Forces to be Reckoned With

[FrostyFoster 448]

It was an abnormally dark night in the sky as the moonlight barely touched the Lincoln household. One of the rooms caught the slight light peeking through the curtains, pointing down at a broken plastic figure. It was the Local Type, irreparably damaged from its battle with the wall. It completely missed its right arm, along with having no V-Fin, looking rather miserable laying on the desk near a newly opened box.

Wade didn’t know why they’d bought it for him for his birthday. They normally weren’t too fond of him playing GBN all the time and the playing at home would only make that worse, but people’s opinions change all the time. After all, he thought he’d lost interest in the game after the last mission, but addiction can take control of you easily. The brand new headset and hardware for GBN was already set up, the expensive equipment how connected to his computer, just waiting to be used. The teen laid wide awake in bed, staring at nothing on the ceiling. “I just wanna sleep.” He thought, now reminded of how tiring school was this day.

He knew it was another school day tomorrow. He knew he had to get some rest. He knew that he couldn’t spend all of his time playing a virtual game without feeling the consequences to his body and mind. He knew that he didn’t care.

Wade practically jumped out of his bed, his blanket flying forward as it hit the floor. This dumb decision worried Wade, hoping he didn’t wake his parents. “You know what? I’m fifteen. I can play whenever I want!” This act of rebellion was met with the soon to be Diver grabbing his broken Gunpla and placing it on the scanning pad.

The Local type barely stood on the device, one of its leg joints warped. There was another model completely encased in darkness, but even the sleep deprived teen knew he couldn’t use it yet. Wade slid the new visor over his head as the Local Type stared at him through its own visor. The trip into the game was surprisingly quick for a home device, allowing Wade to get right to business.

The Diver hadn’t talked with the others since his abrupt exit. He hadn’t even been to the oil rig, but he still wanted to hide himself. He wore a white Earth Federation normal suit along with the same mask Vidar had used. It wasn’t nice looking, but it kept him conspicuous during this last few forays into GBN. Wade mostly just walked around inside of his current location, one of the space colony biomes, only leaving to do various missions pertaining to the main game world, like fetch quests.

He swore against doing story or any type of missions that would take him to a place where he’d hurt NPDs, knowing he wasn’t ready or that yet. Wade waltzed to a nearby bench as he sat to watch other Divers, a common hobby for him now. He noticed people had gotten quite creative with the anthropomorphic animal divers, seeing what looked to be an octopus man. He was interested in changing the look of his avatar, but part of him wondered if it was for the best to leave Fleurs behind and start anew, not realizing that he’d done the same thing by creating the Diver Force. 

His train of thought immediately turned to the hooded Diver now sitting next to him. “Geez. Talk about edgy.” Wade was able to stare through the mask without anyone noticing. He could barely make out a face under the black hood as he slouched forward. The other Diver immediately turned to look directly at the Fleurs leader. “Uh oh.” Strangely, only his mouth could now be seen, with a deep black shadow hiding whatever was above it. Freaked out, the teen stood up and began to walk away, but stopped in his tracks once the other Diver spoke. 

“Wade Lincoln.” Hearing that name caused the masked Diver to shudder. “He… knows my last name.” The cloaked figure arose, terrifying Wade as he began to get closer to him. “Wade Lincoln… Fleurs De Noblesse is in shambles…” A pale white hand fell through the robes, reaching up to grab the mask Wade felt was necessary. The Diver pulled back, but lost his footing as his rear hit the ground. He watched as Vidar’s mask dropped next to him, the hand returning to its hiding spot. “Wade Lincoln. Leader of Fleurs De Noblesse. Battle me!” 

...

The two Gunpla sped around in space near the colony, a battle which was far from close. The real damage on top of the virtual damage made the Local Type look like a garbled mess as it fired the Wing Zero’s beam rifle. Completely missing the red and black mobile suit, the cloaked figure slashed down through the machine’s remaining arm, giving Wade no way to fight back, due to the bent gatling guns.

“Fucanglong pities you.” Wade’s opponent pressed the tip of the orange blade against the neck of the Local Type, signaling the end of the battle. Wade didn’t move an inch as he saw the defeat screen, still thinking about the mysterious man knowing his identity. The two machines floated, barely moving as the Fucanglong’s pilot began to speak.

“Some leader you are… If you’re no challenge, then I should’ve went for your friend a long time ago.” Wade’s eyes widened, realizing this guy was not just an edgelord. “He’s going after Aker?” From Icarus’ reaction, the Diver knew his winning enemy was too late, but he still didn’t want to reveal that. The pain came out with his voice. “Whoever you are, you won’t be able to hurt him. I got something much better than this!” 

The Fucanglong’s pilot smirked, pulling his joysticks away from the Local Type. “Prove it.” The red Gunpla flew away as Wade noticed an invitation. Opening it, the Diver’s mood immediately changed. “This… is our opportunity.” There was still a sense of dread from the Diver. If Aker was truly gone, then it’d likely be much more difficult, but the rewards for Fleurs was extravagant. “Wait! Tomorrow?!”

…

A day had passed with Wade logging into GBN once again. This time, he was decked out with the Fleurs formal gear, hat and cape flowing through the fake wind. He’d arrived early to the main lobby, hoping to contact his teammates in time. “Please be there Aker. I don’t care how, just… please…” He thought as he sent the message of the location and event to the two, emphasizing that they needed to wear their full gear for this event. 

It was an annoying wait on the catapult for the Fleurs leader. A Genoace had gotten stuck on the foot clamps, Haro Loader’s rolling around the unit to pry it off. Wade took the time to look through his cockpit, a dead ringer for his Gunpla’s and much better than the Local Type’s. “I can see everything.” He uttered while staring. While he wasn’t too sure who they’d actually be up against, the fact that this mobile suit was so different give him hope he could take out anything in his way. Eventually, the catapult was fixed, Wade calling out his mobile suit’s name.
 

NU GUNDAM ORIGIN, LAUNCHING!!!

The Gunpla burst through the sky at a breakneck pace, mostly due to its “secret” build far different from previous models Wade used. Nevertheless, he easily saw what he was looking for. A few battleships floated above a massive battling area. About half of it was filled with mostly intact gray buildings, while the other half was forestry, with tree standing tall just waiting to be knocked down by a stray beam.

The Nu Gundam touched down near the audience, surprising housing a few hundred people in the seats. “Wow!” Wade exclaimed in awe. While he’d seen much larger, having that many people, along with whoever was in those ships, amazed the Fleurs leader. The Gunpla took a knee as Wade got out of the machine, noticing a doppelganger of Stalker approaching him. “You must be the leader of Fleurs! I’m Sneaker.” Wade realized this man would be announcing their fight as he shook his hand. “You’re the first one here!” Wade was shocked to hear that, assuming the other teams would be there before him. Nevertheless, he awaited his comrades, if they even showed up.
 

[Hunter]

He couldn’t believe it, he knew it would happen and he still couldn’t fathom what was going on. Aker stood in the lobby of GBN, successfully logged in and looking rather foolish as he flexed his left arm while grinning like an idiot. Clenching his fist he held it in front of him, “that’s more like it! I’ll definitely take better care this time around!” His contemplation was interrupted as he got a message from Wade. 

