2022-09-09: Electrostatic Painting
- Log: Electrostatic Painting
- Cast: Julia Ampere, Lin Xiahe, Yuliana Dispersal, Gemini Sunrise, Ryoko Subaru, Excellen Browning, BP-119 Duke, Liam 7-020, Puru Two, BC-001 Minae, Leito Igaguri
- Where: AEU France
- OOC - IC Date: 2022-09-09
- Summary: Julia Ampere and Lin Xiahe conduct a heist at a Crevasse Paints factory in France... and where villains take action, heroes rise to put a stop to it! Can our heroes save the factory?
<Pose Tracker> Julia Ampere has posed.
A while back, Julia had the pleasure of having a chat with a certain young lady about one's personal sense of aesthetics, and how they shape the way the world sees you. It was a fascinating discussion, though in the process, a gap in her own aesthetics was pointed out. Parading about as they are in unadorned metal, her beloved creations - the loyal Electrocrawlers and her pride and joy the Dynamo Queen - lack the same care and attention to detail she shows in her own outfit.
Well. It wouldn't do to leave them feeling unappreciated - and it wouldn't do to leave herself open to further questions as to the why. For one such as herself, there can only be one path to take - the path of least resistance, in a way. A heist! And what is a heist without a friend to share it with? Yes, this would be much more entertaining with more company... and she has just the person in mind.
And so, the stage has been set. A few days ago, Crevasse Paints of France, a prodigious supplier of paint for mobile suits and large vehicles and machines, was sent a calling card announcing Julia Ampere's intent to storm their largest factory and take their stores for her own. It's a marked change from her typical focus on power plants, so some laughed it off, or assumed it was simply a copycat. But come the day of, it becomes clear that she fully intends to make good on her promise.
The initial attack was quick and decisive... and yet, no one received more than a few incidental scratches. While the head of Crevasse Paints barricaded himself into his office, the employees were allowed to evacuate without incident. No effort was made to prevent a distress call going out to anyone in the area able to receive it, either. After all... what better way to draw the heroes out of the woodwork? To miss out on that thrill would be a waste of a good heist.
At present the Dynamo Queen stands outside the Crevasse factory, Julia monitoring her Electrocrawlers as they enter the building to swarm massive, industrial-sized drums of paint in groups and carry them outside. Julia leans back in her pilot seat... when suddenly, something catches her eye.
"Ah! Here we are~!" Julia says in a singsong tone. She takes hold of controls... and suddenly, pauses. "...But ah, what's this? I suddenly find myself with quite the conundrum..."
The Dynamo Queen reaches out with both claws, gently grasping two of the massive drums and lifting them up to the center. Both drums, like all of them, are marked with a band around the center to demonstrate the color of the paint inside, Both are a shade of purple - one is flat whereas the other has more of a metallic sheen.
"You know, I had my heart set on this particular purple... But now that I see it, I do enjoy the sheen on this one..." Julia murmurs to herself. She raises an arm up to her screen, to match the drums to the color of her coat sleeve. Unable to come to a decision, she decides to ask her partner in crime. "It is so difficult to decide these things sometimes... Which do you think would be better for my dear Electrocrawlers?"
All of this is happening in plain view of anyone arriving on the scene. It may be an odd sight, watching the giant, crab-like robot lifting paint drums up to its eye and studying them like one would compare paint swatches.
<Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
Lin Xiahe has been spending some time with her newfound friend, Julia Ampere; she finds the dynamic queen of energy charming and good company, and her style is truly nonpareil. Recently, however, she's commented that her creations have been left out with how unadorned they are! Truly, this is a heinous situation that must be resolved swiftly.
Xiahe is here today with... well, technically she did arrive with the Elaphoros -- except the Elaphoros is in different configuration today, a suit of Shinju armour around the divine core of the Linshenji, the ancient Qilin machine. It's a familiar sight to anyone who's been paying attention to the Gryps Conflict and in particular the Mycenae and Dinosaur Wars of roughly six to nine years ago.
The Si Bu Xiang -- the "Four not Alike".
It's a towering Super Robot at 30 meters with an impressive silhouette, with the Elaphoros' qilin head draped forward as if a draconic helmet, with a long silver mane billowing behind it. (Is it real hair? Is it synthetic? Is it magic? Xiahe's not telling.) The rest of its armoured body sports a black-and-blue colour scheme, with highlights of white and red; much like the Elaphoros, it exudes an almost misty, ephemeral body underneath its solid armour, as if it were a poltergeist possessing a suit of armour.
"Julia, sweetie, these are not decisions you can make lightly. Colour is not chosen in a vacuum," Xiahe advises where she's seated ontop of her Super Robot's head, taking a long whiff of smoke from her elegant silver kiseru. She's dressed in her ruqun as usual, with her qilin horns jutting out of either side of her head... and seems to have taken a shine to the construction helmet and hi-vis vest. Well, she is in a paint shop right now.
As if to highlight (literally) the point, she raises a hand with a paper figure with markings upon it, and one of her Shimo rises to life and begins to glow, shining a light not unlike sunset on the Dynamo Queen and the drums.
"Consider the gloss of the purple under the auspices of the setting sun..."
A click of her fingers.
The light suddenly gets more neon, as if it were the glitz and glamour of an entertainment district in full swing.
"...and how it competes in the glamour of city lights, which I know you so love to make known your tales of derring-do. Matte can paradoxically stand out better in this case!"
She claps her hands and beams brightly, then cheerfully says, "So I suggest we take the whole palette and make a decision later! I would be most happy to set lights up for you."
KTS: Lin Xiahe has deployed in Shinju -Si Bu Xiang-. KTS: Excellen Browning has deployed in PTX-007-03C Weissritter. KTS: Julia Ampere has deployed in Dynamo Queen. KTS: Gemini Sunrise has deployed in STAR V Rodeo STAR. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has deployed in Tiandong 3 Annihilation Custom. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has changed loadout. KTS: Ryoko Subaru has deployed in Aestivalis - Land Combat Frame (Ryoko Ver.). KTS: Liam 7-020 has deployed in GAT-01D Long Dagger Fortestra. KTS: BP-119 Duke has deployed in Duke Fire. KTS: BC-001 Minae has deployed as a Sub Pilot for Ryoko Subaru! KTS: Puru Two has deployed in RGM-89 Jegan. KTS: Leito Igaguri has deployed in Ultraman Zero. KTS: Julia_Ampere has deployed as a Boss for 4 opponents. KTS: Lin_Xiahe has deployed as a Boss for 4 opponents.
<Pose Tracker> Yuliana Dispersal has posed.
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA
THE NEGA FORCE HANGAR
And Captain Yuliana Dispersal is busy soldiering a fuel tank and shouting at the mechanics who handle their machines otherwise. Lieutenant Parminder Chaudhri wanders in, a tablet in his hands, and ambles over to the ground below.
"Captain!" He calls, amicably. "Oi! Captain!"
Yuliana directs her lift downwards, so she can actually speak -- more or less eye-to-eye with him. "What is it, Letda?" She demands, with that typical Indonesian slang for second lieutenant.
"You asked me to tell you about the activity of some of these marks in particular, right?" Parminder turns his tablet around, and holds it out. "Check it out. Ampere's sent out another calling card." He looks up to the Annihilation, raising a brow. "Looks like you're occupied, though..."
And Yuliana... grins. "Are you kidding? Readiness tests are boring. It's much more interesting to do them on the field!" All a sudden, the sense that Parminder is wasting her time is replaced with an eagerness which is far too sharp.
"So you're going to make sure your wanzer is combat ready... by throwing it into more combat," Parminder observes, dryly.
"That's what I said, Letda," Yuliana says, with cheer.
Parminder sighs, a hand lifting to his temple. "What the hell is wrong with you pilots..."
...---...
FRANCE, EUROPE
CREVASSE PAINTS FACTORY
Yuliana recognises the Four not Alike -- but she's not in the same machine she was using to fight the Mycenae Empire, years prior. The Tiandong 3 is only the latest in Yuliana's improvements on her country's wanzers... which, at first glance, means it's armed to the teeth. Aside from that flamethrower, flamer tank all bolted to her back, the axe on a chain on one hip, and the Minovsky chaff launcher on one shoulder, she's also mounted... a clay bazooka on the other shoulder.
And, of course, the Annihilation Custom has a custom paint job, thank you. It's a striking teal green!
"I hope you're using your time wisely," the Tiandong 3 transmits, over a wide band, "... in order to choose the colour of the jumpsuits you'll be wearing in prison!" It's after that grand declaration that the pilot remembers to announce herself: "Minovsky's Woman, on site. By my power as a Federation Captain, I demand you cease your occupation of this facility immediately and submit to processing."
The little size S Real Robot points to the hulking size L Super Robot, with no fear at all.
"That means you, criminal!!" Yuliana declares, to Xiahe, fiercely. They're having fun.
<Pose Tracker> Gemini Sunrise has posed.
Gemini really SHOULD be preparing for the pageant tomorrow. In fact, that was exactly what she HAD been doing when she got a message from one Mr. Michael Sunnyside.
"Oh, Gemini! Sorry to disturb you during your very important business, but we've got word of a disturbance, and you're close enough that you shouldn't be too hard-pressed to offer some assistance, yes? The Rodeo Star has already been deployed to take you there."
She had wanted to complain, but duty was duty, so here she was, flying towards the scene in flight mode. "A robbery? Well, at least we should be done quick!"
A red streak darts through the sky!
A shooting star comes down to the Earth!
"It's showtime!"
The Rodeo Star, in armor mode, lands with a thud, pulling out its long sword and pointing it towards the two criminals! A hero is here!
"Neo-America Combat Revue! Let's do this!"
Gemini pulls the trigger on her Gunbarrel Sword and fires a quick draw shot
directly at the Dynamo Queen's chest, with the dexterity only a true cowpoke can muster.
KTS: Gemini Sunrise targets Julia Ampere with Quick Draw! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal targets Lin Xiahe with Goad! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal goads Lin Xiahe, reducing her Intuition drastically.
<Pose Tracker> Excellen Browning has posed.
To the surprise of no one, the lady with whom Julia had her chat isn't the only one to put stock in aesthetics within the realm of being a robot pilot. One could say that the pursuit of her aesthetic is very much what shaped Excellen's career trajectory after all! Being bounced from one squad here, or another batallion there, all because she had the temerity... the AUDACITY to break from the mold of tried and true uniform design to find something special for herself...
... it probably also didn't help that she seemed to gauge how much she liked her personalized uniform design off the number of people she could get rushing off to HR to NARC on her.
-*-
"A heist for robot paint, huh?" Excellen frowns slightly as she is in the briefing room while the ATX team goes over the aid request from Crevasse Paints. As has been common lately this particular deployment is too far out for the Alty or Bullet's unit to reach it in time. That's the downside to Dr. Radom's vehement rejection of dropping a Tesla Drive into her prize creations. "Hm... y'know maybe I should change up Weissy's look too to match the Alty! That way we'd match! But I guess we couldn't call it the Weissy anymore then huh... what's the German word for red again?"
-*-
Excellen piloting her Weissritter, which will DEFINITELY not become the Rotritter (what a terrible name!), arrives on the scene while Julia Ampere and her accomplise Lin Xiahe are enjoying a relative moment of peace. "Oh wow, they're really out here like they're out on a shopping trip! I thought it'd be like a smash and grab, but they're out there like that time Bullet and me went swimsuit shopping!!"
Ah that was fun... well for her anyway. Bullet was laid up in his bunk in the next day with a towel over his face. Really that boy needs to learn to handle seeing a little skin if she's ever going to consider taking him lingerie shopping!!
SOMEWHERE ELSE: Bullet feels the cold hand of death lightly brushing by his shoulder.
The Weissritter moves into its maximum range before drawing out its Oxtongue Launcher. Excellen pauses, considers, and then pushes forwared a little bit closer. After all she's just here to foil a robbery, not to ruin another woman's machine with a spray of multiple exploding paint barrels.
With an impressive flourish, the Weissritter spins its launcher with one hand before catching it with the other. The gun's B-Mode activating, loading a high penetration shell into the chamber. She aims carefully firing a few rounds - trying to hit the adorable Electrocrawlers, and then the last round aimed center mass on the Dynamo Queen!
<Hi~! Target-chans! If you wouldn't mind putting down those paint barrels and surrender peacefully, maybe we'd be able to work out a deal where you get to choose what color jail uniform you can wear~!>
KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Excellen Browning targets Julia Ampere with Oxtongue Launcher B Mode!
<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.
"<So run this by me again. Why am I currently being deployed into a paint factory?>"
"<Because it's under siege.>" Megumi, the comms officer answers matter of factly.
"<Right but since when is law enforcement our problem!?>"
An image of Prospector appears on her screen, "<Since Nergal Heavy Industries is currently in negotiations with Crevasse Paints for a lucrative business deal.>" Prospector's glasses gleam.
Ryoko glowers at the screen, "<So I'm just here to protect Nergal's business interests?>" Erina Kinjo Won's face appeared separately, overlapping prospector, "<That is literally YOUR ENTIRE JOB! NOW LAUNCH!>"
Ryoko glared murder at her, but before she could say anything. Prospector's overlapped image says quietly, "<... she really is used to being in charge...>"
"<WHAT WAS THAT?>" "<Absolutely nothing of importance->" "<THAT DIDN'T SOUND LIKE NOTHI->"
"<AHHHHH SHUT UP ALREADY! BOTH OF YOU!>" As Ryoko rolls her hand across a control globe and pushes both of their images off her screen and seemingly out of existence as both faces keep bickering. Her whole body slumps, as she makes a frustrated noise at Minae, "Guess it's going to be like this today. Sure you're good with coming along for this kind of a run? You're supposed to be our guest."
While she waits for her response, she wills the radio frequency back to Megumi, and announces, "<Ryoko Subaru - Launching in Aestivalis! ... So long as you keep that argument off this frequency!>" Megumi's image appears, as she holds up her thumb and fingers in an 'ok' symbol.
With a flare of her IFS tattoo the Catapult launches the red painted Aestivalis out of the hangar, as rockets flare from the back, bursting long enough to slow it's descent as wheels hit the ground as its wheels keep rolling on the factory floor.
Yuliana's law enforcement speech causes Ryoko to reflect her delinquent teen years in the Space Colonies, and just mutters to herself, "Great, now I am the fuzz. All I wanted to do was fight aliens, but noooooo..." Flipping on the loudspeakers, "Look we all know if you brought this kind of hardware you're not going to go quietly, so I'm just going to cut to the chase?"
She too, despite being in a tiny 6 m tall Aesti in a land combat frame, seems to have very little fear of the giant Elpharos and Dynamo Queen. Perhaps evidenced by the fact that the Aestivalis just flat out launches a small Rocket Punch straight at its Qilin like head.
(It's on a wire, Nergal Heavy Industries believes in efficiency, and this saves a bunch in costs over other rocket punch systems.)
"I really don't have all day!!!" Beat, before she yells at Excellen in the Wessritter, "THE COP IN THE WANZER LITERALLY JUST MADE THAT JOKE!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Lin Xiahe with Aestivalis Rocket Punch!
KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Ryoko Subaru's Aestivalis Rocket Punch, taking 3570 damage!
