Futuristic NCQuest: Mecha flavored action, Story

[Viper Actual]

Operation Spring Cleaning​

Peyton shook her head slowly as Cammy lashed out to her and Halliwell in regards to the possible salvage. As far as she was concerned Cammy could salvage all she wanted- as soon as the mission was over.

When the two NCs advanced further Jennifer kept her focus on whatever was in front of her and the prowling Raijin. Her SMG swayed gently left and right as she walked down the tunnel.

Upon reaching the fork Peyton sighed. She could hear Alice tapping away and muttering something in the background when the sound of static echoed across the electronic systems followed by another noise.

"Right door it is," said Peyton, her NC shifting its weight and pointing the SMG downrange.

 

[YsFanatic]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
Adam couldn't help but give a sigh of relief when the electrical ramming attack was thwarted as he had no doubt that would have been a rather damaging and painful thing to be hit by. Then when Hardpoint spoke up he felt a flash of annoyance as she repeated the advice he had given, but at the same time she had reminded him of something he had neglected to say.

"The same idea applies to my jammer, it only goes so far."

For a moment he paused, almost as if Adam wanted to say more but then the appearance of the tank destroyers caught his attention and he ceased his transmission. Their arrival and taking up of defensive positions did not bode well for them and he knew they needed to quickly even the odds. Trusting in his jammer to keep them safe for at least a little bit longer, he willed Vanguard to aim at the damaged helicopter and open fire. If they didn't take it, and hopefully its companion, down soon he expected things to start going bad rather swiftly.

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
As the three NC's steeled themselves for another attack and took note of their new enemy, the Vanguard fired off a burst from its rifle to pick the previously hurt helicopter off. Impacting another of its damaged rotors, the rounds fragmented its wing and caused it to finally return to the earth, bursting again on impact with another discharge of capacitor energy blanketing a small volume with arcs of lightning. The final remaining helicopter went on a full retreat, quickly backing off to its reinforcements. Coming down low to the ground, it kicked up streaks of dust as it buzzed the left-most tank-destroyer and banked, swooping behind the hill.

As its aerial companion took a temporary refuge to regain its bearings, the vehicle to the left revealed an additional piece of equipment; launching a dense barrage of smoke-grenades around its own position, occluding itself, and its flying ally from directed harm. The two others continued their attack, the one up-top of the hill aiming at the Vanguard and exacting vengeance for its fallen compatriot, the one to the right of the trio taking aim at the Hardpoint.

Their powerful, high-pressure cannons were loaded with sabot-rounds, and the heavy darts found decent purchase. The one for Vanguard found itself impacting the NC's hardened chest, burrowing to a shallow depth in the right side. Instantaneously the Vanguard reacted much the same way as its sibling, the Emperor did; quickly identifying the damage and thankfully returning that the impact was ignorable. A minor electrical conduit was severed alongside a synapse connection, but both were easily re-routed. Still, it hurt like hell, like an arrow glancing off of a rib.

The Hardpoint's strong armor bounced the round intended for it, the solid shot only grazing the NC's left leg. Even though it was only bounced, the leg stopped responding. Diagnostics reported that the interior systems were still jumbled about with vigour by the heavy impact and needed a moment to compensate. Quickly, the Hardpoint was destabilized and nearly fell over, being saved by its natural stability as a heavier piece of machinery. Still, it was temporarily dead in the water; its leg needing precious seconds to re-calibrate.

Sarah noted the damages and quickly responded, logging the combat data for later review while offering words of encouragement. "You're both okay! Almost at the finish line, just keep going!". The senior Linkers, too, maneuvered to take a better look, coming closer to the fighting. "You'd better get in the air quick..." the Senbazuru curtly noted.

Quietly, the Director continued to watch.

 

