02-09-2010, 07:44 PM
Chapter 2: Reawakened Resolve
As he and Caspian battled, it quickly became apparent to Reia that his unit held numerous advantages over his opponent’s AC. For one thing, despite its current configuration having been optimized for heavy assault, the Strike was capable of dodging Raging Torrent’s orbit cannons, Exceed Orbits and SHADE rifle with relative ease. In addition, oncoming missiles were shot down by the shoulder-mounted machine cannons before they even found their mark.
He’s probably wetting himself in his cockpit now, thought Reia with a smirk. As he expected, the main (and probably only) reason Caspian managed to rack up a kill count was thanks to the ECM units on the MTs he usually brought for backup. And since Fenris had taken care of them earlier, it would be easy for him to finish off the cocky bastard with Strike. He raised the cannon on his left arm, but –
Dammit, thought Reia as he slapped himself. I should’ve seen that one coming.
Caspian managed to blow up the cannon with a well-placed laser. Even then, though, his elation was short-lived as a fighter jet, mounting thrusters on its back as well as a beam rifle and shield on its wings, launched from the Archangel. He didn’t have time to just stare at it, either; only seconds after launching, the fighter began bombarding him with laser fire both from its main cannon as well as the mounted rifle.
“Hey, kid,” Reia started as the new voice, which he assumed was the fighter pilot, contacted him. “Discard the Launcher Pack and turn off the Phase Shift now. I’m giving you the one I’m using,” he directed, confirming Reia’s deduction in the process. Obediently he discarded the shoulder-mounted cannons and deactivated the Phase Shift armor, waiting for his new weapons to arrive.
Sure enough, as the fighter flew by, it too jettisoned the equipment it had been carrying; the back thrusters attached themselves to the Strike while the rifle and shield found their place in its rear skirt armor and left hand, respectively. With the equipment change complete, Reia reactivated the Phase Shift, in the process restoring Strike’s distinctive color scheme.
“That there’s the Aile pack,” explained the fighter pilot. “You should be able to outmaneuver that punk now!” he added as he returned to the Archangel. Filled with renewed resolve, Reia pulled out one of the Aile pack’s beam sabers as he lunged forward with a slash aimed at the torso. Caspian really did wet himself as he prepared for death…
…But instead, the saber went through his right arm, severing it at the elbow and depriving the AC of its laser rifle. Likewise the entire left arm got chopped off as well, leaving the AC entirely defenseless. Assured his opponent was no longer a threat, Reia contacted him. “Hello, Caspian,” he said pleasantly. “No need to be scared – I just wanted to talk.”
“I won’t kill you here,” this he added with a smile that turned into a chuckle as his defeated opponent’s jaw dropped. “I want you to tell the Alliance this: they’d better not get any ideas about capturing the Archangel for themselves.” He could hear the conviction in his voice as he stated his warning. “If they insist on trying, we won’t go down without a fight.”
“Can you tell them that?” he asked as he finished, giving a satisfied smile as Caspian nodded. “Good…” nodded Reia as he took the beam rifle and shot both of the AC’s legs, adding insult to injury. His work done, he returned to the Archangel, which had taken flight in the meantime. The overhead shutters opened as the warship launched, allowing the sun to come shining in. A moment later, it literally disappeared into thin air.
Reia then got out of the Strike’s cockpit, only to find both a brown-haired woman and a tall, blond man in a purple pilot suit – most likely the fighter pilot – waiting for him, both with smiles on their faces. As they got a look at his face, though, their smiles turned into expressions of shock; the woman rushed forward and hugged him tightly, like a mother being reunited with her child. Reia broke away from her and tilted his head in puzzlement, waiting for the two to say something as they walked to the bridge.
Finally, when they had gotten there several awkward moments later, the fighter pilot spoke. “Y’know kid, I’m not surprised you fight like that suit’s original owner,” he noted offhandedly, referring to the unit Reia piloted earlier.”You not only fight like him, you look like him, too! Isn’t that right, Murrue?” he asked her as he put an arm around her.
