Super Robot Wars: Calamitous Dawn

[sir_fire]

April 1st, 0010
P.A Thalerhof airbase, outskirts of Styria, Austria
2200 hours
10°C | 50°F Weather: Light Clouds, New Moon.

By this time, the base was now shutting its lights off for the night shift. Where once there was the hustle and bustle of military personnel and trainees, there was now an eerie vacancy to the hallways and grounds, with the sounds of distant footsteps scattering across the empty aisles and hallways and heading off towards the barracks and sleeping quarters. Save a few of those luckless soldiers assigned for the night watch, ready for yet another night of absolutely nothing exciting happening.

Meanwhile at the Hotel...

After getting the lecturing of a lifetime along with thinly veiled threats of getting his pay docked if Stella decides to follow through on her threats of writing him up, Bob and Shinkai were staying at their own room as it would be awkward and ungentlemanly for men like them to sleep with a lady like Stella. Getting ready for a good night's sleep, the co-workers decide on some last-minute small talk as they lay on their beds before its lights out.

"Stella is just like a teacher I had back in grade school... Talks as much too."

"I think you got off pretty lightly considering everything you've done to her the moment you two met."

"By your standards Asian schoolboy. Parents threatening to not feed you for not getting straight A's wasn't part of my childhood."

Shinkai however didn't see the humor in Bob's anecdote.

"Don't go there Greggs."

"Oh... Right... Sorry for bringing that up..."

"Don't be sorry, be better."

"Sure, sure..."

"Stella did have a point you know. You being tactless and speaking before you think."

"Don't tell me you listened in to that?"

Shinkai scoffs in good humor.

"Every moment, I've actually been waiting for something like that to happen for quite some time."

"Oh screw you Ikki! Go buy your own damn candy tomorrow!"

Then, like a pouting child, Bob turns on his bed; showing his back to Shinkai.

"It's Shinkai now Bob."

"Nobody's listening but us Blackie."

"Heh, so you have been reading that Japanese language handbook I gave you."

"Might as well get some use out of it... Anyway, eyelids getting heavy, be seeing you tomorrow Ikki."

"Right, goodnight Bob."

Ikki then shuts the lights off and goes to bed. But Bob has one last thing to say, his voice echoing in the pitch-black room.

"So no kiss goodnight?"

"Just go to sleep already..."

April 2nd, 0010
P.A Thalerhof airbase, outskirts of Styria, Austria
0200 hours
8°C | 46.5°F Weather: Clear, New Moon.

During their shift, a security guard taking care of the camera booth watches over the footage with an utterly bored and sleepy expression. He leaned back on his char heavily, with legs raised to place his feet on top of the console without pressing any buttons on accident or staining a monitor. His teeth munched down on a half-eaten muffin held on his right hand as he reached over to his radio and paged one of his fellow night watchers.

"Report.”

"Nothing happening, over."

"Good, how bout the rest of the guys?"

"They all said the same thing. But then, what is there to find in yet another night like this?"

"Fair. But goddammit, I forgot to watch the football game today. Who won? Pustertal Wolfe or the Steinbach Back Wings?"

"Man, I've no idea. I didn't even get to watch. The Drill Sergeant made us do extra because some jackass snuck some itching powder down his pants. Nobody knows who it was."

"Damn..."

"But my guess is on the game is Wolfe. Because good ol' Joachim has been scoring like a beast the entire week."

"Meh, just to be sure. You think Bubi has seen the game?"

"No idea either."

"I think I’ll ask him just that and he’s 5 minutes late with his sitrep too."

The guard in the security room attempts to page a different nightwatch on his radio.

"Hey Bubi, come in."

He waited... And waited... And waited... Twenty seconds later, he received no response.

"Bubi? What the hell are you doing? Sgt. Alexei is gonna chew your ass out if he finds out you've been napping again! Bubi…? Josef!"

“Is Bubi alright man?”

“He won’t be once the sarge hears of this, go and find that shorty. If he lost his radio or someshit be sure to deck that midget real good.”

“Gott im himmel…”

The guard then went towards Bubi’s last known location, on his patrol route on the southwestern perimeter of the airbase. Lighting up the darkened area with his jeep’s headlights, he tried looking for any sign of the vertically-challenged trooper, but had his efforts frustrated by finding no trace of his comrade even after some rather exhaustive searching. Getting desperate, the guard instead calls out.

“Ok Bubi you can come out now! No use in hiding since the sarge will find out anyway!”

No response. But then out on the corner of his vision, he sees a twinkle in the shaded foliage, leading to something out of place… A discarded knife hanging from a bush. Getting off the jeep, the guard moves closer to investigate.

“Oh come on really Bubi?! You dropped your knife along with your radio, how clumsy can you be?!”

But again, there was no response. Which in turn caused the guard to grow somewhat distressed.

"That's how it's gonna be? Fine then."

Twisting the ignition key to kill the engine, the guard ditches the jeep, an action he could only hope to be temporary. Equipped with his trusty personal flashlight, he sets off to locate Bubi on foot.

There wasn't much to walk before the searching guard finds a lead. A sizeable splotch of fresh blood splattered across the grass. He gasped into the radio, audibly so to the guard on the other side.

"... Holy shit, man... Is that... Is that blood...?"

"Did you just say blood?

"Yeah, I'm moving in to investigate..."

"Careful out there man..."

The camera guy sets aside what was left of his muffin onto the side of the security console, taking a deep breath to compose himself and adopting a demeanor of alertness, leaning forward to keep his eyes peeled into the set of screens in the booth, looking for any discrepancy in the footage, no matter how minor. His attention was intense... In fact, way too intense, way too narrow to notice the doorknob leading into the security room twisting in silence as the door slowly swings open just enough for an arm to slip through, and plant a tiny electronic device of indeterminate function the size of a coin onto the wall.

From that small yet visible trace of blood, an ominous trail was to be followed, marked by further drops of the sanguine liquid staining the grass. All leading into... A thick bush right up ahead. His arms reached out, rummaging through the leaves. After three seconds, there it was. The dead body of Bubi tips over from inside the foliage like a sack of potatoes. It was mangled into a horrifying state by some sort of bladed weapon, his uniform was nearly unrecognizable from the amount of fresh blood that tainted the fabric.

The poor man's eyes widen. On a moment of panic and sickness upon laying his eyes on the dead body of his friend, his mind freezes. And he didn't notice the shadow stealthily surfacing and towering from behind him.

