2011-06-19 - Payload Hoodoo

You are in a maze of twisting passages, all alike.

The Alpha Numbers have been given a mission: Rendevouz in the tunnels below the Siberian crater and escort an armored transport up through the tunnels to the surface. The trip down through the tunels is uneventfull for hte Alpha Numbers, other then noting how several sidepassages have been sealed off by the glossy ruby colored substance known as bakelite, a liquid that hardens like concrete on contact with air. New tunnels and supports are busily being dug by the peculier looking GM Underground Combat Types with their drills for hands, and one comically situated on the top of their mining helmet like heads. Each one guarded by the bulky mass of TSF-4 Phantoms from the nearby Siberian base.

The Alpha Numbers waited at the entrance to something called Level F untill the armored half-track rolled up the sloping tunnels and the driver gave the ready signal. From there the Alpha Numbers spent an hour slogging up through the tunnels. This is dirty boring work, but still classified above their paygrades, so it's no wonder the Alpha Numbers got the job.

But the Siberian crater is a big place, kilometers in diameter and trying to cover the entire area is only possible with roaming patrols. The DC have been given these patrols schedules in their intelligence briefing and either by air or by tunneling have found their way into the cavern network. The half track transport slowly struggles up another slope and then into a flat tunnel surrounded by Alpha Numbers units and approaching the DC ambush point.

"We're approaching the halfway point. Just another hour..."

Another hour in this former hel pit that killed so many soldiers, but she can't tell a soul about it.

When the Divine Crusader unit received the task of taking the transport vessel that would be en-route to, it appeared that Ascian was the only ranking member sent along. However, without explicitly being given leadership of the little 'outing', the only one he's taken under his wing into his squad for the mission, is Alina. The Red Orbital frame is somewhat... out of its element within these caverns. The frames, especially his, was built for high velocity combat. Yet, here, down in these caves, he has to rely on infra-red, sonar, and readings sent from a small squad of Spider drones to map out the cave-system; creating a tactical map of sorts.

The mission called for an ambush, one at a rather specific point along the way down - or up - depending on how you looked at it. The Mayet has been sent out slightly to the front, along with the Spider drones, as the twins descend further into te Siberian crater. The red lights of Metatron, pulsing through the Amenthes' veins, shines an eerie light upon the underground, making it almost seem like a demon was wandering a magma-ridden hellish place.

Within the machine, Ascian slowly lets his gaze wander along the walls, before turning his attention back to the screen before him, which is giving him a 3D map of the 'combat theater'. He moves one hand along the edge and turns it about, taking in the field as the Spider drones continue along further, fanning out into smaller and smaller squads. Until finally, they come upon the point.

<"There's two paths alongside the oncoming vein. I suggest we move a little further back, to prevent getting attacked from too many directions."> Ascian speaks to Alina, using a contact-only communication with the machine, and then points backwards at a set of tunnels a slight further back, and lets the hovering Amenthes smoothly back off and duck into one of the further side tunnels, and turns the shielding of the machine on - hiding the machine's Metatron signature in favor for a very feint shield-resonance hum, without even as much of a spark of light coming off of the Orbital Frame.

<"We'll wait here."> Ascian proceeds on to comment, now using a laser-guided communication, as he makes contact with his sister again, and begins tapping his fingers impatiently on the control orbs of the machine.

"Oh isn't this WONDERFUL," gushes Elenia Weyland. What she doesn't say, but does think, is that what makes it even better is that this is father's day -- and that rat-bastard Utani who left her is NOT seeing his own children right now.

Elenia Weyland is in a glorified but plush airline seat control module, set in multiple protective layers and probably capable of surviving the actual destruction of the planet. She has a nine-inch plug shoved into her brain, but that part, at least, is nothing new for her.

The Weyland Variable Machine that contains this little egg of domineering brain-piloting resembles nothing more than a gigantic stubby centipede with massive forward pincers. Of course, right NOW it also resembles a rubble pile, which Elenia has nestled it into while the ambush was itself laid.

She presses keys to call up others. "Now this is going to be a little rough, I think. I'm going to take the forward approach as Magmapede here is an excellently durable unit; Darcy, darling, can you flank them? And Cecilia if you could provide us with fire cover, I think this will go smoother than a buttered shrimp."

She then goes back to watching the tremor sensors, to wait for _the opportune moment_ to burst out.

Siberia wouldn't have been Alina's first choice of assignments, but a soldier rarely gets a choice in such matters. The landscape is just a little too close for comfort to the frozen expanse of Greenland where she not only lost control of Mayet, but also nearly lost her life at the hands of her own brother. At the very least, she doesn't spend too much time above ground, and the lack of visual indicators actually works to help her settle her mind and focus on the task at hand. Letting out a breath, the girl's eyes seem to go cold and focused, watching the way the lights from the blue Orbital Frame reflect off of the rocky turrain of the tunnel system. While Amenthes may seem like a demon out of the dark, Mayet almost seems like an angel. An angel with very, very big guns.

At first, she takes the advanced position, ready just incase anything might happen unexpectedly. But the initial expedition into the tunnels seems quiet. But not quiet enough for the hair on the back of her neck not to prickle in the close confines. For someone used to space, or to the wide expanses on Earth or Mars, these tunnels were eerie at best. <"I don't like it down here, Ascian."> The pale framerunner's voice has just a hint of her unease that slips through the mask of calm. Even Mayet's maneuvering jets have to be kept close to the body of the unit, trying not to brush too close to any of the tunnel walls.

As they come to the indicated point, Alina caresses her hands over the control orbs, drawing her beam cannon down the tunnel and into the darkness. "Silent running, Amit." ^"Silent mode engaged. Do you want me to keep energy reserves primed?"^ "Yes. I want to be ready to move at a moment's notice." It certainly is nice to have her AI somewhat back to normal. After being locked down for so long, and having its personality restricted, the normal voice - which sounds vaguely british - is a welcome relief.

<"Mistwalker, in position.">

This is exactly the sort of mission Rio Mei Long keeps finding herself assigned to, and then hearing about the dramatic conflicts she missed afterward. One day, she'll get another chance to prove herself. Not that she's hoping, say, the DC will attack right now, she just hopes she gets a chance, sometime...

The pristine white paint of her custom Gespenst Mk IV has soon become darkened by dust and dirt. At least it's not her job to clean it... The personal trooper walks on alongside the half-track, stopping as it the transport gets stuck again. Rio sighs and rolls her eyes, leaning back in her seat.

It's going to be a long day.

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "Me and Alina will try to disrupt their escort and lead them away from the transport."