<Pose Tracker> BP-119 Duke has posed.
<poem>
==== NOUVELLE TOKYO ====
==== BRAVE POLICE HQ ====
==== TWO DAYS AGO ====
Duke and Regina Argine stand at attention in the oversized Brave Police office, along with the ten-year-old captain Yuta Tomonaga and his partner, Deckerd. The four of them are watching a screencall to the central office with Commissioner Saejima.
"It appears as though Julia Ampere has sent another calling card," the brave Police's superintendent exposits. "This time she will be attacking a paint manufacturer in Crevasse, France."
"Paint?" Tomonaga speaks up at this, confused. "I thought she raided a power facility here in Nouvelle Tokyo last time. What's paint got to do with it?"
"The Crevasse facilities produce a specific grade of paint rated for mobile weapons and other large machines," Saejima clarifies.
Regina "hmphs". "Is she developing something big enough to repaint? She already has that 'Dynamo Queen'."
"Which I should note, my lady," Duke interjects, "was decorated in nothing much besides unpainted steel."
"This brings me neatly to our deployment situation," Saejima concludes. "Our department in the AEU is taking this more seriously than Crevasse are; they have requested the urgent attention of any officer with prior experience in fighting miss Ampere and her Dynamo Queen. That is, currently, you, BP-119 Duke, and that means you'll be going with him, Specialist Argine."
"Yes, sir!"
==== THE SKIES OVER FRANCE ====
==== NOW ====
The cargo helicopter's rotors roar as they ride the skies over the Crevasse facility. Regina sighs. "Looks like they sent the alarm up too late - the Dynamo Queen and a second unit have already taken control of the facility. Incompetents." She unfolds her laptop, hooking it up to the instruments of the console she's sitting at. "We'll coordinate with you from here, Duke. You good for an aerial combination?"
"As my lady wills it," the ambulance sitting comfortably in the cargo hold comms back to her as the ramp lowers.
"Acknowledged. Running autopilot combination sequence for the Fire Loader now." The fire engine roars to life, pulling up next to the transformed Duke. "Launch when ready."
Tires squeal and both vehicles accelerate in a racer's start before roaring towards the ramp, rocketing out into freefall as the Brave Police-emblazoned helicopter pulls up to a safe monitoring distance. Reciting a phrase she's rehearsed a hundred times over, Regine thumbs a button shaped like her specialist badge on the board of her laptop. "Brave Up: Duke Fire."
Sirens wail in the sky as the crimson fire engine unfolds into a body, the ambulance's chassis splitting apart to form additional armour and limbs for the Brave Police combat robot, electromagnetically drawn to the core body to complete the combination. Wings snap out from the back, and thrusters ignite, allowing the Brave Robot to take purchase on the air itself as he announces his name: "DUUUUUUUUKE! FIIIIIIIIIIRE!" and safely descends to the ground, pointing dramatically at Julia and Xiahe's machines! (Is machine the right word for one of those? Ask that question later.)
"Hold up! This is the Brave Police! Surrender your spoils and your mobile weapons and submit to justice!"
KTS: BP-119 Duke targets Julia Ampere with Pass! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Gemini Sunrise's Quick Draw, taking 780 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Excellen Browning rattles Julia Ampere, making her next maneuvers more difficult. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Excellen Browning's Oxtongue Launcher B Mode, taking 1560 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere fails to react to BP-119 Duke's Pass, taking 0 damage!
<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.
France is far afield from NERV headquarters, but like Yuliana, Liam has taken an interest in the operations of certain science criminals, and their accomplices. It was easy enough to set himself up as an official response to Julia's letter...
Which is what a perfectly normal GAT-01D is doing walking up to the captured facility. The machine moves with fluid, natural grace--no small feat, given it's tuned for Coordinator reflexes--and it comes to a halt just outside the perimeter fencing. It reaches back and draws its beam rifle, while Liam's lips twist in a frown. He still has vivid memories of his last confrontation with Julia, and how he lost control. He needs to make--
The sensors flag a second machine, or something like one, and--
"You," Liam says, as the Long Dagger twists to face the Si Bu Xiang. He wonders for a moment if a squad of old Zakus will emerge from nowhere and start line-dancing at her command. "Deactivate your--"
Yuliana starts speaking, and Liam no longer needs to. He stays silent, gun pointed downrange but very pointedly not at Xiahe directly, until--
'Minovsky's Woman'
A chill runs down Liam's spine. Her. It has to be her.
While Liam is still processing that, Excellen rolls up. Friendly backup, he thinks, even if... that tone bothers him. Does she think this is a game? Is she toying with the enemy?
Either way, enough dissonance has built within Liam's brain that the only way to release it is to act. The young cyborg's shoulders bunch beneath his normal suit. The Long Dagger raises its rifle to shoulder height and fires once, sending a single beam just north of Xiahe's machine's center of mass.
<Pose Tracker> Puru Two has posed.
Chteaudun Air Base
"Police Action?"
Lieutenant Junior-Grade Callisto Diana is reading from the tablet thrust into her hands, still wearing her jumpsuit (not a pilot suit) after departing from the recently-landed flight. A thicc cargo craft is still cooling down on the tarmac, like a big comfy mechanical whale. You wouldn't want to upset a big comfy whale, would you?
"Raiding a chemical plant... all nearby responders..." she mumbles, murmurs, and then looks up at the clock. Like any good teenager shoved into the robot, Callisto has a distrust of certain members of authority (despite wearing the uniform of one) and feels like this is a stretch of her mission to help resupply the base.
The redhead sighs and zips her jumpsuit back up the rest of the way. "Okay, what's warmed up and ready to launch?"
The answer will shock you.
Crevasse Paints Factory
A tan-coloured RGM-89 Jegan with an irritated pilot is belched from the belly of a familiar whale-like aircraft as it makes a broad, nervous turn away from a nearby French paint factory which has come under assault.
To be fair, paint contains chemicals, and the plant produces paint. Ergo.
"I'm approaching the target area. Looks like..." Callisto squints, as the monitor warms up. The sensors still have that peel-before-use plastic on the lens, so it takes her a hot second to parse the unbelievably huge and aesthetic form of the Si Bu Xiang, looming overhead. "... uh."
Then to one side, she notices the Tiandong 3 Annihilation Custom.
Callisto's eyebrow quirks so hard she nearly squints, and the tan Jegan lands with a thud, then boldly steps behind a warehouse and crouches. "... taking fire."
Nobody is shooting at you, you brat!!!
KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Lin Xiahe with M703 Beam Rifle Beam Shot! KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Liam 7-020's M703 Beam Rifle Beam Shot, taking 1800 damage!
<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.
"Hehe, it's fine," the robot promises. If she finds it cramped in the cockpit, she doesn't show it - quite the opposite, as she glances around with open interest and curiosity. "When it comes down to it, I'm more than happy to help out along the way. I owe you for the ride, after all. It's pretty interesting to see the interior of an Aestivalis for myself. It's kind of cozy!"
She certainly doesn't act like a robot - at least not until she places a hand on one of the consoles, and the area around her suddenly lights up with monitors as she quietly slips into the machine's programming. "Besides, you'll find I'm pretty handy to have on board, even if I say so myself. Ah, Omoikane gave me a back door to the system just in case. Stand by for tactical data once I've had a chance to see what we're up against." Her eyes flicker dark for a moment as she splits her attention, and in no time at all there's an overlay of the district, and several blips pinpointing on it as they approach.
Minae has to take several moments to process what exactly she's seeing. Two gigantic robots and a host of smaller units are crawling over and emptying the stock of a... paint factory? If that weren't strange enough, one of them is holding a vat of paint up to the light to check its colour. The other is just standing there, but something about the smoke that wisps up from it raises a deep suspicion in the robot's mind, and she casts her gaze upwards. It's not a surprise when she spots a lone figure fearlessly riding on top of the odd machine.
She is a robot. While she does a very good facsimile of human behaviour, there are times when she forgets to do things that humans do, such as 'breathing' or the idle tics that make up half of a conversation. For her, these motions are not involuntary, and she has to remember to do them. Sometimes she forgets, sometimes she is stuck with her eyebrow twitching.
"... why are there two of them?" she laments to herself, and the catches the chatter over the radio. It's rare to see Minae looking quite so frazzled so quickly into an engagement, but the last time she ran into her old friend she got a distinct reminder of the sheer scale of mischief that one Xiahe can cause. Something tells her that two of them is just going to cause a neverending resonance, getting stronger and stronger until they're-- stealing the Eiffel Tower and leaving a chintzy souvenir statue in its place, or something.
"Miss Xiahe _why_ are there two of you?!" she blurts over open comms as an extra bit of surprise kicks in; she's used to riding alongside Arriety, and adjusting to Ryoko's rather offensive style leaves her scrambling to catch up, her hands flying across open air as she mimics typing on a keyboard. The logistic readout enriches by the moment, and she purses her lips as she takes stock of who's alongside them.
"Ah-- Kakapo, Nadesico, NERV units, this is BC-001 Minae providing tactical and logistical supp--ORT," her voice hitches as the tiny Aestivalis impacts with the Elparos. She clamps her lips shut as the Brave Police arrive on the scene; knowing what she knows of Duke, she gets the feeling this altercation might be like throwing oil into water. She's forced to blink again at the sight of what Callisto is riding, but at this point she wouldn't have been surprised if someone showed up in a methane wanzer shaped like a Ball. With a certain amount of resignation, she pushes the update out.
KTS: BC-001 Minae targets Puru Two, Ryoko Subaru, and Liam 7-020 with Awe. KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru KTS: BC-001 Minae inspires awe, increasing Ryoko Subaru's Morale! <Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
They've got company in a real hurry. Xiahe takes a long drag of her kiseru, letting an ethereal wisp of smoke trail off. A toothy grin as Yuliana opens communications. "They let you choose your jumpsuit colour? My, how prison life has improved! They let you do indentured labour in fashion. The times certainly have changed."
Another pause, another whiff of smoke.
"Oh, one of Nergal's new babies, huh?" Xiahe comments as the Aestivalis comes in close. "And why is Nergal here? I didn't take you to care about law enforcement, sweetie."
The Si Bu Xiang's eyes gleam in irisoid fashion, and adopts a combat pose -- a Baguazhang low stance, if one were familiar with Chinese martial arts; in an instant, its gauntleted arms parrying the small Rocket Punch, its strange chitinous metal pitted as the Wired Fist bounces off.
"A wire, hm..." Xiahe murmurs. "I suppose that's one way to save on extra arms. Nergal certainly has an eye for cost-efficiency!"
There's a white, flying machine and a Super AI... hey, a Super AI! Nice, so they did create new ones, hmm? And this one certainly has that spirit of justice she likes so much!
"He said it, Julia! He said it! 'Hold up! This is the Brave Police!'" Xiahe exclaims, literally pointing like that one meme. "Can we get a 'Don't move or I'll shoot'?"
The Star Rodeo certainly is attractive, and the Combat Revues aren't one she's seen before...
Liam's Long Dagger arrives, and Xiahe pauses for a moment and smirks as she calls out, "Ooh, that's one of the models derived for Coordinator use, hmm? I recognise the PLANT designs... also, is that the pilot from before? Hello again!"
The rifle launches a single beam, and the Si Bu Xiang twists again; the rifle shot grazes its armour, but part of the beam disperses through the misty underbody of the machine. It's not unlike the Elaphoros in this sense, but... there's more 'body' this time, owing to that mysterious glowing core.
The Jegan arrives next, and Xiahe doesn't know it's another familiar pilot underneath. "Hello! My, but you are all rolling out in force today."
To her surprise, though, she hears Minae's voice from the comms. "Oh, Minae, are you in the Aestivalis? Goodness, but you are cutting my work out for me."
A pause. "Two of me? Whatever do you mean, Minae?"
Xiahe lulls her head down, staring at the core of her machine. "Let's have a good time, all right, Yiyi?" Xiahe's eyes light up dangerously.
The Si Bu Xiang's eyes synchronously flash once more, and it twists its arms in circular motion, as Xiahe channels her dantian and gathers her qi --
And in a synchronised palm thrust, the Super Robot's hands disappear into solid mist, which shrouds around the Aestivalis, the Jegan, the Tiandong, and the Long Dagger... and if they're not careful, they'll find a fist striking from a long distance within the mist.
(Xiahe cheated and created a portal inside that mist so she can punch from a long distance. You can kinda see the girly ribboned portals if you squint hard enough. Stupid cultivators.)
KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Liam 7-020 with Mist-Hidden Strike! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Yuliana Dispersal with Mist-Hidden Strike! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Ryoko Subaru with Mist-Hidden Strike! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Puru Two with Mist-Hidden Strike! <Pose Tracker> Leito Igaguri has posed.
Leito has been meditating on Ultraman Zero's conversation with the good(?) doctor, Jana Cektru. What makes someone evil? He's certainly met evil people, in another world. But is there something more to it?
When he heard about a supervillain burglary calling card through the Nergal pipeline (from Mr. Prospector, who idly passed the info over as his boss), he took the day off in France, much to Prospector's ire (but he had the saved time!).
Ultraman Zero appears from the disance, landing on the ground. The Giant of Light moves with a slow precision, carefully moving past buildings towards the paint factory. There's two enemies - he feels he could handle them both (but that's ego, baby), but there's other defenders. Better to focus on decisive victory.
Ryoko's here, so that's useful. The Electrocrawlers are stealing paint - unimportant. Focus on the Dynamo Queen.
Ultraman Zero suddenly slides forward once the super robot's in range, moving to sweep kick into the legs. He's much larger, so there'll be torso damage - but he's purposely avoiding the cockpit.
As he hears the voice of Liam over the comms, there's a message sent to him through MENTAL RADIO ULTRA BULLSHIT in that alien 'voice'. "Please handle the other one. I've got this one, easy."
Leito Igaguri has moved to Urban Battle Zone
KTS: Leito Igaguri has deployed in Ultraman Zero. KTS: BC-001 Minae inspires awe, increasing Puru Two's Morale! KTS: Puru Two blocks Lin Xiahe's Mist-Hidden Strike, taking 4180 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe begins a Formation attack! KTS: Leito Igaguri: Will Barrier Activates. KTS: Leito Igaguri targets Julia Ampere with Knifehand Strike! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Leito Igaguri's Knifehand Strike, taking 1750 damage! KTS: Leito Igaguri has engaged Julia Ampere! KTS: Ryoko Subaru blocks Lin Xiahe's Mist-Hidden Strike, taking 4560 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe begins a Formation attack! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal fails to charge. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal partially guards Lin Xiahe's Mist-Hidden Strike, taking 2660 damage! KTS: Lin Xiahe begins a Formation attack! KTS: BC-001 Minae inspires awe, increasing Liam 7-020's Morale! KTS: Liam 7-020 fails to Charge. KTS: Liam 7-020 partially guards Lin Xiahe's Mist-Hidden Strike, taking 4800 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe begins a Formation attack! <Pose Tracker> Yuliana Dispersal has posed.
"Now, now," Yuliana transmits, at Ryoko's screaming. "No one can fault the youth for following in the footsteps of their role models. Don't you think we should be encouraging the young lady to have such a good reference to draw from?"
She adds, to Excellen: "You're doing great, sweetie." It's an audio feed, but her wink is audible.