“Yeah,” nodded Murrue in assent. “You look exactly like our Kira,” she agreed, smiling fondly as her eyes turned misty. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were him…” she added as her eyes welled with tears, trailing away as the fighter pilot hugged her. Reia’s eyes were on him now; he had one very good guess as to who he was. “If she’s Murrue,” he said slowly, “Then that would mean you’re –“
“I guess you’ve heard of us then, kid,” the other pilot smiled jovially as he spread his arms wide. “Yeah, Mu La Flaga here, very nice to meet you. Now, then,” Mu’s tone suddenly became businesslike, “Mind telling us what year this is? The Archangel woke us up when you came over to visit.”
Reia told them everything he knew: how the surface world had been destroyed by the colony drop, forcing humans to live underground under the thumb of a ruthless, despotic AI as well as greedy, amoral corporate executives. How the surface eventually became livable again as the corporations took their power struggle to the next level. He told them about Jack-O’s declaration of war, and how he had joined up with the Alliance. Finally, he told them about how he had been sent here to confirm the Archangel’s presence, and that Caspian had apparently been sent to kill him. As he spoke, Murrue’s brow furrowed.
“So Kira and the others couldn’t stop it, then…” she noted sadly. “And now those corporations you were mentioning want the Archangel for themselves?” She gave Mu a bitter smile as she spoke once more. “We’ve been awakened to fight another war?”
“Take it easy,” Mu told her in his most reassuring bedside voice. “If that kid’s heard of us, I suppose he also knows better than to ask us that.” He looked directly at Reia now. “So, kid, what are you planning?”
“I’ve read about you guys,” Reia admitted, smiling, “You managed to end both Bloody Valentine Wars, right?” The couple nodded their confirmation, not that he needed it. After a short pause, Reia continued:
“Maybe we could stop this war, too. I’d have simply hijacked the Archangel,” he admitted, “But having the both of you around is even better – you guys have a reputation. I can’t be the only Raven who’s tired of this pointless fighting, and I’m damned sure some of my fellows feel the same way. What do you guys think?” he asked when he finished.
The two thought about it for a moment before Mu nodded slowly, a small smile on his face. “Assuming you’re not lying, you’re more like Kira than I thought,” he noted, smiling. “Well… Alright, kid,” he agreed, “But if it turns out you are lying after all,” he warned. “I’ll –“
“Of course,” smiled Reia as he unzipped the jacket he was wearing; now that the fight was over, he could finally get a bit of rest. “Mind showing me to my room?” He asked both of them.
Meanwhile, at Alliance’s Tartus Headquarters, the footage of Caspian’s humiliating defeat at the hands of Reia and the Strike was being reviewed in a small, dark conference room. When the TV screen flickered off as the video ended, the dark-haired man closest to it, Evangel, looked at Caspian – whose face was still buried in his hands in his embarrassment – with an expression of mingled embarrassment and disappointment.
“Being beaten by an old fossil, that was humiliating,” noted Evangel tonelessly; all who were present laughed at this. “But after the way you’ve been boasting out of your ass, you probably deserved that.”
“Well, sir,” Caspian retorted, his brilliant blue eyes filled with resentment at the laugh they just had at his expense. “I doubt you could’ve done better. You’ve seen the video, you know his unit was… - gah!” he punched the table in frustration as the younger man beside him – Jouster, another of Alliance’s Ravens and probably his closest friend among them – tried to calm him down. Given how much of an advantage Reia’s commandeered unit had over his AC, he had been lucky to come out alive.
“And you’ve seen how that thing moved, that didn’t seem like a fossil to me!” Caspian added defiantly. But to his surprise, Evangel gave a gentle, understanding smile.
“I know that,” he admitted. “I never said you were sloppy, only that you deserved it. Well, look on the bright side!” he suddenly brightened, looking at his fellow Ravens and subordinates. “At least we know who’s not coming back anytime soon… And what we’re up against. When the time comes, we’ll bury that ship for good. What do you guys think?”
All but one of the Ravens present yelled their assent at this. The only one who didn’t, a young man with untidy, coffee-brown hair, gave a snort of disgust. This was all too typical of Evangel.
The Archangel, huh…? Guess I might have to file my resignation soon.