[Malphaestus]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
FREDRICH-ALEXANDER VON STREUBEN
To some's surprise, he also responds to "Tower-Upright."

~~~~

As quickly as the lapse in fighting had begun and their strategy conceived, the return of the cacophony of conflict dawned and their plan would come to be tested with steel and lead. It suited the man entombed within his metal body well, and as he advanced in formation with his 'fellow' compatriots, he weaved and swerved across the landscape like the rapids of yonder lands' forests, adding an additional layer of imperviousness to himself, in addition to Hardpoint and Vanguard's already substantial defensive capabilities. Feeling his muscle tense with stress and relieve with each brief turn. The flashes of his battle rifle blazing like the sun ever-so-briefly with every round dispersed, and every casing tossed. Bright and dark working equally in tandem to eliminate his foes with graciousness so vicious as to be imperceivable from bestial fervour.

His aim had remained true enough to function, for with his steel taloned fingers he pressed down and loosened damage across the vastness, dealing damage and missing in equal tandem. But the rigidity of his foes proved great, the helicopters' stability and steel made them worthy foes to slaughter as they withstood not only his, but the others' munitions.

The dynamic would remain as the three reduced distance until finally, a flash, and a jarring jolt, followed by a sanguine display. The Emperor told him of the issue, a massive electromagnetic discharge. Radio-chatter was beyond his perception as the man returned into the state of mind which he had produced during the first wave of conflict just prior; his awareness narrowed, and his heart cooled and quieted. The warnings of his machine mind irrelevant to his goals, discarded. Nothing but a low growl being the only thing to leave his mind, unconsciously communicated over the open channels. Irritation blared as he took in the enemy, ceasing his firing.

Drones moving with great organic tactics, clearly aware of their motions. An obvious fact, mimicking humanity through decisive coordination.

With the battle progressing rapidly around him, he skid silently across the landscape, Vanguard and Hardpoint taking up the battlefield, allowing him time and the instinctual preparation needed for the actions soon to come.

His machine was sluggish, not because it was weak or because it was mighty, but because its nerves were fickle. Greatness made situationally redundant through its unique growth. Andala had warned him, and he had heeded his words, all he needed was to be deliberate, and sure. Absolutist in his determination.

It was time to let loose his own 'special tool.'

The helicopter had burrowed itself beyond the horizon, behind the hill of which the 'tank destroyers' guarded with simulated, binary desperation.

He lowered his battle rifle and slapped it against his leg, the loud thud iconically ringing throughout the landscape for human ears to perceive should they wish to brave the dangers and enter where they should not go. Whether there were any to hear, or not, was beyond his concern, for as he holstered it, he had simultaneously gripped his assault-rifle, the red glare of his 'helmeted' frame narrowing on the central tank destroyer, as if foretelling its demise.

A hundred meters passed by him quickly, his reactor having long since spooled to its maximum allowed rotational capacity, jetisoning heat through its vectored exhausts at a frightful capacity.

Prophetically emblazoned along the proud shoulder of the machine's right arm, the Emperor's emblem shifted as the articulations of the heretofore untested weapon slammed into posture along its top; briefly pushing the machine down as it bumped along the soft ground it dominated whilst pushing forwards powered exclusively by the waist jets.

The Emperor's upper torso turned, directing itself towards the hilltop.

And the reactor quieted.

A bright glow emerged.

A bolt of lightning crackled through the air; Thor's fury manifest. Followed by three, additional, but almost instanteous secondary erruptions.

It resembled the emission prior yet not, distinctly different.

Silence did not ring long, as the assault rifle loosened its anger against the hidden foe to his immediate front as the Emperor skid along the surface, kept upright only by the careful planning of this crucial action; destined towards the encroaching smoke plume. His body, effectively balanced on the back of his feet, pushing the soft and viscous dirt down and behind, effectively surfing, mitigating partially the disadvantage of most high-powered energy weapons.

He had left the defensive coverage of Vanguard and Hardpoint as he rushed forward in a nigh-crazed frenzy, emboldened only by the subconscious risk-awareness within his lizard brain and the advanced calculous of his machine mind.

His Emperor- he, the Emperor, had already positioned his assault rifle for a viscious collision between his bayonet and the hidden foe.

All thought about its potential movement were disregarded; even if he missed, he would find himself in an ample position to support his compatriots.

His reactor began to spool again as he entered into the final stretch; sufficiently charged.

It would be now or never, whether the Tank Destroyers could respond in time before he found himself behind their frontline.

His heart beat faster at the anticipation.

His primal behaviour shaded by the royal visage the frame portrayed.

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
Nestled safely deeper inside the facility, in an impromptu command bunker, the field-leader of the Sons of Zeus considered the situation.

Whoever they were, there were several of them; NC's it looked like, and judging by the sounds they made as they walked in his facility and looking to prior experience, they were roughly mid-weight types. Considering the fact his ambush team wasn't responding for the past five minutes, they were certainly armed with plenty of big guns, on top of that. On the one hand, their firepower was obviously overpowering with that in mind, but on the other... His gang still had a certain advantage. This facility, if the archives they found were right, wasn't fully intended for NC's to maneuver in even if it was a workshop for them in the past.

He noted one of his underlings spring up from his field-console, really just a ruggedized laptop that was set on a desk in their slap-dash command bridge. The man perked up, a mix of worriment and resignation in his voice. "Sir, they appear to have stopped in the cargo bay-", when another of his compatriots agreed with the assessment and followed on. "-Wilco, the flaktanks can't confirm visually but I'm still getting infrared reminiscent of an NC. maybe two. Orders, sir?"

The field-lieutenant considered his options, his gloved hand stroking his stubbled chin. Considering the fact they previously thought it was three Neural Combatants showing up, he wondered if they were just decoys or if there actually were more. Was the one, or duo in front of him all there were? And to complicate things further, why are they already grouped up in a single fireteam if there were two? Are they sweeping in teams, implying there were four or more, or are they already going for the killing blow?

He rolled his eyes. Of course it was just two. Three alone would've been complete overkill, he was sure MAVERICK and the New Baltimoreans knew that. It's not like the entirety of the Sons were hiding out in here. Well, anymore. The supplies they scavenged from the facility were already well out the door, or tunnel as it were, alongside a good portion of their personnel. Still, it was worrying they weren't actually investigating the winding passages they should be unfamiliar with. That somehow meant they already had a decent idea where they should be going. He didn't like the sound of that at all.

He went back to the problem at hand, and figured that since the last ambush didn't work... "...Dump flashes and rush in. While they're blinded, confirm positions of weakpoints and attack with extreme prejudice as soon as you're sighted." His underlings nodded, and went to work; the drone-operator inputting new command codes and readying himself for direct control.

With any luck, this would at least slow them down.


The two NC's quietly meandered to the rightwards passage, when all of a sudden another dense burst of static rung out; the same type as before, a barrage of drone command codes. It merely precluded the actual incident when a volley of rockets air-bursted right at the mouth of the tunnel, producing blinding flashes of pure white. The 'Sons of Zeus' definitely had a taste for that trick.

While they were blinded for a precious few seconds, the expected wave of firepower took a moment to reveal itself; instead they first heard the gunning of turbine engines as at least two vehicles came into very close range. That sound of instant braking again, followed shortly by gouts of searing pain as many small rounds impacted sensitive, vulnerable parts on their metal bodies. The Chimera noted damage to its right hip, while the Raijin's head began to be bombarded, its lower posture making it the most attractive target.

The rounds impacted lightly, not being meant for actually piercing heavy armor on their own; but their respectable payload of high-explosive for such small rounds sent physical shock throughout the NC's. Even if they weren't penetrating and doing actual crushing damage, the intense sudden shock of a short few seconds of rapid bombardment was damaging their internal systems. Nothing in particular was notably damaged yet, but it still hurt as if a horde of angry bees was stinging the affected parts.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
"I don't like this," Camille muttered as they ventured deeper into the facility. It was too quiet, which either meant the enemy wasn't here and they were headed in the wrong direction or the enemy was here and was waiting to ambush them. Neither possibility sounded good. "If it looks like a trap, feels like a trap, smells like a trap..."

"I think luring them to the surface would've been the better option," Halliwell commented. "But they're too smart for that. They won't give up their advantage easily."

"Eh, I find crazy beats smart any day," Cammy replied, making small talk as Raijin and Chimera continued down the dark corridors. She occasionally stopped to inspect pieces of machinery and equipment, in an attempt to figure out what this facility used to be. "Problem is, when an insane idea works, they start callin' the crazy people 'smart,'" Cammy added after a pause. "It's all one big circle jerk. Labcoats and straight jackets are made in the same factory, I say."

"Status report," Halliwell said, probably because she was tired of hearing Cammy's radio chatter and this was more diplomatic than telling her to be silent.

"Left engine is clattering like a lawnmower choppin' a sack of hammers," Cammy said nonchalantly. "It's probably gonna throw a turbine blade and shit shrapnel next time I give'r hell... but I don't think I'll be doing that in this fucking cave, so whatever. Gonna let it ride. Other than that, all green."