 Elenia Weyland transmits, "Splendid. We'll get hold of the payload."

Cecilia Utani isn't even as visible as a pile of rubble.

Cecilia sits in a silvery cockpit. There are no visible controls, just a seat for her - and a silver circlet around her head, delicate and looking more like a delicate tiara than anything else, all woven wire and twisty arcs. Every so often, it glimmers.

Primordial itself, the ancient shape-changing robot, had no difficulties finding a shape in Cecilia's imagination worthy of a job like this. It stays below the rock of the caverns, ready to ascend at a moment's notice and assume its form... whatever it is. It still looked like moving quicksilver when anyone saw it last.

She still resents taking orders, but she smiles anyway. "Sure," she says, in what might be the least formal acknowledgement ever. Ceci leans forward, the circlet changing its design slightly as she concentrates. Support fire, huh...

Next to the Gespenst and the Type-00R, GaoGaiGar probably stands out hugely. And "huge" is not entirely inaccurate, either, given that the G-Stone-powered super robot is at least half again as big as either of the more conventionally-built machines. But given that this is Siberia - and given GaoGaiGar's history with this part of the world - Guy's not about to let a mission here go without his assistance if he can be of any help.

Still, being underground doesn't exactly sit well with him; he'd prefer to have more room to maneuver and to fight, but he's not letting a pesky little thing like *that* keep him from being ready to react as GaoGaiGar strides along, keeping pace with the transport. As he goes, he idly ponders what the Federation could have found this far underground that's worth so much effort ... he has a handful of guesses, and none of them are anything good.

 Cecilia Utani transmits, "There's a bunch of them. They shake things every time they move. ...This ought to be good."

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "Oh... shit. It's GaoGaiGar..."

 Alina Luddite transmits, "Care to fill me in, brother?"

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "Ehhh. Super Robot pilot. Yells a lot about bravery and stuff. His unit is massively powerful."

 Cecilia Utani transmits, "Oh /really/."

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "You want him, Utani?"

 Alina Luddite transmits, "Is this another situation where you warn me to watch out for a certain pilot or unit and then we end up fighting them anyways?"

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "Ehhh... maybe?"

 Elenia Weyland transmits, "How droll."

 Cecilia Utani transmits, "I'm burrowed, I can't even see him!"

 Ascian Luddite sends a visual, as created by one of the small Orbital Frame - Spider drones.

 Cecilia Utani transmits, "I know what it looks like, I'm not stupid. I just don't know which one of the weights is him. That, and I've been asked to do... fire support."

 Ascian Luddite has the spider zoom out - so Utani can pinpoint all of the tremmors.

 Elenia Weyland transmits, "Well darling, I would hate to impede you too much. I would appreciate some cover but if you want to arch at this Shishioh then I wish you the best."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I'll see what I can do for you, miss Weyland."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Elenia Weyland transmits, "I was addressing my daughter, Lieutenant."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I am aware. And I was saying, if she assaults mister Shishioh, I will see what I can do for cover-fire for you."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "No need to get so defensive."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Alina Luddite transmits, "I didn't know there were other families who fought together. I must admit, it is nice to see."

The half track truck pauses again to turn slightly and begins moving forward once more. Inexorably to it's final destination, and what happens then...

Well no one knows. No one said WHAT is inside this thing. But it teeters up over the slope and continues onwards, right towards a particular pile of rubble.

Great Mazinger and its pilot once more find themselves in a place that is distinctly inappropriate for their strengths. Mostly because they are, in fact, deep underground, and at least two or three of Great's more impressive weapons are built to perform beneath an open sky. Not like that's much of a problem, though, Tetsuya reasons. If Great Mazinger can conjure thunderstorms in space, then there is no damn reason it can't do the same underground. Besides that, Great Mazinger is not the tallest super robot in the world. It is tall, but not /tall,/ and finds maneuvering in the tunnels relatively simple, though a bit claustrophobic.

That still doesn't help the fact that Tetsuya is a bit on edge today. This mission is... strange. What the hell is it that they're going this far underground in Siberia of all places to retrieve? This reeks of Third Impact-grade mystery and nonsense, and the pilot of the Guardian of the Skies is feeling... anxious, curious, a whole number of different things, and none of them are all too pleasant to be experiencing on a military expedition like this one.

But, work is work. And if Great Mazinger's strength is needed, then it would be provided without question or hesitation.

The headlights of the machine appear along the path besides Ascian, and through quick sonar-like echoes through the cave, as well as some visual response from the spider drones, he quickly ends up getting a good view of what is present and oncoming. Including the massive machine that is the GaoGaiGar. "Tssk." Ascian lets out an annoyed sound, staring at the visual generated by one of the hiding little Orbital Frame spider drones, which scitters away into a small opening to keep itself hidden from the incoming enemy troops.

A small conversation breaks loose across the Divine Crusader channels, as this discovery is made news, after which Ascian is annoyedly tapping the control spheres again on the Amenthes. The patrol continues along further and further along the path, and the young man continues a transmission with the other Divine Crusaders, allowing them to get a good visual on those who are present. Then suddenly, he picks out a rather suspicious unit.

"Gespenst... mark four." he whispers. He'd fought that unit a few times before - mass produced ones. But somehow, always the same pilot. But this unit, it somehow... looked just that slight bit different somehow. <"I'm taking on the Gespenst."> He sends through the comm-link and suddenly veers along the tunnel, darting across from one side to the other, letting a single red bolt fly straight for the Mark four.

The red bolt burns deep into the Gespenst, leaving a smoking hole. The Gespenst takes a step back. "Contact!" she shouts over the radio, going from relaxed to combat ready in an instant. An Orbital Frame?! <"Crusaders! ... We won't let you have it!"> She draws her beam rifle and fires, charging to the front of the group.

As her brother veers off to deal with the Gespenst unit, Alina is left to deal with the remaining targets. The fact is, she'd been warned not to directly go after GaoGaiGar, so that leaves relatively few options. She flips between blips on the radar, balancing the beam pistol hooked in one arm of the Orbital Frame. Still, if it isn't one super robot, it's another. The spider drones give her a visual on Great Mazinger, and the pale-haired girl just presses her lips together, nodding her head. "Let's see if we can't draw this one's attention, Amit." She taps on the vid screen, and then tracks the easiest pathway through the tunnels, trying to get around behind the enemy.

The tactic is only varyingly successful, especially as Mayet tends to radiate that metatron signature once in motion. The blue glow moves through the tunnel system, finally coming around a corner to set Great Mazinger in her sights. There is a whine as the beam cannon charges, little pulses of blue energy rising up along the barrel. ^"We have full power."^ "Alright, let's see what we can do." Lin lightly squeezes on the control orbs, the motion just enough to signal her Orbital Frame to fire, sending a bolt of energy zooming down the tunnel, lighting the way as it arcs towards the enemy.

