Titanomachy - Phase Oceanus

December 25, 7:59 AM
Lagrange Point 1
Akvavit Cabracan Container Colony


While there was no way of knowing exactly what was approaching the colony, when it had come close enough the Kojima particles spreading off the cloud of ECM would narrow the possibilities significantly. What appeared to be an atmospheric drop pod shot forward at the colony; grossly modified, the container bore all manner of additional armor plating and what appeared to be a Vanguard Overboost that had been cut up in order to be attached to the back of the pod. Inside the pod, two phantoms of the League stood face to face.

A claxon sounded within the pod and within the machines alerting of the oncoming depletion of the VOB and its subsequent purge. Shattering like an egg as the VOB purged itself in chunks, the drop pod opened and launched its contents forward: Augus and his NEXT Transcend and his compatriot Survivor with the enigmatic Midnight. Boosters flared from the enemies born of the League themselves, carrying the NEXTs faster and farther with the momentum from their approach.

"Time starts now."

"A simultaneous assault, is it?"

Vice President Casimir Ashkelon - a young, comparably handsome man compared to his peers - and his entourage hurried along the walkways of the Colony's shopping district. A large collection of boxes and bags were carried behind him by various aides, and he was busy trying to address the sudden influx of mail on his phone, rapidly tapping away. An outright assault like this would have been suicide, he thought, had it come at any given time.

He was going to have to set his wedding plans aside for a little while.

"Do they really think they can destroy the Cabracan with just two NEXTs?" He wondered aloud, as he watched the two close in. Already, their defense forces were moving to intercept but...

Brrrring.

A phone call. At the sight of the number on screen, he immediately picked up.

"It's Casimir... Yes, sir. Of course... Yes. I understand. Thank you."

Click.

The group shoved their way onto a train heading back towards the command center, as Casimir continued to tap away, addressing the closest aides, now shoved in close proximity with him. The whole car now smelled like flowers and chocolate, but he wasn't about to complain. Jabbing a finger in the enclosure, he began to dictate their strategy.

"Call it off. It seems the higher ups have arranged something. Get the unit in bay three ready for deployment, the one from the Foundation..."

He had to admit: He'd been a little skeptical when the initial request had came in regarding that unit recovered from before... and, who had an interest in its reconstruction. The eye-popping schematics he'd seen, however, had been more than enough to convince him to go along with it - and now, he was glad he had. Sometimes, doing favors for the devil paid dividends.

---

The two NEXTs in question would find their approach strangely tranquil. No swarm of MTs emerged to assault them. No screaming sirens. Just deathly silence, as on the flank of the Colony, an entryway opened invitingly. Within was displayed a service elevator, telltales winking merrily as twin beams extended out into space. Were they to enter, according to the available maps, it would take them directly to where the Cabracan was stored - the testing grounds.

Besides that lone activity, it was as if they had entered a ghost town - nothing but one another for company, and the deep, distant, yawning void.

"Truly Algebra's strategic genius has no equal."

Survivor and Augus did not slow their approach even as the unexpected invitation was extended. "Wish I could say I haven't seen this before. I'll be point." The pair of NEXTs angled their rapid approach and hurled themselves into the waiting opening. The great sniper cannon hanging behind Midnight's back swung up and towered over the black NEXT's left side, Meanwhile Transcend readied its shield-like laser blade.

The two descended into the station, hardly letting off the thrusters at each turn. Augus raised the long, blade-like laser on Transcend's right arm at various spots, expecting something to jump out.

"This is Survivor," The old Lynx broadcast onto the colony channels. "If this isn't an offer to hand over Cabracan, then you have one chance to evacuate the colony before we destroy the Arms Fort and the colony with it." He said this bluntly, almost flippantly; as if it were implied that if they failed he would just come back tomorrow to try again.

As the two entered, they would find an appropriately spacious hangar full of supply ships and oversized parts for Arms Forts. Even sitting inert as they were, the fortresses were no less expensive to maintain than any other superweapon of renown. Not a single soul emerged to challenge their approach, and their trip through the dark, cold tunnels leading further in would have been marked with similar curious silence.

Eventually, the final set of doors opened, and unexpected brightness, warmth, spilled out across their machines. Howling wind slashed at their ears, and there was the gentle pitter-patter of flecks of sand hitting their NEXT's exteriors.

Before them stretched out an eerie, self-contained desert environment - a weapons testing ground, in preparation for the day the League would send their terrible titans to Earth. In the distance, the tower of Cabracan was faintly visible, looming over all like some sort of enormous iron, preparing to smooth out the wrinkles of the sands below, transforming it into a single, perfectly level and immaculate sheet of glass.

The two NEXTs continued into the artificial wasteland, Augus stopping on a dune's crest with what seemed to be the wreckage of an old high rise practically draped over it as he let his sensors catch up to their pace now that they were in the target area. Survivor would do much the same, stopping before some rubble and bringing up the almost excessively large sniper cannon on its left shoulder and aiming in the direction of the Cabracan.

