TARRRPG: Chapter 23: Gründe [Earth]

[Omega]

(I'll just assume Aile returned to the Excalibur then)
-Excalibur-

"Everyone's on board..." The COM Officer said. Luna nodded in response. "Good, turn around and make headway for the Andes Base as fast as possible."

The wounded ship quickly departed then for it's destination.

-Lucia Kamiya-

"Sure thing." Lucia then went over to a part of the hangar where she could remove her Striker Unit in peace.

-Rena Lanford-

Slowly the light died down, indicating that Stellar had been healed...

"Miss Stellar... Please wake up..." Rena then moved her hand to the girl's shoulder and began to gently shake her in the hopes of waking her.

[Sume Gai]

Sume Gai

Gai wearing his full armor and carrying the large Blue blade climbed nimbly out of the Armorlion. The person he met there was Zaine. The boy's eyes said he had an answer, a reason.

"So Zaine have you made your choice?"

[Omega]

-Zaine Kamiya/Lucia Kamiya-

"Yeah I have... I'll do it... i'll help you save her..." Zaine said with renewed resolve in his voice... it was clear that any trace of doubt was no longer present in the boy's mind.

Lucia, curious as to what they were talking about, had left her Striker Unit where she landed and walked over to where Gai and her brother were talking... Zaine noticed her heading towards them rather sheepishly, and blushing and turned to smile at the embarrassed girl. "If I had lost Lucia... I would've likely asked for a formal discharge... and had given up on Tallis completely..."

[Sume Gai]

Sume Gai

Gai nodded approvingly at Zaine's answer.

"I will be counting on you but for now..." Gai glanced over at Lucia "I think you two are due for some catching up. If you'll excuse me I have to handle some other business."

Hefting the massive, blue, crystalline sword with one hand, Gai turned in place and took off at a run. He hadn't told Zaine but Gai knew. He knew that deep inside the DC's home fortress there was still fighting going on. The closest place was the barracks and it was there Gai would head first.

-Midori Ashita-

returning from where she'd held off the Federation pair Midori encountered two gaurlions carrying a third machine rather carelessly.

"hey you two! what are you doing that pilot might need medical attention."

The pair shifted their load to show Midori the rather gruesome wound.

"Hate to say it miss but I doubt anyone survi-"

"IDIOTS!" Midori knew who the 009's Pilot was she knew what he was. "Get him down to the research division NOW! He might still be alive!"

with that the two Gaurlions stiffen and headed, double-time, for one the area Kit had landed earlier.

[SNT1]

--Duskraiders--

And one by one, the crew of the ship retreat safely into the hangars of the distant Fafnir. The last to withdraw was Taylor as the ship, undamaged and silent in the battle, made its course towards Japan once again. Several things were achieved---destruction of a few Gundams in the enemy's hands, another closer look at what the SNRI is cooking up, namely the nature of these SPARTAN units, and a message to the DC that they were in fact not forgotten.

As Taylor, the last to get off her mobile suit, walked away, she took one more glance at the Blackhawk. "Kit..." She mutters on as she walks away thinking about the AI being the wildcard in her ship right now.

Meanwhile, Slug and Johann were reviewing the events. Johann says, "So, where did half of them go?"

"Beats me, I was ready to blast away at the remaining hangars too before Taylor called time," Slug says, both obviously unaware of the DC vs Fandom side of the battle.

While both were chilling at the lounge, Taylor passes right by them and goes straight into the nearest computer to do the report. They can also hear Rachel talking about the SPARTAN units, which will be reported in private to Santi.

[sephiroth00055]

Sol Badguy

After returning to the Fafnir and securing his Hyperion Sol disembarked onto the hangar floor, with a sigh. "Didn't do so hot this time either." He said as he looked back to his Hyperion. "But, we did a good deal better. We managed to take on two enemies at once, a big jump from our last battle. If I run into that guy again he is so dead."

He took a moment and surveyed the other gundams. Their pilots, almost all gone into the ship. Except for the......What was it called? Sol walked towards the strange transforming mech that used GN particles. "I wonder what they call this thing? And for that matter who is it's pilot?" He asked aloud seeing if the pilot was still there.

[Strike Zero]

- Gabriel -

Gabriel ran a hand through his hair. "Final round. Let's make it a show."

Five knives appeared in each of his hands. Gabriel spun once then launched them all. The would each travel in different directions, but they would all eventually redirect themselves at the various vital points on Morpheus' body.

- Diablous -

Diablous was no slug. Despite his great size, he had more often than not displayed feats of physical agility that would give Gabriel a run for his money. So it should have been a simple task to avoid Maya's grabs at his arm and leg and move on to his next counterattack. However, this simply did not come to pass. Before he could snatch his limbs out of the way, Maya moved with astounding quickness and managed to ensnare him. Then, before Diablous could do anything else, the young woman brought the monstrous man up, then back down, smashing his back down onto the woman's extended knee. Despite his armor and hardened muscles, despite everything, a loud CRACK could be heard as at least a portion of Diablous' spine was snapped by the tremendous impact.

For a while, the monster simply lay there, limp.

Then Diablous roared, jerked, and pushed himself free from Maya's grip, flipping into the air and landing heavily back down on the ground once again.

To say the least, it was quite apparent that Diablous' body was a physical marvel. Not only was he resistant to damage, he was also quite resistant even to serious injury once it was inflicted. Pain was a non-factor to him, and movement was still quite possible even with a broken spine so long as the nervous system was not affected (and thanks to a variety of physical augmentation applied to Diablous' body over the course of his life, it wasn't). It was an inhuman endurance along with his strength that attributed to his deadliness as a fighter, and even now Diablous was quite capable of continuing the battle.

