to Jiro. "Decided to kill two birds with one stone. I was gonna start on miniaturization first, but I figured, why? It might not be the best attempt, but the Westphalians already kind of started for us."
You blink at him. "You call this-" You point at the 'mega blaster' recovered from the Brute-class super heavy walker, "'mini?'"
"No, but it's someone else trying to apply human style weapon concepts to Kausen technology," he counters. "Well, they tried. They clearly didn't understand how any of it worked before they tried welding all three together into a Bigger Gun." Video footage captured from Ichiro's perspective in the Brest operation shows the weapon glowing a bright, unhealthy red from the 'maw' of the Beast before it spewed concentrated blaster fire.
"Watch this," he instructs. The beam began to lose coherency, going from a concentrated beam to something much more scattered - and then abruptly cutting off as chunks of the weapon exploded outright. "Easy enough to track, but if we reverse time just enough-"
You immediately see as Jiro zooms in on it. "They're not all firing at once," you notice.
"Yep. I guess even they figured that out," Jiro says. "They tried to make it a rotational deal. Each gun fires into a central energy bank before it gets vented out in one go. They tried to take a safety mechanism and weaponize it." He shrugs, a wry grin on his face. "Kind of on brand for them, really."
"And the weapon itself?"
"Herald was over the other day, so I had him check it out," he confirms. "All three are standard handheld weapons the Legion and the Free Brothers use. Just with the ergonomic parts cut out since no one was going to hold it, and they probably cut out the safety features too."
"They just wanted something out there," you reply. "Wasn't a bad plan if they weren't dealing with Ichiro."
"I remember seeing him right after it hit him too," Jiro recalls. "Man, Lana was pissed. But." The mega blaster was dismissed, and Jiro pulls out drawings on blueprint paper. "I think whoever their engineer was had the right idea, but they didn't exactly have anything like, say, Faedium. Same idea, but I'm pretty sure Faedium has higher tolerances than whatever they used."
"Another heavy launcher."
"For now." He then brings up his other project. "I didn't even think about Faedium when I came up with these," he admitted sheepishly. "I couldn't exactly miniaturize the Kaus Energy Blast. Not in anything safe anyway. So…"
"...you made mecha sized grenades?" you ask. Incredulity and a hint of admiration color your voice.
"Warheads," he corrects, even as he has to fight to prevent a smug grin crossing his face. Considering you had to do the same with the Naval Board, you can understand where he's coming from. "Delivery system varies, but the payload is the same - cheap automatic tracking software and a one-shot capacitor unit will deliver a shaped charge blast towards the locked on target and the force of the blast will destroy the unit so it's self-sanitizing. Grenade launcher on the forearm, shoulder mounted launchers, even give them to the Seekers for air-to-air combat."
"...very well done," you congratulate him. "How soon can these be available?"
"I can sneak some into the Thunderbolt and company before they head out," Jiro boasts. "Should be a good field test."
"Let's hope they won't need it," you comment, even as you're pleased with what Jiro made. Not quite what you were looking for, but another nice tool for the belt.
K-Fang Spear
Whatever Lana was working on with Wilde seems to have concluded, because as you approach her work station, a weapons display is already rotating. "Look at this, sir!" she exclaims. Her avatar has her hands on both hips as she looked to be on the verge of laughing in glee. "Behold! The first K-Fang weapon design!"
"...it's a halberd," you note dryly.
"A useful one!" she counters. "At first, I tried to use the Dragon Horn for an acid attack, but! Behold!" A simulation shows the weapon - you blink as you recognize Kausen energy blast technology emitters along the base of the halberd's blade charge said energy through the blade - and the edge abruptly explodes into a directed shaped blast. "It can channel energy blasts!" she crows. "It can shoot! It can cut with the destructive force of Kausen energy! It can do both at once!"
The weapon then shows its ability to split in half, with the edge of the halberd fitting into the display Phalanx's back along with the other half of the staff. "The first one I've got is for Perseus," she explains, having calmed down some. "But with some tweaking, anyone can use it!...except the Steed. Uh, sorry. Too tiny for it."