At first Aker was startled, thinking that maybe the Fleurs leader had been looking for him all this time. “How long have I been gone?” Aker mumbled to himself as he went for a quiet corner of the lobby to see the note. Aker’s eyes went wide as he read the details, “he did what?” The EL diver was already shaking his head as he closed the note and searched for the option to reach his leader. “Boy is he lucky I just got back on!” He crowed as he clicked the option to “join”. 

—-

Gripping his controls tightly, Aker grinned excitedly. He was  glad to simply be existing, “what better reason do I need to beat up some divers today?” His eyes shifted over the cockpit, he had a panoramic set up now, a big upgrade from his former Seed affair. “And in this no less!” He added for his own benefit. He wasn’t one to be overly proud of anything but he felt genuinely proud of his latest Gunpla creation. “A machine to embody my… no our ideals as a team…” finally the catapult designated his turn to launch. “This is Aker! Gundam Noblesse! Let’s do this!” 

The Gundam shot out of the tunnel like a rocket, the sheer speed impressing Aker as he grinned knowingly. The Noblesse reminded Aker ironically of Trieze with the oversized shield to one side much like a cape, and the sword prominently displayed on the opposite hand, an image of a noble officer. On the weapon arm was an additional detail that he managed to work in, an emblem which he fancied as appropriate for his team. “This twin drive is something else!” He mused as he got his bearing with the controls and looked around for his friends.

At first he didn’t recognize Wade and his new machine but then Aker noticed the familiar tag and smiled. He flew by the Nu Gundam Origin and slowed to a hover before landing directly in front of Wade. Dust fluttered around from his landing and he popped open his hatch to step out onto the hand of the Noblesse. Standing defiantly, Aker crossed his arms over his Fleurs de Noblesse space suit and called out, “Did you ask for backup boss?” A wide grin crossed Aker’s face as he looked at his friend. 

((thanks to Frosty for the help with the picture!))

[Judge 221]

Ray laid atop his bed in the darkness of his single bedroom apartment, listening to the sound of his ceiling fan as it whirred above him. His eyes stared off into the middle distance, reliving the events of the other day for the umpteenth time as his mouth formed a firm line that hid his clenched teeth. The image played out in his head in slow motion. The Leo speeding towards the Jager, the Jager exploding in his arms. Icarus blinked, and the scene started again.

It’s just a game… Amelia’s words as she found him heaving for air outside the hobby shop stung him deeply. But she wasn’t to blame and she wasn’t wrong. It was a game. But it wasn’t just a game.

I need to be faster…

Ray’s phone buzzed on his nightstand, shooting blue light into the darkness, but the man did not break his gaze with the ceiling.

The Leo’s hand outstretched. The lightning arcing across the Jager. Explosion. Blink. The phone buzzed again. Hand. Electricity. Explosion. Blink.  If he just ignored it, the buzzing would stop. It always did.

Faster…faster…

The phone buzzed again and Raymond frowned. He heaved himself up into a sitting position and ran a hand through his greasy hair as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He took a long look at the phone as its screen turned off again, his pulse quickening.  His hand wandered over to the bedside table and hovered there, unsure, for just a moment before grabbing the half-drunk bottle of beer next to his phone by the neck and bringing it to his mouth.  Ray took a long swig, wincing as the slowly-warming liquid passed through him and slamming the empty bottle on the bedside table next to the others. He scooped up the phone in his hand, rubbed his eyes, and brought the screen to life. There were several notifications there, most from Amelia asking if he was okay, some from the substitute teacher, desperately seeking guidance, that had taken over his classes for the days he had taken off. But the only one he was really interested in was the direct message from a user in GBN.

Ray gave out a long sigh and rose to his feet. He tugged on a pair of jeans and left the darkness of the bedroom behind him.

-----

When he logged on, Spider was already in the lobby waiting for him. Icarus had chosen a different look over the last couple of days, not knowing that the leader of his Force—if it was even still a Force—had done the same. He wore a black balaclava-like mask and a skin-tight piloting suit that made him look like an edgier Schwarz Bruder knockoff. It was a ridiculous look and the complete opposite of his Fleurs uniform, but the anonymity made him feel better about what he was here to do.

“You’re a hard man to get a hold of,” Spider said, poking the brim of his hat up with a single finger.

“Don’t much feel like logging on these days,” Icarus responded. “Just us?”

“Just you,” Spider smirked. “You know I don’t like to get my hands dirty, I just like to watch,”

“Right. Who is it today?”

“Just a couple of noobs, I think. You seem like you’re in a mood so I don’t much feel like watching you lose,”

Icarus nodded. “Let’s get going then,”

---

“H-hey man, what the hell?” cried the newbie as the custom ReZel landed in front of his Wing Zero, cutting him off from his friends.

Icarus frowned. This whole thing made him feel dirty but…

“Tell me,” he said over the radios. “You’re a human right? An actual player?”

“What are you saying, of course I’m a human being. What kind of shit are you on, man?”

The Diver sighed. “Sorry, then. But you’re the only safe target”

“What are you talking abou—owwww”

The DaeDAL had dashed backwards and, without any warning, cleaved through the Wing Zero with its Mega Beam Cannon.

“Tadashi!” Cried his friend. “Hey dude, what the fu—” The ReZel wheeled around and did the same to an unsuspecting custom Double-X.

Icarus closed his eyes and clenched his teeth. Hand. Electricity. Explosion. Icarus opened his eyes and took off.

---

The next day, Ray’s phone buzzed as he was eating. On the screen was a pair of notifications. The first was an alert of funds being deposited, the second was another DM from Spider.

“Nice work 2day. More coming, stay tuned,”

Ray sighed and looked at the amount deposited for a few moments before sending a message back.

“Nah. I’m done.”

I have enough now, I can finish it…but for what purpose?

Another DM from Spider came but Ray ignored it in favour of his lunch, placing the phone back down. When it buzzed several minutes later, the man almost ignored it, annoyed at the diver who wouldn’t take no for an answer. His anger got the better of him and Ray grabbed the phone intent to tell Spider off. But the message there wasn’t from Spider. Ray’s eyes scanned the message once, then twice, and then, finally, he leapt to his feet and rushed out the door.

 

---

Icarus’s heart pounded in his chest as he sat in the catapult tunnel. He had accepted the mission as soon as he logged in, but now he was starting to second guess it.

No. This is what’s right. This is what’s needed. I’ve done enough time—I won’t slip back into the darkness.

“Never again. No one get’s left behind ever again.” The diver smirked and reaffirmed his grip on the throttle. “Tallgeese QUEST, let’s fly!”

Icarus’s new machine shot down the tunnel and out into the air above the arena. “Let’s see how fast we can really go,” Icarus revved the throttle and the twin shoulder-mounted GN drives whirred to life. The Tallgeese QUEST blasted forward, pressing Icarus backwards into his pilot seat with simulated force. His mobile suit crossed in front of the sun, casting his comrades below in shadows. Icarus brought the suit back around and flew lower to the ground, cutting the engines and getting the suits feet under him. The QUEST skated to a stop next to Aker and Wade and the diver flipped a switch, releasing the Fatum Squire unit from its back.

“Squire System online and operational,” came a mechanized voice from the console in front of him.

“Let’s start with the ranged load-out, Squire,” Icarus responded. The Fatum, hovering behind him, shifted and rotated, revealing the beam shot rifle and a 180mm cannon before reattaching to the back of the mobile suit. The Tallgeese grabbed the beam shot rifle with one had as the 180mm cannon attached to a hardpoint on the right shoulder. Icarus adjusted his Fleurs uniform and smirked.