"Mhm," Halliwell said, bottling her limitless supply of concern and worry into three understated letters as the two NCs arrived in a larger chamber, which appeared to be some kind of storage room or warehouse.

Cammy prowled around, investigating the racks and shelves of machinery. Although this room was considerably larger than the narrow corridor they had emerged from, its ceiling was still annoyingly low. Being an artillery-carrying NC, Raijin couldn't perform well in these conditions. In theory, she could fire an armor-piercing round through nearly anything in this room and hit an enemy on the far side, but the resulting damage and debris trail would make maneuvering through the chamber even more of a chore than it already was. This was one of those rare instances where she had too much firepower.

She and Peyton eventually turned their attention to a pair of diverging corridors on the far end of the room. While they were weighing their options, both NCs picked up the sound of a large vehicle approaching, followed by the screech of heavy brakes.

"Right door it is," Peyton said.

"Big truck. It might be hauling the other gun," Cammy said and immediately began to move forward, toward the doorway, but was cut short by a barrage of rockets which airbursted right in front of her with a blinding white flash. "Shit!" she exclaimed as small arms fire began peppering her NC.

She was no stranger to pain and the mods to Raijin's control scheme somewhat buffered her from it, but the sharp, stinging sensation was still enough to make her pause. It was made worse by the fact that the little fuckers were concentrating fire on her head and she couldn't see them. Cammy barked a string of expletives as her NC reared up onto its hind legs and swiped its gangly arms, attempting to swat them away like the annoying insects they were. She struck something and quickly took hold of what felt like a small crane and wielded it like a club. Its long beam and weighted base felt nearly perfect in her hands as she slammed it down on something and pounded her way toward the corridor.

By the time her vision cleared and she could actually see the door again, she tossed aside the mangled piece of construction equipment as Raijin's right magazine ratcheted over, feeding another FAEB shell into the chamber. But firing it in these cramped confines would, obviously, be a bad idea. So, how about a slightly less bad, but still bad, idea? Raijin reached behind its back as a gate on the side of the cannon opened up. It was meant for clearing a jam, but worked just fine for other purposes. An internal plunger ejected the FAEB shell out the side of the cannon's loading mechanism. It landed neatly in Raijin's claws and the NC rolled it down the right corridor, like a cylindrical bowling ball, before dodging away.

The FAEB's design meant it didn't need high velocity or impact to be effective. It used a timer to release its gas and ignite it, so all she had to do was make sure it traveled far enough away before doing so and anyone in the tunnel was going to get royally fucked. And, since it was incendiary, not a high explosive, it probably wouldn't collapse the tunnel.... probably. On the other hand, the resulting inferno might create a huge backdraft and blow into the chamber where they were.

"Won't find that in the fucking manual," Cammy commented as she maneuvered away from the entryway. She could already hear the flammable gas hissing deep inside and see the white mist.

Remaining ResourcesHE Rounds: 36 | AP Rounds: 25 | FAEB: 8 (-1) | MMHR: 5 | Jet Fuel: 78%

 

[Viper Actual]

Operation Spring Cleaning​

When all hell broke loose Peyton and, by extent, her NC, moved for cover which in this case would be a small incline inside the concrete and mortar wall. Still, even while inside her "cover" most of her NC remained exposed and flashing alarms alerted her to damage caused to the right hip. Cursing, Jennifer fired off several bursts into the general direction of the enemy as her NC's systems attempted to maintain a relative stabilized footing while at the same time trying to pinpoint the exact location of the enemies.

"Fall back! Fall back!" Yelled Peyton as the enemy weapons fire remained focused and intense. Seeing Cammy use some random piece of construction equipment in her favor inspired Peyton to do something similar. A busted-down eight-wheel flatbed truck parked next to the wall fell victim to her as she quite literally snatched the flatbed off of the main vehicle using her free hand. The metallic plate was then angled to serve as an improvised shield covering the more exposed right side of Peyton's NC.

When Cammy hurled one of her FAEBs Peyton widened her eyes. "Is that..."

Alice cursed over the comms. "Jennifer! Move!"

Won't need to tell me twice.

With Cammy on the move Peyton side-stepped into the open to cover her retreat. Dog-sized brass casings accompanied the sound of her SMG firing, completely overruling the otherwise loud metallic noise of the NC's steps as it slowly moved backwards.

Then, as she was far away and near cover, Peyton tried to make herself as small as possible as the explosion was set to happen any second.

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
As the Emperor rushed forwards, firing off a lance of lightning at the tank on top of the hill which exploded vigorously on impact, the tank-in-smoke receded, trying to get away from the berserker of an opponent. The two seniors on the field discussed things privately, watching the rookies continue on.

The pilot of the Senbazuru stated the obvious. "That one has issues.", which the Linker in the Dreadnought agreed with. "No shit. All their files have something funny in 'em. That Adam in the Vanguard is handicapped, and the girl in the Hardpoint, Hazel, got a bomb exploded in her face, so she has a thing about the scars."

The lady in the Senbazuru looked over to the other NC. "So that's why he isn't flying. Too impressed he can walk." at that, the Dreadnought shrugged. "More than likely. I still find him interesting. He seems like a hard worker, and he keeps landing hits. Which is funny, he doesn't seem to be consciously doing that.", finishing with a little chuckle.

The lady smirked. "Reminds you of somebody?". The man didn't dignify that with an answer. She kept on talking, though, finding something else to discuss. "I like Hazel. Team-spirit. Good student."

Dreadnought got reminded of something. "Speaking of, did you get any information on when Corbin would show up?", adding "Did he bail?" with hope.
The smaller NC mimed a shaking of the head, each of its four eyes taking turns on re-calibrating to ambient light levels as the morning sun slowly rose. "Your guess is mine. Director maybe knows."

As they looked back to the action, they caught sight of the Emperor rushing into the receding smoke, bayonet at the ready to stab into whatever he found in there. A loud impact confirmed that he dug deep into something metallic; and some nasty noises afterwards suggested it was a quick, dirty kill.

The First-Rate Linker commented on the attitude of that rookie again. "He has more screws in his head than the NC does in its body, and every single one of them is loose."

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
As the two NC's reacted to the situation, with the Chimera providing covering fire for the Raijin to throw a thermobaric warhead into the hallway as an impromptu grenade, the automated flak-tanks continued to try and suppress the two with a barrage of high-explosive rounds, slowly receding back into the tunnel. With one drone's main camera being impacted, its fire was halted for a few moments as it switched to a backup. The drone operator hardly noticed the rolling cylinder that came after due to the sudden change, until it was far too late; having only a second to tell the other to look at the object for identification before it started dispersing gas.

The small ignition that came after was followed by a compressed inferno, the flames finding weakpoints through the thin armor plating of the anti-air use AFV's and the explosion itself crushing it besides. The heat utterly baked their electronics, and the previously damaged tank's ammo exploded; further wrecking its electronic brain as its companion died similarly.

The NC's were fine; the Raijin finding cover to the side of the tunnel as it vomitted forth hell, and the Chimera's sacrificial flatbed panel finding itself to be a worthy sacrifice to the god of battle, melting slightly in her hands.

The Sons of Zeus
"Sir! The tanks aren't responding, what should we do?!"

The situation kept getting worse and worse for the field commander. Great, at least the one of them is a smart-ass, too. That likely meant neither of them were complete idiots so all the basic tricks he had at hand wouldn't work. Time to go straight for the 'retreat-in-force' plan, there was no sense in wasting more material. "Situation's hopeless. Set the artillery to automatic and tell all remaining personnel to retreat through the tunnel.", and he signaled for the crew to pack up. He inquired if a part of the facility was still operational, and after a confirmation he gave his order. "Destroy everything replaceable and leave. I have something to say to these Linkers. If I'm not with you in three minutes, detonate the charges and get on without me."

As his henchmen quickly grabbed field-terminals and in one case blasted at a hard-drive with a revolver, he let them begin to evacuate before he started tapping his fingers on the table in front of him.


As the embers of the remotely controlled flak-tanks went on and on, the facility went quiet for a few moments. Nothing greeted them but the light glow and thumps of crackling munitions occasionally going off, and the continued brilliance of a deep flame illuminating the dark corridors. The eerie scene lasted only a few moments before an ancient device activated, the halls being filled with another sound; an intercom system coming back to life for the first time in over a century.

A voice took a while to reveal itself, before it did. It was of a middle-aged man, gruff but reserved; professional. "Exemplary performance so far, but you're wasting your time-", he said first, letting them note his formless presence before continuing. "-I know the real reason you're here is because of that attack we were planning. Well, the main cannon we were hoping to use is up top; you missed it on your way in."

"It's currently rising from a loading gantry we found for this facility, and as soon as it's brought up to the surface it'll automatically fire off a few ranging shots, calibrate its firing solutions, then keep shelling the Denver-Vegas HQ until its magazine is empty. You have about a minute to get back outside and watch it start getting rid of some 'Corporate' parasites."

The distant whine of hydraulics moving something into position went well with his claim, apparently suggesting one of the pre-war structures up top was a cargo loader of some kind they overlooked.

"The clock is ticking. I hope the choice isn't too difficult. Goodbye."

And with that, the man stopped talking and the halls were quiet again; besides the whine of distant actuators coming from outside.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