"Fair." You blink - this is just a solid piece of work from Lana. "Approved. Get it built and ready for Perseus when it's finished repairing." You then think to ask, "What's it called?"
"...uh." Lana's triumphant air soon turns sheepish as she scratches her cheek, chuckling in embarrassment. "I hadn't thought that far?"
"...think one up later."
New Weapon Developed! What is it called?
Base AI Development
Your last round is to Ignatov…and you are already feeling a future headache form.
"You chose who?" you demand. The new Super AI, another counterpart to Katarina specifically, is compiling and already in the works. Truth be told, you had already earmarked this project for completion, but you've had a crazy year so some things fell to the wayside.
"I was short on candidates that had time available," Ignatov says with a shrug. "Thankfully, Dr. McCullough was available."
You distinctly recall how the Faedium researcher does not seem to stop for breath when speaking. Or how her brain seems to jump from one subject to another with speed, with ideas that were no less formed than any other. "...and…how's it coming along?" you ask.
"Mostly fine?" Ignatov shrugs. "She will likely not be quite as active as Adrianna is-" You thank what few lucky stars remain with you, "-but she might be somewhat hyperfocused. It is too soon to tell."
You simply nod, and leave it at that. You're going to admit that you're a bit afraid to ask about specifics - you might not like the answers you're going to get.
QM Note: Not a bad turn for you all! I will flesh out what you have created in the information tab later when I get some time. For now, be sure to come up with names for some of the new goodies you've unlocked. Hope you enjoyed, and sorry for the wait! I will try to get the Science! rolls out this week.
The Beowulf, it seems, has one particular destiny in mind - it gets to test out all sorts of new ideas before any of the other SCR combat models. As a result, it perhaps is the most prototyped prototype of all of your prototyping developments. Even Wilde, the one who uttered that, started to get a slight headache thinking about it.
But he has a point. From effectively being the very first combat viable Jackal frame that proved Variable Configuration's effectiveness, to its incorporation of K-Class Materials and the MMI interfaces, the Beowulf in all of its shapes and incarnations has been the elder model that has seen it all, and tested a good deal of it personally. Perhaps it will never be quite as powerful as later models - but it is the symbol of the DFRI's successes and failures, the one that was always trailblazing the cutting edge so that all other models in the SCR line would benefit from future refinements.
It was the first to combine into a larger Super Robot. It still is technically the only one so far. But with this latest refinement, yet another path to future upgrades has been pushed through for its younger siblings.
Ultimately, the biggest stumbling block: the power source incompatibility issues. The MMI was ultimately able to reconcile two conflicting power sources when in the Foxhound and Timberwolf formations. However, three was beyond the MMI's safe capabilities - even if modifications were made, Boris made it very clear that the MMI's computer would start trying to tap into the human brain more to make up the difference during combat. Not only that, but even under controlled testing, Wilde and Henry discovered that the MMI could not safely manage the delicate balancing act.
Once Faedium entered the picture, however, the classic method of delegating a single point of contact became viable.
Taking valuable time to monitor the very first practical tests, Mary joined the Duo for observing how Faedium operated as a power unifying source. As a radical departure from previous incremental models of the Beowulf, the engine was rebuilt from the ground up. In something of a nod to old hybrid model automotive engines, a conventional engine directly fed into a precisely cut block of Faedium which slotted into the engine itself. The engine in turn would have ports that would connect directly to the V-33 TMU and the Shepherd, with ports that bypassed the engine to feed into the Faedium block directly as to prevent any overlap of the power inputs. As a result, the Faedium block would now serve as the primary source of power.
It took the team time to get the right density and proportions of the Faedium, but even in the failed attempts, the results were promising. And in this month of December, they finally got it right. The actual combination that followed was simple in comparison. The frames were always compatible - it was just making sure they didn't explode during use that was the issue.
