2011-02-18 - The Mars Daybreak: Kessen! Daikaiju

A FEW WEEKS AGO THE MARTIAN OCEAN

Locked in the throes of battle, Katharon and the A-LAWS pit the Ship of Aurora's Bucklers against Arthur Goodman's complement of Trilobites! It's all out war as conventional humanoid mobile suit technology and the wonders of the mass-produced mobile armor clash, with the fate of the Daybreaker on the line!

Beneath it all, bubbles race towards the surface in tight vertical bunches as the sea floor ever so slightly shifts; marine creatures dwelling on or near the ocean's surface either begin to make exoduses in search of more hospital environments or haplessly, frantically swim near their homes and feeding grounds in anticipation of... something.

MEANWHILE ??????

Green eyes shine in the darkness with a predatory gleam; a ways above them, twin spots of amberburn brightly. Both pairs are fixed on the quartet of similarly red eyes - two high, two much lower, both pairs parallel with one another - perhaps thirty feet before them, practically looming above the green/red pair.

"One of the marine probes is active," a voice lowly growls in the darkness; bestial snarls accompany this tentative declaration. "Gamma, we believe."

A hush spreads through the darkness, settling and lingering for a second. Two. Three. Four.

And then finally: rumbling.

"Gamma. You are certain."

"Yes." The amber eyes snap fully open. "Yes, I--"

The growls are silenced when crackling thunder and the glow of distant, yet somehow ever-present fire shred the dark; a stern face framed by a snowy beard and seated bizarrely at the center of antiquated armour peers appraisingly at the... tiger kneeling before it; a ways above the stern, nearly-human face, the armour properly ends with a positively demonic blue and black visage. A helmet adorned with three twisting horns covers the creature's--the man's--the being's head. Its--second head?

"Observe it. Do not interfere."

"Of course. Yes." A powerfully built, blue-skinned man appears to be riding the tiger's back end, obscuring its tail somehow; it's /his/ voice that growls in the darkness. His head is bowed; his armoured skirt falls all across the tiger's back. "I will not fail Him."

"Of course you won't," the two-faced giant rumbles with a hint of exasperation as the shadows overtake the pair once more. "Of course you won't."

NOW THE MARTIAN OCEAN

Great oil slicks coat the water's surface and have since yesterday, thanks to - apparently - fissures spontaneously opened all across the ocean floor. Dead sea creatures bob gently on the waves, bathed in crude; though widespread, the phenomenon has yet to overtake the entirety of the northern ocean. A blessing, to be sure, particularly for the ship that so frequently cruises these seas.

Of course, today, the Ship of Aurora is nowhere to be found, though the stories of its insane assault on the Earth Federation - on /Earth/, no less - are interspersed amongst the fears the spontaneous spill have sown throughout the communities lining the ocean. It may be some time before they learn of the Daybreaker's current whereabouts, but they /do/ have one thing going for them:

The patchwork of spontaneously appearing oil slicks, those won't last forever. In fact, they'll come to an end today.

Tremors rock the beaches adjacent the water and blue-black waves course along its surface to crash against the land; they'll be the only real warning to what comes next. Well. The only /obvious/ warning.

A high pitched keening slices through the skies; some of those near the water fall to their knees in agony. Others collapse, unconscious or worse. Great spouts of tainted water explode upwards on the edges bordering the largest of the slicks, and within seconds, something - something bulbous, something scaled, something purple and crimson--something with golden eyes the size of of several mobile suits standing shoulder to shoulder rises from the waves. At first, it seems to be absorbing the water around it, but it won't take long to see that that's just the liquid flowing into the great, fanged abyss of its hungering maw.

The spontaneous oil slicks won't last forever; they'll come to an end today.

They'll come to an end because if the monster has its way, the ocean will /be/ one vast, unending expanse of thick, toxic oil.

 Dr. Hell transmits, "...hmm?"

 Dr. Hell transmits, ".....!"

 Dr. Hell transmits, "Who is present on Mars at this immediate moment?!"

 Divada Kirador transmits, "The Ark Hammer is too far away from Mars to assist, plus we're undergoing repairs."

 Erika Keese transmits, "I just arrived in orbit. I can make a combat drop... why...?"

 Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "P--pres--what--we're sorry..."

 Dr. Hell sounds very calm, the kind of unnerving calm that happens when people are very, very worried.

 Dr. Hell transmits, "Miss Keese."

 Dr. Hell transmits, "You, and all Divine Crusaders currently on Mars, are to intercept this point. Do not ask me why, it is not important."

 Dr. Hell transmits, "You will know soon enough. I will be joining you."

 Lilith Argenti transmits, "Hmhmhm... very well, I'll play with you."

 Ascian Luddite transmits, "Roger that. Heading out!"

 Macua Huitl transmits, "I have a report from Born in Space. There's something up. Hummm I'm going to see what's up in the northern ocean."

 Astrid Stalvern transmits, "Eh? I'll go with you."

 Astrid Stalvern transmits, "I just finished switching out the teeth on the Beam Saw with a newer model that works better underwater."

What the hell Lilith Argenti, Spirit of the Earth, is doing out in /Mars/ is as good a question as anyone's.

Perhaps it is a chance to scope out the wide expanse beyond her alledged protected territory. Maybe... it's because nature is nature, wherever it is, whatever form it takes -- and this aberration calls out to her, offending her very soul.

Whatever her reasons, a black distortion crackles out of nowhere, in the air above the crimson seas; a sanguine claw stretches out of it, prying open the wormhole, demonic eyes looming from within the deep. Black metallic wings stretch out behind it, and soon enough, the Night Fencer emerges, staring down towards the pollutant.

If it were a green-haired man with little red panties, it'd say "Looks like Dr. Pollution is up to his old tricks again!"

But it isn't, so Lilith merely narrows her eyes and towards the large, bulbous scaly monster. "You defile the Star of Fire's beauty, aberration of nature," she announces aloud. "By Mother Nature's laws, you shall be obliterated."

The Fencer's sword handle erupts from its hand. The relic mech grabs it with the other, ripping it out in one fell stroke that lets what passes to be 'blood' arc in a dramatic fashion. "Let's begin."

Bardos Island has flared up once more.

This, and this alone, is worrying enough for the DOCTOR OF DOOM, the MASTER OF MALICIOUSNESS, the VICAR OF VILLAINY, Doctor Hell; this means but one thing, and one thing that he cannot ignore no matter how much he wishes it were not true, no matter how much he may rail that it is impossible.

It means that *they* are coming back.

Aerial Fortress Gool drops out of its jump drive high above the site of the CREATURE; Dr. Hell himself has come, so grave is this matter. He stands from the marble throne of his Aerial Fortress, walking forward to look through the twin pillars that serve as viewscreen and scrying glass and yet more arcane ways to say monitoring device, mumbling words in a language forgotten to all who now live save himself, Viscount Pygman...

...and the masters of this beast.

The screen flips on with a crackle of lightning, and the yellow eyes of Hell behold the trail of the Beast. Soldiers of the Hell Army look around their master's back at the image he has conjured, confused - for of course they would be confused, confounded, without knowledge of the terrible Thing that they behold. Which is perhaps to their benefit, for they do not know the terrible Thing that has arrived... or what it is the harbinger of.

Hell throws up his command staff. "Launch one of our Aquatic Machine Beasts! Send out the Genotydal Z-7, immediately! Prepare Gool for full bombardment, all weapons to all-range mode! Summon Brocken, and have him prepare to bring Bardos Island to Mars if necessary!"

"Sir?" One of the soldiers asks. Hell turns on him, his eyes wide with rage, a mad, blind rage not unlike that of a cornered animal determined to fight to the bitter end.

"They have arrived, Hyperetes," Hell declares to the officer, leveling his command staff at the Greek Armor-clad member of his loyal troops, "They have come early, before my plans could reach fruition, and if you hope to live this day to continue your relationship with your lovely underling I recommend you *follow my orders*."

"At the moment, the only chance mars has of salvation... and perhaps the whole human race..."

The old man turns back to the screen. "Is DOCTOR HELL!

From the Gool's bomb bays, a sleek, terrifying creature falls. It resembles a shark, superficially, if one attached propellors and waterjets to a shark's fins to enable it to move three times as fast, gave it laser beam eyes, and made it roughly the size of a large building. It falls into the oily mess, eyes projecting light outwards to get a clearer view of the terrible Thing it has been ordered to hunt. And yet, somewhere, in its programming, it knows that something is very wrong...

A catgirl on Mars - it almost seems like the title of some bad b-movie, complete with pastel technicolor and actresses with bee-hive haircuts. Luckily for everyone involved, this isn't that kind of show. For the past few months, at least for the extent of her most recent contract, Sinya has called Mars 'home'. That is, of course, as much as a creature from what could be considered another world could call anyplace this side of La Gias home. Thus, while the foreign mech certainly may get a few raised eyebrows, it isn't as if the machine hasn't been seen a time or two recently.

"I've almost got the unit in place." The cat mutters from the cockpit of her guymelef. Strangely shaped braces of silvery metal wrap around her limbs, gears and wires hanging off of them and disappearing into the darkness around her. With both arms raised, she seems to be immitating the same motion seen in the machine, supporting an oddly crafted device. Below, a worker, obviously a tech if the grease stains on his clothes are any indication, throws her a thumbs up only moments before crying out and falling to his knees along with the rest of his crew.

Ears slicked back, Sinya quickly flicks a finger to lower the outside volume, hissing under her breath. The hastily built mechanism, meant to filter oil from the Martian ocean, is slowly set down onto the ground with a thud before pilot and mech repeat the motion of standing. "Not good." She mutters to herself, "Get your people out of here." Something about that sound was making the hair on her tail stand on end, but for now the Trailer pilot simply stands as a guardian as her team make their escape on foot up towards the nearby settlement.

There's that nostalgic feeling again. Despite all the bad memories she has from her earlier times in a Gelgoog Marine, Astrid can't help but feel a rush when she climbs into one. The power of a Gelgoog. The confidence that comes with her customized heavy armament. Standing firmly on the catapult, she flips her way through the controls and then grips the sticks firmly, "This is Hailstorm. Gelgoog Marine AS Custom, launching!" Hurtling into the empty sky, she draws the machine into a roll before activating its vernier jets, soaring across the oil-stained ocean. In flight, the Gelgoog reaches behind its side. Something unfixes from the rack pack, and the machine pulls a stubby two-barreled weapon forward. The other hand pulls a pair of red cartridges from behind its forearm shield. The stock is popped open, the shells inserted, and then the shotgun is snapped shut with a simple one-handed motion and a distinctive click. The redhead bares her teeth in an almost savage smile as the monstrosity begins to dominate the horizon. There's no fear in her voice. Only anticipation, and an almost feral joy not at all aided by her prominant canines, "Is it from heaven, or hell? Who cares. Let's rock."

 Dr. Hell transmits, "To all DC units currently participating in this operation. I am taking direct command for the duration of this attack from Aerial Fortress Gool. Your goal is to suppress and destroy this beast; your secondary objectives are the recovery of its corpse and making certain that neither the EFA nor Katharon acquires its body."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Annihilating the target."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Big on commanding, aren't you? Rather adorable."

PREVIOUSLY...

"Roooooooockettooooo...."

"...PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANCH!"

A mechanical fist plows through the head module of a colossal robo-bear. It falls off its Destructo-Ball motor-unit and hits the ground, its bulky chassis crackling with energy.

Mazinger Z turns away, leaving the mechano-ursine to brilliantly explode amid a Neo-London backdrop.

At the controls, Koji Kabuto phews. "I don't like Russia," he mutters to himself. "...or their crazy robot bears!"

High above, a darkened sky rumbles softly.

The Cloud-Gatherer is pleased.

NOW

A dinky spheroid aircraft on hoverfans plummets from the Martian atmosphere, speeding toward the blighted Elysian Seas.

At the helm, a young man no more than seventeen years of age. The mirrored lenses of his helmet betraying the worrysome look in his dark eyes. The Hover-Pilder swoops low to the water's surface, following a trail of corruption to its source.

The scanners catch it long before Koji's eyes notice and it dawns on him like some terrible truth of one's own encroaching adulthood. Purple and red --- alive and cancerous!

"E-Eh!?!" the young pilot dryly croaks. Under his helmet, his eyebrows jump high atop his forehead. Those eyes! Those horrible golden eyes! "C-C-Control...!!" Koji barely sputters over the wireless. "It's just as we feared! A horrible monster! There is no choice! To save Mars... I must deploy.."

"MAZINGAAAAA ZETTO!!"

~"This is Alpha Numbers control, Ensign Koji. You are go for launch."~

From Earth, a series of thunderous cracks is heard all throughout the Eastern Hemisphere. By way of a massively oversized revolver, three ludicrously oversized bullet-shaped pods are shot clear across the atmosphere and into space.

Their destination?

MARS

The crimson plains of Mars, a red planet unlike any other in the solar system. Its sands tinted red with ferrous oxides and the blood of its defenders, its invaders, and the unfortunate civilian caught up in the crossfire between the former and the latter. But, tonight, there's a new conflict shaking the foundations of the planet's colonization projects. A colossus, a relic from an age long past.

But this planet is not without its defenders. This star is not without its protection! As the warnings issue forth, a great, violet portal appears high up, just over the Martian atmosphere. Black armor and crimson wings, a silver crown and eyes that burn bright gold. The silhouette is unmistakable- this is one of the two great castles of black iron! This is GREAT MAZINGER!

A FEW MOMENTS AGO

Tetsuya Tsurugi is laying on his meager bed aboard the J-Ark. The bizarre geometric designs of the alien spacecraft have largely seen the pilot wander the halls, poking about and trying to get a decent idea of how to get from here to there- and, more importantly, how to walk in those goddamn triangular hallways. Seriously J, what the hell.

But, today, he's decided to take a breather. A small CD player spools about a disc in one corner of the room, filling the air with the dulcet tones of NEO-QUEEN's lead singer. Tetsuya's eyes scan over the contents of a magazine he doesn't quite understand. His brow furrows- But why would a magazine ostensibly about Illustrated Sports fill its pages with women in bikinis? What do they have to do about sports? And it's not like they're winning any favors from TETSUYA TSURUGI, DEFENDER OF EARTH by parading about on glossy pages in mere strips of cloth.

Really. What's so special that this merits a 'special edition' label? This isn't special. Jun wears things like this all the time!

Tetsuya's reverie is broken and his thought train derailed as a sudden 'BREEEEE' of warning fills the air. It's showtime!

JUST NOW

Great Mazinger falls through the atmosphere like a great, steel meteor. Its armor burns crimson as it plummets to the ground at impossible speeds. Tetsuya's arms are crossed in the Brain Condor as Great drops through the sky. He frowns as what exactly he's falling toward becomes all too obvious.

This- this may be a bit painful.

