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Situated on the banks of the snowy Hudson was a single GM type mobile suit grasping a large rifle looking object across its chest. Its pilot had been assigned to scout the area, but a quick order from high command had requisitioned his skills for an attack on an enemy target, though he wasn't entirely too sure what it was. Still, it was nice to actually see some action for once, and despite the raging blizzard that Mother Nature seemed to have dropped on him, there was nothing that a bit of mankind's ingenuity couldn't solve. Having switched to his thermals, the lone pilot stared across the bay while sipping a warm beverage and waiting for a certain communique to come in. He had been waiting for quite a while, but he was used to it, and who could complain about watching a snowstorm from the comfort of a mobile suit, drinking a chocolately beverage? He couldn't. Then the transmission came through. Finally. The face of a one Nigel Ferdinand appeared on the GM Sniper pilot's screen, clad in the splendors of an officer's uniform. "I suppose you are the sniper support I asked for?" the prince asked, looking at the bundled up Federation pilot. "That would be me, sir. Just point me at a target and I'll take it from there," responded the pilot, taking a sip from the cup of chocolately goodness after speaking. "I need you to advise my navigator of its coordinates and then shoot out one of its engines to slow it down," advised the Dutchman, looking rather fondly at the beverage that the Sniper's pilot was holding. "Think you can handle that?" "Yes s-bzzt-ir. I c-bzzt-an bzzt-o" "ECMs are online, sir," reported a Zeon soldier, staring at screen while furiously typing away on the touch screen in front of his. Pleased with the array of equipment the Excelsior had, its captain now wondered what the Federation air wing was going to do. The reconnaissance Gaw was truly a technological marvel in this regard, having detected the Federation aircraft and the single GM Ground Type near the edges of the Hudson. From the reports, the air wing would be no problem to the Gaw given its impressive anti aircraft and ECM suite. Then the shot came, a pink lance erupting from the Earth and reaching out to the sky and in the process piercing through two of the Gaw's multiple engines. Immediately the green mobile suit abandoned its hiding spot and began to egress toward the south, the pilot having done his job and unwilling to face a possible retaliatory attack. The recon Gaw's bridge on the other hand was now in a uproar, having just realized that the GM Ground Type was actually one of the few armed with portable beam rifles. "Damned sniper types! I want a damage report now!" the captain demanded, his nostrils flaring at the oversight that led to their current perdicament. Bracing herself against a secondary explosion, a woman reported, "Port engines two and three are offline and on fire, and engine one is leaking fuel badly, sir!" Cursing under his breath, the captain ordered the damaged engine to be shut down and then ordered the Gaw's AA compliment to be brought online in response to reports that the Federation air wing was now closing their distance onto the the Excelsior. The Chicken Little's pilot and navigator were initially unable to actually see their target in the blinding weather, but the shot from the GM Sniper and the explosions off in the distance aided them in the pursuit of the valuable Zeon aircraft. In no time those in the cockpit could see the giant outline of the bloated aircraft, and not too long after Nigel could see the telltale streaks caused by the Depp Rog's long range missiles course their way toward the target. Communication with the pilots in the Tin Cods and the Depp Rog were now all but impossible except at extremely close ranges, but their mission briefing beforehand would hopefully be sufficient to mitigate the Gaw's peculiar abilities. Seeing a series of explosions in the distance, Nigel took this as the signal to walk toward the cargo bay where his men were situated ready to attack and board the target Gaw. Kyle was the first to greet the Prince of Orange, raising a salute to the officer and shouting, "Officer on deck!" Smiling, Nigel appreciated the use of formalities in such a hectic time, but Kyle was Kyle and he didn't mind at all. The Dutchman ordered the men to stand at ease and resume their preparations before pulling Kyle aside to speak with him. "You know what you're doing?" he asked, looking the shorter man dead in the eye. Pulling the charging handle back on his FN SCAR, Kyle said, "Of course," before releasing it and hearing a satisfying *clack* resound from the gun. "Okay, good. And remember, you're not allowed to die," Nigel said with deadpan effect, relishing in how humor always found its way into times like these. Kyle saluted his superior in acknowledgment and then politely excused himself to address his men. In the distance, Nigel could see the two GM Command pilots enter their respective mobile suits while a flight chief began to announce over the P/A systems that they were one minute and a half minutes out from the drop zone if you could call it that. Dropping onto land was one thing, but dropping onto a moving target such as a Gaw... The air battle was quickly becoming slated in favor for the Zeon from the get go as the Excelsior's potent ECM arsenal caused many of the Tin Cod's AAM's to choose and fly their own random, erratic flight paths. A handful did manage to connect to the Gaw due to chance, but their payload detonated away from the AA guns that were intended for. Gun runs were ineffective and costly as the 25mm cannons were not powerful enough to cause any serious damage to the Gaw. However, the latter's AA guns quickly decimated the four Tin Cods that decided to attempt the runs. Realizing the futility in attacking their intended target, the surviving Federation fighters backed off and used their numerical advantage to neutralize two of the Dopps after a short turning battle and force the remaining Zeon fighter to return to the Gaw for repairs. Protecting its retreating kin, the Excelsior successfully downed three more of the weaving Tin Cods before focusing its attention at the approaching Medea. Nigel was well informed of the ongoing situation and ordered the Tin Cods to disengage the enemy, unwilling to commit more lives to a fruitless attempt. It was his chance to fight now, and the sounds of rounds impacting all around the Chicken Little assured the Dutchman that he was indeed in the fight. The Medea's frame shuddered under the onslaught, but it continued to hold and the transport plane quickly dropped altitude while being battered by the recon Gaw's anti aircraft guns. With its cargo bay exposed to the elements, the men of 1st Recon made last minute checks on their equipment while the GM Command pilots were ready to launch out of the Medea guns blazing. 