After all, some Ravens only joined factions for the money, right?
tbc
As he and Caspian battled, it quickly became apparent to Reia that his unit held numerous advantages over his opponent’s AC. For one thing, despite its current configuration having been optimized for heavy assault, the Strike was capable of dodging Raging Torrent’s orbit cannons, Exceed Orbits and SHADE rifle with relative ease. In addition, oncoming missiles were shot down by the shoulder-mounted machine cannons before they even found their mark.
He’s probably wetting himself in his cockpit now, thought Reia with a smirk. As he expected, the main (and probably only) reason Caspian managed to rack up a kill count was thanks to the ECM units on the MTs he usually brought for backup. And since Fenris had taken care of them earlier, it would be easy for him to finish off the cocky bastard with Strike. He raised the cannon on his left arm, but –
Dammit, thought Reia as he slapped himself. I should’ve seen that one coming.
Caspian managed to blow up the cannon with a well-placed laser. Even then, though, his elation was short-lived as a fighter jet, mounting thrusters on its back as well as a beam rifle and shield on its wings, launched from the Archangel. He didn’t have time to just stare at it, either; only seconds after launching, the fighter began bombarding him with laser fire both from its main cannon as well as the mounted rifle.
“Hey, kid,” Reia started as the new voice, which he assumed was the fighter pilot, contacted him. “Discard the Launcher Pack and turn off the Phase Shift now. I’m giving you the one I’m using,” he directed, confirming Reia’s deduction in the process. Obediently he discarded the shoulder-mounted cannons and deactivated the Phase Shift armor, waiting for his new weapons to arrive.
Sure enough, as the fighter flew by, it too jettisoned the equipment it had been carrying; the back thrusters attached themselves to the Strike while the rifle and shield found their place in its rear skirt armor and left hand, respectively. With the equipment change complete, Reia reactivated the Phase Shift, in the process restoring Strike’s distinctive color scheme.
“That there’s the Aile pack,” explained the fighter pilot. “You should be able to outmaneuver that punk now!” he added as he returned to the Archangel. Filled with renewed resolve, Reia pulled out one of the Aile pack’s beam sabers as he lunged forward with a slash aimed at the torso. Caspian really did wet himself as he prepared for death…
…But instead, the saber went through his right arm, severing it at the elbow and depriving the AC of its laser rifle. Likewise the entire left arm got chopped off as well, leaving the AC entirely defenseless. Assured his opponent was no longer a threat, Reia contacted him. “Hello, Caspian,” he said pleasantly. “No need to be scared – I just wanted to talk.”
“I won’t kill you here,” this he added with a smile that turned into a chuckle as his defeated opponent’s jaw dropped. “I want you to tell the Alliance this: they’d better not get any ideas about capturing the Archangel for themselves.” He could hear the conviction in his voice as he stated his warning. “If they insist on trying, we won’t go down without a fight.”
“Can you tell them that?” he asked as he finished, giving a satisfied smile as Caspian nodded. “Good…” nodded Reia as he took the beam rifle and shot both of the AC’s legs, adding insult to injury. His work done, he returned to the Archangel, which had taken flight in the meantime. The overhead shutters opened as the warship launched, allowing the sun to come shining in. A moment later, it literally disappeared into thin air.
Reia then got out of the Strike’s cockpit, only to find both a brown-haired woman and a tall, blond man in a purple pilot suit – most likely the fighter pilot – waiting for him, both with smiles on their faces. As they got a look at his face, though, their smiles turned into expressions of shock; the woman rushed forward and hugged him tightly, like a mother being reunited with her child. Reia broke away from her and tilted his head in puzzlement, waiting for the two to say something as they walked to the bridge.
Finally, when they had gotten there several awkward moments later, the fighter pilot spoke. “Y’know kid, I’m not surprised you fight like that suit’s original owner,” he noted offhandedly, referring to the unit Reia piloted earlier.”You not only fight like him, you look like him, too! Isn’t that right, Murrue?” he asked her as he put an arm around her.