The Beowulf stands in the hangar now, currently supported by engineering straps hooked up to the hangar's cranes as a safety precaution. Standing tall in its Timberwolf formation, the V-33's jet form has been split in half horizontally, with its top and bottom halves disconnecting while remaining connected via guidance wires. The top half with its wings spread upwards has been locked to the front of the Timberwolf frame's chest, while the bottom half with both its jet engine ports and its VTOL ports facing the ground. Sadly, the V-33 simply isn't powerful enough to keep the Timberwolf frame flying - but it is strong enough for making a giant jet powered leap in a single bound.
And best of all, the Faedium has been run in multiple tests, both in controlled environments, and in the Proving Grounds. Even during one close call due to a slight miscalculation from the MMI, the Faedium was able to contain the energy burst long enough for the MMI controls to catch up and stabilize and vent the excess.
The Duo are elated. Mary is content with this initial vindication of her life's work. And future combinations have been made that much easier with the prototype Faedium Block Generator.
But what to call Beowulf's new form?
Beowulf's Triple Combination is complete! What is its name?
New Equipment Unlocked - Faedium Block Engine!
New Equipment Unlocked - Faedium Block Engine!
Perseus Combination Compatibility
"Yeah, Richard's been workshopping that one all day." Adam Wilde grinned from his spot along the Perseus's frame as he connected the hose to the tank full of Anti-Gravity Solution hooked to the side of the Shepherd. Ever since Cavalier's emergency operation a few years ago, it amused him to no end that the support truck had become a mix of a gurney and an operating tool table. "He'll probably dig into, I dunno, the Brothers Grimm or go track down a runestone in Europe somewhere for inspiration."
"Wouldn't surprise me." Henry just shrugged as his Steed's hands sprayed down the K-Scale Mesh that hung loosely along Perseus's internals. This time, the taciturn NCO had just not even tried to buff out the scar along Perseus's face after the few new scratches along its eye refused to buff out either. "He's always been enthusiastic over that." He cast a discerning eye towards the K-Scale Mesh one last time, and reached out his Steed's hand and applied a shock - the materials were already curling up around the internal skeleton like particularly stubborn kudzu. "Good to go. How's the new generator?"
"Stress test done." They hadn't exactly told Major Devin that the engine was being replaced, but they had dragged Mary into the mix as well, and she had helped to narrow down the specific density required for a Phalanx-proportioned Faedium Block - though she was slightly annoyed at that particular name, she was mollified in just how much use they were already getting out of it. The Faedium was glowing a pale blue that seemed to verge on light purple, and Perseus's recast eyes were glowing a similar hue. "Conventional engine's already powered the Block, and…it's running purely off of Block power right now. Pretty good I think."
"Add that to the other things to make standard issue for us," Henry grunted. "Now…the hard points."
Adam grinned as he punched in a few controls from his console. "Okay, let's do a quick test!" The chest compartment folded back in on itself, hiding the glowing light of the Faedium as it closed. "First, we've got the Tetra-class." Perseus's arms and legs slowly began to fold in on themselves, until they themselves were more like giant mid-limbs than appendages, with plug in hard points ready to accept combined forms of forearms and boots. Even the back ports folded open slightly, revealing more hard points that could theoretically accept a backpack mounted unit of sorts.
"Tetra-class looks good," Henry noted. "Next, Axiom-class." Rapidly, the Perseus's legs fully unfolded back to their full length. However, this time, the arms fully folded directly into the Perseus's back, with its shoulder pauldrons simply rotating one hundred and eighty degrees back to reveal hard points along its shoulder joints. Clearly this was meant for a whole mecha to form the arm in some capacity.
"Both forms look good." Henry nodded, and Adam commanded Perseus's form to revert back to its standard form. None of the damage from before remained - there was just the solid mass of metal and kaiju-bits that had gone three-on-one with several kaiju and lasted long enough to get Mercury on the field to finish the job. "Now, what to actually give it."
"Shepherd's out," Adam said dolefully. "Perseus's a big boy and a liiiiitle too heavy for that."
"It already gives Beowulf more hitting and staying power anyway," Henry replied. "Perseus doesn't need that. It needs something to give it more options. I'd suggest the TMU, but it doesn't really give enough punch with its available weapon ports."