It takes a minute or two, but as the alert goes out, a pair of flashes can be seen in the distance. One dives for the ground almost immediately in a power dive that only an expert can pull out of. Pull out of it, he does and flies for the lost signal at his best speed, which in this atmosphere, is about mach 1. Wings swept back with the very air becoming visible as it cuts a path towards the location until it reaches a lake, where the Blue Valkyrie circles as the Pilot watches incoming Crusader Units. Max Jenius, who happens to be in the unassuming pilot role, only chuckles. "Well, if Crusader units are showing up, it probably means it's not friendly to them either. Oh well, let's see what has their dander up." He presses a button and rotate the throttle handle sideways. In a fraction of a second, the blue valkyrie assumes Soldier mode and slows it's flight...

A Few Weeks Ago The Martian Sea

Ascian's Amenthes is rocked severely by the gigantic explosion that fills the skies. Plates of armor fly around, and the unit crashes down into the depths of the oceans. The light of the Orbital Frame flickers fiercely, even as it slowly sinks under water. The young man slowly loses conciousness. Soon, he'd be saved by a small team of raptors and musquitos, sent out from a nearby BAHRAM base. But for a moment, he'd thought... he'd seen something out there, at the bottom of the ocean.

A Lesser Few Weeks Ago Main NUT Facility

The young man picks up a newspaper in the messhall and kind of... stares at his. "Again?" A blonde technician near him asks, looking over his shoulder. Ascian turned about to face him. "Hrrm?" He hadn't been following the news. He'd been too busy defending Mars and running around all over the place. "Oilspills. Seems they found another one. They can never figure out where they come from. Look here." --

Now The Martian Sea

This place brought him bad memories. The blue haired Framerunner stares out at the water beneath as the Amenthes takes him towards the scene at high velocity. He feels his body being pressed back into the seat in which he is tightly secured; his hands on the half-orb control. Behind the Orbital Frame he pilots, a wave of red ember-like flakes of excess Metatron Energy cut through the sky, falling down like feathers after being released from the two sets of six large crystalic feathers that form the unit's wings.

It is when it gets close enough to the monster that the unit comes to a sudden halt and remains far above the gigantic... /thing/ - in midair. Duat begins to try and analyze the target, whilst Ascian just looks with a slightly tipped open mouth and the gigantic thing. "It seems to be a gigantic... shark... thing?" Duat tries. It sounds unsure. "I cannot find the entire silhoutte of the target in question." It adds, to explain why it cannot tell what they are dealing with. "Doesn't matter." Ascian replies. "We're taking it out!" And the unit begins charging its weapons.

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Right, see you there Astrid."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "Earth Federation and Katharon soldiers."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "Can you hear me?"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "Unfortunately."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "...!! Doctor Hell!?!"

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "For this moment, and this only, you are not my concern. For this moment, for this battle, we are - regrettably - allies."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "If you wish Mars to survive, you will assist me. If not..."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "Continue your nonsensical war at the cost of the red planet."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "B-b-but!"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "Assist you? Nah. Assist Mars, of course."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell transmits, "For the moment, they are one and the same."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Shut up and do what he says. There's millions of lives at stake!"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "If it isn't the New York bomber."

<Global Channel> Jun Kaneko transmits, "Huh. You're here too, Red Orbital Frame."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I have a name you know..."

<Global Channel> Dr. Hell hmph. "As always, I am proven right once more."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "If they attack, you have permission to deviate from your course and retaliate."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "If they will not cease their pointless squabbles in the face of armageddon, they will cease them in the silence of the grave."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I can handle evasive maneuvers and attacking this... thing. But could you tell us what we are dealing with?"

<Global Channel> Jun Kaneko transmits, "I'm Jun Kaneko, and you're... Ascian Luddite. Anyway, we can settle you totalling my Ground Gundam later. First, giant... Oil... Thing."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Not yet."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Not until I know that I am right."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Or rather, that what I fear has come to pass, and my preparations have been for naught."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "Here be--1492..."

Meiya Mitsurugi has been traversing Mars on her own - with the occasional return home to Earth to deal with something - but officialy she has been on Mars the whole time, unofficialy that was her sister, Yuuhi.

Who was able to run up a room service bill well into the four digits. Needless to say, Meiya gave her an earfull to say the least. But room service bills are not the only crisis on Mars, reports of spreading oil slicks reach Meiya, and since such a thing could have terrible economic ramifications, she takes her rented trailer to hte sea and opens the back.

A white and Blue gundam style robot stands up from the back of the trailer and spreads a pair of wings, launching into the sky just in time to see the monsters cavernous maw open up in an attempt to suck in all the water, and then ...Dr. Hell? What?

No time to ponder such things, Meiya draws up the Windam's beam rifle and lines it up for a long distance shot at the tar monster's eye.

The curiousities of Mars, and what little information she had been able to glean on her own had led Jun Kaneko to the red planet. With more revelations over the Alpha Numbers general bands, she sort of hums, placing her hands on her hips.

Because, totally, one would find the information on the mysterious Red Orbital Frame while napping under the awning of the Tausenfussler she had borrowed to fly down in her fact-finding trip. Opening her eyes, she rubs her wrists on her drooping featues, pulling up the time on a side panel. "What? Daarn, I overslept!" She grumbles, before looking up... And seeing the airspace full of Oh God.

Pulling on her headset, she switches it on to the general band, and immediately pulls it off of her ear in pain. "Wow! Loud!" She grumbles, scrambling into the GM she had stowed into the back of the T-1, closing the cockpit.

"Right, startup sequnce, let's do this fastlike. That light's green, so is that one, nothing's beeping at me, ready to go!" She mutters, turning down the volume on her headset and powering on the mobile suit, picking up her beam rifle and starting the suit jogging through the beach-front urban area towards the Giant Martian Tar Baby.

The curiousities of Mars, and what little information she had been able to glean on her own had led Jun Kaneko to the red planet. With more revelations over the Alpha Numbers general bands, she sort of hums, placing her hands on her hips.

Because, totally, one would find the information on the mysterious Red Orbital Frame while napping under the awning of the Tausenfussler she had borrowed to fly down in her fact-finding trip. Opening her eyes, she rubs her wrists on her drooping featues, pulling up the time on a side panel. "What? Daarn, I overslept!" She grumbles, before looking up... And seeing the airspace full of Oh God.

Pulling on her headset, she switches it on to the general band, and immediately pulls it off of her ear in pain. "Wow! Loud!" She grumbles, scrambling into the GM she had stowed into the back of the T-1, closing the cockpit.

"Right, startup sequnce, let's do this fastlike. That light's green, so is that one, nothing's beeping at me, ready to go!" She mutters, turning down the volume on her headset and powering on the mobile suit, picking up her beam rifle and starting the suit jogging through the beach-front urban area towards the Giant Martian Tar Baby.

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Correct. That is my name. And good - that means I don't have to kill you."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Idunn!"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "What are you hearing, girl?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "What is speaking to you?"

There was somrthing very strange going on in the norhtern Martian ocean, and well it was worth looking into thing. She's arrived from the Argama but is making use of the Amazon which is a rairty for Katharon business. The Phoebe was in need of an overhaul to the funnel systems after last night so she had little choice. She's on the hovering lander unit for her G Fighter, but an oil slick? There's no natural /oil/ on mars that Macua knows of. She'll do a brief if ping for Astrid to find her and now she's starting to scan the area she doesn't need to wait too long as there /is/ something there. She just stares at the thing jaw hanging open for half a secon then she starts to grin.

"Astrid looks like we got a challenge!"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius sounds way too cheery for the situation. "And yet we're the bad guys. Oh well. We have a big something or other to blow up. Let's get to it. Then we can start shouting at each other again.

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "This has nothing to do with your foolish notion of good and bad, 'Jenius'. And don't get shot down."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "How can we expect to trust you! Your /name/ is Dr. Hell! Not Dr... uh.. Trustworthy... believe... man... gu... THE POINT IS YOU DON'T HAVE A GREAT TRACK RECORD FOR BEING TRUSTED!"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Then who was it that helped the fleets during the assault on the White Star?"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "Calm down Kabuto. You too, Luddite. Trustworthy or no, Hell has a point."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "L-Leo Stanbakku??"

The Daybreaker was last reported on Earth - but such details are /trivialities/. When the oceans of Mars are in trouble...well, okay, the Ship of Aurora is not especially environmentalist all that much, but random oil spills bother even them. After all, at least one of their crew is aquatic by nature and the rest live in a submarine.

And so it is no surprise that the Ship of Aurora has been prowling the waters where the spills are most common. However, they've been deep in the water, lurking. However, when the monster appeared as though from nowhere, that meant they were not ready - they'd been expecting something else, and they had to get the hell out of the way, making a wide circle around the area of ocean.

But now, the Ship of Aurora's radio is flaring to life, along with its scent signature. (Scent sensors are /standard/ Martian oceangoing sensor tech. Really.) "ALL RIGHT! This is Captain Elizabeth of the Ship of Aurora! And /this/ is my planet! Giant monsters aren't welcome here!" There is a pause, as an off-radio conversation about the giant electricity-eating squidfish of Mars occurs, but Elizabeth refuses to qualify her statement to the world.

Meanwhile, the ship's resident psychic and ocean creature specialist curls into fetal position in her room at the thoughts and feelings she's sensing from the giant oil-spewering monster.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell barks, "Idunn!"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Before that."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "Ibis Dougras??"

<Katharon - DC Chat> Dr. Hell transmits, "You're wasting your time, Mr. Luddite."

<Katharon - DC Chat> Ascian Luddite groans. "Probably."

<Katharon - DC Chat> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I just don't understand how /blind/ these people are..."

<Katharon - DC Chat> Dr. Hell transmits, "They hear what they want to hear. I presume you are still talking on the radio, because you are a well-meaning youth and you are trying to defend my words as trustworthy, am I correct?"

<Katharon - DC Chat> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Correct."

<Katharon - DC Chat> Dr. Hell transmits, "I turn it off once my business is done, like most people with a lick of common sense."

AERIAL FORTRESS GOOL

"I--I can't, why can't I--greatest ecological disaster--loss of life--loss of life--loss of life..." Marchionessa Idunn mumbles as she writhes on the Aerial Fortress' floor. Not so long ago, she was on Bardos Island, studying the samples Nenai Illan left behind.

And then something jammed an ice pick right into her brain stem and startted wiggling it around; she hasn't been able to speak in complete sentences since. She had to /force/ herself to walk instead of dance the dance of a girl afflicted by something not so far from a psychically-induced grand mal seizure; even /then/, she collapsed the moment she boarded Gool.

"I--should be--hanged man..."

M-A-R-S, MARS, BITCHES! RED ROCKS!

Great Mazinger leads the charge against the Great Sea Monster; it's fitting, no?

As it so happens however, the beast's titanic body is more than up to the task of standing against Tetsuya Tsurugi's daredevil tactics; it seems unfazed by the Greater Black Castle of Iron's assault upon its form.

Actually, it seems /amused/ by the attack; a staccato burst of roars ripple like laughter as its body repels Great Mazinger, and they go uninterrupted when the Windam's rifle burst bounces - somewhat painfully, the way an elephant might find a puppy bite painful - from one of its eyes. As the laughter - 'laughter' - continues, its pitch rises until it's no longer audible by human ears; Great Mazinger and the Windam's systems will still be able to perceive it, however.

And that, seemingly, is what the monster is counting on; the frequency is such that the two machines' computers risk being dangerously scrambled by their exposure to it.

When the sonics finally abate, it's only so that its mouth can be put to better uses, like breathing balls of fire indiscriminately into the sky.

And then inhaling to draw the Ship of Aurora close to itself by consuming the water between the two bodies. Of the forces arrayed against it, the Daybreaker is the only one that exists on a remotely similar scale, size-wise; it thus seeks to force the ship's prow into its waiting mouth so that a chunk of it may be bitten away, rendering the monster once again superior in its own primitive understanding of the concept.

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "Luddite. take up a position opposite from me in bearing to the beast."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Why? Afraid I might 'accidentally' miss?"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius transmits, "More like it'll have to split it's attention between yourself and me if we keep moving."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "Ev--everything, I--I don't--"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite sounds worried; "Calm down."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell sounds... surprisingly parental, given *who he is*. "Idunn."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "What I presume is speaking to you is a monster that is not allowed to exist in this world."

The Amazon Gundam is accompanied by another: Katharon's Waterproof Gundam, Anaheim's greatest advancement in underwater mobile weapons technology!

"Ugh, what a mess! ...Wait a minute, where the hell did all this oil come from? Mars doesn't have..." Oh right, dragon monster thing needs to be fought first. "...Wait, why is that here, what is even _going on_" He comments to himself, even as he attacks!

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "But you are the master of your body. Twice over, the world has attempted to take you and your mind from you; twice over, it has been restored to you."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Seal it tight and do not let her out until I arrive. No one is to go in or out."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Mr. Luddite, is your vector cannon effective on liquids?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Duat replies, "The Vector Cannon ignores the existance of water for the purpose of damaging objects. It turns it to steam within less than 0.2 miliseconds after engaging - within the inner radius of the beam."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn defiantly transmits, "B--I can--the hanged man, I have to--I have--just shrimp and oysters--" At least, as defiantly as a teenaged girl in a weird flower-themed costume who is speaking in flashcards and convulsing on the floor can do anything at all.

Max's ear could literally be burned off if the radio was a weapon. yeesh. Apparently The Blue Valkyrie was positioned far enough away to escape the notice of the monster for the moment. However, Max doesn't just sit back and direct the battle, he maneuver his Valkyrie closer to almost guarantee that he'll get the attention of the monster...sepcially once it opens fire with it's Gun Pod. "Ah what fun. Crusaders are being righteous pricks even though we have to work together to shoot at a monster. Ah it's like the good ol' days against the Zentradei."

Great Mazinger falls and falls, hurdling right past Bardos Isle as it drops through the sky- Wait, /Bardos Island!?/ Tetsuya's eyes go wide as he falls right alongside Dr. Hell's mighty shark-based mechabeast. What- what the Hell is going on here!?

Tetsuya's hand goes to the Brain Condor's radio systems just as Great Mazinger bounces and jostles off of the colossal sea monster. The pilot growls as he's slammed against one side of Great Mazinger's crown-based cockpit. The super robot comes to a sudden halt as its thrusters kick in- just in time to be victim to the Sea Monster's sonic assault! Tetsuya's teeth grit as the shockwaves rock Great's body- but for some reason, the Super Robot does not falter, its computer systems are not phased. As far as Tetsuya knows, that much was just a mere scream of a space-beast.

But why was Great so resistant to such an assault? Why indeed!

Tetsuya has no time to ask questions. The Super Robot suddenly resumes its assault, thruster blazing bright gold as it flies toward the leviathan. "MAZINGEEEERRR--" A sword launches from one hip, sliding into Great Mazinger's hand. "BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAADE!" The weapon slices at the monster's horrible hide in a single, arcing cut before Great kicks off its body with a sudden /SLAM/ and hurls the sword, tip first, into its flesh. The battle has begun in earnest, but...

...Tetsuya looks to the Gool is floating high overhead. Doctor Hell...