"Long Dagger, confirm your status," she adds, having noticed that Liam stopped talking very suddenly. "Are you all systems green? Confirm." Which is a very normal thing for a Federation Captain to do, really -- make sure the people responding aren't going through their own troubles.
But her radio picks up the edge of a snicker, as an RGM-89 Jegan rolls into the field. "And look what the cat dragged in," she asides, quietly, as if to herself -- of course, the radio's still on -- before she transmits: "If you can't handle this engagement, feel free to fall back, Lieutenant." Which... sounds supportive enough... more or less.
"No matter how much the times change," she declares, to Xiahe, "you'll still answer for your crimes!" She's more of a 'stop, and I'll shoot!' sort of girl, though, so she doesn't honour Xiahe's fangirling about the Brave Police.
The mist shrouds, and the wanzer -- charges forward, through it, to meet that fist with its own movement. Thrusting her throttle out, her wanzer grasps its Grappler Axe, and swings it by the chain -- to toss it up and try to catch it on the Super Robot's broad side!
There are quite a lot of little movements involved in trying to use something like this to entangle a larger opponent, but Yuliana is able to operate her manual machine to such a finely-tuned degree that it seems to be moving quite fluidly... even given the fist-shaped dent in its chassis.
KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has activated the Daunt Spirit Command targeting Puru Two KTS: Yuliana Dispersal targets Lin Xiahe with MULS-P Grappler Axe Acrobatics! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal anchors Lin Xiahe, forcing her into close range. KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Yuliana Dispersal's MULS-P Grappler Axe Acrobatics, taking 2925 damage! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has engaged Lin Xiahe! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal begins a Formation attack! <Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.
"Cozy is one way to put it." Ryoko grumbles, because she certainly does feel cramped. Fortunately, it doesn't interfere with piloting much. Minae will notice that her IFS Nanomachines at the control globe make fairly seamless transitions with basically no lag time, even if she is to all appearances, almost entirely a Natural.
"Well if you want to pull your weight, I won't complain." Beat, "Omoikane did that huh?" That says a lot in her eyes... even if she won't say that herself.
Lin immediately draws a remark from her when it comes to her care for law enforcement, "<We don't! Apparently I'm a Corporate LAPDOG today!>"
She definitely sounds bitter about it. "<It's actually REAL HANDY - cost aside!>" She notes, as the Aestivalis' wired fist returns. Pause, "<AND THAT WAS NOT A PUN!>" She blames Izumi for rubbing off on her.
Ryoko glowers though at Yuliana's smugness, "<You? A role model? Tck. As if 'the youth' would ever see you as inspirational. Bet even your own squad doesn't look up to you.>"
Mist suddenly surrounds the Aestivalis, and she looks from side to side, having to rely on Minae's logistical data, "Minae it's interfering with my instruments. Anything you can do about that-"
A fist suddenly punches out of the Mist, colliding with the Aestivalis and cutting them off. Ryoko only barely raises the Distortion Field in time, as the impact still causes it to skid across the factory floor. "What is her deal!? These tactics are so annoying..." Pause, "And why is Ultraman here!? ... Does he really have an interest in a paint heist!?"
Unable to get a great bead on the Si Bu Xiang in the Mist, she drives the Aesti forward just enough to raise the Rapid Rifle and start firing at what little of the silhouette she can pick up by trying to rake it with fully automatic projectile fire. "<Whatever! Eat this!>"
KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Lin Xiahe with Fully-Rapid Rifle! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Wall Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Ryoko Subaru's Fully-Rapid Rifle, taking 2550 damage! <Pose Tracker> Julia Ampere has posed.
Julia asks a question, and she is rewarded with an answer. She listens, nodding along as Xiahe replies, observing as she shines a light on the Dynamo Queen.
"Ah, you are right, of course! There are so many factors to consider... It is not a matter that should be rushed." Julia replies, pleased. "Truly, you were the right person to ask. Whatever would I have done had I not consulted you for this?"
She sets both of the barrels down, where the Electrocrawlers who had carried them pick them up and begin to haul them away... but before she can arrange for any more, the heroes arrive right on queue. The first on the scene is the Tiandong 3. Minovsky's Woman is a familiar sight... and, an absolute delight to encounter.
"My, my! I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline. While I'm sure I would look quite dashing in a jumpsuit, I have far too much on the agenda at the moment." Julia replies with a shake of her head. Yuliana makes a declaration to Xiahe, specifically. Ah, do they have a history together? In that case, she's perfectly glad to let them catch up. For now, her attention returns to the Rodeo Star as it descends from the heavens and brandishes its sword at her!
"Ah, what a remarkable entrance! Bravo, bravo, my dear!" Julia replies with... genuine applause to Gemini's entrance? "I like you already."
This opinion doesn't change even when the sword's trigger is drawn, the Dynamo Queen's thick, armored claws raising up to block the attack.
Next, comes one of the Nadesico's Aestivalises - another small robot, though not quite as small as the Rodeo Star. She's only familiar with them by reputation. She wants to cut to the chase, and Julia is happy to oblige - though it seems like Xiahe will be serving Ryoko today.
Next, comes a flying white machine. Several rounds are fired out - a few toward Julia's Electrocrawlers, and one to the Dynamo Queen itself. Julia reacts quickly, the claws moving to intercept the shot - the force of it pushes it back somewhat, though with each of its four legs it manages to restabilize itself. The Electrocrawlers aren't so lucky. They almost 'pop' when hit, each one exploding and leaving nothing behind - not even technology to be salvaged. A defense against reverse-engineering, no doubt.
While she of course must take offense to any attacks on her Electrocrawlers, Julia can't deny that the Weissritter's pilot sounds like a delight.
"It's true." She says to Excellen, when Ryoko points out that Yuliana made the same joke. "I'll have to give you the same answer I gave her. It seems will we simply have to play today!"
And then...! A call resounds through the air as Duke Fire of the Brave Police announces his interest and points dramatically, making a remarkable entrance! Like with Gemini, Julia can't help but applaud.
"That he did." Julia replies to Xiahe with a nod. "You simply must respect the classics. And the nobility, to give me an opportunity to respond! I quite like him."
With that, she turns her attention back to Duke.
"We meet again, Brave Police! Such a delight to see you..." Julia says... and then grins, raising the Dynamo Queen's claws. They clamp twice. "And such a delight it will be to beat you! Duke Fire, was it? I will not be surrendering today! Show me this 'justice' of yours!"
She just can't help but get into it every time the Brave Police shows up.
There's another machine soon, a Long Dagger... the pilot's voice is familiar. He was present at her previous heist, wasn't he? ...It's good to see that he's well enough to be piloting again, at least. She's almost thankful that he goes after Xiahe instead.
She catches sight of the Jegan, too... but as it hasn't made a move yet, she elects to pretend not to see it. She'll let Xiahe decide how to handle that.
...And, that's when something quite fascinating approaches. Not a machine, no... he moves far too smoothly for that. A giant person - taller even than the Dynamo Queen. The Giant of Light approaches quickly, sliding forward and trying to sweep her legs right out from under her! The crab-like robot topples backward, but a flurry of leg movements manage to restabizile it as it moves back.
"Well now. You're no robot. I'm fascinated. Just who are you?" She asks of Leito.
Well now. Introductions have been made, so it's time for her to fight back.
She starts upon the Rodeo Star first, looking to seize it in one of her claws!
"You have quite the darling little machine. Let me get a closer look, won't you?" Julia asks. If she manages to catch it successfully, the Dynamo Queen gives the machine a quick squeeze before releasing it - just enough to strain the metal, while avoiding putting too much pressure on it so as to not harm the pilot.
Excellen is next, then. In response to her attack on their kin, the Electrocrawlers who aren't currently hauling barrels form up around the Dynamo Queen. Their proboscises take aim at her... and the lot of them unleash a volley of electrical shots at the Weissritter.
And then, Duke Fire - of course she's going to give him the honor to facing him directly after a challenge like that. She moves in quickly, one claw hauled back before launching forward in a devastating corkscrew punch!
With Leito - or perhaps Zero - in her space, she can't take her attention off of him for too long. Both claws raise up and slam down, one after another!
KTS: Julia Ampere targets Gemini Sunrise with Single Clamp! KTS: Julia Ampere targets BP-119 Duke with Corkscrew Punch! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Leito Igaguri with Claw Tantrum! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Excellen Browning with Electrocrawler Volley! KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Alert Spirit Command. KTS: BP-119 Duke parries Julia Ampere's Corkscrew Punch, taking 690 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged BP-119 Duke! KTS: Excellen Browning successfully evades Julia Ampere's Electrocrawler Volley KTS: Leito Igaguri's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Leito Igaguri blocks Julia Ampere's Claw Tantrum, taking 1350 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged Leito Igaguri! KTS: Gemini Sunrise parries Julia Ampere's Single Clamp, taking 1620 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Julia Ampere's Immaculate Scheme activates, causing Designate L1! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged Gemini Sunrise! <Pose Tracker> Puru Two has posed.
Callisto's face is a stern mask as she tries to get comfortable in the pilot seat, which still has the remove-before-use tag sticking out of the neck cushion. "That voice..." she scowls darkly at the sound of Yuliana's taunting timbre. "Why are you following me? Don't waste my time."
It's anyone's guess as to whether that's audible or not.
Luckily, there are more important things to worry about than the mean lady who makes it hard to concentrate. The matte, stock finish Jegan looks left and right as the air starts to grow leaden with eerie mist. That it's familiar is, in itself, a worry. "I remember this--didn't something similar show up at the bank heist...?"
However, just because one recognizes a pattern doesn't mean they're in a good position to act on that. Case in point: a huge fist flies out of the haze and flattens the Jegan against the building it's taking cover against!
It's a good thing there's a lot of excess paint on hand nearby to do some touch-ups. This poor thing is going to need them. "Just need to fix them in place until someone can manuever and finish..." Callisto grouses to herself, trying to keep her mind on the tactics. Don't get mad. DON'T write in the news that I was mad.
The Jegan, still doing a pancake impression against the building, hefts its shield at the retreating fist. A cover slides off of said shield, and two missiles go zoomin' off on plumes of cloudy white. But is targeting the fist even a workable idea?!
Xiahe, there's just no suitably Heavenly opponents to throw down with anymore. Everyone's Dao is hella weak.
KTS: Puru Two targets Lin Xiahe with Missile Mount Shield Missiles! KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Puru Two's Missile Mount Shield Missiles, taking 1230 damage! <Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.
"I mean there's basically two of you here! I had to wonder which machine you were even riding when the other one started picked out color swatches!" Minae shoots back. For those who have seen her, there's a definite difference between the usual upbeat calm that she displays to anyone outside of the Kakapo sphere and the way in which she interacts with Xiahe. It's not that Minae ever means to, but it can be easy for her to keep people at arm's length just by being carefully polite; in constrast, it takes no time at all for her to quip back at the mysterious woman atop the machine.
Her attention snaps back in the other direction as she suddenly registers that Callisto is inadvertently coming face to face with the woman who has caused her no end of difficulty in the past. She hesitates, wondering if she should open a network line to the Jegan and transmit herself across - but she's not sure the mech even has the bits and pieces to support that, so she settles for a communication line. "Callie, are you alright? I've got your back. Try not to let it get to you."
Which is also to say: 'I'm watching what happens so we can work out how to prevent it'.
Ryoko's push forwards brings her back to the scene in front of her. Minae notes the quality of the nanomachine operation - but she's certainly not about to think ill of it, or ask awkward questions in the middle of. Rather, she quietly makes a note, and a bit of her mind thinks again of when she met Athrusa. "Omoikane's a friend. We've had some good chats," she chips in, shortly before a fist out of nowhere nearly sends the Aestivalis sprawling.
At Ryoko's request, she turns her attention back to the mist around them. "Where did you even find a kindred spirit, anyway?" she puffs out to Xiahe as she works to further expand the tactical display. She can't pinpoint the odd portals exactly - can't even figure out why she can't at first - but some mote of intuition makes her stop trying to look for them with sensors and cameras and try to feel them out instead. She doesn't know exactly what she's doing, but it's an impulse she's learned to trust, and the maps get some fuzzy indistinct blocks of red marked with question marks.
"I mean-- can a super hero really be picky? No-one ever goes into time constraints in the comics," she adds back, still a little frazzled as she tries to keep up with the way Ryoko fires forth on a half-dozen different topics and decides to sideswipe at least two of the allied units on scene in the bargain. Part of her wonders if she might have been safer back on top of Xiahe's kaiju like last time. If it's going to be a disciplinary hearing either way, she could at least be on the bigger robot...!
KTS: BC-001 Minae targets Ryoko Subaru with Sparkle! KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Rouse Spirit Command targeting Puru Two KTS: BC-001 Minae sparkles, reducing Ryoko Subaru's incoming damage! <Pose Tracker> Gemini Sunrise has posed.
Gemini jams the blade of her sword into the clamp and manages to push it off to the side, giving it a bit of a spin as it pulls away. It was gonna take a lot more than that to defeat a true samurai! Meanwhile, the situation had gotten a lot more hectic! Did they really even need her here with Ultraman on call?! And the Brave Police?! No matter!
"Don't think you can grab me that easy! Wherever evil lurks, a true hero will rise up to stop it!" She twirls her sword once again and brings it down on the claw in front of her! "You'll never succeed as long as I'm your opponent!" A second slash!
KTS: Gemini Sunrise targets Julia Ampere with Mifune-Ryu Slash! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Gemini Sunrise's Mifune-Ryu Slash, taking 1230 damage! KTS: Gemini Sunrise has engaged Julia Ampere! <Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
The appearance of Ultraman Zero is enough to make Xiahe raise her eyebrows, and there's a 'tsk' as she grins to say, "A Giant of Light! Ah, I wish I could be the one to menace them!" A pause at Julia, and she grins to respond regarding the paint, "That's what friends are for, hmm? Let's make sure we abscond with at least the purple paint."
Then, to Yuliana:
"Oh sweetie, don't misunderstand. I love your law and order speeches too," Xiahe coos, even while the Tiandong shoots its grappler axe out and latches onto the Si Bu Xiang's side-armour, catching on just in time! "I've heard 'you'll answer for my crimes', though. Got a few new exciting lines for me? Shake it up, Minovsky's Woman!"
She's politely trying to not make it sound like she's on a first name basis.
"Honey, you care about the cops as much as I do," Xiahe sighs at Ryoko, taking the chance for a mid-battle whiff of smoke. What does she smoke, anyway? Must be real classy stuff in there. (Or she just bought a pack from the konbini... the French konbini... and unrolled it. Her lungs don't exactly work anymore, what does she care about cancer?)
The Aestivalis responds through the mist with its Rapid Rifle, and the Si Bu Xiang has to readjust; it doesn't have a stance capable of evading the burst of bullets, so it utilises the brunt of its shoulder armour in a kneel to withstand the attack.
"If you want to just sort of phone it in, sand the cogs of the corporate machine, I'm certainly not gonna tell, hmm? I'll even go easy on you."
It's true, Puru. The last time Xiahe saw anyone even entering the Nascent Soul stage was... goodness, it's just too far back. She has to bide her time with Dinosaurs just to feel alive.