However, it was at this point that he was starting to become aware in an unusual slowness in his reaction time. No matter how fast Maya was, he should have been able to keep up with her. Yet he couldn't, which indicated that something was indeed very wrong, and it was likely due to the part played by Kirie Morgan. Though his attacks were basic in nature, there was indeed something very unusual about the fighter's presence itself. It was likely that Diablous had taken more damage than he had surmised from Kirie's powerful attacks earlier in the battle, and the slight difference it made in his performance was likely to be a deciding factor against an opponent as dangerous as Maya Nightwizard. That coupled with the fact that Diablous was faced with yet another opponent that seemed to be emanating a different, but just as powerful type of strength, and Diablous was starting to face the possibility that he might, for the first time ever, lose a fight.

Which was inexcusable.

In the event that defeat was imminent, it had been made clear to Diablous by the Nova Prince that retreat as opposed to death was preferable. However, his overpowering bloodlust prevented him from listening to reason just yet. Thus, Diablous prepared himself for one final round. He stomped into the ground once, twice, let out yet another monstrous roar, and charged. As he neared Maya, his arms began flaying in a series of deadly blows aimed at the vital points on the ex-SPARTAN's body, such as the neck, hips and abdomen.

- Hanzo -

"Hmph." Hanzo scoffed at his fallen, smoldering opponent. As previously surmised... it had been far to easy.

"It is as I said. You are strong, Masamune Date. You would not have survived otherwise. But you are still not strong enough to challenge my own strength. Now all that awaits you... is death."

He was about to start forward and finish the wounded man, silencing him with a quic stroke of his blade. However, a timely intervention kept him from doing so. First, there was a tiny pattering of footsteps. The next moment, Elya dashed out in between the two combatants and stopped dead center, facing Hanzo and holding her arms out at her sides as if to shield him from the Reaper.

Hanzo appeared mildly amused if nothing else. "Oh? And what is this?"

"S-Stay away from him!" Elya shouted, trying to keep her voice steady but not quite succeeding. Despite Masamune's order, she had followed the two up here curiosity getting the better of her, and the sight of Masamune being enveloped by fire and on the brink of death had been more than enough to fill her with terror. All things considered, it was a miracle in itself that she had found the nerve to run out into the middle of the fight of all things.

"What do you believe you can accomplish, Elya Aizen?" Hanzo demanded. "Stand aside. There will be no pleasure to be had in cutting you down."

Elya lowered her head.

"I...w-wont..."

Hanzo tilted his head upward. "What was that? Speak up, won't you?"

A pause. Then, Elya's gaze snapped up, a fierce fire in her eyes.

"I w-won't!" she exploded.

Hanzo huff'd.

"Tenreppu Zenshou -- Flurry!"

Hanzo swung with both his swords and a vacuum erupted outward. However, at the last second, the Reaper twisted his blades and the vacuum distorted, scattering into a series of smaller vacuum blades. Elya's eyes widened as the wave encompassed her, and she screamed as the weaker blades raked at her body. Her uniform was split open in several places. Two of the vacuums glanced off the bindings that held up her hair, causing it to flay then fall. Finally, the force of the wave flung her backward onto the ground. She bounced and landed on the cold floor on her stomach. There was no serious injury, but it had certainly been enough to rattle her.

"You see? What can you possibly hope to accomplish? To protect, with such insignificant strength?" Hanzo took a pair of steps forward, lowering his blades again at his sides. "There is no place on the battlefield for the likes of you, nor your useless sentiments towards your comrade. Stay your place, and all that awaits you is a swift and pointless death."

Elya was breathing hard. Her body and the edges of her magenta hair were tattered, and it seemed unlikely that she would rise again. Perhaps it was for the best. If she remained where she was it was likely that Hanzo would simply ignore her, more concerned with finishing his "worthy opponent". And if her spirit were at all weak, if she had no strength as Hanzo insisted, she would have likely taken no further action.

However... Hanzo, and perhaps even Masamune, had underestimated her. Perhaps the old Elya who fought simply for the sake of proving herself would have faltered in the face of certain death. But the new Elya... this new Elya that now risked everything by attempting to stop Hanzo... had something else to fight for now. And it was something that she was willing to give whatever it took in order to protect it.

Slowly, shakily, Elya pushed herself off the ground. Slowly, she got to her knees, then back to her feet. And slowly, she spread her arms outward again in defiance of Hanzo.

"I'm not... leaving..." she panted. She looked up and gazed squarely at the armored Reaper, her determination not having been squelched in the least. "Masamune... is... my most important person.... and I..."

She took a deep breath, then shouted with all her might:

"I'm not letting you hurt him anymore!"

For a long moment, the Reaper was silent. Then he sighed. "It seems I've misjudged your spirit, young one. But in the end it still amounts to nothing." Hanzo started forward towards Elya until he towered over the young girl. "If it is truly what you wish... then die where you stand."

With a smooth motion, Hanzo rose his katana high. With another, he brought the weapon down at Elya's head so fast that it became nothing but a shimmering blur.

Elya, meanwhile, let out a quiet whimper, squeezed her eyes closed, and waited for the cold, inevitable brush of death...

[Kylern]

-Natalia-

Her Guarlion custom was picked up and Natalia was cut out of it unconscience and losing blood. Her machine was a wreck and left on the beach after they got to the pilot out. She was hurried to the infirmary before it became to late to save her.

-Ryder/ Kylern-

The Messiah hovered into the hangar using its Gerwalk mode and grabbed a large piece of debris that a crew was having trouble moving. But as he lifted and pushed it out of the way something caught his attention... There was an individual down there with red hair that didn't give off a signal like the other people.

"A Ghost? I didn't know DC had an individual like that..." Ryder was instantly going back to his fight with Wraith who had shown similar abilities. But this figure wasn't menacing like the Fandom DSK he had fought with several times.

Kylern also took notice as he stared up at the machine looking at him. Even through the tinted windows he knew exactly who was piloting and gave a quick smile to let the Lt. Commander he knew he was being watched. Once the trap was laid Kylern quit what he was doing and excused himself. Then casting another quick glance he headed further into the base.