"Definitely seen this one before. The League needs to get new material," the senior Lynx said, mocking the obvious trap. "Just like before, not like we can do anything but play along."

Seemingly of one mind, the pair readied themselves as their Overboost charged up and launched the NEXTs at breakneck speeds across the sand straight for the Arms Fort; Augus readied his laser blade while Survivor brought up the rack of machine guns on his other shoulder.

Larger and larger the Cabracan loomed in the NEXT's screens, until it was a wall of pockmarked, sand-blasted metal inscribed with the faded emblem of Algebra. Yet, no force sallied forth to meet them.

In the distance, hissing cables were pulled away from a lean, almost avian form, hunched over in a concealed dry dock. The AC's monitor came to life, system diagnostics flashing across the League's monitors as it spoke to itself. Casimir, having just arrived at the command center, watched with no small amount of interest to see if the Foundation's work was all they'd hyped it up to be.

Modifying program... Final level.

Fingers flexed to life, hands rotated a full 360 degrees at the wrist, as the machine finished the last of its preparations. There was the distinct crackle of Kojima Particles on the air, as Primal Armor pulsed to life, illuminating the AC's slit visor and the horn-like antennae on its head.

System check... Complete.

Engaging combat mode.

Two enormous boosters rose from their pylons, the AC's blood-red form twisting as it took off into a sleek, fighter-jet like appearance that cut through the sky towards the two interlopers. A hail of missiles burst from its silvery back as it began to close in, snaking and corkscrewing haphazardly through the air as over a dozen projectiles rained down on the two, already eager to blow them apart.

The Pair of NEXTs moved almost in unison, cutting off their Overboost and darting with consecutive quickboosts to shake the tracking of the missiles. Survivor gave a deep, jovial chuckle as he did so. The veteran Lynx shot forward to intercept the airborne enemy as he let loose a spray of shots from his right shoulder, the rapid spread from the multiple barrels sure to strike to some extent. "Well well, it's been a long time, Hustler One."

Augus meanwhile let his partner take point for this, bringing the chain gun on his own NEXT's right shoulder down and supplying his own stream of bullets while hanging farther back to maintain a more present pressure against the incoming enemy.

Survivor's shoulder rounds flared out, glints of light against the artificial rays showering them from above, and was rewarded with the pitter-patter of Nineball's Primal Armor, as the missile rounds detonated in clouds of smoke. It seemed as if their interception had already been anticipated. The smoke began to clear, Augus' chaingun snapping up to track the red AC...

But, no threat emerged from the cloud. As if the foe had vanished into thin air.

Yet, that was only half true.

It might have seemed like slow motion as Survivor turned, Nineball's form re-materializing as its camoflauge disengaged, body whirling as it transformed, spiraling through the air with unparalleled grace unbefitting a mere machine... right behind Augus, its afterburners having carried it clear to its target. The NEXT's left wrist gleamed blue-

And a crescent of azure ripped out at waist height, the MOONLIGHT sword aimed to cleave his wingman in half in a single strike. The force with which it did was such that the blade would have scythed clean through Augus, and towards Survivor''s own exposed flank. Yet, that was not all he had to contend with.

Scattered in Nineball's wake, a dozen contacts suddenly lit up Survivor's HUD, as a swarm of orbit cannons descended upon him from above, laser guns chattering away as they surrounded him with a hail of gunfire, tracking him mercilessly.

Not for nothing was the Master of Arena called as such, and now? It had a body to match its reputation.

Augus hardly had time to check his radar before the Foundation's champion had suddenly appeared behind him. "How can it go that fast?!" Transcend quickboosted backwards towards the outside of Nineball's swing but the sluggish Rosenthal NEXT wasn't quick enough. The brilliant blade sliced into his trailing offhand and nearly cut his own laser blade in two. Automatically the plasma cannon on Transcend's shoulder flipped up and around and Augus purged the damaged parts and lined up a shot with the cannon to catch any more advances.

"New tricks, same dog, Hustler" Survivor had seemingly seen through the escape and had turned his NEXT around with a boost. Not missing a beat, Midnight's powerful boosters shunted the machine into the air as the incoming blade wave cleaved across the artificial wastes behind it and met the orbit cannons head on. The black NEXT flung itself through the air to break the automated tracking, not sweating the hits poking holes in its Primal Armor. "Who do they have holding your leash these days? Can't imagine the Foundation would pay to keep the old bag alive for this long." As Midnight's monstrous thrust hurled itself this way and that, Survivor managed to orient just so and fired its sniper cannon straight at Nineball, the recoil causing the machine to jerk hard even as another shot from an orbit impacted. "In fact, word on the street is you've been hanging around a real piece of work lately; wonder what that's all about." Still not waiting for an answer, Survivor didn't miss a beat and jerked Midnight back into pursuit with another boost, the old Lynx clearly trying to get into preferred range.