The RF Gouf continues to drop, guided and slowed by the heavy retroes mounted upon it. After recovering from her initial shock, Erika quickly angles her falling machine towards the massive beast. The fuel guage rapidly depletes along with her velocity. Once slow enough, the rockets purge themselves from the machine and the Gouf goes into freefall... though not for long apparently as Erika snaps up her right arm and launches off her heat rod to impale the beast,m then use it to swing herself to shore, "Why hello there guppy!"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "It will take a while to charge up and get readied."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Do you need it now?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "No."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell is surprisingly used to such defiance, given how his canon minions are. "Idunn. You will be safe in that room."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Not now. Save it."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "For now, Genotydal Z-7 will suffice."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Very well."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Doctor Hell."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "...Today, it seems we're allies. Koji, concentrate on whatever this /thing/ is."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Seems one of them is asking for you..."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Assuming you don't arrive late again, I mean."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "This is not different from my usual day."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "That Tsurugi guy is saying he'll be your ally for today."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "I have only one thing to say!"

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "Wh.."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "No.."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "/TWO/! Two things!"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "It's wonderful to know that Tsurugi is smart enough to make a decent decision."

"Look at that thing thrash around," Astrid comments over the tightbeam to Macua, "It's huge!" Her lapse into awe soon gives way to a feral smile, her posture changing quickly, "You know what they say... The bigger the animal, the bigger the guts. Let's paint the ocean red, Huitl!" She catches a glimpse of a familiar blue Valkyrie in the fray as she soars over the beast, but pays it no mind. Maximillian isn't shooting at her this time, so she doesn't bother trying to rip another piece out of him using only her teeth. Instead, she focuses on the monstrosity filling the sea with nasty black sludge, "Hey, asshole! Don't pollute the environment!" One barrel erupts in a spray of pellets. She changes the angle, then unleashes the other barrel, "Nobody even cares about oil anymore!" Verniers flare, and the Gelgoog draws back as it pops the stock open and replaces the spent shells with a new pair. She's already considering, "Probably not enough for it to notice, I need a new strategy..."

As if distracted by each blip along the scope of her vision, the winged knight's head moves ever so slightly, following the arrivals one by one as they appear on Sinya's modified heads up display. Her clawed hands twitch down to her side, a panel opening at the guymelef's waist as the dark, robotic hand grasps onto a small cylinder of metal. With a click, the cylinder extends into a staff which is spun in front of the machine in a strictly not necessary but completely cool looking gesture.

Each movement of the machine matches that of the pilot, her hands spinning some invisible object between her fingers as the gears pull and groan as the machine spurs to life. With a tap of her fingers, the wings of the angelic knight extend slightly, flexing as if for take off.

"Everyone's out. You can fall back." The voice crackles in the cat's ear, followed by a shake of her head mimiced in robotic form. "Not a chance. I'll catch you guys afterwards."

Flicking her tail to one side, Sinya taps a panel, causing Arius to whine softly, a shuddering passing through the feet of the guymelef for a moment. "Oh come on. I just fixed the intake /yesterday/." She grumbles, shifting her arm to the side to bash the offending panel with a little bit of 'tough love'. It makes it almost seem as if the guymelef were calling out the monster by pointing a fist at it. Luckily, a little love is all the guymelef needs as the booster rockets kick to life, sending Arius out over the water.

"Not about to let them have all the fun, are we?" She chuckles, gritting her fangs as she turns the staff in her hand, wings shifting as the guymelef arcs downward, sweeping the long metal staff out to bash against the creature's hide in a flurry of motion that seems a bit too quick for what /should/ be possible. Blame it on La Gian 'magic'.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Presumably Kabuto will say something about denouncing him."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Or some other nonsense I couldn't care less about, and then say something about stopping my evil plan, whatever it is."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "What are they?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Maybe I'll pass it along."

Fire underwater is not something the Genotydal Z-7 is interested in or capable of comprehending, nor is it something unusual or at all blink-worthy to its villainous master. Hell's fingers curl around the staff, throwing it to the side wordlessly as the Gool's cannons are loaded and readied; the Genotydal slides out of the way of the fire breath, rolling around and whirling about like a mad undersea dancer. Cannons fire from its sides like a great ship, physically propelling shells through the sea towards its monstrous enemy.

The sleek shark does a barrel roll, slipping between a pair of the monster's own generated oil to hide as its laser begins to power up. The terrible shark eyes glow a nightmarish red color as lightning crackles (somehow!) between its jaws, a low thrumming sound filling the air as it prepares to release a burst of energy at the enemy. And then, it does; a lance of crimson power that streaks up out of the sea, narrowly missing the Daybreaker in its attack on the martian monstrosity.

And Dr. Hell is beginning to worry about Idunn, as he commands his medical staff to arrive and take her to a warded room. If what he fears is speaking to her truly is responsible... this day has simply become even more apocalyptic.

<Global Channel> Chang Wufei transmits, "Your efforts are better spent upon the task at hand, Ascian, whatever it is. Focus..."

<Katharon - DC Chat> Dr. Hell transmits, "Have they started lecturing you yet?"

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "PILDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH....!"

<Katharon - DC Chat> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Nope.."

A trio of objects streak across the Martian sky!

"Aaaaah!" Koji cries out as everything in front of him lights up. The fiery streams rocketing from the Dragonsaurus's maw is enough to boil any ordinary pilot alive inside their flightsuit!

Only Koji Kabuto is no ordinary pilot and this craft is no common rinky-dink fighter. Lightning reflexes jerk hard on the controls, pulling the Hover-Pilder up and over the inferno. Seconds earlier, projectiles fly across the distance at the great monster.

Above, three bullet-shaped capsules descend. Their shiny paneling -- ablative armor -- fall away, revealing the ebon shape of the Steel Guard and a pair of naval-use battleships with EFA-marking.

Young Koji's heart thumps loudly in his chest.

"PILDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH....!"

He tugs on a switch marked with a Z and ratches it all the way down. The tiny, spheroid Pilder launches upward -- along with its pilot's spirits.

Hoverfans fold up along the sides while tendrils of lightning carry Koji toward the cavity within his mighty robot's head.

"...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"

The Pilder slides into Mazinger Z, unseen mooring clamps locking in to enable the linkage pathways.

Photonic energy floods into every circuit and the soul of boy and machine combine into one:

Super Robotto Mazinger Z!

Mazinger's eyes flash into activation, its mighty arms lift to flex up to the Martian heavens. Not even far and away from Earth does the Cloud-Gatherer's influence fail to reach! The skies crackle with satisfaction!

Know, O' Forces of Evil!

Justice's heart is beating!

God is on the ground!

Donning the Armor of Miracles!

Mazinger Z settles back into frame, wearing those naval-use EFA battleships for makeshift water-shoes along with a regulation-pair of colossal inflatable floaters ringed 'round its arms to enable its nautical-use.

Controls to the maximum, Koji Kabuto launches forward in his chair as the Steel Guard speeds for the Dragonsaurus. His eyes wide with excitement, his heartbeat far beyond mortal limits! He can barely keep his fingers from trembling round the grips of the system, yet he does so keenly.

"MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZINGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

<Katharon - DC Chat> Dr. Hell transmits, "Ah. Right on time."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"

<Global Channel> Chang Wufei transmits, "Kabuto, if you do that again, I'll make sure your fists go missing."

The Night Fencer zooms in after the rest have made their move; there's no reason to lead the charge here. Fighting smart and expending as few resources as possible, to best be able to conserve oneself for the war is truly the best option for one as Lilith Argenti... besides, if one of these filthy humans bit the dust, all the better.

i.e. known as the 'you're the tank you go in first' strategy.

The black-winged mech carves a trail across the air, its blood-red magical thrusters powered by dead souls or some other high-grade Nonsensology arcing through, the pitted screams of the damned wailing behind it. It aims for one of its heads, sword outstretched... and its arms move with such speed that afterimages trail on after it, cutting a swath of sanguine destruction wherever it strikes.

"I'll put you to ease now, plagued one. Worry not," Lilith whispers.

The sonic screaching archieves the desired result on the Windam, the sound causes a serious feedback in the Mobile Suit's systems, causing Meiya to lose control of th emachine as it suddenly plumets through the martian air "Nhhg!" Meiya grabs the controls and launches a missile towards the beast, which hits despite the trackign system being useles because the target is so large.

Engines sputter and ignite back to life in time to catch the fallign Mobile Suit and push it back intot he air, just in time to curve around one of the flailing tendrils of the monster. "Tch... monster!" The Windam reafixes it's beam rifle behind it's shield and draws out a pair of beam sabers, igniting the plasma blades and diving down towards one of the monster's flailing apendadges and swinging the blades in a well timed combo in an effort to cutit right off.

When the 'dragon' rises and opens its maw, Ascian stares right inside. "That thing is huge." He confirms, doing his best Captain Obvious impersonation possible. "Its about the same size as the Argama." The artificial intelligence confirms. That doens't make Ascian very happy to hear. "Prepare the large weapon systems!"

The tailfeathers of the Orbital Frame begin to come around the mech whilst it puts its both hands forwards. The flow of Metatron energy quickens, flowing from its core through out the entire body - in response to its runner trying to will it to pull off an attack he's never actually tried before.

The tips of the tailfeathers, which /really/ are just long prehensile tendrils (That's right! Two can play at that game!) that has spade ends with ruby-diamonds set in them. It's these tips that line up with the both hands. A large translucent 'ball' begins to form before it, as space begins to be compressed. Its hands tighten, as if it was 'gripping' this floating existance before it, whilst the flames of the dragon come.

"Take it in, Amenthes! Your flames are more powerful!" Ascian calls out. And, as the Metatron does its 'physics defying', it creates a 'funnel' before itself, and /sucks/ in the violent and fiery breath of the gigantic dragon-thing. It all sinks into the large orb, which grows and grows before it, before the unit begins lifting it above itself with a single hand. It grows further and further, even as the breath of fire stops, putting the explosive power of Metatron energy into it.

Embers of fire, formed in the shapes of 'feathers', begin to fall from the unit, whilst Ascian begins to scan over the many vid-windows that appear. "There's some units I've never seen before. Amenthes, take note of each and every one of them." - "Roger that." Duat replies, as if it was being spoken to.

The gigantic orb, that's now grown about the size of the Orbital Frame itself, finally stops growing. This is about the time people start making Spirit Bomb references. "Ready!" Duat comments. "PHOENIX BURST STORM!" Ascian calls out!

The gigantic orb pulses a single time, and the Amenthes flicks its hand downwards towards the huge dragon-thing. Even if it was hiding in the water, that ball would simply sink into the water and potentially send powerful enough kinetic waves. But the young man was hoping it would come up again to strike by the time this 'touch sensitive bomb of energy' would go off.

Macua Huitl says, "It is huge, it's a challenge. No I didn't know that one but lets go, and at least it's doesn't have tentacles.!" She chirps she gets the idea from Dr. Hell. Yes for once she's going to have to work with him. She however seems to be ready for a fight as she launches herself at the beas,t the Amazon Gundam flips off the hover unit, gets airborn, the thrusters kick in. She just senses mostly rage, and urges for destruction from the thing.

"Let's see how you take my fists!"

She then launches into chain of melee strikes against the beast.

"Don't worry about shooting I'll be able to dodge your fire!"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "What do you bet that thing has vital organs under that hide, Macua?"

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Likely so. If I have to I'll get the damn thing to swallow me, and rip my way out from the inside!"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "Why bother getting past the teeth? I'll make my own way in."

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "... That works too."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "If I can get through, follow my lead, we'll rip this thing apart from the inside out!"

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Man I shouldn't have left the polearm with Banjo's R&D teams *sigh*"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I will call on you if I need such services during the battle."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Which ehhh... machine are you in?"

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Patronage always appreciated. My unit is Arius, the one that looks like it's mascarading as a bird knight."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "So that's its name."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Well, I guess... better one bird in the ha... no wait, that doesn't work..."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush? I could never quite grasp that saying."

<Global Channel> Nia transmits, "Two birds are not one bird, I agree. I have been curious of that myself."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I think it is 'better to have something, than to have nothing'?"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "It's fine, I have a chainsaw. Once we're past the armored hide, it doesn't matter what you use. Everything is soft."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Ah, I see! Well, that's certainly a logical argument."

<Global Channel> Nia transmits, "Ah, yes! It is better to know something than nothing at all, as well! So this is now a bird in hand."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Althought honestly though... is it not better to observe two birds in a bush - than imprisoning one within one's hand?"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Depends on the kind of bird, I suppose."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Are tame birds not simply tamed because we made them so by forcing them into our hands?"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "I'd certainly prefer a quail in hand than two in the bush. I can eat the one I've already caught."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I guess it works in the terms of food."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "As opposed to a pet."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "I aggree wholeheartedly about birds for dinner."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "There is some Irony here... I just can't put my finger on it..."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Aye, my subordinates rather like avian suppers, as well. Though I'm more of a steak sort of man."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I recently tried Martian Dolphin. Delicious."

<Global Channel> Mia transmits, "You just don't have the palate for it, captain."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "I'll have to try that."

<Global Channel> Nia transmits, "The birds I have met were not very nice. He was very tall, but also loud."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "...My diet is /also/ not almost completely composed of a variety of small, furry creatures, fish and birds."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "...My diet is /also/ not almost completely composed of a variety of small, furry creatures, fish and birds."

<Global Channel> Mia mutters, "Rabbit is good. Shut up."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "I don't see a problem with this diet."

<Global Channel> Mia transmits, "I know, right! He just doesn't understand my refined tastes."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I heard you can get cat at certain 'eastern' restaurants, so I've been told."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros sighs, "I suppose it's easy to keep you fed."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Never tried it myself. Anyone?"

<Global Channel> Mia and Elle both GASP!

<Global Channel> Elle transmits, "You monster!"

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "I take offense to that comment. And I request you keep conversations about what you do with your girlfriends off of the radio. We don't need to hear it."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Who? Wait? What? Huh!?"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Wha- Hey, wait! They're not my girlfriends, they're my subordinates!"

Finally breaking out of the cityscape, Jun Kaneko's GM Sniper II in drab greys that are... rather easy to spot against the beach. As it walks out onto the sand, the heavy mech's feet sink into the loose material. "W-wah! Sand! I hate the beach... It's so wishy-washy, terrain-wise!" She complains, pushing one stick forward as her mobile suit crouches down and brings up it's long-barrel sniper rifle, locking a fresh clip into the weapon. "Acquiring target." She intones.

The 'visor' of the sniper unit drops down over the suit's head screen, as Jun pulls forward and locks into place the targeting reticle. The fine adjustment of arm servos accents the GM's slight movements of the rifle, trying to avoid all the /other/ combatants that were flying all around, into the beast, lifting it, shooting it, etcetera.

"Locking... Target acquired. Firing!" She calls, to no-one in particular, before squeezing the trigger.

