2024-08-30: Break The World 1: Side A

• Log: 2024-08-24 Break the World Part 1 (Side A)
• Cast: Himeyuri Oono, Michiru Tenjou, Zabine Chareux, Eight Orlodhari, Kaworu Nagisa, Rikka Takarada, Ryoko Subaru, Ruri Hoshino, Hikaru Amano, Qivi, Akane Shinjo, Koyomi Yamanaka, Naoko Suzuki, Alto Saotome, Judau Ashta, Edouard Mass, Lucine Azul, Liam 7-020, Annemarie Bourget, Carozzo Ronah, Saburota Takasugi
• Where: Descending Ever Closer to Earth
• OOC - IC Date: 08/23/2024 - August 30th UC 0099
• Summary: "We give them to God, because they are ours to give. Such is our burden; such is our glory." Mysterious robot pilots and soldiers of the newly revealed Cosmo Babylonia have revealed themselves as collaborators within the plan to drop Junius Seven upon the Earth. A young Whispered who casts herself as a symbol offers answers on why this time, things will be different. Even in their retreat will this still be a victory for them, as the Tombstone of so many begins to burn...

---

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

The idea that the Jovian forces needed 'protection' would have been laughable, even insulting to the Jovian pilots.

And that's why it wasn't posed to them that they were being defended. It was posed to them that the 'Crossbone Vanguard' were the Texas Robo to their Gekigangar. They were there to go in first, take the hits, and let the real heroes save the day. Besides, the mass of their enemies allowed them to use the Gekigan Vision to maximum effectiveness, confusing the enemies estimation of their numbers. Rapidly, the machines- colored red, blue, yellow and black in three different shapes, tall and lanky and strange and bearing an odd resemblance to something... old, with their strange claws and chest mounted crystalloid weapons.

One of the three pilots, a young man in black, lowers his goggles over his eyes. "How long do we have to wait before we attack? We have to be close enough to strike at the villainous earthlings by now!"

"Easy, kiddo." An older man in a red jumpsuit comes onto his monitor. "A real man knows when to wait for his opening. Don't go getting eager to bust in straight away- a true pilot knows his entrance has to strike fear into his enemies and rally his allies. A dramatic entrance, don't ya know?"

"Sorry, sir! I just-"

"Heh, I get it. A man makes a promise like that, he knows he's gotta prove himself. Don't worry- you'll have your chance in a few moments. Just wait for the real enemies to show themselves- don't waste your time with the small fry. That's what all these Johnny's are for."

The younger pilot. "Understood, sir!"

-=-=-

EARLIER TODAY

It had been a long, long time since Himeyuri Oono had worn her regalia for an event like this- and truly, it was her first time doing so without guidance. The church had determined that she had reached the point where she could do this alone. She stayed in her... guest room on the Kannazuki, with only her bodyguard for company.

She had to check everything again, just to make sure. She was to be giving a send off to the brave pilots of the Jovian Superior Male Forces before this battle. This battle, where their new allies would deploy a weapon that would decisively, finally, end the earthling threat. After all, with Earth itself out of the way, it would be easy to remove the remaining colonists and finally free the solar system from the monstrous grip of the vile federation, and the people of Jupiter could finally return to their home of Luna, and put right all that had gone wrong in this so called 'Universal Century'.

She adjusted herself one more type, made sure her raiments fit perfectly, fixed a single out of place hair, and turned to Michiru with her big brown eyes.

"Well, Michi, do you think I look like a girl worth fighting for?"

-=-=-

SLIGHTLY LATER THAN EARLIER TODAY

"...Now, men." Captain Genpachiro Akiyama of the Kannazuki spoke to the three pilots gathered in the briefing room, the symbol of Gekiganger III- the symbol of the Jovian Superior Male Forces sitting above him. "Given the importance of this mission, we have been granted something special to inspire you. Be on your best behaviour- one of the Jupiter's Greatest Treasures has come to speak to you before you deploy." He coughs into his hand, then. "...Please enter, your holiness."

When the door entered, Himeyuri entered the room timidly, demurely and with grace and elegance. She heard the gasps of the men in the room, and blushed- as was her role- before giving a gentle smile. She moved calmly, looking around the room to the three pilots in turn.

Three Daimajin Pilots, on one operation. That's how seriously the Admiralty valued this mission- where, typically, one Daimajin was enough. Three noble men, prepared to lay down their lives for Jupiter's sake. One man in maybe his 30s, and two who had to be in their late teens, early 20s at most. The oldest of the trio wore red, while the younger wore blue and black respectively.

A Full Gekigan Unit.

And here was Himeyuri, dressed for her own role in this. Knee high white high heeled boots. White mini-shorts with bands of pink around the hems, and a black belt with a large gold buckle. A sleeveless, low-cut, midriff baring shirt, pink with a white collar and large gold buttons- and most importantly the yellow hairband that rested upon her head. The garb of Nanako Kokubunji- the woman worth fighting for.

"Noble pilots of the Superior Jovian Male Forces... Brave men who follow the path of Tenku Ken, Ubitsubame Joe and Daichi Akira... Heroes of Jupiter. Today you launch to put an end to the menace of the Earthlings, once and for all, and retake our home upon Luna." Her smiles brightens, as she looks out at them. "You are, all of you... truly men that a young lady would feel safe and proud to have as a husband. I know that some of you have left families back in our home, and others have not yet had the chance to wed. Know that, no matter what happens, those back home who care for you have utmost faith and belief in you. As do I."

She cups one hand over the other in front of her chest, closes her eyes, and bows her head. "I am deeply, deeply happy to have men like you to protect women like ourselves. I am honoured to be one of the many who ensure you will have a place to come home to, when all is over." Then, she looks up at them, doe eyed and projecting the sense of a small, weak girl, in need of protection despite her height.

"Fight until no enemies are left. Fight with spirit of Gekiganger in your hearts. And if today is the day that you sacrifice yourself for the sake of Jupiter... then know that you have fulfilled the greatest honor any Jovian can. I promise... I will deliver the Umitsubame Medal of Hot Blooded Courage to your loved ones myself, and tell them of your bravery." Nanako smiles, her eyes tearful and full of hope.

"Go, Men of Jupiter. Go, Men with the Spirit of Gekiganger in their hearts! Defeat the vile enemy, for all our sakes!"

She could see it in their eyes. They were inspired, empowered. This was a woman's role, to give a man something to fight for and something to return to. And Himeyuri was fulfilling it perfectly.

She prepared to turn to leave, when she heard a man's voice. "Permission to speak, sir!"

She paused, blinked, and turned back to the group before looking Captain Akiyama.

"...Granted, Takasugi."

She looked upon the serious young man with black hair, dressed in the black gakuran of Daichi Akira. It was rare for such a man to speak up- and yet... perhaps, as a supporter of men he was saying what others in his squad were unable to say to a woman like her. He looked at her, his dark brown eyes filled with nerves but also courage.

He bowed low, respectfully. Not the bow you give your superior, of course. The bow to show courtesy to a young woman. "Your holiness, we... all of us know the danger of our mission. For the sake of our squad, I would ask for your blessing."

Himeyuri smiled, and nodded. She understood immediately, and gave him a gentle nod of assent.

"Miss Nanako, would you like to go to the beach with me!?" He nearly shouted it, not with the smooth demeanour of Joe in that pivotal scene but with an fierce energy regardless. He looked at her, imploringly.

"...I would like that, Pilot Takasugi." She responded, giving a brilliant smile to him and the rest of the squad. "So please. Come back safely, all of you."

With that, Himeyuri Oono turned as her... handmaiden? A woman that Takasugi swore he knew from somewhere else? Whoever she was, she fell in behind Himeyuri as they left for the shuttle to take them away from the terror of the battlefield. To safety, where women belonged.

"It's true..." He murmured, ever so quietly. "She really is the living incarnation of Miss Nanako."

And... Saburouta Takasugi couldn't help but feel that he would very much like to take Miss Oono to the beach if he succeeded today.

-=-=-

NOW

Himeyuri and Michiru were on the Women's Shuttle, leaving the Kannazuki behind them. Ostensibly, they were heading to a Chulip to return home to safety. However...

"...They seem so earnest, Michi. It doesn't seem right to interfere with their manly duties like this. I know I need to be sure that the weapon works- and I know it will. And I know you need to be there to protect me, but surely...

She sighed, preparing to change into her piloting suit. It was necessary, of course, but...

"If we have to go into battle regardless, I'm glad it's with you protecting me." She smiles to her best friend warmly, as the shuttle arrives in the hangar of one of their new allies. The Crossbone Vanguard as they were referred to. And in the hangar...

Stood two new machines, one white, one black, both distinctly feminine with wide angel wings on each. The one in black carries a sword, while the one in white carries a staff- a very girly staff, if the heart motif and feather like ornamentation around the crystal at the end. And both have a large crystalline pattern around the chest.

"...The Admirals were right to ask me to create these. It wouldn't do for you to lose your marriage prospects because those pilots saw you fighting to protect me. I couldn't live with myself if I ruined your chance of meeting Mr. Right." She smiles again at her best friend, clearly oblivious to whatever implications she may have made.

"So, Michi... We've got a few minutes before we deploy... Did you like any of them? I think the head of Squad 2 seemed like a good fit for you..."

KTS: Himeyuri Oono has deployed in Daitenshi S1.
KTS: EN Barrier activated!

<Pose Tracker> Michiru Tenjou has posed.

Michiru's mind is an ocean of complication. Thoughts she can't explain... and would they even help if she could? She's staring at an inspirational poster in the guest room. Gekiganger of course. Ever fighting for a world free from evil. Still... it only builds the questions bubbling under the surface. What exactly is the plan? She knows there's some new equipment from their allies, but not exactly what it's meant to do. ...Allies... Something feels off about that. Don't many of them feel more like the kinds of monsters they're supposed to be fighting? High Command says they're allies though, at least, that's what she's heard from Hime.

Her eyes flick over to Himeyuri when she asks a question. A pang of sadness strikes her, but it doesn't show on her face. "You're THE girl worth fighting for. Every heart attending will grow a hundred times stronger in seconds." Some for different reasons than others.

-=-=-

Himeyuri steps into the meeting room on command, and Michiru isn't far behind. However... she isn't much like herself. She isn't carrying herself with strength or hot-blooded, overflowing Gekigan Soul. She's completely silent. Her hair is flowing loose, which isn't too unusual. She takes extensive care of it. Hime has made certain she always does, as her most iconic and eyecatching feature. Of course... Hime has also made sure of something else today.

Michiru is wearing neither her old ZAFT Squad Command uniform, nor her Tenku Blues. Nothing of her outfit is similar to any group's military or piloting uniforms in any way. Instead, Himeyuri had gone through Michi's closet, found basically nothing suitable a few days ago, and placed an order for her, of a popular and demure women's clothing selection back home. Properly feminine, nonthreatening, and minimizing. It's perfectly color coordinated with her hair to bring out the glow. Of course, it won't stand out in the least, when compared to Himeyuri as the Jovian Ideal Girl. Nor will Michiru's height, as she has compacted herself. Made herself smaller than the pilots in the room, when normally she would match if not exceed them all in height.

She listens carefully to the speech Himeyuri is giving. She knows it perfectly of course. She's heard Hime-hime recite it before. She'd been the audience for those practice speeches. It doesn't bother her at all. It... can't bother her, right? Sure, it makes Michiru's role as her personal guard seem pointless, but that only makes sense, doesn't it? She can't be there forever after all, and when Hime marries, there won't be any further point to her work. So Michiru will likely...

Those thoughts cut themselves short. There's no need to continue down that path. Those thoughts are not the way of Passion and Soul.

Aiding in snipping away those thoughts, is the outburst from one of the pilots. A declaration of his most heartfelt wish. Who could blame him, really? Such a reward upon returning from duty is what any Jovian man would want. Michiru quite likes the beach herself, and spending that time with Himeyuri... and those enemy pilots... has become one of her more special memories. Thinking on that, she bows as well, unheard and barely seen, and follows Himeyuri out.

-=-=-

Michiru unfurls once the two are on the shuttle. She takes a moment to stretch the uncomfortable stiffness and cramping out of her body, now that she's full-size again. She's far less reluctant to slip into her Tenku Ken piloting suit. Well, she WOULD be slipping into that. But it isn't here. She thought she had left it in her designated cabinet, and yet. "They do, though I don't see it as interfering. We're supporting them and making sure more pilots make it home. Preventing more Hifumi Tragedies from taking place." Though it's no secret Michiru spends a great deal of time practicing. In her own words, if she's lacking in anything, that will endanger the greatest treasure of their people. That is, Himeyuri.

Several minutes pass, with her explaining her thoughts on why it only makes sense for the two of them to field, though she leaves out the parts where she WANTS to take the field. The way her heart burns with a desire to save the galaxy from injustices. All the while, she's been searching every nook and cranny of the shuttle, ever more desperate in seeking her pilot suit, or at least a change of clothes! "Hime-hime...? My piloting clothes are missing." There's no suspicion in her voice, just a faint sadness. "Can you help me find it, or... at least something to wear that isn't what I had on for the meeting?" Those clothes are already discarded and folded up on an empty chair to be put away. This dooooes mean she's gone several minutes wandering around without wearing them, but there are no camera feeds in the Women's Shuttles, and it's only Himeyuri and herself in here. So it's fine. Nothing to be bashful or embarrassed about!

Just a little bit later, with their arrival to the ship of a group that... well, their name sounds a whole lot more like some starfaring warlord's personal force, in Michiru's opinion. But more importantly right now... Michi's gaze casts up to the sword-wielding angel. "They're beautiful you know. True artistic works... maybe when you're able to leave the front lines, you have a hidden talent for painting and sculpting." Not strictly a woman's job, but maybe seen as an acceptable hobby to pass the time? In her opinion, Himeyuri would need some kinds of hobbies. Even if she doesn't always see eye to eye with her best friend, she knows her all too well. Though she won't try to tell her friend how to live, she's quite sure... The peaceful, quiet life Hime wants, would drive her up a wall within a year if she had no creative outlets.

Michi bites back the urge to let out a groan of irritation. She isn't shocked this topic came up, but it's not a discussion she wants to keep having. Still... "I don't think that would lose those prospects for me." She's right, in the sense that she lost those during the events that had her sent to ZAFT in the first place. "Even if it did, I'd give those up in the beat of a heart for your sake." Of course Himeyuri keeps on going... and Michiru considers the question. Earnestly thinks on it. "None of them quite capture that feeling for me. No love at first sight at least." Nothing that stirs the feeling in her from... She shakes her head and pushes away the thought. It's time to get her head in the fight.

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

"Lieutenant Chareux!"

Zabine Chareux stops as he hears his subordinate address him. He turns his head to the left -- so his left eye, his only eye -- can regard the brown-haired young woman. She stands behind him, fist clenched at her side. "Sir," she says, voice quieter, as she steps closer. "I wanted to ask about the mission."

He keeps his expression calm. Cool; neutral. It is what is expected of him. In the hangar, it is busy; Den'an Zons are outfitted with their weaponry, shot lancers loaded, and some stolen GINN II's and even a few Heavy Metals loaned by the Giwaza Faction. Those had their mechanics working in a hurry to learn the new systems.

Zabine nods to her. "Ask, then."

"Sir, this operation. Are you sure... are you sure this is what we should be doing?" Annamarie Bourget asks. "The death toll on the Earth--"

"Do you believe in Meitzer Ronah's vision?" Zabine asks.

"I--yes," Annamarie relents. "Of course, sir. But this..."

"Then that's what we must consider," Zabine says. "And nothing else. We fight for a world where the aristocracy will guide us into the new age. He has chosen to bear the burden of bloodying his hands. He has made the difficult decisions. He is the one with the plan."

She hesitates. Her blue-grey eyes waver and Zabine sees that.

"We're not foolish children, stumbling into a Gundam with more ideals than sense," Zabine says. "We're not politicians hiding behind some nebulous 'will of the people.' We're not an emperor that looks at his his hand and sees only a fist to crush his people and foes. We are soldiers, Annamarie."

"Sir."

Zabine finishes, "We do our duty, and if it is unpleasant, we understand the need and strive harder."

- * - * -

The wreckage of Junius 7, on its doomsday course towards Earth, stretches out across space. Already, in the distance, there are flashes of light and explosions. But there are multiple orbital trajectories that lead to an intercept with the shattered husk of the hourglass colony. The flare motors still burn bright.

There are forces escorting them. In the distance is a fleet of nearly twenty ships, with olive hulls -- it's already exchanging fire with an advancing Gaia Sabers fleet -- but one squadron is deploying towards the falling colony.

Black-and-violet Mobile Suits, with distinctive helmets and two round ocular cameras, shoot forward. They're each carrying a long, lance-like weapon, along with a more ordinary armament. At the head is a machine in a similar vein, but painted violet. On its shoulder is a red symbol, with two crossed bones and a saber through them.

Inside that unit, the Berga Giros, Zabine leans backward. He frowns, as he looks at the gathering forces -- both his allies and his enemies -- and then adjusts the collar of his black normal suit.

"Black Vanguard Squadron," he orders. "Be ready to intercept. We need to defend the Joviann units until it crosses the threshold point. Remember: our target is Pendrago. Do this, and the corruption of Meitzer Ronah's ideals will die in the fires of a hell of his own making."

The chorus of quick sound-offs comes -- in Zabine's preferred style, short "yes, sir!" and brief affirmations.

But it isn't lost on him that Annamarie's was especially brief.

Behind them, Junius 7 looms. Its shattered husk is frozen in places, streamers of ice coming off it. Metal, long melted, makes it look distended and deformed -- but there is the sign of a destroyed city, a destroyed habitation, a destroyed home there. The flare rockets, still firing, are discordant with that frozen graveyard... as they drive it towards the Earth.

And around it is the shimmering grey of a Distortion Field, impossibly large, and with unknown promise of death. But it is so far only the Crossbone Vanguard here. Further reinforcements are not yet in evidence.

"Let's see, then," Zabine says to himself. "What they can do... and if it will stop us from buying Dorel the time he needs."

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

"Why?" Zaress, a small half-Zentradi boy, dark-haired, looks up plaintively at his mother. His sister Aarmi beside him--green-skinned with blonde hair--expresses the same question with just her face, frowning. They're almost two, now. They're talking, walking... and trouble, when they want to be.

"Mommy has to work," Eight Orlodhari explains gently. "...There's something dangerous out there. And it's my job to help people get through it. But I'll be thinking of you two the whole time, okay?"

"...Don't want that," Aarmi speaks up, unusually for her. She looks upset.

"I know," Eight answers softly. "Daddy will be here. And Shinji! And this nice new girl you met before. ...I promise, I'll come back before you know it."

"Shinji!" Zaress answers, but Aarmi remains tense. Eight's reassurances seem to get through, at least, because Zaress sits back down and Aarmi joins him after a moment. "Mm..."

"Mommy loves you both very much," Eight says, and her heart hurts to leave them. But... it's safer that way.

There might be no miracle this time but the one they make.

-=-=-

"Admiral on deck!"

Captain Maina and the crew she sent to greet Eight salute as Eight steps out of the shuttle, and Eight salutes back, nodding crisply. "At ease. Tell me about the situation." She walks along, falling into step with Captain Maina, a Black woman of dark hair and red eyes. She's from Ethiopia; Eight personally welcomed her to her post, back then, giving her care over the ship that had come to mean so much to her before she became Admiral.

And Captain Maina takes her job seriously. "The colony's course is holding," she explains. "None of our preliminary efforts have found a path to safety. It's being... escorted. And the Distortion Field remains active."

"I see," Eight says. This matches the intelligence she's been given thus far--except it's worse. "Are we familiar with the escorts?"

"No, ma'am. Accordingly, we don't know what they can do. We're going in blind."

"I see..." Eight doesn't much like that, but there's nothing to be done; if even their intelligence doesn't have data...

"But the ship is at full readiness. Mobile suit wings are at maximum capacity. ...The spinal convergence cannon isn't prepared, but as you'll see in my last report, we could make it so again--and should consider doing exactly that."

"Right," Eight says. "We may have to, if this isn't the last."

"And... ma'am." Amina Maina pauses, looking to her.

"...I have a bad feeling about this. I've had our engineers triple-check our shields and armaments."

"Understood," Eight says. "I think we all do. But we can only go forward."

"Yes, ma'am. A little bad feeling isn't going to stop me or my crew from giving our best."

-=-=-

"Admiral," Tempo Astelian says, once they're underway. He's the Comms Officer of the Ra Mari II, a Coordinator from Neo-Turkey. "...I'm glad you're here. I wish I could say it's like old times, but..."

"The old times weren't very encouraging, mm?" Eight answers with a small smile. "I know. I'm glad to see you, too. The ship's been in good hands, but it's nice to be here." A pause. "...Pleasantries aside, I'll be counting on you to keep me in touch with the other ships of the fleet."

"Yes, ma'am. I'll be your ears."

Eight clasps his shoulder. "I'll rely on you."

-=-=-

Janid Harpe sits at a tactical station, overseeing weapons control and the general defenses of the Ra Mari II. In transit, there's little she can do but remain ready; the weapons will matter most when they're up in the matter. ...But she's troubled.

Eight approaches her station. "Commander Harpe," she greets her, and Janid looks at her after a moment. "Admiral," she says.

"...I know this is personal for you. But I also know that we chose you for the post because you're the best."

"Yes, ma'am. ...I just think... it could as easily have been my home, that was turned into a weapon. Using the site of an atrocity like that... it's ghoulish. Whoever's behind it, I want to get my hands on them. ...The ship's cannons will have to do."

"I agree," Eight says. "Just remember why we're here--retribution can come later. We need to safeguard the Earth, first."

"Never thought I'd be fighting to save the Earth, after my time in ZAFT," Janid admits. "...But I find I don't mind it. I'd rather focus on what we have in common than what separates us."

"That's the way," Eight answers with a smile. "I'll be counting on you."

"And, Admiral..."

"Yes?" Eight says, pausing where she was going to leave.

"...Thanks. For letting my family stay with yours, during this mission. If something happens, I..."

"You're welcome," Eight says. "...We'll all do our best to make it home."

-=-=-

The Ra Mari II', huge and red, sails through space flanked by two blue Izumo-class ships, two of those precious vessels obtained from Orb. The Magallanica Defense Force is here to do its part to defend Earth--the lifeline around which they orbit. This, Eight has said, is a threat to everyone--to humanity itself.

The Fuujin at port, and the Suijin at starboard. Both vessels have relatively fresh crews--experienced, but still learning to work with one another. It's Eight's hope that that won't hold them back... Because they need every advantage they can get, here. She chose them because they were the best.

"Fuujin, Suijin, status report," Eight says over the channel.

"Holding course," the Captain of the Fuujin answers. "Mobile suits at the ready."

"Holding course, mobile suits at the ready," the Captain of the Suijin answers a moment later.

"Good," Eight says. "Remember--our priority here is the Earth."

She is seated in a command chair on the bridge of the Ra Mari II--Maina in the center, where she can observe her officers' stations, Gidon Kall--her XO--on the other side, and then Eight here, where she can oversee all of their ships. Including...

"Nadesico," Eight says on comms. "Status?"

"Captain, Admiral," the helmsman says then. "Five minutes to contact."

"Acknowledged," Maina says, and Eight nods.

They're almost there.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Once (?) upon a time, only two scant years ago on June 25, 0097, an Angel attacked from orbit. It dropped pieces of itself until it triangulated where NERV HQ was, then cast its massive body down in a deadly attack on par with a colony drop. However, NERV's Evangelions, assisted by several other NERV pilots, were able to catch it with their A.T. Fields, reducing an Earth-killing event to a mere local disaster. Important people across the world took note, and while the Federation would break apart into NUNE soon after, NERV was nonetheless given a massive budget to mass-produce Evangelions in the event of any future colony drops or similar extinction level impacts.
        
        The status of any new Evangelions is unknown. What is known is that there are currently only four Evangelion pilots on active duty. The Dummy Plug System exists, but while its use secured victory against the Eleventh Angel, NERV has not disclosed further information about it nor used it in any missions since. In all fairness, there haven't been any Angel attacks since. Yet.
        
        But there is urgent news about an incoming colony drop, made all the more dangerous with the Distortion Field that clothes it. NERV keeps a sharp eye on these sorts of things, for that's part of what their massive budget increase was put towards. From Junius 7's descent on high, it's impossible to know where exactly it will land, but NERV has experience with this too. High-speed jets fly the current Evangelions on standby and their pilots to locations predicted to be in the general area of the drop, unloading them and allowing them to race closer to the site of impact as Junius 7 draws ever closer. Asuka Shikinami Langley and her Unit-02 have been jetted west; Mari Makinami Illustrious and her Unit-04 have been jetted north; Rei Ayanami and her rebuilt, repaired Unit-00 Type F Allegorica are being kept close to headquarters, in case the Angels choose exactly this time to attack; and Kaworu Nagisa and his Unit Beta... have been sent exactly where they need to be.
        
        We will not be fielding questions on if Commander Ikari sent Kaworu to the likeliest landing point alone in the hopes that the small colony's Distortion Field would devour him and his Evangelion both.
        
        We will also not be fielding questions on why the prototype Unit-00 was rebuilt and repaired after undergoing a self-destruct sequence when there was plenty of budget to build a brand-new Evangelion.
        
        We will also not be fielding questions on why Unit-01 isn't being fielded even though it was repaired ages ago and remains on stand-by and has already successfully been controlled by the Dummy System once.
        
        There's a colony drop to handle.
        
        Within Evangelion Unit Beta's entry plug, Kaworu looks upon the descent of Junius 7 with a lack of smile that underscores the grimness of the situation. Unit Beta's back jets are extended, and from them, her A.T. Field wings shimmer iridescent orange in the backing earthlight. It would be bad enough if the colony drop were their only concern--but there's also several ships and mobile suits arrayed to interfere with any attempts to stop it. He's not alone on his side, but it will be a tremendous battle all the same.
        
        "You may have your own will to shape the future of the Earth, but I cannot allow it to pass," he murmurs, red eyes narrowing. "You shall not do as you please to this beautiful world... the homeland of that beautiful boy."
        
                ~ * ~
        
        Shinji Ikari wanted to tell Eight Orlodhari not to go. At the same time, he knew he couldn't. He thus swallowed hard when she left Zaress and Aarmi in his care, seeing her off with a nod farewell and dread in his heart.
        
        He was only a little older than these children when his own mother died.
        
        The twins still look upset, especially Aarmi. Shinji does his best to smile for the two of them and kneels down next to them. At their feet, Shinji's Haro, Bud, rolls about and comes to an angled halt, their round face shining up at them.
        
        "Hey, how about we go to the park?" Shinji suggests. "Sitting around waiting for Mommy will be boring. How about we have faith in her and have some fun?"
        
        "Park! Park!" Zaress chants, already distracted as he lights up and jumps up and down.
        
        Aarmi isn't as easily fooled. Even so, she puts her hand in Shinji's, tiny face solemn. "Park," she agrees quietly.
        
        He keeps smiling for them, and for Lavhi, who will be off to assist the local defense forces. Together, Shinji, Zaress, Aarmi and Bud will have a nice trip to the park down the street, where they'll get to play like the world below them isn't on the verge of annihilation.
        
        But Shinji's smartphone lays heavy in his hoodie pocket. When he thinks the others aren't looking, he'll keep a sharp eye on the local news stream. Those eyes will widen when he spots a champagne gold Evangelion in flight. He doesn't recognize it, thanks to it being just barely after his time. However, it's because he doesn't recognize it that he knows its pilot must be--
        
        "Kaworu-kun...!" he whispers.
Marian Cross teleports in.
POT: Marian Cross is now set observer.

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

A nightmare scenario has begun to unfold. The remains of Junius 7 have begun to fall toward Earth, on a collision course with the planet. It's irony, perhaps. Once, when Tsutsujidai was still cut off from the world in its own space, the ruin of Junius 7 served as one of the links between her home and the outside world... and now, it threatens to destroy the new home she's made for herself, that she's fought so hard for.

...She can't. She can't let that happen - can't let so many lives disappear in a blink, to be forgotten.

Rikka has spent the better part of the day coordinating - getting people and equipment ready to launch, and acquiring and dispersing information. With Earth facing an existential threat, they need everything they can get.

She's afraid. ...Terrified, even. Not just of the fear of what may happen, but of fighting other people. She's fought people before, but not like this. It's like a looming dread in the pit of her stomach. ...But there are people counting on her and the Grand Glorious Guard. People who are just as scared as she is, but without the power to do anything about it. For their sake... she flies.

Bravery isn't the absence of fear. Far from it.

"...I'm glad you're all with me. Let's go, everyone." Rikka says, to those launching alongside her.

The Mu Gundam arrives on the scene, alongside everything the Grand Glorious Guard was able to muster on such short notice.

"This is Chief Takarada of 3G Red." Rikka announces herself, to those present. "We're here with you."

She turns her attention to Junius 7, and the forces defending it, and then back to her allies.

"...You know what you have to do. This is... so much. More than should be asked of anyone. But right now is when we need to stand together the most. We're here, together." Rikka says, addressing everyone again. "...We have to protect what we care about. We can't do it alone."

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

Early December UC 0092

"Heh... welcome to Sweetwater 'Refugee.'" The other person got a jab to the shoulder for that one, as they rubbed it, Ryoko Subaru telling him, "Knock it off, I'm a daughter of Zeon, not some Earthnoid Rando learning what they're worth to the Feddies the hard way."

The other recruit, Georgie Welch smirked at her, "Can't even keep it under wraps for a few days, Subaru? Just cool it for a while- then we'll be running the show around here." Ryoko Subaru was younger then, brighter eyed, with short black hair, but if anything she had an even bigger chip on her shoulder, "I didn't sign up to pretend to be some Feddie castoff." She muttered, but then took the handed slip of paper from her. "This where we're assigned to stay?"

"Yeah, flophouse, but the slum's better than the tent city they got set up." Ryoko stared at the slip for a while, before shouldering her bag with everything she'd bothered to take from her family home. The only thing she left behind is a note.

"Where's he staying?" "Huh? Who?" "You know... the Red Comet." Georgie stared at her for a while, before grinning, "I was trying to figure you out, and there you go, dropping the answer just like that." Ryoko looked flustered, "The-the Hell? What are you talking about?"

"Someone's got a crush!" "I DO NOT!" As she graced Georgie with another jab to the arm, but this one she took like a champ, "Aha - just another girl making eyes for him, but..." She grew a little more serious, "... you do know, he's out of your league right?" Ryoko stood up straighter as she bristled, before looking away, her pride more than a little wounded, "It's not like that anyway."

As the pair marched past the refugee camps, she watched a father holding his young daughter to try and reassure her, she did her best to try to banish the image in from her mind...

... but that was only the first time she saw that on Sweetwater, not the last.

December 18th 0092

She spied someone watching her toss a basketball at a hoop, something she was doing to pass the time. Around the corner at a building. Slowly she reached behind her, towards the pistol tucked into her waistband, holding it under her loose T-Shirt, as she advanced.

Her hand tightened, as she moved around the corner to see-

A girl, probably six at most, who gasped, as Ryoko's eyes widened, then grew sharper, "The hell you doing spying on someone like that kid!? People don't look kindly on brats who don't mind their own business!"

The girl recovered, standing as she looked somewhat timidly, smoothing out her dirty skirts and looking down, "Watching you play." "S'not play, it's exercise." Ryoko told her back. As she then reported, "You're a girl. My Mom says girls should do other things, not play sports." Ryoko raised an eyebrow, "The he-heck? What kind of old fashioned belief is that?"

"Hers." Ryoko stared at her for a while, then came to a conclusion, "You're not from the Colonies are you?" She shook her head, "Where?" The girl took a moment, before pointing up into the sky at Earth through a distant window at the blue of Earth.

"I figured that! Where on Earth?" The girl flinched, "The... OCU, Japan." There's a distinct pause there, as Ryoko thought about that, then she finally said. "Yeah? My Grandfather was from there. Never knew him though." Rubbing the back of her head, "Don't think he was that old-fashioned, even my old man knows that girls can play sports." "Oh." "Got a name?" "Yukiko." There's this prolonged pause, before she motioned back towards the lot, "Come on, lemme show you something your Mom wouldn't approve of."

When the girl came back a few more times, Ryoko only pretended she minded.

March 8th, 0092

She'd been saving for months for that yellow dress, watching all those makeup tutorials, even grew her hair out - a little. She'd heard he took the rail sometimes, just like anybody, and he'd just come back from Londenium. Despite it being war time, she was off duty, which meant all she had to do was...

"Play it cool." She told herself as she saw him get on with an escort, as she checked her face in a little compact mirror, sure she felt strange in this getup, out of her skin, but it was what guys liked, right?

Slowly she inched her way down the seats, as she took out a book on Newtype Theory by Zeon Zum Deikun. It was all over her head but, it'd make her stand out from the other girls, right?

She sat there, turning the pages as people talked to him, but he didn't move any closer, just chatting back, answering them, people laughed as their Supreme Leader mingled with the common folk.

She glanced - just glanced, not at him, but as he did he saw him with his arm around...

"Who's that girl?" She murmured to herself, years younger than her, in pigtails and green hair. The rumors she'd denied suddenly hit her like a sack full of bricks, that he'd brought back a young - powerful Newtype with him.

Everyone began singing, except her, a Zeon One Year War anthem. She could only stare at her, until the moment the two - and their escort, got off at the next stop.

That night, the dress, the makeup, all of it went into the trash, as she took a shower.

She wasn't special, not like her. Not even special enough to make him cast a single glance.

March 12th, 0093

"Come on Subaru! Why are you hanging back? We have to reinforce the Eastern side! Londo Bell is beating the hell out of them!" Georgie called out to her in her Geara Doga which watched, spellbound, as Axis buoyed by rockets came closer to Earth, "Get your head in the game! I can't do this without you!"

"I thought he was just... bluffing." Ryoko uttered dully, "You know, to win concessions."

"The fuck you talking about?" Georgie asked her, "You thought that speech was a bluff-?!"

"But all those people..." "Are Feddie Trash!"

"... Hey Georgie... I can't do this. This isn't what I signed up for." "This is EXACTLY what you signed up for!" "I can't-" Her Geara Doga began to move backwards as Georgie's raised her rifle, "We're in the middle of a battle. If you desert - I'll shoot you."

"Do what you've gotta do, but doesn't the Eastern Front need reinforcements?" The standoff lasted for a few more seconds, before Georgie's Geara Doga spun around, and rocketed off towards the East. "TRAITOR! FEDDIE LOVING SCUM!"

Ryoko stayed suspended in space, watching Axis move closer to Earth, before she spun away, and left.

She saw no rainbows that day.

Now.

Lots of things happened at all once. The reports, Nergal doing damage control, Hikaru and Uribatake and Erina hastily setting up a presentation for the people outside, Ryoko suited up...

TRAITOR
FEDDIE LOVING SCUM

A look in the mirror, hair the same hue as Quess'. Part of her felt ridiculous, but she felt a kinship with her, a girl suckered in by the Red Comet's lies, manipulated - but unlike her, Quess didn't live.

Because she wasn't a traitor like her. Some daughter of Zeon she was. It was better that that Ryoko Subaru stay dead. Climbing into her cockpit, she began the startup sequence, and on the comms check, "Hey Hikaru. You know that - gag item - whatever it was you tried to prank me with the other day?"

There's a strange sort of gravity in her voice, which is perhaps fitting, given where they're going. "Show me again later? Didn't catch what it was."

A beat pause.

"I'm just curious damnit, that's all!"

It's not much, really, just the realization that today she needs something to come back to. Something she didn't have before. Because today is the day she has to look people in the eye who could have been her, face what she's done.