"What the hell?" Curiousity gripped him as the fighter jockey opened his cockpit and chased after the strange individual. "Hey kid wait up!" There was something odd about that stranger's presence that felt familiar even if muted. Almost like they had met before...

[Zangetsu]

-Zangetsu-

After Lucia left he turned and walked toward the remaining Federation pesonel. "You guys might wanna get outta here. The Federation is already retreating and more DC troops will be here shortly. Don't worry I'll watch after Stellar." He said as he sat down next to Stellar. 'Hopefully someone will come by. I can't get myself to the imfirmary much less her.'

[Cybaster]

-Morpheus-

My belief is my strength.

At that moment, as the knives swirled and began gaining in speed, Morpheus knew what was coming --- and suddenly crossed his arms slowly in front of his chest as his entire body began crouching further forward, head bowed, letting the knives surround him. His eyes did not even deign to look at either the developing maelstrom around him *or* Gabriel; It was as if, at that moment, neither of those were significant to Morpheus at all, nor was any fear felt for the impending confrontation.

To fight an opponent is not merely to conquer an enemy; It is a test of my belief against his, to combat his ideal as well.

As Morpheus kept crouching, an odd breeze began blowing around the two combatants, swirling, spinning...and, soon it would become obvious, gathering around Morpheus. His entire form began to shudder as the wind gathered and howled about him; A small, cackling ball of blue light began emitting in the air, between Morpheus' chest and his forearms, illuminating Morpheus' body, and the ball of light began growing in brightness, in intensity.

Belief is everything. Belief can even the odds in the face of difficulties, can make strong a weak person. And those with only the materialistic can only see what they want to see.

And then the ball grew as Morpheus' entire body seemed to illuminate this light, the gathering energy intensifying towards a peak...

And with that belief in heart...

...And Morpheus began floating in the air.

...I win.

Then Gabriel's knives all flew at Morpheus from every direction, and that was exactly what Morpheus was waiting for --- As the energy converging around his chest finally reached its maximum, Morpheus jerked backwards, flinging his arm outwards, and unfurled violently; The blue light exploded with a cackle of lightning at that, and with a resounding BOOM that rang throughout the chamber an intense pulse of psychic energy erupted from Morpheus' form and exploded all around him, blue light blasting outwards in a bright, arcing sphere of power. The burst of power crashed into the knives all thrown at Morpheus around him and promptly blasted them away, deflecting them in all directions, and lashed out subsequently towards Gabriel in turn.

"And thus, the finale."

In a split second, the light began to fade, and Morpheus looked up as his form began floating back towards the ground, the floor beneath him cracked and blasted by the burst of energy --- and suddenly his right arm flickered forward, pointing a curled finger towards the Dark Star Reaper, as his arm still pulsed with blue ki energy in flashes; Before either of them could say anything, Morpheus flicked his index finger outwards with a burst of blue ring-like light, sending a small ki-infused rock --- what Morpheus had picked up from the ground earlier --- flying with lethal, bullet-like speed straight towards Gabriel's heart.

-Maya and Emily-

Legend has it that a young Sparta boy once stole a live fox, planning to kill it and eat it. He noticed some Spartan soldiers approaching, and hid the fox beneath his shirt. When confronted, to avoid the punishment he would receive if caught stealing, he allowed the fox to chew into his stomach rather than confess he had stolen a fox, and did not allow his face or body to express his pain...

It seemed today that Diablous would be that fox --- and Maya was conditioned likewise not to give it the satisfaction of making her flinch or retreat. As Diablous closed in with a monstrous roar that made Emily wince (and simply caused Maya to stare), Maya started forward as well and meet Diablous midway; The first claw towards her neck was parried by a swipe of Maya's left arm, which twirled around towards the underside, grasped it, and lead the claw to be pinned underneath Maya's left arm, but as Diablous' other claw began swiping at Maya's hips, abdomen, and other places in a frenzy, Maya simply held Diablous there, knowing her primary objective was to keep Diablous' primary weapon from firing again, and punched out with her other arm in counter repeatedly, meeting Diablous' blows pound-for-pound. Diablous' blows drew blood as it began splattering over Maya's normal suit in places, but even then Maya did not flinch or even seem to react in pain; She kept punching at Diablous' head, chest, shoulder and leg joints, anything to neutralize the threat in front of her.

Then as Diablous made another blow at her heart, Maya parried with her right arm punching out underneath the claw, heaved, and attempted to toss Diablous into the air and behind her --- which would be when, with her own cry, Emily moved:

"Kniiiiiiiiiiiiiiife Eyyyyyyyyyyyyye Attaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!"

With that, Emily leapt into the air and spun her body downwards into a blazing fast somersault with purple Lightsaber drawn, turning herself into a deathly fast, purple-lit buzzsaw of energy that flew right at the thrown Diablous...

-Masamune-

It didn't take a strategist to figure out that Masamune was as good as dead. Unable to recover and pick himself up in time, Masamune could only kneel and pant heavily, looking up as Hanzo approached with swords drawn to finish him off. One blow would be all Hanzo needed; It was over, and there was nothing Masamune could do to turn the tide in his favor --- not in the nick of time. It was over; Masamune could only stare, not even dignifying Hanzo's words with an answer, and wait for what would come...when suddenly Elya's form moving in front of Masamune caused the boy to snap forward and widen his eye in both chagrin and shock.

Masamune wanted to yell for Elya to get out of the way, but wracked in pain, Masamune's words escaped him. What was Elya doing...?

Hanzo suddenly lashed out at Elya before Masamune could react, bashing her away with a series of taunting blows...and as Masamune started up only to be held back down at that, growling angrily as he suddenly felt an intense worry in his chest for the girl, he could only stare with his eye with a narrowed, frantic look, trying to tell Elya to clear out of the way --- to no avail, as Elya moved back in front of Masamune, and both the physical pain in his body warred with the mental pain in his heart as he realized full well what was happening. Elya was trying to save him from Hanzo --- even at the cost of her life, and Masamune's entire body ran cold at the realization.