30 Seconds Tim Sheetz and Ryan Boheneck picked up the heavy harpoon-like weapons, intending to shoot them at the hole opened up by the GM's, though nobody really had done a zip line between two moving aircraft, and especially not when one of the aircraft was shooting at them. 20 Seconds The soldiers of 1st Recon were having trouble holding their footing on the shuddering Medea. Were the flight controls damaged? Perhaps the engine? The soldiers nor the GM pilots knew what was going on, but it was certainly unnerving to them. Nigel, on the other hand, was staring the men under his command with the urge to call off the mission, but something in his gut told him to stick it out despite reports of a smoking engine. 10 Seconds As if God himself had smitten the Medea, one of its engines finally gave way and spiraled down to Earth. The Medea was close enough to bare the full brunt of the Excelsior's top mounted anti aircraft guns, and the Chicken Little had now found itself without its starboard engines or effective rudder control. "Lieutenant, we just lost starboards, and rudders aren't responding," came the pilot's assessment over the P/A system. Nigel knew that this was a dangerous gambit, and it was now proving itself to be more than he was able to handle even with the support he had acquired. Instinctively, Nigel pressed a nearby button and spoke into the microphone, "Alright, break off. Mission is a no-go." Simultaneously, Nigel brought his arms up and began to motion an X sign to Kyle and the rest of his men, only to watch the unthinkable happen when several rounds from the enemy Gaw stuck the area around one of the GM Commands and break it loose from its bindings. The deafening crash and explosions tossed the personel in the cargo bay around, excluding Nigel who had managed to find and grab ahold of a nearby railing. To his horror, he saw both private Rhea and Allen fall out the back and into free fall. Crying out to the flight chief, Nigel yelled at the man to close the cargo bay doors before any more of his men could fall out. The door began to close, successfully barring one of the GM Commands from also falling out into the sky, though in the process causing it to slam sideways into the other GM Command and cause a shower of objects to slide and fly around the enclosure. Ducking and jumping over the unsecured equipment, the men of the 1st Recon platoon fought to avoid becoming crushed or killed by flying objects while Nigel held on to dear life to avoid breaking another bone. A few seconds later, everything seemed to calm down and the sounds of zipping rounds ceased altogether. In the period of silence that followed, the prince stared mindlessly upward at the flickering spark shower while listening to the erratic breathing that his body now assumed. After having rested for several seconds, the Dutch prince regained his composure and ordered a search and rescue operation to begin before tending to his wounded men. Nigel Ferdinand: 6 VP Gained, No Damage In the month of September, 0079, the city of Manila had been reduced to a horrible faximile of its former self. The Phillipines were one of many countries grossly depopulated by the movement to space, leaving entire sections of Manila, it's largest city, completely vacant. The Earth Federation military had stepped in, creating life in the city again by paving away its center and creating a military institution. This institution was then brutally overtaken by Zeon, and now was under siege for the second time in a month. Random shells and bombs struck the buildings surrounding the base indiscriminately, and the civilian population, which owed its new growth and prosperity to the base, was now hiding in bomb shelters, being slaughtered by the government that had sworn to protect them. It was still early in the siege, but forces had already amassed on both the naval front west of the base, and the land front to the south. The Federations mobile suit forces had learned from their previous engagement, landing on the less heavily controlled southern islands of the Phillipines and marching north, island hopping their way to the base. The order had been given to move all sensitive equipment into command bunkers, the garrison at the base preparing for the same sort of lengthy siege that the EFF had given them just over a week prior. Caught on the base in this troubling time, Persephone didn't seem too overly concerned. She was concerned no doubt, but for her everything was a new experience, a new world to explore. What childhood the Earthnoid girl had been priveledged to experience had been scrubbed clean by Dr. Flanagan, leaving her only with fragments and dreams of a semi normal life. Her first sortie not only outside the base, but to Earth, had left her with a wealth of experience and information that she was still assimilating and coming to terms with. Gravity still disgusted her. She walked calmly across the long paved streets of the base, moving to her mobile suit hangar. She and her handler had been given a private, walled off corner of the mobile suit hangar, preventing anyone but the cleared mechanical staff from accessing her mobile suit. In the distance a huge shell struck an abandonded apartment building just next to the base. The rounds were much more accurate than they had been a week ago. Diego was sitting at the base of the hangar, waiting for her. He was supposed to play bodyguard twenty four hours a day, but that wasn't really his thing. After a few days with Dawn, he knew she could take care of herself. "Yo." Diego said, raising a hand and smiling. He was just as calm as she was, but while Persephones lack of emotion could be attributed to a lack of experience, his was due to an abundance of it. "Sergeant Cortez." She responded. He still wasn't getting fully used to the girl. One hour she was screaming or crying, or doing a ten mile jog for no reason, and the next she was the most serious military machine he'd ever seen. Women. "Figured I'd see you here. Mandate says we're free to ignore orders whenever it's in yer' doctors interests." Diego said, kicking himself up to a standing position. He was a huge man, towering over the small unarmed girl like a lion over a gazelle. "We will deploy. South." That was all she said, moving past him without so much as a glance in his direction, moving towards the strange Zaku in the back of the building. "Is that an order from Flanagan, or..." Diego responded, walking behind her haphazardly, his hands in his pockets. "No. It is where the enemy will be." Persephone answered. A few minutes later a Zaku and a Gouf began striding southwards outside the base, even as the rest of Manilas defenses