RP: YSS Miharu Mission 5, Part 1: Amaya's Gate

[Fred]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

@Amaya's Gate:

Kotori huffed, frowned a moment in thought, and then telepathically transmitted through her communicator: "This Signaler Reversal thing works, Yukari. Hold them off until we finish here, and I promise to be fashionably late to the party."

* * *

Faced with the incoming missile storm, the Akuma raised its free triple-clawed hand toward them (and their origin point) before releasing a tremendous torrent of aetheric energy it had been hoarding just for the occasion, that whitewashed the corridor in the process.

Masako had little room to dodge as she was swallowed into an expanding cone that touched and attempted to disintegrate everything 30 degree in front of it. Her missile swarm was instantly destroyed and she might have suffered the same fate in the expanse had not a negative effect against aether tech and her barrier not been fully powered.

Masako's Daisy was left with its barrier completely depleted and its armor scorched dark grey, with most of her armor diagram having gone down to shades of orange. Her sensor suite that taken moderate damage, though her fire control system still operated. Her plasma rifle was a twisted ruin. Her leg missile packs had been chewed off into oblivion (though luckily their destruction had not taken her legs along with it).

A loud hiss sounded as steam was expelled from the Akuma's left forearm, with parts of its armor parting to allow radiator fins to peek out, filling its surroundings with so much heat that it created an haze around it. To the petite Juni's horror, she realized that each of the Akuma's forearms did not boast the same aetheric beam weapons the mishhumachina had - those were actually miniature versions of an aether shock array!

She was left with little time to contemplate this, though, as a spray of aether darts slashed her way, forcing her to frantically intercept them with her forearm shield. Mani was over by the ceiling, now right above the Akuma and she looked unscathed by the aether attack - both twins had obviously not been caught in the cone.

 

[Aendri]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

"Damn it!" Kyou kept moving, circling to avoid presenting too enticing of a target for the apparently WAY overpowered Akuma. Since it was apparent they weren't going to be able to get much of anything past Meni and Mani to the Akuma (Not that getting stuff past had been much help last time), She changed her target to the nearer of the twins, going with the same tactic as before, only alternating fire this time between her subspace missiles and her rifle/PLAs. Hopefully she'd get lucky, but she wasn't going to waste more then 3 or 4 missiles this way, they would obviously be needed later as well.

 

[Fred]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

With Masako vulnerable, but having fended off her initial attack, Meni found herself under fire from Kyou. The Black Mindy zipped over to perch itself in a crouch over the Akuma's left shoulder. Kyou found her plasma bolts and incendiary grenades to be warded away by the Akuma's powerful barrier, while Meni used her submachinegun to shoot down the SDM warheads.

It seemed obvious that whatever damage they had so far thrown the Akuma's way, it's barrier's recovery rate was more than compensating for it.

As the Akuma kept moving back further and further away toward the hangar with a still struggling Asher, Mani reappeared by the giant's right leg and pointed her two aether saber-rifles toward Kyou and Masako, firing at the both of them. Kyou dodged and twirled around the incoming shots, eventually jumping over to the passageway's inner wall to then intercept the next aether attacks with her shield while providing a minimal aspect silhouette (just her head, shoulders and rifle).

Masako, for her part, dived into a rolling somersault and boosted over to the opposite wall without further harm... for the moment.

 

[Doshii Jun]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

On Miharu

Yukari did not reply to the order; if she was supposed to buy time, the rest was up to her. Telepathy was fastest.

"Heisho, be ready to fire a subspace torpedo at Takumi on my mark, then prepare the beam cannon. Hinoto-san, find a weakness on the vessel. Structural, computer, psionic; it matters not."

"Yuzuki-san, I am going to drastically reduce CFS power on my mark. Be ready to use whatever coolant we have if need be."

Yukari's fingers gripped the glowing throttle control. No time.

"MARK!"

The CFS was reduced to sub-lightspeed, and the anti-FTL system went off at the same time.

If it was timed right, Takumi's sudden resumption of FTL flight and the FTL speed of the subspace torpedo would give the vessel no time to dodge.

 

[Nyton]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

With finally a second to breath Nyton quickly began to shout out orders. "Ichigo, Freeman! Advance and cover the twins! Gunshin, Nakamura, on me! We need to get CLOSER to hit that thing with subspace missiles so save them for near point blank! Close in on the left side of the Akuma while firing at the enemy to prevent them from countering the missiles!"

A very brief text message was also sent to Asher during the shouting:

Hang in there Westwood!