"H-Holy shi-"

It was the only thing he could mutter. And did not even get to finish: The stealthy assailant's hands suddenly snap forward, grabbing into the back of the guard's skull and the front of the jaw. The sickening crunch that followed was quick and another body collapses.

Afterward, the shadowy form picks up the dead guard's radio and began to speak into it.

"Well… Turns out the blood belonged to somebody's cat, fucking Bubi shot it thinking it was an enemy and he's been trying to hide the corpse someplace. By the way, he's with me and he's coming up with a storm of shitty excuses on how and why he just killed someone's pet."

The shadow spoke with the same voice as the guard it had just killed. Not only that, it perfectly emulated the accent, enunciation and further completed the deception using an irreverent and utterly disappointed tone.

"Oh for fuck's sake... Just bring his ass over here before he makes things worse."

"Yeah sure, just let us find a plastic bag or something for the corpse. I ain't gonna be touching that shit with my bare hands."

The shadow ends the call and then makes another one, this time through some sort of head-mounted comms device and with its real voice: Cold and raspy, like a blade of ice.

"Sentries on quadrant Libeccio silenced and their panopticon has been veiled."

Keep the vomitorium open for the performers Gungnir 9.

"Copy."

And there went all of his hopes for a peaceful and uneventful night. The guard leans back on his chair, resting his eyes for a moment to think about what to do with Bubi’s mess. With a sigh, he changed the frequency to his radio, possibly to notify someone to prepare some paperwork to be filed next morning.

"... Hello?"

But his radio was not working. No matter how he tried. It caused him to clench his fists and slam them against the arms of his chair in utter frustration, as he slowly starts to rise up.

"God fucking dammit! Does nothing work in this base anymo-"

He was ready to march for the exit door, to personally pitch in a report for faulty equipment. But instead, he runs into what seems to be nothing at all, confused and utterly shocked, the guard could barely get a word out before his breath hitches in his throat as a carbon-black blade suddenly appeared out of thin air and plunged straight into his chest. His uniform rapidly staining red with his lifeblood, the guard weakly gurgles as something grabs hold of his mouth, his cheeks deforming as impressions of fingers were made upon them, the invisible assailant then plunges the blade deeper and twists, quickly and silently killing the guard.

Before the body could collapse, it was caught and was gently laid down into the bloodstained floor as his murderer locks the door behind as it walks over the corpse and assumes the guard’s seat before materializing into view; revealing itself to be reptilian in shape, complete with a tail and clad in white and black set of high-tech armor that showed no skin and bore a vague resemblance to an insect’s carapace. Pushing a button on where its ear would be, the infiltrator informs its comrades of its deed.

“Gungnir 4 here, I am now seated in the panopticon and have eyes on the audience and the mimic. Security is well within parameters."

This is Gungnir 1, acknowledged. Gungnir team, let’s make our entrance.

 

[Zerototaleffort]

The Aura Road yet again. It didn't look the same as he remembered, though his first fall-through had been so long ago. Though this time he was seeing it not through his own eyes but through the eyes of Dunbine. He didn't even remember how it had happened. He had been under the impression that this sort of thing only happened one way. That unless it was opened from Byston Well the Aura Road could not be traveled.

His stomach twisted and turned in the same way as the winding corridors of the vertical portal. Despite everything he tried, he could not move his Aura Battler. It was like the Aura Road was cutting off the controls of his bio-mechanical weapon. He covered his mouth. An attempt to stem the flow of vomit threatening to burst free at any moment. And before he knew it, he was now somewhere new, falling from high above. The Dunbine's wings glittered to life. The golden shimmering wings, much like the wings of an insect, fluttered daintily, somehow propelling the lavender Aura battler. Its head whipped to and fro, trying to identify its surroundings.

It looked like he was above some sort of complex. Like something straight out of a movie, a kind of military base. Perhaps he had really come to Earth, or rather, returned to Earth. The thought filled him with a sense of elation. Or perhaps, was it anxiety? It had been so long since he had been home. Four years going by the calendar of Byston Well. He wasn't sure how long it could have been in Earth years.

Nevertheless he worked to control the freefall. With his hands on the controls, he exerted his Aura, and the insectoid mecha came thundering down, though at far slower speeds than previously. Adjusting the trajectory of his fall he had twisted and maneuvered until he landed in an open courtyard. Dunbine skidded down in the dirt. Its taloned feet ripped through the soft grass and earth grinding it to a halt as soil kicked up around it. The elegant bio-machine was now coated in mud, speckled with brown.

He sat quietly, awaiting the crowd of soldiers he knew his arrival would bring. That is, if his hunch was right, and this was some kind of military establishment.

 

[Ironboi13]

The Wing Freedom Gundam hovered high in the air of the night sky.

David Sullivan's masked eyes gazed as far as the Gundam's camera could see...Where that was, was beyond him. Instantly, David knew he was on Earth...But everything felt wrong, the air was different somehow...

Chasing the dreaded pirate Hans, and just when David was so close to grabbing the pirate...They'd been swept up in a flash of light, and thusly, Hans had gotten away, again, and worse, he'd somehow been...Teleported? Things were dubious enough, teleportation was definitely not something possible with modern science...Furthermore, Hans was no longer on the radar...Either this was yet another one of Hans's "daring escapes," or he was separated from David as they were warped.

He had to take things as they came...Hans was still out there, and David had to find him.

The Wing Freedom then turned to see a military base...Which was it? Zodiac? Or Union?

David began to scout the area, switching to thermal sensors...He had a surefire solution, but it was best not to come to it unless things were dire.

He still had some respect for the rule he had.

 

[Cavaliere]

The screeches of pain, dismay, and rage of the daemons pounded against the minds of the two pilots as they snuffed out the creatures, their forms either burning away into nothingness in the face of Kazuki's napalm bath or scattering into the aether as clouds of multicolored dots from being crushed by the Null's limbs. As painfully loud as their screams were, killing the hellspawn rewarded the pair with silence and being unmolested as they made their way towards salvation.

At the last leg of their run, however, there was one more obstacle to greet them, waiting at the entrance of the engine bays: A cloud of gigantic flies the size of pigeons and pestilence that swiftly rusted and decayed metal by mere touch if the severe discoloration of the surrounding area was any indication. The swarm didn't advance, but rather acted as a living barrier to keep the pair trapped in the enginarium for the rest of their friends to kill. And they were coming in fast if the returning voices and their steadily growing loudness was any indication...