"I mean, some missiles wouldn't hurt, but yeah," Adam agreed. "We could try the Seekers?"
"If you're trying to make it fly, it's not going to happen," Henry bluntly replied. "But it might not be such a bad option for an arm or back unit."
"Maybe we could go to the Decommissions Yards and look for stuff?"
"It did work pretty well last time, didn't it?" Henry allowed. "Plenty of things from yesteryear that no one's really looking for anymore." He jotted some notes down in his notepad. "It's going to take longer if we want the change to actually reflect on the Perseus, but we might surprise the Major."
"Speaking of. What about the Saddle Major Devin's got lying around?"
"Strong enough for flight, but not much else." Henry and Adam shared a glance. "What about those new things…"
"The Sledders?" Adam scratched his chin for a moment. "Wasn't Lana working on those?"
New Phalanx combination proposals. Decision available next turn!
Phalanx Template for Combination
"...I swear that making a Phalanx form a human pyramid with these things made sense two hours ago."
Lana looked a little frazzled in her corner of the Engineering Bay. A factory standard Phalanx was parked off to the side in APC form, while various computer bays were running multiple sequences and projections. Interestingly, most of them had reached the same conclusions that they had. Adam looked at one, then brought it up to the main window display. "Heeeeey, you got the Faedium Block in there too!" he cheered. "Good call, it works."
"Oh, good." Abruptly, about fifty percent of the other simulations simply shut down and disappeared into the archives. "That saves me a lot of work."
"What's the end state of this?" Henry asked. "It's like you're stress testing to see how far this goes."
"That's the plan, yeah," Lana admitted. "So far, the Sledder on its own isn't great for combat. But if you use it as a combine component, it provides a lot of power. But." Various combat simulations, ranging from a Dragon-class kaiju to a Bandit-class Kaus played out - and the limbs that formed the Sledder almost inevitably were utterly wrecked after a full combat's worth of use. "Almost like the K-Scale. Great for defense and utility, but not to actually hit something."
"Almost fire and forget, right?" Adam commented. An amusing thought crossed his mind, and before he could even consider if he should try to stop himself, he was already speaking it. "Maybe we could make one transform into a giant drill and just launch it Shepherd style for a drill arm or something."
Henry just turned to stare at him.
Lana was also just blankly staring at him from her console.
Adam shrugged. "Just a thought," he said.
"...I am intrigued by your ideas and want to subscribe to your newsletter."
"She's doomed," Henry muttered.
New development idea for the Sledders - Weapons and Utility Deployment - available next turn!
New Insights into Phalanx combinations developed! Decision available next turn.
Two Turns Remaining.
New Insights into Phalanx combinations developed! Decision available next turn.
Two Turns Remaining.
Pegasus-class Construction
"Explain." You are standing in one of the newly constructed expansions of the Engineering Bay, so fresh that you can still actually make out some of the wall's model numbers before they inevitably get caked in soot and oil grease. Engineering must grow to continue supporting Engineering after all, or so the old joke went. But inspecting the state of the bay wasn't the reason why you were here.
No, it was the sheepish trio of the Build Team that was drawing your…ire? Interest? You're still not sure, and you haven't heard a reason why it should tilt one way or another just yet.
"I, ah, think it started with the accidental shorting on the engines," Anthony admitted. Behind him, the massive engine blocks that would have been powering the thrusters to the new dropship had a rather nasty looking fracture breaking right through the center. Anthony's own face was covered in soot and sweat, so he clearly had been busy trying to fix it. "So I was just wondering, until we can get this thing fixed, we could just make the damned thing walk."
"...and the tank treads?" you ask pointedly. Giant treads that are more fit for a supersized tractor - or maybe a superheavy command vehicle - laid stretched out running parallel to the main bay's operating area.