"You said these guys were professionals, right?" Cammy said after the voice, presumably the enemy's leader, finished speaking. "Professionals don't waste words on people who are wasting their fucking time. It's bullshit. I think he's hurtin' bad and wants us to turn back."

She didn't hesitate. Before she finished talking, Raijin had already began to gallop down the corridor where the tanks had emerged from, using its conventional thrusters for extra speed. The jet engines were hurt bad, too, so she neede to save them for a last hail mary. Not to mention they were just too damn powerful for these narrow halls anyway.

"I'm gonna call this guy's bluff," Cammy said as she disappeared down the hall, where the embers still glowed, picking up speed as she went, barreling through obstacles, and scraping the walls every time there was a bend in the tunnel. "In case I'm wrong, it might be best for one of us to try to get topside. Or you can follow me and put all our eggs in one fucked basket."

If what he said was true, it seemed unlikely either of them could reach the surface before the shooting started, but at least Chimera could make him pay for what he was about to do. Or, if she was right, she'd find the cargo lift and annihilate it before the big gun could reach the surface or rocket up it as far as the jet engines could carry her.

Or she was wrong on both counts and was running headfirst into a trap.

They don't call me Kamikaze for nothing, Camille thought.

Remaining ResourcesHE Rounds: 36 | AP Rounds: 25 | FAEB: 8 | MMHR: 5 | Jet Fuel: 76%

 

[SkyHawk MK III]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
Hazel watched as the drone fled the combat area, seemingly panicking, while Vanguard downed another. The last drone had decided to retreat behind the hill where the rest of the wave originated from. It was strange at first, the vehicle that the drone passed by had covered itself and the areal drone in smoke, obviously to protect itself and it's flying counterpart. Though what had surprised her the most was that one of the tank destroyers had perched on top of the hill it had recently come up from, while the other had decided to push forward. One covering the other Hazel thought

The little daydream analysis that she was enveloped in ended quickly as one of the tank destroyers had taken a shot at her left leg, grazing it. Luckily the armor had saved anything important in the leg, however the leg ended up crippling for a few seconds leaving her on one knee and immobile for a more than a few seconds, followed by a few mental profanities before speaking over communications "Hardpoint here, leg just locked up, giving it a few seconds for re-calibration and-" Hazel stopped halfway, her sensors relaying back that Emperor was pushing forward unusually quickly without word or hesitation "Emperor what the fuck at you doing? Get your damn metal ass back here."

It was already too late though, her words fell on deaf ears, as she watched the Emperor battling one and one against the tanks. Watching as the tanks dwindled on her sensors, the Emperor himself was taken care of them all it seemed. Within those seconds of combat, Hardpoint finally re-calibrated the leg and Hazel ordered it to stand up once again returning to her full height. Looking to Vanguard for a split second, Hazel turned her attention towards Emperor, watching as the anger fulled NC continued it's vengeance for anything metallic in it's wake. "Jesus fucking christ..." Were that Hazel could mutter as she watched on.

 

[Viper Actual]

Operation Spring Cleaning
​

Peyton gritted her teeth as the tunnel was engulfed in flames. Once again her cameras and viewport windows darkened themselves to reduce the overall blinding effect of the oncoming barrage of fire and flames. With narrowed eyes she could see the flatbed's edges grow dull as the metal melted slightly while still in her NC's grip.
When the flames died down Jennifer attempted to scan the area ahead of them to make sure that there were no further hostiles when the intercom system suddenly came to life. The opposing leader's words were less than comforting though as Cammy spoke Peyton nodded slowly. "I'm feeling inclined to agree. Sounds like he's trying to buy himself time."

Jennifer holstered her SMG and, as she spoke, her NC began to take off in a quick sprint. "I'll circle around. Let me know what you find, Cammy."

As she ran Peyton sent out a pulse through her E-war systems. It was meant to disturb enemy electronics in any way possible. At best it'd maybe give her and Cammy some valuable seconds to act but at this rate anything and everything was a chance and a risk- something Peyton disliked incredibly much.

Let's hope it's not too late.

 

[YsFanatic]

Operation 1A: Second Wave
While Adam was pleased at how well his armor had held up, the sudden unexpected pain caused him to gasp and his vision flicker for a moment before he regained his concentration and fully linked with the NC again. When his vision cleared, Adam couldn't help but sputter in disbelief at not only Emperor's reckless charge, but the fact that it seemed to be working as he annihilated one of the tanks at range before rushing into the smoke to kill a second one. With only one of the tanks in the field it seemed like a good idea to switch tactics and surround the vehicle, hopefully ensuring that at least one of them could shoot it in the back no matter what happened. If the helicopter came back too early that could be bad, but that was a risk he was willing to take.

"Moving to flank the last tank."

Hoping the other two remembered his earlier warning about the jammer's energy usage affecting the Vanguard's mobility, he disabled the device in preparation to use the NC's most unique feature. The vents on its legs were soon blasting out powerful streams of air towards the ground as the primary thrusters activated, kicking up a cloud of dirt and debris that could make it difficult to see exactly was going on. Or at least that was the case until the Vanguard emerged, the cushion of air generated by the specialized vents keeping it just barely off the ground while its thrusters pushed forward at increasing speeds, the NC's legs spread wide for better balance. Moving at an angle to the right of the enemy target, Adam sought to move just past the tank destroyer, putting it in the middle of a deadly triangle formed by him, Emperor, and Hardpoint.

Rather than attempting any fancy maneuvers like changing the direction he was facing while still gliding, something that had caused him to fall over more than once in the simulator, Adam elected for something a bit simpler but still risky. Instead he reduced power to the thrusters and vents before completely disabling them once he had started to slow down. This resulted in the Vanguard's large feet digging up swaths of dirt as it slid a short distance before stopping with only a single stumbling step at the end to betray the fact that Adam had come close to losing his balance. While other Linkers might have been able to do that move with no balance issues, he was pleased to only need a single step to regain his balance instead of several or just outright falling on his face.

While he knew that he was pushing his generator to its limits for a longer period than was likely advised, Adam reactivated his jammer anyway before turning the Vanguard to its left so he could get a line of sight on the last tank drone. As soon as he spotted the thing the Vanguard raised its rifle and opened fire.

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1A: Second WaveAs the Vanguard skidded into position, firing a burst of anti-tank shells at the exposed side of its enemy, the Emperor at the other end of the hill escaped from the smoke as it launched away debris from its bayonet. Flicking away the remnants of a Tank Destroyer's solid casemate, the metallic remainder crumpled under its weight as the Emperor launched ever forwards, the red glare of its sensor slyly maneuvering to the final target; the helicopter that retreated to regenerate.

The Emperor stopped, and unfolded its cannon as the helicopter went back into combat mode; the heavy armament returning a 'READY' signal and being fired immediately after. The artillery shell, meant for ships or structures, found the lightly ascending target an insultingly easy mark. It quite nearly over-penetrated the entirety of the drone, crushing through the innards before exploding after it exited the other end. Now pushed back, the helicopter impacted the ground and its pieces flew apart on impact, fuel igniting to create a bonfire of silicon and steel.

The Vanguard was similarly met with an electronic death, the weak side armor of its target being turned to swiss cheese with an accurate three-round burst, sweeping over the hull like a lathe. The sudden, quiet death of the Tank Destroyer was only met with the lowering whine of the Vanguard's hover-system recuperating pressure for later.

No other targets were visible.

Operation 1A: Test Complete
The two Observers discussed things in private for the last time today as the test concluded. Miss Yoko was the first to note their overall efficiency. "They seem alright. Didn't see major issues. Did you?", which Dilan didn't disagree. "Sure, besides the complete lack of experience and practical understanding, which I suppose is to be expected. They all greatly relied on their NC's overpowering nature...", his voice trailing off as he realized what he just said.

The Senbazuru's Linker chuckled a single word, "Hypocrite...", before she offered her two cents. "...Usually takes a while, before they figure out skate-slides. I don't like how they had so little team-work, though they kept trying. But, individual performance? Good... Enough." The Dreadnought shrugged again, resetting its posture as the pilot commanded it to prepare for marching. "Yeah, not the worst I've seen. They're all good shots, I'll give 'em that."

Switching their communication settings, the two senior Linkers went back to speaking publicly. The Director beat them though, confirming the situation. "It appears the test is complete.", with another sound of something akin to a mechanical switchboard clacking out from the line before he continued. "Allow me to review all the data. Please, take the time to discuss things with your Observers.", and with that he went back to being quiet.

Taking the opportunity, the Senbazuru began speaking. "That was a good performance. You all have things to learn but this baseline is sound. Biggest issue you all share, movement. Too much, too little; need to be steadier. Generally?" The Dreadnought started walking, still finding time to offer something. "I'd agree with that assessment. General performance is fine. I've got nothin' to say on that.", before he took the time to scan the three. "I might have work available for you lot in the future. I don't think it'd be prudent to test any of you myself today, so I'll be taking my leave unless you have any questions."


Operation 1B: Spring CleaningThe two NC's splitting up, both rushed through the ancient corridors of the facility; one sprinting ever deeper, the other rushing outwards at a quickening pace. "A minute-", that man said; before it starts shelling innocents. But what did he mean by 'corporate parasites'; when the contract suggested a ransom against the city itself? No matter what, plenty of people were going to die if they couldn't destroy that thing in time.