prepared for bombardment. Diego Cortez' Gouf took the lead, a bazooka on its back and heat sword placed precariously on its shoulder. Behind it, a strange bulky Zaku walked, carrying three 120mm machineguns and two heat hawks. About fourty miles south of the base, the Blackhawk slowly lumbered forward, surrounded by an impressive cadre of mobile suits. They had just arrived, and while the guns were firing, there had not been enough time yet to adjust to the targeting data Hirsch had gained just a day prior. Ackart and Massenfer had agreed to go ahead with the assault immediately, while it was presumed that Zeons reinforcements were still on the mainland. Ahead of the Big Tray, four GM Grounds, a GMPGT, GM Command and the GM Sniper Custom walked, using jumpjets to leap over islands and avoid getting their machinery soaked in the ocean. Jarvis and Arden walked together, Jarvis eager to prove himself after his earlier failures, and just as eager to be far, far away from Christina. With them was a single solitary Type 61 tank, Cray and Ion more than a little annoyed with the operation. The last time they had been in this part of the world they'd nearly been killed. "At least it isn't muddy and rainy as hell today. Do you know how long it took me to stabilize the treads after that battle? Do you?!" Ion cried from the base of the tank, Cray letting out a sigh. It was going to be a long day. At the very head of the line, Jack Verse and Jay Tessa's units walked side by side, their heavily armored mobile suits able to take nearly anything Zeon could throw at them. For the last twenty minutes or so Jack had been trying to strike up a conversation with the girl, but to no avail. Jay was certainly the silent type, there was no doubt about it. Jack wished he was with the sniper group, Aurems GM Sniper sitting with Bigby's GM Desert and Arieta's GM Land Combat Type on top of the Big Tray. Aurem would have been happy to trade places, Bigby and Arieta were instant friends. "And then she runs out of the apartment, totally naked and-" Arietas voice was drowned out by Bigby's laughter. They were being so loud it was amazing that Zeon hadn't called an airstrike on their position yet. Aurem sank into his seat, silently annoyed. "Can it, we can see the last ridge now. Should be hostiles ahead." Arden barked, the radio signals dropping off. In a minute or two there would be so much static that communication would be impossible anyway. Behind them, in the undergrowth of the Phillipines many dense forests, a blue mobile suit stalked its prey. Alain had been cut off from the fortress by a mishap of defense organization, but he knew in his gut the counterattack would come soon, and when it did his Efreet would be ready to strike at the enemy from the rear. Far to the west, the sea and sky were filled with the lot of the Federations might. The Gilfaethwy and Gwydion, fully repaired with veteran crews of the earlier siege, slowly advanced towards the port of Manila, taking care not to strike before the Blackhawk had made landfall. Surrounding them were Hirsch and the GM Diver team, instructed to protect the Hillocks at all cost. Without the Arianrhod they were somewhat low on air cover, but still more than thirty planes buzzed around them, the Desert Striker and Golden Platypus refueling Tin Cods in the air. The group waited for the attack flare from the land group, preparing for an all out assault on the Phillipines. Still in his slightly beat up Tin Cod, Jim Irwin would be heading the air battle, the flight instructor and aviation ace more than a little disinterested in the engagement. He had gone on record several times saying that attacking a mobile suit base without sufficient bomber support was ridiculous, but orders were orders. Well beneath the Naval group, three Zeonic MSMs slowly moved into position, hugging the ocean floor. At this depth the Federation units were difficult to see, dark splotches on the luminescent waters surface above, but hopefully they had been completely undetected. The last time he had attacked this group he had been much better supported, but Xavier wasn't about to let the Earthnoids have Manila. He had lost a lot of good men in the last attack, and the fire of vengeance in his heart would not cool until he had killed every last man who had harmed a Duchy daughter or mother. His Z'Gok slowly walked into position underneath the Federal fleet, an Acquy flanking him on either side. "I can't believe we're doing this." Vito scowled, the group ducking low as they snuck out of a damaged part of the Manila fencing. They were a long way from Africa. "Yer the one that got caught, ya goddamn pussy." Nu responded. Sergei swatted him over the head, Nu giving him an angered look. The group snuck behind a building, quickly taking off the pilfered Zeon uniforms lest they be hit by friendly fire. "Look guys. I know things didn't go exactly as planned, but if we make it out of this in one piece we might actually get paid. Good times for all, right?" Des was trying to keep the group together. One thing had led to another, more or less. A desperate need for credits had turned into a scheme to steal a Medea aircraft carrier, had turned into a totally botched operation, had turned into the lot of them being caught just inside of Cambodia. If Vito hadn't gotten caught as they were oh so skillfully breaking out of prison, then they could have been back in Africa. But Lieutenant Ackart had offered them a deal and given the alternative... They snuck through the abandoned alleyways, hiding amongst dumpsters and abandoned cars. It would be a few minutes before they were out of the city, but the device had been planted and everything was going well, at least so far. "Contessa, you think we're clear?" Des hissed. She had shown herself to have a bit of a knack for guesswork, and everyone took her advice to heart. "Yeah, I don't think anybody followed us." She unzipped her jacket, the well endowed freedom fighter annoyed at the constraints of Zeonic dress. Sergei had them set up a perimeter while Vito and Nu settled their differences long enough to set the flare. Pulling a pair of binoculars and a detonator out of his many pockets, Mielle set his gaze on the laser communications tower in the distance and flipped the trigger. An explosion rattled the base, steel buckling and falling as the tower was torn apart by successive detonations of C4, expertly planted around its foundation. "Aaand another operation successful for the African Union." Marcelino snickered, his voice having a particular flare. Des chucked the detonator in a trash can, raising a finger and signalling Nu. The lanky psycopath flipped a switch on the portable launcher, a large flare shooting into the sky and flickering a bright red. "Now lets get the hell out of here before the