"If the walking bit didn't work, maybe this would help it to move if it ever crashes again?" You pause - then conclude that despite the execution of the idea, the idea itself was not a bad one…but why tank treads? "That and if it's that stable, we could probably upsize the main weapons a little bit…"
"That was probably when we joked about the spider legs," Kelly added, which immediately framed the tank treads as sounding more reasonable to you by comparison. Behind her, the unfinished frame of the new Pegasus-class loomed large, still hollow but structurally it was still intact. And then to her right was a pair of said spider legs - giant, enormous mechanical monstrosities that if you had to guess would fold up into the dropship's hull when not in use. "Stability is kindofanissuethough," she quickly concluded.
"So then," Greg concluded, "I asked Architect and Hotwire when they were over the other day if they had any retroboosters, rockets or the like that could help make the thing hover instead." You look at the last engineer, and thankfully, he didn't have the physical evidence of some constructed attempt around him. Plenty of blueprint sketches, though. "The Pegasus template probably won't work, but I did see what Wilde and Henry were doing with the Beowulf. I know it's not exactly ready, but we could try the Faedium Block…s? Faedium Blocks in a cluster sequence to give it enough power?"
"Why the booster idea then?" you ask.
"I mostly wanted to keep the idea of a flying dropship, not a land crawling video game boss stage."
You glance at all three engineers again, then at the odd, odd things they had requisitioned that had managed to find their way up to you, and why you were down here to begin with. "...has anyone discussed the idea of 'feature creep' with you all?" you ask.
"'Features waiting to happen.'" The response was unanimous from all three.
You just sigh. You suppose you could keep the original aim of the Pegasus-class, or you could try to incorporate one of the new…ideas the Build Team have come up with at the cost of time. "Just…just submit an official proposal for them before you try bolting things on willy-nilly."
Pegasus-class Decision available next turn! One Turn Remaining.
Seeker Wing Development
"I told you that was gonna raise eyebrows." Anthony's voice sounded slightly tinny through the vocal radio from the Steed he was operating. The model was stripped completely of any ability to Configure, and instead had been augmented with power loader servos. It was also painted a bright engineering yellow with black stripes, along with enough reflective tape to ensure anyone could see 'engineer working, stay clear.'
"Giant spider-walker dropship is a cool idea and you can't convince me otherwise." Kelly huffed from her position at the crane controls, waiting patiently for Greg to finish loading the next component. "It would work too! Once I figure out how to stop people from getting motion sickness."
"Gonna just agree to disagree there, Kelly."
"Engine up!" Greg called out.
"Loading!" Kelly yanked the lever, and slowly, suspended on a harness, the engines of the next Seeker began to lift upwards from the ground floor. Anthony waited until it was just at the right level, making a circular motion with the Steed's right hand to encourage it to keep going, until he abruptly clenched it into a fist to cease motion.
"Okay, good!" With that, Anthony lifted the first part of the engine and slid it into the unfinished Seeker, before banging his fist on the side to knock loose the wires that needed connecting. "I know some of these are gonna go to the Twenty-Fifth, but what about the rest of them?" he asked. "Heard we didn't get the pilots just yet."
"Something-something-not-available," Kelly shrugged. "You know how those go."
"You know, there is a way around that-" Greg started to say.
"AI again?" Anthony asked, sounding just a little exasperated.
"Now, just-just hear me out." Greg's voice was already going right back onto the argument that had been breaking ground for the last few days. "If we can't get the pilots now to operate the Seekers yet, why not make them AI instead to get them sooner? Just saying, we can do it."
"You just want to make everything a robot," Anthony scoffed as the engine roared slightly through its initial runtime diagnostic.
"And?"
"Well, it is kind of in our job description now," Kelly admitted. "And we've got Ichiro and the Argonauts running around, so…"
"I mean, it's just a thought." Greg shrugged. "What are the odds we're going to get that?"
Drone Support
"The odds are somewhat middling in your favor, I would say."
This was decidedly not the conversation that Greg was expecting to have in the chow hall. Having finished the day's batch of Seekers - thank you God for prefabricated K-Class hulls - he had gone to go grab some food, and was sitting down when he was abruptly joined by Dr. Ignatov.