In Masamune's eye, fleeting images flooded his mind. He saw Ishikawa and Lune's picture in the briefing room in Osaka, Ishikawa destroying Masamune's honor; He saw himself, willingly losing himself to brutality in the Efreet Custom to the Epyon System; He saw Berith wounding Strike, taking Xiu hostage, and Kirie doing all the work while Masamune was stuck in the rear; He saw Xiu making a final charge against Elya, and Masamune unable to do anything to change things as the Sisquiede flew next to her. He saw Xiu die in the Shenlong, everyone gathering around her body in a growing rainstorm.

He saw himself screwing up --- as he screwed up here. Again.

Suddenly, as Elya retorted to Hanzo's taunting, her words gave Masamune pause --- and he felt an inner fire of some sort blaze in his heart. He did not know why. He did not know why Elya's words touched him so, and made his physical pain suddenly vanish; He was still here, and Elya was still alive. He hadn't screwed up --- yet. And as Masamune stared at Elya, blinking, he felt something else --- reminiscence, and a reminder of why Masamune was fighting in the first place. Why Masamune was even here, and why he stood firm when lesser men would flee from Hanzo by now...as Masamune would stand firm to the end. As he reminisced, time seemed to almost stop around Masamune...

Those guys are what I fight for! Xiu exclaimed that day. That's what I've decided. I'm worth nothing compared to them, but they mean everything to me, and I refuse to let them die!

A sword is a sword --- it is only deadly when in someone's hands, Kirie told him once. When a sword is swung, it is lethal and cuts flesh and bone; After a sword is swung, it is as much a useless hunk of metal as a bar of iron. It relies on the next swing to make it into a weapon again --- but during the latter half of the swing, that is when a sword is most vulnerable...

Then as Masamune blinked and his vision returned to reality --- Hanzo struck, and before Masamune could think...he moved forward with every ounce of strength he had.

"---You will *not* lay a finger on Elya as long as I live!!!"

With an exceptional burst of speed that seemed even faster than before, Masamune --- his eye still a blank-looking green color --- suddenly shot forward and his left hand pushed at Elya's arm with a hard motion, shoving her right...and out of the way of Hanzo's finishing blow as the deathly fast blade now came at Masamune instead, towards his chest to cut him into two halves. Masamune, however, spun with his push, spinning towards his and Hanzo's right; As the blade landed, Masamune sidespun to Hanzo's right side, the blade cutting through the shoulder armor and grazing Masamune's left upper arm, shoulder, and then the back --- and in that moment, as Hanzo was in mid-swing, Masamune saw his chance and gripped his Saber with both hands in mid-twirl---

"Katori Shinto-ryu --- Ichi no Tachi!!!"

Then, Masamune spun, facing Hanzo in that smooth blur of motion, and slashed upwards from Hanzo's right side with a spinning leap in a single, deathly fast blow as Hanzo's sword arm passed Masamune, Masamune's eye glaring and his entire body erupting in a green glow as he struck --- along with the blow, the Saber in Masamune's hands lit up with a very familiar bright fire as well, adding to the force of the strike; Having absorbed and 'stolen' the flames from Hanzo's earlier Musou Attack into his own body, Masamune had decided to let them out, let all of his determination and will to protect and fight out in a single attack...

[Omega]

-Zaine Kamiya/Lucia Kamiya-

Zaine nodded in response and turned to his sister, who was about to ask Gai something but had departed. "Hm? What's up sis?" Zaine asked. "I... was just curious about something... or rather, someone... brother, could you tell me what you know about this Tallis girl? I'd like to know more about my brtoher's girlfriend, and first love..."

Zaine's expression changed to one of surprise. "U-um... How did you--" Lucia cut him off. "Find out about her? this guy named Zangetsu told me about her... and what effect her kidnapping had on you... she wouldn't have hit that hard unless she was your first love... am I right?" Zaine simply lowered his head in resignation. "I was hoping to find the chance to introduce you to her myself... but I'll tell you what I know."

Zaine then began to fill Lucia in on what he knew of Tallis... "If you want to know more about her, you'll have to ask Gai." Lucia simply nodded in response. "I will when he's not busy." Zaine then took his sister's hand.

Zaine: "Come on, i'll give you a tour of the ship."
Lucia: "O-okay..."
Zaine: "Once we've taken care of that, we'll catch up on what we've been up to over these ten years we haven't seen each other."

Lucia simply nodded as she let Zaine guide her out of the hangar.

[Kylern]

-Kylern/ Ryder-

The younger man turned slightly as Ryder ran up to him and smiled. "Sergeant Kylern of the Ceres Team. You must be the famous Lt. Commander Ryder. I guess your unit was devastated if your ship fell to Earth in that condition." It was only slightly taunting... but he knew Ryder wasn't a hot head.

"Comes with the fact we're outnumbered and outgunned. But I'm surprised you know who I am since I've been in space for the longest time." Ryder was slightly amused but also skeptical. Despite not getting a real read off this fellow there was a familiar feeling, almost like a syphoning.

"Well word gets around when your finally added to the Gundam team. So now that your here what do you plan to do?" Kylern didn't want to keep this conversation going. Despite knowing this man intimately there was also an unpleasant emotion associated with Ryder. Kylern had wanted this man to die for awhile now...

"Not sure... Old Man Zoldark hasn't given me any new orders and I'm sure your current ranking pilot mister wannabe Night Chaser would prefer me not being around." Ryder tipped his head and headed off to check up on the Salvation which had just came into dock looking pretty bad.

[Sume Gai]

Sume Gai

"Kniiiiiiiiiiiiiiife Eyyyyyyyyyyyyye Attaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!"