Suddenly, blips begin appearing on radar. Hostile blips. The kind of blips that say 'Well damn, those are Divine Crusaders over there.' Unfortunately for the Divine Crusade, though, Great Mazinger is not a machine that shirks combat. Tetsuya twists as the light of Metatron shines in this deep, underground tunnel, but he does not attempt to dodge it. Instead, the Super Robot's thrusters simply engage, its wings spreading to take up the entirity of the tunnel's horizontal radius as it charges /right/ into the bolt of radiant power. It sears the black paint off Great's chest, revealing... yet more black paint? No! This is Super Alloy Z!

Tetsuya's eyes narrow in the brain condor. These units seem familiar. But why? Hm. Regardless.

Tetsuya grabs tightly Great Mazinger's manipulators. One of the super robot's blades deploys, sliding gracefully into an open hand as it darts towards its assailant. The machine swings, but appears to miss. However, he has closed the distance, which can mean only one thing--

Great Mazinger grabs the colossal 'v' on its torso, and, in a single motion, whirls about to attempt another slash at the strange, blue Orbital Frame. His roar shakes the cave to its foundations:

"GREAAAAT BOOOOOMERANG SLAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!"

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Norris Packard transmits, "Engaging Gaogaigar."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Good to have you with us, mister Packard."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Long time no see."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Norris Packard transmits, "Delaz has had Gato and I drilling the men during the lull of the last six months. It has been some time yes."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Alina Luddite transmits, "Nice to meet you, and to have you with us."

As battle breaks out, the transports swerves to the right. A sten gun turret n the top of hte vehicle starts firing, more to ward off the inruders then anything else. "Enemy contacts!" one of the crew chimes in, a little late.

"Get this thing into reverse! Take shelter behind the Alpha Number machines!" THe gear box of the half track grinds untill it finally switches over to reverse gear, and even more slowly starts backing away from the Divine Crusader units.

That same voice! Oh, the irony. Ascian chuckles lightly as he recognizes the Gespenst pilot. <"Sorry kid. Orders are orders."> He calls out right on back. The Amenthes quickly disappears into a tunnel, but not before letting loose a quick volley of red bolts from the right arm of the Amenthes. Using the data mined by the small spider drones, he knows that this tunnel ends up winding around behind the transport.

<"I know what you mean now, Lin."> Ascian mutters through the radio, as the Amenthes' head suddenly ends up scraping some stone from the top of the tunnel, as it just got a tad thinner, and he has to concentrate to keep the unit balanced out and finally takes that last turn that gets him behind the Gespenst Four. Well, assuming it didn't follow him that is!

Either way, the unit swings about, and lets another beam of red rip from the arm of the unit -- searing across the ceiling and sending a few loose rocks flying before it comes down like a long sword towards the Mark Four. At the same time, he taps his left hand and turns his attention towards Alina's battle - who is busy taking on the Great Mazinger. For a moment, it seems like the GaoGaiGar may end up flanking them, due to a lack of support. But a radio-message from mister Norris has him relieved.

The Amenthes tries to place itself /behind/ the transport machine, to cut it off. Who knows if he'll manage, but it's clear that Ascian's intention is to ensure that the half-track is incapable of getting away from the invading Divine Crusader forces.

Norris Packard knows how dangerous GaoGaiGar, he knoiws what the machine can do. He had been making his way through the tunngles alone in his GOUF. The red optic the only source of light, as he appears out of a side tunnle and there's only the sound of his mobile suit moving. In one motion the Tempest Blade snap hisses to life along the edges and he attempts to shoulder check the king of braves himself.

"Sloppy."

The strange diamond-like feathers that float around Mayet swivel around to the front, catching the brunt of the blades against them as Mayet's thrusters engage in reverse. Getting a bit of space between the two in the cramped tunnel. Part of one leg scratches along the wall, sending a few sparks into the darkness. <"Oh, so you're one of those ones that calls out their attacks. Do you find that actually helps?"> The voice from inside the Orbital Frame doesn't seem very old, and more curious than condescending.

With the feathers still guarding her path, there is just enough time for Alina to switch weaponry. The blue Orbital Frame seems to come with a wider array of guns than most, and the hand-held guns are replaced quickly with a pair of arm-formed rifles. Mayet extends her arms, the blue glow lighting up the entire section of tunnels as the metatron power comes back to full. There is a glow from the sphinx-like creature's eyes, and a lash of that long tail that splays out behind her.

Lin steadies her rifle arms by clamping them together in front of Mayet's chest. ^Enemy's estimated power level is higher than our own.^ "I figured as much, Amit. Maybe we can use the close confines to our advantage." The feathers draw back just as the power once again charges to full, the combined force of the two rifles charging together to form a single blast. It isn't exactly fast, but it doesn't have to be when there is a fairly clear path to the enemy. With those same cold blue eyes, the girl fires off yet another high powered blaster round. At the very least, this Orbital Frame doesn't seem to use much in the way of duck-and-cover tactics. It seems ready to stand toe-to-toe even with a super robot.

Rio did follow -- but not far enough, not fast enough! "Where did he go?" She's still trying to decide which way to follow when she's shoot in the back, Ascian getting a perfect opportunity to aim for the edges of the armor plates. "Gah! This is insane! Not again, not again!" The white machine whirls and fills the corridor with beam rifle shots as Rio fires like crazy. "I won't let you win again!"

"Too slow!" Tetsuya roars as the Mayet opens fire. With the deftness of a practiced swordsman, or batter, Great swings its oversized sword in a lightning-fast arc, slamming into the energy blast, and, with all the physics-and-common-sense-defying ability that Great Mazinger is so famous for, deflects the shot into the cave walls. The cavern trembles ominously as the bolt slams into stone, unleashing a cloud of dust that, momentarily, obscures the super robot from view. But it does not last. Tetsuya kicks Great Mazinger's thrusters into full burn, pushing Great Mazinger down the corridor as if it were a bat out of hell. In such a narrow passageway, this sort of attack should be perfect. The blade is held laterally in front of the advancing super robot, its edge supported by one of Great's mighty palms, as it goes to rush into- and catch the neck of- this strange, blue machine.

"Divine Crusaders," Tetsuya booms from Great's loud speakers (because every super robot has a sound system that would put most gangstas to shame), "This is Tetsuya Tsurugi, pilot of Great Mazinger. Retreat immediately, or I will be forced to resort to more extreme measures!"

