As the dust settles...

Zach_Rendar · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **Zach_Rendar** on Wed Oct 12, 2005 11:49 pm

After the short introductions, Zach lead the pilots and their crew to the briefing room, which was in actuality just a converted auxillary cockpit. It was large enough to put in a table large enough for Zach, Ess, and the L3 company.

Ess greeted everyone at the door and stood in front of a projector screen. She had given up on her business suit and had returned to her teal jumpsuit and her red hair had been freed from its ponytail.

"Hello, I'm Ess, head mechanic and logistics manager for The Defenders. We're glad that you all agreed to join us here.

There was a general murmur of recognition. All eyes were trained on Ess. She had never liked being the center of attention in situations like these. She wished she knew what was going on those people's minds when they stared at her. She forced herself to move on.

"As you probably know. A rebel named Jyotika has taken over most of Asia, and is producing MS at an alarming rate. A few MS are already battle-capable, but most are just hollow hunks of metal with no operating system installed yet, which they're still beta-testing as of now. If production continues as it is now, Asia will be able to swarm over Earth and the Colonies and defeat us with sheer numbers. There are rumors of a third-party contractor that might be a threat, but there's no sign of any major MS operations over there."

Ess paused and started a slideshow, which showed several photographs of a large MS factory.

"This is the largest MS factory and thus, the biggest threat. Two of the MS are operational and are currently out in training. Once it is night in Asia, we'll be able to parachute your MS down there while the Gilgamesh orbits above. This will give you pilots about ninety minutes to destroy the factory (most people would be home by then, so casualties should be minimal; nonexistant if possible), steal some shuttles, and return to The Gilgamesh.

Ess smiled, she was getting to the creative part of the mission; the part that made it her own. She had always loved imagining such details when it came to battles.

"Since we don't want to be identified personally if they track our comm traffic. I have assigned you each pilot a codename. Commander Han, your codename is Defender Io. Ensign Rynolds, you're Defender Callisto. Ensign Eota, you're Defender Ganymede. Rendar, you're Defender Charon."

"Charon? I thought we were doing Jupiter's Galilean moons, Charon is Pluto's moon."

"You're still a new pilot, Zach. With effort, determination, and just being a better pilot, maybe you'll be worth a Galilean codename someday.

Ess hoped that hurt his pride, although she knew it had come at the expense of their guests' sense of ease, she believed it had been worth it.

FutureKiyoshi · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **FutureKiyoshi** on Thu Oct 13, 2005 12:05 am

Han looked towards Zach with a smirk.

Han - So? Charon...you think you can handle being in point. I do have more experience than you as a pilot. I know that first hand.

Eota and Base looked at eachother.

Base - This is so cool! Code names!

Eota - It's a perk of the job, I guess?

Base - Perk! This is just no mere perk. Think about if we're successful, we'll be known everywhere by these names. Even feared maybe!

Eota - I don't want to be feared, "Callisto".

Base - Hmph. You're not enjoying this enough.

Han looked over at Base and Eota.

Han - Ganymede, Callisto...stop your chit-chat and go get our Taurus mobile suits ready. This battle will be serious. I would have hoped for some time to train you in the Taurus's but it shouldn't be much different than the Leo. Just faster, more agile, and it can transform. Follow my lead when we get to the surface.

Han then looked back at Zach.

Han - Not to sound like we're against you, but since you're in the Gundam, you're going to be drawing a lot of attention. We can use this to our advantage. They Taurus's black paint job should also help, since this is a night operation. If things get too dangerous, Ganymede and Callisto WILL withdraw from the battle. They're more rookies than you are, and if anything happened to them, it would be on my soul.

Han went quiet as he looked back at the screen, studying it. Han had become a bit worried. Kiyoshi had sent them all here for a reason. This wouldn't be easy at all. He was glad that Kiyoshi had equipped them with Taurus units however. The improved mobility, speed, and armor would be helpful in a mission like this.

Zach_Rendar · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **Zach_Rendar** on Thu Oct 13, 2005 12:40 am

Ess watched the duskline on Earth cross the Pacific Ocean from the cockpit of the Gilgamesh. She was surprised how poorly Zach had handled his new codename. He had gone off to sulk in Epiphany until it was to be launched. She realized though that he had wanted to be respected by these pilots, and that Charon was the name of the agent who brought human souls to the Underworld, which was a big blow to the young man who prided himself on saving so many lives with his medical expertise.

The mech crew had finished installing the atmochutses (atmosphere parachutes) to the backs of the four MS. The black strands of metal thread would slow the mobile suits and protect them from the heat of entry.

Even with the glory of putting Zach down in front of the pilots, Ess felt a bit guilty about landing him with such a name that would probably follow him as long as The Defenders and the L3 Company were with them.

"Hey, you have a moment?"

It was Stacy Matta, she had made her way to the cockpit and sat down next to Ess.

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Just some girl talk, some of the guys here can be real jerks. I've been getting stares from everyone in a grey jumpsuit around here."

Well, we women can be jerks to... in our own ways. Ess admitted to herself

"Just hang out with me. I'll smack some sense into those guys. They won't bother you with me around.

The five-minute warning bell rang, the last chance for pilots to get to their suits. The hangar bays would be opening and the suits would be launched to Earth, now that the duskline had moved over Asia, shrouding it in darkness. The pilots would be landing in the forest to the West of the factory, and would attack from there.

Ess just prayed everything would work out.

FutureKiyoshi · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **FutureKiyoshi** on Thu Oct 13, 2005 1:07 am

Han strapped himself into his cockpit and made a connection to both Eota and Base.