"Heeey, is that the Gundam girl from before?" Xiahe calls out to Callisto. "What happened to the Gundam? Jegans just aren't the same! 'Jegan, ikimasu!' You'll be laughed right out of the catapult!"
Her teasing gets her a whole faceful of missiles, though, the shield firing as the Jegan moves towards cover and safety; certainly, the fist gets dinged up the moment it comes into contact, so it looks like Callisto's plan is a success!
Xiahe just rolls her eyes to say, "Minae, are you trying to say Super Robots all look alike? That's discrimination, you know. You should know better than to profile based on looks, especially as a counselor -- and a Super AI counselor, at that."
She continues lecturing: "Well, Minae, if you're accustomed to the origins of the superhero as a symbol of power placed in the working class, of queer minorities oppressed by a world that doesn't understand and fears them..."
*spongebob voice* SOME TIME LATER
"... but eventually, as the medium became popular, character rights simply all got sucked up into one centre mass up top and became a corporate tool. I mean, how many superhero movies nowadays are just ads for the Federation military blocs? Remember 'Do You Remember Love'???"
She just whole-ass went on a rant about superhero movies in the middle of battle!
"Yiyi, it's time to bare your claws."
This time, Xiahe actually goes for more direct violence: maybe it's the presence of that divine, accursed machine that influences her, or maybe she's just feeling a bit more rowdy tonight. Who knows?
Nevertheless, the Si Bu Xiang drops to a surprisingly limber crouch, one that propels it from the ground like a springboard into an astonishing burst of speed -- for a moment, only its fluttering silver locks of hair can be seen -- as it descends on the Tiandong, which it's engaged with--
No, wait, it's also next to the Jegan -- and the Aestivalis -- and the Long Dagger!
Yeah, there's four copies of the Si Bu Xiang (the Four Not Alike, who knew?) simultaneously carving away with a nasty set of blood-red claws from which a monstrous depiction of the chimaeric winged tiger Qiongqi, one of the Sixiong (the Four Perils), can be seen.
The split-image trick doesn't last long, though; the clones are swiftly revealed to be brief extensions of her power, and dissipate before long, and the Si Bu Xiang can be found reforming next to a parking lot not terribly far away, the Tiandong's axe still latched despite the spatial theatrics.
(For Yuliana and others that might be familiar with Xiahe's hero stint years ago, this used to be the Benevolent Baihu Claw, but Xiahe is nothing if not a strict adherent in theming, so she ditched the Hero theming with the Four Auspicious Beasts and went for something more Eeeeeeevil in theme. It doesn't actually change anything, though. So vain.)
KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Liam 7-020 with Shredding Qiongqi Claw! KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Yuliana Dispersal with Shredding Qiongqi Claw! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Ryoko Subaru with Shredding Qiongqi Claw! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Puru Two with Shredding Qiongqi Claw! KTS: Puru Two has activated the Focus Spirit Command. KTS: Puru Two blocks Lin Xiahe's Shredding Qiongqi Claw, taking 6720 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe completes the Formation attack! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Alert Spirit Command. KTS: Ryoko Subaru fails to Charge. KTS: Ryoko Subaru partially guards Lin Xiahe's Shredding Qiongqi Claw, taking 6720 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe completes the Formation attack! Lin Xiahe has cancelled her attack on Liam_7-020
<Pose Tracker> Excellen Browning has posed.
'THE COP IN THE WANZER LITERALLY JUST MADE THAT JOKE!'
That does make Excellen pull up for just a bit - both physically and mentally! Did she just tell the same joke someone else just did? Oh it's possible. After all she was too busy enjoying the thought of making Bullet go shopping with her again. He turns so many fascinating shades of red - kinda like the Alty! - when he's on their excursions together. Still, even if it is true, it does kind of hurt her feelings to have someone yell at her like that...
... which is why it's kind of nice when Yuliana comes to her defense. Not that she's super familiar with Minovsky's woman personally, nor would she actually consider her a role model, BUT she does appreciate how smoothly she responds and especially the audible wink through the audio feed. <Well, they say that great minds think alike. Maybe that's true for the rest of us too?> She responds with her own audible wink right back at Ryoko.
Maybe it's some sort of chaos witch magic trick.
<Just don't tell Kyosuke about this or I'll never hear the end of it!> She adds, pleading - though whether that statement is meant for Yuliana, for Ryoko, or even for Julia it's hard to say. <Anyway where was I... uh... WHOOPS!!>
Noticing nearly too late that the Electrocrawlers are all staring at her with righteous anger and murderous intent in their photoreceptors, the Weissritter manages to narrowly dodge the barrage fired from their proboscis...es? Probosci? Regardless the white and blue liveried White Knight manages an impressive showing of sailing around and through the shots, managing to avoid getting hit!
... though it does mean she's closer to the ground now.
<Wow~! Hey, don't tell me you programmed those things with the concept of REVENGE. That sounds like a pretty risky thing to teach your cute lil robo-minions how to feel! Anyway... time for a Gespenst Classic! Lickety Split Missile~!>
From its shoulders, two large pods deploy from the Weissritter and begin thrusting towards the Dynamo Queen. The pods then burst, or split, apart to reveal a barrage of individual missiles that fire off in a spread pattern directly towards their target!
KTS: Excellen Browning targets Julia Ampere with Split Missile! KTS: Julia Ampere has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Julia Ampere successfully intercepts Excellen Browning's Split Missile
<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.
Xiahe recognizes him. A tiny spark of pride ignites in Liam's heart, but otherwise he feels like he's in the middle of a minefield. Xiahe's robot is different this time, but still inexplicable--magical, even. His frame of reference for that sort of thing is one data point: her. Yuliana's noticed him, though, and Liam's brain starts ping-ponging between the fear of being discovered and hurt and the fear of retaliation from a superior.
"Acknowledged," Liam says, his voice firmly in that intense-yet-deadened tone. "All systems green." He's even opening fire, like he's supposed to.
The mist rises, enveloping Liam's Mobile Suit. The Long Dagger strides forward, rifle still raised, expecting a sorcerous smokescreen. He's also expecting more of those paper seals, since those seemed to be vectors for Xiahe's power.
That's not what he gets.
CRUNCH
The Si Bu Xiang's hand comes out of nowhere and slams into the Long Dagger's side. The smaller machine rocks back; Liam catches himself before Xiahe can topple him, and the Long Dagger's feet skid, grinding across the concrete. "Gh," Liam chokes out, a rare nonverbal vocalization. The Fortestra crumples inward, bending into the Mobile Suit's waist joint. As he twists away, Zero speaks into his mind. Liam can't message back, but the Ultraman's presence does provide some degree of stability. He's going to need it.
The Long Dagger finally emerges from the fog, shield at the ready. Its jets ignite; it rockets forward, leaving a trail on the tarmac as it tries to rush down Xiahe's machine. It holds the shield like the blunt end of a battering ram, and is headed right for the Si Bu Xiang's right calf.
KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Lin Xiahe with Shield Bash! KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Liam 7-020's Shield Bash, taking 1920 damage! KTS: Liam 7-020 has engaged Lin Xiahe! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Liam 7-020 with Shredding Qiongqi Claw! <Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
ADDENDUM:
The Long Dagger emerges from the fog, rushing down the Si Bu Xiang as it's in the midst of recovering! The manoeuvre pays off, and the mobile suit rams into the slightly larger machine and sends it off balance;
Liam doesn't respond, but Xiahe sure hopes that he got the message anyway. But that other girl that seemed to have an affinity with him isn't here...? Time to pry a reaction out of him, then:
"What happened to the sweetie with the moon-themed archer robot? You two didn't break up, did you? I'd hate to see that happen."
... as if to punctuate that, the claws come out, since it's moving from a kneeling position anyway -- this machine seems to have an amazing centre of balance and a very well-tuned sense of gravity.
KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Focus Spirit Command. KTS: Liam 7-020 blocks Lin Xiahe's Shredding Qiongqi Claw, taking 4200 damage! KTS: Lin Xiahe completes the Formation attack! <Pose Tracker> BP-119 Duke has posed.
As the Dynamo Queen rushes forwards, Duke Fire plants his feet, one arm reaching behind his back. "FIRE SWORD!" The weapon springs from its back mount into his hand, the great broadsword being swung around to expertly block and deflect the spinning punch as the machine closes to combat range! "Combat profile data analysed and integrated. This fight will not be the same. Recommendation: Cease your villainy. Even if you escape, this will catch up to you. FIRE BUSTER!"
His left arm swings down as the Fire Sword is rested over his shoulders and his combat-scale sidearm is popped into the hand. He plugs it into the fire engine tank at his hip and draws it out with a long hose attached to the grip. "Pressure Blast!" He fires - a wide blast of charged water at intense pressure, designed to force back an assailant! Doubtless Julia's electricity-based machine will also be severely hindered by being so thoroughly soaked.
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Julia Ampere's Spirit Endurance activates, and the spirit endures. KTS: BP-119 Duke has activated the Daunt Spirit Command targeting Julia Ampere KTS: BP-119 Duke targets Julia Ampere with Fire Buster - Pressure Blast! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks BP-119 Duke's Fire Buster - Pressure Blast, taking 1020 damage! KTS: BP-119 Duke repulses Julia Ampere, forcing her to disengage. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal fails to evade Lin Xiahe's Shredding Qiongqi Claw, taking 6720 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Lin Xiahe completes the Formation attack! <Pose Tracker> Leito Igaguri has posed.
The claws launch at Ultraman Zero. Both Ultra and host are confident, Ultra much moreso, but even so, with a block of the arms, they're grazed by claws, creating toku sparks and causing Ultraman Zero to shift footing in pain. Kicking won't do well. The crab is armored well. He needs a weapon. Or maybe two.
Ultraman Zero does not respond to Julia, but he DOES rip his two horn-like appendages off his head, turning them into sluggers. They are brought to bear in a martial arts pose, before being striked left and right at the Dynamo Queen!
Meanwhile, internally, a conversation occurs. "Is that...a-a rescue vehicle robot?" "Like you haven't seen weirder, Leito." "Y-yeah but before everyone was humanoid or a monster! Giant robot wars are odd, Zero..."
KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Leito Igaguri targets Julia Ampere with Zero Slugger Attack! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Leito Igaguri's Zero Slugger Attack, taking 2240 damage! KTS: Leito Igaguri has engaged Julia Ampere! KTS: Leito Igaguri begins a Formation attack! <Pose Tracker> Yuliana Dispersal has posed.
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA:
At their desk, a file on a dissident of interest pulled up on their monitor, Officer Cadet Cascade Wattana's nose scrunches up. They grab a tissue, and -- ACHOO!
"Bless you," Lieutenant Wen Yuan says, from her desk, where she's reading a paper file to get some history on another subject. "Should I get you some ginger tea, Cascade?"
"No, no," Cascade shakes their head, frowning up to the ceiling. There's a light there that insists on flickering, no matter how many times they replace it; Sri Lanka might be doing better than India, infrastructure-wise, but the buildings are far from perfect. "It's not like I'm sick or anything. Probably just dust... whatever."
"Oh," Wen smiles, sympathetically. "Well, maybe someone was talking about you..?"
"It doesn't really matter," Cascade shrugs, as they get back to their work. "If we don't get these forms filed, we're not going to get the allocations we need, and then the Captain's going to be pissed."
Wen delicately doesn't point out who Yuliana would be mad at, as she gets back to work just the same.
ANYWAY, BACK TO FRANCE:
"My squad is none of your business, Nergal dog," Yuliana shoots back, as Ryoko accuses her squad of disrespect. "I'll ask you not to be so unkind and uncharitable to my hardworking soldiers, thank you very much." Not that she considers Cascade much of a hard worker, but the others are certainly worth defending.
"Your secret's safe with me~" Yuliana adds, with more cheer, to Excellen. Whether anything is safe with Yuliana Dispersal is an open question, but she certainly sounds like she's amenable enough to keeping it.
To Julia, she adds: "An agenda of CRIME, no doubt! I leave you to the capable hands of the Brave Police! Good luck escaping that retribution!!" The fact that she is actually wishing Julia luck may well be lost amidst all her declarations about her horrible crimes. This is, of course, entirely on purpose.
She asides, to Callisto, with surprise: "Following you? I was on-site first, Lieutenant. Aren't you following me?" She sounds so innocent.
"Good," she confirms, to Liam. "Take care, Long Dagger." Is she... worried about him? She sounds like she's worried about him.
Up she goes, though, to grapple onto the side of the Si Bu Xiang. "Well, I can hardly demand you answer for my crimes, can I? I'm a soldier of the Federation! I respond to crime!" Sure, that's one way to look at it.
SOME TIME LATER,
The Tiandong 3 drums its fingers against the side of Si Bu Xiang. "Are you... quite done?" She yawns, and demands, having listened to that entire rant. Unfortunately, when the claws lash downwards, they catch her still unawares--!!
And the wanzer goes saaaailing off of its perch to crash in a vat of red paint. "THANKS!" Yuliana yells, over her radio. "I HATE IT!"
Now red and green -- festive! -- the Tiandong 3 launches out, again, to lash that chained axe out towards her again. This time, she's looking to use the Super Robot's thirty metres against itself, to strike where it can't easily reach. "What happened to the Benevolent Baihu Claw, huh?! That thing saved m--" a brief pause as she stops herself from saying 'my', "multitudes of citizens back in the day! Now look at it!!"
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Ryoko Subaru's Spirit Endurance activates, and the spirit endures. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has activated the Daunt Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru KTS: Yuliana Dispersal targets Lin Xiahe with MULS-P Grappler Axe Entangle! KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Wall Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe fails to retreat. KTS: Lin Xiahe successfully avoids Yuliana Dispersal's MULS-P Grappler Axe Entangle <Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.
It's interesting to hear Minae and Omoikane are such good friends, but... some part of her wonders.
"<Yeah I bet they get enough of that from you already.>" She fires back to Yuliana in short order, seemingly nearly (but not quite) unfazed by her comment (the Nergal Dog comment stings a bit). "<Wouldn't want to add more onto their shoulders.>"
It's true that she seems like a chaotic force on the battlefield, yelling at allies as easily as enemies, Minae may indeed be safer elsewhere. Callisto though, Minae calls her out, and she actually looks over at the Jegan, "<If you need me to pass you over to her Minae, just let me know. I won't leave your friend out in the cold.>"
... While there's a few things she can't... face about Callisto, she does want her to stay safe. She at least tries to look out for their own out here...
Excellen winks audibly, and Ryoko's reaction on the visuals of the radio are a big ??? ??? as if trying to figure out how she's being made fun of, despite it sounding like self-deprecation, "<Who the hell's Kyosuke? Your boyfriend? Lin though points it out, and indeed... it's true. She doesn't really care about enforcing the law in some Earthside Paint Factory.
However, she doesn't actually have a choice in the matter. The offer to phone it in is tempting, but she remembers that Erina Kinjo Won is on the other end of the line - and might just be watching - listening. Her response here matters.
"<As if I'd ever need you to go easy on me!>"
Which is a bluff because OH GOD Yiyi bares its claws, and the Aestivalis tries to charge forth into its range. However, she misses the moment of the split, and has to whirl around, right as the blood red claw slashes right into it. This time she doesn't get the Distortion Field up in time.