She won't run away, this time.

Her Aestivalis tromps into position on the Gravitational Catapult, and as the hatch opens, she can see it now. It's different then, from the image of Axis, but much the same in other ways. That strange metallic jellyfish, that husk of a PLANT - that Gravestone of so many Coordinators.

Momentarily she's shaken, remembering Rau, she shouted in his face back then, but now she wonders about the Whirlpool of Hatred, is this just going to keep happening over and over again?

"Not if I can help it. Let's go ladies! Time to suck some vacuum!" Putting her hand on the IFS, the gauge lit up, as the Gravitational Catapult let her know it was time, as she shouts, "GO!"

The Red Zero-G Frame launched, heading towards it at a rapid clip. "Ruri - what's our best approach for that da-durned, distortion field? I figure even if we can't do the job on our own, our Field Lancers can keep up the pressure!"

She knows they have to hit it with everything they've got, and again she wonders if ZAFT just reverse engineered Nergal's technology, after all the Socrates and it's units was using it openly.

There's gonna be hell to pay after, if they pin it on them. "The League wouldn't really be that stupid right?" She asks herself, eyeing the few Nazca classes and that strange new battleship.

<Pose Tracker> Ruri Hoshino has posed.

        Apparently, Axis Shock was going to kill a lot of people, until some brave people stopped it.
        In the records, they call it a 'miracle'.
        Say, what is a miracle, anyway? No one's ever told me.
        I've seen them with my own eyes, but, still... well, whatever.

        The Nadesico is amongst the ships which Orb -- and, secretly, Terminal -- sent to address this threat. Nergal's flagship is one of the icons of their nation, piercing through the empty heavens with its great gaping jaws.

        ... and Ruri Hoshino was ready to respond, because even in the rare personal time she's taken, she's always kept near to her station. At sixteen, she's the youngest member of the Nadesico, but she may well be one of its most dutiful members.

        Her hands press to the console, as Omoikane briefs her on the internal situation. As Eri Uemura hugs Mikako Satou, as Howmei's Girls take a moment to cry about it... as Head Engineer Seiya Uribatake yells at his men to deploy their mobile suits even more swiftly, at double, triple, quadruple time... as Inez Fressange drinks tea in her white labcoat, unbothered by it all.

        It doesn't take long to get ready.

        "All our pilots have deployed, Captain," she reports, impassively. And, one of them...

        "Your best approach to that damned Distortion Field," because Ruri doesn't have time to give Ryoko shit about it, but in her rotten little teenage heart, she FINDS time, "is to find the right angle of incidence. If you breach the Distortion Field properly, you should be able to blow up Junius Seven. Just don't get caught in the blast."

        Inez pops up, in one of those communication windows the Nadesico uses -- holographic windows which show a person's face, floating in the air. "Oh? Are you sure that's the way to do it?"

        Ruri frowns -- just slightly -- as her mentor (her evil mentor) questions her advice. "... would a Distortion Field covering the size of Junius Seven be impossible for our pilots to clear?" She asks.

        "There are a lot of people around it right now," Inez points out. "People we're not even in contact with. And yes, the size of the present Distortion Field is... one factor."

        Ruri -- who can't shake the feeling that something is wrong -- shakes her head. "Then... ignore what I said. Leave the Distortion Field alone for now, Ryoko-san," she advises her and the other pilots, instead. "We'll keep analysing the situation from here."

        Inez smiles, and her window cuts out.

        Minato comes onto the comms, to answer Eight -- since Megumi is still on long service leave with Akito. "We're all O-KAY here, Admiral!" She says, a word of English finding its way into her Japanese hail. "Our pilots are flying, and we're in position! You just let us know if there's anything we can do for you, okay?" If she's a little flirtatious despite the situation, well...

        ... Eight doesn't have to strain her powers to realise she's putting on a brave smile for the sake of everyone else.

Leina Ashta teleports out.

<Pose Tracker> Hikaru Amano has posed.

Hikaru Amano, for all her being a first-generation immigrant to Side 6 of parents from Japan and Orb, doesn't have any particularly tragic stories to tell you about colony drops, or the many wars that waged across the Earth Sphere in their wake. She lost her parents young in incredibly mundane ways, and there were no humans (or so one would think) to blame for the loss of her colony, either - only the cold unfeeling programming of the Jovian Lizards. Piloting isn't even her dream job! She didn't do it to take revenge against the Jovian Lizards or something like that - signing on with Nergal Heavy Industries was simply the easiest way to support her lifestyle.

That doesn't mean the beautiful light of the Axis Shock's sacrifice, or the horrible tragedy of Junius Seven's nuclear destruction meant nothing to Hikaru.. even though they are the kinds of things she can hold at a bit of a distance. These are things she cares about because there are people around her to care about them.. and that does mean a lot to her. So if she can put on a cheerful, assured face when others can't right now - and face this horrific event head-on, she's more than fine to take on that role.

"It's really falling.... we've got our work cut out for us today." She frowns, all the same, to see what's transpiring. The Nadesico has to take point on this - they're in the vicinity to respond, and more than that, Uri-Pea's explanation proves they know the most about what's happening. Still... it doesn't entirely add up, for Hikaru. "But isn't it kind of weird?"

"I get why we have to worry so much about the Distortion Field," After all, if she survives this, she's gonna get SO many royalties from Nergal using her artwork to explain it if they don't cheap out! And less pleasantly, she saw the effect firsthand against the Martian colonists they couldn't save. "But what I really wanna know is... how did they manage to get that kind of tech? And apply it on such a ginormous scale totally under our noses?" Does the mysterious Company, positioning themselves as some kind of rival to Nergal, really have the resources to pull all that off?

Ryoko suspects the Space Assembly League could've recreated it, but that's not really what Hikaru orients on. As Hikaru makes her final checks, Ryoko asked her a question she wasn't really expecting to hear. "You mean those silly fake glasses with the springs on them?" She asks, on the window. "We were all busy, and I figured they must just be annoying you, so I put them away for now." She answers, honestly.

She doesn't know a lot about Ryoko's past, but Hikaru has the emotional intelligence to understand this must be really getting at her. More than she's letting off. So when she asks to show it later...

"Hehe~ you bet. Once we stop the Earth from eating a Gekigan Flare... I'll get you good!" She winks, and then gives Ryoko a reassuring smile. "But while we're out there... I've got your back, just like always." She adds, earnestly.

The orange custom-painted Aestivalis in its Zero Gravity frame bolts out from the Nadesico into the depths of space, flying in formation with Ryoko and Lucine, Field Lancer in hand. Hikaru sucks in a breath, seeing Junius Seven fall like that in person... and then opens the comms. ""Hikaru Amano, heading out! This isn't a usual mission... so I'll take it carefully. We'll be in your care so just keep us posted on what to do, Ruri, Omoikane!" When Ruri advises them to ignore the Distortion Field, Hikaru dutifully notes that. It's way too risky... but what can they do from here?

KTS: Ruri Hoshino has deployed in ND-001 Nadesico Y-Unit.
KTS: EN Barrier activated!

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Qivi flipped the disc up like an oversized coin and caught it with her off hand before holding it up to the light, delicately.

GGG and her - well, Nova, really - had done good work. They'd built a casing for the crystal she had, a chunk of dull uncoloured translucent crystal, like quartz. Every once in a while it showed a glimmer of colour. It fit perfectly in the Asteriser, and Nova agreed: it was good work.

It's just a shame it didn't seem to *do* anything. When she'd asked, Nova had said that the Light in it was 'sleeping', or that was the word Qivi thought of; it's not like Nova always spoke in words. That it needed something to 'wake up'.

She'd been spending a lot of time on Orbit Base lately, working on this, and some other equipment. GGG may have been able and willing to try to recreate alien technology but without Nova's knowledge, none of it was going to work - and while Nova was a pretty novice warrior, she apparently knew enough to help build the Asteriser disc.

And the shield. Qivi picked it up, using both hands and a lot of effort. Even when she was macronized (like now) it was too big for her; she had to struggle to move it, Ultras were bigger than even that. She half-carried, half-wheeled the round shield over to the place where she'd taken to storing it, only to be interrupted halfway there by a message.

"They're doing WHAT?"

---

Qivi didn't precisely appear in space.

Ultra Warrior Nova did.

Nova is still a pretty rare sight, though she's shown up a couple times - only once to fight, against Bullton, but still. A Giant of Light, though one yet mostly untested.

She's not the same as the Ultramen people may be familiar with. For one, she's an Ultrawoman; her build is female, though there's not much of an obvious difference in helmet style or face mask. Said helmet is completely covering, with faintly golden eyes and a raised Slugger-style crest, backswept and higher in back than in front. Her primary colour is red, with silver markings; down the sides and over the chest and hips, mostly. The colour timer, a crystalline structure set midchest, is shaped like an eight-pointed starburst, currently a steady light blue.

She is also carrying a large round shield, with silver as its primary and red as its accents - a reverse of her body's colours. The boss in the center is the same dull, uncoloured crystal as in the disc connected to her Asteriser. It wasn't too big for Nova.

What are they *doing*? A colony drop - Qivi was hoping the time of those had passed. Nova can't really set her jaw, behind the mask-like face, but Qivi still has the instinct to do so. Mobile Suits, quite a lot of which she doesn't recognize; other things, as she can see enough at a distance to pick out some of the Mobile Armours that are primarily on the other side of Junius 7.

She's followed Rikka in - does the Grand Glorious Guard have its own Giant of Light, now? - but she banks off as soon as they get closer, keeping her shield raised. There are so many people here - Qivi can't believe so many people would want to drop the ruined colony, but there are at least people to oppose them.

Never again, she thinks. No more colony drops. She'll do anything she can to help stop this one.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Akane's day has been only slightly less eventful than Rikka's; it's events like this that demand much from 3G Intelligence... though a lot of that comes after the fact. Still, though...

When the target of the operation is 'Earth,' one can't exactly claim, 'we're not party to the conflict.' This world, where Akane came to know so many wonderful people...

... is hers, and she's stopped running away. Fear pounds in her chest, but she can't allow that to stop her. She has so many things she still wants to do -- and she's willing to risk herself to protect them. (She's not doing it alone, either.)

Galactron takes to the space above Earth -- the environment it was designed for -- quite well. If anything, it seems more adroit than it was within the atmosphere.

Within Galactron's core, Akane stands amid a tangle of wires -- wrapping her arms, her legs, snaking into her ears... (She's actually become somewhat fond of this particular method of piloting, now that she's gotten used to it. It's managed to get her past a few of her standing anxieties after the first time she became the core of a kaiju.)

Making use of Galactron always feels... strange. It's not that it's particularly sapient; the level of AI is well beneath that of the Brave Robos. It does, however, feed her its calculations on the trajectory of the world... and those calculations have a bias.

"... I know," Akane murmurs, as Galactron communicates its grim understanding of humanity to her. "That's what we're here to prove wrong."

Her gaze rests on Junius 7, then. The event that had made her so certain that hope was never coming -- the event that convinced her no one could help. It's strange how these feelings creep up on you -- how all-at-once you realize that you've become the person you needed as a child. The extent to which adulthood sneaks up on you when you're not looking. What's changed since 0095, then...?

... well, there's the answer: she's changed. That will have to be enough.

Galactron flies just behind the Mu Gundam; it dwarfs it entirely, but it's clear who's leading the charge. As Rikka speaks, Akane nods to herself. "This is Akane Shinjo, also with 3G Red," she says, simply. Nothing she could say is overmuch relevant after what Rikka's already said -- but she's here, doing her best to hold onto the world as just one more person.

<Pose Tracker> Koyomi Yamanaka has posed.

The call was short and simple.

"Daba says those maniacs are throwing a colony!! Meet me at the river!"

However heartstopping the words may have been, the doubts and fear in each heart, five people gather at the indicated place. Four hold aloft their equipment, while a fifth, hands wringing, stands to the side to witness the shout of: "ACCESS CODE!"

"Dynawing!" "Dynasoldier!" "Dynastriker!" "Dynadiver!"

Soon, those four lights linked together, and soared into the air. On the ground, Chise Asukagawa's fists balled tight, her breath short. She couldn't see it. She couldn't see where they were going. Yomogi and Yume had seemed almost lost about the scale...But that look in Koyomi's eye... "Be careful..." she breathed.

        *

Blue fire storms skyward accompanied by flashes of red and yellow. Its arms are at its sides, its yellow eyes blazing as it looks straight up. With flight and thunder at its hands, with determination and resolve in its four hearts, a great hero dares to rise toward the sky.

Koyomi, squatting in his cockpit, watches the battlefield draw closer, hands trembling on the controls. "So this is what it was like," he gulps down.

Gauma grunts. "Yeah. A fight against something unbeatable is always like this. People come from every corner to stop it."

Koyomi takes a good few seconds before her whispers, "Does it work..."

"Sometimes."

Gauma doesn't know he sent the signal, but with those words echoing through four heads, Dynazenon declares itself all the same, surging at full speed into the fray.

                COMBINE DRAGON: DYNAZENON

<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.

Naoko Suzuki is technically at liberty to decide her own deployments. But for a situation such as this, there really isn't any choice. When a disaster of this magnitude is impending, of course she'll contribute whatever she can to the gargantuan effort required to avert it.

Unusually for her, she isn't a part of a squadron, this time. This marks the first time she's exercising that right to act on her own, though she does of course remain in close contact with her Terminal allies. It's important to coordinate, and it wouldn't do not to stay informed of the full scope of the situation.

Ever since her Arm Slave's launch from the Ra Mari II, she's been furiously running calculations while on approach, despite knowing it would be a futile effort. There simply isn't enough time. She knows she could have come up with some kind of solution to this scenario... if only they'd been aware of the circumstances sooner. A way to circumvent a Distortion Field of that size isn't something you can just pull out of a hat, no matter how much a genius you are. And so, eventually, inevitably... Naoko closes her eyes, resigned to plan B.

"...Uriel, Ariel," she addresses the twin AI companions she shares control of her machine with. "Nothing for it but to deal with this directly. I'm going to need everything we've got for this one. Let's make the miracle happen."

No quips or cautions, this time. Merely silent acknowledgement of what needs to be done. A glow of bright green spreads rapidly across the frame of the Sukeban Kiseki, signalling the activation of its custom Psychoframe/Lambda Driver hybrid technology. Eyes of the same green open as Naoko confirms her readiness.

"Nova Stellar, ready for action!"

<Pose Tracker> Alto Saotome has posed.

        -=-= Earlier =-=-

        Alto has gone by Ranka's residence on Aprilius One, as they had organized a trip out into the city today. But while he's there, reports of Junius 7's altered course hits the news. Alto leans against the back of the couch in the lounge room, watching the TV with a frown on his face. Even after everything the Earth Sphere has suffered, people are still doing things like this... Alto looks at Ranka who is also watching from the couch.

        "I can't believe it. They say that people are doing this, that it's not just an accident but... don't they understand how much that means to the people of the PLANTs?" Her posture shrinks in, as she asks, "Is war going to break out again?" Ai-kun hops up to her shoulder, and nuzzles her, before looking towards Alto with his strange black eyes.

        To Alto, this definitely feels like a moment he should say something... But he's not really sure what. He imagines any words about this being resolved without issue will ring hollow, and likely turn out untrue. This is not a simple matter to solve.

        Alto doesn't get a chance to ponder this further though as the sleek phone wrapped around his wrist beeps aggressively at him. He's not surprised though as he brings it up and looks over the orders to deploy. He had expected that the League would call on SMS for this. It's not a Vajra hunt... But much like that threat, it's something that affects the whole Earth Sphere. Even those not on Earth.

        Ranka eyes Alto too now, out of the corner of his eye, looking at the phone, part of her almost asks if he's going, but she already knows - she can sense that much, and for a while she doesn't know what to say.

        Alto looks back at Ranka again, saying solemnly, "I've got to go..." He steps away from the couch and turns, heading towards the front door. He takes the handle and opens it, but pauses for a moment before exiting. His head turns to look at Ranka over his shoulder and gives her a reasuring smile, "I'll be back."

        Ranka considers what to say in this circumstance, Alto going into battle - this is dangerous, she joined the League to protect him from Vajra, but for whatever her powers might be, they'd be no use here, right? In the end what she tells him is, "I'll be waiting." There's hesitation, and then on a whim she stands, and goes up to him to hug him, in a tight embrace, "... I'll be singing while you're gone. It-" There's a pause, then the words rush out, "-It's how I'll support you, even from here." A small quaver in her lip, sadness in her eyes as she says...

        "See you soon."

        She won't say Goodbye. She refuses. No matter how crazy the world gets, she has to have faith that he'll be back.

        Alto is a little surprised as Ranka hugs him. At first, he freezes a little out of confusion about how to respond. But as she tells him that she'll sing for him, Alto relents a little. He gives her a hug back, replying, "I'm sure I'll hear it."

        Alto lets go, stepping through the buildings threshold. He glances back at Ranka one last time, echoing her words, "See you soon."

        Alto makes his way towards the car he had driven here. As he does so he double checks the mission plan that had been included in the order to sortie. The FAST equipment makes sense, if he's going to get out there as quickly as possible... Yet this flight plan? It's not a direct route. It has him going by... The Frontier fleet? Why?

        -=-= Now =-=-

        Another signal pops up on the sensors of those joining to prevent this tragedy. It's rapidly approaching a higher orbit. Emphasis on the rapid. The IFF signal registers it with a registry belonging to the PMC, Strategic Military Services. Callsign: Skull-4.

        Sure enough, as it closes into visual range, it is indeed Alto's Messiah variable fighter. With the added components of the Super FAST pack. Though he's coming in backwards, both the fighter's main engines and the pack's thrusters burning hard to slow his approach. Evidently he had burned hard to get here.

        The Messiah's rapid approach gradually slows to more sane relative speeds. And as it flips around to face forward again, Alto's voice echoes out over the radio, <"Nadesico, this is Skull-4. Sorry I'm late, I had to make a quick stop to pick up a package."> It may have something to do with the two large missiles hanging from his fighter's wing attachments. For the most part they just look like big missiles, the kind you might use against a capital ship as opposed to another mobile weapon. However, the yellow tips and the triangular symbols on the side are quite telling to those familiar with ordinance.

        Those are Reaction Weapons.

        The Messiah flies over into formation with the units launched from the Nadesico. He hadn't known that they would be here, but's grateful that they are. In a situation like this, it's good to have someone you know you can rely on.

        As the giant husk of Junius 7 grows larger outside his canopy, Alto turns his head to look over it. His own thoughts are echoing those of Hikaru's. How did these supposed ZAFT extremist remnants get their hands on Distortion Field tech? Is there more to this than there seems?

<Pose Tracker> Judau Ashta has posed.

It's a strange and terrible thing, that moment where you've lived exactly long enough to finally understand the phrase "history repeats."

In an abstract sense, even Judau Ashta, the boy whose point of pride was that he never attended a single history class, knew that things were terrible even before he was born. He knows, because he lived in the consequences of it, struggled to get by with his sister through it. But it was one thing to just know, academically -- or, 'academically' for a given value of the word.

It's entirely another to see and experience how the pettiness and anger and fear of so-called civilized society loops around to latch on its own tail, first hand.

He's seen this before. It wasn't a PLANT then, but an O'Neill Cylinder. It wasn't Britannia, but Ireland.

It wasn't rogue elements of ZAFT and some new, authoritarian player to the stage, it was Neo Zeon, wearing their nature proudly on their sleeves.

He's seen this all before, he knows. And the people who preceded him saw the day the sky fell over Dublin before.

No amount of fancy new technology or ideological differences can change that: people dooming themselves to repeat the same atrocities, over and over.

And for what?

It's the thing that's been on Judau Ashta's mind this entire time, after he got over the angry and unending stream of expletives that were inspired by the news of Junius Seven reaching him.

Those strings of swears continue right up until the moment he falls into the cockpit of his Mobile Suit and is loaded onto the launch bay, waiting for his turn to be released into that fray he knows now like he knows the back of his hand.

His arms cross in the now fresh, tense silence. His right finger tap tap taps feverish rhythms against his bicep. His eyes narrow.

All it takes is the stray glimpse of data readouts on the colony from the corner of his vision to make him yell out again, punching one hand against the side of his cockpit.

His knuckles ache in the aftermath. Shaking out his hand, he just swallows down the pain, and turns on the ZZ's systems one by one. Seagreen eyes narrow behind the visor of his helmet as his Gundam rolls out onto the launch bay, towards the familiar sight of war.

<"Judau Ashta -- I'm goin'!">

He's seen and heard all this before.

It's not quite the ZZ that launches from the bays of the Ra Mara II, but something different, if familiar to a select few. Even those who were active participants of the First Neo Zeon War might not recognize the heavy armor platings of the Full Armor ZZ; it was, after all, deployed for only a single battle at the end of the war, practically a decade ago, and one that ended up being deeply personal.

But it's far from new. Just brought back. Updated. 'Changed.'

The same as always.

Despite the situation, Judau heaves a sigh and a rueful smile as he feels the familiar weight of the Full Armor suite affecting the thrust and force ramping within the ZZ's cockpit. He shakes his head, looking down at the controls of the ZZ with some bittersweet fondness.

"Been a while, hasn't it? Kinda makes you feel nostalgic, yeah?" He looks out, towards the devastated sight of Junius Seven beyond.

"... just in all the worst ways."

Judau lingers for a moment. The sentiments of the battlefield tinge at his thoughts. With the furrow of his brows, he shakes it off, narrows his eyes -- and jams down on the ZZ's accelerator.

<"Like I'm gonna just sit back and let you have your way, over and over again! LET'S GO!">

He's seen and heard all this before. Which begs the question, the question that's been increasingly on his mind:

Is this really all there is? -Everywhere-?

Can't they more than this...?

KTS: Judau Ashta has deployed in FA-010S Full Armor ZZ Gundam.
KTS: Will Barrier activated! (But will not apply until relevant Morale threshold.)

<Pose Tracker> Edouard Mass has posed.

History rarely repeats, but it oft rhymes - sometimes, certain things are just different enough.

A single mobile suit deploys from a transport launched from Magallanica alongside the Ra Mari II. Wearing the old green and blue of the mid-0080s AEUG, embellished with red racing stripes, this Nemo approaches the de-orbiting Junius Seven at speeds a Titans-era mass-produced suit shouldn't be able to achieve. A closer look reveals the truth: Upon its back, the binder suite and secondary reactor of the Hyaku-Shiki, and the uprated beam rifle wielded by that same mobile suit.

The pilot flicks switches on the dashboard, looking grimly at the ruined PLANT as it continues on its fell course.

"Ironic," Edouard Mass mutters to himself, running diagnostics on his Nemo High-Maneuver's systems as he closes to join up with the forces arrayed in Earth's defense, before flicking his comms open. "Ra Mari II, this is callsign 'Enkidu' from Magallanica, requesting field assignment."

The Nemo draws forth its heavy beam rifle, its sensors beginning to sight on the Junius 7 attack force - picking out targets.

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        ====SEVERAL NIGHTS AGO====

        Between the pull of their different jobs and tasks, Lucine and Liam didn't always have the time to spend together as they would have liked. It was for good reasons, Lucine knew. Despite their doubts about NERV, there were pilots there that put themselves in harm's way defending against kaiju, and the staff that tried their best to ensure those pilots' safety. Liam being there meant someone else was looking out for them who didn't see them as tools towards an end, no matter how noble that end may seem. Lucine is in the Nadesico, which has its own downfalls, despite her often looking past them in her own way.

        The nights they spend in their apartment became precious because of it, no matter how mundane they were. Watching TV on the couch, cooking in the kitchen, doing the laundry, making sure the mail came in, all the dull chores that come with ownership of a space, as well as the downtime. The bigger space, which was a requirement, like the ability to be in the bathroom and not feel sandwiched in if the two of them were there at the same time. Or, a space that accomodated a bed that handled two people. Still, no matter how droll the surroundings, their pasts still came to haunt them. This night, even though it was rare, it was Lucine's turn.

        Which is why she huddled in Liam's arms, shaking and crying, unable to make words. All the things she locked away when Mars was invaded, and the time she had gone back to Nemi, are further in the past than when she had first met Liam. In those moments, she felt like the sixteen year old she was then, forced to become the adult she needed to be in order to save her mother, as well as to leave everyone else she knew behind.

        It was temporary. She did come back, to a colony where flowers bloomed, oblivious to the lack of people there to see them that one last time.

        ====NOW====

        Not even with her telescope would Lucine be able to see their apartment, this far above Earth. How is the gentle old lady doing that waters their plants, when they're gone? Does she know?

        Turning on Sheryl Nome or Ranka Lee only makes Lucine remember Sheryl stuck in her bed in Frontier, and Ranka... possibly stuck in another place.

        It wouldn't be the first time the Earth has been in danger, but before, there was a sort of blissful ignorance that things will be alright, as long as they all did their best. Does being older mean that she's more aware of what's at stake if they fail? More than likely, it's realizing the size of Junius 7, now that it's easier to compare with Earth's own. The last time... it was because of Rau, was it not? Or was it...?

        < "... Ryoko, Hikaru. How are you two holding up?" > Over the videochat that all Nadesico members seem to have, Lucine keeps a straight face. She doesn't want to give away her nervousness, knowing that it might as well be like passing a cold around in Howmei's cafeteria.

         While Ryoko's call to action and Hikaru's cheeriness bring back some peace of mind, Hikaru's questions draw a questioning noise from Lucine, as she tilts her head. < ".... What's weird about the Distortion Field? O-oh, the size. I suppose, that would be weird..." > Following behind the two Aestivalis in the similarly sized Dianthus, shes the odd one out, but the Dianthuss glaive and magenta color still manage to fit in.

        Lucine smiles, and breathes a sigh. .... Thank you, you guys, she says, though her thanks is for her own ears alone.

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.

        Several Nights Ago...

        Liam is coming to see the shared apartment as a refuge, a bubble of tranquil domesticity where he and Lucine can live normal lives. Like any bubble, though, its skin is thin, and the slightest poke can puncture it. Take, for example, a nightmare. This time, it was Lucine who woke up in the middle of the night, shaking and sobbing, unable to put her thoughts to words. Her tears awakened Liam, and he pulled her into his arms, cradling her against his bare chest. It didn't take long before he was crying, too.

        He comforted her as best as he could. He got her a glass of water. He walked her through the breathing exercises Dr. Hinoki taught him, and helped her ground herself. Helping her helped Liam feel less helpless, in the face of his own fears, but it wasn't uncomplicated. He had to return to Tokyo-3 tomorrow, and he didn't want to leave her with only her fears for company.

        Seven Minutes Ago

        The Type-4 hangs in the void, awaiting its next orders. In its cockpit, Liam rolls his shoulders against his restraints, and takes another sip from his zero-g bottle. His helmet floats beside him, tethered to his armrest. Maneuverability tests have gone well so far, and the techs have repeatedly told him they've been getting excellent data--even if it's difficult to generalize his reflexes to Natural pilots. (Wasn't part of the point, Liam recalls, to have somebody who could really push the machine to its limits?

        "Liam?" The lead observer's voice filters into his cockpit again. Liam immediately picks up on the tremor in it, the shaky breathing. "Abort the test. Command's demanding full combat readiness--" Her voice breaks. "They're--they're dropping Junius Seven."

        Liam goes corpse-still.

        UC 88, DUBLIN, IRELAND

        Ten-year-old Liam watches the sky from the tiny window in his room. His parents are downstairs in the kitchen; when he last checked on them, his father was messing with the special radio he'd cobbled together. There was no school today because of a 'civil emergency'. Liam has already put more together, and everything he learns makes him more frightened. The Britannians have told everyone to stay in their homes until the danger passes. Every so often, the roar of engines rips through the sky, and shakes the whole tenement. The Britannians say not to evacuate. Pa said they'd closed the roads.

        The door opens. Liam's mother stands inside, her face bedsheet-pale. In the language of their home, she says. "<Liam. Pack a bag. We need to go, now.>"

        NOW

        A machine the size of the Type-4 Akashima takes a while to get up to cruising speed, and just as long to decelerate. Liam pushed the jets to their absolute limits--perhaps, ironically, giving the techs the data they wanted--and pushes them again, as he approaches the vast, graveyard bulk of Junius 7. He's been staring at it since it appeared, unable to look away, but seeing it up-close through the cameras is different. Here, the skeletal structure of an apartment building. There, the bed of an artificial river long since lost to depressurization. People died there. People died there, and they're dropping it from the sky to kill more people.

        Familiar voices echo through the radio, now. Lucine. (Lucine!) Eight. Hikaru and Ryoko. Naoko and Alto. Even Judau. Liam finds his own voice--tight, tense, falling back on old habits--and speaks.

        "Pilot Liam on station. Present priority targets."

        He can't let this happen again. Not another Dublin. No more.

KTS: Himeyuri_Oono has deployed as a Boss for 5 opponents.
KTS: Michiru_Tenjou has deployed as a Boss for 3 opponents.
KTS: Zabine_Chareux has deployed as a Boss for 7 opponents.

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

Himeyuri frowns. It's not that Michi doesn't have a point- and she had gotten so deeply into the role of Noa as Akio during the mission that she would be invested, but... "It's not a woman's job to prevent tragedies, Michi. It's a woman's job to ensure a man has a place to return to after a tragedy and to support them through that loss. They're supposed to protect us, and we're to motivate them." ...It wasn't the first time she'd given that lecture, but there's something... more insistent this time.

It's like she really thinks this is it.

Still, Himeyuri busies herself with changing, humming to herself as usual as she does so- when she hears the call of 'Hime-hime' and brightens! "Oh, of course, Michi! I think I have..." She rummages around in her cupboard on the shuttle until... "Yes, these should fit!"

When Michi turns to face her, Himeyuri is not in her normal pilot uniform, a holdover from ZAFT. Instead, she's wearing something closer to her raiments, but these are in yellow. The boots are a touch more aggressive, and there is a single yellow glove on her right hand, and an orange arm band and orange bracelet on her left. It's still Hime, of course, but... it's a different look.

And what she thrusts to Michiru seems to be about the same amount of fabric, in silver this time. "We'll match!" She says, brightly.

-=-=-

The three pilots prepare, each in their own.

In the Daimajin, Ryoga Kurogane sat in his Tenku Blues, in charge of the unit despite his youth. As the units Tenku, he was the unit's leader. The man at the forefront. He closed his eyes, readying himself, his wild brown hair style in the fashion of the man whose path he had chosen to follow.

In the lanky blue Daitetsujin, the older Junichiro Kagawa was calm. He was an experienced pilot at this point- a survivor. Many of his fellows considered him a man amongst men, and he fully intended to show it. Still... he felt these young bucks had potential, if they could push themselves.

And in the stocky Daidenjin, Saburouta Takasugi lowered his goggles over his eyes. He was young and impulsive and knew it- and so did his captain. But he was sent on this most important mission regardless. He was not going to waste his opportunity. He was going to prove himself.

"Ready?" Came Ryoga's voice over the comms.

"Ready," Kagawa replied with an air of confidence.

"Ready!" Saburouta called out, forcefully.

All three in sync called out- "LET'S GEKIGA IN!"

And they disappeared from the radar of friend and foe both, and the space they had been occupying was empty in front of the eyes of other pilots.

A moment later, a trio of Gravity Blast Cannons fire- the readings easy to detect. There's not subtlety there- and for the Nadesico... they bear the marks of the weaponry that destroyed the Shakuyaku- and more are in their sights today. Again, they vanish- and again, the blasts fly out across the battlefield, crushing mobile weapons in the sudden gravitational pressure they are placed under. At least, in these circumstances, it's a sudden death.

-=-=-

In the cockpit of her new unit, Himeyuri placed her hands on the control spheres, causing the angel winged machine to raise and curl around the unit, as her nanomachines interface with the unit she built. A machine that, if a woman were to end up on the battlefield, could keep her safe. Perhaps this would work...

Certainly, it was not ideal... but it was important that she would be close enough to make sure it all worked. She had faith in the distortion field she had set up around the payload- but this was to be the big push. This is what would end it- and finally, she could stop with all this combat and meet her husband and...

...well. The happily ever after.

She missed some parts of the Revernova, of course. The part she missed most was connecting with Michi- she knew she was safe when Michi was her armour- but she wouldn't have room to pilot much longer. Himeyuri had a duty to her dearest friend, to make sure she could land on her feet. The Daitenshi was a long shot, but she had confidence.

Michi would be ready to go home and start baking in no time, she was sure.

"...Are you ready, Michi?" There was a time she didn't need to ask, she just knew. But... that time was past. Still... she was nervous. It had been so long since she'd done this... solo.

It was heartening, in a way. It meant she still had a woman's heart, despite everything. And the fact that she was nervous put Himeyuri at ease.

"Keep me safe, Michi. Like always. Let's achieve the victory we've been waiting for."

And then, the angels disappeared together.

-=-=-

In front of the encroaching enemy, they appeared. One brilliant white and one of darkest pitch. It was time to fulfill her part of the bargain she agreed with Michiru. They would face those who got too close to the falling Colony with their combined might- and maybe, just maybe, it would remind Michiru of the way women were supposed to fight. The acceptable ways.

"I am the Angel of Love, Daitenshi S1! With the purity of maiden's unsullied heart, and the joyous anticipation of a girl's first kiss, I am here to ensure your wickedness does not go unopposed! If you come to wound those with pure love in their heart, I will stand against you!"

She twirls her staff, the feather like ornamentations fluttering in the total lack of wind, then the Daitenshi spreads it's wings and sparkles of light fill the space around her. It's almost like something... out of a magical girl anime...

But... only one angel has been introduced so far- and Himeyuri is ready to see how her partner and best friend forever is going to do her thing.

-=-=-

"...And in the name of Maidenly Love and Justice-" Himeyuri calls, her voice syncing with Michiru's as the speak their final lines, the S1 and the S2 flying upwards together, twirling around each other, before touching hands a breaking away, each flying in an arc, S1 leaving trails of white sparkles, while the S2 leaves dark purple ones behind them. And at the bottom of their arc, they fly up again together, and touch their hands together-

And the trails flitter together, leaving a pink love heart in the sky, the particles moving rapidly to ensure it's interpretable at every angle. Did... Did Himeyuri really spend so much time on this?

It doesn't matter, because the finale of the beat comes. "We'll wipe the universe clean of your evil, so that not a speck of you is left!"

Hime beams at the performance, casting her cheer to those allies on the battlefield, whether they want it or not.

...The Nadesico is here. She knew it would be, of course. There was no way that the... women of action on the Nadesico would not turn up to oppose them. Something gripped Himeyuri's heart tightly. No. No. Shake it off. You were just spying. At that island, at the secret spy convention... when you worked together with them against a more monstrous enemy was just... just that one time Prince Akara fought with Gekiganger against a greater evil.

She always knew they'd be enemies. They were Earthlings after all.

Captain Misumaru, That little girl they forced onto the bridge- Hoshino-san right, Hikaru-san the artist who loved Gekiganer (if in a way that had confused and horrified Himeyuri, when they got those spy manuals home) and...

Subaru-san.

...If only they'd met under different circumstances. If only they hadn't been so cruelly warped by Earth's depravity...

Himeyuri shakes her head. That's not how it works. They were enemies. And there was only one way to deal with an enemy.

There were two others, too. One of the Earthlings who fought against the Vajra, if she remembered the machine correctly and another that she couldn't identify. It... looked almost heroic, if it weren't for those monstrous teeth framing it's face... What had the Earthlings cooked up this time?

And there was something else here, too. Something she could... it was like... no. No it's nerves, surely. Just a thought unbidden, as so often happened. Still, a smaller unit, someone over in the other area of the battlefield, drew her attention to it. But that was for the Vanguard to deal with. (And it might be equally strange that somewhere, on the other side of the battlefield, Naoko can maybe feel something... not reaching out so much as... ready to receive her, if she wanted to. Just so readily and instantly.)