cavalry arrives." Des smiled. "There's our signal. Lets move people." Irwin barked, fanning out and starting his run for the base. Tin Cods broke into attack wings, following him in waves while the fleets few Don Escargots hovered in defense of the Hillocks. The Gilfaethwy and Gwydion picked up speed, their forward VLS systems firing an initial salvo towards the fortification. Far to the south, the Blackhawks guns boomed, suddenly becoming eerily accurate and striking several anti-aircraft gun emplacements. The Federation kept minovsky particle density to a minimum, hoping for a communications advantage with the Duchy comm tower down for the count. "Enemy CAP is at three o' clock, alpha team and beta team will engage. The rest of you strafe their fighters on the ground, looks like they aren't ready for us just yet." Jim smiled, fanning out to the right, nearly a dozen aircraft following him. AA gunners on the hill shot flack into the sky, downing a single Tin Cod before the rest broke into a wider formation, dodging enemy tracers and coming down on the Dopp squadron. Irwin scored a kill immediately, a pair of missile striking straight into one of the Dopps. On the base air raid sirens blared, pilots scrambling to get to their fighters. A few of the Dopps managed to get into the air immediately, but it was going to be a slow process. Zakus lurched onto the base, firing machineguns wildly into the air to push the Federal aircraft back. Dopp pilots launched missiles into the fray, a few Federation planes exploding in response. Irwin downed his second fighter for the day, the two Federal airgroups pushing the enemy Combat Air Patrol away before turning for the enemy airfield. However, Jims disposition towards the assault had been all too correct. Without adequete bomber support they were unable to keep the enemy planes on the ground, and slowly but surely Dopps were making it into the air. Far too few had been destroyed on the runway. "Looks like we've got a melee on our hands." He sighed, a group of Dopps sailing into the air and firing missiles at his unit. Irwins Cod gained altitude, banking left as one of his wingmen was killed by the barrage. They had softened the enemy numbers in this initial attack, but Dopps were much better fighters than Tin Cods, and they would need more than just numbers to win the day. It would be a difficult battle for air superiority, but it was not yet lost. In the harbor, Goggs were quickly pressed into action, new pilots getting the reigns on their machines before being launched towards the Federal battlegroup. The Don Escargot team fluttered into action, the strangely shaped aircraft hovering between the Hillocks and the Zeonic MSMs. Behind the line, Hirsch and the Diver team waited for their time to strike. "Four enemy hostiles coming in hot, depth fifty meters. All units are to engage." The flight controller aboard the Gwydion ordered. Shortly after the destroyer shook slightly, small anti-MS torpedoes hitting it from above. Out of the corner of his eye Hirsch saw the waterjets coming up from below, and flipped his HUD down to a rear view camera. There were enemy MSMs below them as well. "Units one and two go handle the ones coming from the shore. Unit three, lets dive." Munchek ordered, his usual pasty personality gone as the GM Aqua began its dive. It was a pity Phuong didn't get to see him when he really was being heroic. The single GM Diver dropped down, providing cover fire of torpedoes as Hirsch advanced in the incredibly speedy Aqua GM. Xavier and the two Acquy's dispersed, trying to flank the enemy and take advantage of their numbers. Hirsch followed the Acquy on the right, grappling onto it with his scissor anchor before catching up to the machine. He slammed a beam pick into the suits reactor, kicking off and moving for his next target as it exploded. "Christ, they're much better than they were last week." Xavier said flatly, the Z'Gok going vertical and firing MPCs at the fast advancing GM. Hirsch rolled out of the way, responding with torpedoes which were simply too accurate for Brennan to dodge. His Z'Gok shook with the impact, its heavy armor preventing a complete cockpit rupture. The other GM Diver slowly advanced, firing torpedo after torpedo at the incoming Acquy. The Duchy pilot got lucky, striking the Divers shield with its MPC. The arm exploded, creating a cloud of bubbles that the SS operative used as cover, coming around behind the GM. He slammed vulcan rounds into its backpack at point blank range, the shells deadly at that distance even underwater. The lifeless GM began to sank, the Acquy pilot congratulating himself when the GM Diver emerged straight in front of him. "What the-" was all the man could stammer off, Hirsch unloading a pair of torpedoes into his cockpit. He dropped a pair of ink grenades behind him, discouraging Xaviers pursuit as he sailed his machine around in a flanking formation. "We've mopped up the enemy MSMs here, how are things on your end?" A voice crackled through Hirsch's comm. He came around on Xaviers side, firing a barrage of torpedoes for the already damaged Z'Gok. Xavier dropped his unit horizontally, launching a spray of Freeze Yard torpedoes out of the Z'Goks head, which intercepted the Aquas barrage. An MPC round cut through the purple gelatin, striking a glancing blow on the Aqua GM and partially melting one of its legs. "I'm out of ordnance, this guy's probably gonna get away but the ships are clear." Hirsch responded, looking at warning signs as damaged thrusters pleaded with him to surface. Knowing he was beaten, Xavier retreated, hoping Marina would have more luck. At the southern ridge, two lone Duchy mobile suits dropped low, their silhouettes hidden by a jagged hill. Persephone and Diego looked at each other, about to enter combat together for the first time. About two hundred meters ahead, the entire Federation combat group advanced, slowly but surely. The thought of engaging so many units had triggered something in Persephone, and her blood was pumping much harder than it had been minutes ago. "You sure you're ready for this, little lady?" Cortez smirked. Reinforcements were already en route, but they'd have to hold off five times their number till they arrived. Persephone smiled, picking up the heavy helmet at her feet, covered in extensive wiring that hooked to the back of her cockpit. Although Persephone wasn't the strongest newtype in Flanagans forces, the simplified systems used by the Zaku II PMT were easy enough for her to use. Strapping the helmet into place and closing her eyes, four multi-jointed manipulator arms shot out of the Zakus extensive backpack, grabbing the two extra machineguns she had brought with her. "Lets go sergeant." She answered, her voice ringing with pent up energy. Her Zaku leapt up over