Suddenly, there was a sharp keening noise followed by the horrible groaning of metal, by now familiar sound to Kazuki and Liam, and an auxiliary coolant tank suddenly fell right in front of the pair and burst open like a soda can; once again splashing their machines with freezing liquid, but the tank was too small and contained too little coolant to truly threaten their machines. The same cannot be said of the swarm or the disease cloud, where the mist and ice froze the infested insects and purified the pestilence with sheer cold.

"Over here Knights!"



Looking towards where the voice came from, the two would be met with the junior Magos waving at them from a ruined catwalk a few hundred yards away and with a pile of scrap parts shaped like javelins propped up on the handrail right beside him. He looked like he was getting ready to jump, likely in anticipation of landing on the waiting hands of either of the pair's machines; but then a humanoid shadow materialized behind him and ran him through with a rusted sword dripping with bile. To the Magos' credit, he didn't just keel over and die; instead, grabbing one of the scrap javelins next to him to swing towards his assailant, shattering its head and causing the rest of its decrepit body to evaporate into a greenish mist as the Magos now allowed the pain to register in his mechanical body and sunk to one knee.

But the creature was not alone, for a lanky, red-skinned demon soon came charging out of the darkness, its cloven hooves shaking the catwalk with every step before throwing itself into a jumping strike with its flaming sword in an attempt to cleave the Magos in twain, who only barely manages to avoid its murder-strike by using his scrap spear as a distraction before wrestling with the thing with both his arms and the mechanical tentacles extending from his back as it tried to get its sword unstuck from the catwalk and throwing it off, roaring in anger as it fell to its doom.

Unfortunately for the Magos, he didn't even have any time to collect himself as one of the highly feminine lust demons that Liam grew to hate pounced on him while he was distracted, mounting over his chest in a manner both predatory and sensual as it tried to cut his heart out with its razor-sharp claws, the cyborg fought back with all his sadly fading strength, flaying the succubus with his tentacles and trying to push its claws away with his hands, which only served to encourage the fiend to try harder, letting out moans of arousal in the process. Turning towards the horrified pair watching him die to such a depraved creature, the Magos screams at the top of his iron lungs.

"GO! LEAVE! I HAVE MADE MY PEACE!"

William Liam Tinmall
<<<Ø>>>
For a few, terrible seconds, Liam stared at the Magus and the demon on top of him, unable to ignore the screams of the Magus and the cries of the demons... riding on him like it was some kind of perverse game.
This wasn't right, no one could simply say that he made his peace as he was being used and killed.
And yet Liam could do nothing: no weapon he had could deal with the monsters without getting the red-robbed man as well, and he he didn't have time to rush towards the horde and get him out, as he would just die first.

So he did what he could.
Adjusting the controll sticks, he pushed the pedal with a wordless cry.

And he ran.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

With the radios offline, nobody could hear the scientist cammiserate himself, the litany of apologies to a man that he never met, but abandoned just the same.
A coward, a pretend soldier, good for nothing.
He ignited the arfterburners as more demons tried to take hold, the tears in his eyes not hindering him at all.

 

[sir_fire]

@Mazin Kiryu @TrickOLF

Night at the Thalerhof airbase appears to be... Contradictive, to say the very least. Back when the night was still young, and the day beckoned closer into sleeping hours, the base operated with the utmost tranquility. There was no concern whatsoever, only the monotony of the standard security operations of base personnel.

Yet the late night and the early morning preparing to precede the rise of the sun felt gloomier than what was to be expected. A foreboding atmosphere lingered in the air, gnawing on the subconscious part of one's mind, stimulating the long-buried and atrophied animal instinct that something is about to happen, something terrible. Needless to say, the bad vibes made sleep restless at best...

The Aura Road yet again. It didn't look the same as he remembered, though his first fall-through had been so long ago. Though this time he was seeing it not through his own eyes but through the eyes of Dunbine. He didn't even remember how it had happened. He had been under the impression that this sort of thing only happened one way. That unless it was opened from Byston Well the Aura Road could not be traveled.

His stomach twisted and turned in the same way as the winding corridors of the vertical portal. Despite everything he tried, he could not move his Aura Battler. It was like the Aura Road was cutting off the controls of his bio-mechanical weapon. He covered his mouth. An attempt to stem the flow of vomit threatening to burst free at any moment. And before he knew it, he was now somewhere new, falling from high above. The Dunbine's wings glittered to life. The golden shimmering wings, much like the wings of an insect, fluttered daintily, somehow propelling the lavender Aura battler. Its head whipped to and fro, trying to identify its surroundings.

It looked like he was above some sort of complex. Like something straight out of a movie, a kind of military base. Perhaps he had really come to Earth, or rather, returned to Earth. The thought filled him with a sense of elation. Or perhaps, was it anxiety? It had been so long since he had been home. Four years going by the calendar of Byston Well. He wasn't sure how long it could have been in Earth years.

Nevertheless he worked to control the freefall. With his hands on the controls, he exerted his Aura, and the insectoid mecha came thundering down, though at far slower speeds than previously. Adjusting the trajectory of his fall he had twisted and maneuvered until he landed in an open courtyard. Dunbine skidded down in the dirt. Its taloned feet ripped through the soft grass and earth grinding it to a halt as soil kicked up around it. The elegant bio-machine was now coated in mud, speckled with brown.

He sat quietly, awaiting the crowd of soldiers he knew his arrival would bring. That is, if his hunch was right, and this was some kind of military establishment.

Having made its arrival at the dead of night, the only greeting the Dunbine got from the slumbering base were a few errant guards out on night patrol and a spotlight from the nearest watchtower shining down on the diminutive insectoid construct. What was odd about the entire situation was the fact that despite Bell's unintended intrusion into a military installation, no alarm was raised and the approaching guards, on foot or otherwise were displaying no signs of open hostility whatsoever... Very odd indeed.

The Wing Freedom Gundam hovered high in the air of the night sky.

David Sullivan's masked eyes gazed as far as the Gundam's camera could see...Where that was, was beyond him. Instantly, David knew he was on Earth...But everything felt wrong, the air was different somehow...

Chasing the dreaded pirate Hans, and just when David was so close to grabbing the pirate...They'd been swept up in a flash of light, and thusly, Hans had gotten away, again, and worse, he'd somehow been...Teleported? Things were dubious enough, teleportation was definitely not something possible with modern science...Furthermore, Hans was no longer on the radar...Either this was yet another one of Hans's "daring escapes," or he was separated from David as they were warped.