...Nonetheless, it was time to still her heart and do her duty to Jupiter- and Himeyuri Oono always did her duty to Jupiter.

Always.

-=-=-

The request for the protection detail provided by the Black Vanguard has changed. There is only one unit to be defended- and it is emphasized repeatedly, in flashing bold underlined text- that the unit to be protected is not, repeat, is not associated with the Jovian Superior Male Forces. Instead, it is of another AECF new ally whose presence had to be maintained secret at all costs. And that's why the JSMF agreed to cover for them.

They are not actually Jovians and it would be very rude- to the new mystery allies- to insinuate they were Jovians and it is important to remember that.

Admittedly... the protect is only for one of the units- the white angel. The black angel is marked the same as the three Jovian units- acceptable casualty.

As long as the White Angel returns, the Black Vanguard will have been seen to have fulfilled their end of the bargain.

KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Michiru Tenjou and Zabine Chareux with Awe!
KTS: Zabine Chareux's Contained Ambitions activates!
KTS: Zabine Chareux accepts Himeyuri Oono's Awe!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono inspires awe, increasing Zabine Chareux's Morale!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Awe, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Ryoko Subaru and Koyomi Yamanaka with Shock!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou accepts Himeyuri Oono's Awe!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono inspires awe, increasing Michiru Tenjou's Morale!
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Awe, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka accepts Himeyuri Oono's Shock!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono shocks Koyomi Yamanaka, reducing his Morale significantly.
KTS: Best Defense! Koyomi Yamanaka successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Shock, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Koyomi Yamanaka's Four Aligned Hearts activates, and his spirit is adjusted.

<Pose Tracker> Michiru Tenjou has posed.

Michiru returns an identical frown. She's heard that lecture how many times at this point? "I understand that, but..." How can she possibly say any of what she's thinking? The knowledge of her own piloting ability. The fact she wants to be a protector and fighter. That she has NO desire to motivate and support a... huh. Where did that last part come from? Still, that moment of confusion does its most important job. It stops this from turning into an argument.

If this is the final battle though... what does that even mean for someone like Michiru? Where is... her own happiness? Why doesn't she feel over the moon about it?

Those ruminations are broken by Himeyuri, once again. She turns and looks down, and quite nearly faints on the spot. Her legs wobble side to side a moment... but she manages to stay on her feet. "W-what are these?" Not that she's waiting for an answer. She grabs the whole ensemble and starts slipping it on. An almost perfect match to Himeyuri's outfit. Silver vest-top, mini-shorts, a single glove over her right hand, an armband and bracelet, though in silver for her instead. Her boots have a slightly different style to them as well. All accented with red trimmings. However, Michi makes one singular modification. What seems to be a strip of silver cloth used as an eye-catch accessory near the hips. She pulls it off from where it's supposed to be, and ties it up around her forehead, as a silver headband. "It's different... but I like this, a bit. Better than what I had on at the meeting." A lining of hope in Hime's eyes? Even if Michi did just modify the design...

-=-=-

Michiru grasps the control spheres, linking herself to the new Daitenshi. The control setup is thankfully much like that of Gardnova still. Or at least, her Gardnova Galaxia. The standard production models had to be more conventionally operated to allow for pilots who didn't make use of the implanted nanotech interface. Still, she can already tell the machine is... different. It fought her more. Its movements aren't quite as responsive to her. Still, she could use this machine. Bring out its best self. It was one of Himeyuri's masterpieces, tuned just for her. And even if it wasn't... she's piloted far more hostile machines.

Like during her piloting exam. If she hadn't known better, she'd have sworn the systems on that machine were compromised to sabotage her chances. She'd never make that accusation though, why would anyone even have the faintest reason to do that, after all?

Still, the lack of a linking mechanism with Hime's machine is the biggest flaw of everything. It's harder to defend her when they're split off, hopefully the barrier improvements will make up the difference. Clearly Hime had learned quite a lot from making the Nova-Series, and the Heart And Soul Combination Galaxynova in particular, as this Daitenshi has a more refined mix of armaments as its disposal, and of vital importance, a functioning sword. Light in her hands, but unquestionably capable of all the maneuvers she requires of it. The techniques she's practiced with Galaxynova, now refined into a new shape.

She can worry about what happens after the war, once it's over. But she won't be settling into a bakery or starting a family, those are both certain to her.

For now, to the field. "I'm as ready as I can be Hime-hime. Not a one of our enemies will truly harm you so long as I breathe." She may prefer to fight as one, but working as twinned units won't be bad either. "Let's Gekiga-In!"

In an instant, neither angel remains where they once stood.

-=-=-

The second of the suddenly arriving angels raises its sword overhead, slicing a pattern in the air before pointing it toward the enemy formations. As if daring them to approach. "I am the Angel of Passionate, Burning Justice, Daitenshi S2! With the flames of a heart that yearns to protect, I appear to be sword and shield for those who cannot! If you seek to prolong the tides of tyranny that reach toward the stars, I shall cut through the sins which bind you to this world!"

The shape she sliced earlier shines above like the light of myriad stars, as her wings spread. Certainly the two machines are similar, but the light above seems to be sucked into the ever darker feathers, rendered unto naught. A dark magical girl perhaps, to match with her counterpart?

"...And in the name of Maidenly Love and Justice-" Michiru shouts out, her voice in perfect match with Himeyuri's as they speak their final lines. The S1 and the S2 fly upwards together, spiraling with one another before linking hands and breaking away, each flying in their separate arc. S1 leaving trails of white sparkles, while the S2 leaves dark purple in its wake. And at the end of their arc, they meet again, and touch their hands together, fingers interlocked-

And the trails flitter together, leaving a pink love heart in the sky, the particles moving rapidly to ensure it's interpretable at every angle. Michiru is astounded and impressed by the level of time and effort Himeyuri spent on this process.

Still, with the final ramp-up of their musical beat... "We'll wipe the universe clean of your evil, so that not a speck of you is left!"

Michiru lets out a cheer privately at the combined performance, sending to Himeyuri her blessing and thanks for the routine, seen to the outside as a trail of dark sparkles surrounding the S1 and oddly enough, the Berga Giros as well. While the Daitenshi holds a stance of intimidation and stalwart, unyielding defense against their enemies.

KTS: Michiru Tenjou's With Enemies All Around... activates!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou targets Himeyuri Oono with Fortify!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou targets Zabine Chareux with Recharge!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux accepts Michiru Tenjou's Recharge!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou recharges Zabine Chareux's energy!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Michiru Tenjou's Recharge, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru accepts Himeyuri Oono's Shock!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono shocks Ryoko Subaru, reducing her Morale significantly.
KTS: Best Defense! Ryoko Subaru successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Shock, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spiritual Adjustment] Ryoko Subaru's Slight Personality Disorders activates, and her spirit is adjusted further!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Ryoko Subaru's The First Star Inside Yourself activates, and her spirit endures.

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

"Sir, Jovian reinforcements sighted," one of the Black Vanguard pilots says.

Zabine Chareux frowns as he sees the three Jovian units appear out of thin air like that. With their manly battle cries -- something he finds mildly irritating -- but the strange and potent promise of instant teleportation. One eyebrow raises.

Is this the danger of Jupiter?

Is this the promise of Jupiter?

Something to consider.

"Everyone," Zabine says. "Move to interce--"

The two angels appear. Flying with light trailing after them, forming a pink heart before the falling colony, the reach of the stars, and the imperiled Earth in the background. The eyebrow over Zabine's good eye twitches; the other is mostly hidden behind his eyepatch. He stares.

"Lieutenant," Annamarie cuts in. "Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted," Zabine says.

"What fresh hell is this?"

"The burden of noblesse oblige," Zabine sighs. "Form up, Black Vanguard! We'll protect the White Angel! Annamarie, you and your team be close enough to provide assistance."

"Roger that!" Annamarie says.

"The rest of you, with me," Zabine commands. "Forward! Remember, today, we buy time to make Meitzer Ronah's dream a reality! Forward!"
- * - * -

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph," Master Sergeant Kae-soon mutters under his breath as he looks at the massive bulk of the Evangelion Unit Beta. A.T. Field wings glow out behind it. Three Den'an Zons face off against it, with Kae-soon's at the head of them.

Then, he barks out: "Form up! Anti-kaiju operation plans, people!"

"Sir!"

All three ignite their beam sabers. Blades of red energy crackle to life -- and then they fly in. Kae-soon breathes out.

"Together! As one!"

"SIR!"

The three slam the beam sabers forward, at the same time, at the Evangelion's Absolute Terror Field. They seem to know what to expect.

- * - * -

Four more of the Den'an Zons, led by one painted in a golden color, hurtles towards the Ra Mari II. The gold-painted one lifts up its forearm, with two beam cannons mounted there. Annamarie, in her cockpit, squints. "There it is.. heard about that thing," she says. "Time to sink a legend. Annamarie Bourget, firing!"

The two beam guns fire, lances of golden mega particle beams shooting off towards one of the point defense turrets on the Ra Mari II.

Another Den'an Zon hurtles in for the Sukeban Kiseki. Nova sees the green Den'an Zon swing in close -- then a red beam saber ignites in its hand, before it chops down towards towards the Arm Slave.

The third Den'an Zon with Annamarie goes flying in, straight towards the Nemo. The pilot hesitates for a moment. "A Nemo? What's that antique doing here?" she asks, before her thrusters fire. The beam saber is torn off the recharge rack -- it explodes with fiery, crimson light -- and then slashes down for the Nemo.

- * - * -

The Berga Giros's thrusters fire, sending it hurtling towards the Full Armor Double Zeta. Blue-white light trails after from its thrusters, as it comes flying in for the venerable -- but legendary -- Mobile Suit. Zabine's one eye narrows, as he gets a good look at it. He does, it seems, recognize it. "Judau Ashta..."

He exhales. His breathing is calm and even. If there is one truth about Zabine Chareux, it is that he always controls his emotions.

The purple Mobile Suit's left arm crackles -- and then a shimmering field of pink-red energy erupts. The beam shield takes form, in the classic shape of Mobile Suits' carried shields. Then, the thrusters on the Berga Giros fire -- and the smaller Mobile Suit shoots forward so fast that it becomes a blur.

The beam shield is slammed towards the larger Full Armor Double Zeta. "...It's time to show you that the Universal Century has moved beyond you."

Then, he turns -- his eyes fall on the Mu Gundam. A GGG unit, he thinks; a pain, he thinks. He lifts the large shot lancer, taking aim towards Rikka's Gundam. She gets an answer as to why the gigantic knight's lance-type weapon is aimed at her a moment later. Zabine pulls the trigger.

The four machineguns mounted on it open fire, sending a rapid-first burst of shells hurtling towards the GGG commander's Mobile Suit. Zabine's eyes shift the moment after he fires; he's an Oldtype, but he's an old pro, and he knows to keep looking.

"I see you," he says of Galactron, "And will thank you to stay out of my way." He taps a couple of buttons on his console; then, several bright, thin laser beams fire from one of the distant Crossbone Vanguard battleships, painting the Galactron.

No, not painting.

Transmitting. Several hundred terabytes of junk data are beamed to the Galactron's sensors along several thousand frequencies. An ugly, blunt instrument of electronic warfare.

KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Kaworu Nagisa with Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Eight Orlodhari with Den'an Zon Dual Beam Gun!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Naoko Suzuki with Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Judau Ashta with Beam Shield Bash!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Rikka Takarada with Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Akane Shinjo with Despirit!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Edouard Mass with Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo has activated the Rouse Spirit Command.
KTS: Akane Shinjo's Awakening activates!
KTS: Akane Shinjo accepts Zabine Chareux's Despirit!
KTS: Zabine Chareux despirits Akane Shinjo, reducing her SP drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Akane Shinjo successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Despirit, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Akane Shinjo's Believe activates, and her spirit endures.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari fails to engage charge against Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Dual Beam Gun!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's EN Barrier activates, negating 1000 base damage.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Beam Wall L1 activates, negating 1000 base damage.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Dual Beam Gun, taking 1932 damage!
KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Judau Ashta fails to engage charge against Zabine Chareux's Beam Shield Bash!
KTS: Best Defense! Judau Ashta successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Beam Shield Bash, taking 3000 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux rattles Judau Ashta, making his next maneuvers more difficult.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada fails to engage Block against Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Best Defense! Rikka Takarada successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst, taking 3652
damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Trust Spirit Command.
KTS: Edouard Mass has activated the Focus Spirit Command.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa fails to engage react against Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa moderately reacts to Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike, taking 4140 damage!
KTS: Your unit's HP stands at 12110
KTS: Zabine Chareux anchors Kaworu Nagisa, preventing his from Evading the next attack!
KTS: Edouard Mass fails to engage guard against Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Best Defense! Edouard Mass successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike, taking 3450
damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux anchors Edouard Mass, preventing his from Evading the next attack!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki fails to engage guard against Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki moderately reacts to Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Beam Saber Strike, taking 4140 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux anchors Naoko Suzuki, preventing her from Evading the next attack!

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

3G Red is here. Eight announces back to Rikka, "Acknowledged by the MDF. Glad to have you with us, 3G."

She remembers when she had that girl on the Ra Mari. So long ago, now--or it feels like a world away, anyway. And now, she's a leader in the Grand Glorious Guard... Eight couldn't have predicted that, back then.

Minato answers Eight on the comms, and Eight smiles to see her friend, despite--no, because of the situation. Eight knows full well what Minato is doing, but...

"I definitely will. We're counting on you, Nadesico."

Nadesico... Terminal's most advanced ship by a wide margin. And crewed by personal friends. Yes, Eight will be counting on them.

There is a moment, then--a brief span of insight, just before 'Enkidu' flicks his comms open, as Eight feels the presence of the man behind the callsign. Their minds touch, and Eight stares into nothing as she understands who it is that she's dealing with; he, in turn, can feel her tension, the weight of leadership that he knows all too well.

"Acknowledged, Enkidu. Form up with the RMII's first wing; if you get in over your head, fall back to Parrot Squadron's position. Astelian, transfer Enkidu their data." That being a squadron of VF25-As, fresh and shiny compared to the next wing over and its Nousjadeul-Gers, Macronized Zentradi within waiting for the battle to start.

The Ra Mari II remains a huge ship, by human standards. As for the beams to come--

"We've got contact!" Harpe announces, and Maina says, "Deploy particle field defense!"

Just in time, the strange field of particles bursts into being around the Ra Mari II--and as that golden beam shoots towards the turrets, the Pinpoint Barrier shines into existence, shields rapidly defending against the blow. The turret is intact... for now.

Maina shouts, "Load and fire harpoon missiles! Focus on that gold mobile suit! Parrot and Cockatoo Squadrons, rush in and give the others support!"

Eight narrows her eyes at the displays. "This technology..."

KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari targets Zabine Chareux with Basic Missile Volley!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages block against Eight Orlodhari's Basic Missile Volley!
KTS: Zabine Chareux moderately blocks Eight Orlodhari's Basic Missile Volley, taking 2346 damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass has changed loadout.

<Pose Tracker> Edouard Mass has posed.

The manifestation of the twin angels on the battlefield gives Edouard a little pause - but only a little, as one who has fought against GaoGaiGar. It's an unexpected arrival... but much about this whole situation is unexpected.

"Understood," he replies to Eight, without showing any verbal sign of the psychic acknowledgment they share. As the Admiral calls for Parrot Squadron to intercept, he jets his Nemo upwards over them, tracking potential threats with his BR-M-87 rifle.

The first threat he spots is the Den'an Zon, saber drawn, bearing down on him.

"Hm." He leans in the seat, flicking switches next to his steering grips, and the beam bayonet on the rifle ignites. At the last moment, he catches the saber strike on the bayonet, guiding it away from a more critical strike to the Nemo and gouging away part of its shoulder shield instead.

"An interesting design," he remarks, coolly. "Let's see if the mettle matches the menace." He brings the stock of the heavy beam rifle down on the Den'an Zon's saber arm, then lunges forward with the bayonet - following up that strike with a heavy kick to send the Crossbone mobile suit sailing away.

KTS: Edouard Mass targets Zabine Chareux with BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Bayonet Jab!
KTS: Edouard Mass has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages charge against Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Bayonet Jab!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Bayonet Jab, taking 2000 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

Lucine asks her how they're holding up, "Holding up? Why you asking a thing like that now? You see that thing out there? Don't ask how we're holding up, ask how we're gonna hold that back!" This is her job, she thinks, to keep them all focused - to come back alive. Talking about their feelings...

... feelings can get you killed out here.

"Yeah! Those things! Whatever!" Ryoko backpeddles away like she might have made a mistake, but then Hikaru says she's got her back, and in her cockpit, she manages a smile, "'Course - and don't call it the Gekigan Flare!" She complains, "You're making a Colony Drop sound like a manga plot!"

That smile only lasts for so long as Ruri swears in the way she reared back from and Ryoko makes a face like a cat that just got shocked by a strange smell, "Heh. Got some mouth on you, kid." It's something she's said before, but - this time it's affectionate.

"The right angle- alright!" Before Ruri takes it back, "Wait, so which is it?!" It's - a difficult thing to ask, to deal with the defenders AND stop the drop, but...

"Just means we're all gonna have to give 120 percent today."

Alto however upon showing up, while Ryoko feels relief, the way she shows it is calling out, "The hell you been, Skull-4? Get in formation! You too lover boy!" She means Liam.

Ryoko tries to think of something to say something to get them all fired up with Three Angels, a Skull, a Flower, and a Sun out here but you know - sometimes there's just no way to mash that imagery all together.

(A three faced blazing Angel of Death that says 'Hold my Flower'? Sounds like something Hikaru might draw...)

"The shit - Hikaru don't those look like?" The three units, in enormous mobile suits gleam, "SCATTER!" Ryoko's breaks off as the Gravity Blasts come, even if they're not their targets.

"The hell!? THEY WERE RIGHT THERE?" Ryoko notes, as suddenly they're just, not, "Where do you hide something so big? Keep going! Just stay alert!"

The Aestivalis hurtles closer, and closer to the Colony until one brilliant white, and one of darkest pitch appears and- blink blink- and a pink heart.

"HUH!?" Ryoko sounds just flabbergasted, "That you, Himeyuri? What's with all this love and justice bullshit! You realize this is a COLONY DROP not some ANIME right!?"

There is a singular moment of doubt that perhaps they don't, or they're brainwashed, or... then her hand tightens around her console because all the context clicks the appearance of mobile suits - so similar to Zeons in design, maybe she doesn't get all the pieces, but she was with ZAFT before - Junius Seven - it's not the same, but it all fits together.

"You're a part of this. THIS." Ryoko says, with increasing heat, and emotion, "And that means I WON'T FORGIVE YOU!"

Because she will never forgive herself. Her Aestivalis suddenly surges forward, swinging around in an erratic pattern, before moving back in front of Hikaru's, then charging at the much - MUCH larger mobile suit with fist outstretched.

"We're on a tight schedule people! Hit them fast and hit them hard! Hikaru! Killer Move: START!" At the last possible second, Ryoko breaks off to reveal Hikaru's Aestivalis was hidden behind hers, and flies upwards, slamming it's distortion field against it's opponent, forcing the Daitenshi S1 to deal with the pair on two different fronts.

KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Himeyuri Oono with Killer Move: Start!!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        The enemy units are introducing themselves. In high spirits, even. Kaworu watches the Daitenshi S1 and S2 declare their intentions, paired among the many other Jovian units that likewise ported in. They have manners, he reflects.
        
        Kaworu looks towards the Ra Mari II. He knows already that Shinji isn't aboard--could tell even without looking--and a faint smile creases his lips. The Nadesico and its crew, Alto Saotome in his Messiah, Liam in his Akashima, Rikka leading 3G Red's forces, and more... There's a good number of them assembled.
        
        He doesn't want to fight Lilim--he does not think it's his place to involve himself in Lilim-on-Lilim conflicts--but in this case, they leave him no choice. At least he's in good company.
        
        "<Let's all do whatever we can. We cannot afford to fail,>" he transmits to them all.
        
        The Black Vanguard makes the first move, sending out a trio of Den'an Zons against Unit Beta specifically. They're well-trained, Kaworu notes. Their coordination is excellent, and they don't seem intimidated by the two of them. When they strike with their beam sabers as one, they send brilliant sparks against that iridescent barrier; in warding off two, the third slips past Kaworu's defenses and carves a deep, glowing line in Unit Beta's pale yellow armor.
        
        "Hmmm," he murmurs to himself, taking them in. Anti-kaiju maneuvers... Having participated for a long time in battles against Angels and various types of kaiju, he knows them when he sees them. Interesting--and troubling. He frowns back towards Junius 7.
        
        ...There's no point in asking them to stand down, is there? If they could be convinced with words, they wouldn't have gone to an excess as extreme as this. This is a life-or-death battle.
        
        Even so, Unit Beta doesn't draw her Heat Rapier. Instead, she flares out her arms, sending hexagonal barriers of light bursting forth towards all three Den'an Zons. Should they not manage to evade, the impact will not crush them but jolt their limbs askew and send them flying away--a strong discouragement to follow up, but ultimately only that: a discouragement.
        
        Even in this critical situation, Kaworu is going easy on them. Those pilots are no doubt skilled enough to recognize it for themselves, too.

KTS: Kaworu Nagisa: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa targets Zabine Chareux with Rejection!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: EN Regen activates. Your new EN value is 70.
KTS: SP Regen activates. Your new SP value is 70.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Ultra Warrior Nova - and Qivi - give Rikka and Akane a wave as she banks away. They can't bring all their force in one place, after all... there's a lot of Junius 7 to stop. Right now, Qivi is struggling with how they can stop it at all, but there's an army in front of her and that's a problem she *does* know how to approach.

One big issue at a time.

Qivi doesn't need to psyche herself up to fight Mobile Suits. She has never had a problem fighting people. It's a flaw, but a flaw that - today - is a useful one. She doesn't recognize the logo, but that doesn't matter; she can figure it out later. She raises her shield -

"...?"

Ultra Warrior Nova can't really speak in any way a human can understand in words. Qivi manages to make her mind known regardless, a moment's connection that is wordless but confused - not uncertain but completely failing to understand the twin Daitenshi Angels of Justice and Love. Or the other way around.

Nova doesn't understand it. They're calling us evil, but we're trying to stop a massacre! Qivi, who has lived through colony drops (though never as the target) understands a little better; she's heard Zeonic propaganda, and the Sleeves, so while she doesn't know who these Angels are she at least understands what they seem to believe.

Ultra Warrior Nova's reaction is swift. She pushes forward, a sudden surge of speed, and raises her shield. No attack immediately strikes it, but she keeps it raised anyway and makes a come-on gesture with her other hand. If Qivi's face were visible, her eyes would narrow.

~If you want to stop us from protecting this world, from killing so many innocent people,~ Ultra Warrior Nova thinks, ~then you're going to have to *make* us. Whatever you feel your 'justice' is, it isn't worth that!~ The words aren't audible, but the feeling - the sense of them - is, at least to the sensitive. So is the bubbling anger behind them - Qivi is *furious* about this, and determined to not surrender. The anger almost drowns out the rest of it.

Qivi winds up, and Ultra Warrior Nova FLINGS her shield like an oversized discus, flying through space! On the hit it impacts and rebounds back so that she can catch it, and she brings it up again, holding it before her defensively.

KTS: Qivi targets Michiru Tenjou with Nova Shield Rebound Throw!
KTS: Qivi has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Qivi's Opportunist activates Trick!

<Pose Tracker> Ruri Hoshino has posed.

        To Ryoko, Ruri responds: "The situation warrants it. And it's normal, anyway. You say it all the time." EVEN THOUGH RYOKO HAS TRIED SO HARD TO KEEP HER POTTY MOUTH FROM --

        Devastating...

        "We read you, Skull-4," Ruri says, with just the TINIEST hint of relief that Alto is here too. It would be easy for someone who didn't know her to overlook, but he might be able to hear it. "Hooking you into our systems now." That really just means that she and Omoikane offer the Messiah's computers a nice little handshake and assurance that they're all friends and they have delicious data to share.

        And, right in front of Koyomi... one of those holographic windows appears, showing an impassive teenage girl. (Older than Chise, at least.) "Hello," she says. "Come in. This is the ND-001 Nadesico. Systems Operator Ruri Hoshino, speaking. I don't know who you are, but please join us to stop this colony drop."

        Beat.

        "We didn't do it," she adds, "even though we use the Distortion Field too."

        RURI, THAT'S LIKE THE MOST SUSPICIOUS THING YOU COULD SAY!

        Omoikane is the one who flashes up a window to Hikaru, meanwhile, with his trademark < OK ! > all bound in a pop-up box. Another box shows a cartoony Gekigan Flare in a big red 'X'-ed out circle, as if to back her up. (Poor Ryoko...)

        Ruri pops up in Lucine's cockpit with another message, as well: "Lucine-san, the Dianthus is able to roam further from the Nadesico than the Aestivalis units, because it has a different power source. We may need you to push out further so we're able to cover more ground. Be careful out there." She pauses, and adds: "I think you should stick with Liam-san," because Omoikane has registered the pilot of the Type-4.

        And then --

        "Hostile contact," Ruri reports, as the Gravity Blast Cannons fire. "Gravitational weaponry detected. Registering losses."

        Minato's cheer wavers, as she realises, "It's just like the Shakuyaku..."

        But that trio of robots isn't their main problem, soon enough.

        Ruri watches, dispassionately, as the Angels of Love and Justice take the field. "Fools," she says, as she watches them.

        "Huh?" Minato leans forward, blinking. "Wait a second -- isn't that Captain Oono's voice?" There's a murmur of conversation, on the bridge -- everyone remembers that day on the beach -- and her suspicions are naturally confirmed.

        "... but," Minato frowns, "why would they try to... defend a colony drop...?" And it's her face which appears in a window to Himeyuri, her own painted, femme face furious. "You call yourselves women who will one day be mothers, but you would condemn countless children to death?! No matter what city this falls on -- do you know how many babies are there?! You have no right to go on about your 'maidenly love and justice' when you don't understand the FIRST thing about being a--!!"

        The window cuts out, as Minato takes a d e e p breath and smooths her hair back. It cuts back in, as she adds, more calm but no less spiteful, "what ugly, insufficient women you are."

        Apparently, Eight counting on her gives Minato the strength of ten moms.

        "The unknown Angels are registering as AECF units," Ruri informs their pilots, unshaken. "Now coordinating targeting data." She feeds Ryoko, Hikaru, and Alto her coordinates, as she offers Dynazenon -- the robot, rather than any of its pilots -- advice on how to strike more effectively.

KTS: Zabine Chareux engages guard against Kaworu Nagisa's Rejection!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully guards Kaworu Nagisa's Rejection, taking 2775 damage!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino targets Ryoko Subaru, Hikaru Amano, and Alto Saotome with Coordinate!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Attune Spirit Command targeting Koyomi Yamanaka
KTS: Ryoko Subaru accepts Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino coordinates maneuvers, raising Ryoko Subaru's Piloting!
KTS: Best Defense! Ryoko Subaru successfully reacts to Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate, taking 0 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

Galactron follows behind her, and Ultra Warrior Nova is here, too, splitting off as they approach. These are people she trusts - she's glad they have her back. And they aren't the only familiar faces.

"Same here, MDF. Glad you're here." Rikka replies back to Eight. Indeed - she still remembers that day, when her world changed completely, when she saw her first glimpse of Tsutsujidai's true nature.

She never thought she'd be here, fighting together with her for the sake of the Earth.

And, in the distance? Isn't that that combiner unit? Dynazenon, was it? Even it's here...

The forces defending Junius 7 split off - and the Berga Giros points its weapon at her. It's shaped like a lance - but it opens fire in a burst of shells. Rikka braces herself, the bursts rattling against her mobile suit's armor.

"How are you holding up?" Rikka asides to Akane, before focusing back on Zabine.

"Why are you doing this? So many lives, so many memories... It's unthinkable!" Rikka asks. The Mu Gundam darts to the side through space, head vulcans unleashing a flurry of beams to provide covering fire for her allies as they ready themselves.

Rikka doesn't think of herself as a fighter - but it's easier than she'd like to take aim at the Berga Giros, too familiar. Some part of her still remembers the last time she sortied against other people. She may need that, now.

KTS: Rikka Takarada targets Zabine Chareux with Covering Fire!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Qivi gets a small wave back. She can't spare that much attention at the moment.

At first, Akane assumes she's being sighted in on with those lasers -- but no, they're just comm lasers. Wait -- they're comm lasers --

The information overwhelm hits Akane like a ton of bricks. Galactron is extremely susceptible to this type of 'mental DDOS' attack. More than that, though, the intimate bond between a Galactron and the human inside it means she has to share in the overwhelm.

"Hhh... hhaaa -- it's so hot..." Akane murmurs, as she feels the data inside herself almost like a heat, crawling along nerves and veins and arteries almost like fire. "S-stop!"

She gives her head a hard jerk to the side; it's a motion mirrored by Galactron a few moments later. Forcing a stack dump is itself disorienting; she still feels dizzy and sick, but she does her absolute best to push through it. "I'm -- doing my best," Akane forces out, to Rikka. "They really did their homework, though... What about you?"

Reaching up toward its face, the Galactron unit seizes its command horn; with a forceful yank, it pulls it off of its snout, a solid blade snaking out of it. Akane charges forward, opening up with a deceptively fast slash toward the much smaller mobile suit.

KTS: Akane Shinjo: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Akane Shinjo targets Zabine Chareux with Galactron Poignard Draw-Strike!
KTS: Akane Shinjo has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo's New Order activates Alert!

<Pose Tracker> Hikaru Amano has posed.

"The idea of a colony drop is absurd enough that it may as well be!" Is how Hikaru sees it, in regard to calling it the Gekigan Flare. "See? Even Omoikane agrees with me!" Thanks Omoikane!

'How are you holding up?' Lucine asks, and Hikaru gives a flashy thumbs-up through the window screen. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about all this stuff, but hey... I think the Earth is in pretty good hands right now. As long as we just keep counting on each other."

As if to illustrate her point, the massive amount of forces that arrive to support them. Alto arriving to reinforce the Nadesico, the rest of Terminal, with Eight in command, some of NERV and GGG's best - and is that Ultraman?! (Ultrawoman, Hikaru corrects on closer inspection). And wait... was Dynazenon REAL all along?

"Alto-kun, Liam-san... the Nadesico welcomes you back Let's do this together!" Hikaru knows they both have appointments in NUNE, but as far as she's concerned, they'll always be a part of the Nadesico crew in spirit.

"Gekiganger look-alikes?!" Hikaru's eyes, widen, as they approach, coming to the same conclusion as Ryoko, pushing to maneuver the Aestivalis out of the Gravity Blast's way. "No way... Ryoko, I think they're using Gekigan Vision! Stay sharp!" That is to say, they can teleport and move really fast. Excellent.

But the Daitenshi pair are the ones who really steal the show. Hikaru knows who they are - having crossed with them several times, she's pretty sure they were the ones she ran into Comiket, too. And now they're participating in this operation to potentially wipe out the Earth? Hikaru's tongue clicks in what can only be called... disappointment.

"Hey there, 'angels of love'~" Hikaru transmits, still keeping her same smile as ever. "I've got to say, as a fellow artist, that was a pretty impressive performance. Definitely, you've put a lot of thought into your craft!"

That smile fades, though, as she directs this towards both Himeyuri and Michiru. But aren't you distracting yourself?" She asks, as she moves in with Ryoko. "Is there really any love or justice in just... killing people? Innocent people?" From the way they're talking, are the people who cling to the surface of the Earth really 'people' to them in the first place? "I thought that if Gekiganger could bring us together, like it did at Comiket, there wouldn't be any need for this. But even I know the world of manga and anime isn't the same as the real world!"

She can tell Ryoko's upset too, Hikaru doesn't blame her at all, considering the stakes. If anything, she's right to be so angry... "Roger that, Ryoko! One Killer Move, coming in hot!!" She uses her wingmates' opening with the Distortion Field, as well as Ruri's targeting data, to quickly fly in from the Himeyuri's Daitenshi's blind spot, slipping in an Immediate Knife, bolstered by the Distortion Field itself. "And don't forget... we called ourselves the Three Angels first!"

KTS: Hikaru Amano has activated the Rouse Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru
KTS: Hikaru Amano accepts Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino coordinates maneuvers, raising Hikaru Amano's Piloting!
KTS: Best Defense! Hikaru Amano successfully reacts to Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Akane Shinjo
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Eight Orlodhari
KTS: Hikaru Amano targets Himeyuri Oono with Itadakimasu Knife!
KTS: Hikaru Amano has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Judau Ashta has posed.

There are many, many units scattering the battlefield surrounding the encroaching, distortion-enveloped Junius 7. Many of them Judau recognizes,

(like what the hell is that nemo doing out here instead of in a museum??)

but... there are also many more he doesn't. Several that seem like... some sort of variations of... super robots? With technology like he's never seen before.

And a whole host of Mobile Suits he's never seen deployed before but whose whole look tells him they are -exactly- part of the problem.

Some of it is worrisome. None of it, however, is anything Judau Ashta dwells on. He doesn't overthink these details -- he doesn't really particularly think of them at all. He just -blazes- a path forward with his heavily armored Gundam, banking and weaving through enemy fire until --

there's a twing in the fringes of his expanding spatial awareness. A feeling of violent intent that rings seconds before the ZZ's radar warns him an encroaching hostile. Judau cranes his neck suddenly; the ZZ turns in kind with the well-seasoned shift of its controls.

Judau's barely even seen the smaller, purple silhouette in the distance by the time he's already charging the Double Zeta -directly- towards it. That beam shield CRASHES against the armored surface of the ZZ, crackling across antibeam coating and providing sufficient impact to KNOCK Judau about with disorienting violence in his cockpit.

Which doesn't at -all- stop Judau from continuing to ramp the acceleration of the ZZ Gundam until sheer recklessness and some of the best thrusters ever conceived by the minds of Anaheim Electronics sees the entire bulk of the Gundam seeking to BODY the Berga Giros.

Forehead-first.

...It's time to show you that the Universal Century has moved beyond you.

<"BITE ME, DICK!">

CLANG

This is the loud, belligerent rebuttal to Zabine's eloquent threat; the collision itself won't be particularly damaging, so much as potentially jarring.

No -- that's just Judau Ashta making his thoughts crystal clear.

What IS potentially more damaging is the apparent, shoulder-mounted cannon barrels that the Double Zeta is suddenly gripping and -yanking- free from their mounts, igniting the long, unstable red blades of their hyper beam sabers as he brings -both- crashing down towards the Berga Giros in a swift, powerful cross slash.

<"I bet you've got this big long speech all locked and loaded about how you're the future or whatever pretentious crap makes you think ANY of this AWFUL, STUPID NONSENSE is even remotely justified, but you can just SHOVE IT! I know exactly what the hell you are!">

The Biosensor blooms, and a shimmer of magenta-red sheathes the FAZZ as it swings, amplifying its pilot's anger across the battlefield like a hammerblow.

<"AND I WOULDN'T EVEN UNDERSTAND HALF YOUR BULLSHIT WORDS ANYWAY!">

And this, Judau Ashta shouts at the top of his lungs, like it was the greatest point of pride in the entire world.