<Global Channel> Elle transmits, "You couldn't handle our kind of love, captain."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros sighs, "Right. So. Basically."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "You suggested, to a bunch of cats, that cats happen to make an excellent meal in some parts of the world."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "You suggested, to a bunch of cats, that cats happen to make an excellent meal in some parts of the world."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Not a smart idea."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "You have cats working for you? How does that work?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Don't tell me... they are Lord Genome's..."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "They're a subspecies of beastfolk from the place you surfacers call 'La Gias.'"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "What? Genome? I... Don't believe so. I'm pretty sure they aren't."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Might want to check the races on the pilots your speaking to before making comments like that."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Hey, I was refering to the non-humanoid ones. Besides, as I said, never ate 'em."

The Waterproof Gundam's beam rifle goes /completely/ astray of the monster's body as it sizzles through the oceans.

Instead, it scores one of the dozens of protrusions flailing /beneath/ it; rather than legs or flippers, the Great Sea Monster appears to use these things to move it... though the angry, gnashing heads on the end of each protrustion are rather unlike anything observed in nature.

One by one, tentacles race from beneath the waves, undulating madly; they are seemingly caught between the Great Sea Monster's natural impulse to capture its attackers and hold them steady so that it might make a meal of them and their own deeply primitive need to feast. Thus, some dart directly towards the fighters - such as Great Mazinger, who is nearly made into dinner in recompense for its thrown blade and the Z-Gok, who manages to hold another tentacle at bay with its heat rod, and the Amenthes--/despite/ the ball of fire that particular protrusion has to race through to even reach the Orbital Frame - while others thrash and do their very best to coil about their prey. Astrid's Gelgoog is the first would-be victim, but where its anti-tank rounds sink shallowly into the monster's body, the tentacle racing towards it goes awry.

Genotydal Z-7 and the Daybreaker are also met with the threat of capture, as the former's location and the latter's daring advance make both of them easy prey for submerged dragon-head protrusions; both are, however, successful in slowing the beast briefly, particularly when the Ship of Aurora drives its front end directly into the Great Sea Monster's body.

And then /more/ of them begin to fall upon the monster: Arius' staff beats out a catchy but ultimately ineffective rhythm against its hide, Amazon Gundam sends ripples across its surface with each rapid-fire punch, its drenched exterior handily refracts the Windam's beam sabers, the Night Fencer's impossibly fast sword stroke actually /severs/ one of its flailing heads, the GM Sniper II scores a shockingly resounding blow by shooting a small hole directly /through/ the monster's hide with its sniper rifle, and Mazinger Z even gets in on the action from afar with a mighty, rocketing fist that bounces from the Great Sea Monster's body to fly at a 45 degree angle away from it.

The flailing stops; the severed tentacle and the one the Amenthes' ball of fire seared nearly to its base retreat beneath the ocean for the sake of self-preservation.

The head of each tentacle that remains opens wide; some spray oil from deep within for several seconds before it's all set alight by gouts of flame guttering from some horrible, infernal bodily organ. The sky and ocean are set aflame in an instant, quickly becoming akin to a never-ending sunset obscured by foul smoke. For the lionshare of the machines combatting the Great Sea Monster, this is troublesome; putting up with fire on the water and in the air is likely not the /easiest/ thing in the world for any giant robot pilot.

For the Daybreaker and Genotydal Z-7, however, the stakes are /significantly/ higher. The slicks on the surface are one thing, but the oil is /everywhere/ below it.

And the fire seems to be following it all the way, impossibly /beneath/ the surface, creating the Earth Sphere's biggest deep frying apparatus.

Throughout it all - through the flailing, fire-spouting tendrils, the ecological havoc and generalized chaos - the Great Sea Monster roars those sharp, staccato roars reminiscent of laughter.

<Global Channel> Nia transmits, "They seem too nice to be with father."

<Global Channel> Mia hisses, "We'd never work for someone like that! We don't... want to murder every human ever." There's a pause, "Do we?"

<Global Channel> Elle transmits, "I'm fairly certain we do not."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I dunno. Nia seems to think her dad isn't that bad..."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "There's got to be more to him than that, like with Dr. Hell."

<Radio> Tightbeam to Jun Kaneko: Ascian Luddite says, "Nice sniping from over there."

<Radio> Tightbeam to Jun Kaneko: Ascian Luddite says, "Who-ever you are."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Maybe so, but... I'm not in the business of analyzing apparantly evil overlords. But maybe I can interest you in a vacation?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "A vacation? As long as Mars is being threatened by the A-LAWS... I am afraid I have no time for such things."

<Global Channel> Nia transmits, "I do not share that view with my father either."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "That's fine. If you're tethered to Mars, then we shall come to you. Hmm. I wonder if we can fit a trip into the itinerary..."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Well, I can tell you that the trip home would be fast..."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Or rather, the trip from Mars to Earth."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "If some of my kind work for you, I wouldn't mind a visit. I haven't seen one in two years."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Wait... what?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "There is a cat in a bird-mech?"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "I'm sure they wouldn't object to some company. We're mostly from La Gias, you see."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Alas, it got it's revenge and ate me. Now I'm stuck."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "You... /are/ kidding right...?"

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Me, or her?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Her."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Kidding, yes. And that's where I'm from, originally anyways. No interest in going back."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Oh? I suppose it's too private to ask why, then."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Nothing private about it. Zaibach."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "Oho. That would explain it."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Zaibach? Sounds like a bad couching fit."

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "But then, so do half of the mobile suits I encounter."

<Global Channel> Havelock Auros transmits, "The Zaibach Empire is one of the greatest- and most infamous- in La Gias."

Astrid's mind races through her options, even as she reaches back to slot the doublebarrel back into its rack mount on the Gelgoog Marine's backpack. The monster hurls out gouts of flames, and the woman's thought train is interrupted by the sudden desire to defend herself. The Gelgoog twists in midair, presenting its forearm-mounted shields to the flame jets in its own direction. Reaching forward, Astrid also cuts the thrust, and the Zeonic mobile suit drops out of the sky, just narrowly beneath the flames. She breathes a small sigh of relief, but that's interrupted by an impact alarm. Perplexed, it takes her a second to realize she's no longer flying. The Gelgoog Marine AS Custom splashes wetly into the oil-slicked ocean with little fanfare. Well, that's ONE way to avoid being set on fire. Underwater, the machine rights itself, then hurtles skyward again, bursting from the surface, "Huitl! I have a plan!" It reaches back, unslotting a new weapon from the rack. This swings forward - An industrial rock-cutter, held firmly in one hand. The other manipulates its simple control panel, firing up the green-tinged plasma fangs. Moving the hand to the trigger housing, Astrid grins as she rockets up towards the beast-which-defies-description. A burst of thrust from the legs angles the Gelgoog so it can land on the monster feet-first, beam saw raised, "First you pierce the shell..!" The trigger is depressed, and the teeth begin spinning rapidly, forming a glowing green oval around the sawblade as the Gelgoog swings it down, "Then..!" The Gelgoog's verniers flare, pressing the machine into the cutting blade. She's trying to *burrow* into the monster, chainsaw first, "... You shred the GUTS inside!"

The heat rod cable reels back with a crack as Erika skids across the water knee deep to her mobile suit's legs, and Erika pauses to debate her next course of action... she really does wish she brought her Z'Gok for this one, but she'll just have to make do with her Gouf instead. The beam sword snaps to life as she draws it, watching the beast carefully. Then it opens it's many mouths and breathes fire and oil at her. The water lights up instantly as the flaming oil jets across it, engulfing Erika's machine in it's inferno. She reflexively jerks back, trying to fight through the flames and rising heat before stumbling charred from the blaze, "Tch, damnit..." The RF Gouf turns, it's blazing sword still gripped in it's hand. The Gouf takes three large steps, then /leaps/ into the air, it's blade rised high as she descends upon it. "Get off my planet you prehistoric bastard!"

And then the world is hell. The poor little weapon of tides-based genocide is submerged in oil, and fire explodes around it, and its iron body is assaulted on all sides by a heat that should by rights be impossible and yet is not. It is a testament to the skill of its construction that it yet lives, its immense fin poking through the sea as its propellers turn and bring it slicing through the waves of flame and seawater alike.

And then the giant robot shark the size of a building crests out of the water and flies for a full two seconds towards its foe.

Shortly before its fin splits in half and fires a gigantic fin-shaped blade at the Dragonsaurus.

... and only one statement really comes to mind at the sight of a tremendous metal shark shooting blades out of its fin as it flies triumphantly through the red martian sky towards a giant oil-and-fire-shooting tentacle monster.

"PHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTONIC BEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!"

Twin points of light streak out across the heat-hazed air, piercing the inferno to strike back at the Great Sea Monster.

Flames lick along the length of the Steel Guard, its thick Japanium plating barely able to withstand the tremendous heat.

Inside, Koji Kabuto sweats bullets. The heat easily penetrates the canopy of the Pilder and it's making for an uncomfortable sauna within the cockpit. In the midst of trying to deal with the flames, the young pilot is trying to reach the agents of Katharon. Macua Huitl has yet to reply -- rebels are just so unreliable!

Then again, his own people aren't exactly the

Koji's finger taps the external transmitter. From the massive grille forming the mouth of the Steel Guard, Koji issues the grand idea sent on from high --- his dubiously-related 'brother' and his blockheaded brain.

"Everyone, we must throw this monster high above the air! It'll be vulnerable then!"

The external comm cuts out and Koji wonders briefly, "..I wonder if monsters ever underrstand us."

Mazinger Z skates after the Dragonsaurus. Its battleship-boots effortlessly cutting wide swaths across the oil-tainted ocean's surface, enabling the Steel Guard to close the distance.

"HEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Koji cries out, yanking back on one control while pushing forward on the other.

Mazinger Z twists and swings its mighty right foot, plowing the battleship adorning its foot for the bulk of the creature!

"Tch... targeting's off..." Staren mutters. He holsters the Beam Rifle and charges after Macua, drawing the beam... picks and trying to... pick off some tentacles!

"HAHAHAHAHA! Try to burn /me/, will you?!" As the oil burns, the Daybreaker moves like - there is no other word - like a fish. A very fast fish. Its speed is amazing, and building all the time as it dodges around oil patches and firey spots. "You're worse than Federation police! I didn't even know you could /aim/ that bad!"

"Badly, Captain." "What?" The first mate, a pale young woman with purple hair, shakes her head. "It's badly." "Ester, I am not listening, I am /captaining/." "...aye aye, captain." Elizabeth's crazy grin hasn't faded as she continues to weave her way between the flames and the oil. "Want to flail around... well, we got a gift for you. MILCH! Prepare charges!"

"Aye, Cap'n." And then, in the torpedo bays, explosives are loaded into tubes. The Daybreaker dives deeper, going under the masive sea monster - and then fires charges upwards, into the path of the thing's tentacles.

Max, still keeping his Valkyrie in the air, somehow keeps it in the air moving out of the way of the attack. "Huh. a bit slow isn't it." Max mostly say to himself, adjusting his targeting for another tentacle. "hmmm....this is like shooting down missiles. Should keep it up for now." Noting that Ascian really isn't listening to him, Max changes to Gerwalk mode and fires a missile at one of the tentacles to see if it does any more damage....

Suddenly, fire. Oil and smoke and a great towering inferno. Tetsuya grits his teeth at the sudden heat- but, as flame rages all about the great Super Robot, but even as its armor singes, it does not melt, nor does it falter! This is the machine that has endured even flame born from the very heart of the world! This Great Mazinger has fallen into magma and emerged all too capable of continuing the fight!

So, as the flames lick at Great's body, it dives in, charging through to the very heart of this undersea inferno, suddenly closing the distance between it and the colossal sea monster. Its mighty hand goes to its lost sword, tearing it out of the beast's thick hide.

But it doesn't stop there. Tetsuya can't possibly pull back now- it's a matter of pride, as a Mazinger Pilot! "Come on, Great," Tetsuya growls, his hands tightening about the super robot's controls- Great Mazinger's eyes flash as photonic power suddenly begins flooding its limbs, "We can't fail. Not here! Tear it to pieces! TAKE THIS, ONCE MORE! MAZINGERRRRR BLAAAAAAAADE!"

Photonic energy burning white and gold surges through Great's body, into the crown at its forehead. It pulses, like blood from a beating heart, through the golden lenses of Great's eyes. It rages like a tornado through its limbs as Great continues its assault. Tetsuya's voice rises slowly to a crescendo- the first sword is joined by a second as Great Mazinger's arms arc downwards as one, slicing through the water like butter, and driving the tips of the blades down into the sea monster's crown!

Getting up close and personal with a monster isn't always the smartest of ideas, but luckily Arius, and his pilot are fairly quick on their feet, or is it paws? Although the attack itself seems ineffective on the creature's hide, they are able to use it to push off and get enough distance to avoid being blasted by the firey breath that follows. "Let's not get in the way of that. I'm not too fond of getting my fur singed." Just who she's talking to is anyone's guess, since Arius has no AI of any sort.

As she engages the thrusters to move to a different position, her eyes sweep across the view offered by the heads up display, noting the conditions of the various units. That is when she gets the bright idea to turn a combat situation, into a mony making one. Leave it to a Trailer to find money in anything, even as a merc-anic. With her sales pitch offered up, her ears shift as her attentione ends up focused in multiple directions at once. Unfortunately, talk of birds and food is enough to leave the catgirl's stomach growling. "Oh shut up." She mutters to herself.

Of course, some things leave her fur bristling a little, but there are more important things to worry about, such as a more flames heading in her direction. Pulling both of her arms upwards, the machinery seems to give another of those unsettling groans as it forces movements out of the joints and gears of the guymelef. Arius's wings flex slightly, seeming almost as if they were catching the wind, although such a thing is entirely impossible, at least according to the laws of physics.

Raising her arms over her head, Arius follows the same motion, spinning the metal staff quickly in a circle before moving forward, trying to catch some part of the monsterous tentacles in the spinning flurry of motion.

The burning oil that sprays for the Windam is ... met by the beam saber? The weapon spins in the Windam's hand as the wrist motor powers up, making the beam saber into a makeshift shield, deflecting the oil away.

"This is getting absolutely ridieculous." Meiya pulls up on the control sticks, the Windam streaking up into the sky to and pulls upt even harder, flipping the Windam directly over and then rotating it back to right side up, and in perfect position to dive down at the top of the oil slick monster, with one beam saber raised in both hands. "HAAA!"

The flame burns and brightly, cascading around the Fencer and scathing its midnight-black armor. Where the flame strikes, metal warps, and breaks, as if glass; that same viscous red liquid pours out in seemingly artful sumi-e styled arcs, disappearing into nothingness as Lilith weathers the attack.

"It'll take more than that..." Lilith murmurs, her eyes narrowing as she takes hold of one of the command orbs that rest on her cockpit throne's armrests. Motes of energy wisp in from all sides as she begins her spell:

"Hark, how the death bell tolls in the midnight sun! A clarion call to the wicked -- there shall be no rest. Be forced, ye all, to wander this damned star as one, For I shall deny the Grim Reaper its best!"