He had to take things as they came...Hans was still out there, and David had to find him.

The Wing Freedom then turned to see a military base...Which was it? Zodiac? Or Union?

David began to scout the area, switching to thermal sensors...He had a surefire solution, but it was best not to come to it unless things were dire.

He still had some respect for the rule he had.

Thermal scans revealed that the base was as asleep as any place would be at this time of night, with only a fair number of patrolling guards on light vehicles and manned watchtowers keeping eyes out for any intruders and some SAM sites currently lying inactive. However, a closer examination would reveal a rather unusual signature deeper in the base, quite big but not large enough to be a Mobile-suit yet isn't small enough to be a chopper. While David does have rank, dropping by completely uninvited might not be the wisest course of action. If this military base is even associated with the Earth Federation in the first place.

Back at the hotel, Shinkai suddenly awakens in the middle of his sleep. At first, he assumed that it was due to Bob's loud snoring, louder than even the jet engines of their transport, quite the achievement for the man's lungs and throat. But then he felt a rather uncomfortable sense of pressure downstairs, telling him that it was instead nature calling. Quietly removing himself from his bed, he tried to look for the W.C, only to find that his shared room didn't have one.

"Oh come on..."

Grumbling as he fumbles in the dark for the hotel's complimentary slippers as he really couldn't be damned to put his shoes on, the young test pilot lumbers out into the unlit hallways for the restroom; rather loudly yawning as his eyes adjust to the darkness and looking for the washroom.

 

[Mazin Kiryu]

@Mazin Kiryu @TrickOLF

Night at the Thalerhof airbase appears to be... Contradictive, to say the very least. Back when the night was still young, and the day beckoned closer into sleeping hours, the base operated with the utmost tranquility. There was no concern whatsoever, only the monotony of the standard security operations of base personnel.

Yet the late night and the early morning preparing to precede the rise of the sun felt gloomier than what was to be expected. A foreboding atmosphere lingered in the air, gnawing on the subconscious part of one's mind, stimulating the long-buried and atrophied animal instinct that something is about to happen, something terrible. Needless to say, the bad vibes made sleep restless at best...


Having made its arrival at the dead of night, the only greeting the Dunbine got from the slumbering base were a few errant guards out on night patrol and a spotlight from the nearest watchtower shining down on the diminutive insectoid construct. What was odd about the entire situation was the fact that despite Bell's unintended intrusion into a military installation, no alarm was raised and the approaching guards, on foot or otherwise were displaying no signs of open hostility whatsoever... Very odd indeed.


Thermal scans revealed that the base was as asleep as any place would be at this time of night, with only a fair number of patrolling guards on light vehicles and manned watchtowers keeping eyes out for any intruders and some SAM sites currently lying inactive. However, a closer examination would reveal a rather unusual signature deeper in the base, quite big but not large enough to be a Mobile-suit yet isn't small enough to be a chopper. While David does have rank, dropping by completely uninvited might not be the wisest course of action. If this military base is even associated with the Earth Federation in the first place.

Back at the hotel, Shinkai suddenly awakens in the middle of his sleep. At first, he assumed that it was due to Bob's loud snoring, louder than even the jet engines of their transport, quite the achievement for the man's lungs and throat. But then he felt a rather uncomfortable sense of pressure downstairs, telling him that it was instead nature calling. Quietly removing himself from his bed, he tried to look for the W.C, only to find that his shared room didn't have one.

"Oh come on..."

Grumbling as he fumbles in the dark for the hotel's complimentary slippers as he really couldn't be damned to put his shoes on, the young test pilot lumbers out into the unlit hallways for the restroom; rather loudly yawning as his eyes adjust to the darkness and looking for the washroom.

Kane, laying down as he couldn’t sleep, as if something was giving him bad vibes as he spoke.
“I don’t have a good feeling about this”

As he went to stand up, as he spoke to Tyzell if he was awake. “Heading off to the restroom, I’m sure nothing wrong could happen this late at night”

As he went to open their dorm room and headed to the public restroom.

 

[TrickOLF]

@Mazin Kiryu @TrickOLF

Night at the Thalerhof airbase appears to be... Contradictive, to say the very least. Back when the night was still young, and the day beckoned closer into sleeping hours, the base operated with the utmost tranquility. There was no concern whatsoever, only the monotony of the standard security operations of base personnel.

Yet the late night and the early morning preparing to precede the rise of the sun felt gloomier than what was to be expected. A foreboding atmosphere lingered in the air, gnawing on the subconscious part of one's mind, stimulating the long-buried and atrophied animal instinct that something is about to happen, something terrible. Needless to say, the bad vibes made sleep restless at best....

Kane, laying down as he couldn’t sleep, as if something was giving him bad vibes as he spoke.
“I don’t have a good feeling about this”

As he went to stand up, as he spoke to Tyzell if he was awake. “Heading off to the restroom, I’m sure nothing wrong could happen this late at night”

As he went to open their dorm room and headed to the public restroom.

Meanwhile, I tried to sleep off the bad vibes, assuming it was just some sort of bad wind or something.

I waved Kane off.

"Don't die, call me when you're in trouble, etcetera, etcetera..." I mumbled...

But even as he left, I couldn't ignore the feeling that something fucked was about to happen...

 

[The Ancient Purple]

@Mazin Kiryu @TrickOLF

Night at the Thalerhof airbase appears to be... Contradictive, to say the very least. Back when the night was still young, and the day beckoned closer into sleeping hours, the base operated with the utmost tranquility. There was no concern whatsoever, only the monotony of the standard security operations of base personnel.

Yet the late night and the early morning preparing to precede the rise of the sun felt gloomier than what was to be expected. A foreboding atmosphere lingered in the air, gnawing on the subconscious part of one's mind, stimulating the long-buried and atrophied animal instinct that something is about to happen, something terrible. Needless to say, the bad vibes made sleep restless at best...


Having made its arrival at the dead of night, the only greeting the Dunbine got from the slumbering base were a few errant guards out on night patrol and a spotlight from the nearest watchtower shining down on the diminutive insectoid construct. What was odd about the entire situation was the fact that despite Bell's unintended intrusion into a military installation, no alarm was raised and the approaching guards, on foot or otherwise were displaying no signs of open hostility whatsoever... Very odd indeed.