The Raijin rushed through, scraping against the curving walls and in one case the ceiling; brushing past it with sparks flying as it opened back up to a slightly more comfortable height. Suddenly, an explosion rung out from elsewhere even deeper in the facility, as the NC turned a corner and saw rubble collapsing further in directly forwards. Skidding to a stop, there was still the unmistakable whine of actuators moving that thing into place; the strongest it was ever. Looking around, she was in another large room, another cargo area; a loading facility, it looked like.

There, in one corner, was a platform where the sound was originating; pistons extending themselves with haste to lift something. One break in the structure confirmed there was a weapon of some kind, a large barrel poking through for a split second before most of it was now just past into the ceiling, the bottom of the gantry quickly becoming the new topside.

The pistons though, were still plainly visible.

Meanwhile...
Rushing outwards, Peyton found herself climbing up the cliff-side with the help of her thrusters; gazing at the various semi-hidden structures that were barely apparent when they came in. One, half-covered in sand, was ever so slightly visibly rumbling, a strong noise emanating from it. Bingo. As soon as it was identified, the two doors that made up each half slowly slid sideways; the entire assembly start-stopping from a combination of age and that pulse that must've hit something important earlier.

As soon as it was up, it'd start firing.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
Raijin charged recklessly through the winding corridors of the facility. This game was quickly becoming less like cat-and-mouse and more bull-and-china-shop as its heavy metal "paws" pounded rock and steel with each thunderous step, guided only by the distant sound of what she hoped was a hydraulic lift to the surface. It was getting louder, right? Closer, right? She silently prayed she hadn't chosen wrong. Prayed she wasn't too late. Prayed her NC didn't let her down when it mattered most.

They always did. Her love affair with machines wasn't without its fair share of nasty breakups --or breakdowns, rather. In the end, they always let you down, usually right when you need 'em the most. They shit the bed, right when you think you can trust 'em. Machines are a lot like people, in that way. But, unlike people, they can change. They can be fixed, rebuilt, reworked, improved upon....

That thought lodged itself firmly in Cammy's mind as she shoved the throttles forward, ignoring the horrible clattering sound coming form Raijin's left nacelle. The high-pitched whine of the jet turbines was overpowered by what could best be described as a symphony of jackhammers. The afterburners kicked in, shoving Raijin to the left and literally dragging one side of its body along the wall, spitting a clear white flame from the right engine and a sputtering, orange inferno from the left, along with a shower of sparks.

"Camille..." Halliwell warned, in the tone of a disapproving school teacher.

"Doesn't need to last. Just needs to get me there," Cammy hissed through gritted teeth as she pulled the rattling controls hard starboard. "I'm close! I can feel it."

Raijin skidded into an open chamber, spinning out of control. She throttled down enough to get her bearings and spied her prize: a lift, the first moving thing she'd seen in this facility since roasting those tank drones. The absence of any further obstacles suggested the enemy was likely in full retreat by now. "Found it!" Cammy exclaimed as she guided her NC to the elevator shaft just in time to catch a glimpse of its payload as it ascended out of view. It reached the top of its stroke, guided by a hydraulic ram at each corner and a geared mechanism that ratcheted into position like a deadbolt lock to hold it there. She had dealt with enough of these in other pre-Disaster military-industrial sites to know how fucking useless it would be to try to bring it down with brute force.

"Chimera, I'm sending you the coordinates," Halliwell said, seemingly detecting Cammy's hesitation. She may not have intimate knowledge of pre-Disaster engineering, but she knew how to read her Linker. "Raijin, get out of there."

"No, wait.. just..." She loaded two AP rounds and fired up, before quickly dodging back to avoid the fallout. Even before the dust cleared, she could tell she'd done virtually nothing. Those lifts and the doors above them survived the Disaster for a reason. "Shit!" Cammy exclaimed. And, as if on queue, a distant explosion emanated from somewhere within the facility. "Fucking shit!" she said as she began to contemplate the lift's control panel. Maybe there was another way...

"You can't shoot through it," Halliwell said. "Get out, Camille, while you still have a functioning NC.

Remaining ResourcesHE Rounds: 36 | AP Rounds: 23 (-2) | FAEB: 8 | MMHR: 5 | Jet Fuel: 62%

 

[Viper Actual]

Operation Spring Cleaning
​

Double-timing it back through the base didn't go as fast Jennifer hoped it would. By the time she had jumped, used her thrusters and leaped to left, right, up and down she estimated that some very valuable seconds had already been chipped off of the timer. As she scanned the area in front of her the onboard sensors attempted to identify and mark as many structures as possible. Most of the marked structures were vent exhausts, top-side evacuation hatches and other technical gizmos currently inactive and shielded by metal doors.

Then came the rumbling. Even without her advanced sensors Peyton would have been able to see it; sand vibrating and parting way for the hatch that was slowly opening itself. Luckily for her the quick burst she had sent out seconds earlier seemed to have caused something to either malfunction or, at the very least, stop momentarily.

"Chimera, I'm sending you the coordinates."

Peyton nodded as Alice confirmed the data being forwarded in the background. "I see it. Eyes on the prize."

Dropping the half-melted truck flatbed in its hand Peyton's NC steadied itself, took a knee and grabbed hold of its massive sniper rifle. Slow and methodical the rifle magazine was ejected and stowed inside a low-profile synthweave pocket. The round that was currently chambered was promptly ejected as the bolt was manually pulled back, its spear-like shape falling down onto the ground. By the time the bullet was neatly packed by the sand below the NC was loading a fresh magazine.

Peyton narrowed her eyes as her mechanical extension chambered a powerful high-explosive sabot round to replace the previously loaded armor-piercing projectiles. With a loud CLINK the rifle was successfully chambered and the NC shouldered the weapon in a manner eerily similar to a Human marksman.

At this point her sensors had switched to a IR-mode, marking outlines of the hatch and its partially concealed weapon with distinct yellow and red outlines.

Jennifer found herself taking a deep breath. She hadn't been behind a long-gun in years yet the instincts were still there. Everything but the sound of her slow-pounding heartbeat ceased to exist. Silence surrounded her on all fronts.

Take the shot.

Peyton exhaled just as one of the mechanical fingers on the outside reached the pressure-point on the trigger, pulling it.

 

[SkyHawk MK III]

Operation 1A: Test Complete
It was over, finally. Hazel had expected more than just a couple of waves to be tested against, though she wasn't complaining. Reflecting back onto the last few movements of the test, she kicked herself for just standing there and not getting into the air like Miss Yoko advised. Hazel was way too hooked up on watching the Emperor instead of focusing on what was in front of her. A mental sigh took over, as she thought back over the entire test. It wasn't bad so to speak, could've been better at the start. They were more or less a 'team' at the end of it, which seemed to count for something though they were far from perfect.

What got to her as she looked back on the test, was Emperor disregarding the plan that they had put in place. He hadn't disagreed with it, so it was definitely out of character for someone who appeared to be professional and intelligent to turn into a blood thirsty pilot in a click of a finger. Mulling it over, she put it down to Malthus most likely wanting to 'show off' his student to the observers, though she'd had to confront Strebuen personally to confirm her suspicions.

Adam wasn't a bad teammate either, seemed good for missions where two or more NC's were needed, though probably not the best walking around on his own, like Hazel herself. At least Adam could stick to the plan instead of rushing around like a maniac at the last possible second. Then it struck her, two waves only for the test and Sterebuen chose the last possible second to show off what he could do in melee range. It couldn't be a coincidence could it? Another reason for his actions? Hazel shook herself of the thought; No it wouldn't be like that, no one could guess how many waves they'd be unless they were involved in the design of the test.

Breaking her train of thought to respond to the chatter over comms, Hazel chose her words carefully "This is Hardpoint, thanks for observing during the test, Dreadnaught, Senbazuru and Director. Hope we didn't bugger up too much." Hazel smiled, as if she was talking to them face to face. "And thanks for the advice in future endeavors. I'll be talking to the other two about it back at base, specifically the test. I'd appreciate any job offers heading our way, I'd like to meet on similar grounds at some point in the future, minus the test part." With that, Hazel went quiet again, waiting for chatter to fill the empty void.

 

[YsFanatic]

Operation 1A: Test Complete
With the test over, Adam turned off the jammer to reduce strain on his generator while he surveyed the aftermath of the battle. He hadn't expected the hover system to kick up that much dust which made him wonder if he could perhaps use it to generate temporary cover in the correct terrain. Any further thoughts were interrupted by the Observers speaking up, but that didn't bother Adam as he knew that he could simply review the footage from his NC later on. Plus he felt that the topic of movement that Senbazuru brought up was especially relevant to him.

"Vanguard here, I do have a question. You mentioned that our mobility needed work. My NC isn't well suited for flight, so I was wondering if you have any advice on how to compensate for that?"

Regardless of what their response was going to be, Adam was overall pleased with how things had gone down with the test. Despite the issues that the more experienced Linkers had pointed out, it sounded like they had done well enough to possibly get special job offers later on and that alone had made this test completely worth it. He wondered it perhaps it would be a good idea for the three of them to do some joint training together just in case any of those possible jobs would allow them to work together again. If nothing else it would be good practice to help them get used to working with other Linkers in the field.

 

[Malphaestus]

Operation 1A: Test Complete
FREDRICH-ALEXANDER VON STREUBEN
To some's surprise, he also responds to "Tower-Upright."

