The sirens continued to blare through Shinkyo... Here he was, not even a day after his first fight with the Gaojinizer. And he already got another chance? If there were gods… They sure were blessing him. Takeshi dashed through the halls of Japan branch HQ, knocking people away, and off their feet as he did so. Something that didn’t exactly go over well.

“Watch where you’re going!”

“What are you even doing in here?!”

To this, he had no response. He was focused on one thing, and one thing only. He charged through the halls with hyperfocus, moreso, as he came across his target, the elevator. His legs sped up under him, as he came toward it, entering, and slamming the button for the first floor.

“I need to get over there quickly… It’s a good thing that I wasn’t too far away.”

He continued to drop from floor to floor. And despite the quickness of the elevator, it felt like he was there for hours. Was he excited to get into battle? Anxious for the city's safety? Something else entirely? That much, he himself didn’t even know. Perhaps a mix of the three. Either way, he did not dwell on this for long, as he finally reached the ground floor, and quickly made his way through the building’s lobby. The retracing of his steps followed, blocking out the panicked screams that echoed through the city, until he reached the pad he landed the Gaojinzer on. He found that, still standing there, was Kyouko. The brown-headed girl who’d annoyed him beforehand, still walking around his machine, hooking up and removing wires. A quick attempt to gain any data she could. That much didn’t matter, not to him.

Apparently, his dash didn’t go unnoticed, as the woman heard the rapid clanging of his feet on the metal below them. Her attention shot toward him as he approached, she took note of the determination on his face. But that much would only make sure she got what she needed. She unhooked her wires, shoving the tablet onto the tool-bet on her side. Watching the boy’s approach. Until he got within a few feet of her, and she clamped her hand over his shoulder. Something that made his gaze shoot back to her.

“You again, What is it now?!” Takeshi Questioned.

“Are you going to go fight those Garsalan?”

“What do you think! I’m running to the Gao, Aren’t I?”

As he began to run off again, she followed, something he took note of, as the wire from his cockpit descended. Turning to face her, as he gripped it within his hand.

“In that case, let me come with you! I need to get completed data on how that thing works.” She responded.

What an annoyance… She was still trying to poke around? Were his earlier words not enough? If so, it looked like he needed to try again.

“No. You’d only get in my way!” Takeshi responded. He said nothing else as his cockpit opened, and he made his way in, the wire retracting soon after. His words put a frown on her face.

“If he thought that was enough to get rid of me, he has the wrong idea!”

She was an established engineer! There was no way she would let this chance pass her by… This thought continued, even as the thrusters on the Gaojinizer’s back lit up, with a red glow surrounding them. followed by high winds kicked up, her brown locks weaving in the air as a result. With the engine humming, and the machine levitating. No sooner did it shoot off into battle, while she watched all the while.

If that avenue was closed, she would simply have to find another, it was that simple. Her eyes began moving across the city, until she recalled something.

“The boneyard… I could get a fighter, even if it's decommissioned, It’s likely to still work.”

Now, Kyouko left as well, apparently, to act on her words.

Away from the city, flying over the verdant forests typical of the region, there was a ship, significantly smaller than the cruisers that were above Neo-Tokyo, though, still casting a shadow underneath. Though there was a lack of distinct markings, the overall shape of the ship told it’s origin, Garsalan. In the center of the room, there lay a small bridge, filled with the ship’s officers.

But, most notable, was the one who sat in a seat in the very center, a Holographic map in front of him. His chitin was a mix of earth colors, Green and Dark browns. A form of camouflage used by their ancestors.

“L’fles Bas, Wa'ya nairsuyasan e Tassel Saddranald, aid raanr dhairr'ya cafd aid hainnal waidhail dhair nuildeail."- " Bas L’fles, We've discovered a Terran Settlement, it seems they've kept it hidden within this mountain."

L’fles Zu Jago, a Garsalan holding the title of Bas. Administrating a settlement far from their current location. Though his position was at the back of his mind right now, The one he left in charge was competent enough to govern in the meanwhile. His mind was instead on the mission he had received, and the enemy that was now in front of him. The words from his subordinate certainly caught his attention.

"Ir dhed ru..." (“Is that so…?”) The Bas mumbled, Gaining an affirmative chitter and nod from the same officer.

"Yar. Il ennaidaiul, wa'ya erru raal e rairhuiadda ull dha neshaila llsun dhed saidirr, dha rena wa sena hasa du arainaileda."("Yes. In addition, we've also seen a silhouette of the machine from that city, the same we came here to eliminate.")

So that’s how it was…. Two targets at once. The Machine would be more than enough, but the city behind it was icing on the cake. The course of action here was simple.