Thermal scans revealed that the base was as asleep as any place would be at this time of night, with only a fair number of patrolling guards on light vehicles and manned watchtowers keeping eyes out for any intruders and some SAM sites currently lying inactive. However, a closer examination would reveal a rather unusual signature deeper in the base, quite big but not large enough to be a Mobile-suit yet isn't small enough to be a chopper. While David does have rank, dropping by completely uninvited might not be the wisest course of action. If this military base is even associated with the Earth Federation in the first place.

Back at the hotel, Shinkai suddenly awakens in the middle of his sleep. At first, he assumed that it was due to Bob's loud snoring, louder than even the jet engines of their transport, quite the achievement for the man's lungs and throat. But then he felt a rather uncomfortable sense of pressure downstairs, telling him that it was instead nature calling. Quietly removing himself from his bed, he tried to look for the W.C, only to find that his shared room didn't have one.

"Oh come on..."

Grumbling as he fumbles in the dark for the hotel's complimentary slippers as he really couldn't be damned to put his shoes on, the young test pilot lumbers out into the unlit hallways for the restroom; rather loudly yawning as his eyes adjust to the darkness and looking for the washroom.

As the night fell upon Thalerhof, heralding the end of the day and the time for rest, Helen had laid on her bunker bed for hours in a fitful slumber. She spent hours drifting in and out of sleep, fading into calm, blissful oblivion one moment and then staring at the ceiling the very next, writhing and twisting beneath her sheets as drowsiness and restlessness fought a fearsome duel in the recesses of her brain. After about the third time she woke up, she attempted counting sheep and thinking of utterly boring things like math problems, taking deep, calming breaths in order to ease her agitation.

But it was all for naught. She was wide awake by now and it'll take hours again for her to feel like sleeping again. What to do? As she sits up, a long huff escaping through her lips, she decided to go for some fresh air, leaving the room with caution as to not wake anybody up. Except as soon as she steos outside the sleeping quarters, she remembers the horrific nightmare had the night before.

Nightmares were nothing new to the girl, but on this instance, she felt a near crippling chill up her spine. Nothing had ever had an uncanny effect like this before, and it succeded in instilling a sense of paranoia in her mind.

It would probably justify her unnatural reaction to what would have otherwise been a pretty casual encounter when she walked down the hallway. Only to be met with a figure in the standard military outfit. As their gazes met, Helen jumped in a mild fit of panic, placing a hand on top of her sternum where the heart should be.

"Dear god..."

"Calm down, woman. I know I'm ugly but this is ridiculous. Anyway, what are you doing awake this late at night?" The guard asked.

Helen waves off his sarcastic quip. "Nothing much. Just gonna breathe some fresh air and get a drink of water is all."

"Ah... Make it quick. We all gotta be up in four hours, ya know."

"Understood."

After this brief exchange, Helen and the guard walk their separate ways. With her pacing forward further down the corridor to get some fresh air while the guard resumed his patrol route further down in the opposite direction.

 

[sir_fire]

Kane, laying down as he couldn’t sleep, as if something was giving him bad vibes as he spoke.
“I don’t have a good feeling about this”

As he went to stand up, as he spoke to Tyzell if he was awake. “Heading off to the restroom, I’m sure nothing wrong could happen this late at night”

As he went to open their dorm room and headed to the public restroom.

As Kane left his room to get some fresh air, he would find one of the three stooges he met at the cafeteria also up and about in the middle of the night, the Japanese guy. Shinkai was it? But from the looks of him, with his gait and all, he seems to be genuinely up and about for the toilet and not due to the bad vibes in the air. Some of his drowsiness fades a bit upon seeing the Mazinger pilot, though obviously not out of excitement. While he acknowledges Kane's presence, the Japanese pilot does nothing further as he really isn't in the mood or has the attitude to pry on others' matters.

Elsewhere...

This is Hugin to Gungnir, situation update.
Two new Einherjar have descended. Designated Einherjars 3 and 4.

Gungnir 1 to Hugin, we have eyes.
Einherjar 3 is inside the arena, drawing the audience to it, size below average and possibly thaumaturgical.
Anything about Einherjar 4?

Einherjar 4 is currently within 5 kilos within arena perimeter.
Mobile suit, Gundam type. No markings or motifs link it to the Americans.

Acknowledged, request additional units to the Arbalester element.

Negative, element is already on standby, and reinforcement will cause unacceptable delay.

Affirmative, Gungnir team will continue the performance.

Copy.

Gungnir 7, report.

In position Gungnir 1, waiting on your call.

Execute.

Casting shade.

Suddenly several sections of the base lose power and go dark, most importantly the zone around the hangars and a few watchtowers. However, the spotlights only went dark for a few moments as the guards manning them quickly turned on aux power to get their lights going again.

Immediately noticing that the power outage was not natural, the base's night watch immediately got on alert. The outage was also something the two new outworlder mech pilots should take note of as well, especially for Bell as he had a front-row seat to the entire thing.

However, inside the hotel, nothing was out of the ordinary and only the truly observant would notice that the base had a blackout. Truly observant meaning those looking out the windows or were outside for whatever reason.

 

[Mazin Kiryu]

As Kane left his room to get some fresh air, he would find one of the three stooges he met at the cafeteria also up and about in the middle of the night, the Japanese guy. Shinkai was it? But from the looks of him, with his gait and all, he seems to be genuinely up and about for the toilet and not due to the bad vibes in the air. Some of his drowsiness fades a bit upon seeing the Mazinger pilot, though obviously not out of excitement. While he acknowledges Kane's presence, the Japanese pilot does nothing further as he really isn't in the mood or has the attitude to pry on others' matters.

Elsewhere...

This is Hugin to Gungnir, situation update.
Two new Einherjar have descended. Designated Einherjars 3 and 4.

Gungnir 1 to Hugin, we have eyes.
Einherjar 3 is inside the arena, drawing the audience to it, size below average and possibly thaumaturgical.
Anything about Einherjar 4?

Einherjar 4 is currently within 5 kilos within arena perimeter.
Mobile suit, Gundam type. No markings or motifs link it to the Americans.

Acknowledged, request additional units to the Arbalester element.

Negative, element is already on standby, and reinforcement will cause unacceptable delay.

Affirmative, Gungnir team will continue the performance.

Copy.

Gungnir 7, report.

In position Gungnir 1, waiting on your call.