... Maybe she did need her to go easy on her. The Aestivalis crashes into a Warehouse pillar, alarms blaring as the two are rattled in the cockpit, and comes to settle on its back.
"Shit. Minae I'm going to back us off slowly. Give us some breathing room."
And to do just that, she raises the Aestivalis' arm, which reaches backwards, and fires off the Wired Fist at a metal strut in the distance. As it retracts, the Aestivalis is sent speeding across the warehouse floor before righting itself. The fist lets go at that moment, and the Aestivalis hits the ground again, preserving the backwards momentum as she lays down a field of suppressing fire with the rifle. "Do you want me to let you out? Like I said, you're our guest."
KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Lin Xiahe with Rapid Covering Fire! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe successfully avoids Ryoko Subaru's Rapid Covering Fire
<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.
'What happened to the sweetie with the moon-themed archer robot?'
Dread sinks its fingers into Liam's guts, and starts to twist.
'You two didn't break up, did you? I'd hate to see that happen.'
Lucine. He told her, he told her he was terrified of her getting hurt because of him and it's happened anyway, BioNet knows who she is, knows she's his weakness. While these two seem positively saintly by BioNet standards, Liam's brain is too busy juggling teenage emotions, multiple layers of trauma, and deep-seated combat reflexes, and succeeding at none of them. It's all he can do to raise his shield; the claw slams head-on into it, slicing the face to ribbons. Bits of metal fall to the ground as the impact travels up the Long Dagger's arm.
"You lack clearance," is Liam's eloquent reply. "None of your concern." And because he has to--has to--address Captain Dispersal as well, he continues in that dead, numb voice. "Understood. Engaging." Shotr, clipped little phrases. No breath wasted.
The 115mm cannon on the Long Dagger's right shoulder unlimbers with a whirr of activating servos. Liam brings the bulky machine to a rest behind a waist-high chemical tank, and braces. He lines up the reticles, his finger twitching as he prepared to fire--
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM
A volley of anti-MS shells fly downrange, targeted (mostly) at center mass.
KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Lin Xiahe with 115mm Cannon Barrage! KTS: Lin Xiahe successfully avoids Liam 7-020's 115mm Cannon Barrage
<Pose Tracker> Julia Ampere has posed.
Julia listens as the pilot(as far as she knows) accompanying the pilot of the Aestivalis seems... quite taken aback by her presence. Her fluster is amusing to her - and, it seems she's familiar with Xiahe.
"Ah, is this a friend of yours? She seems like a delight." Julia comments brightly to Xiahe.
She chuckles, then. A Giant of Light, hm?
"Ah, alas... if I had known, I would have diverted him to you. Still, I'm certain you'll get your chance before long." Julia replies, shaking her head, before smiling. "You have my gratitude. And yes, absolutely."
Yuliana, meanwhile, decides to leave her to the capable hands of the Brave Police!
"Ah, you have such confidence in your fellows... I do so appreciate such companionship - but perhaps you will come to regret this!" Julia replies, playing it up. The wish of good luck, of course, is quietly appreciated.
Gemini quite cleverly uses her sword to limit the claw's ability to clamp and frees herself. Julia nods appreciatively... and her appreciation only grows after her next words.
"Ah, wonderful, wonderful! Then come, hero!" Julia replies. Gemini performs a double slash, the nearest claw moving to intercept the attack. The blade bites into the metal, leaving a cut across the front. Her style is certainly artful, Julia has to give her that... But it is a fight, and it wouldn't do to not show her proper appreciation.
For a moment, the air begins to hum. It isn't long before electricity begins to surge across the claw, which is then swiped quickly toward the Rodeo Star!
"Of course." Julia assures Excellen, as she says not to tell 'Kyosuke' about this. She doesn't know who Kyosuke is, but that isn't the part. She understands that sometimes, these things happen, and it's the polite thing to do.
"Aren't they just darling? It is quite alright - they only react to threats on their fellows. I'm certain they don't harbor any personal feelings toward you - or do they...~?" Julia replies. The Weissritter's shoulders open up, deploying a pair of large pods... which split into a barrage of missiles! Reflexively, the cannons on the Dynamo Queen's exterior begin to point, tracking the missiles. Bolts of lightning fire out from the cannons, zapping the missiles and detonating them before they can reach their target!
With that, Julia points the electrified claw at the Weissritter. Even more electricity begins to build before an orb of electricity goes flying her way!
Duke, meanwhile, brandishes his sword to deflect her attack, before unleashing a spray of pressurized water at the Dynamo Queen! Both claws are brought up to intercept the blast, the force of which pushes the robot back. The Dynamo Queen is well-insulated, so it doesn't quite have the intended effect... but it does temporarily disable the electricity surging through the claw.
"Will it now...? This pleases me to hear!" Julia replies with a grin. "I'm afraid I won't be stopping here. I have much more villainy to accomplish!"
She rushes toward Duke, and the top of her robot begins to spin, arms outstretched. The spinning motion helps dry out the still-soaked arms... and proves quite difficult to avoid!
Ultraman Zero moves in, then, horn-like appendages lashing out! Julia whistles appreciatively at his resourcefulness, even as she's force to quickly defend against the attack.
"A quiet one, hm? Well, I suppose I can appreciate that." Julia comments. With the claws dried, they electrify again. The Dynamo Queen charges down Ultraman Zero and points both claws forward. A powerful electrical charge builds in between them... and if he isn't careful, he'll find himself caught right in between them!
KTS: Julia Ampere targets Gemini Sunrise with Electrified Claw! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Excellen Browning with Electric Blaster! KTS: Julia Ampere targets BP-119 Duke with Spinning Claws! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Leito Igaguri with Hyper Shock! KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Alert Spirit Command. KTS: Julia Ampere rattles Excellen Browning, making her next maneuvers more difficult. KTS: Excellen Browning fails to evade Julia Ampere's Electric Blaster, taking 6240 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Julia Ampere's Immaculate Scheme activates, causing Designate L1! KTS: Leito Igaguri rushes into the attack! KTS: Leito Igaguri's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere rattles Leito Igaguri, making his next maneuvers more difficult. KTS: Leito Igaguri partially guards Julia Ampere's Hyper Shock, taking 4929 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged Leito Igaguri! KTS: BP-119 Duke parries Julia Ampere's Spinning Claws, taking 870 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Julia Ampere's Immaculate Scheme activates, causing Designate L1! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged BP-119 Duke! KTS: Gemini Sunrise fails to retreat. KTS: Gemini Sunrise fails to react to Julia Ampere's Electrified Claw, taking 6840 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Julia Ampere's Immaculate Scheme activates, causing Designate L1! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged Gemini Sunrise!
<Pose Tracker> BP-119 Duke has posed.
Again the great blade deftly twists and again a mighty blow is deflected away from important housed machinery and Duke's AI core. The Brave Police robot twirls the blade, definitely more comfortable with this battle now. "What even is all of this for anyway?" It doesn't advance the objective in any way, but perhaps it will buy his comrades on the field some time. Duke levels his blade... and waits.
KTS: BP-119 Duke targets Julia Ampere with Goad! KTS: BP-119 Duke goads Julia Ampere, reducing her Intuition drastically. <Pose Tracker> Gemini Sunrise has posed.
Gemini attempts to jump back from the claw, but gets the full brunt of the attack, her muscles seizing up as the current runs through the STAR. Her breath is heavy, that attack was quite a lot. The Rodeo Star hobbles slightly, looking in not the best shape. "This darn thing just ain't gonna go down without a fight! Might as well pull out the big guns while I can."
The Rodeo Star holds its sword to the side and raises its left fist.
"All my feelings...are gathering in my blade!"
The Rodeo Star leaps upward with a spin, holding the Gunbarrel Sword high.
"My soul is on the edge!"
"Rumbling..."
The sword is brought down!
"...WHEEL!"
With the downward motion of the blade, a large amount of Spirit energy forms in front of Gemini, being shot forward in a fireball at the Dynamo Queen!
KTS: Gemini Sunrise targets Julia Ampere with Rumbling Wheel! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards Gemini Sunrise's Rumbling Wheel, taking 5576 damage! KTS: Gemini Sunrise completes the Formation attack!
<Pose Tracker> Leito Igaguri has posed.
Ultraman Zero tries to rush the claws, be faster than them, and puts up a barrier to help. It's too cocky. The electricity surges through and shatters the barrier, before shocking him directly, shielded only by his mantle, even as he gets closer. He needs to go harder.
He can't use his own force - an electric robot is likely insulated. So the only option...
"She's twenty thousand years too early to beat us that easily...!"
Ultraman Zero retreats, briefly, and then rushes back in, combining the two sluggers into a double sided twin sword.
"I am Ultraman Zero!" echoes out in a sttrange warble through everyone's radio speakers (if they have them), some sort of magic alien hackery to transmit signals. He can't access encrypted ones, luckily for them, but he *can* access the open wave.
The Zero Twin Sword slashes into the side of the Dynamo Queen, before going downwards to slash into those legs again!
<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.
Xiahe's goading of Ryoko doesn't go unnoticed by the robot in the cockpit, who sighs lightly and puts a hand to her forehead. "She's-- telling the truth about that, honestly," Minae points out. "I think if you left her alone she'd probably just leave you alone in turn. She's probably just here to have fun and try painting something, and just wants to look like a villain so she gets the fun of a fight as well--"
She cuts herself off, and slowly turns to regard Ryoko with something like foreboding. Something tells her it might have been a serious misstep to mention 'the fun of a fight' in front of the hotblooded pilot, and she instinctively and quite literally hangs onto the edge of her seat a little tighter. Just in case.
Her attention is stolen back towards the radio. "I'm not profiling based on looks!" she fires back with a comically glum expression. "I'm just trying to understand how you both attack a paint factory and end up comparing notes and colour tones with each other. It's like you found a sister!" She pauses as she says that, and blinks as she realizes the underlying thought there: "Though-- uh, well, I'm happy to hear you did, I suppose," she adds with mild bemusement. She hadn't quite registered her own worry about Xiahe's aloofness.
She's about to say something more when Xiahe cuts her off again - and her mouth opens, and then hangs open, as the lecture goes on and on. And on, and on, as time stretches out ahead of her and the camera pulls back with a focus shift to leave her corncobbing away into nothingness. By the time it subsides even the robot, an expert listener, is feeling dizzy-eyed and struggling to catch up - and not least because Xiahe knows her too well and presented an interesting argument. She can't research when she's also trying to provide logistics and tactical data! It's not fair!!
Part of that split attention is watching Duke fight. She has a fairly clear idea of what to expect from him, and something tells her he's going to be fairly inflexible - but there's still a surge of pride at watching another Super AI getting to work in the world. She can only hope that ideosyncracies don't get to him too much until he's had a chance to adjust.
Her expression turns flatter when Yuliana needles Callisto again. It's-- Minae is not entirely sure what she was expecting. She's heard of the dangerous power the REA operative can wield. She's seen Yuliana pull rank and present fierce leadership to her troops. She wasn't expecting a back and forth that sounds like it could come from the playground. It's making it difficult to really ascertain how the woman thinks, and... maybe that's the point, she considers.
She yelps. The impact of the hit can't really hurt her given how sturdy her body is, but it does come as a surprise given how much she's been letting Ryoko handle piloting without focus. "--it's okay!" she promises Ryoko as she shakes her head, trying to file away at least some of her thoughts for later examination. "I don't need to be there to help her. Accessing systems-- Callie, I'm going to push your output a little more, get ready--"
Ryoko's monitor automatically plots a path of retreat through the mist - though it's studded with question marks and strangely looping. Maybe Minae is working out a little more how Xiahe tends to fight; her suggested movement patterns are getting a lot less predictable in return.
KTS: BC-001 Minae targets Puru Two with Heart! KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Puru Two KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Rouse Spirit Command targeting Puru Two KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Leito Igaguri targets Julia Ampere with Zero Twin Sword! <Pose Tracker> Excellen Browning has posed.
'You lack clearance. None of your concern. Understood. Engaging.'
The short, clipped responses from the pilot of the Long Dagger as well as the needling going on by Xianhe causes Excellen's ponytail to feel all twitchy. Is that just some sort of AI pilot? A robot? A robot with a girlfriend?! I mean good for him really. And her! Imagine all the optional bits you could have insta...
... ahem there's no time really to get distracted with that line of thought. There's always time AFTER the battle to explore that concept more deeply. Meanwhile, Excellen is busy dealing from the fallout from her heroic snark faux pas from earlier. Thankfully when it comes to Yuliana, she seems to be willing to keep her secret safe. Phew! The last thing she needs is Kyosuke to have a reason to be even more grumpy. At the rate he's going his face is likely to stick in a perpetual stoic expression, if it hasn't already!
'Who the hell's Kyosuke? Your boyfriend?' And once again Excellen is actually caught flat footed by something Ryoko said!! Really that girl is making a bad habit of that. Worse it actually causes her to blush! Luckily you can't see blushes through the radio, unlike winks, though there is a bit of indignation in her voice that hints perhaps there is something more than she is letting on. <Kyosuke? My boyfriend? I mean he IS handsome, tall, dark and a bit moody... but he's a complete stick in the mud! Really, I got him a ticket to the Sheryl Nome concert, you know, the last one in her tour? Nothing, not even a thank you for the thought!! If he WAS my boyfriend, and not just my commanding officer, I'd... oh crap...>
She nearly missed Julia agreeing not to tell Kyosuke about her forgetting to listen to open comms. She DEFINITELY missed the orb of energy being shot from the Dynamo Queen's claw directly at her!!!
She tries to evade, but didn't have enough time to make good on it. Instead the orb hits her unit in the side causing the electricity to arc through her machine and its components. Every display goes haywire as the Weissritter comes crashing down to the ground, entering an uncontrolled roll, and finally coming to a stop in a smoking heap!
Within the machine Excellen groans slightly, rubbing a place on her head which will likely become a nasty bump in the future. As her monitors recover she reaches down to the control sticks, and helps the Weissy pull itself back up to a standing posture. The point of impact is still red hot, the electricity superheating the metal even as it conducted its way through the unit's systems. Meanwhile the vanes on the back of her machine are in some places bent or even broken. Until the AMBAC system compensates she'll likely have a harder time maneuvering. And then there's the fact the world won't stop spinning!!
<Ugh... now I'm really never gonna hear about it.> Excellen mutters to herself. After all she's going to have to explain how she let herself get hit like that. <Guess no one appreciates the classics. How about a unique Weissy custom option?! Triple-Link Beam Shot!>
No it's not necessary to shout out the attack names, but it is fun! Gemini Sunrise gets it! Regardless the off-white White Knight rises up into the air with help from its maneuvering thrusters and Tesla Drive. Once reaching a height enabling it to shoot over the nearby buildings it raises left arm! The 'plasma stakes' of the Gespenst units is replaced with three barrels, which glow before simultaneously unleashing a beam aimed at reprisal towards Julia!
KTS: Excellen Browning targets Julia Ampere with Triple-Linked Beam Shot! KTS: BC-001 Minae bares her heart, letting Puru Two deal some extra damage! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere blocks Leito Igaguri's Zero Twin Sword, taking 5060 damage! KTS: Leito Igaguri has engaged Julia Ampere! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards Excellen Browning's Triple-Linked Beam Shot, taking 2514 damage! KTS: Excellen Browning begins a Formation attack!
