Chapter 25

If not for Dagr controlling their flight, Nick would have died in the next few moments. The black suits unleashed an onslaught of attacks Nick had never seen in any simulation before. Hundreds of energy beams, fired simultaneously, targeted all the DRAGOONs. Immediately after, they split into groups, targeting different DRAGOONs, some of who were standing to fight, and others who had disappeared.

"We need to move!" A pointless thought, as Dagr had already turned them away, funneling as much power as possible into the thrusters, trying to find an empty part of space. Nick tried to look for Keith and the others, but the further away they got, the fewer signs of life he saw. Correction, fewer signs of friendly life, as he had a group of enemy mobile suits on his tail.

They fired their strange energy weapons, and even though Dagr was able to dodge the beams, Nick could feel the heat from the weapons. What's more, they seemed to rip through the part of space they passed, and Nick feared a single hit from such a weapon would be the end.

"We need to fight." Nick hated running. He hated himself for the fear that filled him, and he wanted to prove himself to Keith and the fourth years.

Do you have a plan? I am a bit preoccupied dodging these attacks. They dropped suddenly, narrowly dodging another beam. In the simulations he was used to, his DRAGOON would be equipped with beam weapons of its own. However, he couldn't find a single weapon on his unit. The only other way of fighting he knew, was close combat.

I will do as you wish Nick, I can see your mind. He felt Dagr's consciousness draw closer, and he knew he could trust the dragon. Without warning, Dagr flipped them through the air, and they rushed the nearest mobile suit. The enemy mech drew a weapon from it's back, a black rod with a glowing blade at the end, unphased at their maneuver.

Nick didn't let the enemy's calm reaction slow them, and with fire coursing through his veins, they slammed into the enemy. Nick grabbed the enemy's weapon, clutching it firmly with both hands. At the same time, Dagr reversed their thrusters, using their moment to pull the enemy even closer. Nick slammed his knee into the mechs chest, driving a blade which protruded from his armor deep into its stomach. The red light faded from the enemy, and he let it drift off into space.

Well, that's one. How about the others? Dagr's question made Nick realize they were now surrounded. The units circled him, all having switched to their strange weapons, and Nick knew he wasn't going to make it out of this situation. If only he had a weapon.

You have me. Dagr sent confidence through their link, and opened their thrusters to full force, rocketing towards the next enemy. Even full of power, the enemies managed to match his speed. Dagr stopped them as the enemy slashed towards them, and Nick grabbed the weapon as it flew harmlessly past. Curling his hand into a fist, he pulled the weapon and mech towards him, and smashed his spikes into its head. As before, the lights faded, and he let it float away.

"That's two!" A beam of energy interrupted his celebration, and had Dagr not been with him, he would have died there.

There are still many left. Roughly a dozen enemies remained. Shall we?

"Lets" Somehow, they were going to make it through this fight.

"Do not do anything else reckless Nicholas. My sister has warned me you never know when you are outmatched." Even as the words faded, every single enemy around Nick simply disappeared.

"What...just happened?" Nick was alone with Dagr in space.

I'm not certain Nick. Whoever had just helped them, they were no longer there. However, they way they spoke, they knew who Nick was.

"Let's find the others, maybe Keith knows." Dagr took them back towards the battleships, and as they neared, red flashes signaled the fight was still ongoing. The fighting was going a lot better for the fourth years though. They seemed to be toying with the enemy units, easily dispatching multiple enemies with a single attack.

"There's Keith". They flew towards Keith's DRAGOON, which was currently surrounded by five enemy suits.

Should we help him? Dagr's question was sincere, but Nick doubted they would be able to help much, other than as a distraction. As they drew closer though, he quickly realized Keith didn't need any help.

The five units advanced as one on Keith, launches a barrage of energy towards him. However, his DRAGOON simply disappeared, reappearing behind one of them. His form shuddered, and suddenly it was gone again, appearing and disappearing at lighting speed. He was moving so fast, it appeared as if the enemy was surrounded by a hundred Keith's. He could see the enemy forces shifting, as if trying to block the unseen attacks, but the pieces of dark metal flying off them revealed otherwise. In an instant, all five broke apart, and Keith reappeared in the middle, smiling.