The Night Fencer's arms clutch together as it sweeps in through the flames, those Sauron Eyes (TM) on its shoulders radiating with malevolent light as Lilith spreads her arms... intricate mandalas erupting in a cosmic pattern around her, each of them crossing through the path of flames towards the monster itself, tearing, clawing away with spectral claws and anguish to the living, no matter how aberrant.

"IAAAAAA!!!!" What the!? Who? When? Where!? The Amenthes! The unit is suddenly clutching her chest with one arm and has changed its other arm into a blade and is swiping away rapidly at the large tendrils coming at it and the fireball. Of course, this scream is mostly metalic, and could easily be hand-waved away with saying it was the wind darting past the unit as it sped backwards - its wings shivering under the pressure as it rushes out of its range first, waiting for the ball of fire to further sear them away.

Still. The effect was still there. A female robot, defending herself from the evil tentacles whilst screaming. "Hey! Amenthes! Calm down!" Ascian calls out inside of that cockpit. His grip on the controls becomes firmer, as he forces the machine to disengage momentarily, speeding along the waterside - and the side of the monster, whilst observing it with strange interest. "Where did this huge thing come from? Did it really go undetected for so long? And what's Dr. Hell's connection with this thing? He seems to be rather... excited. In the bad way."

Duat doesn't respond to Ascian's random mutterings. Instead, it just assists as Ascian sinks the Amenthes INTO the water! It doesn't take long for the entire area of the water to /TURN RED/! Red with the glow of Amenthes' energy begin stuffed into a series of balls of 'fire', whilst the unit flits around inside of the water, making a detailed recording of the unit it is facing.

And whilst it does this, it tries to stay incredibly close to this 'monster' and uses the orb of energy it is gathering as a searing BEAM of sorts, firing it point-blank across its side.

<Radio> Tightbeam to Ascian Luddite: Jun Kaneko says, "I'm the pilot of the Gundam you scrapped, mister. Now let me concentrate."

<Global Channel> Amenthes transmits, somehow, "IAAAAAA!!!!"

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "..."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "What-"

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "What was /that/"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Ehh... I think that was my Orbital Frame..."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "...Your orbital frame screams like a robotic schoolgirl?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I'd... rather not talk about it."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto pff, "Girls on the battlefield."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "...I see. Well, keep your head in the fight. We have a beast to slay, defender of Mars."

<Global Channel> Sinya Leland transmits, "Hrm."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "Launch...."

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "JETTOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

<Global Channel> Koji Kabuto transmits, "SCRANDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!"

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Heh. So it's time for 'that?'"

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Alright. GREAT MAZINGER!"

<Global Channel> Maximillian Jenius seems to have a long fit of uncontrollable giggles.

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "SCRAAAAAAAAMBLE DAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!"

Peeking out from behid her targeting reticle, Jun blinks. "Huh. I actually hit it. And..." She sees the great beast rearing up like a great Martian Dragon Thing Of Tar and Fire Breath.

Oil-slick beasts that spit fire. Who would have thought THAT was a good idea? Well, whomever spawned this monstrosity, she reasoned. And then the fire breath is trained on her, she's already jamming her finger down on the boosters, leaping out of the way as the breath glasses the sand where she was standing. "Jheez!" She mutters, pushing away the targing computer as her free hand brings up her 90mm GM Autocannon, firing a stacatto burst of fire into the beast.

"I don't think I can just sit in one place against this monster! Gotta stay mobile!"

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Astrid? Seems the feds and others have a plan to get this beastie airbone to unload their heavy weapons into it."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern over a roaring chainsaw, "Good for them!"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "So you think we should forget the plan to get inside it and crush its brain between our fists, huh?"

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Your going to get caught in the line of fire."

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl seems to be grinning. "Another good idea!"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "You think so? Ngh! I was plannin' on shovin' them up its ass so it can watch me kick it from here to Phobos."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "So... Doctor?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Have we confirmed the identity of this thing yet?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "I won't be able to confirm until I've cut it open."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I see."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "But I am fairly certain of what it is."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Divada Kirador transmits, "You mean it's name designation isn't 'DEAD' yet?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "It's... big... and resilliant."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Divada Kirador transmits, "So hit it harder. but that's the obvious answer."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Duat declares, "Systems for the Vector Cannon activation have been preloaded and are ready."

Macua Huitl is fast she's not able to do too much damage. it much if at all. Her intal plan had to be to get inside the beast she's pulling back her fist to punch and try to get a hold when? She's now aware of Koji's signal. Prehaps she was distracted but she opens a channel. Perhaps she was just too damn focused on the fight before her.

She sends a reply and then she scowls there are tentacles. Even if they are not arrayed against her? She doesn't like this at all. She just doesn't like tentacles at all. At least they are not pointed at her. That hopefully. Astrid gets a new idea one that might work well. She's pulling back then bringing the full force of herself and her machine to bear against the beast to try and help with the effort to get it airborne. She just atarts kicking and punching for a momenr before she tries to get under it and just help to heave it. She's thrown a Killer Whale class sub once but this is bigger.

/Most/ of the Great Sea Monster's tentacles will be busy for at least the next several seconds; Astrid's Gelgoog has practically delivered itself to them, and between their insane thrashing making it difficult to make much sustained progress and the sheer toughness of its flesh, the mobile suit's underwater-friendly chainsaw fails to make much of a mark on the monster. The draconic protrusions are, on the other hand, trying to coil themselves around the Gelgoog's entire body to crush it utterly, but with the continued combat above, there's no time; the tentacles will soon retreat to lash out at the robots attacking it.

First come Erika and Genotydal, both with blades--after a fashion; neither manages to make much progress, unfortunately. The tentacles may not be as thickly concentrated above the waves, but they no doubt make accurate targetting a tricky proposition, especially in close quarters.

Mazinger Z seems to be less easily deterred, however; its foot/battleship crash into the Great Sea Monster's body quite resoundingly, sending tremors through its entire form. The wound left behind sprays an arc of oil into the air that thankfully does not catch fire. The tentacles do not cease their flailing, but it's more of a wild, instinctual thing, at least for the next few seconds; this is, perhaps, why the Daybreaker has such an easy time nailing it directly with one of its torpedos. Oil trickles from its underside, and moreover it remains vulnerable long enough that Waterproof Gundam's beam picks easily score its side before tentacles slip beneath the waves to interpose themselves between the monster and the mobile suit; it takes several seconds more before Amazon Gundam can be similarly repulsed, leaving the mobile fighter free to pit its strength - and its user's strength - against the enormity of the Great Sea Monster's body.

Just then, a swath of its oil-slicked body actually catches fire when the Valkyrie's missiles explode against it--though it seems inured enough to the flames as to function without any seeming signs of increased discomfort or agitation. Of course, the trio of blades cutting through the top of its head - two from Great Mazinger, one from the Windam - /do/ injure it enough to cause pain. /Real/ pain, enough to cut its 'laughter' short and replace it with a bellow powerful enough to stir the water around it into tall waves. Powerful enough that it slices through the air like a windstorm to batter against Mars' defenders.

Powerful enough to act as a knife slashing wildly through the consciousnesses of those few minds sensitive enough to perceive the pain of others.

The eldritch claws pulling at its body and opening narrow slits through which yet more oil is allowed to flow freely and coat its body do not ease its pain, nor does the steady patter of patented GM II machine gun fire lighting up the whole of its body; even the Arius' spinning staff blow adds to its overall discomfort, for all it doesn't quite manage to leave a lasting impression on the monster, and just when it seems as if it couldn't be a /worse/ time to be a toxic sea monster, the Amenthes soars in, all aglow with rubescent light.

Moments ago, the Great Sea Monster lost once of its many, many heads to the Orbital Frame.

Now, however... /now/, it's prepared--inasmuch as 'being coated by copious amounts of oil while facing an opponent who means to set it on fire' could be defined as preparedness.

The orb rakes the Great Sea Monster's side. No harm comes to the creature, but the orb /does/ explode, igniting more of the leviathan's body and generating a tower of steam and fire and boiling water just adjacent to itself.

Emboldened by this fortuitous turn, the Great Sea Monster's tentacles whip and flail madly beneath the water; several of its opponents sought to attack it from below, and the beast seemingly aims to make them regret it--or render them unable to leave its domain ever again. Worse yet, it sets one of its gargantuan eyes upon Mazinger Z; its other turns towards Great Mazinger. A low frequency emanates from within it, vibrating fillings and rattling mobile suit joints.

The low thrumming is brief, soon to be replaced by an ultrasonic wave so violent that it cannot be heard, only felt. It is unlike the machine-scrambling laughter of earlier, however, as it is tuned to be felt by flesh. By bone--to strip the former from the latter and atomize whatever remains.

It's fortunate that the twin towers of the Photon Power Labs are the only two machines beset by the tone.

Astrid growls. This isn't getting anywhere. It was a great idea, but all these tentacles are interfering with her ability to get any purchase on the hide. To top it off, they're really starting to rack up damage on the Gelgoog's armor, especailly the joints. Growing fed up with the high cost, given its low reward, Astrid wrenches back on the controls, swinging wildly with the saw to clear the air before the Gelgoog makes its escape. The motor is cut off, and the weapon stowed. In the same motion, the Zeonic mobile suit produces its iconic beam machinegun. Astrid's frown is palpable, "Damn. I can't risk getting too close to this thing." She may or may not be aware that something is up, but she's opting to keep her distance for now, spraying the beast's surface beneath her with plasma fire. It's not the standard green or violet beam shots. They're actually blue, and the noise the gun makes is distinctly different from standard beam weapons. She must've been modifying it.

The only problem with using a sonic attack against a Valkyrie, is that it can out run the attack. Max's reflexes are on today it seems, as the Valkyrie changes to jet mode and nearly zips right by Jun's head in outrunning the shockwave. It returns after pulling a split S maneuver and does a bit of a sliding turn around the beast, opening fire with it's gun pod in a longer burst than before....

Sonic weapons are hard to avoid underwater - they act as a kind of pressure wave. As such, for once even Elizabeth Liati cannot make a submarine dance out of the way of the blast. The shockwave, instead, roils the water and smashes into the Ship of Aurora, rattling it massively. The crew hang on as the ship shakes, and Elizabeth grits her teeth. "So they've mastered sonics too, huh..."

She spins the wheel, sending the submarine into a dive. It goes down, down, down... "Status, MAKI?" The ship AI responds calmly, "We've lost sector 4 sensors, and armor is damaged over sector 12. No hull breaches yet." "Good. All right...let's see how good it /really/ is."

Elizabeth grins. "All hands, brace. We're about to do something stupid." "Captain, how does that make today any different than most days?" "Be quiet, Ester, I'm captaining." "Aye, Captain."

Elizabeth stops the dive, turning the submarine. The Ship of Aurora circles, corkscrewing quickly until it is facing almost straight up. The Monster is just overhead. A straight plunge upwards. Elizabeth's smile widens. "MAKI - gun the engines." "Aye aye, Captain." And the submarine surges upward at speeds no submarine should ever reach. The crew braces for impact as Elizabeth's laugh rings out over the entire ship.

This time, the sonic attack /does/ seem to have an effect, although it doesn't appear to be immediate. Tetsuya squints momentarily as he feels... /something/ go terribly amiss. But that 'something' becomes all too obvious as the air in the Brain Condor suddenly begins vibrating at flesh rending frequencies. Tetsuya's teeth grit together as the sonic pulse rips through his body, rending muscle and tearing through vital tissue--

But, even as his body feels as though it might fall apart, it... does not. The sonic pulse leaves him bleeding and hurting, but not dead- not as the beast might have wanted. Everything stings, but Tetsuya can keep going. This much won't stop him! He coughs, spitting out a wad of blood and melted tissue as he turns his attention back to the Great Sea Monster, "Is- is that all?"

"IS THAT IT!?"

"THAT WON'T BE NEARLY ENOUGH!" Great Mazinger pulls away, it transmits a signal to the J-Ark, to prepare 'that' weapon for transport. A moment later, a great ES window appears within the Martian sea- a colossal sword, as tall as Great Mazinger itself, disgorges from the portal at breakneck speeds! The super robot rockets to its side, sheathing its smaller swords as it grabs hold of the huge blade.

Power /thrums/ through Great Mazinger's arms, into the huge sword's hilt, then up into the blade. A pulse of radiant energy surges through the sea, briefly illuminating the ocean as Great Mazinger rushes to engage the great beast's mass of tentacles.

"TAKE THIS!" Tetsuya roars as it swings the colossal sword in a devastating arc, "Great Mazinger- no, the EARTH SPHERE'S DIIIIIVIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE BLAAAAAAAADE!"

"Nnnnnaaaah!" Koji howls as Mazinger Z is caught against the Dragonsaurus's intense sonic attack.

Wincing hard, he reaches for the arm mechanism to bring the forearm of the Steel Guard up, enabling it to weather the brunt of the vibrative force.

Japanium construction channels the low-frequency pitch straight up to the gold spikes jutting from either 'ear' of the mighty robot. Waves of sound are projected outward -- 'harmlessly' killing a flock of nearby Martian seagulls.

Mazinger Z's armor plating shudders against its frame, plates of Super Alloy Z creaking with protest as they ride out the remaining quakes. A bolt or two falls from its knee joints, but otherwise, the Armor of Miracles stands ready!

"I need more power...!" Koji realizes. The lightning reflexes of the Dragonsaurus is nearly too great! He'll need something else to balance it out!

Something like... a jetpack!

Racing out from its near-instantaneous deployment from Earth is a crimson wing, elegantly sculpted into two great scythe blades attached to an ovoid base. It swoops down from the Martian sky, angled straight for the battleship-footed Mazinger Z.

"SCRANDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH....!"

Mazinger Z shoves Dragonsaurus aside and leaps into the air, arms outstretched as the Jet Scrander slides down behind it. Silver rings reach around the Steel Guard's belly and lock.

"...CROSS........!!!!"

Mazinger Z reaches across its arms, its fingers digging into the colossal waterwings clinging to its arms and rip them away.

Swift as the King of the God's Lightning Bolt!

Fly, Mazinger Z!

Several button presses and Koji stares down at the horrific Sea Beast in judgment.

"SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUTHERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRN..."

"CROSS.............!!!"

Scrander Wings clap together...

"KNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And with a thundercrack, open -- raining millions of brilliant shards down from above!

Tonight's Forecast:

Cloudy, with a chance of JUSTICE.

The new sonic attack only makes the damage on the Windam from the last one even worse. The jet engines of the Jet Striker pack rattle thrash untill they explode into fire.

Meiya clenches her eyes shut as the Windam suddenly bucks hard as the engines give out and it banks hard to the side. "Nhhg... theses stupid packs... never last!" She reaches ouwt and presses a button covered by an emergency striped cover and the Jet Striker detatches with the pressure of explosive bolts. The Windam falls from from it's propulsion dwon towards the monster below, just as the striker pack explodes in mid air.

"I guess theres only one chance..." the Windam takes out both it's beam sabers, linking them end to end and igniting them, spinning them around over it's head as it comes down towards the monster's back "HAAAAA!"