the ridge, three 120mms slapping into position in front of it. She used the top of the ridge as cover, launching a ridiculous barrage of firepower towards the Federation fleet. One of the GM Grounds in the distance brought up its shield, but was literally forced back by the sheer concussive force of the three machineguns. Sparks riddled the entire exterior of the machine, the GM taking several steps backwards before falling over. Diego bounded over the ridge as well, firing a bazooka round into the crowd while using his shield to cover both his unit and Persephones. The Federation battlegroup sputtered to a halt, mobile suits dropping down to their knees and returning fire with all manner of ordnance. Railguns, mega particle cannons, machineguns and bazookas tore through their position, but Persephone and Diego had already dropped back behind the ridge. Diego ran to the right, Persephone following suit. "Fire." The Blackhawks commander stated flatly, the huge fore mounted MPCs of the Big Tray cutting a hole through the mountainside where the two Duchy units were positioned. Sure that they had been incinerated in the blast, Jarvis and Ackart told their teams to advance even as a grenade was lobbed over the ridge behind them. "Cracker!" Jack yelled, the grenade splitting apart and dropping fragmenting explosives into their position. Diego and Persephone appeared over the far end of the ridge, letting out another salvo. Ardens GM Sniper Custom was caught, the shieldless GM next to totalled by the volume of shells coming from the six armed Zaku. Arieta and Bigby responded with their railguns, using their position on top of the Big Tray to fire on the two from above. Persephone leapt backwards before the shots were even fired, Diego moving and blocking the high energy rounds with his shield. The Gouf shield splintered and cracked, but the two of them were more or less unharmed. "It's just two of them, what the hell are we waiting for." The fallen GM Ground pilot announced, his pride hurt by being assaulted so heavily by a simple Zaku. Activating his beam saber, he charged the ridge, his GM boosting into the air to fly straight into the enemy position. "No wait!" Jarvis yelled, but it was already too late. The GM Ground sailed straight over the ridge, only to be caught around the middle as a tentacled heat rod shot out of the mountain, grabbing it and pulling it down to the ground and out of Federal sightlines. A second later there was an explosion on the far side of the ridge, the GM Grounds IFF code cutting out. "Ghh.. Keep pushing!" Ackart howled, putting his shield in front of him and advancing steadily to the ridge. Oh but how he hated ambushes. "This is pretty fun darling." Persephone hummed, one of her manipulator arms tearing the GM Grounds shield off of the suits corpse and tossing it to Diego. The Gouf caught the luna titanium shield, trading his own broken shield for it as they moved to a different position on the ridge. The two burst out from cover again, letting off a salvo and then falling back. Looking behind them, a group of Zakus and Goufs were on the move, they would arrive to assist them any second now. "Fucking ridiculous." Cray said, launching a volley of smoke grenades into the air. Ion slammed on the tanks throttle, the Type 61 speeding ahead as the smoke cloud blocked their line of sight to the ridge. As they did a salvo of eerily accurate 120mm fire slammed into their tank, the enemy pilot seemingly totally undeterred by the smokescreen. "The hell?!" Vermillion howled. Atop the Blackhawk, Wolfe sighted the enemy Zaku as it popped over the ridge, firing missiles and a railgun shell into the Zaku. Persephone lifted up two of her six arms to block the fire, one of her 120mms being shredded in the process. Arieta aimed for the finishing shot when a round of buckshot hit her railgun, deactivating the sensitive weapon. The two turned around to find an Efreet charging into their position, firing round after round with its shotgun. "Aurem, can you handle this guy?" Bigby yelled, turning around and firing a volley of railgun fire at Alain. The quick and maneuverable Efreet dodged out of the way, almost skating across the Phillipine soil as Alain emptied his shotgun into the sniper units. "Negative, I'm on Gaw duty." Senaiha responded. Bigby dropped his railgun, the GM Desert grabbing a bazooka and leaping off the Blackhawk. "This is why you never get the chicks bud." Wolfe answered, firing 305mm shells into Grace's position. Alain dropped a cloud of smoke in front of him, his emitters quickly billowing a screen of cover as he reloaded his shotgun, running back behind the Big Tray. Arieta quickly moved to the side of the Blackhawk, picking up Bigby's railgun and opening fire on the Efreet. Alain was simply too good however, the shells nicking the blue Efreet at best. Ahead of the Blackhawk team, they were almost at the ridge when Persephone bounded over the top, opening fire again with her two remaining machineguns. However, this time a half a dozen Zakus appeared with her, the group putting enough of a barrage into the Federal units to give even the Luna Titanium armed suits in the front line pause. Jack punched the throttle on the GMPGT, using his superior armor to take the brunt of the fire as he leapt into the air. Levelling a beam rifle on one of the enemy Zakus, he shot straight through it and landed on the end of the ridge. Jarvis and Arden were beaten back, their normal titanium armor unable to withstand the Zeonic barrage. Jay moved forward, launching a stream of 100mm shells into Diegos Gouf. The shots finally landed, severely damaging the blue mobile suit. "Withdraw, let me handle this!" Persephone scowled. Jack landed on the far side of the ridge, the manipulator Zaku dropping its machineguns and picking up a heat hawk in each hand. Verse punched out with his toothed arm shield, Persephone's Zaku parrying the attack with two of its six arms before moving in close. She swung out with the superheated axes, Jack leaping away and firing suppression rounds with his vulcans. Zakus moved along the ridge, dropping shells into the Federation units. Jarvis scored a hit with his beam gun, another Zaku exploding even as rounds rained onto his shield, breaking it and severely damaging the GM Commands left arm. Below them, Cray and Ion advanced, their damaged Type 61 launching a hunter killer missile into the Zaku II S. The warhead slammed straight into its right arm, destroying it and forcing the commander Zaku back. "We all need to fall back little lady." Cortez answered, picking two flashbangs off his Goufs hip and throwing them into the air. The grenades popped with a burst of light, the remaining Manila defenders backing off for a rear line defense position, laying down fire as they went. Behind them, Alain