With a Grinding noise Gai, In full Armor, rounded the Corner and froze. For but a moment his face bore an expression of utter surprise at the sight of Emily Whiling through the air with a Purple Lightsaber. He took the briefest moment to register 'Who gave her That?' before He redoubled his grip on the heavy will edge and began dashing towards the fight, Intent on doing whatever he could.

-Midori Ashita-

as the Gaurlion pilots sat the 009 down as gently as possible the MP-X quickly moved forward.

"Go get someone, anyone, and tell them the 009 Pilot needs immediate attention."

the Pilots complied without a word climbing out of their machines and rushing into the base frantically searching for someone. Midori meanwhile reached for and, as gently as the MP-X could, pulled the Knife out of the 009's Cockpit. Once that was done Midori Climbed out of the MP-X and rushed to the 009's cockpit. Luckily the Knife had left the Opening mechanisms unharmed and with the press of a button the hatch moved...

[Strike Zero]

- Diablous -

The immense pressure wave that seemed to emanate through the air was more than enough to tip off Diablous to Emily's incoming attack, even as he was thrown headlong into the air. Reaching around with his neck, he was able to catch a glimpse of the young girl who had essentially turned herself into a buzzsaw of energy. Against her unusual weapon, it was uncertain at all of whether or not Diablous' armor and body would he able to hold. Most probably, the pulsating energy would simply burn through his flesh and rend him apart.

Which was something the monster was simply not going to allow to happen.

Diablous pushed off of the ground as he smashed into it, propelling him immediately into a jump that would carry him away from Emily. However, it would not carry him far enough away in time, he noticed, and he quickly twisted his body, bringing his armored left arm into the roaring lightsaber's path. His limb met the weapon, and there was a flash and a brief sound of a jolt as Diablous' arm jerked and he was knocked backwards from the impact. He landed, his claws grinding across the hallway floor and held his arm up to examine the damage.

The lightsaber had not cleaved completely through, but it had certainly cut. Straight through the armor and about an inch and a half into Diablous' flesh. The wound was not bleeding having been cauterized, but the response Diablous got when he tried to flex his hand was negligible. Without one of his key weapons and in the face of these two deadly opponents, Diablous finally decided to break off his assault. He let out one last roar at the two young women, then leaped with great force off of the ground at the ceiling, swinging upward with his one good arm and breaking straight through the metal. He landed in the corridor above and sprinted away, towards the hanger where Gabriel had made his own entry.

- Hanzo -

What?!

Masamune moved with such speed... where had he gotten this sort power? And after being badly injured no less. There was almost no time for Hanzo to react and dodge the vicious blow. He managed to avoid some damage... but not all of it, for he had begun moving far too late. Heat raked at his side as Masamune's fiery blade sliced into the edge of his bodysuit, searing and cutting his flesh simultaneously. The pain was excruciating... but Hanzo remained stoic as he finished his leap and landed several meters away from Masamune and Elya.

He stared hard at Masamune for several moments. Then, he nodded in approval.

"That's it, Masamune. That is the level of power I have been waiting to see. With that strength you may have a chance at granting me my ultimate battle. However... I sense that you've yet a long way to go before that time comes." He glanced down at his side. "And it seems that I too will no longer be able to bring my full strength to bear. As such... I concede this match."

He jabbed his long sword directly at Masamune's forehead.

"But know that this is not the end. You would do best to prepare yourself for the next time that we meet. Until then... Daimiyo of Aizu."

He whirled about and unleashed one final Tenreppu Zenshou at nearby wall, blowing it apart with tremendous force. With quickening speed, he dashed for the opening and disappeared out of sight, making headway for his way out of the base.

Elya, meanwhile, looked on at the scene from where she had landed on the floor. She was at a complete loss for words, stunned at the incredible display Masamune had just put on in front of her.

- Gabriel -

Everything became a blur. Gabriel reared back and produced more knives in front of him as Morpheus began to unleash the energy attack. For a split second, they held in a flower-like circular pattern. The next, they seemingly dissolved into a large disc of crimson light. The energy wave came and was stopped by the disc, but Gabriel was still blown backwards by the residual force of the attack, thrown off balance. As such, he was only able to catch a glimpse of the speeding rock Morpheus launched at him before it plunge deep into his chest, piercing his heart.

Gabriel gasped violently and he staggered even further backwards. His back arched and he gazed straight up the ceiling. From there, he didn't move for several moments. Then, he grinned yet again.

"Tee hee..."

He slowly rose back up and stood straight. His posture was not as erect as before and blood painted the left side of his chest, but Gabriel was obviously still very much alive despite the wound that should have been fatal. As a matter of fact, his eyes seemed to have become even more alight with joy than they had been before, glowing even against his pale skin.

"Not good enough, Morpheus. Not nearly. Come at me... come kill me again! Show me the power that will finally...!"

His voice trailed off and his gaze became distant. He glanced off over to the side as if trying to discern something that wasn't there.

"Hm...? What's this? Don't tell me Hanzo and Diablous are finished...?"

His head dropped and he let out a wistful sigh.

"Oh dear... I suppose that means I have to depart as well..."

He looked at Morpheus. "I'm afraid our time is up, it seems. Thank you, Morpheus, for the wonderful time." He offered the dark man a deep bow. "I do hope we will have a chance to have fun again in the future. Perhaps your little apprentice will be able to join in the fun as well? We could have a regular ménage à trois..."

There was a pausse. Then, from his lowered position, Gabriel leaped, high towards the ceiling, were he melded and seemingly disappeared into the shadows above.

- Rosy / Lily -

Things were happening too fast. First came Lucia's announcement that she wasn't coming back with them. Lucia had gone then, before Rosy could object or even reply. Then at long last they finished healing he wounds on the blonde girl. By his point, Rosy was flat out exhausted. She hadn't ever worked on anybody with wounds so severe before and the job had taken its toll.