KTS: Judau Ashta: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Judau Ashta targets Zabine Chareux with Hyper Beam Sabers - Heavy Srike!
KTS: Judau Ashta has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono accepts Michiru Tenjou's Fortify!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou fortifies Himeyuri Oono's armor!
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Michiru Tenjou's Fortify, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Rikka Takarada's Covering Fire!
KTS: Zabine Chareux poorly reacts to Rikka Takarada's Covering Fire, taking 3600 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Foresee Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Foresee Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage Guard against Ryoko Subaru's Killer Move: Start!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Ryoko Subaru's Killer Move: Start!, taking 2850 damage!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru begins a Formation attack!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages guard against Hikaru Amano's Itadakimasu Knife!
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully guards Hikaru Amano's Itadakimasu Knife, taking 4050 damage!
KTS: Hikaru Amano completes the Formation attack!
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages parry against Akane Shinjo's Galactron Poignard Draw-Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Akane Shinjo's Galactron Poignard Draw-Strike, taking 1870 damage!
KTS: Akane Shinjo: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou engages block against Qivi's Nova Shield Rebound Throw!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou successfully blocks Qivi's Nova Shield Rebound Throw, taking 3330 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Judau Ashta's Hyper Beam Sabers - Heavy Srike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Judau Ashta's Hyper Beam Sabers - Heavy Srike, taking 3520 damage!
KTS: Judau Ashta: Will Barrier Activates.

<Pose Tracker> Koyomi Yamanaka has posed.

Dynazenon roars skyward. Gauma's teeth grit and grind, watching the battle clash, watching the BEHEMOTH beyond loom and draw near. He can't let it win...won't let it destroy this world they died for...! Not until...!!

"Gauma..." Yomogi's voice comes over the comm, quietly. "...is this the kind of thing you want to fight for? Stopping kaiju and...this?"

"Huh?" Gauma grunts, stretching his neck until it cracks audibly. "Gimme a break, is this the time? Keep focused." His eyes focus intently as the Gravity Blasts start firing off, as the Angels start their routine. "They're coming."

A singing moment of silence gathers around them, each tensing in their own way. Then Ruri pops up on all their monitors and Gauma audibly deflates with a startled "Wha!?" and then a differently startled, "Uhh!?"

%Dynazenon's eyes flash in the darkness in tune with each speaker. Koyomi takes over: "I think they're right. Those guys are using pretty similar weapons. Uhm, I think so, anyway."

Gauma recovers himself enough to grunt. "Right, yeah. Of course! Dynazenon is here to stop this madness!" ... "Man, those guys are really giving it to you...they're teleporting like that kaiju the other day, too..."

And then, all eyes fall on Himeyuri and Michiru's performance. Dynazenon hovers there for a long, long few baffled seconds.

Then the fin on its wrist slips into position, and Dynazenon surges forward to slash down and through. "If you're gonna threaten like that, be ready for the consequences!!" Gauma yells. "I don't see any angels here!"

KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka targets Himeyuri Oono with Dyna Saber Quick Slash!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka's Read the Road activates Valor!
KTS: Chise Asukagawa has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Koyomi Yamanaka
KTS: Chise Asukagawa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Chise Asukagawa's Listen To My Heart activates Trick!

<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.

The situation rapidly becomes more complicated. Starting with the machines on a direct intercept course with the Ra Mari II. Naoko frowns. Mobile Suits, certainly, but she isn't familiar with these. "So, um. Do we have any intel on who exactly we're fighting here?" She just goes ahead and asks in a general broadcast. Regardless of the answer, looks like it's time to start recording data on their capabilities.

The Sukeban Kiseki is quick to move once beam fire starts coming in from the Den'an Zons. She's begins to formulate a plan to break through and counter, but just then, long range sensors pick up something bizarre approaching from another vector. Or perhaps 'approaching' is the wrong word. 'Teleporting' seems more accurate. That, and... "Gravity weapons? What the hell are those things?"

Her curiosity gets the better of her - a big mistake in the middle of a battlefield. Trying to divide her attention between analysing the unknown threat and the comparatively more familiar one in front of her costs her, when a Den'an Zon breaks through and engages her with a Beam Saber. Too slow on the defense, she can only attempt to soften the blow somewhat through her machine's omni-directional barrier, but the reaction is too slow to prevent her machine from taking a hit across the upper arm and shoulder.

"Ugh, crap! Dammit, no fair, I was-- rgh, never mind! If that's how you want to play...!"

Reaching for the left hip, Sukeban Kiseki withdraws what appears to be the hilt of a non-standard Beam Saber of some kind. It's not actually required, given that the green energy blade that bursts forth from it is fully formed by her mind. But she's found it's easier to control a melee weapon if there's a physical component involved, and thus we have her latest addition to her Arm Slave's armanents: a Mind-Beam Katana. Which she naturally announces by yelling loudly.

"NOVAAA... BLAAAAADE!"

With that, the Arm Slave charges past the offending Den'an Zon with a single, powerful strike, as it moves in a sudden blur. Quickly turning about to potentially follow up, depending on the result, Naoko was about to fire off a quip, when--

"...Huh?"

It's far away, but it feels so close. An unmistakable mental sensation. Unlike a Newtype, she doesn't generally sense other psychics so directly. The only times she ever feels this is... when there are others like her nearby. But who...?

"Is it... among the enemy...?"

That in itself is cause for dismay. She hates the idea of those that are like her fighting on different sides. Surely those who have such a deep, fundamental commonality should be able to get along. ...She can't help herself. She has to make sure, at the very least. That much should be easy. It happens almost automatically, when she but focuses her mind, on the words she'd like to convey.

Who are you...?

KTS: Naoko Suzuki: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki targets Zabine Chareux with Nova Blade!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Alto Saotome has posed.

        <"Where do you think I've been!? Powdering my nose?"> Alto bites back at Ryoko with seeming annoyance, but really is just a way of easing a bit of tension at the situation. To Hikaru he's a bit more civil, <"Nice to be back, Hikaru. Been a while, huh?">

        The warning about not getting too close to the massive distortion field covering Junius 7 is definitely taken to heart. So they need to take it down first before they can deal with the actual mass itself. And no doubt that's going to be difficult, given the units that appear to be opposing them. Alto doesn't recognise the slightly strange looking mobile suits. But he's fought their kind before. They just need to break through.

        Alto's system alerts him to the incoming feed from the Nadesico. He taps the Accept button and watches as the stream initiates. He says, <"Thanks Ruri, Omoikane. Now lets-">

        'SCATTER!' Alto reacts to the warning quickly, banking his fighter away quickly as the gravity blast washes out across space. It hadn't been aimed at him, but he also hadn't caught sight of where it came from so the warning is appreciated regardless. He brings his fighter back around again after the blast passes, intending to dive nose first into those mobile suits-

        In a flash, a pair of units suddenly appear in the Messiah's path some distance ahead!

        "What the hell!?" That didn't look like any kind of active camouflage that Alto has seen before. What kinds of units are those?

        And then the voices of the pilots of the S1 and S2 come over the radio, as they twirl through space and create a pink love heart in the void.

        "What... The... Hell." Alto just stares in disbelief at the sight of the two units hand in hand. Wait. Weren't those voices familiar?

        And then he here's Ryoko's calling out of one of them. Yes, he remembers now... But weren't they ZAFT? Then they're with the extremists? That would make sense... Though Alto is still questioning just what the hell those units are. And who would design something like that!? Or ACT like that in the middle of a colony drop!?

        <"There's absolutely nothing about what's happening here that could be even closely related to 'pure love'! If anything this is a god damned nightmare!"> Alto just cannot comprehend what the hell is going through these two's minds.

        Ryoko leads the charge and Alto is glad that there are people here who are freaking NORMAL. As Ryoko and Hikaru charge in straight with their combo attack, Alto swings his fighter around wide. He watches as their strikes connect, with the Dynazenon soon coming in afterwards.

        Alto waits for them to get clear before he turns back in towards the S1. He then pulls the trigger as it comes into his sights, the gunpod slung beneath his fighter spinning up and spitting out a stream of bullets as he tries to cover the three from afar and pin the false angel for them to follow up.

KTS: Alto Saotome accepts Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino coordinates maneuvers, raising Alto Saotome's Piloting!
KTS: Best Defense! Alto Saotome successfully reacts to Ruri Hoshino's Coordinate, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Strike Spirit Command.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages parry against Naoko Suzuki's Nova Blade!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Naoko Suzuki's Nova Blade, taking 2450 damage!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki: Will Barrier Activates.
KTS: Alto Saotome targets Himeyuri Oono with Leading Fire!
KTS: Alto Saotome has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

Ryoko clears her throat at Gauma's transmission denying the presence of Angels.

"Actually we're kinda the Three Angels Squad, over here. It's been our thing for years."

Pause.

"You know what, neverfuckingmind, this is definitely not the time."

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

In a sense, Kae-soon was expecting armageddon. It would only be fair; he is helping to bring about armageddon. He doesn't receive that, though.

Hexagonal barriers of light fly out; one strikes into each Den'an Zon, and they cannot evade in time. Limbs are jolted; they're thrown aside, and the two wingmates nearly slam into each other. But they survive.

"Do not think that we will go easy on you," Kae-soon tells Kaworu. "This... is for the future that we've sworn ourselves to! And a verdant garden can only be built upon the gravest ash!"

The three Den'an Zons raise their shot lancers. Then, they fly forward as one -- and the huge lances goes slamming for Unit Beta.

- * - * -

The technology of the Buch Concern -- the company that made the Den'an Zons and the other military equipment of the Crossbone Vanguard -- is advanced. It is a little suspiciously advanced: Mobile Suits that have efficient reactors and are smaller, advanced beam weaponry like beam shields, and more. Buch had been quiet for years.

The reason is now apparent.

The golden Den'an Zon, the one piloted by Annamarie, turns out its left arm. The circular device on its arm flashes, as that beam shield comes only. The missiles slam into it -- and burn into nothingness, though a couple explode, and slam her backward.

"Right behind you, ma'am!" a pilot cries out, before he aims his shot lancer at the distant light of Parrot Squadron, as it larges. Machinegun rounds tear across space, as he does.

The pilot facing Edouard draws in a surprised gasp, as the beam saber is parried by a beam bayonet. A moment later, his beam shield activates -- which lets him catch it, just in time, though it does cause sparks and lightning to arc across it.

"Gh... stronger than I expected!" he snaps, before he slams the beam shield forward, trying to sweep it across the Nemo.

'NOVAAA... BLAAAAADE!'

The Arm Slave slashes past the Den'an Zon. The waist is cut into, sparks exploding from it. The Mobile Suit wavers; the pilot is shaken. It's a moment that could be capitalized on.

But then Annamarie's golden Den'an Zon is there, flying in and raising her own beam shield. Blade and shield collide, with an explosion of lightning between them.

"Your opponent's right in front of you!" Annamarie shouts at Nova.

her beam saber sweeps out -- slashing directly in front of her, and then following up with a fast stab at the Arm Slave.

- * - * -

The Berga Giros slams into the Full Armor Double Zeta. The big, armored Gundam causes some of that faceplate to crumple; it throws Zabine back against the chair, hard. The momentum threatens to drag the smaller Mobile Suit with it...

But no. The small thruster nozzles mounted along the back swivel and shift, on small turrets, and fire -- and it slides under the Double Zeta, letting the Gundam barrel ahead.

"I'll spare you the speeches," Zabine tells Judau. "Someone like you... you wouldn't understand. You weren't born to carry this weight."

Then, the Berga Giros whirls.

"We're soldiers," Zabine says to Rikka. "We've evaluated the risks, we've seen what benefits it can get us, and we've acted accordingly."

He moves the Berga Giros backward, thrusters firing, as the Mu Gundam's vulcans slash just across the right shoulder -- before he makes the Mobile Suit juke to the side. He grimaces, before he draws a beam saber. The blade erupts, a vicious red glow coming off it, and flies in.

He sweeps across the Mu Gundam, before rapidly disengaging. He turns -- and there's a surprised noise in the back of his throat, to see the Galactron wield its horn.

When Akane swings the horn down, the beam saber raises, catching it. Sparks fly, as the two meet, but the armor on the forearm begins to crumple -- which is when Zabine flies forward. He breaks the parry, then slashes the beam saber hard across the side of the Galactron.

The shelf nozzles -- the small 'wings' on its back -- swivel and make it turn, effortlessly, and then he shoots back towards the Double Zeta's side. The shot lancer is lifted, the enormous cone of steel set in place -- and he thrusts it right for the midsection of the Double Zeta.

KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Kaworu Nagisa with Den'an Zon Shot Lancer Cavalry!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Eight Orlodhari with Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Edouard Mass with Beam Shield Bash!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Naoko Suzuki with Beam Saber Twin Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Rikka Takarada with Beam Saber Slash!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Akane Shinjo with Beam Saber Rush!
KTS: Judau Ashta's Cyber Feeling activates!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Judau Ashta with Shot Lancer Thrust!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo fails to engage guard against Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Rush!
KTS: Akane Shinjo's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Akane Shinjo successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Rush, taking 3375 damage!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari fails to engage evade against Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's EN Barrier activates, negating 1000 base damage.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst, taking 2958 damage!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Trust Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa engages charge against Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Shot Lancer Cavalry!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa's Will Barrier activates, negating 1500 base damage.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa moderately reacts to Zabine Chareux's Den'an Zon Shot Lancer Cavalry, taking 3510 damage!
KTS: Your unit's HP stands at 8600
KTS: Rikka Takarada fails to engage Guard against Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Slash!
KTS: Rikka Takarada successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Slash, taking 3780 damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass engages parry against Zabine Chareux's Beam Shield Bash!
KTS: Critical Hit! Edouard Mass poorly reacts to Zabine Chareux's Beam Shield Bash, taking 4000 damage!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Zabine Chareux's Steady Hand activates, causing Jam L1!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Zabine Chareux's Sterner Stuff activates, causing Nullify!
KTS: Judau Ashta engages parry against Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Thrust!
KTS: Judau Ashta's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Judau Ashta successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Thrust, taking 2050 damage!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki engages guard against Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Twin Strike!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki poorly guards Zabine Chareux's Beam Saber Twin Strike, taking 3600 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        Ryoko's words would normally be enough to fire Lucine up. Despite being the picture perfect essence of 'flower', there's no hesitation in the Martian pilot's bones to be unladylike when it counts. However, her expression seems distant, like she's being occupied by something else.

        Flashes of someone else's memory, coming in like boiling streams of water. Lucine knows instantly who these are from like she'd know the timbre of his voice.

         The sky through the window. The rattle of engines. The ground shakes. The pale face of _Liam's_ mother. Pack a bag, need to go, now. What will come next? She knows. He knows. They all know.

        Ruri's face appears on the Dianthus's display, shocking Lucine back. < "Roger. Ryoko, Hikaru... Alto. Just like before, isn't it? I'll support all of you from the other side." >

        The Dianthus breaks from the two Angels (the _original ones_) as two more appear, seemingly from nowhere.

        The Dianthus stalls as its pilot tilts her head. < "Weren't these the pilots we met on that beach?" > Lucine wasn't there for the other times they had to join together, having been selected to help with the other mission towards Jupiter. < "They're confused." > Maybe it's a blessing that Lucine missed Hikari's mention of how similar some of these units look to a certain anime. But even if she did, what significance would it have?

        There's something else that bothers her, however. < ".... Ruri, Minato... could you look up that IFF signature coming from the Angels?" > She has to remind herself these are... not those kind of angels. Or the other kind of Angels, as Ryoko attests. < "It seems familiar." >

        Calmly, Lucine continues on, circling by Liam, with a message for Liam's com alone. < ".... We won't let it happen. I'm here with you, and I'll do everything I can to protect Earth." > Tears threaten to obscure her vision. Never had she ever guessed she'd feel this way towards Earth when she was little, but...

         This is her home.

        < "Let's show them what it means to be an angel." > The Dianthus soars towards the other half of the Daitenshi, towards Michiru, sliver glaive still in hand. < "I'll defend my adopted home to the last... if there is any doubt in your heart that you're not on the right side... back away *now*." > The sleeker fit of the Dianthus offers a contrast to Michiru's unit, highlighting the spots where Lucine's father may have had a guiding role over his younger daughter's more fanciful ideas.

         In a way, it almost could look... like an evil counterpart.

KTS: Lucine Azul targets Michiru Tenjou with CL0-V3 Glaive Dive!
KTS: Lucine Azul has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage Guard against Koyomi Yamanaka's Dyna Saber Quick Slash!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Koyomi Yamanaka's Dyna Saber Quick Slash, taking 2775 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

Eight doesn't chatter with Rikka, but that shared moment is enough for now. Neither does she talk any further to Eduoard, beyond the orders he asked for. Instead..

"Right," she agrees with fellow leader Kaworu. "Together, we'll do our best."

She could've responded to the Angels. She should've. But admittedly, Eight was baffled enough by their performance that she didn't, especially since she wasn't there, that day at the beach.

Eight is counting on Minato!!

And Naoko, "We don't," Eight confirms for her young friend. "So look alive out there." They have no idea who they're fighting, other than the fact that they have Distortion Field technology.

Eight sees on her display the golden mobile suit--a beam shield, held on the arm. She frowns sharply, zooming in on the sensors to get a display of that unit in particular--even as Parrot Squadron shoots out. Machinegun rounds tear through space.

The Pinpoint Barriers of Parrot Squadron can block some of the bullets, but in order to get away from the rest, they have to break formation, turning to mobile suit mode. One is hit, and the transformation aborts, sending it shooting forward to try to get out of the way.

"Feel them out!" Maina directs, "Don't worry about taking her down immediately--test her defenses, and stay alive out there!"

So, the golden Den'an Zon is the focus of Parrot Squadron's next set of attacks, but not the only one: two go after the pilot who hit their own, and the other three go after her, firing beams here, there, at her flanks, trying to find an opening and keep her and her pilots off-balance.

She'll have to hope that Nova's new technology is everything she says it is.

"There is no 'garden' in the path you're paving," Eight says over the cpen comms to more of the Den'an Zons. "Killing the defenseless... It only perpetuates the cycle of death."

The Fuujin and the Suijin, meanwhile, hang back at Eight's orders; they're meant to stay in reserve, to help against the colony... but they don't have defenses as sturdy as the Ra Mari II.

Soldiers. Soldiers who evaluate the risks...

Eight's expression flattens.

KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages evade against Alto Saotome's Leading Fire!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Alto Saotome's Leading Fire, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari targets Zabine Chareux with Ra Mari II' Mobile Suit Wings Harrying Tactics!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Eight Orlodhari's Ra Mari II' Mobile Suit Wings Harrying Tactics!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Eight Orlodhari's Ra Mari II' Mobile Suit Wings Harrying
Tactics, taking 0 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.

        'Get in formation! You too, lover boy!'

        Liam's lips twitch. The Akashima rockets high over the Nadesico, juking to the right to slip past the launching Aestivalis. "Understood," Liam says. Mortal terror wafts off him in great waves, barely kept in check by the focus drilled into him, and the knowledge he's not alone. "Preparing to engage defensive screen." Defensive screen. Of course it has one of those. Of course there are people who want to see this horror play out.

        By now, the Akashima has slowed enough that Liam can make normal combat maneuvers. Its cannon arm snaps up as he tracks a fleeting IFF that darts off to engage other defenders. He doesn't recognize it. But another target presents itself soon enough, with all the pomp and circumstance of one of those Natural Lychee reruns Liam watched when he was too wired and anxious to sleep.

        Liam's response to Himeyuri and Michiru's spirited introduction consists of five whole seconds of stony, open silence. His hand flicks open a channel on reflex, but words fail him, immediately. He broadcasts dead air as his thoughts whirl in circles, desperately searching for a scenario where this makes sense. Did he die? he thinks, as his shoulders seize in a spasm that isn't quite laughter. Is this hell? The first actual sound he makes is an actual laugh--ragged, disbelieving. Long-range is picking up other ZAFT beacons--renegades, absolutely--but the S1 and S2 aren't among them.

        Wait.

        "Tenican," Liam breathes, his eyes locking on the S2 as if his gaze could bore through its hull and reveal the pilot inside. "Lu's--right. You were there. With ZAFT." Ryoko's casting judgment. Hikaru's chatting with them like they're all on VERTEX together. Lucine's voice reaches him, and he wants, so desperately, to believe she's right. "<Lu,>" he chokes out, over tightbeam. "<I-->" Distractions. He can't get distracted here.

        The Type-4's arm swings up, targeting the S2's center of mass. The hydraulics in the barrel start to spin up. "No. Not indulging you. Not funny. Not a game." The opposite, perhaps, of the calm, friendly man Himeyuri and Michiru met at Tenican. "Run, or die here."

        The Akashima's arm cannon roars to life, sending a barrage of kinetic-kill fire downrange at the S2. Much of it isn't aimed at the S2 itself, but Liam's trying to lock down its maneuvering options into something he and Lucine can deal with. Lock it down, kill it.

KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Michiru Tenjou with Akashima Arm Cannon Suppression Fire!
KTS: Liam 7-020 has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Liam 7-020's Tactical Intelligence activates Alert!

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Certainly no angels here.
        
        Kae-soon and his companions are not discouraged; they insist on their own vision of the future and charge back in with their shot lancers.
        
        "<You're mistaken,>" Kaworu transmits back. "<But I know I can't convince you.>"
        
        Unit Beta draws her Heat Rapier now, taking on the trio as she thrusts forward with the brilliant spark and strike of weapons on weapons. Those three lances shear along her armor, but between her swordplay and her A.T. Field, it's a partial strike--even if what does land does considerable damage. Kaworu doesn't flinch, though, even as the sensation carves up his thighs and arms. Unit Beta flips up and around with the elegance of a prima ballerina, heeled feet split as if landing on stage. But, naturally, there is only air.
        
        "<I'm truly sorry it must be this way,>" he continues, and he sounds like it--because he is. "<Anytime you would like to surrender, I'll accept it... after Junius 7 has been neutralized.>"
        
        Unit Beta thrusts the Heat Rapier forth. A massive bubble of heat, energy, and force bursts forth, aiming to catch all three of the Den'an Zons in an umbrella-shaped blast.
        
        Time is of the essence, but he can see from the visuals within his entry plug that the Ra Mari II, the Nadesico, and the others are handling themselves well so far. Liam has joined up with the Nadesico to fight the Daitenshi S2. Kaworu will place his trust in him and the rest to do what must be done.
        
        He smiles at Eight's transmission--both how she chimes in with him, and her rebuttal of the talk of gardens. "<That's right. I'm sure they have their reasons, but we cannot abide by them.>"

KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa targets Zabine Chareux with Rapier Wave!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: EN Regen activates. Your new EN value is 72.
KTS: SP Regen activates. Your new SP value is 75.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou engages charge against Lucine Azul's CL0-V3 Glaive Dive!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Lucine Azul's CL0-V3 Glaive Dive, taking 3300 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages guard against Kaworu Nagisa's Rapier Wave!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully guards Kaworu Nagisa's Rapier Wave, taking 4250 damage!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou engages guard against Liam 7-020's Akashima Arm Cannon Suppression Fire!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully guards Liam 7-020's Akashima Arm Cannon Suppression Fire, taking 2765
damage!

<Pose Tracker> Edouard Mass has posed.

"Grrgh!" Edouard grunts as the Nemo is slashed across the waist by the beam shield. He falls back, lifting the BR-M-87. "Enough of this."

The Nemo accelerates across the battlefield, throttle opened to its fullest degree, as he observes the formation of the Black Vanguard unit, attempting to pick out their commander. Ah - there.

"You've evaluated the risks?" His comm to the leader is dry - arid, even. "In any other situation, I would laugh at you... but this is no laughing matter. Very well."

"Let's see just how well your new toys perform."

Maintaining his high speed, he pulls the trigger three times, beams of golden megaparticles raining down on the De'nan Zon unit.

"Whatever your risk assessment tells you, ultimately you're aping the myopia of fools and cowards."

He fires another three-shot burst.

"... I would know."

KTS: Edouard Mass has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.
KTS: Edouard Mass has activated the Strike Spirit Command.
KTS: Edouard Mass targets Zabine Chareux with BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Skirmishing Volley!
KTS: Edouard Mass has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Skirmishing Volley!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Skirmishing Volley, taking 3150 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"...It's difficult. But I'll make it through." Rikka admits to Akane after a moment of thought. It's not like before. She's fighting for something, now.

Zabine responds to her - they're soldiers, he says. It's a familiar quiet that passes over Rikka - that moment where she's so incensed she can't even form a response, from the build-up of emotions.

The Berga Giros jukes to the side, beam saber drawn, and the Mu Gundam raises its shield to intercept the attack. A head-on attack is prevented - but Rikka grits her teeth and exhales sharply as it cuts across the Mu Gundam's arm.

"You're soldiers." Rikka repeats, her tone cold, as Zabine's mobile suit departs toward Akane. "Okay."

It might seem like she'll leave it at that, until -

"Funnels! Go!" Rikka calls out and the umbrella-shaped funnel rack emerges from the Mu Gundam's back, funnels of two disparate types - one toyetic, one designed as nothing more than a weapon - disperse from the ribs.

"'Risks'... you can't simplify it like that! You're talking about killing countless innocent people! Soldier or not, there's no benefit worth that!" Rikka shouts. The funnels follow her heart, one set opening fire on the Berga Giros... while the other set whirls around to flank him in the process.

KTS: Rikka Takarada targets Zabine Chareux with Flanking Maneuver!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

Akane's attention remains as much on Rikka as on her own position -- and that's a little dangerous, because it enables Zabine to get in with a forceful slash that scores Galactron's armor. She pulls back from the pain on reflex, and so too does Galactron.

Her thoughts race. Rikka seems to have settled into the cockpit again -- something that makes Akane more than a little anxious, even if she knows it's valuable here in the moment.

This time, she does open her own comms to Zabine. "What happens the next time you disagree with your allies? Are you gonna do this to them too?" she asks -- she knows how easy it is to become accustomed to violence... and how hard it is to stop.

She decides to stay away rather than rush in with her blade again; Galactron's hands come up, fingers pointing forward in perfect mechanical parallel. She tries to herd Zabine's machine toward those funnels with quick, even bursts from each finger-gun like beam vulcans, penning him in.

KTS: Akane Shinjo targets Zabine Chareux with Galactron Fusil!
KTS: Akane Shinjo has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo's New Order activates Trick!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Kaworu Nagisa
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Naoko Suzuki
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages block against Rikka Takarada's Flanking Maneuver!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully blocks Rikka Takarada's Flanking Maneuver, taking 2450 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

        She knew this was coming. She knew this was coming from the get go. It was inevitable, and she'd hardened herself to it. It might be a surprise to see how Himeyuri is dressed as she comes up in the cockpit- and seemingly not remotely embarrassed. She just has to harden her heart. She has to.

        But when Subaru-san's image comes in, she tries to keep up that smile. The smile of a heroine- even if she winces as Ryoko swears at her. "...I have to do this, Subaru-san." This isn't the first time they've fought at all. Or the first time Himeyuri has done something beyond the pale. Why is she explaining herself? Why is she explaining herself to this woman. "...There's still time for you to flee. You don't have to perish for the Federation's century of crimes against us. But... if you choose to stand with them, I must fulfill my duty." Her duty... that isn't a woman's duty, but it's *her* duty. She was apart from other girls. She was the Saint, blessed with the Knowledge of Kokubunji, the embodiment of Miss Nanako. She had to follow her duties.

        Hikaru compliments their entrance and questions her justice. "That's... The people of Earth aren't innocent. Not for what they did to us." But her voice is waning, struggling- especially when Hikaru mentions Comiket. "W-wait, you knew? Even through our perfect disguises? Why didn't you inform the rest of your spies!?" Was... Was Hikaru just toying with them the whole time!?

        Which is when Minato bursts in and Hime is completely caught off guard. She had expected so many things from the boyish women on the Nadesico but Minato's words seem to cut to the bone. She's...

        They're the enemy. They're the enemy. They're the enemy. An enemy has to be wiped out to the last man, and the Earth. Even... even...

        'You're a part of this. THIS.'

        'what ugly, insufficient women you are.'

        'Is there really any love or justice in just... killing people? Innocent people?'

        'And that means I WON'T FORGIVE YOU!'

        Ryoko and Hikaru close around Daitenshi S1, and while she raises her staff to defend herself, she's no good in close combat. She knew that, she always knew that. That's why she had Michiru after all. That's why they were always paired, that's why the Galaxynova had Michiru with her, her shield.

        And now she's without her shield. Her best friend is engaged in combat. The denan'zons are supposed to support her, but...

        The words thrown at her run into her head run around, as Ryoko slams into her and then Hikaru's knife sticks into the back of the Daitenshi. The distortion field does it's job as best as it can- but it's simply not as strong as the ones the men were given. And... and...

        The awakened in the area can feel something. Something big. That eager to receive field grows, and Hime recedes into her thoughts. ...That's right. She was here to fulfill a role.

        Hime's chipper, encouraging smile returns, but it doesn't reach her eyes. The smile of Miss Nanako. That's right. She just has to play her role. If she plays her role, she can get through this. She just has to play the role. And... Daitenshi S1, with the weapons Michi designed, had a role too. It wasn't one as familiar to Hime... but it was one she understood.

        She just had to be the perfect woman.

        As Dynazenon's blade cuts at Hime's staff, she lets out a girlish 'kyaaaaah'- but the wings burst to life and flap, sending her out of the path of Alto's fire just in time.

        "You... you... boorish louse!" She yells as Gauma rages at her. "What would an Earthling like you know of a woman's feelings?" The wings around the Daitenshi close around Himeyuri. "Get away from me, you thug!" She yells, and the wings glow with something that reads so, so much like photon power... and yet not. She flaps them out and a repulsing force wave swings toward Dynazenon to push it away from her.

        "It's the love I feel for my people, who have spent so long, forced from our home- our home!- because they would not accept us!" She calls back at Alto. "Now it's their turn to feel what it is to lose that! And for a prettyboy heartbreaker to you to face the consequences of what you've done to maidens across the galaxy!" The crystal on Daitenshi S1's chest glows, and then a gravity beam- weaker than the ones on the Jovian units- fires toward the VF, across the battlefield. There's no hiding those readings. They're identical to the Jovian weaponry- just faster charging for less power.

        The staff flips around as Hime swings around moves to suddenly swing at the back of the Aestivalis, using the massive size of the Daitenshi to her advantage. "And you! What shameless and naughty behaviour, coming from a girl like you! You should know better than to draw such rude drawings- and to sell them!" The staff swings again, and again!

        She points towards the Nadesico from afar, raising a finger and a beam of light falling on the battleship. Not an attack- a target painter. "And I won't be lectured by a loose natured *hussy* like you! If you're such a good women, where's your husband? Why aren't you with your children?! I'm still a maiden, but you have no excuse, you spinster, misguiding poor young girls and shoving them into spaces women shouldn't be!"

        Her final gaze turns to Ryoko, and she's still smiling, her eyes are angry, and she's...

        There's little droplets of water floating in her deliriously pink cockpit.

        "As for you young lady, I'm going to have wash your mouth out to clean away that filthy language!" She raises the staff, and the crystal on the end glows and she swings it as what seem for all the world like... soap bubbles. They spread across the distance between Himeyuri and Ryoko- and on contact, they pop with a catch: something in them seems interfere with sensors and gum up the movements of the machine, should they make contact.

        "Now, you'll see what real love and justice are!"

KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Koyomi Yamanaka with Maiden's Policy!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Alto Saotome with AGT-5 Heart Justice Gravity Beam!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Hikaru Amano with AGT-7 Angel Staff Disciplinary Bonk!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Ruri Hoshino with Designate L1!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru's IFS System activates!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Ryoko Subaru with AGT-7 Angel Staff Blinding Suds!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Akane Shinjo's Galactron Fusil!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Akane Shinjo's Galactron Fusil, taking 3600 damage!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka engages parry against Himeyuri Oono's Maiden's Policy!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Maiden's Policy, taking 1920 damage!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru engages guard against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Blinding Suds!!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru poorly guards Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Blinding Suds!, taking 3600 damage!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino accepts Himeyuri Oono's Designate L1!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono designates Ruri Hoshino, making her easier to target and opening her to indirect fire.
KTS: Best Defense! Ruri Hoshino successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Designate L1, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Hikaru Amano engages evade against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Disciplinary Bonk!!
KTS: Hikaru Amano's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Hikaru Amano moderately reacts to Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Disciplinary Bonk!, taking 0
damage!
KTS: Alto Saotome engages evade against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-5 Heart Justice Gravity Beam!
KTS: Alto Saotome's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Critical Hit! Alto Saotome poorly reacts to Himeyuri Oono's AGT-5 Heart Justice Gravity Beam, taking 3960 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Judau Ashta has posed.

Someone like you... you wouldn't understand.

<"DAMN RIGHT!">

Though Zabine avoids the brunt of those saber-strokes, Judau Ashta's sheer, headstrong nature refuses to be deterred. Verniers are already swiveling at the Double Zeta's back and legs, expelling brief bursts of force to shunt that bulky Gundam up and -over- the Berga Giros even as it slides -under-. The flare of thrusters provides the counterforce that Judau needs to stop the Double Zeta's inertia flat; he lurches forward and then bounces back against the back of his seat, shaking his head of the lingering dizziness of Zabine's opening blow.

<"I don't ever wanna understand what goes on in the brains of people like you if this is where it's gonna lead me! I'd gladly be an idiot instead!">

The Berga Giros goes after the Mu Gundam. It's a unit that still evokes unpleasant memories for Judau, for however much he knows now the pilot's intentions are good. Another victim of the system's self-perpetuating evils. Another familiar beat.

<"But here's what I do get!">

... But it doesn't stop him from CHARGING towards the Berga Giros to demand its attention and provide the Mu and the Galactron ("WHAT THE HELL IS A DINOSAUR DOING IN SPACE" he really wants to demand right now but there's bigger problems at hand) some breathing room.

<"If anyone really thinks there are people -born- to do yellow-bellied, unspeakably god-awful things like this -- they got no right or ability to tell ANYONE what they should do!">

The Berga shoots towards the ZZ as the ZZ shoots towards the Berga. It stops at the Gundam's side; the larger Mobile Suit pivots with the sudden flare of verniers.

And as that great lance is -punched- forward -- it meets the broad side of the ZZ's right wing shield instead of its midsection, the shriek of sparkling metal silenced in the depths of space.

"Ghh!!"

The lance, knocked towards the side, drags upward instead, meeting a field of pure psychokinetic force in a warble of blunting magentas and scarlets as it splinters a chunk of the ZZ's head dangerously close to that frighteningly powerful weapon mounted there. But the ZZ keeps -moving- without hesitation or fear.

<"The old dude in the tin can over there gets that much, so why the hell don't you!?">

Does he --

Does he not know that's Char?

The man he headbutt??

Judau Ashta: the most evolved being who would have a solid 75%% chance of falling for the Quattro Bajeena Strategy.

There's not much time to think about it, though, because as soon as Judau shouts that accusation? The ZZ seeks to RAM its feet into the midsection of the Berga Giros in a doubled piston kick that will provide enough force to knock them BOTH backwards. Once more, this is not the blow to really worry about:

What Zabine SHOULD worry about are all the missile ports opening up all along the Double Zeta's armor as it corkscrews through space.

It couldn't be. It's still so close. And it's moving too fast. And spinning too uncontrollably. No one's that stupid, are they--

CHOOM CHOOM CHOOM CHOOMCHOOMCHOOMCHOOM

the answer to that question becomes apparent as all those missile bays on the ZZ fire, rockets spiraling chaotic, seemingly crazed patterns through space that shouldn't -possibly- be able to be hit their mark, much less avoid friendly fire.

And yet, each one of them? Somehow, someway --

Find their trajectory spinning right for the Berga.