<Pose Tracker> Puru Two has posed.
To 1 (One) Yuliana Dispersal, Callisto Diana can spare only the emotional equivalent of pocket lint and a 50 yen coin. Not out of some dismissive, holier-than-thou complex, mind you, but because keeping her untuned and half-armed Jegan upright and in the fight is arguably harder than surviving the series finale of her own source material.
"Yeah, someone should keep an eye on you. Maybe if I don't, you'll kick over a news station or something for kicks. I swear, Earthners." she scoffs aloud. It takes like five points of skill (out of a theoetrical one-hundred) to tell that this deflection is just trying to sound aloof, and that she would rather not be *involved* with Yuliana if she can help it. Alas. She can't help it.
Little Jegan is trying their best, but is hopelessly outgunned and outmatched. It's barely lumbered back into position from the last fist-based attack when the Si Bu Xiang seemingly splits into four separate mirror behemoths and darts across the battlefield!
Lt. Junior Grade Diana should be overwhelmed, but Disgusting Cyber Lady Puru Two is not. "What've we got--thirty seconds left in this thing?" she asks herself aloud, expression knitting to a frown. "Tch."
(Somewhere up in space... a Qubeley is taking a nap in a hangar. How nice. How *nice*.)
"Subaru," a radio beam ping-pongs around Ryoko's Aestivalis. Nevermind that even targeting that thing to -talk- with it is tricky, with how agile the union of pilot and airframe are. "This thing's done for, I'll try to distract the enemy and then bail. Don't try any silly rescue moves." well, that's not the same pleasant tone as the girl regularly visiting the Nadesico, but stress impacts us all differently, right?
The Jegan slights to the right as it kicks off of the building it sloughed against, now very dented. One hand strays near its waist, where several important peices of electronics lay. Its pilot closes her eyes, because the sensors are absolutely butt-awful at keeping up with Lin Xiahe's terror weapon. "Where's the Gundam, you ask? Answer's as plain as this, lady: it wasn't in the neighbourhood."
A faint sense tingles in the back of Callie's head. Puru Two's head. Whatever, what's an assumed name other than something I flick between using and not-using as the pose demands? The spatial presence of something out there--is it the Si Bu Xiang? It doesn't feel close as it ought to, even as crimson claws take the Jegan's left arm clean off, it's not here...
... it's still over >there<.
Poor Jegan-kun twists free of the now severed arm, thrusters burning brightly as it rockets towards where Callisto is -pretty- sure the Si Bu Xiang actually is. In her mind, the bladed clones are no more than funnels. Ghost-ass Xanxia funnels. Also, Minae's holographic head pops up in her cockpit. "Hey. Push this thing as hard as it'll go, I'm going to jump out of it after I'm done. Trust me, it needs the help. Also, keep everyone away from the REA lady. Trust me even harder on this."
"Anyway, ma'am--" her attention is back on Lin Xiahe, now. "Don't you know? Here in Londo Bell, we..."
The J-type Beam Saber flares to life as its wielder makes one desperate lunge, on wings of azure flame, hoping to catch Lin Xiahe when she's juuuuust distracted enough to... distract her a little further, I suppose.
"... make do with what we've got!"
KTS: Puru Two has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Puru Two has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Puru Two targets Lin Xiahe with J-Type Beam Saber Decisive Strike! KTS: Lin Xiahe fails to react to Puru Two's J-Type Beam Saber Decisive Strike, taking 5040 damage! KTS: Puru Two has engaged Lin Xiahe!
<Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
"No, I could honestly go on for a lot longer, but you aren't here for my convention talk on the co-opting and detoothing of counterculture by the mainstream," Xiahe puffs up in turn to Yuliana. "'I respond to crime' is a good one, though," she smirks, "I'll allow it."
There's a quiet roll of her eyes as she says, "Dearie, try just a bit of red sometime. I know you love your greens and purples, but a change of pace like dear Julia is trying here won't kill you!"
Says the hypocrite who's never abandoned her white, and pastel blues and reds. Well, unless you count the hi-vis orange.
The Tiandong's axe comes out again, and Xiahe actually internally sweats for a moment because Yuliana is terrifying in melee and she hasn't quite successfully shaken her off yet.
'Yiyi', however, seems to sense trouble ahead of time as it reaches down with its clawed arms and actually laces them after its assault to trap the axe between two of them, mailbreaker-style.
"I'm a villain now, and it just had too much of a noble vibe, it'd send the wrong message! How do you like the new ~diabolical~ themeing? It just screams 'Evil', right??"
Ryoko rebutts and tells her she doesn't need to go easy on her, and Xiahe laughs and says, "Sure, sure. It's not about corporate pride, it's about your own." Still, she doesn't miss how the Aestivalis is starting to struggle -- and how she knows who's onboard that. She's got a plan...
"Mm! Minae is a long-term friend of mine," Xiahe responds to Julia. "Do let me know if we need to signal the retreat, dear. Paint is lovely, but it isn't worth so many scratches on the dear Queen, hmm?"
And just in time, Minae rebuts her, and Xiahe complains, "Minae, are you telling me that me finding a friend is such an unlikely and shocking event that you actually just jumped to the conclusion of 'I cloned myself'?? RUDE!"
The Jegan has more fight in it than she expects; there's a very visible pout as Puru Two just points out that the Gundam's just not in the neighbourhood. "Okay. I mean, a Jegan's not bad, but it's a little bit like a weekday conbini meal... I brought my best out today, show me something a little-- whoa!"
Jegan-kun's out with wings of fire! So cool! Xiahe's definitely got moments of distraction enough that the beam saber goes CRUNCH and tears straight into some of the side-plating and tears it straight off and for a moment--
Puru Two gets a very visible look at the divine core in the centre of the machine, and a psychic resonance drifts straight out, and the image of a sorrowful woman in a white ruqun, with long dark hair, turning back and staring at her amidst withering plum blossoms in autumn.
Then, it's gone. What was that, though? The core feels like it has... a presence in it... no, more than one... it's not unlike some of the resonant machines in the First Neo Zeon War...
The Long Dagger is struggling more than she expected; did her comment sink in deeper than she expected? Oh, how interesting. Xiahe, of course, has no idea about the fear Liam has about BioNet; he's right about one thing, though -- she doesn't even have clearance, given how she's a filthy steenkin' HERO to BioNet. But he's not to know that.
"It's not healthy to bottle it up! Look, you're still young, you're understandably confused and flustered about it, take it from someone who's been through it, attraction is perfectly normal and as long as you two communicate about any anxieties and fears you have, I'm certain it'll work out. Don't succumb to peer pressure or what media tells you a relationship should look like."
Xiahe's relationship is definitely as healthy as what she just said. Mmhmm. It's not like's hanging onto a wedding ring and talking to her robot or... anything...
"... are you in pain, Yiyi?" Xiahe asks for a moment, closing her eyes. A sigh, as she remarks, "Nothing for it, then. I'll help you out a bit."
The cultivator whirls around in place for a moment, pinning two white strips of paper pinched between two fingers. She levels her gaze upon the Jegan and the Aestivalis, and grins--
"Express mail! Please apply your family seal right here on the dotted line!"
--and the seals fly out and become enormous and machine-sized, threatening to tag the Jegan and the Aestivalis both; if it hits, sure enough, it'll start to drain power like before! At least it won't cause the machine to explode or anything.
It's like she cares about the people onboard.
While she's doing this, though, the Si Bu Xiang turns instead to the Long Dagger and the Tiandong 3, and its chest compartment crackles, radars spiking with dangerous energy readings.
It adopts a classic (possibly copyrighted) pose from a certain Castle of Iron, flexing its arms up as it exposes its chest, which swarms with the stylings of the Legendary Faceless Being, wings spreading to either side as it opens into a maw of chaotic colour:
"Chaotic... Hundun BLASTEEEEEEEERRRrrr--!!"
Xiahe coughs a little after shouting her line. "... mm. No, it should be more like, a pause after Hundun... so it puts the oomph into 'Blaster'. That didn't quite read right..."
While she's lamenting her line read, a prismatic ray of cruel, kaleidoscopic Fae-like fancy and revelry threatens to wash over the Long Dagger and Tiandong 3.
(This used to be the Vermillion Zhuque Blaster, and was significantly more fire-themed; she obviously kinda just recycled the wings and painted over them, so cheap...)
KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Puru Two with Divine Mist Seal! KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Ryoko Subaru with Divine Mist Seal! KTS: Lin_Xiahe Changes attack to Liam 7-020 and Yuliana Dispersal with Chaotic Hundun Blaster. KTS: Ryoko Subaru fails to react to Lin Xiahe's Divine Mist Seal, taking 2790 damage! KTS: Lin Xiahe repulses Ryoko Subaru, forcing her to disengage. KTS: Liam 7-020 fails to rush. KTS: Liam 7-020 partially guards Lin Xiahe's Chaotic Hundun Blaster, taking 6120 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal fails to rush. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal's Force Wall L1 activates, negating 1000 base damage. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal partially guards Lin Xiahe's Chaotic Hundun Blaster, taking 4920 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Puru Two partially guards Lin Xiahe's Divine Mist Seal, taking 3255 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Puru Two has been defeated! KTS: Lin Xiahe repulses Puru Two, forcing her to disengage. Excellen Browning has connected.
<Pose Tracker> Julia Ampere has posed.
"What is it for? Why, to brighten up the world, of course!" Julia replies jovially to Duke. "...Well. My world, in any case."
Not that she doesn't have plans for the drums of paint that neither herself nor Xiahe end up needing, but it wouldn't do to ruin the vibes by talking to frankly. She likes what they have going right now.
The Dynamo Queen charges down Duke once more... but, this turns out to be a feint - a group of Electrocrawlers have used it as cover to approach Duke from the flank, opening fire from behind with a volly of electric shots!
Gemini, then, elects to bring out the big guns. It's really quite remarkable, seeing a hero bring out their signature attack... She unleashes a burst of spirit energy toward the Dynamo Queen! Julia doesn't react quite quick enough - it strikes her machine full force, pushing it back!
"My, my... how remarkable. You're no ordinary pilot, aren't you?" Julia remarks. "And such a passionate speech! I can appreciate that. However..."
However, one of Julia's Electrocrawlers charges at the Rodeo Star, looking to drain it of energy!
As this is happening, however, Ultraman Zero begins to rush her down, combining his weapons into a sword.
"Ah... that voice... it must be you, isn't it, my giant friend? Well, Ultraman Zero, it is a pleasure to meet you. And I am Julia Ampere, energy thief extraordinaire! ...But perhaps you know that already." Julia replies. Given how large her machine is, Julia is used to fighting smaller targets... so it is a bit of a fascinating experience, then, to fight something that is bigger. The claws strain a little as they intercept the blade, and one of the legs nearly buckles as the Zero Twin Sword bites into it. It manages to remain intact, however - electricity surges through it, almost magnetizing it to keep it attached.
Once more, one of the claws electrifies - though rather than a swipe, Julia moves in to a deliver a shocking punch right toward Ultraman Zero.
"My apologies. It was quite the remarkable attack. But, ah, a unique move? Please, show it to me!" Julia replies. She watches, fascinated by the impressive moves. Impressive, too, is her weapon - which fires off a beam! The Dynamo Queen takes it square... but it's still going strong. In retaliation, the turrets focus on Weissritter again... but this time, rather than shooting out lightning, they unleash a focused volley of beamfire!
"Ah, a long-time friend, hm? I'm pleased to give you the opportunity to catch up." Julia asides to Xiahe with a nod, and then considers. "Hmm... Soon, perhaps - I'd like to give them all an opportunity to really show me what they have. I feel like I can get just a little more out of them - to truly take their measure..."
This has been rather fun for her, after all... But it's true, it wouldn't do to leave her poor Dynamo Queen in such a damaged state.
KTS: Julia Ampere targets Gemini Sunrise with Electrocrawler Draining Grapple! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Excellen Browning with Beam Turret Focused Fire! KTS: Julia Ampere targets BP-119 Duke with Electrocrawler Flanking Attack! KTS: Julia Ampere targets Leito Igaguri with Electrified Claw! KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Alert Spirit Command. KTS: Excellen Browning fails to evade Julia Ampere's Beam Turret Focused Fire, taking 6120 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Julia Ampere's Immaculate Scheme activates, causing Designate L1! KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Trick Spirit Command. KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Trick Spirit Command. <Pose Tracker> Yuliana Dispersal has posed.
"The Federation stands united, of course," Yuliana responds, to Julia, smoothly, "against dastardly criminals like yourselves." They definitely don't have a bingo card for all these phrases. Don't be ridiculous.
"Why, you--!" Yuliana snaps, to Ryoko, only to cut herself off. "Think what you like, adjunct." Which is certainly one way to dismiss Ryoko as a helper, not even truly part of the Federation, but... at least she's backing off, for now?
It is certainly interesting, just the same, that Xiahe all but confirms Liam is seeing the woman in Dianthus -- unless there's some other archer robot associated with the moon running about, of course. "Enough," she transmits, to Xiahe, even-toned as she cuts in. "Pressing into the boy's personal life is clearly unwanted, and there's nothing in Federation files which suggest you're the type who wants to cause significant mental distress. If you refuse to cease your baseless conjecture immediately, I'll make sure you face additional charges for defamation."
She adds, a shade more sly: "If you must pry into your foes' romantic lives, I'll give you this, instead: I'm engaged now, you know." Minovsky's Woman is famously taciturn about her personal life, so it's strange to hear her volunteering something about herself like that. Could it be that she really is trying to defend Liam from Xiahe's curiosity..? "... but I'll never tell you who I've crowned as my queen!"
(She just did, and conveniently, she also just told Xiahe she doesn't want her to name Elisa in a crowd this large.)
"Your prejudice against Earth-born humans is noted, Lieutenant," Yuliana shoots back, to Callisto, shifting stances once again. "I'll include it in my report." Minae isn't wrong, to think the confusion is the entire point. How many conversational positions has Yuliana cycled through, just in the course of this fight..?
Like this shift: "Oh, it's quite striking -- but no matter how diabolically you present yourself, you're still a minor threat to the Federation. I'm afraid you simply can't compete with..." us, "... the truly wicked threats to our current order." Yuliana pauses, and adds: "Unless you'd like to explain how stealing paint contributes to a vast evil? Clearly and concisely into the radio, if you please."
Oh, she was trying to get her to confess. That makes sense. That's a normal thing for a Captain to do.
Yuliana remarks, acidic: "Aestivalis passenger, the current subject isn't fool enough to try cloning. Unless you know something you'd like to share?" Apparently she has a dim view of the subject.
Anyway, here's Puru Two. Yuliana observes her giving everything she's got in that bucket of bolts, and scowls.
And the Super Robot's response...
The revelry washes over the Tiandong 3, and perhaps it remembers the prior fire theming -- because those same dispersal plates which protect Yuliana from her own attacks light up to help defend the wanzer from this sparkling assault. "I liked that one better like it was," she remarks, when it passes -- and ignores the yellow lights and warning beeps sounding in her cockpit, flicking a half-dozen switches and cranking some levers to overcharge her reactor. She pushes her throttle forward, and her wanzer charges --
"Here, like this! LET ME SHOW YOU!"