The Windam swings the spinning weapons down, chopping at the back as hard as she can at terminal velocity.

"What's going on, Duat?" Ascian looks around him, trying to get readings off of the scanners that are currently active. But due to the giant mess underwater, and the objects he has to dodge as he goes along, it seems he is having a hard time splitting his attention. The firey 'beam' seems to have lost much of its effectiveness under water. But the red still is blinding enough to the visual and sensors that what comes has an easier time going unnoticed by the framerunner. Oil.

The sudden ignition, followed by steam and kinetic explosions rock the Amenthes and are enough of a force that the unit is literally /blown/ out of the water - taking it away from the threat of the underwater tentacles! The entire unit shakes, and Ascian cries out all manly like as the G-forces hit him, until Duat manages to restore all balance and the Amenthes comes to a sudden halt. Jun had perhaps seen this before. That kind of sudden halting of the Orbital Frame that could not possibly be possible within the realms of basic physics. This machine was something else!

Water slowly seeps off of the Amenthes, as does some of the oil that is clutching to the frame of the machine. Parts of its bioluminescent veins look disrupted due to this gunk, and there are a few 'sparks' flying near one of its arms, whilst armor plating moves to cover the area up.

"Duat? Status?" Ascian demands to know. The Artificial Intelligence replies by simply shownig a schematic of the Amenthes and slightly yellowing certain areas. "The flow of Metatron is still fine. However..." It pauses for a moment. "/She/ is visitting again." Ascian blinks.

Indeed, the cockpit had filled slightly with that red haze. 'She' had not materialized yet, but he could sense her now that Duat had made him take note. He lifts one hand off of the control and lifts it to his eye. He could see from the faint 'reflection' on his hand that it was indeed sending out that glow as well.

"Not now. Come on, Duat!" The Amenthes shifts sideways so that only its right side is facing the large monster - from far up in the air. "Take aim..." He whispers to himself. The red mist becomes thicker. "Keep my concentration..." Ascian tries not to think about it. Multiple targetting reticules find their place on /serveral/ of the tendrils he manages to see from above. "AND FIRE!"

A series of red plasma bolts fire from the 'barrel' of the rifle-arm as it shifts after each launched bolt, which would explode in a red cloud of sundering plasma on impact, trying to do away with the tendrils. "I'll protect you Amenthes..."

"I'LL PROTECT MARS!"

Sonic attacks may work well against the living, but in the highly magical form Lilith is in, she's got more senses than just her sight, her hearing... and therefore, can magically intuit the incoming shockwaves. The Night Fencer not so much evades out of the way so much as disappears into a hazy blur of lines, red in color, reappearing on the other side of the monster.

Inside, Lilith sighs a little; battle without banter is actually not that fun. Oh well -- if it cannot speak, then Lilith will just have to try seeing if this Dragonosaurus is truly mindless on every single conceivable level -- even the primal animal one. She sifts back, taking the Fencer out of immediate attacking range, and...

...the eyes grafted onto its shoulders emanate a powerful fear wave, seemingly cascading around its immediate area and being projected out towards the nightmare-creature itself. Ripples of mind-affecting magic cut through in waves, speaking on a level higher than that of language: of primal fear, of base animal instinct.

And within it, Lilith's assertion is being broadcast at the highest levels: "Listen to me, cretin, and know who your mistress is. Know me. Fear me."

Staren is smacked by tentacles! But the Gundam is pretty tough, and won't go down that easily. Still, he decides to back up, give the thing some space. And if it's covered in oil... then now is the perfect opportunity! He loads an explosive harpoon into his harpoon gun, and fires!

Macua Huitl is keeping tabs on Astrid's postion and to make sure she's okay. She's now eyeing the other tentacles, oh she hated them so much. She tries to not think about her last run in with Johnny Domino and his living mecha. She's sworn to never go near him again without as many sharp and bladed things as The Amazon can carry after that. The idea doesn't work well she's unable to get it airborn, fine it seems that may not be the best idea and then comes things horrible thing right at her, she tries to evade but she's not so lucky, thankfully though they don't get ahold of her. Various points on her suit light up, but she's not kept back for long. Okay if the pitch to the air doesn't work she'll just meet the beast head on.

She looks to the number of heads it's got and she thinks of something Folka has taught her recently.

"So lets see how this works. She leaps up for one of the things heads, she'll jet up towards the thine. She lets out a yell before she aims to shuve punches her way through it's lower jaw and out through the top.

"ENOUGH OF YOU!"

Stopping her mech from dodging the tentacles, the fire breaths, the tar-beasts slobber, and generally, everything. She runs, and she runs. In fact, she runs until the monster really just doesn't do anything to her! She reloads her 90mm machine gun, before switching arming her head vulcans, sliding into a crouch as she aims all of her solid-state weapons.

"Well, lets see if you belch fire at us after I'm done belching hot lead at you, beastie!" She smiles, squeezing both triggers, and depressing both thumb buttons.

Her 90mm and both head vulcans fire until empty, unleashing a hail of bullets! That don't, hopefully, hit any of her friends.

Azure plasma explodes against the Great Sea Monster's flank; unlike the Amenthes' gambit, the Gelgoog won't find its attack literally blowing up in its face.

It /will/ find a tentacle racing towards it, but that's pretty business as usual with this thing.

The Great Sea Monster's flesh burns away as the plasma eats at it, and the Valkyrie's gunpod fire only makes things worse; already tortured flesh is just chewed up beneath the leaden barrage, and when the Waterproof Gundam lodges - and /detonates/ - a harpoon in its body, the monster's entire body ripples in rage and pain. Great Mazinger does its best to worsen the damage, but its flesh turns the mighty Divine Blade aside with little more than a thin slice across the upper layers of its flesh; thankfully, the Windam follows closely behind it to bury its beam sabers so deeply into the Great Sea Monster's back that the resulting oil spray will threaten to coat the mobile suit from head to toe.

At about the same time, Amenthes' rifle evaporates several of its tentacles, forcing the rest to retreat beneath the water lest they, too, be lost. It's just in time, too; once Arius is done with it, the acute damage inflicted upon its primitive nervous system combined with the incredible amount of punishment it's just been forced to endure leave the Great Sea Monster incapable of movement.

Just when Mazinger Z /showers/ it with enough sharp metal to blot out the sun, leaving its every inch studded with Japanium shrapnel. Fire, not oil - the ignition happens that quickly - bubbles out from around each and every shard.

ELSEWHERE IT'S A CAVE OR SOME SHIT

"The thief," growls the tiger-rider as he gazes into a wall-mounter scrying device. The Great Sea Monster's campaign against Mars is playing out live, and so far the rider is troubled; the creature is flagging--paralyzed, now. More importantly, whenever Genotydal comes into view, his eyes do not leave it. They smolder hatefully; he was told not to interfere, but surely--/surely/, under the circumstances, disobedience would be overlooked.

Perhaps even lauded. Nevermind the punishment that might befall him were the monster disabled and Genotydal's master allowed to take what remains.

The rider reaches to the sword sheathed at his hip and begins to draw it; on the monitor, the beast's eyes suddenly...

"Archduke Gorgon will /not/ yield, harlot!"

After twisting its body to and from to fling the Amazon Gundam from within itself, the Great Sea Monster...

... /jumps/.

Many of its tentacles have been severed, burned, grievously wounded; all of them, stump or whole, they flutter beneath its impossibly airborne, implacably flaming bulk as it hurtles towards the Night Fencer. With all the oil going around, Amazon Gundam and the Windam have plenty to worry about; its leap seems poised to carry it by both in the hopes of igniting them in passing. /Atop/ that, those flailing tentacles breathe fire at everything beneath the flying sea monster; with its number of heads so drastically diminished, it won't leave nearly the same scale of sea and sky-bound inferno as the first time around, but fire is fire.

Fire is /also/, for the Night Fencer, the least dangerous thing about the Great Sea Monster's ascent.

Because it seems to want to land /directly/ atop the mysterious mobile suit.

"I /will/ have Bardos Island's thief--he /will/ atone for his sins; do you understand, witch? Now--!"

As soon as the Great Sea Monster splashes down - with or without the Night Fencer beneath itself - it submergers, slicing through the water at high speeds as it zeroes in on Genotydal. Its mouth is open wide; it doesn't seem to want to tear a chunk from the Machine Beast, though, nor does it want to consume the water around it.

It just wants to swallow the Machine Beast whole.

It's the circle of life, played out with cthonic, ecological mostrosities and machine-monster hybrids.

Max, once again, does a really really nice backflip and jets away from the action, just about the same course as before in jet mode. "All right. I guess if all you're going to do is shoot hot taco breath at everyone, I might as well give you more headaches than Commander Hayase gets when trying to compete against Minmei. Here we go." Next thing the beast knows, there's a whole mess of missiles coming at it. Booyah.

"We... missed?" Elizabeth scowls. MAKI interjects, "We grazed, Captain, that is technically a hit. We almost destroyed a tentacle." "We were supposed to go /through/ it." The captain growls... and then stops, as the door to the command deck opens. A small teenage girl with blue hair steps in, shaking like a leaf.

And then falls over, as Elizabeth begins evasive action, weaving between tentacles. The Ship of Aurora dives and rises like a thing alive, always managing to be where tentacles aren't. Meanwhile, Ester heads over to the girl, helping her up. "Higashibara - are you all right?" "It's - it's in my head..." The girl shakes her head. "So /angry/. So.../angry/! We have to - to calm it down! We have to stop it! It'll kill everyone!"

Elizabeth turns to the girl. "Megumi, what?" "I can hear it. In my head. Like -" "Is this one a lost baby, too?" "No, no, it's... it's /angry/. It wants to hurt people. But we can stop it! Just - just let me talk to it!"

"...fine." Elizabeth Liati grabs an intercom mike. "All hands, hold fire. No torpedos, no guns. Higashibara's going to try to do her thing." The girl closes her eyes, and then...reaches out. She is a Newtype, but she has only one trick: she can talk to sea creatures. Well, and standard empathy. But sea creatures are where she excels. (It's okay...it's okay. Calm down. You don't have to be angry. You don't have to be afraid. Just stop hurting Mars. Stop hurting everyone.) Higashibara focuses, as the others on the bridge support her. She can barely stand from the force of the Monster's thoughts. (We can be friends. There are big things on Mars, big things like you! You can be their friend! Just - just stop burning the ocean! Stop spreading oil and hurting people! We need the ocean! You need the ocean, too!)

Meanwhile, Elizabeth turns to Ester, muttering, "So, will this...work?" "I have no idea."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Not... Not yet..."

Dr. Hell's eyes widen as the great sea monster levels on Genotydal Z-7. In a single gulp, the monster is consumed; in a single gulp, the machine beast destructs, and Dr. Hell's command staff explodes in his hand, magical/technological energies backlashing and crackling lightning up his arm.

No...

What he feared was true. The feedback from that strike was only possible if this creature originated from one source, and only one, the one thing that Dr. Hell - that the man who ruled over the largest super robot army in all of time and space - feared. The one thing that a man who could raise the dead feared.

The words roll through his mind; ancient words, names of gods, names of beasts.

GENERAL JULIUCEASAR ARCHDUKE GORGON GENERAL SCARABETH GENERAL LIGERN GENERAL DRAYDOU GENERAL BIRDLER MARQUIS JANUS MINISTER ARGOS ANKOKU DAISHOGUN

The names of monsters, of Gods, of demons, of things beyond and above, of Nightmares of the Protoculture, of Gods who once ruled over more of space than the human race has even perceived, sealed away inside the depths of the Island he calls his own...frighten him. They are nightmares beyond nightmares, gods beyond gods, and they are what he has prepared to fight so long.

And his preparations have not gone in vain. Dr. Hell throws his hand around, jabbing his finger directly at his soldiers. "Now! Fire all our missiles - fire everything, fire the Chaos Disruptor, I don't care, but *FIRE!* That beast is what we have all prepared to destroy - and if it is not destroyed now, its masters..."

"Its masters may come for it! And then..."

"The human race's time is over!"

This is all the motivation the crew needs. The soldiers move to their places, targetting every point on the monster; the power of the main gun of Gool begins to charge, but for now, it is merely a cloud of missiles that streaks from the great space zeppelin, an explosive peppering to prepare the monster for its inevitable and soon coming demise.

Dr. Hell will kill it. Those who believe that they can make peace with it, or that they can keep it alive, are fools. Only Dr. Hell understands the true fear that is rising here.

The Mykene have risen.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell actually screams, "ALL DIVINE CRUSADERS!"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "/OPEN FIRE! HOLD NOTHING BACK!/"

Strange. It's strange- and it's eerie. Great Mazinger pauses as it arrives at the other end of the colossal Sea Monster. Tetsuya's eyes find the monster's own. It's... Something about that conflict- it disturbs something, deep within the Mazinger pilot. This- something about all this is just /wrong./ It's wrong, and he can't quite grasp why.

And then the beast... leaps. It rises from the sea, spewing a devastating inferno into the sea below. This time- this time, Tetsuya is not so fortunate. Something about that heat from that flame seems to burn straight through the Brain Condor's protective canopy. Tetsuya's teeth gnash, holding back a scream as he feels as though his flesh is boiling away. This- this shouldn't be. Something is wrong.

Something is /WRONG/

A reminder, a memory, of a distant voice- a rumble, brave but kind, one that feels as though it had been heard long ago. Tetsuya's eyes squint in pain, as the voice rises from a whisper to a rustle. He can barely make it out- he needs to focus--

Then, he hears it. A command. A divine mandate! His eyes fly open as he hears it, roaring over crimson stormclouds gathering in the Martian skies!

BURN IT UP! MAZINGER!

Great trembles. Its entire body quakes with impossible, divine fury. Light floods Tetsuya's vision, thoughts, memories, surge through his mind.

A colossus of gold, its back straight and its shoulders broad. A true hero among heroes- it stands before a creature, red and violet. The flames of war lick at its cloak as a blaze of destruction surges all about its heroic form. Beasts countless and unimaginable charge the golden hero--

Shuuen no shinpan wa kudasareta Ankoku no gundan ga oshiyoseru

Sora wo oou honoo, akaku, akaku moeru- BURNING!

Tetsuya's shoulders heave, his breaths, labored. The weight of Great Mazinger's power weighs heavily on his soul, but--

The Golden hero's face is a beacon of confidence, his grin belies his determination! Into the horde he advances, spear raised high! Its voice shakes the heavens themselves!

Hitosu no kaminari ni terasarete Koutetsu no bannin ge sobietatsu GOD'S ON THE GROUND! Kiseki mo mi ni matoi!

But- but! But he can't stop here! This power, this responsibility- they are his, and they are his for a reason! This creature is nothing. Before Mazinger...

Ima sekai wa yami ni dakare Kono chikara wo machitsudzukeru!

Radiant energy pours through his mind's eye. He can see it, he can feel it- it's the same as that time. It's the same figure that drove him to victory over the Balmarians, over the might of a volcano, over his own looming death! That shining power, that divine force that drives Great Mazinger- it's right here, and it's telling him that the TIME IS NOW!