“Sorry I’m late, guys. Had to put some finishing touches on the machine before I logged on,” Icarus looked over at Aker and Wade, nodding with the Tallgeese. “I see you guys upgraded too,”

His eyes lingered on Aker’s machine. “It’s good to see you, Aker. Hope you’re ready to kick some ass,”

This time…no mistakes…

((Thanks Frosty for the quick turnaround on this guy ^^)

Edited December 4, 2020 by Judge

[FrostyFoster 448]

Wade was shocked, but also extremely thankful to see the new Gunpla Aker and Icarus had brought with them. In fact, he was just glad Aker was still around to even work with them. "Thank Tomino you guys are here!" Wade ran over to the two mobile suit, confident they could win this fight. "Actually, I would like to know if-" The Diver was forced out of his thoughts as the announcer's loudly blared through multiple speakers surrounding the large landing platform. "And with their last member arriving, I'd like to introduce FLEURS DE NOBLESSE!!!"

Sneaker posed as he pointed at the group of three. "This new team has already beaten some challenging missions, but will they win against these other Forces?" The booming voice was met with only a few dozen of the audience members clapping, then quickly stopping. The Fleurs leader sighed and shrugged. "I knew they weren't here for us." He quietly muttered, assuming they only applauded to be nice. He began to pace around the three mobile suits, trying to think of what he could do to please what fans they did have. It was at this moment when he saw three pink lights appear from the trees, creating a dim glow. 

The trio of mobile suits shot above the treetops, immediately causing many audience members to cheer and holler. "Jagd Doga mobile suits..." The Fleurs Leader didn't recognize them right off the bat, but was then reminded of who they were once Sneaker began to speak again. "Oh man! Look at the entrance our second team gave us!" The machines posed in the sky, with many Divers screenshotting the group. "Coming all the way from Berlin, this team has proved to GBN that Zeon will never die! Give a warm welcome to..."

Die Zeonic Mörder!

DZMS-01 Jagd Hunda

DZMS-02 Dogastier

DZMS-03 Neo Natter

The audience began to cheer even louder when the three dirty mobile suits landed near Fleurs'. Wade understood that the wear and tear was cosmetic, showing him how good they were as builders. "These guys might be tough..." The trio got out of their Gunpla, obviously decked out with Zeon clothing, but he was surprised to see the differences between the three. They began to waltz over to the Fleurs Leader, with each having to look down at the Diver. "I've done a little research on your team, Wade. We can't wait to fight a Force with your talents." The man with graying hair held out his hand, Wade grasping it. "I'm Leon. That's Hans." The second Zeonic member was massive, easily towering over any diver that was here.

"HAHAHA! You give them too much credit, boss!" Hans laughed as he looked at the Fleurs' Gunpla. "Their fancy mobile suits are nothing compared to ours, right Sepp." Their third member was the most surprising to Wade. From the neck down, he looked fine, but that changed once he saw the scaly snake head on top. "Yesss." Sepp stated while looking at the Noblesse's hand. "Looksss like lunch to me..." Wade smirked. Their opponents were interesting to say the least, but he knew they were a solid and popular team. He wondered if the other two would come down and join the discussion, given the "warm" welcome from Leon's teammates. 

[Hunter]

Aker’s grin did grow bigger at the sight of Icarus and his new machine. He was so entranced looking at everyone’s new machine that he almost missed Icaru’s comment towards him. “It’s good seeing you too buddy! Both of you… and you better believe I’m ready. I’m itching for some action. Nothing to hold me back this time!” 

There was a confidence in his voice that might have been almost alien to his comrades. And in truth Aker hadn’t felt this good in quite awhile. Aker’s contemplation was interrupted by sneaker announcing their group. It was only then that Aker realized that there was a crowd. His jaw hung slack as he saw all the people watching them. Watching. A cocky grin spread on his face at that time then. There was an undeniable thrill that he felt at that moment. One that reminded him vividly of the Second Bloody Valentine Massacre that he facilitated. For weeks after he watched the highlights of that battle, now all these strangers would learn not to underestimate him again. 

The erupting applause for the enemy team did nothing to phase Aker. He calmly looked to regard the other divers and didn’t flinch in the slightest. Noting the trio approaching Wade, Aker realized the least he could do was provide a physical presence for his boss at that moment. As he got closer he heard the oddly familiar looking snake man begin to taunt. Aker merely shook his head at the banter. He could help but feel like he’d seen this trio before but he couldn’t quite place it. 

It was then he surprised himself; first by talking, then by what he said and how he said it., “Good onya the snake can talk! And here I was worried it couldn’t pilot a mobile suit? Suppose it wouldn’t be the oddest thing the zekes ever did?” The dig was superficial at best but he found himself fully believing the words. There almost felt like there was something deep down about the zeon team that really was bothering him, Aker just couldn’t figure out why. He flashed them a toothy grin but kept his visor closed, hardly caring if they took his bait or not. In a few moments their actions would speak louder than words, but maybe he could get in their heads a little before hand?

[Judge 221]

Icarus folded the Quest’s arms across its chest as the hatch to the cockpit opened with a hiss and the diver emerged from within. The simulated wind caught his long hair and the loose bits of his uniform and tossed them elegantly. He looked over at Aker standing on the hand of the Noblesse and nodded before grabbing his elevator cable, riding it down to the ground where the Diver linked up with his boss. It didn’t seem right to leave him alone down there as the opposing team faced off with him, especially given the size difference. Icarus wasn’t a tall man, but he was tall enough to at least try and make an attempt at offsetting the enemy team’s intimidation.

He gave each member of the opposing Force a stare down, putting on his best stone-face as he approached.

Is that dude a snake?

He stopped next to Wade and turned towards the other pilots, coming face to face with Hans’s chest. Icarus was unfazed though. He simply looked up at the larger pilot’s face and scowled. From above them, Aker jeered the snake man, but Icarus didn’t break his gaze with Hans. He merely folded his arms across his chest and scowled more.

Three Jagd Dogas…and they look kind of run-down…

Icarus had to admit that he wasn’t the most knowledgeable about the Universal Century, but he knew a thing or two and the Jagd Doga was usually much more colorful than what he was seeing.

Wade seems to be taking them seriously, at least…better not write them off.

The only other players that Icarus had fought with were the poor unfortunate souls he had PK’d days ago, and they were way below him in skill level. These guys though…they weren’t newbies and they had the crowd on their side. Having an audience was another thing that Icarus wasn’t used to, especially since they weren’t here for Fleurs.

I guess we’ll just have to change their minds then…

 

[FrostyFoster 448]

Sepp hissed at the cocky Diver, showing his split tongue. He wouldn't take any backtalk from a low level Force like Fleurs, although he did wonder if he took the snake roleplay a little too far. However, Hans wasn't backing down against the other Diver, realizing they were confident about their abilities. The burly Zeon pulled up his hands, cracking his knuckles while smiling. Realizing the increasing tension, Leon spoke up. "Seems you got some interesting allies, Wade." The Zeonic leader looked at the three Fleurs Gunpla. "That Nu Gundam is-"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The six Diver's conversations were stopped by an array of colorful fireworks, showing how amazing GBN was, considering it was daytime in the game. The audience began to speak up once again as three mobile suits far off in the sky created smoke trails. Wade had no clue what these Divers were planning as a shape started to form. However, the look changed from bewilderment to horror as he saw that a giant star was created. "No... We're screwed..." The smoke star was blown away as the three mobile suits blasted through it, causing the audience to go absolutely ballistic.