Execute.

Casting shade.

Suddenly several sections of the base lose power and go dark, most importantly the zone around the hangars and a few watchtowers. However, the spotlights only went dark for a few moments as the guards manning them quickly turned on aux power to get their lights going again.

Immediately noticing that the power outage was not natural, the base's night watch immediately got on alert. The outage was also something the two new outworlder mech pilots should take note of as well, especially for Bell as he had a front-row seat to the entire thing.

However, inside the hotel, nothing was out of the ordinary and only the truly observant would notice that the base had a blackout. Truly observant meaning those looking out the windows or were outside for whatever reason.

Kane would be “exploring” the base to look for the restroom, looking around before noticing Shinkai, the kid probably just went off to take a leak but seeing him alone didn’t went right with Kane.. there was something off and he just can’t think of it.

He then went to approach Shinkai as he then spoke, “Hey were Bob? He isn’t awake or he let ya wonder around?”

He ask since there the buddy system,but given his Partner knew that He left, and he didn’t care much to put Tyzell in risk in case something did happen, but seeing someone else alone just prop him to make sure that he can be safe for now.

 

[sir_fire]

Kane would be “exploring” the base to look for the restroom, looking around before noticing Shinkai, the kid probably just went off to take a leak but seeing him alone didn’t went right with Kane.. there was something off and he just can’t think of it.

He then went to approach Shinkai as he then spoke, “Hey were Bob? He isn’t awake or he let ya wonder around?”

He ask since there the buddy system,but given his Partner knew that He left, and he didn’t care much to put Tyzell in risk in case something did happen, but seeing someone else alone just prop him to make sure that he can be safe for now.

Shinkai blinks in confusion numerous times at Kane's question, rightfully so given how odd it was.

"Asleep, what else?"

Moving closer to get eye contact with the outworlder and towards the toilet, the test pilot began to notice that Kane seemed high strung for some reason, his eyes narrowed and glancing every which way; trying to look for anything that was out of the ordinary.

"Is... Something wrong?"

And then as if to utterly vindicate the Mazinger pilot's suspicions, there was an abrupt thudding sound coming from nearby...

"...That didn't sound like a door."

Turning towards the noise, the pair could postulate that it came from the front hallway. Taking the lead as he was already in front of the Mazinger pilot, Shinkai began to slowly, carefully walk towards the disturbance, beckoning Kane to keep his distance with a raised hand in case something unexpected happens.

 

[Ironboi13]

Thermal scans revealed that the base was as asleep as any place would be at this time of night, with only a fair number of patrolling guards on light vehicles and manned watchtowers keeping eyes out for any intruders and some SAM sites currently lying inactive. However, a closer examination would reveal a rather unusual signature deeper in the base, quite big but not large enough to be a Mobile-suit yet isn't small enough to be a chopper. While David does have rank, dropping by completely uninvited might not be the wisest course of action. If this military base is even associated with the Earth Federation in the first place.

It was best to sit and observe the base for now...Without any identification of the base, he could be walking into a den of lions for all he knew. However...He had to investigate this strange signature. It could be anything...Even some sort of trick laid by Hans.

David held a detonator-like beacon in his hand...No, not yet, David had to figure out his bearings. The Gundam pilot continued to survey the base, looking for anything coming in, and exiting.

There was also the possibility of getting detected, in which case, David would have to be ready to provide identification.

 

[Mazin Kiryu]

Shinkai blinks in confusion numerous times at Kane's question, rightfully so given how odd it was.

"Asleep, what else?"

Moving closer to get eye contact with the outworlder and towards the toilet, the test pilot began to notice that Kane seemed high strung for some reason, his eyes narrowed and glancing every which way; trying to look for anything that was out of the ordinary.

"Is... Something wrong?"

And then as if to utterly vindicate the Mazinger pilot's suspicions, there was an abrupt thudding sound coming from nearby...

"...That didn't sound like a door."

Turning towards the noise, the pair could postulate that it came from the front hallway. Taking the lead as he was already in front of the Mazinger pilot, Shinkai began to slowly, carefully walk towards the disturbance, beckoning Kane to keep his distance with a raised hand in case something unexpected happens.

Kane quickly lower himself and stare at Shinkai, hearing the noises as he nodded and silently wave at Shinkai to be careful, as he maintain his distance but stay near him in case something came up.

 

[sir_fire]

Kane quickly lower himself and stare at Shinkai, hearing the noises as he nodded and silently wave at Shinkai to be careful, as he maintain his distance but stay near him in case something came up.

Carefully making their way towards where the disturbance came from, Shinkai and Kane kept their eyes peeled for anything even slightly out of place.

"I'm going to take a guess that this is exactly why you're awake."



Eventually reaching the corridor where the noise came from, situated at the front portion of the Hotel; the two young pilots find... An utterly empty and lifeless corridor, utterly silent; where not even the sounds of the sleeping occupants can be heard coming from behind the doors and the base outside is the same as it ever had been. In all, there's absolutely nothing wrong or out of the ordinary with the scene before them, and yet...

"Ok, now I'm convinced..."

Feeling an utterly oppressive sense of unease and tension to the point that he was instinctively controlling his breathing, Shinkai pressed forward regardless albeit in a very slow and deliberate manner, as if afraid that if he wasn't giving his entire attention to his surroundings; something just might jump out of some darkened, unseen corner of the hallway and attack either him or Kane. But suddenly, out of the darkness ahead...

"What in the world are you two doing?"

Barely suppressing a very unmanly scream of shock and surprise, Shinkai whips his head towards the voice: His partner Stella; also wearing the same clothes she wore when they arrived and having a look of both confusion and dismay on her face.

"You scared the crap out of me!"

"I was right in front of you, but you were too busy looking at the floor for whatever reason."

The young pilot was about to retort, but then the tension and unease he felt earlier were all gone now and everything seemed a bit less oppressively dim, enough for him to lighten up his demeanor a bit.

"E-enough about that, why are you up too?"

"Couldn't sleep. Thought that maybe a short walk was what I needed."

"How were you so quiet even with that cane?"

"Practice."

Shinkai facepalms before Stella tells them something very strange.

"By the way, have you two noticed that parts of the base had gone dark?"

Hearing that, Shinkai gets a rather serious expression on his face.

"No, but that doesn't sound right at all."

"Indeed, they'd have told us if there would be any scheduled maintenance or some sort of power rotation scheme for the night."