Here's a fun fact about Yuliana's flamethrower: she put a bayonet on it. It means that when she pulls it out to bring it to bear, she doesn't attack at a reasonable range -- she pushes herself right into Xiahe's sphere of influence, and thrusts her weapon forward, to pierce her armor and send the fire flooding inward.
And, yes, her armor is designed to protect her from being this close to the heat, too.
KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has activated the Trick Spirit Command. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has activated the Trick Spirit Command. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal targets Lin Xiahe with MULS-P Bayonet Flamer Burnout! KTS: Leito Igaguri's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Leito Igaguri blocks Julia Ampere's Electrified Claw, taking 2600 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere has engaged Leito Igaguri! KTS: BP-119 Duke blocks Julia Ampere's Electrocrawler Flanking Attack, taking 1800 damage! KTS: Julia Ampere begins a Formation attack! KTS: Gemini Sunrise has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: Gemini Sunrise successfully evades Julia Ampere's Electrocrawler Draining Grapple KTS: Lin Xiahe fails to retreat. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal rattles Lin Xiahe, making her next maneuvers more difficult. KTS: Lin Xiahe fails to react to Yuliana Dispersal's MULS-P Bayonet Flamer Burnout, taking 6150 damage! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has engaged Lin Xiahe! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable. <Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.
"<Adjunct huh? Heh. And here I thought you'd call me something cutting.>" Ryoko says to Yuliana before she just sideeyes the representation of Excellen on her monitor, as she gives her speech, before she just replies - frustrated, "<For someone who isn't - you sound real obsessed with him!>"
Ryoko would have taken Lin as bored, but Minae mentioning the fun of the fight?
Suddenly changes her whole view of this. There's just this whole intensification of her posture... like she's suddenly seeing an opportunity in this that she wouldn't have before, like retreating is the last thing on her mind - even if moments ago, she was backing off for her welfare. "Heh. That so?"
Even before Callisto notes that her Jegan's done for. And not to try anything. Even before it surges - forward. "<You tell me not to do any heroics then you CHARGE!?>"
The seals come out, and she tries to weave the Aestivalis to the side, but it attaches... Minae will feel the power drop.
Suddenly the blood is pumping, and her need to support, the need to act as a team is pushing her forward. Certainly Callisto asked her not to do this thing. However...
"<Fine. No silly rescue moves.>" And suddenly the Control globe of her Aestivalis flares to life in time with her nanomachine tattoo, as a gauge just rises... and Minae will notice the distortion field power hitting maximum despite the seal bleeding it off, an effect only possible with the Nadesico in range of the Gravity Wave Antenna. The wheels on the Aesti start to spin in neutral, faster, and faster - and then abruptly it lurches forward, at full speed.
"<It'll be ALL ABOUT THE ASSAULT!>"
The Aestivalis suddenly rushes forward towards YiYi, fist drawn back, until the moment it gets in range. And it drives it forward. The momentum causes the distortion field to form a wedge like shape at the fist. As all that energy of the gravity powered field is driven right at a single point on one of Yiyi's legs.
And if her Aestivalis just happens to be right in position to distract Lin long enough for Callisto to bail?
... Well that's just a convenient side effect.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Lin Xiahe with This Is Not the Gekigan Flare Shut The Hell Up!! KTS: Lin Xiahe fails to react to Ryoko Subaru's This Is Not the Gekigan Flare Shut The Hell Up!, taking 8520 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Ryoko Subaru's In the End All I Do Is... activates, causing Insight L1! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has engaged Lin Xiahe! KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. Liam 7-020 transforms to GAT-01D Long Dagger <Pose Tracker> BP-119 Duke has posed.
Duke's attention appears to be fully on Julia and the Dynamo Queen, sword ready. It almost seems as though he's certain to be suckered by her Electrocrawler flank attack!
But he has another set of eyes watching out for him. "Duke, bombardment from your four o'clock!" Regina calls out into the comm just as the Electrocrawlers open fire!
"FIRE SHIELD!" the Super Robot spins, raising his left arm as vanes pop out from the side to form a very classic kite shield shape, deflecting the majority of the shots with ease as he returns to face the Dynamo Queen again. "Low trickery! Very well, knave! You have forfeited your chance to come quietly; now your machine shall be destroyed!" The great blade in his hands catches fire as he takes a proper two-handed grip. "Fire Sword! BURNING CLEAVE!!!" The thrusters on his wings roar to life and he leaps, carried on those green-blue blazing wings above the Dynamo Queen, before he descends, blazing blade seeking to melt and sunder steel armour like so much warm butter!
KTS: BP-119 Duke has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: BP-119 Duke has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: BP-119 Duke has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: BP-119 Duke has activated the Spirit Spirit Command. KTS: BP-119 Duke targets Julia Ampere with Blazing Cleave! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere's Force Wall L2 activates, negating 2000 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards BP-119 Duke's Blazing Cleave, taking 5940 damage! KTS: BP-119 Duke has engaged Julia Ampere! KTS: BP-119 Duke completes the Formation attack! KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Trick Spirit Command. KTS: Leito Igaguri has activated the Trick Spirit Command. <Pose Tracker> Gemini Sunrise has posed.
Gemini has just enough time to quickly shift the Rodeo Star into flight mode and shoot herself out of the way of the Electrocrawler, hovering a few feet in the air. "Shoot, that was a close one! But as long as my heart beats, I'll never give up! I'll show you the true power of Mifune-Ryu!"
The Rodeo Star accelerates, flying right in front of the Dynamo Queen, and pulls up into the air, flying straight up.
"Haaaaaagh!"
At the apex, Gemini's Spirit engulfs the Star, engulfing it in flame, the front of the unit now appearing to be drawn by a horse made of flame.
"This is my master art!"
The flaming horse whinnies as the Star makes an arcing turn, approaching the Dynamo Queen from above, the flames growing white hot as it comes closer.
"TURNING SWALLOW!"
The chariot of fire slams into the Dynamo Queen, the overload of spirit energy causing an explosion which the Rodeo Star appears out of the back of.
KTS: Gemini Sunrise targets Julia Ampere with Turning Swallow! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards Gemini Sunrise's Turning Swallow, taking 3690 damage!
<Pose Tracker> Leito Igaguri has posed.
Ultraman Zero blocks again, this time able to take less damage from the shocks and attacks, but he's on the ropes. It's time to end this. He sees Duke's finisher, measures if she'll survive it...
And then adds onto it.
Ultraman Zero rushes forward, attempting to grab the smaller machine. He plugs his arms around it, and waits for everyone else's attacks. And then...
He leaps upwards. He turns the machine around mid-air should he get a grip, and then moves to smash it (relatively lightly) into the ground, causing a visible crack should it succeed!
KTS: Leito Igaguri targets Julia Ampere with Zero Driver! KTS: Julia Ampere's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage. KTS: Leito Igaguri anchors Julia Ampere, forcing her into close range. KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards Leito Igaguri's Zero Driver, taking 5640 damage! KTS: Leito Igaguri has engaged Julia Ampere! <Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.
Callisto's response that she intends to self-destruct the Jegan is the least surprising thing about the whole engagement, if Minae is feeling both honest and ever so slightly grumpy enough to properly show she cares. Maybe Xiahe is a good influence after all. "Alright, but-- that advice goes for you too. All of it. Get yourself safe and clear, and if you even think about going after her for some payback I will sit Ah-ri down at your hospital bedside to stare at you until you feel guilty. And then for a good hour more."
Her mouth falls open again as Xiahe needles her again. "That's not at all what I'm saying, I--" she stops herself just in time before she falls for the woman's next diabolical trap, and finally recognizes that if she's going to win this war of words she's going to have to fall back to her personal speciality, and Xiahe's critical weakness: pure, honestly-meant compliments. Oh no!! "I'm just surprised and really glad you've found someone you can be comfortable doing crimes with," she promises, a hand even coming to her chest as she says it.
"Mind the seal!" Minae calls urgently to Ryoko. "It'll drain-- aah, there it goes," she sighs as she positively feels the weight of the Aestivalis in the air increase as its reactor struggles to make up the necessary lift. With the Jegan more or less out of the picture she turns back towards the craft she's actually in, doing her best to reroute and stabilize enough power draw to give Ryoko something to work with. There's a growing foreboding that this might have been the worst thing that Xiahe could have possibly done to someone with Ryoko's mindset. Between her own slip-up and the unintentional goading of sapping her reactor--
"<It'll be ALL ABOUT THE ASSAULT!>"
Minae would never, ever think ill of someone she's copiloting for, and she instinctively follows up Ryoko's declaration by shifting as much output as she can over to the Aestivalis' forwards thrusters and movement systems. Still, part of her can't help but think: boy the Myrmekes is comfy, isn't it? It's nice and relaxed in there, and only a little meaty. Maybe she'll get Ah-ri a slice of cake on the way home to show her appreciation.
KTS: BC-001 Minae targets Ryoko Subaru with Heart! KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru KTS: BC-001 Minae has activated the Attune Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru <Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.
Liam's hands are shaking. His heart is like a hot, tight knot in his chest, his guts are twisting, and his face is burning. The adrenaline rushing through his system--constantly ramping up in response to taking hit after hit--makes everything worse. "Unauthorized," Liam says, and a bit of the terrified, flustered teenager peeks through the combat cyborg. "I reject. I--"
Did... Minovsky's Woman just defend him? Liam goes silent again, focusing instead on repositioning. The Long Dagger leaps over the chemical tank, runs through part of the facility parking lot, and takes cover behind a knee-high fence. It raises its beam rifle again.
Xiahe shoots first. The beam rakes across the field, slagging the fence before ripping into the Long Dagger. The Fortestra superheats instantly, and heat warnings scream in Liam's ears. Red lights glow across the damage readout. He reaches out to push up a panel and tap the pad beneath.
Blinding light washes across the battlefield. Chunks of metal hit the ground. Liam's Long Dagger surges forwards, smoking and wounded, its armor breached in a dozen places. It holds a beam saber in each hand, and rakes them in a spiraling path as he leaps up the Si Bu Xiang's leg. He brings both up to block an attack--which may or may not happen--before driving them down crosswise at the machine's thigh. He can't talk. If he talks he puts her in more danger. (He has to talk. She told him not to keep it in.) Why is he listening to her? (Why does he feel so strange?)
"Don't," Liam chokes out. The Long Dagger jukes to the side, makes a wide slash with the right saber. "She did nothing."
KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Lin Xiahe with ES01 Twin Beam Sabers Combo! KTS: Lin Xiahe blocks Liam 7-020's ES01 Twin Beam Sabers Combo, taking 6480 damage! KTS: Liam 7-020 has engaged Lin Xiahe! <Pose Tracker> Excellen Browning has posed.
The turrets fire again, though this time with beam energy instead of electricity! The off-white Weissritter is still struggling to adjust to the damage done to its vectoring vanes and as such it's not quite as agile as it normally is. Still both machine and pilot make an impressive showing, dodging and weaving... at least until the first beam strikes her across the chest! This knocks the unit off-balance, its thrusters sputtering from the sudden energy surge, and one by one the additional beams strike the unit as it once again comes falling out of the sky!
This time at least she manages to avoid an uncontrolled spin and a disastrous roll. However within the cockpit the red lights are flashing, the sirens are blaring, and both the static on the screens and smell of smoke hints at how bad of a beating the Weissritter has taken. She grits her teeth slightly. She hates the situation she is. And not simply because it means she's going to have to explain this to the Dr. Radom and Kyosuke later...
... it reminds her of another time, long past. Of a shuttle full of fresh Federation cadets being taken together to a base for training. She doesn't remember much about what happened - because she DOESN'T want to remember what happened. But much like now there were sirens, there was smoke, but there was also a silhouette...
... shaking her head vigorously, Excellen tsks, <Well! I have to really give it to you! You really know how to give the Weissy a run for her money. If you and I were playing strip poker like when I was fighting against that Meltrandi, I imagine I'd have to show you the grand prize by now!>
Another audible wink.
<But don't fret any, as a consolation I'll show you something unique just like you asked for. How about this... LICKETY SPLIT MISSILE~!>
Once again a pair of rocket pods are launched from the Weissritter and make their way towards the Dynamo Queen before unleashing their payload. But is that really it? She has done that one before...
...<Followed up with a Triple Beam Shot!!> The Weissritter, sparking and smoking through cracks in its armor though it is, bursts up from the ground to unleash a barrage of beam fire just as the missiles come in range of being shot down. Then, once again, the Weissritter draws forth the massive Oxtongue Launcher. Spinning the cannon around before flying directly towards Julia's unit: <Oxtongue Launcher B-mode... huh, wait, you mean you've seen all these before?!> Still she fires, each heavy duty round from the muzzle of the cannon causing the sniper mecha to spin haphazardly as it burns towards its target...
... and pulls up at the last minute to spin the Oxtongue once more with a flourish, before catching the barrel in its right hand and aiming it straight down towards the Dynamo Queen. The high-pitched whine of high energy coils charging up can be heard from within the weapon. <Psyche~! This is Weissy's Patented Oxtongue Launcher D-Mode~! Hope the big finish was worth the wait~!!!>
With a squeeze of the trigger, the Oxtongue Launcher unleashes a massive beam of yellow energy!!! Not only that but the beam is sustained, and the unit attempts not just to strike the Dynamo Queen, but infact to whip it around to sweep up some of the Electrocrawlers in the attack as well!
KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Valor Spirit Command. KTS: Excellen Browning has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus. KTS: Excellen Browning targets Julia Ampere with Oxtongue Launcher D Mode! KTS: Julia Ampere partially guards Excellen Browning's Oxtongue Launcher D Mode, taking 5060 damage! <Pose Tracker> Puru Two has posed.
A good pilot is usually doing more than one thing at once. Not that we're arrogant enough to define Puru Two as a good pilot, in this pose, but she's certainly doing some multitasking as the Jegan's queued-up movements (I've decided, somehow, you can buffer inputs like a fighting game) send it hurtling towards Lin Xiahe's diabolic mobile armor.
Namely, she's already undoing her harness and scrabbling to open the compartment where the emergency get-out-of-robot button is. This means that she doesn't have time to retort Yuliana's way. That's also partially a strategy, though: what if you >don't< feed the troll? Let's see how that plan plays out.
"Minae, pull the plug on this thing's reactor." Puru Two feels less like her adopted-name and more like her old self every time she climbs in the robot. Is that a coping mechanism, or has it been denial the whole time? "No sense cratering the neighbourhood. Okay. I'm eject--"
The Jegan's beam saber actually strikes home, which is about when the hatch kicks open, and about when Puru Two climbs out in a tan mechanic's jumpsuit, and >also< about when an uninvited vision is visited upon her.
She can't make sense of it at first. Time yawns, dilates, thoughts stretch from moments into seconds into--
... within the yawning void are two figures. One girl, short of stature with hair of sunset, and one lady with hair as dark as the void they hover against. Two points of light, two beings, one shrouded in a storm of ethereal blossoms.
""Who said you could look in my head? Don't come closer!"
Oh, but the girl with hair of orange is so much -weaker-...