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite mutters some injoke, which probably nobody will get, "Tell him that you won't leave without some jello."

The Divine Crusaders have ambushed the underground convoy underneath the Siberian blast crater. The armored half track containing the DC's goals is retreatinging as fast as it - slowly - can while firing it's machine gun to ward off the Divine crusader combatants.

The Luddite siblings have engaged the Great Mazinger and and Rio's Gespents MkIV while the GaoGaiGar fights with the hurricane of force known as Norris Packard.

GaoGaiGar pivots as the Crusaders make their appearance, Guy's attention waffling quickly between the Luddite siblings (not that he knows they're related) before Norris Packard comes charging in -

"PROTECT WALL!!!"

- straight into GaoGaiGar's outstretched left hand, and the barrier projected from the wrist-mounted emitters. The impact is enough to ensure that the contact is short-lived, and admittedly Guy is a bit too surprised to bring the Plasma Hold into play before the GOUF backs off again. "Are you accusing me of sloppiness, or yourself?" Guy comments with dry humor as the King of Braves sizes up the mobile suit ...

And then charges, trying to drive a knee-mounted drill into the GOUF's right shoulder, ready to try and kick the sword away if Norris attempts a counter-attack using it.

As her attack gets diverted into the wall of the cave, a shower of dust falls down onto Mayet, momentarily disrupting her sensors. ^These tunnels may not take too much sustained fire. We should proceed with caution.^ There is a little squeek of a squeegee as Mayet blinks, clearing the rubble from her eyes. "Maybe yelling out your attacks does help somehow." A small smile quirks the edge of the pale woman's lips, which seems the only sign of real emotion from her. The framerunner's eyes seem focused on the battle, and unfraid of that incoming blade aimed so perilously close to Mayet's neck.

There is a scrape of metal on metal as it deflects off of those spinning diamond-like feathers once more. As much as Mayet may not be moving much, those defensive 'wings' seem to be able to shield her well enough to avoid the worst that the super robot has thrown at her thus-far. It's a close call-though, and enough to cause Lin to grit her teeth together as she flexes her fingers over the Orbital Frame's controls. "Alright, Amit, let's get some more space between us so I can fire off a volle---" The young woman's commands get cut off by the roar from Great Mazinger's loud speakers. Luckily, Amit adjusts the volume so it doesn't absolutely blow her eardrums, but she may just have a ringing there for a few minutes.

<"Well, a pleasure to make your aquaintence, Tetsuya Tsurugi. My name is Alina, and I'm afraid I'm not able to comply with your request. I'm sure you understand orders."> In the past, Lin would never have been quite so social during soemthing quite so life-threatening, but she's seen the other side of the war - served in another faction, and seen that not /everyone/ who opposes the Crusaders is as bad as she had been brought up to believe. Of course, that doesn't mean she's any less likely to go all out against the quite-loud pilot of the Great Mazinger.

"Amit, now." ^Overloading rifle charges. Engaging assault sequence.^ A moment later, the two rifles seem to glow an even more ominous color, the power blazing to almost white as Mayet hovers a few inches above the floor of the cave. A red flash lingers in the eyes of the sphinx as a series of quick, high powered shots strafe across the cavern, weaving between that defensive wall that her feathers offer, trying to catch the super robot with nowhere to run to - or at least bring the cave down ontop of him.

With the armored half-track firing its machine gun at the Amenthes, which had tried to cut it off, Ascian is forced to take some serious evasive maneuvers. Normally this would not have been an issue. But with Rio's excellent firing, and application of the 'more is better' law of beamfire, a rifle shot hits the machine straight in the right arm and sends it into a nearby rockwall. Within his cockpit, Ascian is shaken about a bit, but is held mostly in place by the strong belts that are crossed in front of his body. His hands let go of the control orbs for a moment, but he quickly lays them back on.

<"Tssk. You're still good."> He calls out at the Gespenst's pilot and then moves his gaze along the wall to where Alina continues to face the Great Mazinger. The young man could not help but smile, watching the girl go head to head with that machine. "That's my sister..." He whispers, hoping that she will be fine. After all, he is certainly aware of just to what lengths that machine is the 'Great' mazinger. But more importantly, he is also aware that he cannot take his attention too much off of his own opponent! Another of the beam shots sends the machine shuddering, even after having raised its shield-output.

"Geesh." The readings on the inside of his machine show one thing. He needs to be more careful. It's just hard to maneuver within these confines! The hands of the Amenthes, shifted from their former long-ranged mode into hands, and it pushes itself off straight for the machine. The rocks behind it crumble, with the 'support' of the previously crashed Orbital Frame gone. <"Sorry, Rio. But I can't lose. I have to look good to my sister."> And the both arms of the Amenthes seem to finally ignite, held crossed, and then lash out, one horrizontally, then the second vertically. And it keeps going, trying to force back the pilot of the Gespenst, swinging at them constantly until it either cuts it, or it is somehow interupted.

Great Mazinger's eyes shine with divine power as the Mayet begins its bombardment, but once more, Great Mazinger's incredible armor seems to deflect and disperse every one of her assaults. Its fists slam into the Metatron-powered blasts, shattering them into component particles as Great continues to advance inexorably towards its foe. One shot goes stray, slamming into the ceiling above the super robot. The cavern trembles, shuddering under its own weight as stone begins to fall bit by bit from the rock ceiling. Tetsuya casts an eye upwards, as Great slams its fist into the problem location. Stone compounds upon stone, solidifying and bracing against itself. The cavern shrinks as the rocks strain and fall upon themselves, but it is no collapse, and it does not stop him.

"You have to try better than that. I thought you Orbital Frame pilots were supposed to be the best that Mars had to offer." Tetsuya deadpans. For a man so loud- for a super robot pilot, even- it seems that the only emotion Tetsuya is feeling at the moment is cold, focused determination. A fire in his gut and in his soul harnessed from a great conflagration to a single point of impossible intensity. He has, for lack of a better term, honed the traditional super-robot hotbloodedness into a single, focused point- a blade.

"And don't think," Tetsuya intones, "That just because you're cordial that I will be the same unto you. I am not my brother." Great Mazinger's eyes flash, steam hisses out of the grill on its face, as it levels its two, colossal fists with the blue Orbital Frame. "This is the battlefield. The time for diplomacy and soft words have passed!" Photonic power erupts from Great's wrists as it advances, launching its arms as two, solid projectiles to a roar of "DOUBLE ATOMIC PUNCH!"

Great Mazinger is not, apparantly, limited only to melee combat.