~~~~

The moment he felt the round of his cannon loose from his shoulder, ripping through the innards of the advanced combat drone and exiting through the opposite end only to explode visciously, sending a mighty shock across his entire frame, he felt his hands begin to shake visciously. A strange sense of excitement and adrenaline had filled his system so much that he had to open his eyes to observe. The entirely black interior of his piloting sarcophagi produced a strange backdrop for his hands as he looked directly at them. The suppressed sensations of the two waves prior making their toll obvious on his body.

He was tired, and no wonder that when he had behaved as he did. It was all so very strange, he thought, as he took a moment to breath, only to close his eyes again and mold into the machine's instruments. Though with Streuben's focus on his body more apparent, his movements became sluggish as he began to walk his NC to Hardpoint for re-grouping. Whilst enroute, Senbazuru and Dreadnoughts words blared over the network as they adressed their performance.

Too confused with himself, the only thing he could ordain them with was a smirk that no one but himself could possibly be aware of as he listened in. But their speech, with each new syllable, an even greater sense of irritation rose across his mind.

There were issues?

Everyone had performed above what could be expected from them with what little forewarning there had been. Not to mention the fact that no plan survives first contact; their decision to liquidate the strategy had produced success.

His mind raced, but thankfully for everyone, he caught himself in his thoughts.

Thoughts stopped, and the only thing was silence and instinct.

Nodding towards the Dreadnought, then to the Senbazuru, he chose to remain silent.

He opened his eyes and instinctually tried to reach for his pocket and deal with his cards. But he was met with the realization that he was, in fact, in his piloting gear.

Dumbfounded, his eyes glued down his torso where his cards should be. Sighing, he opened his mouth over the private Handler channel with Malthus and asked:

"How good were we really?"

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1A: Test Complete
Miss Yoko greatly enjoyed the two pilots' reverent and inquisitive tones, and elaborated on her advice. "Student Vanguard, you evidently presume a distinction where there is none. Hovering and walking and flying, all are just methods of movement-" She finished, just as she suddenly jumped towards the Vanguard's position. A short hop, landing on her feet and instantly switching to a brisk, walking pace, her NC's shoulder-armor maneuvering out of the way to reveal the NC's arms outstretched, conveying her point by following through with the machine's movements, miming a fencing position when she stops a dozen paces from his position. "-Don't 'switch between' them-", as she spins around, returning to her closed-off, armored configuration, raising her voice for the first time they've heard. "-They are all components of the same dance!"