--time resumes as mystical seals splatter upon the beleaguered Jegan's chassis, slurping away whatever power it had left in those stock batteries. Puru Two clutches her head, standing on the opened hatch as the machine whines and goes still. Confused, she elects to depart from being next to the big war machine target, by falling off into a comfortable stack of wooden pallets. That's BASICALLY as good as a soft landing.
KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has disengaged. KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Strike Spirit Command. KTS: Lin Xiahe has activated the Strike Spirit Command. <Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
Julia tells Xiahe that she wants to give all of them an opportunity to really show her what she has -- and a toothy grin emerges from Xiahe's lips. "Oh, I quite like that. I'll make sure I can still pull you out even if the Queen stops responding."
Xiahe knew she hit the jackpot when she approached Julia! What a wonderful and curious sense of fighting spirit. There's just so few people like her around these days!
But at the same time...
Yuliana has an unexpected reaction to her teasing Liam, and there's a quiet smirk as she says, "Look at you! I didn't think of you as the particularly caring type. All I'm doing is giving perfectly healthy relationship advice, dearie!"
She laughs as Yuliana includes that she's engaged now; goodness! "Well, congratulations are in order to you, Minovsky's Woman. Can I be the entertainment at your reception?"
She also mentions that she's a minor threat, and Xiahe laughs at that; "Well, you have me there. I just like to stick it to the military-industrial complex, no matter where in the machine it might be. What can I say? A girl just wants to paint the town red sometimes."
This might be jabbing her about the way the Tiandong is partially red, but at least in response, Yuliana gives her red; fire, it turns out, is quite effective at melting away the misty form of the Si Bu Xiang, and there's a yelp as Xiahe helps manouevre the machine out of the way from where it simply charrs off a portion of the left gauntlet, crisp husks of blood-red claw clattering to the floor.
But the Aestivalis suddenly is back in the game, and Xiahe sighs for a moment as she readies herself for the defence -- only to find the small machine far more powerful than she anticipated; with the pitted gauntlet, the Si Bu Xiang doesn't have a ready defence, and it's buckled and smashed back against the side of the factory as the Aestivalis rams its distortion-powered fist through its core.
"Ngh...! Well done," Xiahe grimaces, and it's genuine this time. "That gravity technology certainly has come quite a way, and using it like that..."
The grin is back on her face.
"That just really makes this all the more fun!" Oh, Minae absolutely called it.
Minae tells her she's happy she found someone she can be comfortable doing crimes with. A pause.
"It's been a long, long while, you know. My old crew just had to go and implode. Bless their hearts." She has no idea that Dynazenon is happening in the future, and oh boy, will that be a thing.
Liam does sound pretty distressed, and Xiahe has to sigh as the Fortestra charges onward and rakes up towards the machine's thigh, tearing a rather horrid gash upon it and causing it to collapse onto its knee once more -- but this time, it doesn't look like it's going to get up this time.
"Rest assured, I am not going to target her. Goodness me, but the mood is spoiled now..."
Xiahe glances towards the Jegan as she watches Puru Two climb out in a jumpsuit (was she able to choose her jumpsuit colour?), and she's expecting the Jegan to self-destruct at any moment now, but... it doesn't. Good, it looks like she had a relatively soft landing, given what's available here. She'll be fine.
Xiahe doesn't seem to have any idea that the divine core leaked an impression out to Puru Two.
"... I was in the mood to just leave, but now I'm feeling somewhat irritated. So, you get one last shot from me!"
The Si Bu Xiang is effectively toast at this point, the Shinju holding it together withering, but it's Xiahe casting the final spell as the Eight Trigrams and the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions erupt as a magical circle underneath her feet in an intricate and wonderful pattern, her hair literally rising with the power she's channeling through her Shinju and into her.
"Guangfeng Jiyue Heavenly Arte...!!
Come hither, noble and fantastic spirits,
Behold the winds of lonesome emptiness...
Fill the sky with your star-sparked iridescence!"
What emerges from the cultivator, powered from the magic vortices of the Si Bu Xiang, are enormous chains of luminous rainbow seals, each of them flying wildly and, indeed, racing across a beautiful star-filled sky with their luminous kaleidoscope of colour. Each of them threatens to latch on with fervent magic force that threatens to just drain the machines dry of their power!
So merciful, even to the end!
KTS: Lin Xiahe targets Yuliana Dispersal, Liam 7-020, and Ryoko Subaru with Eightfold Seals of Anterior Heaven. KTS: BC-001 Minae bares her heart, letting Ryoko Subaru deal some extra damage! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Alert Spirit Command. KTS: Ryoko Subaru fails to Evade Lin Xiahe's Eightfold Seals of Anterior Heaven, taking 8040 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Ryoko Subaru has been defeated! KTS: Lin Xiahe roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal fails to charge. KTS: Yuliana Dispersal partially guards Lin Xiahe's Eightfold Seals of Anterior Heaven, taking 8040 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Yuliana Dispersal has been defeated! KTS: Lin Xiahe roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable. KTS: Liam 7-020 fails to charge. KTS: Liam 7-020 partially guards Lin Xiahe's Eightfold Seals of Anterior Heaven, taking 8040 damage! KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Lin Xiahe's Boundary Seal activates, causing Jam L1! KTS: Liam 7-020 has been defeated! KTS: Lin Xiahe roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable. <Pose Tracker> Julia Ampere has posed.
Julia nods appreciatively as Duke manages to foil the flanking attack. Good - that shows just how skilled he is. It should be much more difficult than that to properly flank him.
And then...! He comments on her attack!
"Did you hear that, Xiahe? He called me a knave!" Julia asides to Xiahe. By words alone, it sounds like she should be offended... but it's impossible to miss the sheer delight in her tone of voice.
Duke performs a mighty leap, then, his sword blazing to life. He flies above... and then descends, bringing his sword down upon the Dynamo Queen! He'll find that the insulation that prevents his water from causing too much internal damage also helps mitigate the flame of his sword... but, his might is still nothing to scoff at, carving a slash right through the front of the Dynamo Queen.
She grins, too, as Gemini manages to deftly evade her Electrocrawler's grapple.
"Then show me! Don't hold back now, young lady! I'll accept nothing less than your best." Julia replies. And what she does is quite impressive, indeed - the way her unit becomes engulfed in a horse of flame like a chariot, which strikes into the Dynamo Queen and forces it back!
...And, before she can recover from Gemini's attack, Ultraman Zero rushes forward to grapple her machine! It's quite the predicament!
But it's Excellen's words that give her pause. Even Julia doesn't no quite how to respond... though after a moment, she laughs.
"My, my. You certainly have a way with words." She comments. And that's when Excellen launches into a combination of attacks - she's seen most of them before, but it ends with something new. She's able to defend against the missiles like before... but in her current position the follow-up attacks are much more difficult to avoid - the finale especially, that massive beam of yellow energy proving quite fearsome! It leaves a trail of blackened armor and detonated Electrocrawlers where it goes.
...And that's when Ultraman Zero leaps up, Dynamo Queen in tow, turns it upside down, and smashes it into the ground!! It sits there for a moment, and for a brief time it looks like it may have been disabled...
...but then, the body begins to spin, using the same motion that the claws used before. The legs stretch out to their full length, acting now as a series of propellors - giving the machine just enough lift to rise from the crater Ultraman Zero put it in and right itself.
"Remarkable! Simply remarkable! You're all so passionate... I do so love to see it. However... I'm afraid this is where I must draw this to a close. Farewell, heroes! May we meet again in the future... if you survive this!" Julia taunts. Hatches on the back of the Dynamo Queen open up, launching several floating devices into the air! Electricity building in the machines claws, they're pointed upward - where they unleash a powerful shock into the floating devices. The electricity surges through them... and is then sent downward toward Julia's enemy in a surge of artificial lightning! It strikes the entire area, bolt after bolt raining down from above...
...But, none are actually aimed for any of them, for in the end, it was just a feint - once the storm clears, Julia and her Electrocrawlers are nowhere to be seen. ...And so, too, have many of the barrels completely vanished in the chaos. A cover, under which she has escaped - and a signal to Xiahe to retreat whenever she's ready.
Still, their intervention has saved the rest of Crevasse's remaining stock - the company head will be very grateful for their help. And for the crew of the Nadesico... Nergal may just very well get that business deal after all!
<Pose Tracker> Gemini Sunrise has posed.
"Aw shucks, she got away! I won't forget this..." Gemini gasps and quickly pulls out her pocket watch. "Oh no, the time! I gotta get back to work on my costumes!" The engines on the Rodeo Star fire up as she quickly flies off!
<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.
Poor Minae. All of her efforts are probably what kept them in the game - but Ryoko's hot blood won't be denied. When she thought Xiahe was simply bored... that was one thing. She'd checked out of this corporate exercise.
Now though.
The Aestivalis retracts its fist from where it blasted a hole in its core, "<You're not so bad yourself with... ...>." She says, to someone who has basically schooled her all fight. "<... I have no idea how you're doing what you're doing.>"
Still though, she did what she intended, as she sees Callisto stagger out and fall onto those wooden pallets. One of her cameras puts it on screen, just so she can check her state.
Unfortunately the Si Bu Xiang - while it's defeated, Xiahe decides to follow up, with those seals.
"Shit."
The Seals fly wildly, and Ryoko suddenly does her best to maneuver away. The Aesti turns a circle, before jerking to the side. However the Rainbow seal homes in on it.
And at the last second she BRAKES the Aestivalis hard.
It's relying on what Minae said in a way, that her seals drain power rather than do anything more destructive. And suddenly the flow from even her Gravity Wave Antenna is wholly cut off, as one of her fists just pounds the consoles in disgust.
The Aestivalis stops, right in front of the pallets.
And Ryoko pops open the assault pit hatch of the Aestivalis manually as she tells Minae. "Quick! We're bailing!" Fortunately, the Aesti only being as small as it is means it's only a short hop, and she's brought a first aid kit with her just in case for Callisto.
Still though, she gives Xiahe one last look...
"Mood was spoiled huh?"
... because suddenly she's looking forward to a rematch. Very much so.
"Let's do something about that next time..."
<Pose Tracker> BP-119 Duke has posed.
Duke Fire crouches and raises his shield to weather the storm Julia throws down. When the smoke clears, there is no sign of the Dynamo Queen. "Regina?"
Still at her console in the transport helicopter, the precocious blonde shakes her head. "That discharge might as well have been a Minovsky cloud, short-range radar was fried. No sign of any of those units."
"Multiple downed units on the field. Providing assistance," Duke reports, heading over to the disabled Long Dagger and crouching down to pry its cockpit open.
"Acknowledged." Regina looks over the situation. They got away, but loss of life and property was preserved. "Good job, Duke. Make sure those pilots are okay."
<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.
'... I was in the mood to just leave, but now I'm feeling somewhat irritated. So, you get one last shot from me!'
Fear spikes through Liam's heart. Did he provoke her? (He provoked her.) He shouldn't have said anything. The Long Dagger's shield is wrecked, and its armor can offer no resistance. Liam lashes out with both beam sabers as the chain of seals rushes at him, but it whips effortlessly through his guard. The seals affix themselves to the GAT-01D's chest, festooning it with all manner of efficacious sorceries.
Liam watches, helplessly, as the power cuts, and the displays go dark. His hand finds the hilt of his knife as something grips the outside hatch and starts to pull--
And when it pops loose, a suited-up, behelmeted Liam stares up at Duke. This happened before, he remembers. This time, he only stares like a stunned bird before finally finding his wits. "Thank you," he says.
God. He's going to have to file a report, and explaining this is... not going to be easy.
<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.
Minae is watching Callisto on the cameras as she tumbles out of her unit - and even if the rest of the power supply in the Aestivalis is ebbing significantly, she drives some of her own power into the routing system to ensure that she can keep that much on, the better to track that she's alright.
She wonders for a moment if she should say anything as Ryoko punches the poor console, but decides that perhaps it would be better in this particular case to stay tactfully silent; instead, she does what she can to try to dampen the g-forces of their braking maneuver, and is about to turn to the communications array and coax it into life when Ryoko bails out of the cockpit and yells at her to follow.
"Eh? Eh?" blinks Minae in open confusion, before fumbling with her belt. "If I know Callie, she's probably fine-- well, okay, for her 'fine' means 'just a night or two in the infirmary', but she's probably going to be mostly alright--" she cuts herself off a couple of times, though, and then thinks better of it again as she follows. Because quite honestly, she would rather prefer to make sure of it herself. Just in case.
<Pose Tracker> Yuliana Dispersal has posed.
"Why does everyone have that impression! I'm very caring, you know," Yuliana exclaims, to Xiahe. She laughs, and adds, on the topic of her being the entertainment: "It would be a fine way to catch you!"
That~ wasn't~ a no~!
She's grumpier to comment on the red, though: "This is not my colour." What is, then? Purples and greens, as Xiahe mentioned, earlier?
Yuliana doesn't say.
But Xiahe is irritated, and -- well, how can Yuliana blame her, facing up against someone like Callisto 'Puru Two' Diana? "COME ON, THEN!" She yells, as she drives her wanzer forward to meet the chains of magic with her axe --
Only for the engines she's been abusing so much to drain --
And the warning lights in her cockpit fade --
And she's left with the emergency lighting and life support of a wanzer without power. "Well, shit," Yuliana grumbles, sagging back in her seat. "Nice work, I guess..."
She can pop open her own cockpit, thank you very much. And as it happens, Captain Dispersal is very happy to offer post-battle Federation support to the people who fought here...
... but maybe there's a certain brave counselor who'll frustrate her efforts. She got advance warning, after all.
<Pose Tracker> Lin Xiahe has posed.
Julia's Dynamo Queen certainly can hold itself together remarkably -- maybe even moreso than the Si Bu Xiang, given how much life-energy it actually costs her to sustain; but Julia gives her closing speech, and Xiahe squints a little between the electric storm that occurs -- and then she's gone, and given the signal.
There's a quiet smirk on her face. "Just had to bolt out of here with a flash, huh? That's what's so good about her, though."
The Aestivalis is positioned such to defend Callisto, and Xiahe's content to let them be; people on the other side of the battle are pulling out too, and she urges the Si Bu Xiang to hover up into the air, watching the pilots as she leaves.
Xiahe definitely thinks Yuliana's about to actually get one final chop on her, which would be problematic, but her magic is strong enough to come out ontop today; she sighs and slacks a little. Though, oh dear, hopefully Minae's on the case if Yuliana's going to provide moral support after...
Eh. Not her problem!
The Long Dagger gets something of a long look, as Liam pries himself out of it. He provoked her, but it wasn't really him; it's the way terrified kids are still in mobile suits even today, putting all of themselves into the fight to protect their frightened, fragile hearts. Nothing's changed one bit, and being a spectre for them isn't helping.
"... what a pain," she remarks, taking a final drag of the remaining ashes of her pipe. (Just how much was in there that smoke lasted her for the entire fight?) "How many hundreds of years have passed and we can't do better for the new generation..."
As the machine flies, she slides down and actually climbs onto what passes for the cockpit of the divine core, reclining back on the seat and placing her hand against the walls. Her look's a bit hollowed out and worn now, unlike the goofy face she puts on in the world outside.
"... there, there, Yiyi. I know it hurts. Were you scared? I'm not going anywhere. ... yes. I love you."