"You have to look good? You didn't let your enemy get an evangelion! You weren't handpicked by someone who turned out to be a traitor, possibly to sabotage your unit! You--" And then he rushes in with the blade, cutting through the Mega Beam Rifle, and even though she draws her beam gladius to block with, she's too slow -- almost all the attacks get through her guard, cutting the gespenst up. She is failing TERRIBLY!

"Not... again! Not again, you hear?! I'll stop you! FALL, CRUSADER!"

He may have gotten through her guard, but will he be expecting her to suddenly ignore his attacks? Letting him cut the gespenst, she shoulder bashes the Amenthes while drawing forth a new weapon -- The M90 Assault Rifle! She fires grenades from the underslung launcher into the tunnel around the Amenthes, then continues to fire grenades and bullets at the orbital frame as it dodges debris and possibly the collapsing tunnel itself!

Alina's eyes widen slightly at the display of power from the super robot, although mostly she remains as relaxed and calm as always. Even if the tunnel seems as if it might cave in around them, she still doesn't appear to be too phased by the continueing advance. The feathered wings of Amit move up to shield her from the spray of rock, which gives just enough time for one of those projectile fists to impact briefly against her shoulder. Mayet's face turns to look at the area, which doesn't even seem dented, and then turns back, the head moving almost as if the robot itself were chuckling.

No, this isn't a reaction from Alina - but something from further within the consciousness of the Orbital Frame. "So be it." This is the last public transmission the girl attempts to make, giving up on any reasoning with the enemy pilot. Afterall - it's clear that this one is no better than the others she and her brother had faced in the past. "Amit, block outside sound from that loudmouth, will you?" ^Understood, Miss Lin.^ As the cockpit once again goes semi-quiet, Alina lets out a breath that may just be one of relief.

Without the outside distraction, the girl is able to focus. "Let's show him our new toy..." ^Are you sure--^ "Yes, Amit." Moving one arm to the side, the Orbital Frame seems to somehow rip through the wall of the cave into... nothing. The gap it makes seems to disappear into some black void. As one arm slides within the dark space, it emerges with a strange weapon. The huge, shoulder-mounted cannon is latched quickly onto Mayet's shoulder, clicking into place. Almost immediately, the flow of metatron seems to overload the weapon, causing it to start to glow a dangerous red. ^Energy levels are past safety maximums. This is highly danger--^ "Amit, Fire."

The AI gives no more warning, it simply goes silent as a charged beam shot - normally meant for someone at long range, barrels the short distance through the cave, aimed at striking the Great Mazinger directly in that armored chest.

Norris Packard is blocked by a wall of force he slams into it hard. Much like an EVA's AT field but those haven't /stopped/ him forever in the past. Still this time it forces him back and he attempts to shoulder check again.

"Too slow, and we shall see!"

The heat rod snakes out from the free arm and attempots to force the king back while he evades the knee.

"I told you," Tetsuya roars. His voice, amplified by Great's growing power, sends another concussive thrum through the caverns. Does this man simply not care if his yammerings would bury him alive? It certainly seems that way. "That you will have to do better than that!" The 'V' on Great Mazinger's torso is once more dislodged- and flung, recklessly, into the incredible column of energy the Amit produces from its beam cannon. Most weapons would melt or buckle under such strain, but the edge of the boomerang seems to glow, not red, but gold as it meets the blast. The shot seems to warp around the boomerang, tearing it in two as the crimson V divides it as if it were parting a scarlet sea. Its job done, the weapon buries itself unceremoniously into the tunnel ground- but it does not stay grounded for long.

With a flick of its wrist, Great Mazinger retrieves the boomerang, still glowing with golden light, and rushes forward, propelled by its thrusters, into the blue Orbital Frame. Used less as a sword, and more like a club, the Great Boomerang swings in a devastating arc, seeking to pummel the Mayet's wings into useless hunks of scrap metal. Meanwhile, inside the Brain Condor, Tetsuya's hands are wrung tightly about his machine's control levers as his eyes watch a golden gauge climb, slowly, over his HUD. The Photonic Energy Output is increasing. Why?

...No, he knows why. And it doesn't matter right now. All that is important is the transport at his rear, and the enemy at his front. To protect the former and see the latter cast, broken, upon the rocks is all that he need be concerned about!

Ascian is left listening to Rio's little rant about her life. Obviously, he'd never heard any of this, and he doesn't know what is going on. But that Evangelion. <"You weren't the only one there, Rio. You weren't the only one who failed to protect Unit 02. And more importantly, it is safe with us. And miss Langley seems to actually be /happy/ amongst us, instead of with the Federation. Perhaps you should concider your allegiances as well. It is clear that the Federation isn't what you thought it would be."> Pause. <"If you are so worried about succeeding, you are in the wrong place! Even miss Douglas had some bad tries. But she jumped right back into action!"

Let's ignore for a moment that the A-LAWS and the Alpha Numbers are not the same faction. And that Ibis is doing god-knows-what with Katharon right now. It seems that being a traitor in the Federation is all the rage. Nothing wrong with that. As far as Ascian is concerned, the less people in the EFA, the better. Whether it is through stepping into another faction, or otherwise. Yet death... somehow, unless they are certain people... he's seemed to have calmed down and gotten a rather strange view on things. Or perhaps he just likes Rio somehow.

<"Stop calling me a Crusader! I have a name. It's Ascian Luddite. And I am not going to get stopped - or fall. I am going to continue on living -- for my planet -- /For My Family/!"> Of course, with such an awesome dialogue going on between the two, it can't be helped that some attention is wrested from them and they end up taking hits. The grenades explode behind the Amenthes, cutting off the path to the transport vessel for now, and ends up leading the young man right into the trap the girl had placed.

The Amenthes moves forwards, trying to get away from the collapsing tunnel, and rushes straight into the spring-loaded grenades that follow after, as well as the massive quantity of bullets that /sheer/ right through its sensitive armor. The machine tries to repair itself, metal bending and twisting, but the amount of kinetic force behind the explosions leads the Amenthes to come out of the blast-radius in a rather tattered shape... only to have rocks fall on top of it. The tunnel has collapsed, capturing the red menace that is the Amenthes within...

Leaving only some tattered wings lingering outside. Had Rio defeated it!? No. No, within the cockpit, Ascian is hoping that this is enough to have the girl be distracted, and unleashes a homing beam attack, by letting the beams cut into the walls - without letting her see the attack... only to bend around - carving new and small tunnels - shaking the walls and ceiling of the place - and then finally breaking out all around her, trying to cage her and cast her machine into a field of red hot lasers! Yet, avoiding the cockpit.