Stellar stirred and her eyes fluttered open. She gazed dully up at the ceiling before awareness snapped back and she sat bolt upright with a gasp, only to clutch painfully at her chest with both hands.

"Easy!" Rosy exclaimed. "Your healed, but don't push yourself. I don't think we fixed everything quite perfectly."

Stellar gazed at Rosy, then at Lily, Rena, and back at Rosy. "You all saved me...?"

Rosy hesitated, then nodded. Stellar stared out of amazement at the girl before smiling warmly. "Thank you... thank you very much."

The young brunette rubbed the back of he head sheepishly. "Aw... it was nothin'--"

There was a dull thunk to her right and Rosy looked just in time to see Rena collapse down onto the ground. Lily stood over her, a pistol in her hand, waiting to see if the elf-eared girl would move. She didn't. Quickly, the pale-haired girl leveled her sidearm at Stellar. "Don't move," she ordered quietly but firmly, addressing Stellar and Zangetsu who stood nearby. Judging from the wounds the man bore all over his body, he didn't pose much of a threat should he needed to be dealt with.

Rosy gaped at her partner for several long moments before scrambling to her feet. "Lils! Wh-what did you...?!"

"Our mission," Lily replied simply. "She would not come with us willingly."

There was no arguing that. "Yeah, I know, but..." Rosy started uncertainly. "You didn't have to hit her. I mean, we could have tried talking to her first--"

"Our forces are already pulling out. We need to retreat as promptly as possible."

That was indeed true. A quick glance revealed no Federation units in the sky above Aidoneus. The battle was over. If they didn't leave now, they'd likely become the prisoners. Still, Rosy couldn't bring herself to feel good about underhandedly knocking Rena out like that, even if it was for the sake of their mission.

"Yeah... your right..." she started around for the unconscious Rena and shrugged apologetically at an appropriately shocked Stellar. "Sorry 'bout this. But, it's our orders so..."

"What the hell is going on here?!"

The loud shout caused Rosy to jump and turn to see a tall man with messy brown hair approaching the group quickly.

"Stellar... you're alright?" Strike questioned, noting her renewed condition. "What happened? Who are these girls--?"

Lily pointed her pistol in Strike's direction. "Stay where you are."

Strike froze. He certainly didn't need to be told twice, nor be told that these girls weren't their allies. However, as he raised his hands in the air, he couldn't help but experience a sense of recognition as he studied the two witches. He frowned. "Do I know you two from somewhere...?"

The entire scene was interrupted by a soft chuckle from somewhere behind Strike. He glanced over his shoulder and promptly turned right around upon seeing Gabriel approaching them, Lily's order momentarily forgotten. He drew his own pistol and leveled it at the Reaper. He didn't know what Rosy and Lily were about, but he certainly knew who the most dangerous person in the room probably was right about now.

Gabriel's lips parted as he studied the scene. "I see your still alive, Stellar. Wonderful... we'll get a chance to play with each other again."

"I don't think so," Strike retorted lowly, even as Stellar reacted with considerable chagrin. "I don't care if you're immortal or whatever... you're not going any farther."

"I beg to differ," came a new, metallic voice. Strike looked and frowned at the sight of a man in full samurai armor approaching from Gabriel's left side. The pit of his stomach quickly dropped as he realized that this was another of the Dark Star Reapers. Then there was a loud roar from the opposite side. The armored Diablous dropped down from the ceiling and landed on the floor at Gabriel's right.

Strike broke into a sweat. "Uh-oh..."

Gabriel chuckled again. "Relax yourself... we were just on our way out. But, don't think we'll hesitate to remove you if you decide to block our path." He held both his hand up and to the side and clapped twice. Immediately the air was filled a rush of engines, and Gabriel's Jagd Doga appeared in the hanger entrance, still on its portable flier. This generated varied reactions from the group below. Rosy cried out in surprise. Lily looked, but didn't change here expression much at all. Stellar tensed, and Strike could be seen simply mouthing the words 'oh crap' as he gazed at the devilish behemoth.

"Now..." Gabriel said, extending a hand. "I would suggest you move yourselves out of the way."

Diablous roared and popped open his chest armor, charging his Phase cannon. Hanzo drew his swords and pulled then both back, readying a mighty swing. An immense pressure, meanwhile, began building around Gabriel's form, distorting the air around him.

Strike's eyes widened and his jaw fell slack. "OH SHI-!"

There was barely any time to register the Reapers unleashing their attack simultaneously. Strike lunged and pushed both Zangetsu and Stellar out of the way. Lily did the same for Rosy, who cried out loudly. The next instant, a blast equivalent in force to about dozen grenades went off in the previously occupied pace, throwing everybody with the concussion and generating a huge plume of dust smoke. The din that resulted was incredible, echoing high off the hanger ceiling and walls.

Gabriel chuckled again, satisfied. "Well, boys? Shall we depart?"

Hanzo hmph'd. "Just make sure your flying is steady."

Both Hanzo and Diablous took two steps forward then leaped all the way up into the Jagd Doga's outstretched hands. With their mobile suits destroyed, it was up to Gabriel to deliver them away from the battlefield in one piece. He himself was about to make the jump to the cockpit when he spotted something out of the corner of his eye.

"Hm...?"

There was somebody, seemingly a young girl, lying next to the newly-formed crater in the ground, covered in dust. Gabriel strode over to her and rolled her over.

His eyes widened. "Oh..."

It was Rena, still laying unconscious. It could only be dumb luck that she hadn't been caught in the blast, otherwise things would have been very messy. Gabriel gazed down at her form with rapt fixation. For some reason, Gabriel found that he didn't want to take his eyes off her. He reached out and tenderly brushed her cheek with his finger. He reached out again. He ran his fingers through her soft hair.

His voice was barely above a whisper.

"So... beautiful..."