Looking outside, Shinkai and Kane would notice that portions of the base had indeed lost power; but the areas that had gone dark were very suspicious.

"The Hangar and runway area... No, not just them, places leading there. You think we're under attack?"

"Regardless, we need to secure our most valuable assets."

"Right, Let's go get Bob. Kane? You better grab Tyzell too, we shouldn't be alone."

With that, the Rayleonard employees went off to fetch their third wheel.

 

[The Ancient Purple]

The screeches of pain, dismay, and rage of the daemons pounded against the minds of the two pilots as they snuffed out the creatures, their forms either burning away into nothingness in the face of Kazuki's napalm bath or scattering into the aether as clouds of multicolored dots from being crushed by the Null's limbs. As painfully loud as their screams were, killing the hellspawn rewarded the pair with silence and being unmolested as they made their way towards salvation.

At the last leg of their run, however, there was one more obstacle to greet them, waiting at the entrance of the engine bays: A cloud of gigantic flies the size of pigeons and pestilence that swiftly rusted and decayed metal by mere touch if the severe discoloration of the surrounding area was any indication. The swarm didn't advance, but rather acted as a living barrier to keep the pair trapped in the enginarium for the rest of their friends to kill. And they were coming in fast if the returning voices and their steadily growing loudness was any indication...

Suddenly, there was a sharp keening noise followed by the horrible groaning of metal, by now familiar sound to Kazuki and Liam, and an auxiliary coolant tank suddenly fell right in front of the pair and burst open like a soda can; once again splashing their machines with freezing liquid, but the tank was too small and contained too little coolant to truly threaten their machines. The same cannot be said of the swarm or the disease cloud, where the mist and ice froze the infested insects and purified the pestilence with sheer cold.

"Over here Knights!"



Looking towards where the voice came from, the two would be met with the junior Magos waving at them from a ruined catwalk a few hundred yards away and with a pile of scrap parts shaped like javelins propped up on the handrail right beside him. He looked like he was getting ready to jump, likely in anticipation of landing on the waiting hands of either of the pair's machines; but then a humanoid shadow materialized behind him and ran him through with a rusted sword dripping with bile. To the Magos' credit, he didn't just keel over and die; instead, grabbing one of the scrap javelins next to him to swing towards his assailant, shattering its head and causing the rest of its decrepit body to evaporate into a greenish mist as the Magos now allowed the pain to register in his mechanical body and sunk to one knee.

But the creature was not alone, for a lanky, red-skinned demon soon came charging out of the darkness, its cloven hooves shaking the catwalk with every step before throwing itself into a jumping strike with its flaming sword in an attempt to cleave the Magos in twain, who only barely manages to avoid its murder-strike by using his scrap spear as a distraction before wrestling with the thing with both his arms and the mechanical tentacles extending from his back as it tried to get its sword unstuck from the catwalk and throwing it off, roaring in anger as it fell to its doom.

Unfortunately for the Magos, he didn't even have any time to collect himself as one of the highly feminine lust demons that Liam grew to hate pounced on him while he was distracted, mounting over his chest in a manner both predatory and sensual as it tried to cut his heart out with its razor-sharp claws, the cyborg fought back with all his sadly fading strength, flaying the succubus with his tentacles and trying to push its claws away with his hands, which only served to encourage the fiend to try harder, letting out moans of arousal in the process. Turning towards the horrified pair watching him die to such a depraved creature, the Magos screams at the top of his iron lungs.

"GO! LEAVE! I HAVE MADE MY PEACE!"

There was no time to ponder. No time to stop and appreciate. As the junior Magos made their stand, Kazuki's robot rushed right by. The context of the situation failed to sink in until the scout was safely outside. At that point, he paused his movements to spare a single look at the scene of the Magos getting disemboweled by a lustful demon, to the sounds of her sensual moans as her claws sank into her chest and ripped flesh and bone apart. This scene... It triggered something within him, something that he rarely if ever expresses: Rage.

Kazuki himself used to frequent questionable websites back in his world when he was but a college student. Putting it bluntly, pornographic sites. Still did to this day, but much more occasionally by comparison. The sight and sound reminded him of a particular type of degenerate fetish he had encountered during his adventures. One that twisted his stomach in disgust. Even moreso when he remembers there are, in fact, people out there with the ability to be aroused by such unacceptable degeneracy.

In a decisive motion, the Shibuki turns towards the brave Magos. Wings spread to expose the missile pods contained within. "Thanks a lot, friend. There is only one thing I can do for you now."

With this, the sound of hissing rockets zipped through the air from the VARG's pods as a wave of six missiles were released, converging upon the position of the lustful abomination attacking the Magos. Upon contact, the daemon, the Magos and everything in a 20-meter radius is consumed by a bright orange fireball. Kazuki rationalized that compared to what the daemon and the rest of its horrid friends were planning on doing to him, it was the merciful and compassionate thing.

Sparing himself but a few moments to observe the aftermath of his attack, the Shibuki rides backwards as the explosions and heat trigger a massive chain reaction with the hydrogen vapor coming from the boiling coolant left behind by the fighting in the Enginarium. Then fully turning around and using flight to zoom out of the engine nacelle at full speed, shooting out into the arid skies as the massive fireball erupted at last caught up with him, scorching the rear of his VARG and sending him into an uncontrollable but wholly survivable spin-out as his machine proceeds to half-bury itself beneath one of the sand dunes dug up by the crashing ship.

 

[Crimson Dragoon]

There was no time to ponder. No time to stop and appreciate. As the junior Magos made their stand, Kazuki's robot rushed right by. The context of the situation failed to sink in until the scout was safely outside. At that point, he paused his movements to spare a single look at the scene of the Magos getting disemboweled by a lustful demon, to the sounds of her sensual moans as her claws sank into her chest and ripped flesh and bone apart. This scene... It triggered something within him, something that he rarely if ever expresses: Rage.

Kazuki himself used to frequent questionable websites back in his world when he was but a college student. Putting it bluntly, pornographic sites. Still did to this day, but much more occasionally by comparison. The sight and sound reminded him of a particular type of degenerate fetish he had encountered during his adventures. One that twisted his stomach in disgust. Even moreso when he remembers there are, in fact, people out there with the ability to be aroused by such unacceptable degeneracy.

In a decisive motion, the Shibuki turns towards the brave Magos. Wings spread to expose the missile pods contained within. "Thanks a lot, friend. There is only one thing I can do for you now."