slowly pulled back, Arieta and Bigby following him into the dense vegetation of Manila's many forests. Elsewhere, the sky above Manila was still ablaze, Dopp and Tin Cods fluttering around each other in a deadly display of aerial acrobatics. Jim Irwin's Cod flipped around another Dopp, vulcans shredding his fourth kill of the day. The Zeonic airgroup had given them pause, but it seemed as though they would win the day yet. Suddenly the radio blared in his ears, their Dish operators voice frantic as he announced the new sighting. "This is Lazybird, Attention all units, enemy Gaw and a score of hostile fighters en route from the northwest. Engage immediately. I repeat, enemy Gaw en route from the northwest, engage immediately." Jim flipped his fighter around, Tin Cods breaking off of the enemy route and moving to engage the new targets. Irwin gulped, the badly beaten Federal air wing now faced with another twenty Dopps, a large purple Gaw Attack Carrier flying in behind them. Aboard the Gaw, Marina crossed her arms, the short but deadly woman of the SS gazing down at the Federal destroyers behind her oversized black uniform. Below the Gaw, three Doms skated to the south, Aldo and the 433rd Basterds moving quickly to relieve Persephone's unit and destroy the Blackhawk. "Sieg Zeon." Marina said softly, a devilish grin in her eyes as her units began to engage the 87th Integrated Fleet wholesale. Inside the purple carrier, a full platoon of Panzergrenadiers echoed the sentiment, Ritter Novosad checking his parachute as his men prepared to be dropped straight on top of hostile forces. "Everyone break off target, we'll head south by southwest and engage them from the flank. Lets hope those flies are low on fuel." Jim barked, his Tin Cod fanning to the left along with a dozen or more Federal fighters. He was down to one missile, but he wasn't yet down for the count. "Lazybird to Desert Striker, requesting support fire at coordinates zero zero five beta charlie niner. We're gonna need some help over here." The Dish picked up altitude, moving away from the Morrigan as the Desert Striker pulled into position from the Federations rear. "Anybody who doesn't have enough rounds for another pass pull back, the Platypus can pick you up and we'll need a second wave for this fight. Jacob, Kenny, you're with me." Irwin said. The three Tin Cods rolled into position on the Morrigans right, firing streaks of 25mm shells into the enemy Dopps. The small green fighters turned in response, coming straight at the Federal airgroup when a shower of tracers cut several of them to pieces. The Medea Revised Desert Striker poured shells into the enemy ships, providing as much cover as it could before the Morrigans MPCs shot towards its position. "We can't stay here forever Jim, one hit and we're toast." The Strikers pilot responded. Jim ignored the chatter, Kenny's Tin Cod exploding at his side as he shot through the cloud of Dopps and heading for the Morrigan. He swerved his fighter to the right as the Gaws AA guns opened up, aiming for the bulge in its purple wing while dodging streams of anti aircraft fire. "Alpha One, fox three." Jim stated, firing his last missile as the Gaws MPCs began to charge again. The missile struck straight into the exposed gun turret, the MPC leaking energy and exploding, causing the entire carrier to shake. "Ghh... Somebody shoot down that plane!" Marina yelled, Jim and Jacobs fighters flying straight past the huge glass display in front of the carrier. A number of Dopps followed them in response, the remainder going after the Striker, Platypus and the remainder of the Federal airgroup. Don Escargots were drafted into AA duty, moving between the enemy Dopps and the Platypus in an effort to slow their advance. However, there was not enough Federal firepower to stop the Gaw from its advance, the shadow of the Morrigan looming over the Gilfaethwy and Gwydion as they continued their shelling of the base. By now Manila looked like a sulking crater of its former self, many key infrastructure pieces shredded by the sheer might of the Hillocks short range missile barrage. The Morrigans remaining MPCs and missiles shot forth, striking the Gwydion in several places and causing a score of explosions across its deck. The missiles were immediately silenced, fire control teams moving into action as a number of blazes erupted throughout the ship. Making a small right turn for the ridge, the Morrigans hangar bay doors opened up, Magella tanks leaping out of the ship and landing on the broken ground that was the fortification. They quickly picked up speed, moving to support the Zaku teams in the south. The Federations remaining fighters were too busy with enemy Dopps to shoot them down as they fell, and all six tanks made it to ground safely. "Alright Jacob, lets come around for another pass, see if we can't-" Jim's words were cut short, vulcan fire slicing through his planes fuselage and destroying Jacobs Tin Cod outright. They had made a good push but by now it was obvious they couldn't hold the skies, the remaining Cods being chased away by enemy Dopps in all directions. A wing of the small fighters broke off, moving to the Blackhawk to assist the Zaku line with suppressive fire. Jim broke off the attack, moving for safer skies and praying his engines didn't explode. At the southern front, the enemy mobile suits had made a defensive stand at the edge of the city, Persephone, Diego and the survivors of the first wave hiding amongst buildings and dropping barrage after barrage of machinegun shells into the advancing Federation mobile suits. Despite their earlier success, things didn't look too good for them now. Manila's infantry teams had joined them, close to fifty Marines huddled around the Zakus and launching bazookas and RPGs into the advancing Federation line. The luna titanium and reactive armor equipped Federation attack force was simply too sturdy for them to effectively damage. Cray's tank advanced ahead of the line, Federation marines and rangers moving ahead and launching targeted strikes into the buildings. Overhead mega particle beams tore through the sky, beam rifles slowly expending ammunition and forcing the Zakus farther and farther back. The Blackhawks two fore MPCs lit up again, an entire section of the old city of Manila exploding for several blocks successively behind the Zaku line. In the smoke and confusion that followed, a number of shadowy bodies advanced from their cover, Nu, Vito and Sergei each picking an enemy marine and shooting him in the back of the neck. Des tossed his RPG to Ted, the teams runner bursting ahead of the group as they covered him with their rifles. He leapt into the air, skidding and sliding underneath a Zaku and launching the rocket propelled missile between its legs. The Zaku lurched