While giving out his orders, data was sent prioritizing critical targets on the Akuma such as the head and wings. The head was where all the sensor equipment was kept and the wings housed psionic amplifiers and possibly a teleportation module. Without gravimetric propulsion and at full PHALANX amplified strength Nyton ran, scooping up the LASR he had dropped on the floor earlier while he did so. Carefully so as not to incur another stall his system was set to focus on recovering his barrier while the Nepleslian ran and fired off SLAG rounds set to detonate in between and just behind the monster's legs to try and create a blast to help in keeping Mani occupied during the rush. Telemachus activated the independent ECM system aboard the PHALANX to try and scramble enemy sensors to Nyton's approach while standing by to switch priority from recovery to maneuverability should the enemy throw out another aether blast or one of the twin's assaults.

 

[Rabbit Eclair]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Miyoko nodded in response to Yukari's order and prepared a subspace torpedo. We're the distraction, huh... She'd been scanning the Takumi for long enough to have some ideas of where to shoot it. As the Miharu dropped back to subluminal speeds, she triggered the torpedo and then readied the beam cannon, preparing herself to blast the ship as soon as Hinoto announced a weakness.

 

[Kokuten]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Shit shit shit, fire and shit, shit fire, save matches, and shit! Asher screamed in his mind as his he held himself close to his helmet. Being shelved out of combat only pissed the Malifarian off, but there wasn't much he could do about that. In fact, there wasn't a single thing he could, even further he was part of the problem!

As that sick pit slugged it's way in his stomach as he hung on for dear life, he went over his options.

Asher's Plans To Get Tha' Fuck Offa' This Thing
1. Pull out of m'helmet. Good thin's? I ain't stuck t'this bitch no more. Bad thin's? Extremely vulnerable t'all this fire bein' thrown around, n't whateva' might shoot me lata' in tha' mission.

2. Blow up[Self-Destruct]. Good thin's? I might take this things arm off wit' tha' blast. Bad thin's? I'm dead, so I ain't much use afta' that.

3. Wait f'one'a my teammates t'disable this thin's arm. Good thin's Least likely t'lead me to a'early death. Bad thin's Wait too long n'this bitch might decide t'do somethin' wit' me.

The limited options only served to anger Asher further, but one thought put a mixture of dread and even more anger through his veins. Ever since he had been taken by this behemoth, he had wondered why she hadn't bothered to end his life. Unable to see, he could only assume that the gunfire belonged to his teammates. If that was the case, why not use him as some kind of shield, or squish his head right in front of them for demoralizing effect? It was distressing, and even if he went with plan one, he wasn't even sure if he was in a safe spot to do it. So, all he felt he could do is try to pull and pry against the fingers that held him in furious rebellion.

Hang in there Westwood!

Suddenly, a message, and a funny one at that. For a second, Asher's body relaxed, as he started to laugh, forgetting about the universal and life-threatening dangers of tha' situation. He wasn't paying attention, but his laughing was being broadcasted over his external speakers.

Thank's boss, I needed that. Pretty cleva' too.

 

[Tom]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

"Roger," Tom said as he approached the scene with Ichigo. As he tried to find a reasonable defensive position, his quick analysis revealed that they needed to turn the tide quickly in order to focus their attention on the Akuma and save Asher.

Mani was providing a mobile defense for the beast. Remove her, and her twin, and they had a chance.

"Ichigo," he said, "I need you to focus your fire with your heavy weapon on Mani. I'll try to keep her still and provide you with a target to hit."

After firing a single subspace missile at the Akuma, in an effort to force one of the twins on the defensive, he raised his LASR, aimed, and fired a series of peppering shots at the Mani, a feint for his SLAG grenades which would be the main blow, working in conjunction with Nyton's to try to contain their foe in a tight space for Ichigo's weapon to unleash its heavy damage to its maximum effect.

 

[Kai]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

"Sir." Kai responded, quickly, to Nyton's orders, as he watched the meter on his shield slowly recharge. The Akuma's blast had indeed hit the Yamataian, but due to the distance and the rift's effects on Aether, it hadn't been anywhere near as bad as what hit Masako. Speaking of which, she had lost her Plasma rifle in that blast.

"Kurohoshi-juni. When you can spare a moment, I have an extra Plasma rifle" The Yamataian sent telepathically to his superior, as he advanced steadily down the hall, through the damaged room, and into the next hallway, trying not to break thermoptic stealth. Kai's Gauss bazooka was ready, and he noticed something: Meni and Mani had to lose stealth and stay in place when they wanted to make an attack with the Aether SMG's.