With this, the sound of hissing rockets zipped through the air from the VARG's pods as a wave of six missiles were released, converging upon the position of the lustful abomination attacking the Magos. Upon contact, the daemon, the Magos and everything in a 20-meter radius is consumed by a bright orange fireball. Kazuki rationalized that compared to what the daemon and the rest of its horrid friends were planning on doing to him, it was the merciful and compassionate thing.

Sparing himself but a few moments to observe the aftermath of his attack, the Shibuki rides backwards as the explosions and heat trigger a massive chain reaction with the hydrogen vapor coming from the boiling coolant left behind by the fighting in the Enginarium. Then fully turning around and using flight to zoom out of the engine nacelle at full speed, shooting out into the arid skies as the massive fireball erupted at last caught up with him, scorching the rear of his VARG and sending him into an uncontrollable but wholly survivable spin-out as his machine proceeds to half-bury itself beneath one of the sand dunes dug up by the crashing ship.

Daniel saw one of his companion's mechs sail through the air, its rear seemingly a bit burned and the landing it made was...less than graceful. It was halfway buried in the dune, but the machine appeared to be relatively intact. Obviously something must have happened in the short time after they left the ship.

"What exactly went on in there? We didn't leave that long ago and you kind of just followed shortly after us."

Was Daniel going crazy? Is his sense of time off for some reason?

 

[Sigismund]

Daniel saw one of his companion's mechs sail through the air, its rear seemingly a bit burned and the landing it made was...less than graceful. It was halfway buried in the dune, but the machine appeared to be relatively intact. Obviously something must have happened in the short time after they left the ship.

"What exactly went on in there? We didn't leave that long ago and you kind of just followed shortly after us."

Was Daniel going crazy? Is his sense of time off for some reason?

It seems some sort of time dilation had happened, since we would have heard sounds of battle for his Knight to be in such a state as Daniel pointed out.

Disturbing, but not all unsurprising. Daemons tended to lash out desperately in their last accursed moments, this event just reinforced the notion to interrogate and remove any possible taint left behind.

 

[Mazin Kiryu]

Carefully making their way towards where the disturbance came from, Shinkai and Kane kept their eyes peeled for anything even slightly out of place.

"I'm going to take a guess that this is exactly why you're awake."



Eventually reaching the corridor where the noise came from, situated at the front portion of the Hotel; the two young pilots find... An utterly empty and lifeless corridor, utterly silent; where not even the sounds of the sleeping occupants can be heard coming from behind the doors and the base outside is the same as it ever had been. In all, there's absolutely nothing wrong or out of the ordinary with the scene before them, and yet...

"Ok, now I'm convinced..."

Feeling an utterly oppressive sense of unease and tension to the point that he was instinctively controlling his breathing, Shinkai pressed forward regardless albeit in a very slow and deliberate manner, as if afraid that if he wasn't giving his entire attention to his surroundings; something just might jump out of some darkened, unseen corner of the hallway and attack either him or Kane. But suddenly, out of the darkness ahead...

"What in the world are you two doing?"

Barely suppressing a very unmanly scream of shock and surprise, Shinkai whips his head towards the voice: His partner Stella; also wearing the same clothes she wore when they arrived and having a look of both confusion and dismay on her face.

"You scared the crap out of me!"

"I was right in front of you, but you were too busy looking at the floor for whatever reason."

The young pilot was about to retort, but then the tension and unease he felt earlier were all gone now and everything seemed a bit less oppressively dim, enough for him to lighten up his demeanor a bit.

"E-enough about that, why are you up too?"

"Couldn't sleep. Thought that maybe a short walk was what I needed."

"How were you so quiet even with that cane?"

"Practice."

Shinkai facepalms before Stella tells them something very strange.

"By the way, have you two noticed that parts of the base had gone dark?"

Hearing that, Shinkai gets a rather serious expression on his face.

"No, but that doesn't sound right at all."

"Indeed, they'd have told us if there would be any scheduled maintenance or some sort of power rotation scheme for the night."

Looking outside, Shinkai and Kane would notice that portions of the base had indeed lost power; but the areas that had gone dark were very suspicious.

"The Hangar and runway area... No, not just them, places leading there. You think we're under attack?"

"Regardless, we need to secure our most valuable assets."

"Right, Let's go get Bob. Kane? You better grab Tyzell too, we shouldn't be alone."

With that, the Rayleonard employees went off to fetch their third wheel.

Upon seeing Stella and now Shinkai went from being scare to safe, guess she was his guardian Angel.

He would observe as multiple area in the base were dark.. not even emergency back up lights were on which meant something weird was happening.

Then he heard how they needed to fetch their asset as Kane honestly felt he didn’t wanted to get Tyzell involve, but that may be the case, as he nodded before heading back to the room.

Upon opening the Dorm door, Kane spoke, “Hey Tyzell wake up, we may have intruders in the base”

He said heading to the pilot bed and kicking him off it in case he was sleeping.

 

[TrickOLF]

Upon seeing Stella and now Shinkai went from being scare to safe, guess she was his guardian Angel.

He would observe as multiple area in the base were dark.. not even emergency back up lights were on which meant something weird was happening.

Then he heard how they needed to fetch their asset as Kane honestly felt he didn’t wanted to get Tyzell involve, but that may be the case, as he nodded before heading back to the room.

Upon opening the Dorm door, Kane spoke, “Hey Tyzell wake up, we may have intruders in the base”

He said heading to the pilot bed and kicking him off it in case he was sleeping.

"Bwah!?" I said as I got off, falling to the floor and getting up in a huff...

"Man, seriously?! Can't we go one day without a break?!" I slightly whined, as I prepared to go on pilot duty.

"How many threats we talkin?"

 

[Mazin Kiryu]

"Bwah!?" I said as I got off, falling to the floor and getting up in a huff...

"Man, seriously?! Can't we go one day without a break?!" I slightly whined, as I prepared to go on pilot duty.

"How many threats we talkin?"

“Unknown at the current moment, the base is quiet, and the only other people that know of this situation at the moment are Shinkai, Stella, and soon Bob, so our objective is try to reach Great and Z and maybe wake the whole base up that way, if I’m right then the enemy may have already dealt with the com center, gotta cut your enemy chances afterall”

Kane said as he went to put on his pilot suit vest and gear, cracking his neck and readying to leave the dorm room with Tyzell.