Even Sneaker was starstruck, almost dropping the microphone in the process, but he knew the show must go on. "Looks like our final team and clearly the crowd favorite has arrived!" He could barely hear himself over the hollers and cheers. "If I listed all of their rewards, we'd be here all day! You know them well, it's the-" Wade began to shake as he watched the three slowly land on the platform. Leon was only slightly better at keeping his cool. "I didn't know we were fighting them." The Zeonic leader thought. Wade watched as the leader of the team out out of his cockpit to stand on top of the mobile suit, holding his hands out like a messiah. "What did that Shenlong pilot do? It's... it's..." 

Starshiners!

GX-XR Crossray Gundam

wvv-d Wyvran

V9MM-GUN Kablastali

Wade knew that while Aker might know them, Icarus wouldn't have a clue. "We fought these guys a lot back when I was UNIVERZ." Wade quietly muttered as the crowd noise died down. "There's a few dozen on their team, so I'm not sure who Zander brought with them. Watch out." Leon also discussed them with his own team while the three walked towards them, waving at the crowd. Zander reminded Wade mostly of Lasse from 00, only with white hair and clothing. He'd changing his appearance slightly from the last time the Diver saw him. That is, from the wreckage of his SD. The Starshiners leader stopped next to Leon, completely ignoring the Fleurs team.

"Leon! It's good to see you again!" While Leon didn't like or dislike him, the leader had to keep a good posture and tone with Zander. Wade glanced at the other two Divers, not recognizing either of them. The first was stunning, wearing a black and red Zanscare pilot uniform that was zipped a little too low. The Diver pushed her long orange hair, which almost looked like fire, to the side as she locked eyes with Wade. Winking at the Diver with her orange irises and diamond shaped pupils, the Fleurs leader felt quite uncomfortable. 

"MOVE BLAZE" Their final member shoved the woman out of the way as it took clanking steps towards the other players. "GREETINGS MEATBAGS" Wade thought the snake guy was strange, but this Diver was just overkill. The avatar in front of him was clearly designed to be mechanical with plenty of metal parts all around the gray robot. A mask, which Wade assumed was original, was apart of the face, lighting up as it spoke. "I AM UC-AU" Its head turned from Wade to Leon, then returned to its original position. "YOU ARE WEAK FORCES YOU WILL BE DESTROYED" Wade had no clue what to even think of these three, except for the fact that Starshiners was very well known not for their Diver's avatars, but their fighting skills.

 

[Hunter]

Aker kept his stare at the snake man, committing to his dig at the Zeon team. He fought the urge to follow everyone’s gaze up to the other team approaching l, and kept the cocky grin on his face as he didn’t look away. He didn’t have to wait long for the newcomers to show up to get a look at the new divers. Wade gave him and Icarus a brief background on the new team. Aker may have been as experienced as any other diver there but his knowledge on these two teams was limited at best, so he appreciated the information Wade was sharing. 

Of course Aker wished his attention would have been instantly drawn to the hulking metal robot that was trying to pass as a diver and not an automaton, but he couldn’t help himself from looking at the orange haired vixen. She flashed Wade a smile, and the notion made Aker jealous for just a second. He chuckled as he caught his obsurd train of thought and shook his head. The robot man the approached and made some outrageous claim about ‘destroying them all’. Aker couldn’t help but speak up for his boss’ sake, “hey!” He paused making sure he had everyone’s attention, “the Zeon team is right there… it’s not nice to talk about them like that.” He gestured with his hand towards the snake man specifically. “I thought there was rules against using NPDs or robots for teammates?” He quipped as he nudged Wade’s shoulder as if to egg the leader on. Of course Aker had to wonder how these divers would react if they knew the truth about him? Would that give them any pause from fighting him? 

The truth of the matter was he hated talking shit as much as he hated seeing it being done, but Aker knew that sometimes you had to act the role even if you didn’t believe it yourself. By now he knew Wade well enough too, to know that something wasn’t adding up quite right. Wade had no way of knowing that Aker had been alive prior to this little competition, and as ambitious as Wade was willing to be; this kind of attention, this type of situation, it didn’t feel right. Aker may not be able to figure out what was wrong at that moment, but he could be strong for the sake of Fleurs de Noblesse both in name and practice.

[Judge 221]

Icarus’s gaze was only dragged away from his opponent by the arrival of the late-coming final team. They came in with a flourish, landed their mobile suits, and then joined the verbal scrum with an air of arrogance that made the diver narrow his eyes. Wade turned to them and quietly warned his team of the danger this new Force posed.

“We’ll handle it, boss. We always do,”

With varying levels of success, of course…

Icarus wasn’t going to let the negativity that followed their last mission seep into this one, not after their joyful reunion mere minutes ago. He turned to look at the two Forces in front of him, something bubbling up deep inside him. At first it made him anxious. He hadn’t felt it in a long time, not since his accident. But as the feeling persisted, the anxiety melted away and Icarus let the feeling wash over him.

“Alright,” he said out loud after Aker and the robot traded their barbs. “It looks like everyone sent their finest C-teams our way, Fleurs. What say we get in our giant robots and get this party started so the three of us can go celebrate our victory?”

Icarus’s heart beat faster and faster. His competitive spirit was beginning to take over and he could feel a grin creeping up on his face. “Man, I haven’t been this pumped to school some folks since the big leagues—and I’m a teacher,” he let out a roar of laughter and swatted Wade perhaps a little too intensely on the back.

Hmm…maybe I am a bit more nervous than I thought,

He didn’t wait for any kind of rebuttal from the other team, though. Icarus spun on his heel and marched with purpose and confidence back to the Tallgeese, riding the cable back to the open cockpit hatch. He looked into his cockpit for a moment, took a deep breath, and whirled around, his arm outstretched with three fingers pointing forward towards the horizon.

“I’m calling it now! This is going to be a Grand Slam!”

Edited December 11, 2020 by Judge

[FrostyFoster 448]

UC-AU's attention was now completely on the Fleurs team member. The head of the Diver swerved quickly towards Aker, wanting to clarify the situation as intelligently as possible. "SILENCE MEATBAG" The Diver using the robot avatar felt confident his "intelligent" response would shut up the cocky member with the large hat, but before he could continue, the remaining Fleurs member had a few words to say. Referring to the other as C-teams, the two leaders didn't change their facial expressions, although Blaze, who was not happy with her own team member, had a look of bafflement. "I don't even know who you are..." She responded, only to see the Diver playfully swat the Fleurs leader in the back.

This was intense for Wade, almost losing his balance. "Yeah!" Wade stated as he adjusted his hat. "This'll be a-" Wade looked around to see that Icarus was long gone, back at his Gunpla. "Wait! Don't leave!" Leon was surprised to see their teammate leave like that, but Zander had his own opinion on Wade's crew. "Hm." He turned to Wade, finally acting like he actually existed. "Seems like your comrade is too scared to even talk with us." He glanced at the "robot", disproving of UC-AU's introduction, but continued. "Look, here's the thing... Fleurs, right?"