The heat rod slams into GaoGaiGar's upraised arms, smashing against their black and red armor and discoloring the latter hue a bit. "Being small and mobile won't help you much in these close quarters!" snaps Guy, charging in - hopefully getting inside the GOUF's guard in the process - and commencing to try and maul the Gouf with punches and kicks. Nor is he above trying to slam the GOUF into walls or floor ... but while he's not above shaking the enemy pilot around inside his cockpit, he's doing his best *not* to apply so much G-force that it'll seriously wound a human pilot.

It doesn't just seem to be the Orbital Frame that has to do better. Somehow, even in the close confines of the cave system, most of the attacks being thrown between the two units end up finding their way into walls, or ceilings. It almost seems as if fate wants them to be buried alive. Those little diamond-shaped feathers seem to float out of range of the attacks, and while Great Mazinger is distracted with them, Mayet quickly tucks the beam cannon back into that rip in space. ^I do not think it is wise to put an overheated cannon into the Vector Trap, Miss Lin.^ "It's alright, Amit. There's nothing else in there, and it'll cool down eventually." At least, she hopes it will. If not, then she may have to go find a new cannon.

While the roars from Tetsuya may be vibrating the cave, Amit seems to drown them out, keeping the volume level acceptable within Mayet's cockpit, even if the rumbling does register on the readouts. "Make sure you keep an eye on where we are, Amit. I want a way out just incase this moron decides to bury us alive." ^I am tracking our coordinates.^ With a flex of her arms, Mayet's hands change once more into those huge rifles, the metal morphing from one thing to the other with only a thought.

Mayet continues to retreat, refusing to get into melee range with the superrobot as she ducks down a passageway. Lin's blue eyes follow their position on a tiny screen at the corner of her display - one that looks as if they are a tiny blip inside an anthill. Or perhaps like pac-man being chased by a ghost - a very loud and quite powerful one. In either case, Mayet raises those rifles and waits the split second it takes for Great Mazinger to get to that split in the passage, tying to catch him unaware with a single powerful blast from those two rifles joined together.

"Even if _she_ is happy, that doesn't make stealing the evangelion okay! She could have piloted something else." If Rio ever _were_ to defect she is _so_ taking the Huckebein with her. "Ascian Luddite... I'm Rio Mei Long. I'd rather you didn't die. I'm sorry you've been tricked into believing the Crusaders are your best path... But that doesn't mean I'll give up and let your allies have what they want!"

During her rant, the Gespenst dodges with unusual grace between the homing lasers -- Rio can feel the machine with her mind, through the T-Link system...

The new tunnels have grenades shot into them, as Rio tries to smoke out and catch the orbital frame in a constrained blast of force and then hammer it with the rifle rounds. "You may not fall here, or stop fighting here... But you will lose! The Crusaders aren't getting that cargo!"

The caverns will not take much more damage. Tetsuya appears to be aware of this, and yet continues to chase the blue orbital frame through the winding passageways of this strange, underground labyrinth. Unfortunately, he follows her right into the Mayet's trap- but to what end? Tetsuya sees the incoming bolts of power, and reacts with instincts that have been beaten into him by countless hours of combat training and dozens of beanbag-shotgun-based endurance training sessions. Great's mighty arms rise to block the shots, shearing more and more of its paint from its body. Alina has left a mark, but will it be enough?

Possibly. Who can say but the gods?

A shot like that, though, is still not enough to force Great Mazinger into retreat. The Super Robot levels its arms once more, and unleashes another, two-fisted assault at the Mayet. But that isn't all. Free from the weight of its arms, Great's thrusters fire, illuminating the caverns with a colossal lightshow of blinding, golden radiance. The super robot rushes forward at great speeds-- does he intend to use himself as a projectile!?

Well, it's certainly not the craziest thing Tetsuya has ever done.

Norris Packard now bring his saber into play, at this point even as Gaogairgar attacks. "You'd be suprised about that." He counter attacks with the Templest blde quickly and is glanced by the attack from Guy's counter to his own. He smirks a little bit.

The blade lashes out as Packard races past he knows what the other may be trying to do but he's in the way of his objective.

"This is not how you win a fight!"

<"The Unit 02 isn't just 'a machine'. It is part of her. Like family. A living machine that has bonded with her, and she has bonded with. You can't take such a thing away. That is like ripping a child away from her mother and father."> Ascian transmits to Rio, the machine shaking around him as the girl unleashes a series of grenades, burrying the Amenthes further within the rubble, until it finally gets to a point where the machine cannot actually get out. Well, not with its low energy reserves. Slowly, the Metatron core is regaining a charge, and all the systems are still running, but Ascian has already had to disable the weapon systems to preserve the shield that is keeping the rest of the cave from collapsing on him. He'd get out soon enough. He wasn't worried. If anything, he could direct some of the spiders further down in the caves to dig him out.

Still. <"I'm kind of amazed you dodged that light-show though. You've gotten better." He sits back and actually opens a video-link with her. <"I don't suggest you go out there to join your allies though. With the state your machine is in..."> The young man taps the control orb and kind of 'stares' at his sensors, and with that, at Rio. <"I'm glad you think of me that way. And as you may have noticed, I rather you don't die either. You are a fine pilot, and for some reason, I think I like you."> The bishonen young man waves a hand casually at her, as if he wanted to get away from that subject.

<"But the Crusaders aren't making me do anything. Well, nothing out of the ordinary really. They are the only ones who will support BAHRAM's cause. And it's directly against the Federation. You know this. As long as the Federation will not let Mars have its independance, BAHRAM will remain opposite to the EFA - and will remain with the Divine Crusaders."> He pauses for a moment, and then adds, <"Do you even know that some parts of A-LAWS does to the people of Mars, Rio?"> He is refering soley to Acemos, as he has no information on any other part. <"If you found out about the public executions. If you found out about the hidden agendas. The destruction of domes. Would you still believe yourself to be right? Are you really doing the right thing, Rio? Look, forget about the cargo. But why don't you follow us instead? What is it that truly is so disgusting about the Divine Crusaders to you?">

"PROTECT WAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!"

GaoGaiGar's defensive field ripples out around its left hand again - and Guy *catches the saber with it*, stray energies rippling out around the point of contact.

.... except they're not *all* stray energies - especially when Guy follows up with a shout of "PLASMA HOLD!!" and the barrier condenses into tendrils of yellow energy, crackling around like tamed lightning bolts, grabbing the GOUF and slamming it against the side of the tunnel. "I don't have to destroy your mecha to beat you in a fight like this!" Guy yells ...