“Leilsh Osfaider Dasainedusr. Wa'sa faraillailr uis erreird.” (“Launch Orbital Decimators. We're beginning our assault.”)

Upon his orders, within the ship’s hangar bays, the ship’s mechanics rushed to the humanoid machine’s that made up the backbone of the Garsalan’s forces. Though, unlike their human equivalents, they had six limbs. Two sub-arms coming from the machines’ torso. Something that served to show some difference from their human counterparts. If it wasn’t that, it was their somewhat smaller size, a result of the more efficient reactors. Which, of course, was not visible. With the midnight blue, and dark gray armor keeping it hidden. These machines were members of the Garsalan’s AMX-23 S’Fan mass production line.

Though a bit outdated compared to what the fleet in the systems deemed to have more importance would have, having not been overhauled in years, it was more than enough for a task like this. With his orders given, it did not take long for him to rise from his seat. Making his way out of the bridge, the blast doors parting as he exited.

“Pashefr…I Shuirn fesdaisaifeda nirrrarll. Lad’r raa whed dhair Tassel fairud her du ullllas.”(“Perhaps…I Should participate myself. Let’s see what this Terran pilot has to offer.”)

Eventually, the sight of the ship became somewhat visible on Takeshi’s display. He’d seen many ships before, given where he lived. But this one didn’t resemble something he’d expect from any group on earth. In fact, he almost immediately recognized the resemblance to his enemy.

“Alright.. That must be them. It’s time to kick some ass!!” He yelled, promptly beginning a quick flight toward the Garsalan Ship. No sooner did the earlier machines drop from the ship’s hangar, shooting through the sky to meet his charge.

“Dul’d rad dha fsainaidaiya dhsuirh, Shuud hain nuwl!”(-“Don’t let the primitive through, Shoot him down!”-)

The words were soon followed by the machines drawing scaled up rifles, which soon sent forth beams of red light. But seemingly, this was nowhere near enough, with the Gaojinizer twisting through the air, much quicker than before… It certainly helped that the pilot’s body wasn’t being nearly torn apart by the maneuvers. Takeshi was quick to return the favor, bursts of beam fire streaming from the comet pulse cannon’s barrels. One unlucky machine finding itself torn apart by the force of the shots. Something that prompted the rest of the squad to break up.

“Denl. Thed’r ula ull ir nuwl!”(“Damn. That’s one of us down!”)

“Thaais waefulr heya layas faal efra du rssedsh uis esnus, rad erula nardsuirr uis Meshailar…” (“Their weapons have never been able to scratch our armor, let alone destroy our Machines…”)

The conversation was soon cut off, as Takeshi let out a war cry that echoed outside of the Gaojinizer, followed by the machine's scythe being drawn from its side. And a charge at one of the Garsalan, as he drew it back, swiping as he got one of the enemies’ machines in his stirling range. But his strike only left a chip in it’s armor, as it drew back just in time. No sooner did it aim it's rifle, taking shots at the Gaojinizer. Only for the machine to move out of the way, swiftly maneuvering out of the view of the S’Fan’s main camera.

Now, Takeshi closed in from behind, ready to take a swipe down on the machine’s back. But his attack was cut off, as he was quickly knocked away by another. One distinct from the others, by the way of it’s purple-colored armor.

“Arsairhd,Crura ail ul hain, err naisasdaiulr!” (“Alright,Close in on him, all directions!”)

As per L’fles’ orders, they began to close in on the pilot, weaving through the air like a virtual typhoon , firing bursts of beam fire that crashed into the machine’s armor. Shaking the cockpit, and leaving some chips in the armor. Putting an end to his temporary triumph.

“Danm!” Takeshi exclaimed through his gritted teeth. He would soon begin a descent, attempting to remove himself from the firing zone. Something he succeeded in. The youth’s eyes began flying across hsi display, observing the situation around him. He was outnumbered, but he faced worse odds earlier, this was nothing that he couldn’t hand-

His thought process was soon interrupted, as a warning chime, originating from his OS, broke his focus.

“More roaches?” He mumbled.

His question was soon answered, as he was hailed by what looked to be another Human craft. He was quick to answer, only for his eyes to widen in surprise as he took note of the face that appeared on the display. The youthful face of Kyouko. It was only then that he saw the small fighter zip across the sky, just below him, and behind the enemy machines.

“Oi, OI, What do you think you’re doing here?!” He yelled.