"You're…using the Drone wreckage?" Greg asked, curiosity nudging him along.
Dr. Ignatov nodded, and set aside his tea as he withdrew a tablet. "The very same wreckage from the operation at Death Valley a few months prior," he explained. "We did not have time to thoroughly examine the wreckage, but much of the 'Drone' processors survived. Inert and with corrupted data to the point that even Patch had dismissed it, but it led me to think." Each 'processor' - effectively the Drone brain - were overlaid next to each other, in varying states of wreckage and disrepair. "It seems the Mekaen denizens do not construct their Drones to last. Relative to Kausen constructed bodies, they are cheap and 'throwaway' as it were. And yet."
Various equations and simulation charts were overlaid to the side, with a series of graphs showing data over time displaying. "In theory - in theory, mind you - with enough time and nurturing, the Drones actually have a remarkable potential for growth as individuals. We have even our own in-house example in Zulu. So what if we were to cultivate and grow our own Drones?"
"And…you want to put them in the Seekers?" Greg, mentally, was very much on board with this idea, but the engineer in him had to raise up one question of practicality as much as he hated to. "Isn't that a step too far for that though?"
"Consider it a test bed then," Ignatov replied. His voice was deep and calm, but there was a certain fire in his eyes at the idea. "Consider if you will. The Steeds have the proper processing power, which can then plug directly into the Seeker frame or any of the others we have or will have at our disposal-"
"-and we could keep them for defense," Greg added, not quite realizing a similar fire was in his eyes. "Even if not the Seekers, we could make them support units to get them started-"
"-with added processing power for true personality growth-"
"-or maybe they could combine into a larger personality and frame-?"
"-I would want to monitor that closely to prevent any longterm damage, but-"
Their chance discussion would eventually culminate into a combined proposal for the new Seeker wing on Major Devin's desk, just in time for the New Year…
Seeker Wing Development and Drone Support momentarily synched. New Decision available at next turn. One Turn Remaining.
Mega Blaster Analysis and Energy Blaster Miniaturization
"So." Jiro is briefing you in the safety of his office. In the corner of your eye, you can see Lana and Wilde discussing something with a lot of hushed whispers and intent, but you return your focus back to Jiro. "Decided to kill two birds with one stone. I was gonna start on miniaturization first, but I figured, why? It might not be the best attempt, but the Westphalians already kind of started for us."
You blink at him. "You call this-" You point at the 'mega blaster' recovered from the Brute-class super heavy walker, "'mini?'"
"No, but it's someone else trying to apply human style weapon concepts to Kausen technology," he counters. "Well, they tried. They clearly didn't understand how any of it worked before they tried welding all three together into a Bigger Gun." Video footage captured from Ichiro's perspective in the Brest operation shows the weapon glowing a bright, unhealthy red from the 'maw' of the Beast before it spewed concentrated blaster fire.
"Watch this," he instructs. The beam began to lose coherency, going from a concentrated beam to something much more scattered - and then abruptly cutting off as chunks of the weapon exploded outright. "Easy enough to track, but if we reverse time just enough-"
You immediately see as Jiro zooms in on it. "They're not all firing at once," you notice.
"Yep. I guess even they figured that out," Jiro says. "They tried to make it a rotational deal. Each gun fires into a central energy bank before it gets vented out in one go. They tried to take a safety mechanism and weaponize it." He shrugs, a wry grin on his face. "Kind of on brand for them, really."
"And the weapon itself?"
"Herald was over the other day, so I had him check it out," he confirms. "All three are standard handheld weapons the Legion and the Free Brothers use. Just with the ergonomic parts cut out since no one was going to hold it, and they probably cut out the safety features too."
"They just wanted something out there," you reply. "Wasn't a bad plan if they weren't dealing with Ichiro."
"I remember seeing him right after it hit him too," Jiro recalls. "Man, Lana was pissed. But." The mega blaster was dismissed, and Jiro pulls out drawings on blueprint paper. "I think whoever their engineer was had the right idea, but they didn't exactly have anything like, say, Faedium. Same idea, but I'm pretty sure Faedium has higher tolerances than whatever they used."