"Still alive, eh Nicky?" Keith drifted lazily towards Nick, broad smile across his face. "I'm impressed." He sounded genuine.

"Well, I got a little help." Nick didn't want to fully admit how overwhelmed he had been.

"From who? Rasha?" Keith looked over Nick's shoulder and shook his head. "Nope, she's still dancing around having fun."

"I'm not sure." He told Keith what happened.

"Go figure he would show up." The way he said it, Nick was certain Keith knew who it was.

"Who?"

"Eli." Nick had never heard that name before.

"Who is Eli?"

"The top physical at the school." Keith didn't seem to want to talk about it, but Nick was curious now. The last time Keith had mentioned the top physical, it had been to warn him away from Naomi.

"Why would he just show up to help me, and leave?"

"Because he isn't supposed to be in the simulations, he breaks the machine every time he joins." Keith really didn't want to talk about this. A red beam of light from the enemy ship blasted overhead, stopping the conversation. Keith took the opening in the conversation and ran with it.

"Say Nicky, wanna help me bring this thing down?" Nick knew he wasn't going to get any more information from Keith.

"Sure," he held his empty hands out towards Keith. "With what weapons though?"

"Oh yeah.... I forgot to tell ya about that didn't I." Keith grinned sheepishly. "Proper DRAGOONs can materialize weapons utilizing physical energy. What type of weapons, differs on the pilot." He held his hands out towards Nick, and two blue blades shot out from under his wrists.

"Is that it?" Nick was a bit underwhelmed.

Keith grinned, flipped his wrists, making the blades disappear, and held his hands down towards his side. Part of his armor shifted, revealing what looked like two handles. Keith grabbed both, and as he pulled them out, blue energy shot from their ends, forming two blades. "Neat, huh?"

Nick had to admit, those were a bit more impressive.

"What do I have?"

"No idea. It takes hours of familiarization and experimentation to figure out what your DRAGOON will produce. Like I said, it's different for everyone." He grinned as he put his swords away. "Except, every DRAGOON does have one attack I can show you." He winked and turned towards the ship.

"Put your hands out like this." He placed his hands, palms together, towards the enemy ship. Then keeping his fingers curled, opened it up. "This, is called the DRAGOON's Maw."

Nick emulated Keith's movements, and noted that with his clawed fingers and knuckles, it almost looked like Dagr's face.

I'm a bit more glorious than that, Nick. Dagr was not amused at the comparison. He couldn't help but laugh.

"Now, focus your physical energy into your hands, and push it outwards. Try and combine it in the empty space between your hands, and then, propel it forward." As he spoke, blue energy began to swirl in between his hands. More and more energy poured in, and flames of energy danced through the spaces between his fingers. "Once you get enough energy, it will release." On cue, a beam of flame shot from between his hands, punching into the enemy ship. Explosions rippled throughout, causing it to shudder.

"You're turn." Keith turned to watch Nick, and smirked. "But don't expect yours to be as big as mine."

Nick stared at his hands, trying to imagine his energy pulsing forwards, just as Keith had described. Nothing happened.

"Hey Keith, seems your pet can't perform under pressure." Rasha just had to show up now, didn't she. Frustration and embarrassment filled Nick.

May I? Dagr seemed confident, and to save any further embarrassment, Nick gave him the okay. He felt his fire redirect suddenly through his whole body, and Dagr expertly manipulated it towards his palms. Instantly, blue flames burst into life, and a mass of energy formed. Once Dagr had poured most of their energy into it, it released, ripping through the enemy ship, the weakened shield, and into the orb. The red lights fluttered and faded.

"I guess he can perform." Nick managed to hear Rasha say, before everything went black, and two white words sprung into his vision.

Mission Complete