He strolled over to the short Diver, tilting his head down. "These people in the crowd? They're not here for you. Beating missions doesn't prove much if you haven't even fought against other real teams. I can't even-" Wade attempted to interrupt him. "Man, you don't-" "Zip it, the adult is talking." The Fleurs leader was shocked, but felt he couldn't do a thing about the team leader, who chuckled. "You had a good gig going with UNIVERZ. They picked up your slack." He took two short looks at Aker and the Tallgeese. "Those guys don't look like they'd help."

At this point, Leon wasn't happy. This was a game and the bullying needed to stop. "Ok, knock it off, Zander." Leon began to walk towards the two, but stopped once Sneaker's voice blared through the area. "Ok Divers! It's time to suit up!" The Starshiner trekked back to their Gunpla, with Blaze waving at the two Fleurs members, while the Zeonic team marched back. Sepp's feelings were clearly hurt, quickly getting in his mobile suit. "I was just trying to be like a snake..." Thinking this while grabbing onto the controls, but Hans felt otherwise. "Once we take out the weak team, we'll go after Starshiners, right boss?" Leon shook his head in his cockpit. "That might be tough, considering this match's layout."

Wade assumed the team would start together on the map, but whoever started this match had other ideas. "Let me explain the rules!" Sneaker pointed at a large scoreboard, showing the area's map. "Our nine Divers will be placed randomly on this combined city/forest biome. Our... sponsor wished to show the skills of each Diver. This match will end either when there's a single team left, or time runs out." Strangely, the time limit was not given, annoying Wade. "So now that every Diver is ready, the match will begin in 10, 9, 8..." The Fleurs Leader tightened his joysticks, knowing that he could end up anywhere. "Alright guys. Let's kick some Diver butt! Fleurs De Noblesse, let's do this!" The nine mobile suits disappeared from the platform, showing up in all around the map. Wade was met by trees, giving him an idea what part he ended up in.

BATTLE START

The Diver didn't even have time to react as he saw one of the Jagd Doga's and Crossray speed up into the air. "Now's my chance! I'll take them out here." The Nu Origin ran through the trees, but was met with several large pink beams. "What?" A gray and green Gunpla floated down in front of him, blocking his path. "FLEURS LEADER YOU DONT DESERVE TO FIGHT THEM" Before he could reply, more beams shot at the Nu. "Oh crap!" Wade made the Nu jump above the two pink lasers, bending his machine's knees. The Diver smiled, knowing this type of movement couldn't be done with a High Grade...

Blaze flew through the dense forest, dodging whatever trees came her way. "Alright, who's first?" She got her answer soon after, ending up in an open field near a bright blue and white machine. The Wyvran scratched its two sword against each other as it locked eyes with the Gunpla. "Hey Fleurs! Time to tango!" The Age unit blasted forward, creating an X shape as Blaze started the assault. Meanwhile, Hans' Gunpla stood atop one of the taller buildings in the city. The gray concrete complex gave the Zeonic Diver a nice view of the landscape. "Its really big." The Diver said to himself, watching his leader and Zander duke it out from afar. However, a grimmer of gold caught his attention. "There we go! Hyah!" The Dogastier grasped its axe, swinging down at the Tallgeese as it jumped off the building.

[Hunter]

“We’ll see just who the meatbag is…” Aker muttered as he got inside the cockpit of the Noblesse. “Is there a plan boss?” Aker asked out loud as he strapped himself in his seat. The images in his cockpit shimmered as the match started and he found his gunpla near the edge of a forest clearing. “Guess we might just be winging it?” he said to himself. Things had a placid appearance for just a moment and Aker marveled at the details the forest exhibited.

The Psudo EL Diver’s thoughts were interrupted as he got a warning about an incoming enemy. He didn’t immediately react as the strange looking machine charged headlong into the forest clearing between them both. “Wyvran…” he muttered as he hesitantly moved to meet the charge. The strange machine came at him and he brought his GN blade up to fend off the would be attacker. GN particles sprayed out from the Noblesse as he hovered around the Wyvran blades locked together. It was moments like this that Aker was glad he was fighting a machine and not hand to hand since the visage of the girl pilot was replaced with something far more menacing. Still he didn’t like the visage of this particular opponent, it reminded him far too much of a GNX. His ex used a GNX. 

 “I hate GNX’s… he prompted out loud as he lifted a leg up to kick his opponent away. Aker’s movements had been measured so far, nothing reckless or brash. The GN sword pointed directly at the girl’s strange suit, blade horizontal. He would typically charge in wildly but the uneasy feeling kept him restrained for the moment, there was a lot of unknown variables at that moment and he didn’t want to go all out, only to regret it later. He reved the GN drives, released particles in all directions and blowing the grass and trees away from the Noblesse. His machine remained firm footed however, poised for a strike or retaliation. Aker cleared his throat then prompted out loud, “So what’s you gimmick? Why are you here fighting?” Even as he asked the question he was studying his opponent, the quicker he could end this fight the sooner he could balance things in Fleur’s de Noblesse’s favor. One good strike is all I need… His eyes roamed the Wyvran carefully, one small detail could make all the difference in an opening or weakness.

[Judge 221]

Icarus sat himself down in the cockpit of the Tallgeese QUEST and closed his eyes as the hatch closed.

“Okay,” he said to himself, taking a deep, slow breath. “Now is the time to focus up. You pointed to the crowd, now it’s time to hit the homerun.” Icarus shook his head and smiled. “And cut it out with the baseball stuff,”

“Battle Start!”

Icarus opened his eyes and let his smile melt away into a scowl of concentration, his eyes narrowed and hawklike. The Tallgeese QUEST had been transported away from his teammates and placed in a different part of the city than the one in which they had previously landed.

“So it’s going to be like that, huh? Splitting us up to see how we fight individually,” Icarus scanned his surroundings. The streets were empty but several of the buildings around him obstructed his view of the city around him. “Chances are these battles are going to link up at some point. Once the balance of power has been established, the weaker fighters are going to try and regroup with their squads for a better chance but…” Icarus stroked his chin. “But I can’t rely on that. For all I know, the other two are out of reach. I have to fight as if I’m well and truly on my own,”

One thing still bothered him, though. Assuming the challenge split the three teams evenly, that meant there were three groups of three fighters squaring off. Three was not a good number for a fight—it meant an uneasy alliance was more likely between two of the fighters for the sake of getting rid of the third.

“And if I’m the weakest link, that means I either have to make an alliance first or…”

The QUEST turned just in time to see the Dogastier leaping down, axe in hand, from a building above him. Icarus dashed backwards, gliding gracefully over the concrete, backpedalling quickly as it got its feet back under it.

“Or outperform the enemy,” Icarus tightened his grip and flipped his close-range radios on. “You’re going to have to be a lot faster than that if you’re going to beat me, Hans.”

That suit looks pretty bulky…let’s see how it handles an aerial battle.

The twin GN drives on the shoulders of the Tallgeese whirred to life, dispersing their vibrant green particles. “Squire, we’re taking flight,” the customized Fatum-00 unit folded up and out as the QUEST quickly climbed into the air above the Dogastier. Once he was soaring above rooftops, Icarus transferred the beam shot rifle to the unit’s left hand and pulled up the 180mm cannon, levelling it on the Dogastier and firing off three shots in quick succession.