The Dreadnought walked along, the displeasure at the display evident in the Linker's voice. "Was the demonstration really necessary?", before finding a ruined tank and kicking it over, resting a foot on it. "Well, I'm still inclined to agree.", as the tank crumpled underneath his machine's weight. "I've read your file so I know why you're moving like that, but it'll get you killed if you don't get used to your NC. So you'd best start using more of your NC at once. It's nothing you can fix with one talking to, you'll just have to lean into it." The Dreadnought sweeping over to the Hardpoint then, its two sensors glowing a dim blue in the young sun.

"Back to business, and speaking of meeting on the battlefield... There's some unspoken rules between Linkers, so you lot better listen up! You already know about the name thing, so I'll get down to something actually important!", as he began to resemble his file more; his authoritarian tone coming out. "Linkers fight, and sometimes they fight each-other! You're gonna have to fight other Linkers, but they're still fellow Linkers, and that means they're co-workers, brothers-in-arms. You treat your fellows with respect, even if you hate them with every fiber of your being!" His voice bringing to mind the stern iron-eyed captain of a wooden galley from long ago.

"War is war, and people die, but you don't disrespect an enemy that fought with bravery. There's a difference between your right to loot something from an opponent you fought fair-and-square and grave-robbing... Between kicking them while they're down, and making sure they're down. Do I make myself clear?"

Meanwhile...
"Well," Malthus started, evidently opening up something on his end. A quick gulp, and apparently wiping-of-the-mouth, before he resumed. "You're definitely fucking crazy, which is good for me! It means we're not gonna be co-workers for long, more than likely." Another gulp of something, before he figured he might as well give actual review. "...That slide trick was fine, I won't deny that. But these weren't even that hard of targets. We'll have to see what happens when you fight another NC. It always comes, sooner or later. Might be your last battle at this rate, I can't tell."

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
Perhaps thirty seconds have passed.

The hatch was halfway open, as the gantry went to about four-fifths the way up; when the Chimera fired its rifle, a high-explosive sabot. The round impacted something and exploded with a modest charge, spreading force and debris everywhere in the constrained gantry. One shot wasn't enough, as the cannon revealed its full form; an armored type, an all-encompassing turret apparently lifted from some ancient siege. A large gunshield-mantlet protected the base of the heavy barrel, the entire thing further bolstered by random pieces of bolted or welded on applique.

The gantry stopped, and the cannon's barrel was merely, barely peeking out of the hatch; aiming upwards, as the cannon's simplistic combat computer verified its directives and calculated what to do now. Its systems frazzled by that previous burst of concentrated interference, it was set back to a default mode. And the default mode of almost any war-machine was waiting for orders; and until then, protect itself.

That meant there was a new problem.

The wide-bore, long-barrel artillery piece maneuvered its aim towards the Chimera, immediately identifying that it didn't recognize the IFF. A split-second later, and it fired a three-hundred millimeter high-explosive round directly into the NC's torso. Impacting the underside of the units' chest, it exploded instantaneously with a crushing force that reverberated throughout the entire unit; the blunt, aimless explosive blast propelling the NC ass-over-end in an impromptu somersault, careening through the air like a discarded shell casing.

The Chimera landed prone with a resounding thud, alive, with serious injuries across-the-board as the diagnostics screeched in Peyton's ear that almost every system needed at least minor re-calibration to continue functioning, followed by the Chimera's primary coolant pipe notifying her that it was severed and sealing itself off. Already feeling a sensation of heat from her back, with her hands half-working, she would notice her rifle flew from her grip sometime during the unscheduled flight. Shortly thereafter, another sound of an impact rung out and confirmed it landed in the ravine behind her.

Thankfully, with the height and angle the cannon was stuck at, she was now well-away from its practical line of direct-fire. On the other hand, it was already switching to a different attack method, slowly pointing its muzzle upwards like a mortar.

 

[Malphaestus]