“What do YOU think i'm doing?! I’m here to gather data, Obviously! I decided to take matters into my own h-”

She was cut off, as a beam nearly cut into her cockpit, a direct result of one of the Garsalan machines taking a shot at her. Even if she was not killed, she could definitely feel the rapid build of heat. Apparently, whatever countermeasures to that kind of weaponry had worn out over the years. The attack was promptly followed by the source of the attack flying at her, the light streaming from it’s thrusters intensifying.

“Bas, Id ruucr raica dha Tassel her fsuirhd e llairhdas llus riffusd. I'rr helnra aid!"( “Bas, It looks like the Terran has brought a fighter for support. I'll handle it!")

Now, she began making evasive maneuvers, or, at the least, her attempts at them. The limits of both her piloting, and the aircraft itself becoming clear.

“Just keep fighting!” She continued

Takeshi tsked at this, before his attention was promptly brought forward once more, as the purple armored-machine charged at him, withdrawing what looked to be a solid metal longsword from its side. Modeled after a weapon from the Garsalan homeworld. As he got within range, he proceeded to swipe down on the Gaojinizer, only stopped by the pilot’s quick response, placing the blade of his scythe in the blade’s path, and stopping it there. Sparks flew, as the metal hummed from the impact. The enemy commander quickly drew back, before swinging at the Gaojinizer with his blade once more, at the manipulator holding the scythe. His intent, to sever it. Though the blade did not cut through, it left a chip in the machine’s armor.

“It won’t be that easy!” Takeshi yelled, before backing up once more, firing a volley of beams at his opponent, only for the Gaojinzier to be hit by a shot from the other enemies, throwing off his aim. His gaze flew to them,but he was stopped from attacking them, by the Bas closing in once more, a flourish of strikes from his blade followed. Takeshi had to act quickly, rapidly swinging the scythe in response. They maneuvered around each other's strikes, their blades continually crashing between them. At the least, until Takeshi decided to break the deadlock.

He decidedly ascended, swiftly, at that. A boom echoing through the area around them. He was about 100 feet over the enemy armors, and when he got to that point, it was only then that he began descending on him, firing the comet pulse cannon once again. Now, they began to draw back, with the exception of one. Who’d taken note of the fighter, closing in for an attack! His diverted attention proved to be deadly, as the shots tore through his machine’s armor. The thrusters on its back detonated, leaving it destroyed. Much to the anger of his comrades. This was especially evident with the one within the cockpit of the S’fan, the one closest to the husk of the machine. Her mandibles writhed emitting a low chittering noise. A sign of rage. This was soon followed by her aim being trained onto the fighter.

“Maas!!! Denl Yui, Tassel!” (“Maas!!! Damn You, Terran!”)

Takeshi observed this from above, taking note of the machine’s destruction… And then, the aiming of the Garsalan gun, right toward the annoying Girl’s fighter. As he observed this, time seemed to slow down, well aware of what the result would be. The same could be said for Kyouko herself, staring down the barrel of the gun, and rushing to push the eject button. Thankfully, just a few moments before she fired. Meanwhile, Takeshi began closing in. As if it were instinct, he rushed to her defense. This confused him. Why would he care what happened to HER?

Even so, he was already on the path, the woman flew out of the cockpit, as the canopy opened, with Takeshi promptly opening his cockpit, catching her in his arms as she flew above. His hands on her back, and the middle of her legs respectively. He would swiftly close the cockpit, unwilling to be hit by any attack, directly, at least. Under the Gaojinizer the fighter exploded, Unsurprisingly, not able to handle the attack. It did not take long for Takeshi to drop her onto the cockpit’s floor, something met with a frown.

“Ow…Is that any way to treat a Beautiful young woman?” She questioned.

“Shut up.. You already distracted me more than enough!” He answered, before he began closing in on the enemies once more.

“Maybe if you actually knew how to pilot this thing..” She mumbled, low enough that he didn’t hear. Unbeknownst to the fighters there, another ship began to approach from above. An exceptionally large one, at that. Outsizing the cruisers that appeared over Neo-Tokyo. It did not take long for Bas L’fles to receive a message, requesting an opened line. He did so, as his subordinates resumed their battle with the Gaojinizer. Appearing on the screen was A garsalan, with a gray chitin. Much of it was marked with Red lines, which were apparently birthmarks. One that identified his identity to the Bas almost immediately.

“Su’Zesh Iso… Whed esa irrui nuailr ail nirr feddra esae?”(“Su’Zesh Iso… What are you doing in my battle area?”)

The question was answered by a deepened voice, coming from the being.

“Yui rhuirn cluw wiaida warr… Wa esa hasa du dard eludhas ula ull uis ssaedaiulr."(“You should know quite well… We are here to test another one of our creations.”)