Indeed, Rena was one of the most beautiful young girls Gabriel had ever laid eyes on. Her delicate features... her sapphire hair... Even her unusual pointed ears only served to enhance her charm. Sleeping here, even knocked unconscious, she looked to he Reaper like a lovely nymph, or even an angel down from the heavens.

A moment's deliberation was all it took. Then swiftly, smoothly, Gabriel scooped the young girl up into his arms.

***
"Oh... my head..."

The entire world was spinning. That was the first observation Strike made as he came to and stood, barely able to keep his balance. But he quickly forced himself to shake it off, dropping on one knee to check on Stellar and Zangetsu. Luckily, they appeared uninjured. Or, at least, not any more injured than they already were.

"Hey? You okay?" he asked, shaking Stellar. The young blonde moaned and looked up at Strike before nodding.

Strike sighed with relief and quickly looked around, checking for any sign of the Reapers. They were nowhere to be seen, and neither was that freak's Jagd Doga. They were long gone. Strike noted was probably the first good thing to have happened all day.

"What about them?" Strike wondered, looking over to where the witches had leaped. They too seemed to be alright as they had already stood and were seemingly looking for something.

"Damn..." he muttered, shaking his head. "I gotta admit... those guys were something else."

Stellar nodded and began looking at the damage their last attack had done, a look of weariness tainting her features. As she surveyed the area, however, she suddenly frowned, her eyes becoming alert.

"Strike... where's Rena?"

The young man looked. "Rena? She was here?"

Stellar nodded. "Yes... she and those two healed me after I was injured."

Strike looked around and frowned. Indeed, there was no sign of Rena. A pang of worry hit him when he considered that she might have been hit by the blast, but he realized that that couldn't be since there would be some charred remains if she had, gruesome as that thought was...

That was when a terrible thought struck him.

"No..." Strike's voice wavered. He took two steps out towards the exit. "Don't tell me that she was..."

Stellar looked worriedly at Strike. Then the same though seemed to hit her too and she appeared horrified.

There could have been other explanations as to why Rena wasn't here. Many others. It didn't have to be that she'd been kidnapped. But if that's what had happened...

Strike's hand squeezed into a fist.

"That... bastard..." he seethed to nobody in particular.

- Gabriel -

At the helm of the Jagd Doga's controls, the pale Reaper was humming to himself, for he was in an exceptionally good mood. While he had only succeeded in killing a few nameless fodder during his time on the island, he had undoubtedly had a good time during his fight with Morheus. And what's more, he had not left empty handed...

He looked down at the still-sleeping Rena cradled in his lap. He reached over and gently stroked the side of her face once again.

"Don't worry, my precious angel," Gabriel whispered as if singing a lullaby. "I'm going to take special care of you..."

[Zangetsu]

-Zangetsu-

After Strike had pushed him away from the blast he barely managed to get himself to suit up again. "This has been one hell of a day." He said as he propped himself up. Then Strike and Stellar couldn't find Rena. "DAMN!" Zangetsu yelled. "She was right here and now she.... DAMN IT! Who are those bastards?"


-Norman-

Seeing Gabriel's Jagd Doga rise into the air, Norman followed him. "I trust you all had fun?" he asked seeing both Hanzo and Diablos as well. He really didn't care, but asked none the less. "At least my mission was acomplished."

[Kylern]

-Goldsburg-

"Oh? Interesting..." Was all that he could say as a certain someone came to his neck of the woods for help. Well Alex and Kylern were his patients at one time and with data already on this cyborg it seemed they wanted him to fix him up.

"I'll take good care of this man." The order was then given to have Alex moved to a secure location so they could work on him safely.

-Kylern-

Oblivious to everything that had happened while he was out of the fight Kylern was supervising the Belphagor's transport back into its hangar spot. His buddy had taken a pretty serious hit and it would take time to repair it to full ability. The only bright side to that was the valuable combat data GUILTY had gathered on those guys he had fought. So while the technicians worked on the body Kylern popped out the data disk with the OS software and went to study.

[Omega]

-Rena Lanford-

When Gabriel ran his hand over her face, Rena shuddered slightly, still unconscious, and fully unaware of what fate had in store for her...

-Zaine Kamiya/Lucia Kamiya-

After a bit, Lucia noticed Zaine was worried about something...

"Let's go back to the hangar... the tour can wait." Lucia said. Zaine nodded in response. "Yeah..." The two quickly made their way back to the hangar, where Zaine left Lucia waiting by the Exia.

He quickly made his way into the base, and found Strike and Stellar with a seriously injured Zangetsu. "Shouldn't you be in the hospital wing, Zangetsu?" He then turned to Strike and Stellar.

"What happened here?"

[Cybaster]

-Morpheus and Kirie-

Morpheus simply stared with an impassive, analytical look as Gabriel staggered from the blow --- even though by all means a normal person would've fallen to it --- then suddenly call the battle off, leap up, and disappear into the shadows. Landing onto his feet, Morpheus turned and walked over to where his overcoat lay and shook his head; The Dark Star Reapers were indeed something unnatural, and Elya's fear of them earlier was certainly not unwarranted. Morpheus frowned. If these were merely subordinates, then how inhuman was the Nova Prince himself...and could the Light Warriors contend with that kind of power? This meant that the next he and any of the Reapers met --- because Morpheus was quite certain there *will* be a next time --- Morpheus would have to use that forbidden technique against Gabriel, one which his Mistress forbade him to use unless in the utmost emergency...

With a swift upwards kick, Morpheus conjured a breeze of wind that kicked up his overcoat from the ground, into the air, and in front of him, which Morpheus grabbed with his right arm and stylishly slung over his shoulder. As he turned around to move further into the base, however, the sight of a familiar figure wearing a red cloak dashed in a blur up to him, and stopped next to Morpheus' left flank as Morpheus' head turned back to stare at him with a nod; Kirie Morgan's look in his eyes belied a dire urgency as he straightened himself.