The Double Zeta is still spinning, still gaining distance, when Judau Ashta

        feels something

Judau blinks. Seagreen eyes widen. It's a familiar sensation, and yet utterly not. Like meeting a cousin you never knew, who grew up on a colony on the other side of the Earth Sphere. They're like you, and yet -- nothing like you.

"... What...?"

Who are you...?

Judau has never met a Whispered (that he knows of). He doesn't know what they are. If you explained it, he still wouldn't know. But he knows someone reaching out to him in a place beyond words -- he knows it very well.

Confusion lapses. And Judau grips his suit's controls. The Newtype Pressure amplified by the Double Zeta's Biosensor burgeons, washing the battlefield with Judau's stark-faced defiance.

He speaks his next words, but their intent ripples through the emotional spectrum beyond space and time like echoes answering Naoko's outreach.

<"I'm Judau! Judau Ashta!">
                I'm Judau! Judau Ashta!

<"Currently spitting in tin-pot tyrants' faces!!">
                Currenly spitting in tin-pot tyrants' faces!!

It's about as direct a greeting as he can conceive of, right now.

KTS: Judau Ashta targets Zabine Chareux with Missile Launchers - Ashta Circus!
KTS: Judau Ashta has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

        Himeyuri feels something reach out, and it comes into her mind without a slightest hint of resistance, without a touch of anything pushing back. Naoko's question enters, and it might as well be Himeyuri's own thought. Who are you?"

        I'm the embodiment of Miss Nanako.

        I'm every young girl's role model.
        I'm a woman worth dying for.

        I am a symbol for everyone. That's all.

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

"Not-!" In front of you, "Not all the time." Ryoko says, embarrassed at Ruri's statement, but then again she was saying this when she was Ruri's age. She was Fifteen when she joined up with Supreme Leader Char Aznable's cause... but even Ryoko is forced to momentarily face palm as she greets that odd crew with 'We didn't do it.' "Please stop taking PR advice from Erina."

Erina Kinjo Wong's picture appeared, "I HEARD THAT SUBARU!" "Well screw you! Don't make the kid our spin department on the battlefield!" "It's everyone's responsibility to toe the Corporate Line! If you want to mouth off then do it AFTER you stop Junius Seven! Do you know what kind of nightmare it will be if that thing hits!"

Erina's picture vanished, as Ryoko mouthed aloud mockingly, 'It's everyone's responsibility to toe the Corporate Line!' Erina's picture reappeared, "Don't think I didn't see that too!" Before vanishing as Ryoko looks visibly spooked, "Goddamn, how much Narc can fit into a single woman?"

Omoikane though agrees with Hikaru, and Ryoko just sighs, "I'm surrounded by Otaku." As they veer to avoid the Gravity Blasts, "That was CLEARLY a Gravity Blast Hikaru!"

The Angels of Love... don't they know Three Angels Squad is a serious business name? Unlike... shut up. "What he said! There's nothing LOVING about this shit!" She thumbs towards Alto's comm picture in her cockpit. The exchange however between the Vanguard's leader and Judau Ashta. Wait- Judau... Ashta...?

'BITE ME DICK!'

"That's the guy who beat Haman Karn?" Ryoko asks, as if she has any room to talk, it's just she doesn't see someone who talks anything like HERSELF being this grand special Newtype pilot.

'AND I WOULDN'T EVEN UNDERSTAND HALF YOUR BULLSHIT WORDS ANYWAY.'

"Yeah nah, just some random asshole." Lucine remarks on how the signals feel familiar, and Ryoko considers it, "It's not the same as they had before." That Nemo, what an old ass suit, why does the voice of it's pilot over the comms sound so familiar? She can't quite place it...

Hikaru however reports they were at Comiket!? "Wasn't that like - TWO WEEKS AGO?" The people doing this were on EARTH at something like that two weeks before they're doing this? "The fuck!" Clutching the orb on her system, "Love for your people." Ryoko repeats, low, upset, "The Earth Federation did some messed up shit. S'true, deporting all you Coordinators to space, blowing up Junius Seven."

There's sudden heat in her words, as she flies away to try and keep away from the staff she's swinging at Hikaru, "But- where's it fucking stop!? You gonna kill every man, woman, and child down THERE who's just unfortunate enough to have been born in the way?" A moment later, "And lay off Hikaru goddamnit! It's not a crime to draw what she likes!"

Hussy!?

"Wait, you're talking shit about MINATO?" Oh damn. As Hime turns on her, her distortion field sweeps up to catch the deliriously pink droplets of water, and become terrible gum, sticking into her joints and the like. But despite the struggle for control, "Yeah my Mom did that first time she caught me swearing."

Abruptly the Aestivalis shines again, the field forming at close range to the Aestivalis, eating away at the gum like substance from within, as she charges at Himeyuri, "But you're not my Mom." Brandishing a Field Lancer, she moves in a charge like a sweeping joust, banking away at the last moment to drive the Field Lancer up towards the Daitenshi Armpit, in a brief contact, with a flash of electricty meant to disrupt the Distortion Field as she flies past.

"My Mom would never say HALF that shit about anybody! You think prettying up your words like putting on makeup hides how rotten you're being right now?"

KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Himeyuri Oono with Field Lancer (Ryoko Ver.) Flash Impact!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages charge against Ryoko Subaru's Field Lancer (Ryoko Ver.) Flash Impact!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Ryoko Subaru's Field Lancer (Ryoko Ver.) Flash Impact, taking 2960 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage block against Judau Ashta's Missile Launchers - Ashta Circus!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Judau Ashta's Missile Launchers - Ashta Circus, taking 3984 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Ruri Hoshino has posed.

        Omoikane angrily flashes up another pop-up window in Hikaru's window, with the traditional figure of Gekiganger 3 crossed out in another red 'X'. Evidently, he objects to these look-alikes being called 'Gekiganger', particularly as another series of windows pop up: < GO BACK > < WRONG SPIRIT > < GEKIGANGER NEVER WOULD > < UH-UH ! >

        No one tell him. It will break his poor massive little heart.

        "Excuse me," Ruri says, moving her communications window thoughtfully to the side, when the Dynazenon crew bark in surprise. "I didn't mean to startle you." She sounds sincere, at least, insomuch as she sounds much of anything with her stoic delivery.

        "I wonder why someone would defend a colony being dropped," Ruri says, reflecting on Alto's biting words about it being a nightmare. "Even a small colony like this will cause massive loss of life... but I guess if you tell yourself it's war, it feels normal. Ms. Oono didn't seem like a bad person, when we were talking... I wonder what she's telling herself now." She sounds just a little sad, reflecting on it.

        "But Erina-san said that's what we should say," Ruri points out, when Ryoko tells her not to take PR advice from their other helmswoman. And just in time, there's Erina!!

        And just like Erina appears, there's...!

        A window pops up in Ryoko's cockpit scrolling through Judau's entry on Wikibrary, the public library which anyone can edit! It prominently features his defeat of Haman Karn, and... it says here... he physically assaulted the Ruler of All Known Space, Shin Karato, over the last piece of chicken at a Federation assembly?

        "Actually," Ruri says, impassively, taking the words of these intreprid Wikibrarians as true. "This does appear to be the same Judau Ashta." Beat. "Even though he's a fool."

        Poor Judau...

        Ruri pops up in Lucine's window, to say: "The IFF signature on the S1 and S2 units appears to be signed to the AECF." That's all the information she can get from them, even asking nicely. The Daitenshi just don't want to talk to her! ... but as she's trying to ask them who they are, her gaze grows distant, for a moment, as she recognises that another port has opened.

        But the access port between Naoko and Himeyuri isn't one which Ruri entirely has the capacity to read, even if she feels... strange, in passing.

        Minato appears on a window to Himeyuri, again, smiling the smile of a office-lady who has survived countless rounds of politics. "The things which hurt you," she explains, "aren't the things which hurt me. You're only revealing your own inexperience... it's a shame. If you had a little more 'experience', you might not be out here threatening to snuff out the lives of millions."

        Ruri says, impassively: "Minato-san, you're provoking her."

        "I'm angry!" Minato exclaims, her red lips pouting. "Just who does she think she is?!"

        "The Daitenshi S1 has locked target on the Nadesico," is Ruri's reply.

        "Tch..!!" Minato cuts out her audio feed, but it's shortly replaced by the Nadesico's youngest crewmember -- now looking old enough to actually be on the bridge, at least.

        "Excuse me," Ruri interrupts Himeyuri. "Were you the one who took the data on the Distortion Field and used it to shield Junius Seven?" A light pause... "... and were you the one who first spread our Distortion Field technology to the Jovian Lizards?"

        Oh, no.

        The orders come in, and Ruri affirms: "Launching missiles." A series of bays open on the Nadesico's jaws, and a barrage of missiles soar out, towards the Daitenshi S1. As she does, she sends more advice to the machines she's fighting alongside, to help them make the most of their offensives against this strange, sparkly foe.

        Firing the Gravity Blast Cannon in this environment... might be tricky.

KTS: Ruri Hoshino targets Himeyuri Oono with Missile Barrage!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Enable Spirit Command targeting Koyomi Yamanaka
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Enable Spirit Command targeting Alto Saotome
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Enable Spirit Command targeting Hikaru Amano
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Enable Spirit Command targeting Ryoko Subaru

<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.

Naoko is exceptionally capable of translating data into the proper piloting actions and reactions. This is a problem when there is no existing data, which Eight confirms to her. Good intuition can only carry her so far. But at least she has a machine that perfectly responds to her every thought. That will have to make up for her lack of training and conventional piloting experience.

'Look alive' seems like a simple instruction, but it turns out to be anything but. There's so much happening on the battlefield, and to her great detriment, she is very mentally distracted by what the Nadesico's side is dealing with. She knows her focus should naturally be on her immediate surroundings, but she can't help herself. Especially now, her mind completely open and supremely aware, as if the machine was her body, its sensors her brain. She's never been on a battlefield this large before while in the state she's currently in. It was a variable that she could not fully predict the effects of before exposing herself to it.

It affects her performance more than she was expecting, her natural curiosity far more of a hindrence to simple acts of movement. Having already been put on the back foot, she manages to recover decently with her retaliatory strike against the Den'an Zon that engaged her... but then fails to capitalize, due to a new distraction in that moment. One that only spans an instant of real time, but... well, only Whispered could truly understand.

...The answer to her inquiry is not what she expected, to put it mildly. It sounds like she somehow accidently tuned into an anime of some sort. Moreover, it comes with an alarming kind of mental sensation. No resistance at all, which makes even her subtle push feel as if she's falling. Instantly she realizes - this is dangerous, to both Whispered involved. To top it all off, at the same time-- Judau Ashta is suddenly yelling his name into her brain. The net result of all this?

"What the fu--"

And that's Naoko hanging up on that particular mental phone call. She won't be trying that again any time soon.

However, moments like this do not, in fact, freeze time. She's lucky that Annamarie loudly announced herself to draw attention away from her struggling ally, this serves the dual purpose of snapping her back to the here and now.

The golden Den'an Zon thus finds itself colliding with a invisible barrier, Naoko sweating in her cockpit as she hold back the incoming Beam Saber slashes through force of will alone. But, with persistance and that final stab, Annamarie succeeds at piercing through - Naoko letting out a yelp of alarm as the blade scrapes past the Sukeban's side, prompting a hasty retreat. The heat was so close just now, she could feel it. If she'd maneuvered away even a moment slower...

Naoko needs a moment to catch her breath, after that. But she doesn't take it. At times like this, when faced with danger and uncertainty, there's only one thing to do. Ask herself, 'what would Nova Stellar do?' The answer to that is obvious.

"...Not bad. But you won't win that easily! Wanna know why? You don't know it yet, but I have a critical advantage over you."

A surge of pure willpower pours forth from the Sukeban Kiseki, gathering within the sword hilt carried by the Arm Slave. In mere moments, its blade grows, and grows, to a size longer than the machine itself. And so, grinning, Nova states the obvious.

"Mine's bigger."

The blade swings out, along with a loud yell. "NOVA BLADE! EMPYREAN SLAAAASH!"

KTS: Naoko Suzuki has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.

<Pose Tracker> Koyomi Yamanaka has posed.

"Oh." Gauma says to Ryoko's interjection. Then, finds his footing quickly: "See! They're copying your gimmick, too! That's even worse!!" Gauma blusters.

"Gauma's really good at changing the topic, huh..." Yume mutters.

Hime's reply is harsh, however hard she it is to push it out of herself. Gauma's gaze hardens for a long second.

Then he says, "Not a damn thing!" and Dynazenon's Dyna Saber sweeps up and CLEAVES the force wave. It's...wrong, somehow; it's not like force against force, repelling each other. It's like the Dyna Saber cut the visual effect in half and it just fell away with its hitbox deleted. But the effect is Dynazenon stays up close indeed.

"Learning a person's heart takes a long time! Even your own!" Gauma yells. "That's why people stick together! So they can learn more about each other, every day!"

Koyomi's trembling fingers grow still on his controls, taking a deep breath, slow and steady.

"But anybody who's going to thrash around and break shit and kill people just 'cuz they don't feel like controlling themselves is no lady I wanna meet! That's no different from a kaiju! And Dynazenon is here to STOP KAIJU!"

Hunched over in his cockpit, Koyomi's eyes flick up to the fangs where his copilots appear inside, each of them sharing a quiet glance with each other.

Dynazenon lunges into the angel's shielding wings, stabbing deep with four screams: "DYNA! SAAAAAAABEEEEEEER!"

KTS: Naoko Suzuki targets Zabine Chareux with Empyrean Slash!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has activated the Accel Spirit Command and and has gained Terrain bonus!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka targets Himeyuri Oono with Dyna Saber Gouging Stab!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka's Read the Road activates Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage parry against Naoko Suzuki's Empyrean Slash!
KTS: Zabine Chareux moderately reacts to Naoko Suzuki's Empyrean Slash, taking 5580 damage!
KTS: Chise Asukagawa has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Koyomi Yamanaka
KTS: Chise Asukagawa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Chise Asukagawa's Listen To My Heart activates Wall!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Naoko Suzuki

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

"You're correct about that," Kae-soon tells Kaworu. "We won't be swayed in our beliefs."

Unit Beta thrusts the heat rapier forth, and she sends out a blast of heat that strikes all three Den'an Zons. Kae-soon and one of his wingmates fly backward in time -- as their cockpits fill with heat warnings flashing across it -- but another is blasted backward. Armor begins to burn; paint peels away; sparks explode from one of the eyes as it shatters.

"My God," Kae-soon mutters.

He aims his shot lancer towards the Evangelion. Then, the lance detaches -- a rocket firing, leaving a large missile that goes flying towards Unit Beta.

- * - * -

Annamarie grunts as the golden Den'an Zon slams into that invisible barrier. It takes more force than she expected -- and then she gasps. The blade that forms is larger than the Arm Slave; it's almost larger than the Den'an Zon. She swings down the beam saber.

Nova's blade slashes through it. The mega particle field collapses, and it cuts through the arm, which goes flying off. "Shit--"

Then she barks out a laugh. "Not bad, but work on your pick-up lines, honey!"

Then, a couple of shots from Parrot Squadron's beam cannons streak by. "Evasive tactics!" Annamarie calls to her team. "Don't let them box you in!"

The golden Den'an Zon breaks from the engagement with Nova's unit, thrusters firing to move away from beam fire from Parrot squadron. The other Den'an Zons bob and weave -- one is nearly shot through, but whirls, and the beam blasts slam into its shield instead.

"Gh..." She grimaces. "They're better than I expected!"

Annamarie turns, then she scowls -- and looks at the one member of Parrot squadron who had to abort transformation partway through. Her Den'an Zon sweeps in -- and slams the shot lancer for it, trying to impale it onto the lance. The machineguns open up on the VF then.

Annamarie turns her head -- sucking in a gasp, as she spots Edouard's Nemo flying away, at high speed. "So fast!"

- * - * -

The Double Zeta's kick slams the Berga Giros backward. "You would choose to be an idiot," Zabine says, flatly, to Judau. Flatly, but with tension in his voice.

"People like you... who treat this world as if it is simple. Do you understand the burden you place on others? What they must do, to keep things together, as you forge ahead!?"

His voice raises, for a moment there.

Zabine is doing all he can to keep up. His eyes narrow -- and there's no Newtype flash, no intuition. There's a proximity warning and the practice to listen, and then he turns in time to see the Nemo flying in. Its beam rifle fires.

The Berga Giros goes into a fast set of maneuvers -- flying up with shots chasing after it, before one slashes through the left foot, and another clips along the side. An explosion sounds, slamming him to the side.

"Fools and cowards?" Zabine's one good eye narrows. "You... no. You are dead."

He turns his shot lancer towards him -- and opens fire. All four machineguns open up at once, pouring rounds in the Nemo's direction.

"I am," Zabine says to Rikka. "I've chosen this path. I've chosen to bloody my hands, if it's what must be done. The obligation of nobility means doing terrible things to build the future. Choosing who lives and who dies..."

The Berga Giros whirls about. Beam shots slam into the beam shield, from many of the funnel shots. He manages to dive away from a couple -- but one slashes along the side again, sending a warning flashing across.

"...That is the duty and burden of aristocracy!" he finishes. Then, he rushes in close, swinging back the shot lancer -- and thrusting it hard for the Mu Gundam's chest.

"I wouldn't kill my allies over a disagreement," Zabine answers Akane. "I'm a professional."

His eye narrows, before looks up -- and sees the Galactron following up that funnel assault with finger cannons. Blasts rain out -- and the Berga Giros does a sharp, twisting turn -- and beams slam into skirt armor, flash burning streaks across it before it flies up over her arc of fire.

He swings the shot lancer down, takes aim, and fires. The four machineguns roar, pouring down gunfire towards the Galactron.

Then, his screen erupts with warnings. His good eye widens to see the dozens of missile locks; they cascade in red, before fading to nearly transparent the 360-degree display.

"Shit," Zabine swears.

The Berga Giros fires its thrusters, shelf nozzles burning, to lift above them. Then, it swings down the beam shield. The first round of missiles strike it -- some vaporizing, some exploding -- and the second comes. The beam shield crackles -- and then flickers out. The others slam into the violet Mobile Suit. They explode, fireballs ripping across it, racking it. Armor falls away from the left shoulder, where it was hit before.

The right foot, previously damaged, is ejected by automated systems.

"Who picks up after what you leave in your wake, Judau Ashta?" Zabine snaps at him.

KTS: Zabine Chareux has activated the Strike Spirit Command.
KTS: Zabine Chareux has activated the Alert Spirit Command.
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Kaworu Nagisa with Shot Lancer Missile!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Eight Orlodhari with Shot Lancer Burst Strike!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Naoko Suzuki with Goad!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Edouard Mass with Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Rikka Takarada with Shot Lancer Thrust!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Akane Shinjo with Quadruple Machineguns Full-Auto!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Judau Ashta with Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Judau Ashta accepts Zabine Chareux's Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux demoralizes Judau Ashta, reducing his Morale drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Judau Ashta successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Demoralize, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Judau Ashta's Bottomless Optimism activates, and his spirit endures.

<Pose Tracker> Michiru Tenjou has posed.

It's not terribly surprising to see the Nadesico here today. She'd normally like to take on the Aestivalis wing, but it seems they're wrapped up in chasing Himeyuri? They're... really mad too. Not shocking. Michi's got pretty mixed feelings on this whole colony drop thing herself. It's not a strategy she would ever pick for herself. Obviously though. She's far too willing to get into straightforward fights and challenge people. Her method of taking over Earth would probably be calling out all its governmental leaders to duel her for it, and allowing for them to call on the world's best pilots as their representatives. Still... Himeyuri must know something she doesn't about the plan. Some twist that makes it not what it appears to be. Why would they blow up a planet with so much delightful water after all? "I... I..." There's a significant amount of dead air hanging toward Ryoko and Hikaru after that. She can't exactly argue with them, as a result. Since her knowledge on the full situation is so limited. She learned before, in some of her duels down on that planet, how important it is to get more information before making harsh claims and assumptions about any given person.

Besides, something far more worrying has transpired. Some kind of... wait, is that a Tarabaman? She remembers seeing something that looked like this Ultra Warrior, back at Comiket. Or, well... Tarabawoman, in this case. She's not terribly crab-like though. What she is however, is very capable of speaking... into Michiru's mind? Sort of anyway... it's like something shouting at her underwater, heavily muffled and impossible to make out aside from intent. Anger and disappointment? That's an unsettling sensation. Different from being mindlinked with Hime-hime. It almost distracts Michi. Almost gets her by surprise. But the two wings curl before the Daitenshi, to contest the shield and hold it back from the angel's main body until they can bounce it back. The wings are shorn into still, but she'll take that over main structural damage any day. "Don't know what you are... did you steal that shape from a manga? Whatever you are, you can't stand in the way!" It's the best guess she has. After all, they make mechs in the spirit of Gekiganger. Why couldn't a giant creature take a form out of a manga? The shield isn't alone however, when it returns! Michiru sends a little gift with it. "PASSIONATE WINGS OF LOVE!" A truly terrifying sight, the wings begin to glow a deeper purple, a dark mirror of something much like Photon Power coursing through them. Their attack is difficult to see in the void of space, as the energy shapes into a pair of entwined birds and shoots out toward the Ultra Warrior! Truthfully she has no idea what this will do to her, but she has to fight with all she has. Even if she doesn't really want to kill anyone not responsible for the ever-expanding crimes of the Earth's rotting leaders.

A duo attack comes for her together in the aftermath, as the wings are cooling back down. Lucine also staking claim to the name of angel? Hmph... she doesn't really mind that. However. "I'm afraid you won't be allowed through. To get past me... THIS GUARDIAN ANGEL SHALL NEVER FALL!" Michiru raises her own sword, far more narrow and not a match for the length of the Glaive. Still, she moves to catch and parry the weapon. A direct blow is prevented, without question, but the blade sinks into the side of the Daitenshi, a grazing hit around the right hip as the Daitenshi spins with its opponent's diving blow. "The Angel of Justice acts without hesitation or confusion, to tear away the rot infesting this world!" Her counterattack is swift, though not what Michi intended. She had been focused on the thought of protecting Himeyuri from these people, and in the midst of her spin, the guard of the Pure Love Blade curls its wings around the ornate, sparkling heart in the center... only for a beam of the deepest, most perfectly shimmering pink to erupt out and strike at the Dianthus. Michi is, understandably, a little confused, but all the same, she shouts along with it. "HEROINE'S PURE HEART DEFENDER! ANGEL OF LOVE, THEY WON'T BE ALLOWED TO REACH YOU!"

The remaining half of the duo catches her attention as she's mentally recovering from the discovery that Hime put a MAGICAL GIRL STAFF in her SWORD! His threats make her teeth grind. She can feel herself burning up... "So that's the kind of person you are... Anything in your way dies? ...Just another monster then, you just wear a human's skin." She'll meet this one the hard way. "You're dangerous... can't hold back anything in keeping a thing like you away from her. HEART JUSTICE, ENGAGE!" The chest of the Daitenshi lights up as the arm cannon spins on toward her. The shape of the bulbous heart is... obvious, to pretty much anybody watching. Awkward perhaps. But right now Michiru doesn't care. She cares about keeping Hime-Hime safe, so she can have that happily ever after she dreams of. "PASSION AND JUSTICE, GUIDE MY STRIKE! LOVE AND KINDNESS... PURITY BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURST!" A beautiful and horrifying pink beam explodes out from the S2's chest, meant for both attack and defense. It won't catch all the shots, but she can still tear through much of the fire, limiting it to the outermost shots to pepper over her body and deal some visible damage. All the same, Liam is subjected to the fury of Michiru's enraged desire to defend her best friend's hopes of romance.

The battlefield's Fallen Angel flits backward as its strikes venture forth, drifting back to get a better idea on the state of the battlefield. "Angel of Love... I'm still right beside you! Hold strong, and once THEY have been disciplined... I'LL FLY BACK TO SHIELD YOU AS IT SHOULD BE! PUSH FEAR FROM YOUR HEART AND ACT WITH PUREST RESOLVE!" If any one thing can cut away any of her doubts, it's the sight of Himeyuri in danger.

KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou targets Qivi with The Wings Of Love!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Attune Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Attune Spirit Command.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou targets Lucine Azul with Heart's Defender!!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou targets Liam 7-020 with AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Foresee Spirit Command.

<Pose Tracker> Alto Saotome has posed.

        <"Forced from your home? What are you talking about!?"> Alto has had more of a chance later to actually observe the people of the PLANTs, which he incorrectly assumes is where Himeyuri is from. And from what he could tell, while there was certainly a lot of animosity towards the people of the Earth... <"It seemed to me like the people of the PLANTs are striving to build and maintain their own home in the stars!"> Do the extremists feel differently?

        'Prettyboy heartbreaker.'

        Alto chokes for a moment in surprise, <"What!? What 'maidens'!? I've done nothing like that!"> It's like this woman is describing him as some kind of playboy... The smug grin of a certain fellow Skull Squadron pilot flashes through Alto's mind.

        Distracted as he is, Alto fails to notice the gravity beam coming his way until way later than he should have. Rolling and spiraling away to try and avoid it only keeps it from being a lethal hit, the beam washing over half of the fighter's left wing. The pinpoint barrier flares to life against the assault, though can only dull it as the armor is shredded and a chunk of the wing is ripped free.

        Thankfully this is space and it's not a great loss, but still, it annoys Alto even further. He jams his flight stick down and to the side, triggering the VF's transformation. Its engines briefly cut out as they slide and then fold down to form legs, arms folding out of the frame with gunpod held in one of them.

        Now in GERWALK mode, the VF brings its legs up to apply significant thrust from the engines in its feet to slow its speed. It brings the gunpod up in both hands, aiming towards the S1, <"I know I've got no say in this matter, but you've got some seriously screwed up world views about what a woman should be. I know one that would have a LOT to say on the matter and you could learn much from her!"> The VF pulls the trigger, holding it down as it unloads a vast number of bullets in the Daitenshi S1's direction.

KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Alto Saotome targets Himeyuri Oono with Gatling Full-Auto!
KTS: Alto Saotome has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki accepts Zabine Chareux's Goad!
KTS: Zabine Chareux goads Naoko Suzuki, reducing her Intuition drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Naoko Suzuki successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Goad, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages intercept against Ruri Hoshino's Missile Barrage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Ruri Hoshino's Missile Barrage, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Lucine Azul has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Lucine Azul has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage Evade against Koyomi Yamanaka's Dyna Saber Gouging Stab!
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Koyomi Yamanaka's Dyna Saber Gouging Stab, taking 3825 damage!
KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Wall Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages block against Alto Saotome's Gatling Full-Auto!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully blocks Alto Saotome's Gatling Full-Auto, taking 2950 damage!
KTS: Liam 7-020 has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Liam 7-020 fails to engage React against Michiru Tenjou's AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast!
KTS: Liam 7-020 successfully reacts to Michiru Tenjou's AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast, taking 4650 damage!
KTS: Qivi engages charge against Michiru Tenjou's The Wings Of Love!
KTS: Critical Hit! Qivi poorly reacts to Michiru Tenjou's The Wings Of Love, taking 6960 damage!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Michiru Tenjou's Villainy Will Never Succeed! activates, causing Sparkle!
KTS: Lucine Azul engages evade against Michiru Tenjou's Heart's Defender!!
KTS: Lucine Azul successfully reacts to Michiru Tenjou's Heart's Defender!, taking 4050 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Hikaru Amano has posed.

"Way too long! I've heard you've been through some ups and downs against the Vajra... but I guess we can catch up on that later. Give Miss Sheryl my best, though!" Hikaru transmits back to Alto. She's been worried about Sheryl... but she's a strong woman. She'll recover, right?

Omoikane rejects that Gekiganger would ever participate in a colony drop, and Hikaru smiles. "Yeah... you're right, Omoikane. These guys could only ever be FAKES," She starts, before Izumi kicks into the screen. "Fake Gekiganger... More like Gekifaker..."

"It's actually true you know! I even came up with the name myself," Hikaru interjects when Ryoko tells Gauma they really have been calling themselves the Three Angels for years. "I've heard a bit about you, too, Dynazenon," Thanks to Chise's slip of the tongue at Comiket, of course... "I'd love to know how that combination mechanism works, but it really isn't the time, is it?" A rueful smile. "Just... don't take these two lightly." She warns, all the same.

"Is that really, genuinely what you believe?" Hikaru frowns, when Himeyuri insists that no one on Earth is innocent, hearing the way her tone begins to waver. On the other hand, Michiru just can't afford a response at all. Are they really just.. okay with this? "Is it just what you're gonna tell yourself to sleep better once you're through with it?"

As for her recognizing them at Comiket... "I didn't know for sure, I just had a hunch. There were waaay too many similarities for me to just ignore it," And of course, the Captain was there, too, and Hikaru trusted her to know what to do with that information. "Which is why I couldn't believe you're resorting to this!" Yes, Ryoko, it really WAS just two weeks! "Did that kind of cultural exchange mean nothing to you? You're just going to wipe it all out anyways?" She doesn't quite reach the anger Ryoko does, just... "That's just so sad."

But Himeyuri has no mercy for the Nadesico crew, putting even the most likeable members of the crew on complete blast. Even Minato! Who hates Minato? Hikaru takes the insult in stride, even as Ryoko defends her right to draw whatever pictures of steamy men she wants. "If you'd like to call me shameless, go right ahead! I don't think that's what's really important right now." What is, is the staff aimed at her, which she has to make some pretty risky maneuvers to avoid its swings. "If it's really not your cup of tea, though... we say 'don't like, don't read' for a reason. It's really hard to tell... where the character, the stereotype Himeyuri ends, and where her real self begins."

As Ryoko goes in with the Field Lancer, Hikaru sticks in melee range, brandishing her own, now that she's avoided Himeyuri's punishment for her decadence. "Ryoko! I'm coming in from your left!" Hikaru exclaims, aiming her Lancer in concort with hers, in a lightning-fast strike to catch the self-proclaimed 'perfect woman' off-guard.

KTS: Qivi has activated the Spirit Spirit Command.
KTS: Hikaru Amano targets Himeyuri Oono with Field Lancer: Lightning Strike!!
KTS: Hikaru Amano has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada fails to engage Parry against Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Thrust!
KTS: Best Defense! Rikka Takarada successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Thrust, taking 3450 damage!
KTS: Akane Shinjo fails to engage block against Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Full-Auto!
KTS: Akane Shinjo's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Akane Shinjo successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Full-Auto, taking 4750 damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass engages evade against Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst!
KTS: Edouard Mass successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Quadruple Machineguns Burst, taking 3652 damage!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari engages guard against Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Burst Strike!
KTS: Critical Hit! Eight Orlodhari poorly guards Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Burst Strike, taking 5035 damage!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Zabine Chareux's Steady Hand activates, causing Jam L1!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Zabine Chareux's Sterner Stuff activates, causing Nullify!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Foresee Spirit Command.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa engages guard against Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Missile!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa's Will Barrier activates, negating 1500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Kaworu Nagisa successfully guards Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Missile, taking 3225 damage!
KTS: Your unit's HP stands at 5375

<Pose Tracker> Edouard Mass has posed.

"Five times over, last time I counted," Edouard replies to Zabine, tone still arid. "Perhaps you'd care to try for six?"

Zabine responds with a burst of machinegun fire, which the Nemo dives through, weaving through most of the burst like a legend returned from the grave. Even so - it's apparent that the pilot's skills have atrophied even just a little, and the Nemo is still an old machine, for all he's pushing it further than it ought to go. Battered and scarred, it nevertheless manages to track a proper bead on Zabine's mobile suit.

"The justifications of the aristocracy are mere excuses for atrocity," he says blandly, holding the trigger as megaparticle light coalesces in the muzzle of the BR-M-87. "I've heard it all before. Spoken those same flimsy pretexts."

"Save your breath."

He releases, and a blaze of beam fire bears down upon Zabine.

KTS: Edouard Mass targets Zabine Chareux with BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream!
KTS: Edouard Mass has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

Something happens. Eight looks up sharply, as does Maina, and their eyes meet. They both sensed it--whatever is happening with Himeyuri... It's something large.

Eight can't say what, though, and that worries her more.

They return to their respective duties. Himeyuri speaks of her people, forced from their home. Eight has tabs on the conversation--but she hasn't chimed in until now. Until after Himeyuri talks to the Nadesico again--

"My husband is back at home, defending it in case more people like you come. My children are far from the battlefield... so I don't have to worry about anything but stopping all of you."

"'Love' doesn't demand atrocity. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling you something." She clips off her words to Himeyuri--and gets back to the battle.

Parrot Squadron is having trouble. Annamarie has found a vulnerability, and exploited it--the unit that couldn't get out of Fighter Mode is impaled, then machine gunned, the reactor hit and an explosion rocking space. One down.

Eight feels the usual tightness in her stomach when one of her pilots dies. ...Is it easier, than it used to be? It shouldn't be. Nevertheless, Parrot Squadron moves to rally--

"Pull back!" Maina instructs Parrot Squadron, "Regroup! We'll provide firing support!"

The Ra Mari II's great cannons turn, and point directly at the golden suit Annamaria is piloting. They're huge, frankly, a dozen on the side of the ship aiming straight for her.

"Stellar!" Eight calls, "Look alive!"

Janid Harpe is too good at this to hit her allies, but it's best to warn her all the same.

"A future built on terror will never last!" Eight calls over the radio next. "'Aristocracy' has nothing to do with it!"

KTS: Eight Orlodhari targets Zabine Chareux with Beam Cannon Overwhelming Blast!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage evade against Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream!
KTS: Zabine Chareux moderately reacts to Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream, taking 5850 damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass roots his unit, coming to a standstill and leaving him vulnerable.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        "I know," Kaworu replies, resigned.
        
        Lilim are often that way--for good or ill.
        
        Kaworu sends a long, lingering look towards Himeyuri's Daitenshi S1, and the heartbreaking something she projects from within it. "...." There's a lot going on over there, on multiple levels... but he isn't engaging in that side of the battle, so he chooses to let it go. It's not as though she or her companion would listen, either.
        
        Unit Beta doesn't try to evade the incoming lance missile, rocketing off the end of Kae-soon's shot lancer to sail towards the Evangelion. Her A.T. Field blooms on impact, spreading a hexagon of light in all directions, both from the explosion and from the barrier. The heat in the wake of the explosion cooks towards Unit Beta, sending her long, silver hair flying. The force of the impact does rock against the Evangelion, aggravating her wounds, but at least giving her no new ones. Still, if it continues like this for too much longer, she won't have the stamina to continue.
        
        That is a problem on many levels. As such, Kaworu has her sweep her Heat Rapier around in a sharp circle, soon holding it up before her faceless face plate. She sweeps a foot back in a fencing stance, and then flies forward in a decisive thrust, the tip of her sword aiming for the heads of the Den'an Zons. With her wings providing significant forward momentum, she could well end up hitting all three if they're not quick enough.

KTS: Kaworu Nagisa targets Zabine Chareux with Forward Stab!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: EN Regen activates. Your new EN value is 91.
KTS: SP Regen activates. Your new SP value is 85.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

Honestly, Qivi would have been pretty okay with Michiru reaching out and challenging the corrupt leaders of Earth to a fight. She's had enough conflicts with authority in her time that she really just doesn't handle authority well at all anymore; the fact that she's with GGG and behaving most of the time is nothing short of astounding.

But she can't let Michiru, and the others, succeed in the drop here and destroy Earth. She can't. With the Distortion Field there...

"...!"

Did she steal that shape from a manga? Not really! Qivi didn't exactly get any input - as far as she knows, this is just what Nova looks like, with a couple minor adjustments (she doesn't think Nova wore the Asteriser until Qivi was in the loop, for instance).