“Yeah,” nodded Murrue in assent. “You look exactly like our Kira,” she agreed, smiling fondly as her eyes turned misty. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were him…” she added as her eyes welled with tears, trailing away as the fighter pilot hugged her. Reia’s eyes were on him now; he had one very good guess as to who he was. “If she’s Murrue,” he said slowly, “Then that would mean you’re –“
“I guess you’ve heard of us then, kid,” the other pilot smiled jovially as he spread his arms wide. “Yeah, Mu La Flaga here, very nice to meet you. Now, then,” Mu’s tone suddenly became businesslike, “Mind telling us what year this is? The Archangel woke us up when you came over to visit.”
Reia told them everything he knew: how the surface world had been destroyed by the colony drop, forcing humans to live underground under the thumb of a ruthless, despotic AI as well as greedy, amoral corporate executives. How the surface eventually became livable again as the corporations took their power struggle to the next level. He told them about Jack-O’s declaration of war, and how he had joined up with the Alliance. Finally, he told them about how he had been sent here to confirm the Archangel’s presence, and that Caspian had apparently been sent to kill him. As he spoke, Murrue’s brow furrowed.
“So Kira and the others couldn’t stop it, then…” she noted sadly. “And now those corporations you were mentioning want the Archangel for themselves?” She gave Mu a bitter smile as she spoke once more. “We’ve been awakened to fight another war?”
“Take it easy,” Mu told her in his most reassuring bedside voice. “If that kid’s heard of us, I suppose he also knows better than to ask us that.” He looked directly at Reia now. “So, kid, what are you planning?”
“I’ve read about you guys,” Reia admitted, smiling, “You managed to end both Bloody Valentine Wars, right?” The couple nodded their confirmation, not that he needed it. After a short pause, Reia continued:
“Maybe we could stop this war, too. I’d have simply hijacked the Archangel,” he admitted, “But having the both of you around is even better – you guys have a reputation. I can’t be the only Raven who’s tired of this pointless fighting, and I’m damned sure some of my fellows feel the same way. What do you guys think?” he asked when he finished.
The two thought about it for a moment before Mu nodded slowly, a small smile on his face. “Assuming you’re not lying, you’re more like Kira than I thought,” he noted, smiling. “Well… Alright, kid,” he agreed, “But if it turns out you are lying after all,” he warned. “I’ll –“
“Of course,” smiled Reia as he unzipped the jacket he was wearing; now that the fight was over, he could finally get a bit of rest. “Mind showing me to my room?” He asked both of them.
Meanwhile, at Alliance’s Tartus Headquarters, the footage of Caspian’s humiliating defeat at the hands of Reia and the Strike was being reviewed in a small, dark conference room. When the TV screen flickered off as the video ended, the dark-haired man closest to it, Evangel, looked at Caspian – whose face was still buried in his hands in his embarrassment – with an expression of mingled embarrassment and disappointment.
“Being beaten by an old fossil, that was humiliating,” noted Evangel tonelessly; all who were present laughed at this. “But after the way you’ve been boasting out of your ass, you probably deserved that.”
“Well, sir,” Caspian retorted, his brilliant blue eyes filled with resentment at the laugh they just had at his expense. “I doubt you could’ve done better. You’ve seen the video, you know his unit was… - gah!” he punched the table in frustration as the younger man beside him – Jouster, another of Alliance’s Ravens and probably his closest friend among them – tried to calm him down. Given how much of an advantage Reia’s commandeered unit had over his AC, he had been lucky to come out alive.
“And you’ve seen how that thing moved, that didn’t seem like a fossil to me!” Caspian added defiantly. But to his surprise, Evangel gave a gentle, understanding smile.
“I know that,” he admitted. “I never said you were sloppy, only that you deserved it. Well, look on the bright side!” he suddenly brightened, looking at his fellow Ravens and subordinates. “At least we know who’s not coming back anytime soon… And what we’re up against. When the time comes, we’ll bury that ship for good. What do you guys think?”
All but one of the Ravens present yelled their assent at this. The only one who didn’t, a young man with untidy, coffee-brown hair, gave a snort of disgust. This was all too typical of Evangel.
The Archangel, huh…? Guess I might have to file my resignation soon.
After all, some Ravens only joined factions for the money, right?
tbc