forward as it was hit, its legs giving away before toppling into the fast cratering ground between the two squadrons. A number of 100mm shells found it as it left its cover, killing the pilot outright. Sergei and Fernando stood tall amidst the team, pushing the Duchy marines behind cover with expertly placed rifle rounds. Now being assaulted from both sides, Persephone and the rest of the Zakus broke for higher ground, the Federation rushing in when a number of bazooka rounds struck them on their exposed flank. Jacks GMPGT was hit with he 360mm rounds, toppling over as the Basterds skated towards the enemy line along the water. "Wooooo-wie, we're missing us a party here ain't we!" Donny laughed, firing another pair of shells into the Federation position. "Boss, d'you think this is a dry county, don't know if I should ask for a beer r'a sweet tea." Hugo responded, the two ace Dom pilots flanking right and left, their bazooka rounds still coming. Aldo ignored them, silently counting down as his bazooka charged, aimed squarely for the Blackhawks bridge. "Three.. Two.. One.." Armistad whistled, his smile turning to shock as a blue GM burst out of the water in front of him right before he fired. Hirsch tackled the commander Dom, the beam bazooka being thrown into the sky and firing up towards the heavens. The GM Aqua pulled Aldo under the water, the two pilots grasping for beam picks and heat sabers respectively. "Jesus boss, this is no time t'be playin' with mermaids!" Donny called, turning around and firing shells into the water. Hugo kept up the assault, the Federal line disrupting and breaking apart at the tenacity of the Basterds charge. GMs charged the enemy line, Zakus, Goufs and GM Grounds fighting for melee superiority while the infantry battled below. Marines ducked under giant robot feet as they smashed through buildings, huge shell casings falling from the sky around them. "This is it boys, lets make a break for it." Des yelled, his group moving from cover and rushing for the enemy line. Even as they did a number of dark shadows fluttered overhead, a half dozen black forms dropping out of the sky and rolling to a stop in front of them. The African Union fighters stopped in their tracks, taking a few steps backwards as six black carapaced soldiers picked themselves up, red goggled eyes trained on their enemy. "Kill them." Ritter barked, his voice echoing with a metallic ring behind his mask. Squadrons of Dopps circled overhead, emptying the remains of their ordnance into the Federation line as it began to pull back, just outside the city. The GMs were heavily beaten, Jacks GMPGT and Jarvis's GM Command looking like strange poorly built molds of their former selves. Ardens crippled GM Sniper sat atop the Big Tray, firing beam rounds into the Dopps in an attempt to push them away, with no luck. Dodai bombers from the base ascended to the skies, striking the Blackhawk with a volley of missiles as they made their pass. The battle was going poorly for the Federation now, and Diego was reorganizing the Zakus and Magellas in a line to push the Federal forces off their island. Persephone took a step forward, her Zaku oblivious to the infantry battle going on below her feet. She had calmed down now for the moment, and was more interested in saving her combat data than killing the enemy. Her heartbeat began to slow to normal levels when she closed her eyes for a moment, a strange sensation coming over her. She felt three presences under her feet, their emotions boiling as the panzergrenadiers engaged the forces of the African Union. For a second, the entire battlefield went quiet around her, other peoples hatred floating into Persephones heart. At first it was just the two below her feet, but then for a moment she felt it all around her, people dying and screaming, souls pouring their feelings out to her. A number of images began to flash before her eyes, the young newtype catching faint glimpses of the family that had left her behind. "GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" The voice pounded into Diegos radio, the sergeant watching the Zaku II Manipulator Type burst away from cover, running at full speed towards the Federal position. Dropping both of its heat hawks, the crazed Zaku leapt into the air, dropkicking one of the remaining GM Grounds as it retreated to the safety of the Big Tray. "Crap. This is bad." Diego said to himself, rushing forward and shielding his Gouf with its new luna titanium shield. A beam struck through the heavily armored shield, slicing off his Goufs arm and pushing it backwards. "Ghhh.. Ghh.. GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" Persephone yelled, crying and screaming as she pounded on the GM, her Zaku kneeling over it and punching it over and over with its six arms. Two grappled onto the GMs head, ripping it off and throwing it behind her, another pair latching onto the cockpit and forcibly prying open the hatch. The terrified pilot scrambled out of his mobile suit, a manipulator arm sweeping across and grabbing him as he attempted to flee. The Earthnoid pilot was brought straight in front of Dawns main camera, the huge metal hand squeezing and popping him like a grape, fluids splattering all over her display. The newtype Zaku stood up, straight in front of the entire Federation line, Persephone screaming at the top of her lungs. She began to charge for Jacks GMPGT when a hail of machinegun fire riddled her suit, shraphnel slicing into Persephone from all around the cockpit. One shard shredded her helmets connection to the psycommu, and suddenly the Zaku toppled over, collapsing into the mud and going silent. Below the mobile suits, a momentary distraction that Ritter couldn't quite place broke his concentration. He turned and looked at the sky, giving Sergei and Des a moment to get into close range. His squadron of panzers broke formation, the AU forces leaping from behind cars and buildings and throwing pipe bombs into the armored warriors. Machineguns blared on both sides, Fernando taking a belly full of lead and slumping over. Nu and Ted rushed alongside the flank of the enemy team, knives and pistols in hand as they tackled the leftmost panzer. The armored warrior toppled over, the weight of his suit preventing him from turning quick enough to respond. Nu slammed the pistol into every last chink of armor he could find, Ted joining Contessa in providing cover fire as the AU forces ran as fast as they could for open ground. In the middle, Sergei and Des both attacked the distracted Ritter. Sergei dropped low, sweeping out Ritters legs and avoiding the fire from his steyr, Des stepping over him and holding his pistol in each hand. He fired six shells into Novosad, but each bounced off, Ritter growling and gabbing one of Mielles ankles. He smashed it