"Somebody draw out one of the mindies so I can get a bead on it!" the Heisho asked, as politely as was necessary during a firefight. He was ready to sling a few AP slugs their way the moment they showed up.

 

[Fred]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

@Miharu:

"Target... hit!" Hinoto reported, eyeing her instrumentation. "Shields and propulsion are disabled. They are drifting and attempting to regain control via thrusters. They have not powered their weapons yet"

Miharu was roughly 900 000 kilometers away from the Gate, and Takumi itself was still 4 500 000 kilometers away, which made it 12 light seconds away.

"Shosa, I'm having strange readings from them," Hinoto then sent out. "I have two overlapping images of Takumi: one that is deploying its psionic amplifiers and another which is not."

* * *

@Amaya's Gate:

The Black Knights started better coordinating their attacks in an effort to both defeat their enemies and save the audibly cackling Asher.

Twin SLAG grenade explosions wreathed the back of the Akuma in fire, but the mecha's shielding appeared to still protect the machine. The dual-wielding Meni was shaken enough by the attacks to totter and stumble, though she quickly took cover behind the conveniently close heavily armored leg of the Akuma.

Mani was another story. She had flitted out slightly to intercept Tom's mini-missile to then dodge Tom's LASR burstfire. While she was maneuvering in the open to avoid the engineer's fire Kai and Ichigo both had a good opportunity to strike her down...

...only Ichigo and Tom suddenly found themselves seized in the back as aetheric beams raked the corridor from up high, behind them. Kai had the misfortune to have his shot spoiled not because he would've missed, but because an aether beam had struck the top of his gauss bazooka at random, destroying the weapon before he could fire it.

A Mishhumachina had decloaked behind them, snatches Tom and Ichigo into its tentacled pincers and suppressive fire over them. That gave Mani the opening she needed to safely fly back behind the Akuma's armored bulk, while the Gargoyle-like machine widened its wings and deployed its psionic amplifier fins.

The ADN of the Super Phalanx, the PSC of the Daisy armors... their resistance against psionics was crushed and Asher, Ichigo, Kai, Kyou, Masako, Nyton and Tom found themselves stiffening, their limbs refusing to move, their eyes refusing to even blink, their minds becoming spectators as their bodies refused to move or even interact with the mental interfaces that let them operate their power armors.

But they were still conscious; still aware of was was going on with them. They noticed how the Akuma let Asher go and then raised one of its clawed foot up to land it atop the paralyzed Malifarian, slowly pressing down to crush him. They noticed how their power armors started to give shudders and loosen as nuts, screws and bolts squeaked and unraveled themselves all on their own.

Amaya had dominated them, forced their bodies to freeze up while she was using telekinesis to dismantle their power armors piece by piece! Meni and Mani seemed to relax and edged out from behind the Akuma, their weapons leveled at the Black Knights but not firing yet - likely biding their time for when they would be more vulnerable. The Mishhumachina seemed to wait as well.

 

[Kokuten]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Y'know... thought Asher, his minds still at ease as the large mecha's foot came down on him. Tha' real me's out there fuckin' somethin' right now. Sighing mentally, he gave what he thought would be his last thought, Life just ain't fair.

 

[Aendri]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Kyou's mind simply froze, unable to comprehend the power behind the psychic assault on the entire team. That said, she never stopped struggling, as hard as she could, to try and get control of herself back. Why can't we do ANYTHING?!

 

[Tom]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Tom tried moving, desperately trying to overcome his sudden paralysis. He had no time to mourn the failure of his strike because, within the corners of his mind, he could feel the terror begin to rise. He was like a wounded rabbit in the snow, bleeding and limping, life ebbing away from it as the wolves pounced, ready to feed.

Each creaking screw and trembling plate eminded him of the grotesque sound of a tearing ligament, a visceral popping that just signaled that his death was all but apparant.

To die like this, like a plaything of their enemies. It was a humiliation that drove him to the verge of tears, if only because it wouldn't be a death that Yukari had wanted him to face.

Anything but this.

 

[Doshii Jun]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Overlapping ...

Yukari knew Eve was smarter than her. That one way or another it was likely a trick, and that she was about to make the wrong move. Which move was irrelevant.

"Heisho, set the aether torpedo to explode just behind Takumi, so its wing pylons are enveloped by the explosion, then fire."

Yukari was ready to tap the throttle to 2c the moment after the torpedo was away.

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Battered and bruised, scorched and scored, Masako could do nothing but float as an anger she never knew rose with in her mind. Her first death at the hands of Meni or Mani had cracked only the surface of what was under her normally calm and gentle persona. But now, as her Daisy shuddered and creaked around her, she felt herself nearly overwhelmed by hatred for her assailants.