And if he was trying to administer a painful beatdown before, GaoGaiGar is now laying into the GOUF as though it owes the King of Braves money. Punches are aimed at the GOUF's face and shoulders, kicks for its knees, and a drill or two aimed at the hips ...

There is a small flex of Alina's fingers, a small quirk of her lips as she sees the impact of one of her attacks finally striking home against the hull of the Great Mazinger. It may not be enough to stop it, but after all the misses - she may just have to get her targeting computer realigned. ^Enemy unit incoming at high speeds.^ "On it." The girl quickly rolls the orbs beneath her hands, causing Mayet to retreat with surprising speed. While the blue unit isn't as quick as most Orbital Frames, it still had the ability to make an escape when th need called for it. However, she isn't exactly retreating. No, the Orbital Frame simply gets far enough away to duck around another corner, a few of the wing-diamonds being sheered off by the force of Mazinger's rush through the cave.

A moment later, Mayet pops back out behind the superrobot, extending her remaining wings outward as energy begins to seep inward. Lines of metatron pulse like a heartbeat along the machine's hull, drawing together at the mouthpiece. The sound that begins to echo through the tunnels, causing them to reverberate just as much as one of Tetsuya's roaring yells - is earsplitting. The whine almost sounds like someone writhing in absolute agony. The sound, as strange as it is, seems to come from nowhere and everywhere at once.

^Miss Lin, something is wrong!^ Even the AI sounds a bit surprised, and this is enough to jar the white-haired framerunner from her concentration, looking around at the dimmed cockpit. "What is she doing?" ^I'm not sure. She sin't responding to my commands.^ "Override her, Amit." ^Overrides are non-functional.^ "Shit." Lin's hands tighten down the restraining straps keeping her in place in the cockpit, not quite sure what exactly is coming, but knowing that it cannot be good. This is the second time she has lost control over Mayet, and it's all too clear that the newly upgraded AI is still not strong enough to contain the machine's force of will.

The blue Orbital Frame raises one shaking hand to her mouth, pulling away the plate covering it like a gag. As it is drawn away, the blue aura of metatron energy seems to radiate behind a set of jagged, sharpened teeth. The wailing sound grows louder, threatening to bring the entire cave down on them both as Mayet's mouth elongates. ^I suggest taking a bracing position.^ "No Kidding!" Alina ducks her head, clenching her eyes shut. Outside - Mayet seems to let loose something fearsome. From that fang-filled mouth comes a blast of condensed metatron energy, aimed directly towards the Great Mazinger. If he is able to ward it off, or deflect the force - it's quite likely to rip an entirely new hole in this underground, perhaps one far enough to make it to the surface.

Norris Packard is cauight with the plasma hold at least for a moment, the lighting crackles about his machine but he's able to get it moving faster than expected. He is getting used to the protect wall at the very lest.

"Are you so sure boy?! You may be excellent against fighting aliens but your skills against man are /lacking/!"

The Gouf's thrusters pick up and and he lunges right at Gaogaigar focusing all his strike from his sword into one single point, is he trying to punch through the protect wall? <Radio: B - DC Tactical> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I am... combat incapable. The Gespenst Mark Four got me."

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Alina Luddite sounds a bit breathless, "Mayet is overriding Amit's inhibitors. Trying to regain control, but she isn't responding."

Great Mazinger shudders. Tetsuya's eyes go wide as... /something/ seems to go wrong, deep inside of Great Mazinger. His heartbeat quickens as the primitive, reptilian portion of his brain activates, pumping adrenaline into his blood like a flood gate opening wide and disgorging a reservoir into a narrow valley. "What," Tetsuya gasps, as the Castle of Black Iron groans beneath his feet- "What's wrong? Great?" The steel colossus pauses in its advance, in defiance of its partner's control. Great Mazinger plants its legs into the ground, and raises its arms as the Mayet begins its transformation. "Great Mazinger," Tetsuya murmurs, straining against his controls, "Is it that machine? Are you--"

The blast erupts from the Mayet's mouth, Tetsuya's expression turns cold and steel-like. "Great Mazinger," the words are spoken reverently, empathetically, to the machine that is the closest thing Tetsuya Tsurugi has to a true friend in this world. "I understand. That machine- we must stop it here. We must stop it from taking a path it cannot turn away from." The Super Robot's eyes flash as the column of Metatron energy hurtles towards it. Tetsuya pulls the control levers apart, and pulls, his legs bracing against the Brain Condor's acceleration pedals. "Very well. Your will and mine are one! DC Pilot, endure this!"

Great Mazinger's eyes reflect the conflagration of metatron like twin, golden mirrors. Crimson meets crimson as, beneath Great Mazinger's arms, its chest-plate begins to glow with incredible power. The attack connects, slamming into Great's arms and torso, forcing it back by meters at a time. Tetsuya's hands tighten around his controls as he pulls, harder and higher, and a red, circular gauge begins to fill, winding like a spiral to a central ring--

"Now-" Tetsuya yells. The ring at the center of the gauge comes alight with a single, glowing 'Z.' His voice shakes the heavens himself when, as one, Great and Tetsuya seem to roar, "ENDURE IT! BREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSST BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURN!"

Great Mazinger's arms, their protective armor melted to slag, come away from its chest, exposing its torso completely to the blast of Metatron- but it never reaches armor. A wave of pure power, of undeniable intensity, surges out from the V-shaped heat sink on Great Mazinger's torso. It pushes into the column of Metatron, turning the cavern walls to molten stone. Where the beams meet, a column of energy erupts into the cave ceiling, cutting through layer upon layer of earth to reveal the sky above.

A sky, that is black with a rolling storm, and alive with the roar of thunder.

Rio is left aiming her M90 rifle at the buried Amenthes. She lowers it, hands shaking from the adrenaline rush. "I've been practicing." She comments, on the light show. "...I can't know if what you say about the evangelion is true. Even if it is, I can't view you... the Crusaders taking it - positively. And now you indicate exactly how the Crusaders have forced you. They've made you believe the _only_ path to 'free' your planet is to tear down the EFA, no matter what. _If_ such things are happening on mars as you say... They will be dealt with, one day. Just like the Titans. We can't be vigilantes and stop every authority figure percieved as evil _immediately_, just because someone said... Do you really want to live in a world where if someone thinks you've done wrong, mecha are blowing up your house before anyone can work out if it's true or not? If you do, why are you here, instead of attacking the individuals in question? Things will get better. Society has improved since history began... It will get better, or it will if we can stop fighting eachother needlessly!"