in his powerful hands, Des toppling over. A Panzer to their left turned to fire, Sergei pushing Des out of the way as the hail of machinegun fire sliced through the old soldier. From behind them, Vito and Ted fired anti tank rounds into the grenadiers position, fallen Zeon marines having graciously volunteered their bazookas to the pair. "We can't beat these guys, get the hell out of there!" Vito yelled, launching another bazooka round into the team. The shell exploded and blazed around one of the Panzers, the SS shocktrooper taking a few steps back and then turning, his armor on fire as he advanced. Contessa ran forward, shooting pistol rounds into the group before grabbing Sergei and Des's bloody bodies and dragging them towards safer ground. The Panzergrenaiders began to advance when a number of reinforcements joined the AU, Rangers from the Blackhawk pulling up in front of them and firing high powered sniper rounds into the enemy team. The SS troops were simply too scattered and too overcommitted to organize an effective defense, and the EFGFs ranger team managed to move Des and Sergei's mutilated bodies to safe cover. Ritter would not be outdone however. Even as his men fell back he walked forward, kicking the corpse of a fallen Marine over and picking up his rifle. He launched several barrages of shells into the Federations position, slicing open a rangers neck as they withdrew. An RPG round smashed into him, but he kept coming, blood trickling out of his armor as his wounds began to show. He fired bursts into the enemy group again and again, refusing to withdraw until he'd killed every damnable earthnoid in his way. It was another one of his panzers who grappled onto his back, pulling him to safety as a barrage from Federation mobile suits decimated the entire street aroudn them. "I swear I will kill you terrorist dogs." Ritter howled to himself, his armor bloody and beaten as he lay against the side of an abandoned building, unable to pursue any more. Overhead, the Morrigan sailed above the ridge, Marina refusing to allow the Federation forces retreat. She walked towards the front of the bridge, her bright blue eyes staring downwards at the enemy line, which looked as if it was going to escape. "All gun crews, destroy the enemy battleship." She barked, her eyes going wide as a gleaming pink stream of energy emerged from the top of the Big Tray. Aurems Long Range Beam Rifle cut straight into her ship, the Morrigans left wing slowly being sliced apart inch by inch. After a few seconds the entire wing was seperated from the Gaws body, the purple carrier lurching forward and rapidly losing altitude. "Captain, we can't stay in the air! We're going to crash!" The pilot yelled, Marina clenching her teeth so hard her gums began to bleed. She spat the blood in her helmsmans face, turning around and walking back to her chair at the back of the bridge. "All hands, brace for a crash landing. See if you can land in shallow waters to the south, his excellency will not have us die today." The Morrigan hurtled out of the sky, smoldering as it sailed for the southern Phillipine islands a full several miles away from the battlefield. Even with one wing the pilot managed to keep the Gaw airborne for over a minute, a testament to its excellent design. It soared down towards the shallow waters south of the battlefield, water and sand preventing the ship from exploding as it smacked into the mud. "Hmpf. And Bigby thought Gaw duty wasn't important." Aurem smirked, his huge beam rifle steaming as it cooled off. As the Federations forces withdrew, he wondered what had befallen Bigby and Arieta, worried that the two hadn't shown themselves for some time now. Deep within the lush and verdant forests of Manila, the GM Desert Type and GM Land Combat Type were locked in battle with the Efreet. Obviously the superior pilot, Alain charged forward, discarding his spent shotgun and pulling his heat sword off of his backpack. He smashed into Bigby's GM Desert, the stronger Efreet knocking the GM backwards and into a tree behind them. Arieta charged from behind with her beam saber, but Alain blocked it with his heat sword, ducking out of the way before the superior beam weapon could cut through his steel blade. Can't really handle them two on one. Grace thought, firing vulcans into the side of Arietas GM. The heavily armored LCT withstood the blows, turning and charging again while Bigby moved in for a flanking maneuver. Alain parried another blow, kicking Arietas GM in the chest and forcing it backwards. Her suit fell backwards, Bigby advancing and slicing through one of the Efreets arms from the side. "Crap." Grace gasped, expending what remained of his smoke dischargers before running off. Bigby charged forwards, but in the thick undergrowth of the dense Manila woods he could not find his prey. Now badly damaged, Alain rushed off for the southern Phillipines, hoping the forces at Manila would hold. Bigby moved his GM over Arieta's, watching for several minutes in wait for the counterattack. But no attack came, the two simply lost in the dense woodlands of southern Manila. "I wonder how Aurem is doing..." Arieta sighed. She had been having fun with Bigby, but her heart and her responsibilities lied elsewhere. Although the devastation had been massive, the Morrigans rescue had saved the fortress at Manila another day. Dopps circled overhead, the Federation forces doubling back to a safe distance over the water in the west. It had been several hours without reprisal now, although the shells were sure to begin again soon. In her quarters, Persephone silently typed up a report of her first large scale engagement, recalling the events exactly as she remembered them. Engaged enemy land forces, was able to push them back with combined arms fire and air support. Psycommu system operated within expected parameters, retained full control of manipulator arms throughout the engagement. Personal functions are within expected parameters. I was able to keep my composure throughout the engagement, and did not unnecessarily endanger myself or others. Signed, Test subject 406 Persephone Dawn - 8 VP gained, Repairing 4 Alain Grace - 7 VP gained, Repairing 3 Ritter Novosad - 7 CP gained, Injured 4, Elite Infantry Specialization gained Aldo P. Armistad - 8 VP gained, Repairing 3 Xavier Brennan - 8 VP gained, Repairing 2 Des Mielle - 5 CP gained, Injured 5, Elite Infantry Specialization gained Jarvis Ackart - 6 VP gained, Repairing 3 Arden Massenfer - 6 VP gained, Repairing 5 Bigby Wolfe - 6 VP gained, Repairing 2 Jay Tessa - 6 VP gained, Repairing 2 Aurem Senaiha - 5+1 VP gained, Repairing 1 Cray Vermillion - 5 VP gained, Repairing 4 Injured 1 Jack Verse - 5 VP gained, Repairing 3 Jim Irwin - 5/2 VP gained, Repairing +4 Hirsch Munchek - 5 VP gained, Repairing 3 |