“Game on, Hans,”

[FrostyFoster 448]

The Jagd Hunda blasted backwards as it fired a few shots towards the Crossray. The massive rifle sent bullets almost like mortar shots, causing Zander to take a step back, or did he? “This guy is crazy. There’s no way that happened!” Multiple craters formed into the forestry, completely missing the target. Zander had a stern look, continuing to chase the Zeon mobile suit while firing. The agile Gunpla gave the Starshiners leader the advantage, using the quick beam shots to make Leon go on the defensive. Much like the Local Type, two gatling guns from the backpack swung out and fired at a rapid pace.

From the barrage of bullets, only a minor amount hit the shield of the Crossray, most missing the lines of blue lights dancing around in the sky. “I’ve never even seen a mobile suit this fast before…” The Hunda had no time to react as beams created holes in his rifle. Thankfully, the Zeonic Leader had just enough time to throw the weapon away, escaping the explosion. He hoped that could distract the other team’s leader long enough to recuperate, but the Crossray wasn’t giving him any time at all. The Gunpla was lead through the smoke by its Diver, a beam saber now in its right hand.

Wade would’ve loved to watch the two for studying purposes, but a robot roleplayer kept him busy. With each pink beam getting closer and closer, the Fleurs leader knew it wouldn’t be long before the enemy figured out a pattern. While the Nu Origin was coated with an extra finish, giving him a defensive advantage (along with showing off the pricey Gunpla), a well-placed shot to the torso could end it all. “THIS IS OVER” The Kablastali stopped, pointing the four cannons directly in front of him. The pink illuminating from each barrel grew larger as Wade began to panic. “Crap.” The four lights connected with each other, sending a perfectly shaped long cuboid greater than the size of the Nu Origin directly at it…

The battlefield surrounding Blaze and Aker had been opened even more for the two, giving the sultry Diver more options. “Darling.” She spoke out to the other player. “I fight because of how fun it is to beat people like you.” Placing one foot in front of the other, the Wyvran spun the two swords backward, sending both into slots on the backside of the Gunpla. Two machine guns almost spit out of the slot, causing the mobile suit to jump. “Your Gunpla might look nice, but I prefer what’s on the inside.” Aiming the weapons, she began to create a heart shape with the bullets, sending many in a large area to the Noblesse. “Try this!”

The Dogastier’s legs started up, allowing the Gunpla to hover across the ground. This only pertained to the Dom fan’s mobile suit, giving Hans an advantage his comrades did not. However, as he dodged the first two shots, the third was unavoidable, causing the bulky pilot to point his heavily armored shoulder at it. The blast ricocheted, but still created large cracks in the defensive material. “Aw, I just put those on!” The Dogastier began sliding between the drab buildings in order in give him some cover, sending all six of his missiles from under the shields at the white and gold Gunpla. "Time to play, shiny boy!" Noticing a large pink light far from them, he could only hope that wasn’t Sepp. Fortunately, the snake man had other plans.
 

[Hunter]

As soon as blaze put her blades away Aker knew it was time to act. The Noblese sprung towards the leaping Wyvran. Each step thudded down as if in slow motion, and each stride seemed to slowly pick up momentum. The Noblese wasn’t a glass cannon like his other suits, he in fact had the machine weighed down with Gundanium Alloy. It was the entire reason he was keeping the GN drives reved up so so the powerful engines could propel the suit easier.
The Noblese ducked in as the bullets started to fly in but he knew his luck wouldn’t last that long as the two guns began to trace in towards him. Noblese was soon just in front of the Wyvran just as the bullets closed in on him. Tic for tac, he mused as he jumped straight into the bullets. All the while his GN blade led the charge foreward. The bullets began to pepper his suit and smoke began to bleed off the damage that he burst the Noblese to Trans am if just for a brief moment. His suit rattled but absorbed the damage as the tough armor took the abuse. The cloud of smoke puffed just as the Noblese jerked foreward to drive the blade at the underside of the Wyvran. “Indeed looks aren’t everything Blaze.”  Aker mused as he drove in for a quick strike.  

[Judge 221]

 Huh, maybe he’s not so immobile after all,

Icarus lowered the 180mm cannon and watched as the Dogastier tank the last shot and begin weaving between the buildings. Hans’s voice came in over the comms and Icarus quirked a brow.

“Shiny boy?” He responded. “What? Because my mobile suit doesn’t look like a toddler painted it and then rolled it in dirt?” A flurry of missiles then erupted from Hans’s machine and headed straight for the QUEST.

Missiles? Not a problem. Icarus brought the Tallgeese Quest higher into the air to give him a head start. Have to play this right though. Gotta’ be convincing.

The Tallgeese brought up the beam shot rifle and switched it to its shotgun configuration as it began to fly backwards as quickly as possible. Icarus pulled the trigger quickly, trying to eliminate as many of the missiles as possible with his beam spray before they closed in on him. Moments before they connected, the diver tried to make his twin GN drives form a shield, but the projectiles proved too fast. Two missiles managed to sneak in before the shield was up completely, blasting against the QUEST and enveloping it in a cloud of smoke.

When the cloud eventually cleared, the QUEST was falling to the ground, separated from the Squire pack which spun off behind a row of buildings behind him.

“Damn it,” Icarus cried as the QUEST hit the ground flat on its back. When he managed to get the suit back onto its feet, it became clear that the beam shot rifle was toast. Without the Squire to change his loadout, all he had to defend himself was the 180mm cannon. The Dogastier was still weaving between the buildings at the end of the street.

One last finishing touch…

The QUEST tried to move forward but buckled and fell to one knee.

“No! Not now, we just started…” Icarus growled, keeping one eye on the enemy suit and another on his short range radar.

All I need is a few seconds.

[FrostyFoster 448]

While the city area was barely touched by the large beam, a huge black scorch mark was burnt into part of the forest, with only the Kablastali remaining on the ground. The "robot" inside of the Gunpla expected hollers and cheers, but only received gasps as a response. "TARGET ELIMINATED" Returning the shoulder cannons back into position, UC-AU knew its next plan of attack would be to go for a Zeonic unit, but the first battle wasn't over yet. The Nu Origin, unscathed, began to freefall toward the green and gray machine. "NEGATIVE NEGATIVE" Wade pushed his feet downward, sending them straight into the two cannons on the Kablastali. 

The joints of the weapon snapped off completely, sending both into nearby trees. The Nu landed perfectly on its feet, turning back to fire a few of his own shots. "This is the power of a Real Grade!" Hitting the enemy, warnings blaring in UC-AU's cockpit, causing it to try something new. The fin on top quickly booted up, glowing a pink similar to the long range weaponry. Flying towards the Nu, Wade's opponent knocked his beam rifle away, attempting to send his head into the torso of it. "Oh no, not today!" The Fleurs leader retaliated by igniting his beam saber, locking the blade with the head of the machine.

The Dogastier leaped over one of the tinier buildings to get closer to the Tallgeese, now on the same level as him. "Give me a break! You really thought you could beat me?!" Hans watched as it buckled, making the Gunpla grasp the axe tightly. "This'll be the end of it, you Wing trash!" The Dogastier began to spin round and round, picking up speed with each turn. The signature move of the Diver created what looked like a pink tornado, getting a large reaction from the viewers as the spinning top headed to the Quest. "HAHAHA! Time to become mincemeat!" 