Here they stood, ready to kill her comrades and friends, just to conquer the home they were all fighting to protect. All the while, Masako could do nothing. Her eyes stung as her body continued to not obey her commands. The young Warrant Officer wanted to move. She wanted nothing more than to rip her enemies to shreds. She even began to wish she was back in her old NH-17 body where she had the ability.

But wishing wouldn't help in this situation and that just made Masako even more wrathful.

 

[Fred]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

@Amaya's Gate:

Screws fell out and tinkled against the metal floor.

One of the circular armored coverings of Asher's helmet-integrated communication system fell off, rolled on its edge a little bit and then fell to its side. The Akuma's foot also pressed in more heavily, causing the Daisy's support frame to painfully dig into the hemosynth insert (with Asher beneath).

Kai's studded right knuckleguard slipped loose and fell to a clatter on the ground.

Kyou's fusion booster pack fell apart, first the glider wings and then the main thruster assembly.

Nyton's Super Phalanx nanomachine-structure eroded, and the power armor shuddered in spurts gradually shedding minute amounts of grey 'sand' all over.

Masako's damaged armor, fused by the previous aether discharge, was somewhat less susceptible to falling apart as the others were, but it merely meant slower progress in her case. She still had her right shoulder weapon rack crumble off, and it was soon followed by her power armor's right pauldron, stripping the protection on the top of that limb bare.

Even within the grasp of the Mishhumachina, Tom saw his Daisy also lose pieces: his left forearm cannon's turreted support failed and the mounted weapon disengaged, crashing down to the floor along with his zesuaium shield - the only vestiges of the weapon's presence on Tom's Daisy were now a collection of drooping, snaking wires.

Mani, her aether submachinegun ready, turned her head to look up at the beaked chestplate of the Akuma. "They should be completely exposed already. Why is this taking so long?" They overheard the encrypted telepathic signals of their opponents again.

"Do not rush me! Their PSC is giving more of a fight than I thought it would even with the amplifier," was the response.

...though according to the HUD displays of the Super Phalanx and the Daisy power armors, their ADN/PSC defenses had completely zeroed out.

 

[Kokuten]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Asher sighed, still feeling the impending doom upon him. The mission seemed to be a failure, and all was lost, but that fact alone seemed to empower the Malifarian's confidence, his own defiance of death. The closer he seemed to get, the more passionate and cocky he became. So, he decided to have a little fun, if not to lighten the mood.

"Hey... Kuro-Juni," Asher sent telepathically to Masako, "I been meanin'... meanin' t'ask you this. Y'gunna have any regrets... if y'die a virgin? Heh he--"

Asher was stopped short as he felt the pressure come down on him.

But the pain. He may not have enjoyed such things in bed, but pain was like a battlefield drug to him. For most organisms, it was a signal to run away or to find a method for it to stop. For Asher, it was like alcohol, it only made him more risky, deadly, and in some cases, stupid. When the mecha decided to press on him further, causing the man's body to compress under the weight, he suddenly gained a massive rush.

He would've laughed his murderous laugh, if it weren't for the fact that he couldn't control his own body.

"Shit!" sent Asher telepathically to the aggressor in the mecha, "Are you tha' one doin' this mind fuck shit? Man, you suck at this, y'know that? My dad could'a done'a betta' n'fasta' job n'you, and ee's not even a psionic! Shit, he's fuckin' dead! Hell, I'm gunna die of old fuckin' age b'fore y'get done here."

The Yamataian, was indeed feeling very brave, in the face of an ultimate demise. Though, it was the way he was, and he wasn't even done.

"Hey, y'know what? I gotta' pretty good idea. How's about I bend y'ova in that cockpit, n'me n'you could make a real psio t'do this for ya."

 

[Kai]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

For the first time in his life, Keiran Nakamura was not in control of his body. He couldn't seem to feel anything, he only knew that his Daisy was slowly falling apart around him. The Daisy armor that he had personally modified and built to his own specifications with his own two hands. He knew it was stronger than this, that he was stronger than this. Whatever Amaya was doing, she had caught him off guard. Well, she had his full attention now.

I Am Not someone's PLAYTHING. I AM More than some cookie-cutter, Mindless clone made to die! I AM NOT going to let someone just do what they want with my body. The Yamataian Thought, Gritting his teeth and concentrating with full force on moving his body, on doing something more than watch as he and his comrades were simply held like dolls to be destroyed at their Enemies' leisure. No, Kai Nakamura was stronger than that, His mind was harder than that, More firmly planted than a Nekovalkyrja's, something that was formed, strengthened, and perfected over twenty years living, working, and fighting.