"Another heavy launcher."
"For now." He then brings up his other project. "I didn't even think about Faedium when I came up with these," he admitted sheepishly. "I couldn't exactly miniaturize the Kaus Energy Blast. Not in anything safe anyway. So…"
"...you made mecha sized grenades?" you ask. Incredulity and a hint of admiration color your voice.
"Warheads," he corrects, even as he has to fight to prevent a smug grin crossing his face. Considering you had to do the same with the Naval Board, you can understand where he's coming from. "Delivery system varies, but the payload is the same - cheap automatic tracking software and a one-shot capacitor unit will deliver a shaped charge blast towards the locked on target and the force of the blast will destroy the unit so it's self-sanitizing. Grenade launcher on the forearm, shoulder mounted launchers, even give them to the Seekers for air-to-air combat."
"...very well done," you congratulate him. "How soon can these be available?"
"I can sneak some into the Thunderbolt and company before they head out," Jiro boasts. "Should be a good field test."
"Let's hope they won't need it," you comment, even as you're pleased with what Jiro made. Not quite what you were looking for, but another nice tool for the belt.
New Option Unlocked from Mega Blaster analysis! One Turn Remaining.
Direct Charge Warheads developed!
Direct Charge Warheads developed!
K-Fang Spear
Whatever Lana was working on with Wilde seems to have concluded, because as you approach her work station, a weapons display is already rotating. "Look at this, sir!" she exclaims. Her avatar has her hands on both hips as she looked to be on the verge of laughing in glee. "Behold! The first K-Fang weapon design!"
"...it's a halberd," you note dryly.
"A useful one!" she counters. "At first, I tried to use the Dragon Horn for an acid attack, but! Behold!" A simulation shows the weapon - you blink as you recognize Kausen energy blast technology emitters along the base of the halberd's blade charge said energy through the blade - and the edge abruptly explodes into a directed shaped blast. "It can channel energy blasts!" she crows. "It can shoot! It can cut with the destructive force of Kausen energy! It can do both at once!"
The weapon then shows its ability to split in half, with the edge of the halberd fitting into the display Phalanx's back along with the other half of the staff. "The first one I've got is for Perseus," she explains, having calmed down some. "But with some tweaking, anyone can use it!...except the Steed. Uh, sorry. Too tiny for it."
"Fair." You blink - this is just a solid piece of work from Lana. "Approved. Get it built and ready for Perseus when it's finished repairing." You then think to ask, "What's it called?"
"...uh." Lana's triumphant air soon turns sheepish as she scratches her cheek, chuckling in embarrassment. "I hadn't thought that far?"
"...think one up later."
New Weapon Developed! What is it called?
Base AI Development
Your last round is to Ignatov…and you are already feeling a future headache form.
"You chose who?" you demand. The new Super AI, another counterpart to Katarina specifically, is compiling and already in the works. Truth be told, you had already earmarked this project for completion, but you've had a crazy year so some things fell to the wayside.
"I was short on candidates that had time available," Ignatov says with a shrug. "Thankfully, Dr. McCullough was available."
You distinctly recall how the Faedium researcher does not seem to stop for breath when speaking. Or how her brain seems to jump from one subject to another with speed, with ideas that were no less formed than any other. "...and…how's it coming along?" you ask.
"Mostly fine?" Ignatov shrugs. "She will likely not be quite as active as Adrianna is-" You thank what few lucky stars remain with you, "-but she might be somewhat hyperfocused. It is too soon to tell."
You simply nod, and leave it at that. You're going to admit that you're a bit afraid to ask about specifics - you might not like the answers you're going to get.
New Base AI almost online.
ONE TURN REMAINING.
ONE TURN REMAINING.
QM Note: Not a bad turn for you all! I will flesh out what you have created in the information tab later when I get some time. For now, be sure to come up with names for some of the new goodies you've unlocked. Hope you enjoyed, and sorry for the wait! I will try to get the Science! rolls out this week.
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