This wasn’t something that L’fles seemed happy about. Especially given the dangerous edge in his tone, as he spoke out once more.

“I dhailc lud… Thair Tassel neshaila air nirr Xe’les eln naila erula…”“I think not… This terran machine is my Xe’les and mine alone…”

It went without saying that the Bas had no limited amount of distaste for the Iso Family. They sat in their labs, making their abominations and did almost nothing to help in their conquests. And now one of them had the gall to try to get him away from his target? A sign of disrespect, as he saw it. However, this was only met by a chuckle from Su’zesh.

“"I nul'd dhailc ru... I heya naisasd usnasr llsun Zu Meni Fi’gas hainrarll... Ulrarr irrui'sa reirrailr irrui sel lareda usnasr llsun dha hairhas rusnr, ai rirrard irrui rdaf fesc.”(-"I don't think so... I have direct orders from Zu Meni Fi'Gas himself... Unless you're saying you can negate orders from the higher lords, I suggest you step back. -)

The Bas’ Mandibles let out a chittering once more, as he began to draw back, changing his radio channels, to that of his group.

“"Barail Pirrailr fesc. Tha Iso wairr helnra aid llsun hasa."("Begin Pulling back. The Iso will handle it from here.")

This surprised his troops. When did the Iso get here, Why was he letting them handle it?! What of their fallen comrades? These questions that ran through their head, were soon asked out loud, by one of the pilots, yelling out.

“Su whed, Wa shird rad dhan naia ail Veail? Wa sel’d rad dhed Tassel-”(“So what, We just let them die in Vain? We can’t let that Terran-”)

His words were interrupted, as L’fles spoke out. “I won’t have any insubordination… This was a direct order from The Fi’Gas himself. There’s nothing we can do.”

This much silenced any response from the squad members, who promptly began to pull away. Something Takeshi took note of, a confused expression made its way onto both his, and Kyoko’s face.

“What? Where are they going?” Kyoko mumbled.

Though he said nothing, Takeshi would question this within his head as well. Watching as they retreated to their ship… But, something changed, as he and Kyouko alike heard the Alarm ping, followed by the area around them obscured by a shadow… Takeshi’s gaze flew around, as he tried to find anyone who’d popped up. But found nothing, until he looked up. It was only then that he saw a downright gigantic ship, covered in red armored plates, cutting through the clouds as it descended.

“More Garsalan…” He noted.

Within the ship, the one at the head of the vessel, there lay a harshly lit Cargo bay, one that held a certain weapon. Su’zesh, paced around on steel catwalks, welded onto the ship’s frame. looking at the gigantic tank, filled with a green liquid. As well as a solid mass at the center. A beast that almost appeared to be a grotesque mix of reptilian, and Insect-like, sat within the tube. Two downright gigantic wings, though folded, were visible as well. The male was silent as he took a look at his creation. A culmination of their biotechnology development. Though he had nothing but contempt for that species… He would admit that what they salvaged from them was useful. Eventually, however, he turned on his heel, beginning to walk, his feet clanging on the metal. Soon followed by him giving orders through his microphone.

“Raraera aid… Lad ir raa huw aid nuar.” (“Release it… Let us see how it does.”)

On his orders, large bubbles, the smallest of which, were the size of a human, began to form within. The liquid was roused, as movement began. The giant being’s brain came to a crawl, as its eyelids parted, revealing slit eyelids. No sooner, did the bay door part below the capsule. With the supports that kept it in place, unclamping. Allowing for it to plummet. It’s appearance did not go unnoticed. The UFE’s forces that had apparently arrived to support the attack, as well as Takeshi himself watched, as the beast spread its wings, destroying the transparent outer-casing, and sending a tidal wave of verdant liquid onto the sky… The Soldiers on the ground watched this with widened eyes, they’d seen this thing before.

“That’s a Kaiju…” One stated, his mouth Agape.

“This can’t end well.” Another added.

Within the cockpit of the Gaojinizer, the response was no different… Takeshi’s eyes widened as he took note of the being. But, the surprise on his visage quickly changed, as he took note of something.

“After… All these years.”

The boy’s words were shaky. As he seemed to shake with rage, something that Kyoko took note of. She moved her gaze from the display that lay in front of them, to the pilot’s face. Which had clearly darkened. He frowned, as his eyes narrowed, and his brows arched. As she saw this, she had but one question. What prompted this change of demeanor? She parted her lips, ready to question this, but was cut off, as the machine shot toward the beast, with Takeshi Yelling out..

“I’LL MAKE YOU PAY!!”

To Be Continued

Xe’les(Noun)

Garalan Term used to describe one’s personal target. An enemy they consider worthy