"KOOOOOJJIIIIIIII!" Tetsuya roars, Great Mazinger's wings deploy as its thrusters ignite once more! Flame and light mix and ripple through the Martian sea. It's an impossible sight, fire burning underwater, but this is the power of miracles! This is the might of those which we might call GODS!

"Let's do it! We can't possibly fail. GREAT MAZINGER! BREEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSST!" He yells, pulling Great Mazinger downward, its torso suddenly blazing with golden power- power that threatens to erupt at any moment. The Super Robot turns itself skyward, its arms rising to either side, the Divine Blade still gripped powerfully in one hand. That light builds, amplifying suddenly as Great Mazinger flexes--

Its eyes eyes flash as a sun suddenly seems to ignite in the abyss. Shadow is burnt away as impossibly bright, impossibly hot light surges out from the V-plate on Great Mazinger's chest. Tetsuya's voice is joined by the righteous flash of lighting, the earth-shattering crack of thunder, as he roars to the heavens themselves, "BUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRNNNNNNNNNNN!"

Omae to nara KANJITE KNIGHT! Omae naraba dekiru ROCK ME!

"Eh!? T-Tsurugi Tetsuya?!?" Koji sputters in wonder, unable to resist the allure of taking his eyes away from the Dragonsaurus in order to see just what it is Great Mazinger is up to. Under the cover of his helmet, his eyes widen with surprise. "I-..." he swallows that hard lump in his throat, "..I understand!!"

Leather creaks under Koji Kabuto's fingertip as he accesses a subsystem of Mazinger Z. A panel gives way, enabling access to a secondary control. The knob is twisted to the side, resulting in an audible rush of power through the Photonic Batteries.

~Warning.

The read-out beeps.

~Photonic power will exceed recommended safety settings. Unintended damage may result. Proceed?

Koji Kabuto closes his eyes, his trembling finger hovering over the button.

For what seems like an eternity of careful and worrisome thought, the sound of a click echoes through the longest second of silence the young pilot has ever allowed.

And when Koji Kabuto's eyes open again, they are alight with such beautiful energy.

Mazinger Z shudders hard, its energy diverted from every portion of its body and channeled to the great big red plates upon its chest. They glow so hot that it goes beyond white and turn gold, which in turn suffuse the entire length of the Guardian of Steel with it's glorious color.

"LET'S GO, MAZINGAAAA ZETTO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Flames bathe the flying Miracle Armor, sweeping in jets right beyond it. Lesser robots would melt, their pilots burnt carbon. Not Mazinger Z. Not Koji Kabuto. The inferno is sucked right into the fins, great big heat-sinks for a great big robot. Drawn in and condensed within the coils, re-energized.

Mazinger Z sweeps its arms out and columns of oil-free water rise up from the Martian waters.

"IN THE NAME OF MIGHTY ZEUS.......!"

Koji's declaration coincides with Tetsuya's own, bordering the sharp angles of the Father of the Gods himself. He stares outward, determined yet grinning softly at what He hath wrought. Justice has a name.

"WE FEAR NO EVIL!!!!!!"

You alone are the strongest knight! You can do it!

Dials are jacked up to eleven and targeting coprocessors pinpointed on the horrific Sea Beast before it.

"SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING..."

"BREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..."

"FIYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!"

From the energy that simply pours from the chest of Mazinger Z, an incredible sight leaps out for Dragonsaurus.

Resplendant and wonderful, strong and majestic.

The Cloud Gatherer himself!

Ruler of Olympos!

Known to his people as Zetto Mazinga, but known and revered by the people of Earth as...

!ZEUS!

Spear in hand, the Great Father charges after the creature on a chariot of fire and energy. Powered by the combined force of Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger, this all-powerful blast descends upon Dragonsaurus to cleanse its evil from this universe!

Rock me!

BURN IT UP!

Astrid holds the trigger down on her plasma rifle until it clicks and hot plasma death stops spewing out the end. She pauses, and the gelgoog withdrawls the weapon. The smoldering ECAP is ejected out the side, and she's about to slap in a fresh one when a random tentacle slams into the Gelgoog from its blind side. Astrid lurches in the harnass, wrenching the conjtrols, struggling to regain control, focused entirely on locking the ECAP into her weapon and tucking it away into the back rack. "I'm through thinking with finesse." The Gelgoog dives down to water level as the beast surges up and then back down, raising its shielded forearms to deflect and ride the resulting wave upward, "Planning is for targets!" It has multiple heads, right? She distinctly recalls seeing something resembling eyes, flooding with color. And that's what she's headed for, with no weapons at the ready. Instead, the Gelgoog brings up its fists. The spikes lining the forward edges of the shields flip down, covering the hands like spiked knuckleguards, and it's with these that Astrid descends upon the monster's face. She isn't just trying to punch the crap out of it. She's trying to put her hands through its eyes, wrap them around the optic nerve, and *PULL*. Screaming with fury the whole time. Thankfully, she turned her tightbeam off, to spare the ears of her wingmen. She's completely oblivious to the actions of the rest of the assault force. Thankfully, blind luck puts her on the opposite side of the monster when the real fireworks go off.

Having been close enough to the beast to enact her paralyzing attack, Sinya and Arius have little time to avoid the sudden movement that follows, causing the guymelef to fall towards the water just in time to be scorched by a spray of fire.

Blaring alarms sound loudly in the catgirl's ears, causing her to quickly bash the panel to quiet it. "Why did I even install that?" She mutters to herself, shaking her head from left to right to get rid of the ringing that lingers in her ears. In the mean time, the mech continues to plummet towards the sea. "Thrusters would be good right about now." She mashes the control keys, but it seems to sputter rather than come to full throttle, sparing them just above the water's surface. Eventually, the right foot thruster gives out completely, leaving the winged guymelef hovering, somehow, impossibly, using only one of the booster rockets.

Twitching her nose, Sinya blinks, then turns suddenly when she realizes that her tail is on fire. Yipe! Somehow the blast was enough to sear through part of the jury rigged cockpit. "Ow owow!" Pulling her hand out of the controls, she turns and quickly pats out the bit of smoldering fur, smoothing it down and giving the faintest wimper. "You singed my fur." She growls under her breath, turning her head back forwards as she shoves her hand back into the control mechanism, closing her hand to tighten Arius's grip on his staff.

The guymelef's wings extend further, sweeping across a wider expanse even as pilot and mech begin moving the staff around the mech's body as if it were a storm of circling blows. Then, even with one thruster remaining, the guymelef shoots forward, wings drawn out like blades and staff whirling with deadly quickness. "I won't forgive you." She snarls lowly. "Suck this sea-monster. Gryphon Tempest!" Normally, she isn't one for yelling out attacks, but... when in Rome...

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "My fears are confirmed."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Then I will do away with your fears!"

Macua Huitl savage attack does a lot of damage and prehaps it's best to not think too hard about the carnage. Macua certainly doesn't this thing is still alive, and there's a lot of firepower being tossed aorung. The Amazon is covered in who knows what as she pulls away from the beast making redy for another attack but then something happens. The eyes change, something's strange. Something is very strange here. She hears a voice.

Her machine stops hoving mind air and seems to be clutching it's head. She can't keep it out she hears a male? She thinks it's male at the very least. He gives a name Archduke Gorgon? Like the greek monster?

She manages to keep back for the moment as others contiune combat. Wait the theif of Bardos Island? Calling Dr. hell a theif but the only one who could are the mysterious ones who /made/ the island in the first place. This dark Revelation is not lost on her, she's scared. She knew Hell had tech from a long dead civilization but this implies some of them still live.

Macua attemts to communicate back to the speaker.

~You... your... one of the ones who mde the island?!

Is this another alien menace or is ia group just pissed about Hell Raiding their stuff. It's sadly likely the former rather than latter. She backs up now. Hell was a Genius there ws no denying that. Technology that had been rotting for prehaps longer than Mankind had fire had been ressurected by the Doctor, the fortress island was still salvagable and yet? Someone was claiming him the thief. Then there's a second just half a second of it, fear. Fear from a souce that she thought was unable to feel it. Any able to sense her would sense a massive level of dred in the young fighter's mind. That man was afraid evne if for an instance.

She gives a reply <MEET THE FATE OF THE BALMARIANS!> She tries to bluster but it's plain she's afraid. This little is afraid, she clearly knows about the island at the very least.

The Amazon starts venting plasma as Macua throws herself at the beast with wreckless abandon it has to die, the damn thing has to die and die now.

"DIE DIE DIE YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE!" attack after attack is launched at it Macua just flips the hell out on it.

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "KILL IT! KILL THAT DAMN THING! DO NOT HOLD BACK! KILL IT!"

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "Wha??"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Divada Kirador transmits, "I must be missing one hell of a party."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "No. You will not."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "That...thing...is not my fear."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Merely its harbinger."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> James Heller transmits, "We got trouble comming Doc?"

Perhaps it is battle that Lilith wants to engorge herself in. No, she thinks, even that isn't true; but she does not become alive in the battlefield unless she has a spirit to communicate with. A personality, a motivation. Nothing could be more dreary and crushing than fighting a lifeless, inert thing.

And that is why, when the eldritch voice, filled with so much fire and hate, spurs her into action. The enflamed Dragonosaurus hurls itself towards the Fencer with such might that it could just evaporate it and smear it off the face of this world... if it weren't for its mobility, its sheer movement. The monster's aggressive advance lands on the Fencer with so much power, so much zest that it nonetheless begins to demolish the Fencer's midnight armor...

Blood crunching and splurting out of its mysterious, unknowable inner workings, metal forged of inky blackness warped and shattered apart where they disappear into motes of errant magic. Inside, Lilith grits her teeth, and grins as she whispers, "That's more like it..."

The Fencer disappears; it teleports, once more, a blurry haze of warped energy all that's left of its position, allowing the Dragonosaurus through as it appears right ontop of it, amidst burning patches. It darts away further, afterwards, as Lilith prepares to muster the rest of her magical energy. "That's what I want to hear. Resist with all your might, monster...!"

The Night Fencer's blood aura whirls around it, growing and growing further as it focuses its energy into its blade. As it sweeps in on gossamer wings of blood, it seems to split into so many different copies, each with their own voice, ringing like a thunderous, ominous chorus of death, with only one harmonized imperative: "Resist, for in the end your surrender will be swe-eetEr." A crackle in her voice.

The black fencers turn, driving its blades down upon a focal point. "Lo-OaThe your exis.ence, kno.iNg tHat escape... was never an option." Still, Lilith's voice breaks further.

The ghost-like fencers converge into an assault formation, led by the real one as they cut across like a plague across the sky. "FffeaR, thAt w-ww-when my g-glorY is engraVv-d in e-erNity, your ex.st-nce will .e as a f...oTn-tE!"

And finally, they merge into one, the Blood Sword emanating with the massed sum of all Lilith's magic. It sweeps in one final time, all the power of Lilith's black magic fulminating into one spectacular blood-curdling explosion sheathed by a wreath of souls and mandalas. The visage of Lilith's face can actually be seen within it, warped and... showing her true essence. A twisted, angry and bitter spirit of the Earth.

"D-diE, knoWin...g thAt... I. am. Lil-lItH," comes her bursty, raspy voice, speaking from beyond the end.

Jun hears the click-click of her weapons running dry, and slowly releases her fingers on the triggers and thumb stubs. She pulls back, her mech's targeting visor raising as she breathes out, the spent magazines releasing automatiacally as the GM Sniper II rose.

"Phew, did we get i-" She asks, being cut off by the molten breath of the great beasts' maw blasting her suit head on, the GM's armor slagging and her front charring badly as she's blasted back, heat sensors whining at her more and more. "Ugh... Fire suppression systems are one thing, but this... This is a little too much!" She complains, lacking her normal suit's shield to use to deflect some of the attack... And she sure as heck wasn't going to go into that nasty, oil-slicked water.

So her suit just sits there and tanks it, her 90mm machine gun turning to useless charred slag in her mech's hands. As the attack ends, she pries the worthless metal from the burned actuators of her hand, pulling her beam long rifle from the back mount, and checking it quickly. "Well, at least this thing's in working condition!" She smiles, wiping off her brow and flushing coolant to make sure her suit didn't overhead and shut down.

"You know, this beast's so big..." She grumbles, spotting some of those nasty tentacles grabbing at people above the surface. "It'd be hard to miss." She comments, aiming her rifle at those advancing on the beach's defenders. "I should give them some covering fire!" She nods, firing off a few blasts at the oil-smeary appendages

"Hit confirmed. Hit confirmed. Hit confirmed." For each strike on a tentacle, Duat decides to claim it has indeed hit. "You don't need to do that." Ascian mumbles. "Hit conf~" - "Shut uuuup." The young man follows up in a lazy manner, dragging that last word like a slur.

And that's when 'she' manifests. The red haze inside of the cockpit has turned thicker, and it suddenly looks like there is a floating woman before him, smiling at him in a kind manner. But this is no normal woman, she seems to be made out of a red energy, much like fire - carrying feathery wings on her back; larger than normal.

Ascian looks at her, whilst also looking through her, as the machine is forced to move further up to get away from the large monster which had lifted itself up and 'jumped' at its enemies. Much more gracefully than normal, the machine flows up - the red Metatron flakes of energy darting around in their feathery shapes - spreading out like a giant featherdeck as the amount of power being fed to the machine begins to grow.

"Warning! Data~co..~p~on det~d~" Duat attempts to warn Ascian, as his eyes begin to glaze over slightly. The female lowers her hand onto his cheek and smiles. "You heard the man. He said... not to hold anything back." Like a seductress, she plays with her own voice to draw forth some of Ascian's more primal instincts, drawing forth... 'that grin'.

"DUAT! Turn off all the safety toggles." Ascian breathes hastily as the area he sees before him begins to weaken its hold on reality. "But si~..." And suddenly, that little light that indicates the activity of the Artificial Intelligence turns off...

The activity of the A.I. that protects Ascian from the Metatron.

The activity of the A.I. that protects Ascian... from himself.

The activity of the A.I. that has left, now leaves just him... and Amenthes.

There are just...

Automated messages.

The Orbital Frame shudders. Its wings suddenly expand widely. The flow of Metatron grows thicker, faster, the pulse of the machine from its core growing. The feathers accessories at its ears flicker and begin to burn up, as the excess energy pulls away from that area, as it is recalled elsewhere.

"Shif--ng to Ve~tor Can~ode - M~ a~ a~ ark T...."

The system stutters. But Ascian cannot even hear it. What he sees before him, is himself standing amidst a wasteland. And before him, the figure of his father. He balls his fists. "You..."

Outside, the Orbital Frame arches its body backwards, sparks flying from all over its body. Its every movement seems strained. Like it was trying to break out of its own body... out of a non-existant shell that was too stubborn to break. A gigantic cannon begins to form from the armor plating just above the cockpit, made out of energy - materializing...