"As for what's 'disgusting' about the Crusaders... You work with the likes of Dr. Koch and Dr. Hell and Gym Ghingnham and many others, openly. You call without proof for us to deal with evil amongst our own, while you ignore them and let them stand! Hypocricy! Is that really the only path for you?"

Yes, Rio's had to argue for the EFA before, and _has_ given thought to it. While waiting for a response, she begins untraceably removing this conversation from the machine's log (well maybe not untraceably, but you'd have to look close). There are some advantages to having connections to the company that _makes_ all these Personal Troopers.

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Suriel Misaki transmits, "Huh, what about inhibitors?"

<Radio: B - DC Tactical> Alina Luddite transmits, "Amit's programming is having trouble keeping up with Mayet. Damnit."

Guy scowls inside GaoGaiGar's control chamber as he tries to keep Norris pinned against the wall - but the sword thrust slips past GaoGaiGar's guard, digging into one of the super robot's shoulders, while Guy's Drill Knee winds up plowing into the bakelite-coated wall. He feels like he *should* say something back to Norris - but he refrains, instead going on trying to smash the GOUF's head into sparks and shrapnel, the old-fashioned way: with copious amounts of punching.

The power finally flows back into the Amenthes' body, and the machine explodes out of the rocks... and then just hovers before the Gespenst, with his arms down, and wings laying flat, to show that it was not going to attack any further. Within, Ascian is staring at the screen from which Rio had spoken to him from. Her words made sense, much more so that most other people he had these kind of conversations with.

<"They have not forced me. BAHRAM joined the Divine Crusaders of free will. I am with BAHRAM. It is that simple."> Ascian replies to the first part he sees some wrong with, and then lets out a little sigh. He taps the control orbs in annoyance, represented in the disjointed energy-flow within the Amenthes as well. <"It is not like we have not tried to ask peacefully. But the EFA continues to force us down. Have you ever visited one of the city-ships on Mars? The only reason we suffer, is because the Earth exploits our resources, our economy. And they don't even let us build or our army, to defend outselves against the alien invasion. What do you think happened, when /Earth/ was caught within the Aegis shield? Sure, the Balmarians were the ones to activate it, but that will just happened again. Earth will hide itself, with all of its forces, and leave Mars to rot!">

Yes, Ascian has thought about these things too. However. When she raises the topic of Dr. Hell. <"I am afraid I do not know much about Dr. Koch. Gym has not really done anything for a long time. He likes a battle - and I can understand that. As for Dr. Hell. You don't understand it, because you don't know. But he is a nescissairy evil."> That's really the best he can do. <"Look, you win this round. The Amenthes is incapable of maintaining combat abilities. But Rio... as much as I am a hypocrite - the Crusaders don't hide the evils they do. They don't make the people believe everything is just fine. And that everything is black and white. Not all of the DC is evil. Do you think /I/ am evil?">

And with that, Ascian hits the verniers of the Amenthes at full force, and speeds off past the female pilot. It was likely that Rio could still send some communication, but he'd be cut off soon. <"Alina, Amenthes has taken some serious damage, I am moving out."> Pause. <"Are you... okay over there?">

<"You still ask if I think you evil? No. You are misguided."> Ascian may or may not still be listening. Rio watches Amenthes go, and then relaxes in her seat with a sigh, resting for just a moment before calling in on the radio. <"Rio Mei Long here. I've forced the orbital frame to retreat, but I'm in no condition to continue fighting. Can you give me a rendezvous point?">

She won. She should feel great... But the conversation killed some of that mood. Still. Tonight she will, perhaps, have a relaxing bath instead of spending hours on the simulators until the early morning...

'Endure it.' Without Amit to filter out the sound from outside, the voice comes through loud and clear, causing Lin's head to raise slightly. There is no fear in those blue eyes as she places her hands to the controls, gritting her teeth as the Orbital Frame seems intent on standing right in the path of what is coming for it. The remaining feathers seem to reflect what little remaining metatron energy is still left, sending a powerful counter-attack towards Great Mazinger - but it isn't enough. The wave of power lashing out from Great mazinger seems to just override anything that Mayet could throw at him.

What that leaves, is one fledgling framerunner, looking on into the heart of something more powerful than anything she's ever seen before. And Lin - doesn't blink. The blast strikes Mayet hard, dragging her into that eruption of energy and throwing Frame and pilot skyward. Within the cockpit, the voice of the AI has gone completely dead, leaving Lin clinging for dear life as her unit gets tossed and turned within that tempest of energy. She grits her teeth, her eyes clenched shut. "Mayet. You have to listen to me. We need to get out of here or we're both going to die."

At first, there is no response at all from the Orbital Frame. The pulse lines have gone dark, leaving the lifeless hulk to be tossed about, bits of armor flying off as the force of Great Mazinger starts to rip off piece after piece. And then, the cockpit begins to crack. "Mayet!" Lin screams, her voice filled with panic. She'd only just found her brother - just found her home. It was too soon to die.

With a flare of blue light in those eerie sphinx-like eyes, the Orbital Frame flares to life. The great feathered wings splay out above, the last remaining diamonds giving just enough force with one great backwing to launch the Orbital Frame free of that destructive energy. There is a harsh sound as metal grinds against metal, the heavily damaged beast somehow managing to stay airborne even with huge amount of damage taken. The protective cover has returned to the unit's mouth, although there is an irritated twitch of her tail.

"Mayet." Lin whispers, taking a few breath as she wipes a hand over her eyes. No, she wouldn't let any of them see that she'd cried in that moment of fear. Steeling her face, the girl nods her head once. They had endured, but anything further would be suicide. "We need to go. We can't face him. We're not ready." There is a moment where it seems as if the Orbital Frame might continue fighting, even against her pilot's orders, but then some of the light fades, and another voice comes into the dark cockpit. ^Reboot completed. Running system diagnostic.^ "Screw the system diagnostic, Amit, get us out of here." ^Y..Yes, Miss Lin.^ <"Ascian, We aren't badly damaged, but I have to withdraw."> She'd fill her brother in on the specifics of things later - the last thing she needed is more people to know what had happened. Mayet takes to the air, thrusters at full, withdrawing all too quickly from the scene.

Norris Packard has not been able to get past Guy's defences too well, he has to give it to the man. Then something happens the floor under packard's machine and prehaps Gaogaigar gives way and they will fall into the network below.

GaoGaiGar falls through the floor as well - even though Guy manages to trigger the flight engines, he keeps it to a *controlled* descent rather than flying back up. Either he wants to finish the battle properly, or ... maybe he wants to make sure Norris doesn't get killed off for real by either the fall, or whatever caused it?