The tip of the Noblesse's blade slid into the Wyvran's chest, just barely touching the glass beneath it. The two machine guns, now empty, dropped to the ground as the red mobile suit's face started to contort. "You damaged my Gunpla!" The sides of the head folded out, along with a newly created face of a dragon. "Oh sweetie, you messed up." A hole came out of the face, spewing fire from the dragon's mouth. Pushing back, large wings burst away from the Wvyran as the mobile suit became a mobile animal. Its wings flapped, claws glowing orange while it flew around the blue Gunpla. "Now the battle really begins!"

Turning on his beam naginata, the Hunda blocked a few of the swings from Zander, knowing it'd be futile eventually. "Gotta get this guy off me!" Leon dug his feet deep into the dirt, starting to go on the offensive. Zander was slightly surprised by the Zeon mobile suit, but still didn't worry. The Hunda swung down at the Crossray, knocking it out of balance. "Now!" Leon flew up into the sky while Zander was off center, giving him enough time, to blast every missile he had. "Nice fight, kumpel." Two different types of missiles, rained down on the Crossrays, created pockets of explosions in the vicinity. "Finally, he- wait a minute! Where'd he get those?" Surrounding the Crossray were five Planet Defensors, falling to the floor. "Silly Leon." The Starshiner leader said over the intercom. "Your sad devotion to the Universal Century has put you at a disadvantage. The amount of power I have from all these other Gundam worlds will prove that!"

 

[Hunter]

Blaze’s taunt made Aker furrow his brow in concern as a wall of flames came at him. It was enough to make him backstep enough to let the Wyvran stretch out and begin flying like a real fantastic beast. Part of him had to marvel at her ingenuity, but this fight was already taking longer than he wanted. 

Blaze’s voice called out, “Now the battle really begins!”

“You don’t get it do you?” Aker calmly retorted. His blade was still reaching out just under where the Wyvran had ascended. Slowly red particles began to dance around the Noblese as Aker calmly studied the flying opponent. “You’re just the warm up act…” the beam blade activated, coating and enlarging the GN blade to almost twice the size. “Raiser!” Aker roared out as the beam blade shot out much like beam blast, the pink beam missing just beneath the Wyvran. “I’ll cut you right out of the sky!” 

With Trans Am fully activated the Noblese shifted its’ stance to twist its’ torso towards the direction the Wyvran was facing. Growling, Aker swung the enormous beam blade in after towards the dragon mecha. The full power of the trans am sent leaves, flames,  and debris flying away from the nexus that was the Noblese Gundam. “Nothing will get in the way of helping my friends!” Aker yelled out defiantly. 

[Judge 221]

Icarus looked up at the Dogastier as it started to spin towards him. At first, it took the diver by surprise, but as the console in front of him beeped and flash, Icarus’s grimace turned to a smile.

 “I’ll admit, Hans, you’re a big dude and you certainly talk a big game too,” Icarus’s foot gently pumped a pedal as he watched the Dogastier whirl nearer and nearer. “But when it comes to skill, you come up short.” Beyond the Zeon suit, at the end of the street, the Squire platform rounded a corner and faced the two mobile suits. Icarus pressed down hard on the pedal and the QUESTS thrusters and GN Drives opened up. The Tallgeese shook, as if in anticipation, as it put its hands down on the ground like a runner in starting position.

“Swing for the fences all you want, Hans, but you can’t score a homer,” the Squire platform’s targeting computers locked and sent a confirmation to Icarus. “If you can’t hit the ball!” The QUEST blasted forward, skating along the ground in a low crouch, as the Squire shot the mobile suit’s battle blade towards it. Sword and machine met just as the QUEST ducked under the Dogastier.

This is it! I’ve only got one shot at this!

Time seemed to slow as Icarus’s focus honed-in on the task at hand. He had experienced something similar when he was trying to rescue Aker last mission. Because of this, the Tallgeese QUEST was able to gracefully wrap its hands around the handle of the battle blade. Icarus wrenched on his controls and brought his mobile suit into a spin of its own, angling his blade in the hopes that it would cleave through the Dogastier’s legs.

When time caught back up and the Tallgeese and the Dogastier were divorced on one another, Icarus brought the QUEST up onto its feet. The paint on the mobile suit’s knees had been completely scraped away and the three points of its helmet’s crest had been cleaved clean off by the enemy suit. Other than that, though, the Tallgeese QUEST was still in one piece. Wheeling the mobile suit around, Icarus brought up the 180mm cannon and pointed it at the Zeonic custom.

“You’re out,” he said, before pulling the trigger twice.

 

[FrostyFoster 448]

Wade watched as the Kablastali pulled its head downward, causing the Nu to fall backwards. "How much energy can this Gunpla produce?!" UC-AU's mobile suit should've ran out of power by now, but it seemed as if it could keep fighting forever. "I wonder what power source it uses. AH!" The pink fin sliced through one of the Nu's kneecaps, sending damage reports to the cockpit. "Wait a minute." The Fleurs leader realized that he probably should've used this machine more prior to this event, noticing the shoulder cannon armament. "Ok then." Wade smirked as he lowered the weapon. "Let's see you you survive a point blank attack!" A single shell burst through the barrel, hitting the gray machine's face. The head was warped and melted as UC-AU pulled up his remaining beam cannons.

"FOOL" Before he could fire, Wade spun his beam saber, pointing it at the torso of the Kablastali. With no way to see it coming, Wade pushed the blade deep into the enemy machine, pulling it further up as it went through the mangled head. "ERROR ERROR" Everything on the mobile suit powered down, causing the broken Gunpla to be still. At first, the crowd was shocked that a lower level team could beat a Starshiner, but one by one, that began to change as the crowd got louder. "I can't believe it!" Sneaker pulled up his eyepatch to see the wreckage. "Fleurs De Noblesse just scored their first kill!" UC-AU's portrait dimmed, leaving only two left.

One of them was in quite a predicament as she watched the Noblesse come at her with full power. Using her wings, Blaze attempted to dodge the large sword by spinning away from the opponent, but it was too late. The angle of the swing proved to be too awkward to get away from. "NO!" She yelled out, watching the bright blue weapon slice deep into the back of the Wyvran, sending her extra beam sabers flying away. Knowing that she now couldn't return to her regular form, she spit even more fire at Aker. Flapping away from the Fleurs member, it pained her to see someone else with the advantage. 

Hans didn't see it coming. The Tallgeese not only got back up, but copied his special move! The Zeonic pilot was enraged, watching the Quest cleave into the legs of the Dogastier. Time almost slowed down for the Diver, watching his machine's legs get taken from his body. However, the assault wasn't over. Two cannon shots headed to the dirty mobile suit, with no way for Hans to defend. Hitting the left arm and part of the torso, the Dogastier slammed into a nearby building, creating a massive imprint on it. Rubble started falling on the livid Diver, but Zeonic never gave up. "YOU PEST!!!" He screamed while attempting to move the Gunpla. "I'LL TEAR OUT YOUR-"

Suddenly, he stopped speaking. Smoke rose from the floor, with a red and black Gunpla standing atop of him. Grabbing it by the horns, the Wvyran tore off the now broken Dogastier's head, tossing it away like a piece of trash. The Wvyran screeched, sending fire into the air. The people who watched screamed as Han's face also dimmed on the scoreboard. Sepp knew something wasn't right. He had to fight no matter what. Pulling his two shotguns out of their shoulder slots, he pointed both at the GN Drive of the Noblesse, firing. He hated the idea of using a combination of Deathscythe's and Blitz's technology in order to stay invisible, but he deciding to keep this knowledge to himself.