Bringing his focus to bear, Kai Ordered both his body, and his Daisy, to Move, to fight, to be their own, under the control of the one who honed them into what they were today, not some outside intruder who knew not the intricacies of their construction and workings.

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Masako would probably have just sighed at Asher's little quip...if she weren't so angry at the moment. The fact that he was cut off abruptly however just seemed to fuel her already growing anger. "I'm going to annihilate you!" Masako broadcast to her foes.

In an attempt to actually move, Masako attempted to use her anger as a motivator. Even if it wouldn't work, just trying to break free out of sheer rage was at least something to do.

 

[Nyton]

Re: Mission 5: Amaya's Gate

Being rendered immobile was a bit of a shock to Nyton. One second he was bearing down on the enemy eager for the kill that was proving a challenge, the next he was completely still. Warnings from Telemachus rang through his ears as the combat computer alerted the man to his situation.

Emergency situation sir, PSC and ADN devices have been overwhelmed. Vulnerability is high. Sir, you must continue moving. You are an open target like this. Sir? Respond sir. None of the other members of the Black Knights are moving sir.

The combat computer, much like a person it seemed, suddenly dawned upon a realization. It was an odd but endearing trait that had moved Nyton to go so far as to give it a name.

Sir you are being psionically dominated! Shifting full power to the barriers. Initiating stimulant cocktail.

While Nyton appreciated the efforts being made by Telemachus the stimulants only served to make his mind race a little harder. It was almost refreshing even if he still could not control his body. Nyton was strangely calm though, as if he were taking in the experience to try and understand it. The memory recorder was busily working to store the experience as though further analysis later would be possible. Emotionally he could feel bitterness beginning to bite at him, after all it was very frustrating to finally attempt to go on the initiative only to have it completely foiled.

Well I obviously can't give Telemachus any commands nor can I send them mentally through the interface. Everyone is stuck too so I'm guessing Amaya really made her move. Wait, what's that sound?

SIR! I am being dismantled! Suspected psionic force is deactivating nanomachinery forming structure. My integrity will be compromised in approximately ten minutes. All other friendly forces are reporting the same emergency.

Now Nyton felt a little rushed. He was calm earlier because he believed Kotori would catch up to them and was waiting for just the right moment to overwhelm their enemy's binding force on them but now there were some issues. At this rate he wouldn't have a suit left to fight in even after the enemy gets pushed back.

Nyton started to ponder on any ideas that he could use against psionic control such as this. Thinking back he wondered if this was at all similar to the kind used when Mellisson took over his mind.

What was it Hinoto said about non-psionics resisting psionic assault? Sense of individuality and self-determination as defense? Yes that was it. Nyton recalled, the memory recorder bringing the moment back with full clarity.

Telemachus conveniently placed a count down on the screen in front of him although it would likely shut down anyway as the suit disintegrated. Nyton tracked the enemy's positions from where he could see in the hopes of being able to move and react. He tried to put everything he had into moving his arms and pulling the trigger. It was the most emotionally determined he had been in some time. Without using his emotional programs he recalled everything he could to make him want to move. He tried anger and pain. He tried joy and excitement. He even tried lust and desire. Every tiny piece of Nyton was screaming to move. There was nothing he wanted more right now than to move, to fight, to kill, and then to return to the ship and find Hinoto.

Move dammit MOVE! We will win this. We can win this. I will kill you twin bitches with my own hands if need be. I want to savor feeling your blood running through my fingers and crushing your brains in my hands. I want to rip you to pieces until you're just organs and meat. Meat I can chew up and swallow then shit right out! I still have to do the same for Mellisson even if her flesh makes me violently ill! I need to move and kill! I haven't killed anything since that neko back at the control room and that was not satisfying enough! I still haven't even made up my mind about whether I want to kill or kiss Hinoto dammit! Just MOVE ALREADY!

Integrity degradation speeding up. Less than five minutes sir.

DAMMIT! Grandfather I can't lose again! Not here! Give me strength! How did you manage to control your entire flesh body? I need that strength! My body HAS to respond! Every blood vessel, every synapse, every muscle, every bone, every little bit of my body is mine! I will it to MOVE!

If he could shout Nyton would give the loudest bellow of his life. Each time the PHALANX shuddered he hoped it was his own body rejecting the control. Nyton was determined to resist this control for as long as he could. Physically his resistance may have ceased but deep down his mind would not quit.

Then he heard the enemy again.

Hurry up Kotori!