But hearing her talk about it that way - talk about everything the way she does - infuriates Qivi more than she was before. She's always been short-tempered. She lets that rise, the anger burning within her; a tense force she tries to keep under control.

~There's no justice here,~ is Nova's thought on the matter.

Qivi raises one arm, signaling to Liam and Lucine - she knows them, at least vaguely, and she trusts them to work with her on this. They're all fighting for Earth, after all. She raises her shield then, hunkering behind it -

The blast from Michiru is rather more than she expected. It washes over Qivi; the shield starts to blacken around the edges, and Ultra Warrior Nova has to work to stay in place. She can't just plant her feet in space - there's nothing to anchor to.

It *hurts*, too. Qivi makes no noise, but her psychic presence has pain behind it now as she struggles to keep the shield raised. And Michiru might notice that the colourless crystal in the center of it is starting to acquire colour as the birds press against it; pink and purple in a wavering sphere.

And when the birds clear, Ultra Warrior Nova is still there. She lowers the shield, just a hair, so she can look over it. Her everything hurts. She didn't think fighting as Nova would hurt this much.

~Here's some payback,~ Qivi snarls. Payback is *like* justice. ~We can't let you past here! We'll stop your colony drop!~ She reaches out again, toward Liam and Lucine; hang together. She's on your side. She will protect you.

And with that, the shield discharges the energy Qivi just stored up. She doesn't get birds, regrettably. She just discharges a stream of purple-pink energy, trailing little glimmers of light behind it; part of it is made of Ultra Warrior Nova's own Kisorium, but the greater part of it is simply made up of the bizarre near-Photonic energy Michiru just shot at *her*.

~Why, though? Why do you even want this? What do you get from killing Earth?~

KTS: Qivi has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Qivi has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Qivi targets Michiru Tenjou with Nova Shield Reflector!
KTS: Qivi has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Qivi's Opportunist activates Focus!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage charge against Eight Orlodhari's Beam Cannon Overwhelming Blast!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Eight Orlodhari's Beam Cannon Overwhelming Blast, taking 3900
damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage React against Hikaru Amano's Field Lancer: Lightning Strike!!
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Hikaru Amano's Field Lancer: Lightning Strike!, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Hikaru Amano rattles Himeyuri Oono, making her next maneuvers more difficult.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Kaworu Nagisa's Forward Stab!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Kaworu Nagisa's Forward Stab, taking 2800 damage!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou engages react against Qivi's Nova Shield Reflector!
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Qivi's Nova Shield Reflector, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Qivi roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable.

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

He's good... He is a soldier, as he said - she can't feel anything from him, and yet he's more than capable of keeping up with her.

He's chosen this path, chosen to bloody his hands...

"...Don't say it so casually." Rikka says. "No one has that right! Everyone has the right to live, no matter where they came from, and no one should take that away from them!"

He lunges in close. Rikka retreats back, but his lancer gives him impressive reach. In a swift motion the defense rod is drawn from the Mu Gundam's shield, moving swiftly to redirect the attack. She's a little slow - her parry shifts it away from a killing blow, but it still pierces the Mu Gundam's shoulder.

"You call it your 'burden'... but you're not the one who has to live with the pain and loss! You're not the one who'll be suffering! You call yourself 'nobility', but that's just another way of separating people... I'm sick of people who come up with excuses like that." Rikka says. The defense rod is put away, and a handheld weapon, looking much like a staple or nail gun, is drawn out.

She takes aim with the Fastening Launcher and opens fire. Several nails rush for Zabine's Berga Giros - and though there may be nothing to attach it to in space, there doesn't need to be. If they connects, it'll feel as if several heavy weights have been attached to the mobile suit, to slow it down considerably.

KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Attune Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada targets Zabine Chareux with Gravity Shackle!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages evade against Rikka Takarada's Gravity Shackle!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Rikka Takarada's Gravity Shackle, taking 3600 damage!
Alto Saotome transforms to VF-25F Messiah <GERWALK Mode>

KTS: Alto Saotome has changed loadout.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

The machine gun rips into Galactron's body, and Akane grits her teeth. "That's -- not any different from what you're doing right now," she hisses under her breath. Her eyes screw shut for a moment as she tries to reduce the biofeedback from Galactron; she's not doing a great job of it.

Rikka pours her heart out at Zabine -- and it's something Akane is happy to hear. The ease with which Rikka slid back into the cockpit had her a little worried -- but hearing her say that makes her feel much more certain.

"If you think of that as a thing you have to carry, you're gonna drift further and further away from everyone else and you won't even notice," Akane follows up as she considers her options. Galactron always feels strange to work with -- something at once her body and not... making tactical decisions is stranger, harder than it was in the Neuronoid or even GaoFighGar. She settles for another close-in attack, moving through more machine gun fire. Using that long, heavy knife again, Akane aims a thrust for a mobile suit roughly the size of the knife itself.

(... Can I really say I'm any different from him, if this attack hits the cockpit, she wonders to herself.)

KTS: Akane Shinjo has activated the Rouse Spirit Command targeting Rikka Takarada
KTS: Akane Shinjo targets Zabine Chareux with Galactron Poignard Stab!
KTS: Akane Shinjo has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo's New Order activates Alert!
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages parry against Akane Shinjo's Galactron Poignard Stab!
KTS: Critical Hit! Zabine Chareux poorly reacts to Akane Shinjo's Galactron Poignard Stab, taking 6300 damage!
KTS: [Dynamic Hit] Akane Shinjo's Stimulation activates, causing Designate L1!

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        < "Ryoko. Hikari. Skull-3. I'm picking up some signals, from Himeyuri's side. ... Mental ones." > How could Lucine term it? Her confusion briefly reads on her face as it appears on their screens, as she presses a hand to her forehead. < "Be on the lookout for possible, ah, psychic activity? Or... maybe not... It feels different..." >

        But that's not the only thing she's feeling, and in essence, hearing. Qivi's messages, while not meant for Lucine, come with emotion, which the Martian's senses pick up on like the waves left from a passing ship.
        
        Lucine's attention is drawn towards Himeyuri, as her speech had already begun riling something deep inside. < "...." > And still, she continues, further agitating Lucine. < ".... You think you're the one who's been wronged? You talk as if you're the only one here that's lost something." > Against the calm expression Lucine projects on her face, anger begins to boil underneath the surface, like the trembling quakes that signal an waking volcano, not too dissimilar from Qivi's own.
        
        Still, the battle continues, as bigger waves pass from beyond, on other spaces of the battlefield. It's like something she's hearing through a wall; is that wall getting thinner, or is the person on the other end that much louder?

        Judau... Ashta. They've been on the same battlegrounds before, but why is she feeling this now? Perhaps...

        Ruri comes back with information. < "AECF. If they're ZAFT pilots, I suppose, that'd make sense..." >

        Qivi's words may not translate, but again, the emotions do, giving Lucine a center. < ".... Thank you, Qivi. This getting a little personal for us, but... the bigger picture is what's important." >

        The Dianthus's glaive connects, but it leaves it well within Michiru's reach. The beam hits the Dianthus, casting it back; it'll take more to keep her down, however.

        It's Michiru's comments towards Liam that incite Lucine's ire the most. < ".... *monster*?! Don't you dare talk to him that way!!" >

        Of course, Lucine had to forget her earlier clarity and make it personal again, and Ruri's question, about feeding the Distortion Field technology to the Jovian Lizards, makes it even worse.

        Contempt all but drips from Lucine's words. < "... If you helped *them*, you know *nothing* about what you're playing at." > Mercilessly, the Dianthus speeds towards the Daitenshi S2, slicing the air in front of it.

        < "If this is what an angel is, and those who are in your way are monsters... then I'll be your *devil*." >

KTS: Lucine Azul targets Michiru Tenjou with CL0-V3 Glaive Crescent Cross!
KTS: Lucine Azul has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

        The way Himeyuri's smile turns toward Ryoko has something new behind it. It's... creepy and unnaturaly. "Ryoko-chan, I don't think you have any idea of what Earth did to my people." She says, with a warmth that would fool anyone who didn't know it. It's not Himeyuri's usual slightly offensiveness politeness. It's not her normal sweetness. It's... forced and yet wholly who she is at once. Who she is *supposed* to be. "You don't even realize who they are, after all."

        Ryoko tries to defend Hikaru and Minato and Himeyuri just ignores those defense. Even as she drives her field lancer- cutting through Hime's field, and driving into her despite her reactiveness. Fortunately, the size of the Daitenshi means it doesn't get deep enough to do crippling damage. "Why shouldn't I? It's true. It's what I am supposed to say." She smiles brightly to Ryoko, closing her eyes, and for a moment it looks for all the world that it's earnest- until she opens her eyes again and looks at Ryoko sadly. "...Ryoko-chan. I know I'm not. But your mother failed you. If she hadn't... you wouldn't be here. You would be at home. Safe. Loved. Not here, pretending to be a boy. I feel so sorry for you... But at least I can save Michi from turning out like you."

        This time, Himeyuri doesn't falter. "...A real woman doesn't need 'experience' like yours." She says, and the words are as cold as ice despite that discordant smile. "And besides... it's too late for the Earth to change. The wickedness, the corruption runs far too deep. The only way to fix things is to remove Earth's influence and start over."

        The Nadesico's missiles charge and the wings of the Daitenshi wave forward firing forth a spray of feathers that crash against the missiles, detonating them early, her Daitenshi clear and fine.

        She is very calm. "I suppose a man like you *would* think a maiden's heart is complex." She says, flatly. "You seem a man who treats them callously." Dyna Saber carves into the Daitenshi again, and Hime shrieks again- because that's how a maiden should react!

        "You operate under a misapprehension, Alto-kun." He was at the beach too, wasn't he. "...I am not a coordinator. What the PLANTs do in their misguided cowardice doesn't affect me." Alto argues that he doesn't break hearts. "Oh? It seems I have misjudged you then? Or maybe you are oblivious to the harm you do. A responsible man in your position would marry the first girl whose heart he won, and wear a ring so all other women knew that they should not fall for you." Her wings close around her, forming a shield against Alto's bullets- some get through, but Hime remains safe.

        "...You say that as you distribute your strange Earthling propaganda, saying such falsehoods about Gekiganger." She says, dispassionately. "You could have spent your days writing shoujo manga, being a good influence on girls not... that." Hime had been stunned by the contents of Hikaru's book, certainly. But... she hadn't been able to deny- when Michi read some of the lines out to her while Hime had her hands over her eyes- that the characterization was wrong. But a woman shouldn't write boys stories, just like women shouldn't write men's stories. So. Hime had to say what we should. She had to do what she should. She had to do what a woman should do. Hikaru's field lancer connects- just as the Daitenshi suddenly teleports behind her, sparing Hime the damage, if not the shock to her system. But back on the Nadesico... those were boson readings. That was a boson jump.

        Eight calls her out, and Hime stares for only a moment. "...So you have ensured your children will grow up without a mother, while ensuring your Husband lacks the motivation that would come from defending you too." Himeyuri shakes her head. "...What folly. I hope after his grieving is over, your husband will be able to find a wife more suited to the role." Love doesn't demand atrocity? Himeyuri shakes her head again. "...No. Love demands this. If I am to be a girl worth dying for... then Love demands this."

        She smiles warmly, as Michiru cries that she'll defend her. She's such a good best friend- if it weren't for all her unnatural desires. Hopefully today will be the end of those, though. "...Angel of Justice. I appreciate it so much, but there are plenty of worthy male pilots to die for my safety today." Is she... going to order Michi to retreat? ...No. "Today, I want you to deal out true justice to our enemies." She tilts her head and closes her eyes as she grants Michiru the warmest smile she has ever given her. "Kill them all, Michi~"

        She swings out her staff again, again, and this time the gravitational beam is not crushing- it's both pulling- but pulling away from Himeyuri until it can attempt to lock Dynazenon and Hikaru's Aestivalis in place. "I will ask you both to give me my space." She says, like it's a polite request- as suddenly the gravity pulls in both directions, as if to pull their units apart.

        Next, she spins toward Alto's Messiah, her wings closing again, opening again with a shout from the pilot. "Shine, Wings of Love!" Powerful beams of light, different from the Gravity beam, blast towards his VF, bouncing off feathers distributed from the earlier fighting. It's not aimed, as a funnel, the light is simply reflected in random directions as well as the main blast for Alto.

        Next is for Ryoko, and Hime's arms cross across her chest, and when she opens them, the chest gravity cannon fires a surge towards the Aestivalis, only the mercy of an end being offered from Hime should it connect.

        it doesn't hurt it doesn't hurt it doesn't hurt.

        She starts drawing a heart with her staff, gathering those with sparkles she entered the battlefield with. But a question comes-

        "That's very polite of you, Ruri-chan, I'm so very glad your manners are fine after all you have been through." That sounds... almost genuine. "But I am afraid you are both correct and incorrect. It's okay, I'll explain it." After all, teaching IS a woman's job. "I did build the distortion field over the weapon. However, it is not 'your' distortion field data. This data... was data I already possessed. I simply iterated on it. I think I started when I was... eight? It took a long while!" And yet she's so proud. "...Anyway, that's neither here nor there. As for your second question... no. I did no such thing."

        She smiles again, even wider, even more... stepford.

        "I was the one who worked out how to use it on the unmanned weapons we used to fight you wicked Earthlings, and then I shared it to ZAFT." There is a momentary pause, where she bows briefly.

        "Allow me to properly introduce myself, Ruri-chan. I'm Himeyuri Oono, the Living Saint of Callisto."

        And then, she thrusts her staff through the heart. "Goodbye, Ruri-chan." A beam of light, massive, powerful, pink- and with a range going well past the Nadesico- fires toward the battle ship. "MAIDEN'S HEART PURIFICATION!"

KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Michiru Tenjou with Dream!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Koyomi Yamanaka and Hikaru Amano with AGT-7 Angel Staff Vacuum Beam!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Ryoko Subaru with AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou engages charge against Lucine Azul's CL0-V3 Glaive Crescent Cross!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Lucine Azul's CL0-V3 Glaive Crescent Cross, taking 3900 damage!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou accepts Himeyuri Oono's Dream!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono shares a dream with Michiru Tenjou, increasing her SP!
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Dream, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Hikaru Amano's IFS Activate! activates!
KTS: Hikaru Amano has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.

<Pose Tracker> Judau Ashta has posed.

Do you understand the burden you place on others? What they must do, to keep things together, as you forge ahead!?

The Double Zeta suddenly -- stops.

Within the cockpit, Judau Ashta's eyes widen. He wants to shout down Zabine, but for once -- for once, the mysterious, one-eyed man says just the right thing.

What must they do?

Unbidden, memories flood to the surface of Judau's thoughts.

Of everyone he left behind when he and Roux went to Jupiter.

Of everything that happened to Leina after.

... of every time Leina was burdened because of his own recklessness.

Of every
        single
                person

who lost their lives while he got to see another day, every single, better, more capable soul snuffed out while he lived on, and... what?

What has he done?

What has he done to deserve any of this life--?

<"I...">

The ZZ Gundam stalls; and the aura of pure will that cocoons the heavy-armed mobile suit flags in perfect echo to Judau Ashta's uncertainty and guilt, magentas and reds flickering and ebbing in guttering flames around that blue and white armor.

What has he done? What can he -do-, really?

Everything he does -- just seems to make everything so much worse--

You see; the thing with Judau Ashta isn't that he doesn't think.

It's just that the technical details never mattered nearly so much as the emotional ones that still haunt him.

Fingers tremble around his controls. For that long moment, the Double Zeta seems loss at a crossroads.

And yet...

... he hears the others.

As Eduoard firmly and stoically refutes Zabine.

As Rikka emphatically denies him.

As Eight's determined decrial is announced across his comms.

As Akane warns him of the path his future will take him down.

And most keenly of all...

... he hears what Zabine says. About 'aristocracy.' The atrocious duty of 'nobility.'

White gloves clench tremblingly tight around mobile suit controls.

<"...">

Who picks up after what you leave in your wake, Judau Ashta?

<"... what...">

And that aura...

<"... what kinda stupid question is that?!">

... f l a r e s.

<"Who picks up after me?! My sister! My fiance! My friends -- my family -- the people who love me! Whenever I've been too god damn stupid for my own good, I know at least they're there to cover for the weaknesses I have! I know they'll support me when I need it but I'm too damn thick-headed to say it out loud, just like I'd do for each and EVERY one of them! Because THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE ARE SUPPOSED TO DO!">

Judau Ashta's aura is a wholly palpable thing, expanding beyond the boundaries of the Double Zeta itself until it becomes a great, scarlet corona, like the lashing flares of a sun. The Gundam rises, its green optics sizzling towards glowing magentas as it yanks free one of those beam saber hilts once again.

<"WE LOVE EACH OTHER! AND EVEN WHEN WE DON'T, WE DAMN WELL NEED SUPPORT EACH OTHER! NOT -MURDER- EACH OTHER JUST TO PROVE SOME SELF-SERVING POINT ABOUT!">

The beam saber ignites. And the normally long and unstable particle beam suddenly expands even FURTHER, growing broader, growing longer, until reds bleed out towards pinks, until the entire thing, twice as large as the ZZ, crackles with a power that is not fueled by particles, but by Judau Ashta's sheer anger for this man and everything he represents.

It's naive, Judau's words. Hopelessly optimistic. Looking out over this battlefield, repeating the same tragedies yet again, how could anyone claim human nature is about supporting each other?

And yet he believes every word.

If you need proof, just see watch how that massive blade fueled by that belief swing -straight down- towards Zabine with smiting strength.

<"I got no idea who you people are supposed to be, but you'd be better off naming yourselves Neo-Britannia -- at least it'd be more honest!! Now GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!">

KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Ruri Hoshino's IFS Genius activates!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Ruri Hoshino with Maiden's Heart Purification!!
KTS: Judau Ashta targets Zabine Chareux with Sword of Fervor!
KTS: Judau Ashta has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Hikaru Amano engages block against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Vacuum Beam!!
KTS: Hikaru Amano's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Hikaru Amano successfully blocks Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Vacuum Beam!, taking 2842 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono targets Alto Saotome with The Wings Of Love!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Focus Spirit Command.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru engages react against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast!
KTS: Best Defense! Ryoko Subaru successfully reacts to Himeyuri Oono's AGT-5 Heart Justice Love And Kindness Blast,
taking 0 damage!
KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Wall Spirit Command.
KTS: Alto Saotome engages guard against Himeyuri Oono's The Wings Of Love!
KTS: Critical Hit! Alto Saotome poorly guards Himeyuri Oono's The Wings Of Love, taking 6090 damage!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka engages evade against Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Vacuum Beam!!
KTS: Best Defense! Koyomi Yamanaka moderately reacts to Himeyuri Oono's AGT-7 Angel Staff Vacuum Beam!, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage parry against Judau Ashta's Sword of Fervor!
KTS: Critical Hit! Zabine Chareux poorly reacts to Judau Ashta's Sword of Fervor, taking 7150 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.

That's more like it, thinks Nova Stellar as she manages to literally disarm her opponent, elated by her ending up so decisively on top in a saber-measuring contest. Yet she doesn't get the celebrate the success, as in return, Annamarie fires off... a quip. One that hits Naoko right in the weak spot for massive psychological damage, confronting her with her own words.

"P-p-p-pick-up line? N-no, that wasn't... I didn't mean to-- h-how does that even make sense?!"

She wasn't thinking about that interpretation at all. But now she is. Of all the issues she thought she might need to deal with today, being made to blush too much to act was not one of them. It's a super-effective avenue of attack too, given that her machine responds directly to her mental state. The blade that she was so proud of immediately deactivates - or more accurately, ceases to exist.

Luckily, she's not alone out here, and Parrot Squadron's support bails her out of what could have easily ended up a dicey situation for her. Out of immediate personal danger, she finally takes a moment to catch her breath, only to have Eight call out to her. Sukeban Kiseki quickly gets out of the way of fire support from the Ra Mari II, extending the time she has to get her act back together.

"D-damn, what's going on? There's weirdos all over the place," she privately complains. Well, almost privately. Uriel is all too happy to take the easy shot.

>"Isn't it great? You fit right in."<

"Oh shut up!"

Naoko is all out of confidence for a good comeback after what just happened. But she's managed to recover enough to repay the favor to Parrot Squadron. Her Arm Slave rises upwards, as she announces her intent to her allies. "Additional fire support incoming!"

Another spike on the psychic scale heralds her following action. Small green energy orbs separate from the Sukeban, reshaping themselves into flat discs, several of which gather around the machine before it extends an arm diagonally downwards.

"Cut them down! Phantom Saucers!"

Mental projections of the weapons that used to be physically equipped on the original Sukeban are sent flying in droves, homing in on individual Den'an Zons and attempting to collide with them. Flagrantly disregarding the laws of physics, the damage their rapidly spinning edges cause is very real, despite having no physical substance.

KTS: Naoko Suzuki targets Zabine Chareux with Phantom Saucers!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage block against Naoko Suzuki's Phantom Saucers!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Naoko Suzuki's Phantom Saucers, taking 4125 damage!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki begins a Formation attack!

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

Kae-soon swears softly, in his native Korean, when he sees the way the missile explodes on the AT Field. Not without causing some damage... but not causing the damage that he hoped.

The heat rapier slashes out. Kae-soon makes his Den'an Zon duck low, under it. But the one burnt before, by her fires, is beheaded in an instant. Sparks fly from the neck, as the Den'an Zon veers wildly away from the fight. The other tries to dodge.

And insteadthe head is torn into, broken and rendered into a mangled mess of steel. It flies backward.

"This is more than we can contend with," Kae-soon says. "Lieutenant! We can't hold this thing back for long!"

- * - * -

"Shit!" Annamarie Bourget cries out again, this time more desperately. She sees the cannon swivel towards her on the Ra Mari II. She sends her golden Den'an Zon flying towards it -- hoping to get too close into range before it can fire on her.

It fires on her, the energy blast slamming into the Mobile Suit. One of the eyes cracks, then explodes; armor burns away in layers, before she flies backward, and away from the blast.

"What--oh, come on! That's totally what it sounded like!" Annamarie groans back at Nova. "Don't make it like I'm the weird one!"

The other Den'an Zons are facing a problem. The problem is a Naoko-sized and -shaped problem.

They're torn into; the phantom saucers slash through legs and arms, here and there. One, sparking from earlier, suddenly flickers -- and the eyes go dead, as the power cuts off. Another flies uncontrollably at an angle away.

"Damn it," Annamarie says to herself. "This mission... why? This can't be what Lord Meitzer wanted..."

Her eyes close. Then, she flicks on her comms. "Fall back! We can't take them all!"

The golden Den'an Zon grabs the disabled one -- and boosts away.

- * - * -

"It is you," Zabine says, his eyes narrowing for a moment. "What a twist of fate, that--"

The beam rifle fires, and the shots slice through the lower half of the Berga Giros. The right leg shorn away entirely; armor is blasted off the head of the Mobile Suit. Zabine hisses under his breath.

"That Char Aznable would come here. Call my convictions what you like," Zabine says. "Driving away ghosts is also a duty of the aristocracy!"

The shot lancer is slid into a new lance -- which he turns down, towards the Nemo. Then, Zabine fires his thrusters -- and sends his Mobile Suit onward in a desperate charge straight for Edouard's Mobile Suit. He thrusts the lance for him -- then fires the rockets backward, and sees the gravity shackles firing. One slams into his battered suit -- but he smashes it away with the beam shield, then fires the thrusters.

The Berga Giros rockets above them, just barely making it before they can all latch on. "Pain is a fact of this world," Zabine answers her. "And you'd be better off accepting that. It's naive to pretend otherwise."

Then, he swings up the shot lancer -- and sees the enormous knife coming for him. He catches it, the lance sending sparks flying into space, digging an enormous gouge into the thing.

Which is when it has a problem: it's a missile.

It explodes, the blast slamming the Berga Giros away from her. "Gh--" He shakes his head. "I've chosen to move myself away from others. I accept that. The idea of connecting with someone else..."

He exhales. "...It's a lie we tell ourselves, so we can give away our responsibility to this world."

Zabine turns his head towards the Double Zeta. He isn't a Newtype; he can't realize, fully, how he shook Judau. His eye widens, as he draws out the beam saber, with the loss of the shot lancer. The blade erupts again.

"That may be good enough for you... for your family. It is not good enough for EVERYONE! And I will not rest until we have that! I am Zabine Chareux! A soldier of Cosmo Babylonia! And I--"

The beam saber is cast aside. Slashed clean through by Judau's blade, as it cleaves the head of the Berga Giros clean off -- and he is forced o fire his thrusters backward, away from him.

"I won't accept your answer," Zabine finishes, his voice calm and level again. "It is no answer at all."

'Lieutenant! We can't hold this thing back for long!'

"Roger that, Sergeant," Zabine says. "Zamouth Garr, I'm calling for fire support."

The battered, half-crippled black Mobile Suit turns -- blitzing away, as two Den'an Zons move to cover it.

- * - * -

The Crossbone Vanguard fleet sits back in the distance. It has been far from idle -- it was advanced on by the Baikal and a flotilla of Gaia Sabers ships, engaging in a fleet battle with Arthur Goodman's battle group. Those explosions have been a backdrop to the battle.

But Zabine's words echo over the bridge: "Zamouth Garr, I'm calling for fire support."

The bridge is staffed with numerous Crossbone Vanguard personnel. The middle-aged captain, in a black uniform with golden lining has chin-length blonde hair. Gillet Krueger folds his arms. "Sir?"

Beside him is the commander of the entire Crossbone Vanguard: Carozzo Ronah, a powerfully built and tall man in a deep purpple uniform, with thread-of-gold throughout, and a lighter purple cape. And, of, course, the massive polished steel mask that encloses his face.

Thus, his name: Iron Mask.

"We will provide it," Iron Mask commands. "I shall address them."

The broadcast is sent out to all of those in this sector of Junius 7.

"All futures are built on terror, Eight Orlodhari," Iron Mask says in his deep, basso tones. "What matters is the future that lies on the other side."

It is not only his words, though, that reach out. Iron Mask's presence can suddenly be felt. It is a powerful, oppressive aura; like being surrounded by grasping tendrils, pulled in, and smothered. Laughter grows hollow; joy is dampened; happiness fades under the feeling of ever-present, ever-demanding misery.

"We carry the hopes of our lessers because it is our right. Because they cannot dream. Because they are base," Iron Mask says. "If they must die, then so be it. We give them to God, because they are ours to give. Such is our burden; such is our glory."

Iron Mask sweeps an arm outward. The aura threatens to smother those here. There is an uncaringness to it. A dismissiveness beyond his words. As Carozzo Ronah looks upon what could be Earth's final day...

"Krueger. Fire."

...he is unmoved.

The turrets on the Zamouth Garr and the other shps of the Crossbone Vanguard swivel. They turn and take aim at the Galactron and the Evangelion. They lock onto the Ra Mari II. Then, they fire, and lances of golden light cross space -- and explode brilliantly upon impact.

KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Edouard Mass with Shot Lancer Charge!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Rikka Takarada with Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Judau Ashta with Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Naoko Suzuki with Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux targets Kaworu Nagisa, Eight Orlodhari, and Akane Shinjo with Fleet Action!

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.

        Ryoko and Hikaru show resolve in their own ways. He doesn't know either of them as well as Lucine does, but it's heartening to see, regardless. The Akashima's massive head snaps towards Himeyuri's painfully femme machine, its two offset optics boring into the smaller S1.

        "I was forced from my home," Liam snarls, his rage peaking like an onrushing wave. "By people who wanted to hurt Earth's leaders. Didn't change anything. Just killed people--people who never hurt you."

        But Himeyuri's Guardian Angel isn't someone he can just ignore, even if Hime herself is pushing him to greater heights of anger. And what Michiru says next--

        That's the kind of person you are? Monster. Wearing a human's skin.

        Liam's lips curl back from his teeth. He answers Michiru's hot-blooded roar with one of his own. The Akashima jukes to the side, facing the much smaller S2 with its flank armor, and pulling its cannon out of the way to stop a potential cookoff. The beam rakes down the Mobile Weapon's side, melting armor into a searing, red-hot mass. Liam's eyes widen as he sees the readouts--should something that size be able to hit that hard?!--but he doubles down, even as his voice grows raw. What are these things? How is he supposed to stop them? If he can't stop them, then he can't stop Junius 7, and Earth will--

        Alloy drips off the Akashima's side, hardening slightly as the coolant sucks the heat out. Something--someone--speaks to Liam, and for the first time, he realizes it's the Ultra that's been here. Nova, was it? She's here. She'll protect them.

        Himeyuri speaks again. Liam's hands begin to vibrate on the sticks as he realizes she's talking to Ruri. Explaining what she did, and what she made. Autonomous drones, for use against the 'vile earthlings'.

        Liam's brain feels like it's starting to superconduct from all the heat and pressure it's under. Callisto, a moon of Jupiter. Uninhabited, except for token Energy Fleet presense. Lucine saying she'd never so much as seen an actual Jovian Lizard, wondering if those 'field reports' were fabrications. Nemi, dead and frozen beneath its depressurized dome. Vast fields of Mars, reduced to scorched-earth, just like his home. Distortion Fields. Who made the drones. WHO MADE THE DRONES?

        A second, horrific thought races on its own track through Liam's panic-stricken nervous system. The Nadeisco. Ruri.

        'Kill them all, Michi.'

        Liam's rage and tactical awareness are in perfect agreement in their rebuttal.

        "No," he says. The Akashima's arm shudders as he loads up a drum of the stuff he thought he'd never use on a piloted suit--the fluorinated incendiaries, the chemical rounds that can burn even in vacuum. How else is he supposed to take this thing down? (Is he already justifying himself?)

        Liam sights on the Daitenshi S2's center of mass, and pulls the trigger. There's no further talk from him, only a relentless, punishing hail of bullets as he tries to overwhelm Michiru's guard and drive her back, hurt her, get her away, do something to help him feel like he has any control.

KTS: Rikka Takarada uses Lucky Charm
KTS: Rikka Takarada accepts Zabine Chareux's Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux demoralizes Rikka Takarada, reducing her Morale drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Rikka Takarada successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Demoralize, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Rikka Takarada's Steadfast Resolve activates, and her spirit endures.
KTS: Liam 7-020 targets Michiru Tenjou with Akashima Arm Cannon Inferno Burner!
KTS: Liam 7-020 has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Liam 7-020's Tactical Intelligence activates Wall!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki accepts Zabine Chareux's Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux demoralizes Naoko Suzuki, reducing her Morale drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Naoko Suzuki successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Demoralize, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Naoko Suzuki's Mental Sentinels activates, and her spirit endures.
KTS: Judau Ashta accepts Zabine Chareux's Demoralize!
KTS: Zabine Chareux demoralizes Judau Ashta, reducing his Morale drastically.
KTS: Best Defense! Judau Ashta successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Demoralize, taking 0 damage!
KTS: [Spirit Defense] Judau Ashta's Bottomless Optimism activates, and his spirit endures.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari engages evade against Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action, taking 4960 damage!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Akane Shinjo fails to engage evade against Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action!
KTS: Akane Shinjo's Will Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Akane Shinjo successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action, taking 4275 damage!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa engages block against Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa's Will Barrier activates, negating 1500 base damage.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa successfully blocks Zabine Chareux's Fleet Action, taking 2820 damage!
KTS: Your unit's HP stands at 2555
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Edouard Mass engages parry against Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Charge!
KTS: Edouard Mass successfully reacts to Zabine Chareux's Shot Lancer Charge, taking 3575 damage!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou fails to engage react against Liam 7-020's Akashima Arm Cannon Inferno Burner!
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Liam 7-020's Akashima Arm Cannon Inferno Burner, taking 0
damage!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino fails to engage evade against Himeyuri Oono's Maiden's Heart Purification!!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino's EN Barrier activates, negating 1000 base damage.
KTS: Ruri Hoshino poorly reacts to Himeyuri Oono's Maiden's Heart Purification!, taking 5900 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono roots her unit, coming to a standstill and leaving her vulnerable.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has activated the Attune Spirit Command.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

Gauma deflects but, "Exactly! They're totally ripping it off!" Ryoko buys it!? Whereas Hikaru indicates she came up with the name, "She really did, she wouldn't stop pestering me for months until I let her do it!"

(For the record she folded in like a week to the continued onslaught of Izumi and Hikaru.)

Lucine lets her know that she's detecting, "What? Like newtype shit? Is she a Newtype too?" The Aestivalis points at the Daitenshi, "Her?!"

Ryoko is apparently very good at identifying the Newtypes in the room, such as Judau Ashta, who she does not believe this is.

Ruri however, presents evidence! With receipts, and Ryoko just looks flabbergasted for a few moments, before she notes, "You do know any dumbass can edit that webpage right?" But still she squints at the picture of him assaulting Shin Karato, "Damn, even if it's fake, still appreciate the man's right hook."

Minato can definitely defend herself, but Ryoko's a bit ticked. She's just dating normally! And she definitely doesn't know that from spying on her and Hoary Goat doing adult stuff!

As Hikaru veers in left, Ryoko tries her best to adjust to her attack, even before

Himeyuri says that Ryoko doesn't have any idea what the Earth did to her people, and that smile unsettles her, but- "And so what!? It justifies anything? It justifies THIS? Don't think you realize - I was on ZAFT's side! Junius Seven - shit - but this escalation - soon enough EVERYONE is an asshole! And right now - YOU'RE BEING THE BIGGEST ONE!"

A beat.

"Okay actually that Bougie dipshit over there is pretty good competition, I'll give you that much."

The camera briefly shifts to Zabine.

What Himeyuri says next though steals some of her thunder for a bit, and for a while, she has nothing to say - she just has to process the depths of - how wrong those words are. The idea that she was Eight. This... all of this, and as the Gravity Blast comes, Ryoko's Aestivalis abruptly shifts at the last second, like some anime hero sidestepping, but it's more that with the IFS - her Aestivalis is just an extension of her own body.

She has no time to consider the deadliness of that attack, what might have happened if it hit her.

"She didn't fail me. She died." Her voice rasps faintly as her Aestivalis flies to try to stay ahead of the Daitenshi's ability to attack her, "Went off Colony for work, because we'd be out on the streets without that money - wrong place, wrong time. Titans murdered her."

It's so, matter of fact, how she says it. When she never talks about herself, her past history, and now that fire and fury is returning. "Yeah - I'm not all polished and feminine but who the hell cares? I'm still a girl damnit! You think I'm pretending to be a boy?"

Her Aestie flies towards the Daitenshi again, trying to bait an attack, before it pulls out it's rapid rifle, beginning to shower the Daitenshi at close range with bullets, "GET!" Just up and down and all over it's length "FUCKED!"

How many bullets can one clip have?

"A REAL WOMAN - WOULDN'T TREAT THE INNOCENT PEOPLE THEY'RE GONNA KILL LIKE - SOME CANCER!"

One might think there are no words in the world that could make her shift focus from Himeyuri in this moment, but - others are spoken...

'That Char Aznable would come here.'

"Fucking what?" Ryoko's eyes follow that shot lancer straight towards the Nemo, shell casings floating all around her in space as she stares, "You son of a bitch." He doesn't know her. He has no idea who she even is, but he certainly gets a Newtype Flash of her hostility. "I would have followed you into hell. You-" Her entire being tenses up, "-WHERE DO YOU GET OFF THINKING YOU CAN FIGHT ON THIS SIDE!"

And her Aestivalis turns, it turns, and it begins firing on his Nemo, and if her system blares countless warnings that she's firing on a friendly IFF...

... she ignores it.