Han - Ganymede, Callisto...stay out of Fighter Mode, unless we have to move fast. I don't think you'll be used to it yet.

Eota and Base - Yes sir, Io, sir!

Han smiled. The boys had taken to the use of code names quicker than he thought they would. Some young pilots had the problem of slipping up at first, but Eota and Base had gotten it down pat. He wondered if it would last in a serious combat situation as well. Han then opened up a communication channel to Zach.

Han - Hey..."Gundam Boy"...I know you don't like your code name, so while we're still here I won't use it. Don't let it get to you...women can be insensitive sometimes. I don't think you'll be leading me to my death. You already had that chance before, and I escaped it. If I can escape death from a Gundam...I can escape death from anything.

Han smiled looking at Zach, trying to make him feel better. He wasn't sure if it had worked.

Han - I'm putting my trust in you. It's up to you to prove to me that not all of you Earthlings are bad guys. We're working as a team now, so let's get this job done, come home, and have some champagne!

Zach_Rendar · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **Zach_Rendar** on Thu Oct 13, 2005 2:39 pm

Zach grinned in his cockpit, feeling slightly better. The bell rang for the one-minute warning.

"Sounds good to me, when we all get back here, we'll break out the juice boxes!"

Han's chuckling was cut off by the hangar doors opening, revealing the darkened Earth below. Ess' voice came over their intercoms.

"Operation Nightstrike is green. Set for launch."

The four MS in the hangar glowed as they powered up and braced their feet in the slings that would send them towards Earth.

"MS powered up, and launch is green. Defender Io, launch!"

Han's Taurus flew forward on its launch pad and shot off towards Earth, it's atmochute strapped tightly to its back.

"Defender Ganymede, launch! Defender Callisto, launch!"

Ess watched as the other two Tauri made their way clear of the hangar doors to make sure the slightly larger Epiphany would have a clear run.

"Defender Charon, launch!"

Epiphany was sent forward into space, and the four MS shot off towards Earth, leaving a spiral of white Vernier trails behind them. Ess knew that with an operation this simple, she'd see them all again, but still couldn't help feeling worried.

***

"Alright team, we're two clicks from the Earth's atmosphere. Let's open stage one of the atmochutes."

In unison, the four MS turned and activated the first stage of their atmochutes, the black metal cloth covered the front of the MS and began absorbing the heat of the friction between the atmosphere and the invading bodies. Inside the cockpits, the pilots were heavily jostled as their suits hit the variances in air pressure, trying to find the path of least resistance through the steam of gravity.

"Okay, we're approaching the sound barrier... stage two on my mark... three... two... MARK!"

Spinning around, the MS let their parachutes open now that the atmosphere was thick enough to slow their fall, and didn't break the sound barrier which would create a sonic boom to wake up the entire base.

"Good job team, once we land, we'll do a systems check and begin the attack."

In his cockpit, Zach smiled as Epiphany floated gently down to the forest. He had noticed how quiet Ganymede and Callisto had been. He wondered if they had pre-battle jitters, but if they did, it couldn't be helped.

One after the other, the MS landed, shaking the Earth as their heavy bodies contacted the ground.

It was go time.

OOC: To be completed in Asia

FutureKiyoshi · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **FutureKiyoshi** on Thu Oct 13, 2005 10:43 pm

Ess and Stacy sat within the cockpit of the Gilgamesh. Ess was kind of glad that there was another girl on board with similar interests. Stacy had pulled up her plans for Kiyoshi's mobile suit.

Stacy - See the Cygnus can be technically outfitted for any type of mission. Heavier armor could easily be applied to the mobile suit, extra verniers, boosters or added weapons because of the many hard points on the mobile suit. It's basically the idea Kiyoshi had that he called "Variable Frame" for a Gundam he wanted to design. Unfortunately, I don't know when those could get the light of day.

Ess looked over the plans and she could tell that this would be a solid design. The Neo-Titanium frame meant it would be cheaper to produce than a Gundam, but still be near as strong. The very basic armaments would allow the mobile suit to be successful in most cases. Ess could tell Stacy had skills, but when she looked at Stacy again, she could tell she was day dreaming.

Ess - What are you thinking about?

Stacy snapped out of her day dream.

Stacy - Oh, sorry, I was just thinking about, Base. I'm hoping he's alright, and the others too.

Ess began to think about Zach. Things had been heated between the two of them for awhile now, but that didn't change the fact that she too was a bit worried.

Ess - They'll be alright. Han seems to have a lot of experience, and Zach has improved in the Epiphany since the last time they faced eachother.

Stacy smiled slightly to herself as she thought about Base.

Stacy - Before we came here, Base and I just started dating. He's...interesting.

Ess laughs shaking her head.

Ess - He seems like a hot head.

Stacy - Oh he is...most of the time.

The doors to the cockpit opened and Lisa Nichruen walked in. The older woman's presence almost commanded a silent admiration.

Lisa - What's the status of our pilots?

Ess looked to Lisa biting her lip.

Ess - We haven't had any communication's from them. We should soon though. Their mission shouldn't take too long.

The three girls looked towards earth that was on the main view screen. Each of them had someone they cared about down there.

Duo Maxwell334 · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **Duo Maxwell334** on Sat Dec 03, 2005 3:40 pm

then out of nowhere deathsythe strikes both the ship and both dies

FutureKiyoshi · **Tips:** 0.00 INK by **FutureKiyoshi** on Sat Dec 03, 2005 8:20 pm

OOC: Ha ha yeah. Good one. That's not how things work, not to mention this post's quite out of date. Eric needs to delete the previous post.

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As the dust settles...

a topic in Gundam Wing: Continuing Legend, a part of the RPG forum.

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