Connectors appear out of nowhere, linking the cannon that is elongating and forcing itself further out of the torso of the machine. The two red 'claws' that are prominent on its chest - holding up what are basically its breasts - suddenly turn around like living things and CLAW onto the cannon, connecting extra lines of energy. A fierce flow of red energy darts directly from the Metatron core through the thing.

"Eneines Connect!"

"You are to blame for everything." His voice even appears through the speakers of the machine. Who was he talking to? "You betrayed your own family." Yes, Ascian has issues. And they are serious. "You betrayed ME! My sister is gone because of YOU!" His fist tightens. To him, the monster before him, his 'father', was just merely grinning at him.

The crystalized mass behind the bitwings grows to such size that they now clearly look like /wings/. Stretching out far and wide from the unit, glowing red and yellow. It looks incredibly unstable all in all. And they are aglow so far that they truly give the effect of being on /fire/.

"Gra an- Kinenergy Cancers - FAILURE."

More sparks come from the unit. The cannon-tip begins to shine with a crimson light, purple lightning begins to crackle along the railgun as the unit flies further up into the air, aligning itself with the mouth of the unit.

"Gravit~ and Kiy Cancers - ACTIVE."

Ascian raises his fist to the air. Holding him from behind is that red woman with the wings. Those who are extremely psychically gifted might see into this madness that goes on at the moment. All within the mind of this young man - connected too deeply with his Orbital Frame.

"Inne~ Cham~sure Ri~ Ri... ~Ri~sing Normal~."

A eightsome of circular plates suddenly appear right around the half-way point of the railgun beams and begin to circle around it, slowly speeding up and forming a red electric link like lightning constantly seeking the ocean beneath - spreading this all throughout the long metalic railgun-beams towards the cannon as well as its end.

Ascian shrugs the woman off of his shoulders and begins to run towards his father. "I'LL MAKE YOU PAY!"

"Life Ri~ has sted rev~ing."

The rings flare and spin quicker and quicker, until it is impossible to tell them apart. The purple lightning between them sparks madly not just between them, but even from the unit itself. Pieces of armor plating spring loose.

"TAKE THIS!"

Ascian's grip tightens on those controllers.

"I HATE YOU!"

The ocean beneath begins to cook as the compressed space around the monster grows to a wide 'beam'. Evaporating slowly.

Ascian keeps running, until finally... he throws that punch from afar, and a white glow appears around it that follows his strike... jabbing at the figure of his father that is not truly there.

"FI~RING!

A gigantic beam fills the area, then thins right towards the maw of the beast, and flashes towards its back, trying to cut the thing open, to rip it apart with the power of Metatron - the power to compress space, and send massive quantities of unstable energy through.

Meiya completes her attack, but knows well enough to keep moving. THe Windam accelerates away as it finishes that spinning slash down the beast's back, but it can only skim over the water now that it's lost it's jet pack.

Then, there is that feeling, that oily black feeling that sends shivers down the back of her neck. Meiya is no NewType or psychic but she has spent the majority of her life training in the art of swordplay, but not just the physical aspects. Hours daily were spent under the tutalage of Saburo Guren, a former gundam fighter of Neo-Japan. Honing her body mind and spirit, to make Meiya Mitsurugi a sword herself. To judge her opponent at mere glance. It's that refinement of fighting spirit that somehow senses the raw evil ozing through this thing.

Meiya bites her lips so hard she almost draws blood as she turns the Windam around, letting it's feet dig into the surface of the water as it reaches down to the weapon storage at it's hips and grasps two fists fulls of small daggars.

"You...! There is no place in this world or any other for you!" The windam whips it's arms down and releases the payload of daggars, each one loaded with explosives to detonate after pentrating the beast's outter skin.

As soon as it surfaces again, the Great Sea Monster is beset by missiles from above and below; they may not have intended it, but Waterproof Gundam and the Valkyrie have all the same managed to successfully combine arms, to devastating efect: above, one of its eyes is punctured, spraying oil freely from the wound. Below, yet more tentacles disappear into the purifying fire of awkwardly flung torpedos.

The Gelgoog drives a hand through its other eye, but ripping something so many times larger than itself free proves difficult; it isn't even resistance on the monster's part, it's sheer physics. All the same, the mobile suit successfully blinds the beast; if it were particularly intelligent, this would perhaps even be a mercy, something to save it from seeing the flesh /below/ its eyes flensed so violently by Arius' tempestuous assault and many of its teeth breaking beneath the fury of Amazon Gundam's assault. The Windam's explosive knives fly straight through its ruined mouth right afterwards, exploding deep within its body and setting off a hellacious chain reaction. All the while, the GM II's expertly aimed beam rifle rounds expose weaknesses for the rest of the gathered warriors to exploit, well outside of the range of burning chunks of flesh.

It cannot /help/ but perceive the Night Fencer's attack, though--and were its nervous system not being overridden by Archduke Gorgon's dark influence, /now/ is surely when it would be ready to flee in the vain hopes of finding a place to recover, some place far, far away from the impossible array of pitch-black magic assaulting it from every angle.

Ironically: even if it /could/ make it to a place far, far away, it wouldn't help.

A PLACE FAR, FAR AWAY

The prideful tiger-rider - /wherever/ he is - may be safe from the Night Fencer's bloody blade, but the ancient, pseudomystical technologies linking his will to the Dragonsaurus' actions carries the Earth Spirit's soul-staining magics directly to the Archduke. He grits his sharpened teeth, clenches his massive hands; beneath him, the tiger growls, both doing their very best to remain strong beneath Lilith's magical assault.

"I will--over come this, witch, I--"

Without warning - for Lilith, that is - the connection between Dragonsaurus and Archduke Gorgon is severed, and with that gone, the link allowing the latter to communicate to those on Mars is lost, burned away.

Archduke Gorgon is treated to a bouquet of flame devouring the air before him moments before the connection breaks, though.

Archduke Gorgon will regret his show of initiative for quite some time to come.

MARS BUT THE GREEKS JUST CALLED IT 'ARES'

Lilith Argenti will be treated to the unique experience of a consciousness responsible for the deaths of countless civilizations since the universe's very beginnings setting its eyes /directly/ upon her, somewhere between amusement, disdain and abusive-fatherly disappointment.

They burn--/it/ burns, and there's no poetry in it; it doesn't burn the way ignited beam saber blazes gloriously as they clash amidst light and lightning do, nor the way a young heart ignites in the presence of a loved one. Its heat is not the heat of blood stoked to a soaring inferno when the chips are down, no.

It burns because it is fire EMPEROR in its purest, rawest expression. It burns because burning is all that is has ever done since the universe was young. It burns because when its form appears in Lilith's mind, it's clear that it's no more than fire OF without end, hunger forever unsated, destruction everlasting, eyes gazing balefully from within an unending inferno DARKNESS.

Were it not for the light of Zeus Himself, summoned from on high by the majesty of Photon Power, there's no telling how long the Spirit of Earth might be subjected to the vision from beyond; once His chariot roars through the Dragonsaurus' body - leaving naught but golden smoke and a pillar of brilliant light in His wake - however, the infernal visions retreat, offering Lilith some relief. As to the monster itself, it's difficult to tell how well it's doing, what with the light surrounding its body--and the black smoke mingling with the gold courtesy of Aerial Fortress Gool's well-timed bombing run.

Only when Amenthes unleashes the mighty Vector Cannon upon the monster do the visible emanations of Zeus' power flee its form.

Its tentacles are gone.

Its mouth - its upper half, that is - is a charred melange of pulpy tissue and ichor and oil; below the upper jaw, there's an ugly concave thanks to the Vector Cannon blowing the rest of its jaw clean away.

The fires all across its body are gone; instead, it's all weeping flesh and oozing, smoldering fat and ichor-stained oil. Its eyes are ruined, one by fist, the other by missile.

It's okay... it's okay. Calm down...

It wheezes as its body begins to sink beneath the waves, no longer able to support its own titanic weight; oil is expelled from its many, many wounds as it exhales, surrounding it in a fine, black mist.

Stop spreading oil and hurting people! We need the ocean! You need the ocean, too!

A long, long time ago, the Dragonsaurus was left on Mars as an emergency measure, a tool to test developing civilizations, a store of last-minute resources; it was a very versatile device, despite its single-minded fury.

Just - just stop burning the ocean!

Whether or not it's the only one of its kind is a mystery; there are many seas throughout the Earth Sphere. Many potential fronts of battle for the star-conquering monsters responsible for this one.

We can be friends. There are big things on Mars, big things like you! You can be their friend...

What /is/ known as the tip of the Dragonsaurus' split cranium disappears beneath the ocean's surface is that it will not rise again; Mars is safe from /this/ enormous, would-be calamity.

You can be their friend...

Aboard the Daybreaker, young Megumi will feel the briefest, barest touch of kinship and acceptance where anger once raged. And then it fades, leaving peace--/nothingness/ in its wake.

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "Damn... How does crap like this appear out of nowhere on Mars anyway?"

<Katharon - Chat> Juku Reimaru transmits, "How do weird things appear on /Earth/?"

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "I'm not drunk enough for this conversation."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "We... We appear to have succeeded."

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "Um, do we still need to kill it?"

<Global Channel> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Naturally."

<Global Channel> Tetsuya Tsurugi transmits, "Defenders of Mars, victory is ours. The planet is safe."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Nn....tsk..."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "I don't think there's anything left of it to shoot."

<Katharon - Chat> Elizabeth Liati transmits, "There's some weird stuff left out at sea-" Off-mic: sobbing. "-but Higashibara says that it'll be okay."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "Oh, it's still kickin'? Gonna have to use the big gun next time."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "If that thing shows up again, its eyes are a weakpoint. Punched right through one."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "Only drawback is now I gotta clean all this crud off my mobile suit."

<Katharon - Chat> Elizabeth Liati transmits, "No, I mean..." Off-mic: "Ester, get her back to her room, get her some food. You'll be okay, Higashibara." Sobbing fading away. "Anyway, I mean she talked to it."

<Katharon - Chat> Elizabeth Liati transmits, "It...died. But she says it wasn't angry when it went so that's...good, I think."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "...damnit."

Thermal energy dissipates from the heat sinks.

Photonic energy depletes from the capacitors.

And Mazinger Z returns to its normal state. Banged up, running on low reserves, but otherwise victorious.

LABOR: CLEAN THE MARTIAN OCEANS COMPLETE!!!

+5 to Purpose +5 to Purity +500 Experience!!

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Fire burning..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell ?

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Dr. Hell. It would be good of you to explain yourself."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Idunn, Divine Crusaders. Status report."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Who is still alive and able to fly?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Ehhh... wondering if I can lift that thing..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "My form remains stable."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "We will retrieve it at a later date."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "I'm fine and... 'stable'..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "It's g--"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "--gggh--kk"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "I saw a... visage. Fire. A primal incarnation. Fire from beyond the annals of time."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits vomiting, just, everywhere.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell mmm.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "An Emperor..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Someone clean up after her."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Someone get her a bucket..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "I see."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "I figure it may be of interest to you."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Yes. Yes, you are correct."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "It means that my timetable must be hastened."

The Great Sea Monster disappears beneath the waves as Great Mazinger rises slowly into the skies. Its eyes glow dimly- two pinpricks of light amidst the red Martian landscape. The radiance fades from its body as it lands nearby, waiting for extraction.

Tetsuya releases a long-held breath and relaxes back into his chair. There is no longer any question about it. The day is, for now, safe.

Now to sit tight until the Ark comes to fetch him from the surface. Koji may need a ride, too. Hmm.

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Earth must be dominated."

"...did it work?" Elizabeth looks down at the girl who has fallen to her knees before the ship's wheel. Higashibara stares at the floor. "...good...bye..." She looks up. "He...he said he'd be okay...and now he's /gone/..." She bursts into tears, sobbing on the floor.

Elizabeth sighs. "Ester, take her back to her room, get her some food. Higashibara..." The girl sobs more. "...you'll be okay. Really. I'll come down and talk to you later." And so Megumi Higashibara is led away crying, but has probably learned a valuable lesson and will come out of her shell a bit more.

"Man, you think you know what's on the planet..." Elizabeth sighs...and then smiles faintly. "I love it here. Always surprising me. Now let's see about dealing with this."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "I must have the resources to produce more Machine Beasts."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Marchionessa Idunn transmits, "Sh--sch--school--resource--hrrk!"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Other than the obvious... any particular reason for that?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Hmph... that goal may put us at odds at last, dear Doctor. I look forward to the challenge."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Lilith Argenti transmits, "Nonetheless, it has been amusing. I hope your ward recovers swiftly."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Then I ask you, my dear."

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "Macua?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "If you have gazed into that visage of flame and darkness - which do you prefer ruling over the human race? A man who is nearing the end of his life...or an immortal, undying titan?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Think on it in your slumber, and tell me then if we are truly at odds."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "Because the choice is coming swifter than you think."

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl breathing heavily.

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "They know..."

[ansi(m,"Heee.... haaaa... haaaa..." Ascian lets out long breathes... as he watches. His fist connected with his father's face, which looks distorted. The man is just grinning at him, even as his body begins to crack like a mirror... and then finally... shatters. Leaving the young bluehaired man screaming in anger.)]

And he snaps awake as suddenly, the haze disappears and Duat comes back online and quickly begins doing its diagnostics. The framerunner blinks, then begins to look around and tries to move forward - quickly being pulled back by the seatbelts he is strapped into. "What the... where..." He looks around.

"What was that..." Ascian asks. Duat doesn't reply. It doesn't know the answer. The Amenthes begins to stabilize, the Vector Cannon parts disappearing - or falling into the ocean like broken junk that has rusted beyond the ages.

Slowly, the young man looks outside, at the fallen beast. Then at those that were still around. "Now what...?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "In any case. Give your leader a message, Mr. Luddite, that Dr. Hell requests he keep watch over this area until I have built enough aquatic lifter beasts to bring that to the surface."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "I need to dissect that corpse. It is the most important thing in the world at this immediate moment."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Ehhh... which one? How high up do you want me to go with that?"

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "As high as has the authority to make certain that request is granted."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "There's mister Napth Pleminger. Or Amente... or commander Nohman..."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "As high as you can go, Mr. Luddite."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Dr. Hell transmits, "This is a matter of the survival of all mankind."

<Divine Crusaders (Tactical)> Ascian Luddite transmits, "Nohman it is..."

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "They?"

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "The ones who Bardos island belongs to and I assume the machine beasts of which Dr. Hell created. They know where here they know the Island has been seized by humans. That thing... I think was just... a scout. It was possessed by someone named Archduke Gorgon, it was like looking at rage in it's raw form... that the ants had stolen what was their's."

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "What"

<Katharon - Chat> Staren Wiremu transmits, "So you're saying _more_ aliens are coming."

<Katharon - Chat> Astrid Stalvern transmits, "That's fine." the noise of a bottle cork popping loose, "We'll just blast 'em back where they came from. With interest."

<Katharon - Chat> Macua Huitl transmits, "Alien? No something worse I think... something from outside."