And she doesn't stop firing until, it's not the pressure. She can't even feel it truly, but there's a cold sweat upon the back of her neck. An understanding, the words... the man in the Mask.

"That... should be you."

Her voice is like a whimper, at how pathetic it is. The villain in the mask, giving grandiose speeches. Not someone on their side.

KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Ryoko Subaru targets Himeyuri Oono and Edouard Mass with This Rifle is Pretty Rapid!!
KTS: Ryoko Subaru has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Edouard Mass engages evade against Ryoko Subaru's This Rifle is Pretty Rapid!!
KTS: Best Defense! Edouard Mass moderately reacts to Ryoko Subaru's This Rifle is Pretty Rapid!, taking 0 damage!
KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Judau Ashta has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage block against Ryoko Subaru's This Rifle is Pretty Rapid!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Ryoko Subaru's This Rifle is Pretty Rapid!, taking 3168 damage!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Judau Ashta

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

Himeyuri answers Eight, and Eight shakes her head. "I have no intention of dying today. ...But if I do, then they'll know, when they're old enough to understand, what I was trying to do. The world I want to make for them. And the world I'll make with him."

There's a flash of anger, from those who can sense it of Eight; she is not a bombastic presence these days, but perhaps some close to her, like Rena, will feel it. "You say you're a girl worth dying for."

"I'd rather be a woman worth living for."

Naoko at least is still out there. Eight continues to look at that particular IFF now and then, just to be sure. A girl like that, on a battlefield like this...

'Addtional fire support incoming!' "Acknowledged! We'll keep you shielded!" say the Parrots.

She hears Judau's shouts--she hasn't been able to do more than watch his battle, but now...

"He's damned right," Eight says over the comms, even as she feels the sheer presence of his aura, is warmed by the love in Judau's heart even as he fights. It's Leina who's her good friend... But she can imagine, for a moment, how lucky one would be for Judau to be a friend, too.

"Captain," Parrot Squadron asks Maina when the golden Den'an Zon moves to retreat. "Should we--"

"Let them go," Maina says. "...That's not who we are."

Eight is addressed directly, then. Directly, by a presence she cannot deny. Maina, on the bridge, staggers visibly; Eight is not so powerful a Newtype anymore, but even she can feel that weight. it does not care. It--

"I won't believe that!" Eight calls back to Iron Mask. "The future we seek to build--it's one of hope! The hope that our children will see a better world than ours!"

"Evasive maneuvers!" Maina calls in alarm, breaking free of the Presence. Lances of golden light shine through--and penetrate the Ra Mari II's shields, blasting against it powerfully even as the ship turns to face its armor towards the beams. It is whole, when the scorching beams fade...

But it won't be, after another hit like that. The bridge shakes with the impact, knocking around the crew even with their safety harnesses.

"You don't know a damned thing!" Eight shouts. "Dividing people into nobles and 'lessers'--treating the deaths of countless people as nothing but an eventuality you can place on your God!"

"There's no glory in that!"

Maina looks to Orlodhari. "I'm firing back," she says, and Eight nods. "Give it everything you've got, Captain Maina."

BGM Cut-In: You Will Know Our Names: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7yNyhLOIa4

"Harpe! Divert full power to cannons!"

"Aye-aye, ma'am!" She moves the dials, raises the slider. "Calculating firing solution! Cannons at 70.. 80... 100%! Ready!"

"Show them..." Captain Maina points forward, "The hopes of Earth! Fire at will!"

Eight watches, as her crew does their work--and Janid Harpe fires the cannons. Outside the ship, dozens of beam cannons swivel, the largest of which suit such a titanic ship. They charge--and FIRE, pink beams rocketing towards the Zamouth Garr to counterattack, aimed straight for center mass.

"To Hell with your God!" Eight calls. "And to Hell with your glory!"

KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari targets Zabine Chareux with Beam Cannon Destruction Pattern!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Eight Orlodhari's Shadow of Axis activates!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage block against Eight Orlodhari's Beam Cannon Destruction Pattern!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Eight Orlodhari's Beam Cannon Destruction Pattern, taking 5175
damage!
KTS: Eight Orlodhari completes the Formation attack!
KTS: Akane Shinjo has activated the Trick Spirit Command.

<Pose Tracker> Edouard Mass has posed.

"The irony is not lost on me either," Edouard responds, "but if you would seek to slay ghosts, you would be better served by striking out at those who still choose to imitate the sins of Operation British."

The Berga Giros dives towards him, and he readies himself. Still so quick despite its age, the Nemo's saber arm sweeps up to cleave at the payload, the blast engulfing it...

... It emerges from the blast cloud, left arm obliterated, to watch Zabine retreat. Edouard lifts the BR-M-87, sighting in...

... wait.

The way the Nemo breaks its aim to move, as Ryoko screams at him... it can only be the preternatural reflexes of the Red Comet, as it is like she's firing at a ghost. However, despite turning the Nemo to face her, Edouard makes no attempt to refute or counter her fury.

Perhaps he should let her shots strike home - rip his cockpit apart, and give her the brief satisfaction of her revenge.

The thought has barely formed when he first feels that sense of icy dread rippling across the battlefield, stopping and turning the Nemo to face Iron Mask's grandiose broadcast as Ryoko's Aestivalis also stops dead. Tendrils of darkness coil around his soul, probing and cutting deeper...

... only to find psychic scar tissue, seared amber.

"I've been to Hell," he answers Ryoko, and then she calls out that it should be him up there. The man in the mask, making the horrifying speech.

"... and that's exactly why I'm fighting," he continues. "As long as there are men who follow in my madness."

The Nemo brings up its heavy rifle again. With one arm, at this distance, he might not even scratch the paint on Iron Mask's battleship.

Even so, he holds down the trigger until the beamfire sputters out.

KTS: Edouard Mass targets Zabine Chareux with BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream!
KTS: Edouard Mass has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage block against Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream!
KTS: Zabine Chareux poorly reacts to Edouard Mass's BR-M-87 Beam Rifle Continuous Stream, taking 6500 damage!
KTS: Edouard Mass roots his unit, coming to a standstill and leaving him vulnerable.

<Pose Tracker> Ruri Hoshino has posed.

        "I was made into a kaiju, once," Ruri says, entirely too passively, in her communications window in the Dynazenon cockpit. "But I got better. You're very hot-blooded people, aren't you?"

        Ruri adds, to Ryoko, when she points out that anyone can edit the Wikibrary: "But people edit out the fake information." So much trust...

        Minato frowns; just like Alto, she is worried about what they're saying about being displaced, even if her worries are slightly overridden by Junius Seven's current course. Eight understands, of course. It's about the suffering of people. Which is why, when Himeyuri says what she does to Ryoko, Minato cuts in to say: "We can't know if you won't tell us!"

        Ruri listens to Ryoko insisting she was on ZAFT's side, and understands a little more about how upset... she is now.

        (Who would hate Minato? It's an excellent question. She's got so much heart, and she's so easy to talk to!)

        "I don't believe that!" Minato says, on the heels of her own argument with Himeyuri. "No one is beyond redemption! Whatever we've done to you -- it's already been done! What matters is what we do next, and can't you see that what you're doing next will kill millions of people?! And even if it does, the Earth will endure! You'll just make more orphans hungry for revenge...!"

        "Our missiles were ineffective," Ruri reports, dispassionately, as the helmswoman's blood boils.

        Omoikane pops up a green, affirmative checkmark -- < v/ > -- when Hikaru calls them /Gekifakers./

        "Don't say bad things about Hikaru-san's artwork," Ruri admonishes Himeyuri, with the ghost of a frown on her face. A beat, and --

        "Boson readings elevated," Ruri cuts herself off, to report, mechanically, when the Daitenshi disappears and reappears.

        Minato shakes her head, and grasps her communication window, angrily, as if she could crawl out of it like some kind of Ring ghost as she hears what Himeyuri has to say to Eight. "Listen to yourself! 'A girl worth dying for'?! It's crazy! From one woman to another, if a man puts you on a pedestal like that, your relationship is utterly doomed! At best, you'll be reduced to a symbol -- and at worst--!! Don't you see the danger you're in, the minute you fail to live up to the pedestal you're sitting on?! A girl worth dying for is a girl worth mourning!"

        (Goat Hoary, in his own operations station, has the decency to look away. He may not be the type of man to harm his woman, but... evidently, that kind of behaviour... well, let's just say Ryoko hasn't had much to spy on, lately, ever since Goat has grown concerned about their new surreptitious role in Terminal.)

        Ruri's frown deepens -- which is to say, it becomes properly visible -- when Himeyuri tries to take Inez's crown of being an explainer lady. And what she's explaining... is...

        "The Jovian Lizards are 'your' weapons?"

        Her gaze grows distant, as she thinks back to how the Daitenshi didn't want to speak with her. She hadn't realised -- hadn't wanted to realise -- the similarities between their unfriendliness and the difficulty Ruri's always had speaking with the Lizards. She'd wondered whether they were even really machines, the way she understood them, if she couldn't reach their hearts. But -- in fact --

        "And ZAFT was working with you, while you were attacking the Earth with the Jovian Lizards?"

        She doesn't even say the words with any particular malice. Neither does she sound stunned, though she is. She says it all with a carefully-cultivated neutrality, her face a mask.

        "But you're a person," she concludes.

        The first sign of her shock to be felt by the ship is the way she can't quite align the engines with Minato's will, as she tries -- and fails -- to escape that purification. The Nadesico is rocked, and if not for its own Distortion Field, it would surely be pierced straight through.

        "Damage sustained through several decks," Ruri hears herself report.

        And that's when she realises...

        "Ryoko-san?"

        ... there's someone else here.

        Omoikane helpfully strips the IFF from her targeting -- so that she can strike at Char Aznable, no matter what side he's apparently on.

        "Ruri-Ruri," Minato frowns, looking to her. "You can't fix your face like that. If you wear a mask, you..."

        They meet each other's eyes; they both realise what she's saying, all at once, as Iron Mask's pressure reaches the Nadesico too.

        "Excuse me," Ruri says, quietly.

        "But it's the mission."

        As she presses her hands to the console, and aligns a thousand variables.

        "Gravity Blast Cannon... firing."

        She can at least think on enough tracks to warn their allies of its firing path, as it carves through the enemies, targeted straight at the Himeyuri.

KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Unit Beta strikes true on two of the Den'an Zons, only Kae-soon managing to evade destruction. It's at least not total destruction--the pilots within will survive, or at least, they'll survive fighting the Evangelion. But those other two units won't be fighting anymore for this battle. Kaworu will let them flee, at least. He has no interest in killing them.
        
        He can feel Shinji watching from the other side of a screen. He knows how much it would hurt him to see people die--even if they are trying to enact atrocities.
        
        Unit Beta turns towards Junius 7, prepared to leave this battle behind for a far more fearsome one. However, then Iron Mask sends out a transmission, and Kaworu's red eyes flick towards the communication window that pops up in the visual screen within Unit Beta's entry plug. At the same time, his lips purse. That oppressive aura of emptiness and despair blooms like jellyfish, and for a brief moment, Kaworu slumps, hands gripping Unit Beta's controls.
        
        We give them to God, because they are our to give.
        
        Kaworu's head lifts. "God will not have them on this day," he says softly. "And when God does accept them into Heaven, it will not be you who delivers them there."
        
        He means that quite literally. But it is Kaworu, after all.
        
        The Zamouth Garr's turrets open fire on Unit Beta, on the Galactron and the Ra Mari II, sending golden light to lance into them and explode in blinding light. Kaworu smiles a little, ironically, as Unit Beta's A.T. Field provides a shore for them to crash upon, sending heat blasting back towards her and ripping through her hair, but protecting her from the worst of the impact. The two of them have beams of their own that they could fire in return... but no. There are more important uses for such things, if it comes to that.
        
        Unit Beta raises the Heat Rapier. Its long, slender form cuts a line through space as it "ignites"--which is to say, waves of force and heat begin to radiate off of it, increasing its destructive power and reach, not unlike the vibrations of a prog knife (or Liam's prog sword). At Kaworu's bidding, her wings arch upwards, and she blasts forward to bring her over to the fleet. Elegantly weaving around the beams fired from the Ra Mari II's cannons, she doesn't stop until she's within range of what appears to be the fleet's main ship.
        
        Once she's there, she sweeps the Heat Rapier up, around, and then forward--forward, forward, forwardforwardforward in an unrelenting hail of stabs, each one enhanced and illuminated by the "ignited" weapon. At the apex, that glow spreads to Unit Beta herself, silver hair flying in her wake, as she hurls herself fully down onto and perhaps through the hull.
        
        But even so, with care. It'll be at the bow, not the center of the ship. A strike meant to be strong enough to cripple it and force it to retreat, but not to destroy it outright.

KTS: Ruri Hoshino has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Ruri Hoshino targets Himeyuri Oono with Gravity Blast Cannon - Gravity Blast!
KTS: Ruri Hoshino has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa targets Zabine Chareux with Angel Dive!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: EN Regen activates. Your new EN value is 42.
KTS: SP Regen activates. Your new SP value is 80.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages guard against Kaworu Nagisa's Angel Dive!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully guards Kaworu Nagisa's Angel Dive, taking 6120 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has been defeated!

<Pose Tracker> Koyomi Yamanaka has posed.

Koyomi mutters, "Did she just say she's got a simple heart...?" in a confused tone.

Yume says, "I don't know that you guys are going to crack someone like her while she's worked up like this..."

Gauma, meanwhile, roars, "NOT A CHANCE!" to Himeyuri's command to retreat, but he does still have to force himself against the impossible forces. "This is some kinda...gravity control!?" Koyomi stammers. "This pressure's enormous!"

Gauma screams out, "But not enough to lose me!" as Dynazenon jerks ferociously, clearing completely out of the wave before Himeyuri can send Dynazenon hurtling aside. The hero in red and gray bullets away on blue-white flame, arcing high out of the plane of her attack.

"It's mostly Gauma, honestly," Koyomi says, timidly to Ruri.

"He's kinda got some stuff he's working through?" Yume quips.

Then, Koyomi pipes in again in response to Hikaru: "Wait, you do? Uhhh, I mean...I guess it's hard to miss some of the fights, huh..." ... "Don't worry about that much, though. I can tell..."

God, his pulse is in his ears. If he weren't sitting down he wonders if he'd be trying to leap out into space. These people are... "...they're very dangerous," he breathes, mouth dry.

Meanwhile, Dynazenon alights in the sky, throwing its arms forward. Gauma roars, "Your madness has to be stopped! For this world...for the people on it...! DYNAZENON!"

The hands rotate inward, pointing the wheels from its wrist forward, as well as the ones on its elbows. Two rifles swing up from Dynawing, aiming forward, and the missile silos on Dynadiver, the legs, swing open. "FULL BURST!!"

The night comes alive - missiles curving and trailing smoke, as the Dynastriker's four wheels rotate and rapidly fire bullets of light, and the two beam cannons ignite, carving the sky open with energy!

KTS: Chise Asukagawa has activated the Rouse Spirit Command targeting Koyomi Yamanaka
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has activated the Focus Spirit Command.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has activated the Attune Spirit Command.

<Pose Tracker> Alto Saotome has posed.

        She's not a Coordinator? She doesn't care about the PLANTs? Then why was she with them? She isn't with the extremists now? Alto is even more confused about what's going on.

        Not that it really matters because, <"Who the hell do you think you are to think you know anything about me or my 'position'!?">

        Alto watches warily as the Daitenshi S1 unleashes a dizzying array of lights. It seems like for a moment they're just poorly aimed. But then as they begin to bounce, Alto realizes the danger he's in. He presses down on his foot pedals, quickly jamming the flight stick to the side and pushing the throttle forward.

        The Messiah's legs kick up to the side as the engines in its feet burn brighter. The VF rolls and slides past one redirected beam of light, before its forced to swing its legs forward and pull up to avoid another. All the while Alto continues, <"Life is rarely that simple. No, it shouldn't be that simple, because that's such a depressing way to think about it!">

        The Valkyrie spins as another beam comes in from behind, the unit raising the shield on its arm as a circle of light forms over it. The beam smashes against the concentrated pinpoint barrier.

        <"If that's what you believe, then I pity you. But at the same time, this is no damned time to be talking about this kind of crap!">

        Alto finally runs out of luck as one of the redirect beams hits his wing just feet from the cockpit. His defenses already weakened by the assault, it cuts down the length of the wing, severaing it completely. The already damaged wing goes spinning off, along with that half of the attached FAST pack as well as the Reaction Missile that hung beneath it.

        The rest of the Messiah goes into an uncontrolled tumble as its center of mass and thrust are suddenly completely thrown off. Alto grunts as he is slammed into the side of the cockpit by the inertia. The starts and large mass of Junius 7 rush across his view through the canopy as he struggles to regain control, rapidly adjusting his flight stick with one hand while the other adjusts thrust vectoring with the other.

        During this, another voice echoes through the speakers in Alto's helmet. Something about futures and terror. Alto grunts amidst thruster bursts to say, "Not now asshole, I'm a bit busy!" Though it thankfully wasn't transmitted.

        Finally the Messiah's tumble slows, until Alto is finally able to bring the unit to a relative halt. Just in time to see the Daitenshi's purification blasting into the Nadesico and leaving noticeable damage across the ship, <"Nadesico!"> Thankfully it seems that it has weathered the attack as it prepares to fire back. Alto also turns his attention back to the Daitenshi, directing his system to get a missile lock on it, <"Just GO AWAY ALREADY!">

        Ports in the components that make up the Messiah's FAST Pack-or at least the half that is still attached-open. A barrage of micromissiles blossom out of them, numbering several dozen as they blast away and dance through space, before swarming in on the Daitenshi from multiple directions.

KTS: Alto Saotome's Here Is The Warm Sea activates!
KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Strike Spirit Command.
KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Alto Saotome has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.
KTS: Alto Saotome targets Himeyuri Oono with CIMM-3A Micro-missile Launchers Swarm Barrage!
KTS: Alto Saotome has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka targets Himeyuri Oono with Dynazenon Full Burst!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka's Read the Road activates Alert!

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

Rikka looks toward Akane briefly. A title you have to carry... She thinks back - and that is something she can be proud of. They've both moved forward.

Judau's speech... what more can she say to that? She feels the same way, but he's the one to put them into powerful words.

"Well said." Rikka says - but then quickly turns her attention back to the fight.

"Of course it is. I know that already." Rikka snaps back at Zabine. "But just because pain exists doesn't give you right to inflict more pain in the world, cause more hurt. There's no excuse... if you know that, then you have a responsibility to improve it."

But he's already chosen to move away from others - he accepts it. A lie... Rikka bristles at the thought. But before she can form a response - he calls in fire support.

A broadcast is sent out in response - and with it, with that voice, comes an aura. Powerful, oppressive, like a terrible weight - Rikka feels like it's going to smother her in her cockpit. It feels difficult to even breathe - for a moment, the Mu Gundam freezes in space. Laughter, joy, happiness... all snuffed out in an instant.

Rikka inhales sharply, breathing in, and out. For a moment, it feels like she's back then.

It's difficult. It's something she has to force herself through. The joy and happiness she hopes for... she reaches out for it and holds on tight, reminding herself why she's fighting.

"Akane..." Rikka murmurs quietly. "I'm here. We're still here."

The weight lessens, a little - just enough for the Mu Gundam to start moving again.

"There's no future... worth burning everything down to get it." Rikka forces out. "You've decided this all for yourself... but no one wants you, or your future. The future is something we build together, not - decided by a single man who looks down on everyone."

She takes a deep breath, trying to clear her head further.

"...Funnels!" Rikka calls out. The funnels shoot off again - and this time, with Zabine retreated, they focus on the forces between Junius 7 and themselves.

"Please... we can't do this anymore. Don't get in our way. Go home!" Rikka insists. The funnels race out, and they open fire - to disable as many mobile suits as they can reach.

KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Rikka Takarada targets Zabine Chareux with Together as One!
KTS: Rikka Takarada has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Enable Spirit Command targeting Akane Shinjo
KTS: Rikka Takarada has activated the Trust Spirit Command targeting Akane Shinjo

<Pose Tracker> Hikaru Amano has posed.

"Earthling propaganda? Falsehoods? Wh-" Hikaru tries to wrap her head around Himeyuri's mindset. Has this woman never heard of 'death of the author'? "It's fiction! I'm pretty sure I have way less 'influence' than you think. I like shoujo too, but I write the stuff I do because it's what I like, and it's what my readers like." It's not like it wounds her pride to have her work insulted like that, especially as even Ruri comes to her defense, it's just... why is Hime getting so hung up about it now?

It's not really the way Hime insults her that gets under the skin, but what she says about Ryoko. "Just... just leave her alone! You don't get to treat someone you don't even know like trash just because of her gender! You're fighting too... why do you think we all need to be perfect?" Sure. she'll take the redirected internalized misogyny point-blank, but she won't hear it towards her best friend.

Unfortunately, there's not much she can do about it, thanks to having to deal with the strange gravitational beam from the Angel Staff. "Distortion Field, go!" It clashes against her Aestivalis, gravitational beam against gravitational field, which mitigates much of the effects of the attack... but the harsh clash of energy begins to push Hikaru back.

Himeyuri offers Ruri an explanation - perhaps an introduction. She built the Distortion Field? She fielded it not just here, on Junius Seven, but on the unmanned Jovian Lizards. There's a sinking feeling in Hikaru's heart, for all she's closed it off for all these years. This woman was the one responsible for what happened to Midori II? But her attention slips over to the Dianthus, on Lucine, and the realization hits. "I think she's gotta be serious. The Jovian Lizards, they're... human?" A similar conclusion to Ruri's - perhaps at a slightly different angle.

At the same time, the Distortion Field continues to flare out - and... the Aestivalis reacts to Hikaru's own mind, that's always how it's worked. So perhaps it's in reaction to all she's processing that the Field expands and expands, into a familiar forward thrust. "If you're a Saint, then I might just be some rotten woman... but I'll stop you all the same! If you really have love for Gekiganger in your heart, then..." The Distortion Field powered fist aims to slam into the Daitenshi. "A Gekigan Flare, on behalf of the entire Earth!"

Hikaru can't help but spare a glance for Ryoko, only to find that she's no longer aiming for the Daitenshi, but for that mere Nemo. Was it really Char Aznable in there? And what Ryoko says... 'I would have followed you into hell'? That's another revelation.

"Ryoko..." Hikaru doesn't stop Ryoko, doesn't even question her... but did she fight for Neo-Zeon?

KTS: Hikaru Amano has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Hikaru Amano has activated the Alert Spirit Command.
KTS: Hikaru Amano targets Himeyuri Oono with Is this the Gekigan Flare?!!
KTS: Hikaru Amano has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

"Connecting with each other is our responsibility to the world," Akane hisses back, before cutting communications and doing her best to stay well-defended.

Galactron isn't fast enough to both remain in close with the much smaller mobile suit at a comfortable 'combat speed' and get away from the assault of the Crossbone Vanguard fleet, though. Unfortunately, it and she make up one of the biggest targets available; Galactron gets pounded by the barrage, and for that reason, it has to let Zabine limp away.

"Nngh... We're wasting too much time," Akane murmurs under her breath as she starts to stabilize. "If they've got a second mobile suit wing ready, those ships are going to take us out..." (Unfortunately, Akane has no idea what the Crossbone Vanguard's vessels are capable of carrying.)

The question of deciding life and death -- it still gnaws at her. The average crew complement of an MS carrier hovers around three hundred, plus a dozen-odd pilots. Even a skeleton crew like White Base's was well over 50. She thinks about it, now, in a way she didn't as God.

The gloom of the question only heightens with Iron Mask's presence; Akane's openness to that type of thing has always been side-on, semi-foreign -- but this is loud enough that she can feel it permeating into her bones.

When Akane was deep within Alexis's form, her guilt and misery suffusing his emptiness, she came to see his feelings -- just a little. Just enough to know that he saw the Earth Sphere as 'millions of Akane Shinjos,' millions of people who needed one tragedy to set them on the path to succumb to the emptiness at the heart of all things.

It's that knowledge -- that she is unremarkable, not singular, that any human's heart could break in the way hers once did; that neither she nor Zabine are any different from any of the millions of people the outcome of this battle affects -- that pushes her through that mire to take action.

"Rikka..." Akane murmurs, as she struggles her way back to focus. "... Yeah. I'm here too."

Galactron's hands come up to its bright red core. It charges for just a moment -- and then countless beams issue forth in a wide scatter-pattern, only to curve and fold back in toward a center point as they approach one of the ships of the Crossbone Vanguard.

Upon impact, rather than simply lancing through in the way a conventional beam might, affected armor panels (... and, for that matter, anything else in the beam's path) seem to partially flicker in and out of existence for a split second in a geometric pattern. The energy bombardment from being split between two different slices of reality, turned into a weapon by one of Gillvalis's countless progeny -- harder (or at least far more niche) to defend against than a Minovsky-based beam.

KTS: Akane Shinjo has activated the Enable Spirit Command.
KTS: Zabine Chareux engages charge against Rikka Takarada's Together as One!
KTS: Best Defense! Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Rikka Takarada's Together as One, taking 4350 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has been defeated!
KTS: Akane Shinjo targets Zabine Chareux with Galactron Etincelle Barrage!
KTS: Akane Shinjo has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Akane Shinjo's New Order activates Focus!

<Pose Tracker> Judau Ashta has posed.

Heavy breathes heave past Judau Ashta's lips in the aftermath of his assault. His heart races -- his neurons fire far faster and more hectically than he can possibly keep up with, opening his world to every corner of the battlefield and beyond.

He thinks, briefly, of where Leina, and Roux must be. Where Sayla and Beecha and Elle and Iino and Mondo are, of Koji and Sayaka, if they're all fighting in their own way against this terrible, impossible thing that just keeps -happening-.

His mind expands, as if it could reach all of them...

... and then gradually retracts with the dwindling of that great blade forged by raw emotion, guttering slowly like the last wisps of a candle.

Zabine is retreating. Angry as Judau is even now, he still doesn't pursue Zabine. It's not what matters here. What matters is clearing the path. What matters is dealing with that colony.

<"I-- I think they're fallin' back. We gotta--"> he begins.

And then his words

die

in his throat.

If they must die, then so be it. We give them to God, because they are ours to give.

"Wh--"

It isn't the words, loathsome as they are. He's heard rhetoric like this more times than he ever wants to think about, from the repugnant to the desperate. But this man...

... this MAN...

Judau Ashta is like an open nerve at this moment. And though he cannot -see- Carozzo Ronah--

-- he can certainly feel him.

He can know him.

And in this moment, such an open channel as he is, knowing the Iron Mask makes his blood freeze in his veins.

"What -- what is this twisted pressure--?! That man -- what the hell's wrong with him--!?"

Judau lurches in the cockpit of his seat. For a moment, he feels his stomach twist into a nauseating knot until he wants to just throw up. Even Glemy -- even GLEMY felt like he had some sort of spark in him, that horrible ambition that raged like an inferno, consuming without ever knowing why or for what, just that it was what it was supposed to do.

But this--

-- this is--

-- the place where joy goes to die.

Judau sucks a breath down his dry throat. Cold sweat dapples at his brow. He hears others realize just -who- is in that Nemo -- and even without being able to fully register their words, he knows it too -- but he does not have the wherewithal to react, or even defend Char against assault, impulsive and reckless as that might be.

No.

He needs to focus.

-Focus- Judau.

                        -FOCUS-

Thoughts and feelings filter

All futures are built on terror

and they find

        The future we seek to build--it's one of hope!

what matters.

... and that's exactly why I'm fighting. As long as there are men who follow in my madness.


And he finds the strength he needs in them to push on.

                No one is beyond redemption!

                        God will not have them on this day.

<"I'm not...">

No, it shouldn't be that simple, because that's such a depressing way to think about it!

A trembling hand reaches out. It grips the lever to his left, labeled simply, 'ZZ'

                There's no future... worth burning everything down to get it.

        Connecting with each other is our responsibility to the world.

<"... I'm not gonna let you bastards keep havin' your way with our lives!! EVERYONE! CLEAR THE FIRING RANGE!">

And he yanks that lever down.

He doesn't use this lightly. In a perfect world, he'd never have to use it.

But it's abundantly clear, this is not that perfect world.

There's a glimmer. A flash of light. The sound of something charging is lost in space, but the dramatic power level spike from the ZZ is not.

Mega particles rupture and bubble at the Double Zeta's forehead, swelling into a white-hot star.

<"IF YOU WON'T MOVE, WE DAMN WELL WILL MAKE YOU!">

And its still silent, as a beam that dwarfs the Double Zeta itself ignites from its forehead, the sheer, red-white light of it blinding it blinding to look at as the High Mega Cannon roars with a few fractions of a colony laser's life to join the Ra Mari II's overwhelming cannonade, intent to wipe out -anything- caught in its path... the slow turn of the ZZ's head spreading its unspeakable firepower out across a wide, wide swath of the battlefield.

This is not that perfect world.

It's the one worth fighting for.

KTS: Judau Ashta targets Zabine Chareux with High Mega Cannon Sustained!
KTS: Judau Ashta has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono engages block against Ruri Hoshino's Gravity Blast Cannon - Gravity Blast!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully blocks Ruri Hoshino's Gravity Blast Cannon - Gravity Blast, taking 3450
damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage Intercept against Alto Saotome's CIMM-3A Micro-missile Launchers Swarm Barrage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Alto Saotome's CIMM-3A Micro-missile Launchers Swarm Barrage,
taking 3185 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage Evade against Hikaru Amano's Is this the Gekigan Flare?!!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Himeyuri Oono moderately reacts to Hikaru Amano's Is this the Gekigan Flare?!, taking 5040 damage!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono fails to engage evade against Koyomi Yamanaka's Dynazenon Full Burst!
KTS: Best Defense! Himeyuri Oono successfully reacts to Koyomi Yamanaka's Dynazenon Full Burst, taking 4650 damage!
KTS: Koyomi Yamanaka roots his unit, coming to a standstill and leaving him vulnerable.

<Pose Tracker> Naoko Suzuki has posed.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Naoko shouts out over open comms as she sends her psychic buzzsaw-like weapons flying every which way. Avoiding, without exception, the cockpit and reactor of the opposing Den-an Zons. She has no wish to kill anybody, and the constructs her machine creates respond according to her wishes, striking only to disable. Removing weapons, power, mobility, whatever it takes to take away their ability to fight.

Even so, she breates a sigh of relief once she determines that it all went according to plan. All the unexpected factors made it rough going. Yet in the end... she's still here, when the retreat is ordered, and the immediate threat to the Ra Mari II starts to pull away.

She's so tired. Piloting like this is mentally draining, to put it mildly. Normally, this would be where she could pull back, stumble off to bed, and sleep forever. But this is only the beginning. The real problem is still ahead. Throughout the battle, Junius 7 hasn't stopped, or even slowed. And she wasn't even able to start formulating a hypothesis on how to deal with it.

"Ei-- Capt-- Admiral," she stumbles in quick succession, before the urgent reminder, "We're running out of time. We need to--"

Whatever she was going to say ends up stuck in her throat. Her hands move there in a reflex. It's as if her words, her breath, were being actively suppressed. Even when she finally manages to choke out the breath she wasn't consciously holding, she feels physically ill from the... attack? It must be an attack. No one could naturally feel the way this feels.

>"Nova! What's happening? Hang in there!"<

Thankfully, she's not alone. Shielding her mind from unwanted influences is what her Friends excel at, especially with the backing of Sukeban Kiseki. It feels as if a poisonous miasma is being rapidly vented from her mind, allowing Naoko to regain her senses, and breathe normally.

"...okay. I'm okay."

>"We won't be for long unless we do something about that!"<

Naoko looks out to see the Ra Mari II and Zamouth Garr exchanging fire. What can she do against that, with nothing but an Arm Slave?

...is something she doesn't actually think. She doesn't think much of anything at all. It's far too important to act, in this moment.

Once again, a bright flare of green is emitted by the Sukeban Kiseki, as if to declare 'I'm not done yet'. The Arm Slave extends an arm forward, and its pilot makes a simple statement.

"Threatening the lives of others makes you nothing but a base villain! To that, there can be only one response!" And that response is...

"SPECTRAL! ROCKET! PUUUUUNCH!!!"

...to launch its fist at the Zamouth Garr. Which wouldn't be a big deal... were it not for the fact that this tiny little metal fist is backed by a massive amount of willpower, taking shape as a giant ghostly echo of that same fist. The size of that glowing green fist is positively lucricrous, dwarfing its own source, growing to a match in size for the average Mobile Suit. Perhaps the symbolism alone will make an impact on even the Jovian forces, despite it happening far away from them. This may not be the biggest Rocket Punch they've ever seen, but it's almost certainly among the shiniest.

KTS: Naoko Suzuki has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Naoko Suzuki targets Zabine Chareux with Spectral Rocket Punch!
KTS: Naoko Suzuki has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage charge against Akane Shinjo's Galactron Etincelle Barrage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux moderately reacts to Akane Shinjo's Galactron Etincelle Barrage, taking 5580 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has been defeated!
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage charge against Judau Ashta's High Mega Cannon Sustained!
KTS: Critical Hit! Zabine Chareux poorly reacts to Judau Ashta's High Mega Cannon Sustained, taking 8280 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has been defeated!
KTS: Judau Ashta roots his unit, coming to a standstill and leaving him vulnerable.
KTS: Zabine Chareux fails to engage charge against Naoko Suzuki's Spectral Rocket Punch!
KTS: Zabine Chareux successfully reacts to Naoko Suzuki's Spectral Rocket Punch, taking 5360 damage!
KTS: Zabine Chareux has been defeated!

<Pose Tracker> Michiru Tenjou has posed.

Quite a bit she's learning... if the warrior has seen fit to allow Michiru to know that's what the form always was. "It's heartening to know warriors like you are real. And you're quite powerful and resilient. However..." There's no justice... Michi claws at her head with one hand, frustrated by those words. Or rather... the distant thoughts. She GETS THAT after all. She doesn't LIKE the idea of colony dropping, and she doesn't even have the personal experience with them a lot of people do. "...I know... Gekiganger... wouldn't do anything like this. I get that mass annihilation isn't..." She's struggling. The dissonance between her heart's sense of justice, and the duty to her people and her best friend. Protecting Himeyuri... That's the thing she wants more than anything else in the world. And the war inside herself is a miserable and bloody one. She's not a particularly highly Awakened individual. She's got a slight amount above the average. She's a somewhat notably empathic woman, for all that she seems like a zealot at times. She's normally quite friendly and open, willing to understand people. Even in the heat of battle. This situation is... strange for her, if anything. The Ultra Warrior can probably feel most of the internal struggle. Still, Nova declares an intent for payback. Vengeance. That pulls her together for a moment again. The Daitenshi makes an overly dramatic motion of sweeping back its wings and ascending. Ascending and ascending ever further! Sweeping around the stream of returned power, just as one might expect of an angel. Her sword dips into the stream, collecting the redoubled power back from the Ultra Warrior and mixing it with its own again, shining with the blazing light of purification... "I don't want it. I've made... great memories."

And yet even as it spirals around the stream, closing in, the attack doesn't come for Nova. Lucine comes for her head after all. The anger she pushes forward makes it easier. She swerves off at a hard angle, abandoning the attack entirely. "Dare... OBVIOUSLY I DO! ON A FIELD FULL OF PEOPLE FIGHTING WITH PASSION... he's cold. His heart wields no fire! He behaves like a machine, cutting out the influence of the MOST IMPORTANT PART OF HIMSELF!" That speaks volumes of Michiru. That what she holds against him are the dispassionate mannerisms. That she thinks fighters should be passionate in some way, even if they're coolheaded, they should still fight with their hearts. She speeds back toward Lucine, sword still radiating a veritable rainbow of hues. Her best defense against that glaive, in her eyes, is to pour the full power of her Ultimate Technique into clashing with it and pushing it aside. "You'll be the devil who stands against me...? Fine, I'll take your challenge at any time!" Yet, as the sudden, descending thrust connects with the Glaive, looking like it could even potentially ... the power of the two moves, mixed with the unstable swirl she took back from the Ultra Warrior, blow the Daitenshi back considerably, sending her soaring with a smoketrail burning off her body!