Operation 1A: Test Complete
FREDRICH-ALEXANDER VON STREUBEN
To some's surprise, he also responds to "Tower-Upright."

~~~~

Streuben's metal gaze eyed the Senbazuru's strange movements, her portrayal obvious but silly in his own eyes. An odd overlay for the surprisingly reasonable dialogue produced from Malthus' albeit lacking conversational etiquette. Though, even so, it had managed to calm him down. His heart beat at reasonable paces, and the excitement of his first true sortie with the Emperor had lessened. He gripped his now still arms and crossed them tightly around his chest within his cockpit, now listening to the Dreadnought speaking his supposed wisdom.

He would agree with much of what he was saying were it not for the inadvertent hypocrisy riddled throughout. Respect? Give and receive, it was no secret that Linker culture was subsumed in elitism. And it was no secret now, Dreadnought preaching and dominating the flows of converse for all eyes to see, that he payed the Emperor no time of his own for its deserved praise. The test had been no baptism of fire by any measure, but that does not discount theirs, and his, achievements in it.

His displeasure hidden by his outwardly respectful gaze in the Dreadnought's perched seat atop the hill and the wreck it memorialized.

The solipsistic introspection ended hastily thereafter, catching himself in his train of thought.

A needed rest perhaps, to put his mind where it should be, would be all he needed.

 

[AnonyMouse]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
As Raijin's optical sensors zeroed in on the relatively tiny computer screen of the lift's control panel, Cammy realized she had never actually seen one of these in working order before. She had encountered plenty of them while spelunking in ancient pre-Disaster industrial complexes deep underground, but they were always covered in dust and mold or smashed apart by the poor souls trapped inside when these doors shut eons ago. Speaking of the doors, she had never seen someone successfully blast them open, though she'd witnessed lots of failed attempts.

Then again, she'd never seen a scavenger use an NC, so... first time for everything, right?

A sudden overhead blast rocked the elevator shaft. That can't be what I think it was...

"What the fuck!? It hasn't been a minute yet," Cammy screeched.

"It fired on Peyton," Halliwell said, with palpable concern in her tone. "Direct hit. Chimera is down."

"Damn..." Cammy said sadly. "I kind of liked her."

"She's not dead, you idiot!" Halliwell said, losing her cool for teh briefest of moments before composing herself and continuing. "But she and a lot of other people will be if you don't-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Raijin punched the control panel, smashing it into a million shards of glass, metal, and silicon as its cannons whirred to life. "Do what I do best: Wreck shit."

Ignoring the burning sensation on her left side, she piloted Raijin into the shaft, braced its forepaws against the wall, and reared onto its hind legs, aiming up at the ceiling directly above her. Its claws sank into the solid concrete, digging in like the vines of an old tree. She wasn't sure how much a solid footing would help penetrate the nuke-proof military-grade casement above her head, but every little bit helped. During this mission, she had mostly been firing while running, sometimes at top speed. Now it was time to see what this thing could really do.

The first shot rang out with all the fanfare expected when firing high-velocity, armor-piercing, bunker busting artillery shells in a fucking elevator shaft. The second shot exploded from her muzzle before the first could stop echoing. And then came the third and the fourth and the....

"I'm not stopping until this fucking thing comes down," Cammy said as she repeatedly mashed the triggers, ignoring the voice in her head telling her how expensive these rounds are. Clouds of dust and chunks of concrete and rebar rained down around her.

"Don't overheat the guns. You'll warp the barrel," Halliwell warned.

Did you read that on a fucking Wiki page? Cammy thought, ignoring her warning as she fired as fast as the loaders could dump the spent casings and shove the next shell into the chamber. Warp the barrel... who gives a shit? The target was so damn close, she couldn't miss, even if her gunbarrels turned to pretzels.

Meanwhile, her NC's timer was telling her a minute was nearly up. She needed to punch through now or never.

Remaining ResourcesHE Rounds: 36 | AP Rounds: ?? | FAEB: 8 | MMHR: 5 | Jet Fuel: 26% (engine fire)

 

[Viper Actual]

Operation Spring Cleaning
​

Peyton blinked twice and gritted her teeth as the shock from the blast kicked in. Beyond the absolutely horrible splitting headache and a slight overall numbness going through her body she felt as fine as she could possibly be in a situation like this. Her rifle was long gone by now and there wouldn't be any use in attacking the armored turret with an SMG.

As the muzzle of the cannon rotated upwards and readied itself to fire Peyton had another brilliant idea. If only Cammy could see what I'm about to do.

Despite the millions of protests from her onboard systems Peyton forced her NC to get up and start moving. At first it was quite wobbly, almost akin to the movement of drunkard moments before collapsing. But if it was something Peyton knew it was that she couldn't stop or hesitate and as wobbly as it might be the NC was, after all, moving quite fast. As she advanced on the turret Peyton scooped up both the discarded sabot round still lying in the sand as well as the piece of the flatbed truck.

By now her momentum was gaining and her machine extension was entering a steady jog while also zigzagging towards its prize.

Upon reaching the turret Peyton entered a sort of semi-crouched position. She began to physically look for any opening she could find, settling for a tiny slit between two homemade armor plates. Using her left hand Peyton placed the sabot tip-down inside the slit, effectively lodging it in place.

Then, much to Alice's surprise, she grabbed hold of the flatbed like a bat and swung it downwards towards the projectile in an attempt to ignite its gunpowder and sent the projectile into the turret.

 

[Windsock]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
While Raijin's cannons were pointed upwards and dispensing their wroth justice at their target from underneath, the Chimera's stumbling motion confused the dim combat computer in the cannon. A round of the Raijin's artillery finally penetrated through the floor of its gantry, ending up near the guns' turret ring and damaging it directly. The sudden shock stopped the cannon completely in its tracks, giving time for the Chimera to run right up to the bastard and stab an explosive round into it like an icepick. Using the remains of the flatbed truck for the last time, she struck it downwards in the manner of a hammer and the round ignited; bursting deeper into the ammo racks before it detonated itself, and the rest of the contents, in kind.

Another large explosion, thankfully dampened by the cannon's additional armor taking the brunt of the force and turning to shrapnel, the Chimera was blasted backwards a second time, far more lightly and managing to stay upright on the ground this time. The cannon was now just another smoldering wreck: the morning sun shining brightly on the field of debris, and the rest of the visible portions of the facility. Glints of metal in the dirt and weak patches of grass shone throughout, contrasting against the dark interior of the structure they represented. As quiet as a grave, that meant the mission was complete; or as much as it could be, considering the circumstances.

The apparent leader of the 'Sons of Zeus', or just the field commander of this portion, was likely long gone by now; along with the vast majority of his forces. Intelligence suggested two cannons, and they took out two cannons; even if the particulars were wrong. Apparently, a lot of the intelligence provided for this information was wrong, or perhaps better described as incomplete. And since the forces Peyton were familiar with were the type to never retreat, what did it mean that they just did so, running at the first sign of trouble?

What did any of this mean?

 

[AnonyMouse]

Operation 1B: Spring Cleaning
The rhythmic thumping of artillery shots pounding concrete was interrupted by a larger explosion, accompanied by a falling shower of stone and metal. Raijin sprang out of the way as debris came crashing down. Chunks of rock the size of small cars slammed into the ground where she'd been. Cammy's first thought was that she'd broken through --and she almost certainly had-- but the sound wasn't quite right, as if a secondary explosion echoed her own.

"What was that? Talk to me, Ell," she said, stepping back so Raijin's glowing cannons take a breather while she stared up at the hazy early morning light shining through the hole she'd made.

"Confirmed hit," Halliwell said. "Second gun is down."

"Sweeeeeet! Score one for Team Thunderpussy," Cammy said. Raijin's thrusters flared to life, lifting the battle-scarred NC into the air. It began to slowly ascend until it reached the hole in the ceiling, which was just a little too narrow to squeeze through. "I'll take that dump truck full of cash now. Small bills, please. I'ma empty it in a swimming pool and backstroke through that shit 'til I pass out. Is it possible to drown in money?"

While she spoke, Raijin clawed at the concrete and metal around the edges, looking every bit like a gopher coming up after a long, loooong winter. After a few seconds of struggling, the NC hauled itself out of the underground facility and back onto the surface, emerging from the wreckage of the big gun Peyton had destroyed, and shook itself off like a wet dog after a bath.

"Payment will be wired to you after MAVERICK confirms mission success," Halliwell said. "Don't drop your guard yet. The intel was so murky on this one, there is no telling what lies around the next corner. And you're on fire, by the way."

"I know. Almost out of jet fuel. It'll put itself out soon enough," Cammy said and could hear Halliwell sigh in disappointment.

"Your NC's data logs look like a horror story," the woman said. "That swimming pool of cash is going to be a bucket of loose change by the time the repairs are done. Congratulations on making it this far, but please use more caution next time. That goes for both of you. The mission's not over 'til it's over. If anyone attacked now..."

"Looks pretty 'over' to me, but 10-4 on that, Mama Bird," Cammy said as Raijin sifted through the wreckage of the second cannon. Its sensors analyzed the pile of parts and spat back data. "300mm... to the face... and lived to tell the tale. Hot damn, Jenny... uhhh, Peyton, I mean."

"Chimera," Halliwell corrected.

"Whatever."

Remaining ResourcesHE Rounds: 36 | AP Rounds: 13 (-12) | FAEB: 8 | MMHR: 5 | Jet Fuel: 21% (engine fire)

 

[YsFanatic]

Adam couldn't help but frown as he listened to the advice and watched the demonstration. While combining everything together made sense, it felt more like a goal than something he could put into practice right now. He had hoped for something that would help in the short term, but he couldn't control the advice they offered and he didn't want to show disrespect by correcting her about what he meant. It looked like he'd just have to stick with putting in lots of practice to get where he wanted to be. The Vanguard gave the two senior Linkers a respectful nod before responding.

"Thank you Senbazuru and Dreadnought, I will keep that in mind."

While he was thinking about it Adam figured he may as well get things rolling for getting some real life practice time as there had to be a field or practice area for NC's somewhere that he could make use of. He set the communications system to open a private line to his Handler, hoping he wouldn't miss anything important on the open channel with the rest while he took care of this.

"Vanguard to Sarah, is there any fields or training grounds for the NCs that I could reserve for some mobility practice? If there is something available, please put in a request to use it when you get the chance and extend an invitation to Hardpoint and Emperor. I'm going to swap back to the group channel now, just leave me a message with what you find out, thanks!"

Vanguard's Linker figured that while the other two rookies didn't need the practice moving as much as he did, they might be interested in possibly working on other aspects of NC operation outside of just using the simulator.