"The lower barracks, sir, it's under attack," Kirie quickly said, narrowing his eyes. "It's June. Someone's gone after her and Emily..."

That was all that needed to be said as Morpheus turned sharply and dashed towards the barracks, with Kirie following in his own dash shortly afterwards.

-Masamune-

Only when Hanzo had fully faded from his sight, through that hole in the wall, did Masamune finally allow himself to relax and lower his Saber --- and as he felt the last of the energy he stole from Hanzo dissipate from his body with the Ichi no Tachi, Masamune felt his nerves ache weakly and his entire body slumped a little. He's done it --- Masamune didn't know how, but he managed to defeat an opponent that had every advantage against him earlier, even though the cost had been high and Masamune was badly wounded by an attack that should've killed him. As he looked back towards Elya, Masamune smiled a little; Sure, he hadn't actually beaten Hanzo...but that he was able to protect Elya, someone that had deemed Masamune her most important person and who Masamune had resolved to protect even if it kills him, from something like that had to count for something, at least, and Masamune even felt a little proud that he managed to pull it off.

He hadn't screwed up again.

But as Masamune turned around and staggered a step towards Elya, then another, to see if she was injured, Masamune's lack of energy finally gave way --- and the former Daimyo of Aizu fell violently to his knees and pitched forward, sneering weakly. It was only Masamune stabbing his Saber into the ground and leaning onto it with both hands that prevented him from collapsing entirely; As he looked up, he glanced with a worried, concerned gaze towards Elya with his green-pupiled eye --- which was now back to its normal look.

Masamune was no longer in SEED Mode.

"Elya, y-you..." Masamune began, but as he looked at Elya, his pride momentarily overrode his mouth --- and his gaze turned disdainful for a brief moment. "I...imbecile, I told you to lock yourself down in the ICU and stay there no matter w-what happened! Why did you...you could've gotten yourself killed! I would...you..." Then Masamune slapped his forehead, shook his head, and sighed. "...N-nevermind, Elya. Are you alright? Are you hurt badly?"

-Emily and Maya-

"Threat level Zero. Hostile contact withdrawn; No other hostile targets detected within vicinity." Maya reported, straightening herself professionally --- even as she bled at multiple places from where Diablous had clawed at her, her normal suit becoming stained with red at places --- and standing next to Emily stoically after Diablous had blasted his own way out, and saluted the girl who only o_o'd at her as she shut off her purple Lightsaber and clipped it back onto her waist --- Emily still couldn't believe that Maya was Black Mage in any way at all, and the Roleplayer Knight was scratching her head with a confused look and a sweatdrop on her head. If Maya noticed it, she didn't say anything about it at all. "Teammate identified as 'Emily Stormgunner' has been secured and reported intact --- Unit now standing by and awaiting further orders."

Emily looked up and sighed wistfully at that --- whoever that other Munchkin with the double-ended Lightsaber was, she took June and, in the end, completely overwhelmed both Emily and Martin. While everyone was winning their battles up there, Emily failed her task; Worse, Camilla wanted Emily to be exchanged for June's safety, and there was nothing Emily could do to stop her. What could be done now?

Eyeing Martin, Emily shook her head and turned back to Maya, blinking. "Ummmm um...follow me for now and help Martin up...yeah, I guess."

"Affirmative."

"Don't...you think you should get that looked at, by the way?" Emily o_O'd, pointing at Maya's various wounds. Maya didn't respond to them at all.

"Negative. Unit is still at 84% combat efficiency."

"Okay then." As Maya nodded, Emily turned and walked back towards Martin with a wistful look; While Emily knelt down next to Martin and picked up Morpheus' Lightsaber, Maya obliged and helped Martin to his feet. "Um, Maya, do you have a pistol on you?"

"Negative, Mistress Emily."

Now Emily really o_o'd; She wasn't expecting Maya to be this formal with her. Heck, Emily never expected anyone to be formal with her at all. "Just call me Emily."

"Negative. Unit cannot comply with contradictory---"

"Um um um...that's, uh...an order?" Emily shrugged, and --- being conditioned thus --- Maya nodded.

"Order acknowledged. Mistress Emily will hereby be acknowledged as 'Emily'."

"Sweet. And oh well," Emily shrugged, and tried to force a smile back onto her face as she looked up again, and then back at Martin. "I always wanted to fire a gun into the air while yelling 'Aaaaaaaaargh' for some reason, but meh, maybe another time. You okay, Martin?"

[Sume Gai]

Martin Snow/Sume Gai

Martin had failed. It was all nearly the same as before. He had been so overwhelmed that the fight after Camilia's retreat hadn't even registered to him. The only things that ran through his mind were images of June sharing the same fate as -her-.

When Emily came over to him she would likely notice his right hand was bruised and bloody from where he'd pounded it against the steel floor in frustration. His eyes lacked focus and he didn't even respond when Maya helped him up nor when Emily spoke to him.

Gai Meanwhile had slowed to a slower pace as the Monster escaped finally taking in the whole scene. There was Emily whom he'd heard before he even reached them and another girl- 'something... Wizard' he thought- along with a limp looking man about Gai's age.

"Emily? are you alright?" as Gai finally stepped within a few metters he spoke with concern.

[Zangetsu]

-Zangetsu-

He looked up as someone had said his name. "Ah Zaine, and Lucia. Me in the hospital? Nah!" He said as he stood up. "I-I've never b-been better.." He said before he fell back to the ground. "Okay, maybe I'm not one hundred percent yet." Zangetsu said as he propted himself up aginst something again. "As for what happened, best save that for another time. I could only tell you what I know. Stellar got healed by Rena, plus two feddies, I had a nice converstion with Lucia, then the feddies went on about a mission, and finally three hugh freaks came out of nowhere and ran off as quick as the came."