Himeyuri speaks up... delivers her judgement upon each of them. Michiru doesn't agree with each of them... after all, there was a certain manga which resonated with her in particular involving Mii-e Mii-e. ...Himeyuri's thoughts on that one were certainly far less severe than the one she's yelling at Hikaru about. She found it quite compelling. As if it had lifted up her heart and kicked a weight off it. She's not shared that opinion with a single person. Even though she still has the manga, and several... similar ones. Like the one involving Aquamarine... She shakes away those thoughts as well. Himeyuri calls out an order that comes with a heartfelt, warm smile... And the words are colder than she's ever felt before. To kill them all, instead of... Michiru hadn't BEEN fighting to kill. So the direct order strikes her like a mountain.

Before she can speak any word to confirm or deny that order, two things happen. First, a powerful and SINISTER aura flows across the field. Even for Michiru, its echoes strike into her. Fear is there, certainly. And also a sense of abject revulsion. That aura is something she should destroy. She knows it in an instant. The second, while she's reeling from that. Liam roars back at her. Finally showing the emotions she wanted from him. And lining up a powerful weapon? She may not know what in particular it is, but she CAN be certain that its power is real, and it's wielded by a man who is back in touch with his emotion. Still, the Daitenshi has a great advantage over the Galaxia in one regard. She is SIGNIFICANTLY more maneuverable. Michiru corkscrews through the ocean of stars, less flying... it seems more like the angel is swimming now, in graceful strokes to slip through the hail of hateful fire. The feathers on its wings are burning now, but there were no CLEAN hits...

All the same, the pilot is obviously wavering. Much of her will to fight them right now seems gone, as Daitenshi S2... the Black-Winged Sinner... drifts nearer to its counterpart. Though still impossibly far away right now. "As my partner as introduced herself, I shall as well. ...Michiru Tenjou, Miracle Woman of Europa. And Sworn Knight of the Saintess."

KTS: Lucine Azul's Morning Star activates!
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Lucine Azul

<Pose Tracker> Zabine Chareux has posed.

"Hope? Hope is what comes after victory," Iron Mask answers Eight. "And you have yet to seize such victory."

"Sir, they're firing on us," Gillet says. "Brace for impact!"

Beams slam into the Zamouth Garr. Explosions rip across its flank; Gillet is thrown back into his chair, and Iron Mask grunts sharply, grabbing onto the railing nearby. But he does not lose his footing.

"Deny me if you wish, but I have seen the truth of these people you think you are... protecting," he finishes to Eight.

From this distance, the shots that Eduouard fires only leave a few gashes on the Zamouth Garr -- but they're still not inconsiderable, leaving one of the launch catapults mangled after the damage done by the Ra Mari II.

Iron Mask folds his arms -- looking at an image of the Nemo.

And then a rather larger object moving for him. The Evangelion. With his mask on, Carozzo's expression is unreadable; Gillet freezes up, before calling out: "Evasive maneuvers!"

The Zamouth Garr begins to rotate. But the thrust of the Heat Rapier strikes, and Unit Beta manages to tear her way through part of the ship's bow. Armor is mangled; atmosphere begins to vent away.

"We will see," Iron Mask says, coolly. "I do not think you speak for the divine."

Next to the Zamouth Garr is fired on by the Galactron. The beams slice into the Crossbone Vanguard destroyer -- panels of armor and bulkheads flickering out of existence, and then flickering back in -- before explosions begin to rip through it. Stabilizing rockets on one side stop firing -- the ship begins to float upward, out of formation.

"Hold the line," Iron Mask commands. "We can buy more time, if--"

"Sir! Massive energy charge detected!"

The High Mega Cannon fires a moment later. It slams into the cruiser next to the Zamouth Garr. Armor is shredded through and melted; one of the main batteries is hit, and it explodes brilliantly. It begins to roll to the side, as some of the maneuvering thrusters fire and keep firing.

The beam strikes into the battered armor of the Zamouth Garr, cutting a line across it -- explosions rock, and the crew braces again on the bridge.

"Sir," Gillet says. "The Gamouth Veika and the Gamouth Nerin are both disabled."

The Zamouth Garr rocks again, when the Sukeban Kiseki's fist -- and Naoko's raw willpower -- both slam into it, that glowing green energy helping dent the armor and hull inward. Iron Mask grips the railing with a hand, steadying himself.

He hesitates only a moment. "...Fall back. Inform the Jovians and the Company that we must withdraw."

-* - * -

A few of the Den'an Zons remain around Junius 7. A pair escort the Berga Giros away; others are standing their ground, including Kae-soon's. He looks up as Rikka's funnels fly in. Shots fire into his damaged machine; one tears through the right arm.

Ahead of him, another has a leg shorn away. They begin to flee -- turning away from the Mu Gundam, as Rikka tells them to leave.

"Somehow," Zabine answers Akane, "I doubt that very much."

The alternative is unthinkable.

Zabine frowns, as the Berga Giros flies towards the Zamouth Garr. The damaged Moile Suit leaves a trail of debris in its wake; it will need a considerable overhaul, after all of that. But such is the way of things.

"The ghosts of Operation British, is it," he says. He looks at the Zamouth Garr. He considers, for a moment, what they have done today.

He finds he can live with it.

But he finds, too, that thought worries him. His eye closes, and he exhales, before opening it. "Black Vanguards," he commands. "Fall back to the Zamouth Garr."

The Den'an Zons begin to blitz away, leaving arcs of light in their wake, as they fall in with the Berga Giros, and en route to the Zamouth Garr and its escorts -- which are turning, and beginning to flee Junius 7.

A glow is growing around Junius 7. Red-orange, which causes the ice mixed in with melted-and-hardened steel to begin to melt tself. Pieces of debris, falling away, also begin to glow. But those turn to ash much faster.

Junius 7 hits the atmosphere, the fire growing all the brighter.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

She's made great memories.

~Then hold onto those memories! Make more! Make better ones!~ Qivi is more accustomed to fighting with her fists than her words, but her feelings have ever been a part of how she acts. How could it be anything else? You fight from the heart or you don't fight at all. There's no such thing as 'just business' on a battlefield even if people say it.

You believe, or you die. Himeyuri is struggling - and Qivi feels it. ~You don't have to do it just because someone tells you you do! But as long as you're trying it, we'll do everything to stop you! You, and the rest of them...!~

KTS: Qivi has activated the Trick Spirit Command.
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Qivi
KTS: Kaworu Nagisa has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Qivi
KTS: Qivi targets Michiru Tenjou with Kisorium Beam!
KTS: Qivi has completed their actions for the round.
KTS: Qivi's Opportunist activates Alert!
KTS: Himeyuri Oono has activated the Resupply Spirit Command targeting Lucine Azul

<Pose Tracker> Himeyuri Oono has posed.

        As the battle rages, the full detachment of the Nadesico are fighting- and right now, the third of the Three Angels is still fighting. Even as the Denjin has torn a swath through the battlefield, Izumi Maki has been haranguing it through out the battle. Chasing it didn't seem to be bearing fruit but... she seemed to be noticing a pattern. A pattern that was coming together, slowly, surely. And as she did that, she was slowly wearing through the distortion field, wearing down it's resources. When it jumps again, her Aestivalis starts moving preemptively, turning her own distortion field into a weapon-

        And her bet is on the money, striking at the Denjin's with enough impact that it stops moving. She puts a few more shots in, to make sure the joints aren't going to start moving unbidden, and watches it as it doesn't move again.

        "Denjin... denied." She intones- and then starts laughing- snorting, even- at her own pun.

        -=-=-

        Something hurts. But the Perfect Woman would not be hurt by such a thing, right? So the pain goes past how she presents, under it. She can deal with it after. When she's alone. Not here.

        As Ryoko refutes her story... Hime can't feel that makes sense. Someone had to have failed Ryoko, surely. Otherwise, why was she...

        It's a rain of bullets against her wings and her distortion field, cutting through. No. She's right. A real woman would never be involved in the act of combat at all. But...

        Miss Nanako isn't a real woman, really? She's something far more untouchable than that- and yet... No. There's no room for that thought right now.

        A woman worth living for...? "...There's... no. If you wanted to be someone worth living for- why would you be here!?" It doesn't make sense. Going onto the battlefield is-

        No. Discard it. Not for the symbol.

        "...Not if no-one survives." Hime says, but her voice is getting less and less energized. "Total extermination is..." Discard the thought. "That's the only way. It's the only way." Does she believe it? She has to. And then Minato says something that makes Himeyuri's eyes widen. "...I'm supposed to be a symbol, Minato-chan." It's... It's as if it's the core of her being, stating it like absolute truth. "I am the symbol. The symbol to come home to. The symbol to die for. That's who I am." That's who she is. Just like her thought, asked, right? That's who she is. "And if I am a girl worth mourning... I'm a girl worth avenging." The thoughts that try to occur are thrown away faster and a faster and faster. There's no room for this. She knows her duty, as a woman, as a saint, as a Jovian. And she- "Yes." She answers Ruri. "My designs. Most of them." The Gravity Blast cannon blasts armoured feathers off the wings, forcing them open so the Daitenshi can be crushed under the Gravity blast, unable to push back.

        "Pity me...?" Her voice is... angry? No. Miss Nanako doesn't get angry like that. That's not it. That's not what she should do. "I... don't require the pity of an earthling. Not from you." She tries to flap her wings and send the feathers again, but she only stops half of them. The rest slam into her again and again and again and again and again, the distortion field doing what little it can but it's not enough. Fortunately, the armour of the Daitenshi- the armour the Admirals insisted on- holding firm. Her Daitenshi is strong. Strong enough to keep her safe, to keep Michi safe. To-

        "I'm not- I *shouldn't* be fighting!" Something crask, when Hikaru scream at her. That's the truth but. Miss Nanako would fight, wouldn't she, if she HAD to for. But then there'd. Not everyone has to be perfect- but I do. That's my role. "But I have to! I have to!" She's... why is she breaking like this. Why is any of this... If... "I have to make sure it all works- no one else can!" Hikaru's Gekigan Flare drives forward, straight into the stomach of the Daitenshi, and Himeyuri can't stop it and her Daitenshi is left in the open-

        Right s Gauma screams at her, fulfills every negative Earthling stereotype, she readies herself for his attack- but the amount on display. "Enough! You're the enemy! I don't listen to men from the enemy, especially not thugs!" But- she's not fast enough to get out of the way, she can only-

        And then there's the detection of a boson jump, and a blue machine is between the Daitenshi and Dynazenon.

        "Tsk, if this is the best these earthlings have-"

        And then the full burst rips *through* the Daimajin, and shrapnel and errant blasts still hit the Daitenshi S1 as she is sent flying backwards. This is... this was supposed to be easy. How are the Earthlings able to fight back so much? How are they-

        And then, something makes it impossible to think. Something fills her head, overwhelming, crushing, oppressive.

        And Himeyuri screams and screams and screams, over open comms. And it hurts and-

        Then she stops, silent, and the Daitenshi goes still as the IFS connection breaks.

        -=-=-

        From the wreckage of the Daimajin, something floats through space towards the dragon. It's small. White. Well... white and red.

        A scarf, without a wearer.

<Pose Tracker> Eight Orlodhari has posed.

Why would she be here? Himeyuri's question says, "...Because I choose to be." Ryoko fires on a friendly--and Eight grimaces. It's not her place to discipline her for that... And frankly, from the way she says it, she understands at least some. It explains some things.

But Kaworu--when Kaworu says things like that, about God and humans...

Eight believes he really does mean it. As strange as that may be. She has no time to dwell upon the truth of the Jovian Lizards, but as it sinks in her eyes widen. ...She listens, too, as Minato answers Himeyuri. A pedestal like that...

"I know," Eight answers Naoko. "They're stalling." And it's working. That's worse. But what can they do? They can't ignore the enemy before them fighting.

They can only do what they are doing. She hears Rikka's impassioned request; she hears Akane's talk of responsibility. And of course, she feels Judau's passion.

Victory... They haven't seized it. Iron Mask's words make it sound so certain, with that aura behind him. Eight cannot immediately respond. Not as he speaks of a 'truth'.

"What 'truth' is that?" Eight demands. "What 'truth' makes mass murder the answer!?"

They retreat. The enemy is defeated, for now. But...

It's too late.

"Return to the ship!" Maina instructs, "Parrot Squadron, retreat! Cockatoo Squadron, prepare to engage!" The Nousjadel-Gers at least are designed to make entry into the atmosphere. The Variable Fighters are /designed/ for it--but with this much damage, it's too risky. . And neither is, "Enkidu. If your suit can't handle re-entry, withdraw to our hangars."

Eight looks at the display, at Junius Seven glowing brightly in the atmosphere, and though Iron Mask has withdrawn, she feels her heart fill with dread.

"Admiral," Tempo Astelian on the comms says, "What do... What do we do?" It's not only Eight who feels that dread. Much of the rest of the crew looks to her, too. And Eight knows the Fuujin and the Suijin are wondering the same.

"...We do everything we can," the Admiral answers soberly. "Everything we can."

"Fuujin, Suijin, you're not prepared for re-entry. Hang back. ...We'll take it from here."

The Ra Mari II, too, begins to heat as it enters atmosphere. But this ship is capable of independent launch from Earth itself. Assuming the armor isn't overly damaged to handle it...

"Everyone who's capable of re-entry," Eight directs, "This is Admiral Orolodhari of the Magallanica Defense Force."

"The 'Ra Mari II' is going in."

KTS: Michiru Tenjou accepts Qivi's Kisorium Beam!
KTS: [Mirage] Michiru Tenjou's Boson Algorithm activates, and she slips into a mirage.
KTS: Best Defense! Michiru Tenjou successfully reacts to Qivi's Kisorium Beam, taking 0 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Ryoko Subaru has posed.

Who failed Ryoko Subaru, Himeyuri asks? Who failed her?

And now - they know. They have to know. Who wouldn't after the things she said? Hikaru defended her just moments ago to Himeyuri - but what will she think now?

Ryoko looks long and hard at the Nemo. Her despair is a palpable thing, even as someone with next to no psychic signature.

Where does she get off fighting on this side?

Any words she shouts at him are a double edged sword - a younger girl's mistakes, a young woman's burden.

She'll carry them for the rest of her life.

Ryoko can't see the psychic scar, she can't know where he's been - all she knows is that she threw her entire life away for him - but in reality, she knows it was for her.

It was always for her. That need to chase a star in the hopes of finding that first star inside herself, and always coming short.

"Fuck you." She whispers, "You should have stayed. You should have..."

'As long as there are men that follow in my madness.'

"..."

"... It's the only thing you're really good at, isn't it? All the rest is- bullshit." An awful understanding in that moment. There's a bitter laugh, "It's BULLSHIT!"

That's when she switches to Laser Comms because the rest - they don't need to hear this, "You don't know who I am, and you don't need to know. You ever stop, I'll find your ass - and maybe I can't outfight you - but I'll get the job done - I'll put you in a pine box so far down Earth's asshole your soul won't ever escape that pull."

A beat.

"Not for Axis. But for that kid whose life you ruined. ... For Quess."

Maybe it's selfish - and stupid - she only got the chance to say maybe three words to her, and she certainly can't measure up to his skill in any way - he's a special kind of killer. But she had everything that Ryoko Subaru thought she wanted.

And he so casually set her up to die for him.

"Any other guy but you - and maybe she would have lived to be old enough to learn who you stay away from."

But she knows in this moment - her home is being attacked, a home she may not be able to go back to, because she couldn't focus in on what's important. That Junius Seven is still falling

But this moment - it's her selfishness.

"But it had to be you."

For all the blame that she could put upon the world - upon this man. The answer perhaps to Himeyuri's question was always that she failed herself.

A symbol - that's all too heavy for her. How can one woman be a symbol? Of someone to die...

... worth mourning...?

"You don't have to do jack shit." She says eventually, switching off those laser Comms, "The only reason you're doing this shit is because a guy like him said so, right?"

Yeah her Aestie is pointing at the Nemo.

"Keep it up, and there'll be nothing of you left mourning, except lost potential."

Just like her.

Himeyuri screams against the oppression, and for a moment - for a moment, Ryoko follows her instincts, and lurches towards the Daimajin... but, then she stops, and turns towards Junius Seven.

Admiral Eight declares they're going in.

"I'm with you." She rasps, and tries to turn those feelings off - because right now, it won't just get her killed.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        I do not think you speak for the divine, says Iron Mask.
        
        Kaworu smiles, briefly.
        
        For now, he brings Unit Beta out of the way of the others' attacks. When the Crossbone Vanguard and their allies retreat, he turns his attention to Junius 7. He heard many of the things Himeyuri and Michiru said and the implications they make for the Jovian lizards, but that wasn't and still isn't his primary concern.
        
        The former colony has hit the atmosphere.
        
        Everything is light.
        
        "I'm with you too, Admiral," Kaworu transmits back to Eight, and guides Unit Beta over to fall in formation, her A.T. Field protecting her from the intense rigors of re-entry--and whomever else might need it.

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

The forces are scattered - but it can't be called a victory. No... they're on a time limit, and this fight has taken up so much time, and Junius 7...

Junius 7 continues to fall, beginning to glow red hot. It's hit atmosphere. Once more, Rikka finds her breath caught in her throat. She feels a looming sense of dread in her stomach, like everything's all over... but she chases it away.

"...Akane." Rikka says, moving to join Galactron. They're separated - but it helps, at least, closing proximity.

"...This is... I don't know what's going to happen to us." Rikka admits, her voice shaking. "But I'm glad you're here with me."

Whatever happens, that won't change. For now... there's only one answer.

"We hear you, Admiral Orlodhari. 3G has your back - you won't be going in alone." Rikka agrees, joining the rising sentiment.

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        The Iron Mask's presence radiates out on all levels, and though Lucine isn't a target, her senses missed that particular memo.

        This is a joyless, sterile place, devoid of even the satisfaction of a 'void', for even in that nothingness, there is the concept of nothingness to dull everything down.

        No flowers to decorate this grave, no chance at something else out there.

        < "... L-liam..." >

        Callisto. Where is Callisto?
        
        'The Jovian Lizards are 'your' weapons?'
        'And ZAFT was working with you, while you were attacking the Earth with the Jovian Lizards?'
        'But you're a person.'
        'The Jovian Lizards, they're... human?'

        < ".... *Bullshit*. BULL SHIT." > Lucine pulls out of her daze, breathing her reply into her microphone, sharp as hot gunpower landing against bare skin.

        The radio carries more of Lucine's whimpers. She struggles to breathe. She debates with herself, struggling to find the best answer to this contradiction, like a child sorting through sand at the beach.

        A machine carries no love. It draws nothing.

        But what is she? Her heart feels like it's breaking, over and over.

        All she can draw is rage.

        Callisto. Where is Callisto?
        Europa. Where is Europa?

        ---------------
        'Mom, what's that bright star in the telescope?' The little girl pulled her face from the telescope. It was a fake one, as the screens above wouldn't allow for a true view into the skies above. For Lucine, it made no difference.
        'That's Jupiter, Lulu. A very big planet. Bigger than Mars.'
        'It looks so lonely, does it have moons like we do?'
        'Why yes, Io, Ganymede--"
        ---------------

        < https://youtu.be/Lvc5zHBX1sk?si=AAN1EOaGE8n3l3A8 >

        < "... You did it.... you did it... why... why.... WHY?!" > Lucine's voice skips from denial to rage.

        Humans. They were humans. The beings that destroyed so much of Mars' population weren't lizards, or even robots.

        They were humans, just like in evey war, every slaughter, and every mass death event.
        
        < "You took it... all of it... those lives..." >

        The wane in Lucine's voice is a false one, like the grumble of thunder before it reaches its peak.

        The red of Junius 7 glints off of the Dianthus's damaged armor; the Dianthus's petals spread out like a blooming flower for those below, moments before the land is kissed by the first fall of debris.

        A bloody flower for the wounded and dead.

        Lasers spray out in a whirling pinwheel of white streams, tricky to dodge, and too widespread for it to be laid all on one person.

        < "Die. Die. DIE. DIE! FOR ALL OF THEM, FOR EVERYONE YOU'VE MURDERED!" >

        She shrieks until there's no more voice to give.

        And then, all is quiet.

        The final Lacrimosa.

KTS: Lucine Azul has activated the Valor Spirit Command.
KTS: Lucine Azul has activated the Dash Spirit Command and has gained proficiency bonus.
KTS: Lucine Azul targets Michiru Tenjou with Argen-21 Beam Arbalest Lacrimosa!
KTS: Lucine Azul has completed their actions for the round.

<Pose Tracker> Qivi has posed.

She's made great memories.

~Then hold onto those memories! Make more! Make better ones!~ Qivi is more accustomed to fighting with her fists than her words, but her feelings have ever been a part of how she acts. How could it be anything else? You fight from the heart or you don't fight at all. There's no such thing as 'just business' on a battlefield even if people say it.

You believe, or you die. Himeyuri is struggling - and Qivi feels it. ~You don't have to do it just because someone tells you you do! But as long as you're trying it, we'll do everything to stop you! You, and the rest of them...!~

From afar, misery washes over Qivi, interrupting her own mental pressure. It's not aimed at her but she feels it anyway, a darkness that rolls over her like a smothering blanket that threatens to put out her burning heart. At first she doesn't even realize it came from outside; she thought it came from Himeyuri's words, because although Qivi does not know every bit of the Nadesico's history, she knows enough.

She's been to Jupiter, hasn't she? It took her time to come back after she was lost, and thought dead. She didn't see any Lizards there, did she? She wasn't attacked while she was lost in space, barely conscious; the ship she was on wasn't attacked when she got picked up; the transport back to Earth was left alone, too.

To have humans - these humans, these people, here and now - claim responsibility (or credit) is enough to nearly make Qivi despair - that or rage. She struggles to keep control of herself; Qivi has always had trouble controlling her emotions, and all she can do is try to work past them to stay on the field.

The combination of the two almost does stop her, for a moment; Qivi is a lot more open than she used to be, and Nova is used to feeling the hopes and dreams of others - or, in this case, their absence. She quails again, her Colour Timer dimming slightly, even pulsing once.

And then blazing back on in a sudden surge. Even physically; Ultra Warrior Nova's Colour Timer brightens, not flashing yet but definitely showing more than it was before as Qivi's refired energy courses through it. It's a denial of everything Iron Mask pushes at her as Qivi pushes back with both a literal and metaphorical pulse of light.

~Lucine, Liam,~ Qivi gets out, words coming through clearly for the first time. ~This is personal for you, but she's making it a threat for everyone! If what she says is true - ~ And Qivi means 'Himeyuri' in this case. ~If that's true, then...~

~Do what you have to. Follow your heart! I'll keep you safe! But do it quick!~ Qivi looks down at the descending Junius Seven. She doesn't want to fight Michiru, even now, as much as she wants to stop that.

Qivi actually doesn't cover herself the shield, though. It's damaged anyway, she doesn't know how protective it's going to be. But if she's got this flush of energy, she's going to use it. Instead, she hikes the shield onto her back with a strap and then holds that arm horizontal, parallel to what would be the ground if she was standing - of course, in space it's a little arbitrary which way 'down' is. The other, she holds vertically, next to it. A pose those familiar with Ultramen may recognize immediately.

Her hand shimmers, ripples through pinks and whites, and then -

The beam it emits has a distinct 'head', a bright frontal crest in pink studded with sparkling blue. The rest of the beam gets progressively less pink, and more blue and white, though it never loses all its pink; the bright streak of a distant galaxy across the dark starlit background of space, clearly visible to all. It's aimed at Michiru, yes, but more than Michiru; it splashes, hitting her and flowing past her, eventually pushing against the barrier around Junius 7 even though Qivi has no hope at all of breaking it; Qivi too gives up the fight and stops firing on Michiru to push harder on Junius Seven, her flight path curving down as she approaches the descending colony.

Qivi has hopes and dreams too, after all - and she promised Nova she'd keep the world safe, with her, when she agreed to merge with her. It never occurs to her to do anything else but burn every last bit of energy within her to achieve that goal.

KTS: Michiru Tenjou accepts Lucine Azul's Argen-21 Beam Arbalest Lacrimosa!
KTS: Michiru Tenjou's EN Barrier activates, negating 500 base damage.
KTS: Michiru Tenjou moderately reacts to Lucine Azul's Argen-21 Beam Arbalest Lacrimosa, taking 5040 damage!

<Pose Tracker> Akane Shinjo has posed.

As the destroyer starts to fly out of formation, incapable of maintaining connection to the rest of the Vanguard fleet, Akane breathes a small sigh of relief. ... People die if you fight. More people die if you don't. It's... confusing, and scary.

But that's what it means to live in a system where nothing stands alone.

Akane turns to face Junius 7 -- and before she can even move, Rikka opens communications again.

"... yeah," she says, quietly. "I don't either..." She looks to the falling husk, and listens to the comms chatter. "... I have a lot more I want to do. We'll figure out tomorrow when we know what it looks like."

... What else can she do?

"Ra Mari II, I'm still in good enough shape to assist." She looks to Rikka. Not every Gundam is designed for unassisted reentry, and she can't remember if the Mu is among their number, which means...

Galactron's hand moves toward the Mu Gundam. "... Even damaged, this thing's designed from the ground up to take it, and can teleport if it looks shaky, too... stay in position above the core. We'll start reentry together."

To the Ra Mari II, she offers, "I can take one more MS-sized unit into reentry with me. Have them position above the glowing red core if you need the help."

<Pose Tracker> Koyomi Yamanaka has posed.

Full Burst releases all its fury on Himeyuri's Daitenshi, missiles erupting in flames and strikes from gatlings turning fragments of armor to atoms. But before it can get too far, before the final strike comes through...someone intervenes.

The Daimajin is reduced rapidly to ruins under the Combine Dragon's unified assault, sending only one stray fragment clear that stands to be picked up. Dynazenon floats over to the similarly huge machine, reaching out a single finger to retrieve the fluttering scarf.

"H..." Yume whispers. "He's dead..."

Gauma closes his eyes. "Yeah. He committed himself to protecting something precious at the cost of everything."

A long, heavy silence hangs on the group. Himeyuri screams herself into silence, and Dynazenon turns toward her fallen Daitenshi.

Koyomi hesitates. "Now what?" he asks, nervous for what Gauma will answer. Blood has already been spilled.

"We're gonna take her back, obviously!" Gauma huffs. "Fights are one thing, but if she can't move, obviously we should help her!"

"Uh," Koyomi says, and uses his controls to turn Dynazenon's head to where the Terminal fleet is heading. "Actually, I think that's probably higher priority..."

Gauma spits. "Shit! Minami! Wake up, we're going!"

"U-uh, yeah," Yume stutters out, and Dynazenon's wings flare, shooting the united 'artificial kaiju' on to its next battle...even with its four united hearts shaken as they are.

<Pose Tracker> Alto Saotome has posed.

%<"... You keep calling me Earthling. But I'm no more from Earth than you are, it seems...">

        Alto can hear the revelations coming out over the radio. He hadn't picked up on it himself, though he's had less interactions with the Jovians than his Nadesico friends. And far more interactions with peoples from beyond the stars. So the revelation doesn't hit him as hard...

        Then the Dynazenon's beam rips through the Daitenshi and Alto frowns... He doesn't like fighting people. He will when he needs to but he doesn't do this to kill... Because, after Himeyuri screams and goes silent, Alto says, <"In the end we're all human... No. We're all people. Just trying to live in this world we all share.">

        The Messiah turns away from the still Daitenshi and transforms again, switching back into fighter mode. Alto triggers the detach sequence for the FAST Pack, the components gently blasting away from the valkyrie. With half of it missing, it'd be difficult to manage a stable flight path with it attached.

        As the communication comes in from the Ra Mari II, Alto reports back, <"This is Skull-4, I'm..."> Alto pauses, leaning over to look out his canopy at one of his missing wings.

        That... Could be a problem.

        But, he turns to look at the other one, still carrying the yellow tipped missile he has yet to deliver.

        "..."

        Alto leans back in his cockpit again and finishes, <"I'm still good to go."> Probably.

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.

        Cold, Liam thinks. Cold. Machine-like. He's relapsing into his old mannerisms, but that's-- Is that what she really--

        Liam's thoughts splinter again. She's the ENEMY, she and her allies have a GUN POINTED AT THE HEAD OF ALL OF EARTH. She doesn't want to be here. She thinks this is wrong. WHY IS SHE HERE.

        Liam holds down the trigger, chasing the Daitenshi S2 with a stream of chemical death. At first, his aim is dead-on, right where the smaller machine is--or would be, were Michiru not focused on outmaneuvering him. After the first two seconds, the firing gets shakier, the angle jerkier, and more desperate. This might be recoil catching up to Liam, but it's not. Tears coat his eyes. He blinks them away. He can't break down.

        The autocannon's mag goes click-click-click, silently, and Liam realizes he's out of ammunition. If Earth survives, some cleanup crew is going to make good hazard pay dealing with those rounds.

        Qivi is the closest steadying force, and Liam clings to her voice like a life preserver.

        "I think I know how Judau felt, now," he whispers. "But thanks.

        

        '... You did it.... you did it...'

        A warning flashes across Liam's console: ATMOSPHERIC REENTRY IMMINENT Lucine is screaming. The Dianthus is on a direct intercept course with the Earth's upper atmosphere.

        "LUCINE!" Liam screams, and despite its great bulk, the Akashima blurs through the distance, trailing bits of melted armor. The Dianthus rebounds off its chest; its free hand reaches out to clasp the smaller machine, and shield it.

        The colony's glowing red-hot, now. Liam glances down at his board, and weighs his odds.

        He decides the odds are irrelevant. He can't do nothing.

        "Right behind you, Kaworu," Liam says. "Lu. Lu, if you can't make reentry you need to go now."

        He doesn't want to become someone else she lost to the Lizards and their masters. And he knows she doesn't want to be someone else he lost to a colony drop.

<Pose Tracker> Ruri Hoshino has posed.

        "You're not thinking clearly," Minato says. "Even if you succeed -- this won't be total extermination!"

        Beat,

        "Right...?"

        There's a horrifying sting to her question, that even an experienced woman like Minato can be unsure -- and know horror.

        She doesn't expect an answer.

        That makes it worse.

        "Most of them," Ruri confirms. "So it's not just you."

        Someone dies. Someone else doesn't, yet. Ruri registers, somewhere inside herself, the death, the capture.

        The re-entry.

        "Please stay close to one of the battleships, Dynazenon," Ruri transmits, to their guest unit. "Our shields can protect you from the stress of re-entry."

        She doesn't have to tell Ryoko. Maybe... they're more alike than either of them would think, right now. Her voice cuts into Lucine's cockpit, instead. "Lucine-san," she says, and her voice is too even, too stoic. "Junius Seven has hit re-entry. Please return to a safe distance by the Nadesico."

        In the depths of all this hollow horror, another face pops up -- on the bridge -- and in the pilot's cockpits -- and on Eight's bridge.

        It's Erina Kinjo Won, the secretary of Nergal.

        "As of right now," she says, "you are all under NDA. None of you are to discuss what Ms. Oono has spoken of with you until such time as you have properly debriefed with Nergal's lawyers." She pauses, and adds: "This is not a negotiation."

        Even though she's speaking over the head of the Admiral herself.

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

Galactron's hand moves toward the Mu Gundam, and the Mu Gundam draws closer. Galactron's designed to take it, huh... It may be a miracle, then, that it's ended up with them now that they need it most. A small miracle - but right now, they need all of those they can get.

"Stay above the core... Right." Rikka replies. She keys a few things into the Mu Gundam's console. "Then... let's go together."

Akane said they'll figure things out tomorrow. That means there'll be a tomorrow. She has to believe in that.

...Part of that, apparently, involves being put under NDA. That's something they'll have to figure out, too, but she'll be glad if she still has it in her to worry about something like that when this is all over.

<Pose Tracker> Michiru Tenjou has posed.

Himeyuri is in pain. Michiru can hear her screaming. She can hear the terror in her voice too. The way... everything is slowly breaking down. ...She's more like Michi than either of them saw, isn't she? There's... a part of Hime that doesn't want the life she says she does? In that moment she makes a choice with all the conviction her heart can draw on. Muttering to herself 'Let's Gekiga-In', again and again. Words to keep her moving as she swirls through the stars. The Ultra Warrior fires upon her. Beseeches her to make more memories too. She hears it. And... she wants to do that. But right now, the sole focus inside her mind is 'Protect Himeyuri. Save her and escape.' The Knight of the Saintess should have been doing that from the start! And so, she's taking no effect to evade or protect herself in any way. Nova's final blow strikes true, even as Michiru engages the Boson system. Heavy armor plates melt off Daitenshi's skirt into colorful sludge, floating through space. A second later the angel-knight vanishes, having made a short range jump further ahead. Closer to Himeyuri. She looks significantly worse for wear. Several more pieces knocked loose by the blast fall off after it reappears.

Lucine's hatred... is it unnfounded? ...She can't say. Michi herself had never been much for drones. Battas. She didn't like that way of fighting. So impersonal and empty. Devoid of the clashing passions of people and ideals. Still, she'd also never stopped any operations. Never stood up to her superiors. She stood up to Himeyuri sometimes, but she'd usually explain something in a way that made it sensible. Or they'd have an argument, cry a while privately, then make up over baking and dinner. And they were back to being best friends before sunrise. Whether taking it out on her is just or not, Michi still focuses only on fleeing. Taking the punishment she maybe deserves. The powerful and tricky shots each finding their mark. One after another tearing away bits of her body. Michiru grinds her lower lip between her teeth until it pours blood back into her mouth. Nearly... so close to Himeyuri.

She can only watch as one of the pilots Himeyuri had sent off earlier, does the task she was incapable of. Laying down his life to save her. She remembers. He was the older of the trio. With a family. She won't forget... not for a single day will she forget. Another particle surge is detected as she uses a Jump in tandem with cranking her flight systems to near-overload, to clear the remaining distance regardless of how extensively S2 winds up damaged from it. How close to shutting down. For the two Daitenshis to reunite. For Michiru to do the only thing she can in the moment, no doubt raising more scandal, but she does not CARE right now. To lift Himeyuri up in a manner befitting a princess. And escape with her at full speed. "It'll be alright Hime-hime... I'll always come to protect you, one way or another. I swear on my ever-burning heart. I'll save you from anything and anyone."

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        Somewhere, in her memories, Lucine remembers the moment Liam had held her that night she had woken up from that nightmare.

        She wants to wake up again, from this one.

        Like the Akashima is doing now.

        Please return to a safe distance by the Nadesico.
        Lu. Lu, if you can't make reentry you need to go now.
        This is not a negotiation.
        Lu. Lu.
        Wake up, Lulu.
        -This'd be a stupid way for a cowboy to die.-

        < "Liam...." >

        Her eyes open.

        'This is not a negotiation.'

        < ".... Erina... You... You always... knew... didn't you...?" > Lucine's voice is too weak, but with her com set to Liam, only he'd get to hear that seed being planted, as the Dianthus departs from the Akashima's embrace to go towards the Nadesico.

        She'll have to thank Erina Kinjo Won, later.

        Because she's now too angry to die.