Wade headed to where he thought was the main battle, only to see a large explosion from the trees. "Woah! Which one was it?" He yelped, unable to see either of the machines. Leon sat gripping his controls in an extremely dark cockpit, now knowing why the Starshiners were so well known...

[Hunter]

As Aker wound up for his attack agaisnt Blaze something stood out to him. It wasn’t obvious at first and he had other matters at hand. As he finished his swing at Blaze, the dragon mech spat more flames at the Noblesse Gundam which, to the spectators, it almost looked like a knight fighting a mythical beast. Flames splattered on the shield as Aker brought it up to absorb the attack, which diverted his attention from Blaze’s retreat. 

Just as Aker got in position to defend against the flames is when it dawned on him what was wrong. There was a path cutting through the growing flames around the grass and plants, leading towards himself. With the TransAm already fired up for his previous attack his only recourse seemed to present itself as the dangerous Sepp fired dual shotgun blasts at Aker. The shot spread hit right into the glowing red Noblesse seemingly hitting solidly, except the image of the Noblesse dissipated just as the projectiles hit. 

“I know snakes have small brains but that was too predictable!” Aker quipped as the Noblesse reappeared just above Sepp’s machine. Aker quantized his Gundam to avoid the enemy attack and get in position for a counter.  The Noblese came slicing down, GN blade aiming for the outstretched arms holding the shotguns. Aker hoped that he would get enough of a slip to disarm the snake man before Sepp could properly catch on to what happened. 

[Judge 221]

Icarus smirked to himself as his opponent, clearly agitated, began to berate him. “I was hoping those shots would finish you off but I suppose I don’t mind playing a little long—” the diver’s sentenced went unfinished as he watched a metal dragon descend from the sky and eviscerate his helpless opponent. The dragon then craned its head backwards and belched a pyre of flame up and into the air. When Icarus had collected his senses once more, his face went from a look of surprise to irritation.

“Hey, what gives?” he said over the radio. “You can’t just swoop in and kill-steal me,”

The Tallgeese QUEST reaffirmed its grip on the battle blade and slunk into a lower more defensive stance as the Squire unit reattached itself to the mobile suit. Icarus looked down the road at the mecha-dragon and scowled. He had never seen a machine like that before and he didn’t recognize it as one of the mobile suits that had made their entrance at the beginning of the event.

Unless this is a transformation…

Looking more closely at it, it did share its colour scheme with one of the Starshiner machines. Icarus’s grimace deepened.

“A dragon, huh? Let me guess, you’re that weird snake guy aren’t you? Well you picked the wrong fight to interrupt, buddy,” he brought the Tallgeese’s battle blade up towards its face, striking a gallant, knightly pose. “The knight always beats the dragon,” Swinging the sword down diagonally in front of him, Icarus spurred the QUEST into action, advancing rapidly toward the dragon but being careful not to go all out. He didn’t know what this machine was fully capable of and he wanted to be able to make any last-second course corrections should something unexpected arise.

[FrostyFoster 448]

“Yesss.” He pulled one of the shotguns up to the sky, starting a pose for the audience, but his plan of attack was flawed against the AU Gunpla. Not only did it not even hit the Noblesse, but the quantized flash tricked him, now sending itself down onto the Jagd Doga custom. “No!” The GN blade sliced completely through the Neo Natter’s right arm, the shotgun slamming onto the grassy terrain, hand still attached. “Big missstake.” Sepp had to take this opportunity quick before the enemy mobile suit left quickly once again. Surprisingly the brown mobile suit heading towards it, pulling its head back to reveal two sharp “teeth”. The snakeman wanted to hold the machine in order to keep it in place, attempting to wrap its remaining arm around it. “Thessse fangs mean busssinesss!”

Hans continued to send his fists down on his controls, still not processing the fact that he lost against a sneak attack. The Dogastier corpse laid dormant below the dragon, ending its array of fire blasting in order to block against the incoming attack. Blaze made her Gunpla jump of the broken model, producing two blades from the palms of the clawed hands. “Ha! You’ll wish I was the snake guy!” She yelled out while crossing the blades. “Unlike those Zeon losers, I’m more… unpredictable.” The dragon started to glow a deep orange, signifying a change in ability and power, but was it really Trans-Am?

Wade didn’t waste any time at all heading toward the explosion. He was well past his cowardly phase by this point as the leader of a Diver team and he had to prove it. The Nu Origin pressed onward, ending up in a hilly valley near the edge of the battle arena. “Any further and I’m kicked out!” The Diver exclaimed as he saw the charred remains of a Gunpla, unable to tell which one it was. Suddenly, beams rained down on top of the Fleurs leader’s machine. “

“You’ll be dead before that.” Zander’s blast took out Wade’s shoulder cannon before he was able to raise his shield. The Nu had just enough time to return fire, but the Crossray anticipated this, bringing up his own shield in the process. From then, it became a test of speed as the two mobile suits fired at each other, now horizontally across, while lasers hit each of their defenses. However, Zander quickly gained the advantage, mostly due to the extra propellant tanks on the backpack. “Those need to go.” Wade thought to himself, sending the Nu closer toward the enemy. With no time to spare and its hands currently occupied, the Gunpla fired its remaining shoulder Vulcans directly at the tanks.

“Alright!” Wade jumped in glee, but the propellant tanks still stayed attached. Zander began to chuckle, watching the Nu stop in its tracks. “Did you really think that would blow them up? Amateur.” The Crossray tossed its rifle, pulling a single hilt out. The blue blade ignited, sending the weapon down on Wade’s shield. The pilot lost his machine’s balance, sending the machine forward. The Nu’s cockpit now headed directly for the blade.

“No!!!”

[Hunter]

Aker was seeing red by the time his blade sank into the arm of the snake unit. Any satisfaction Aker got from the strike was short lived as the snake man lunged for him, wrapping an arm around Aker’s mobile suit. Sepp then revealed fangs on the Zeke mobile suit. Growling, Aker turned his head to shoot his head Vulcans at the presented fangs, letting the beams pelt the unit from point blank.

“You know you’re starting to annoy me.” Aker growled coldly as he tried to jerk free from the snake man, trying to keep out of reach from the sharp maw of Sepp. Just then the glow of his Trans Am abruptly stopped, Aker intentionally cutting the power knowing it wouldn’t do him any good in this predicament. As the red glow stopped, parts fell off his shield, flying off like pieces of debris from the intense Trans am. The Noblesse then stopped squirming and firing its’ vulcans altogether, looking like it had given up, Sepp’s fangs coming in fast as the resistance was given up. 

“Sword bits…” the words were calmly spoken, almost uttered like a prayer. The phrase was then answered as flying bits came careening in towards the two entwined units, their sharpened blades aiming solely for the Jagd Doga. “Your fangs are nice but I think might be nicer!” Aker teased as he tried to kick away from Sepp. 

[Judge 221]

“Oh, so it’s you,” Icarus said, unenthused. The Wyvran’s dragon form had managed to produce its two palm blades just in time to catch his own battle blade and for a moment, the two suits were locked in a desperate struggle. “I’ll be honest,” Icarus grunted. “I was more interested in fighting the snake man. His gimmick was interesting at least,”

Icarus pulled the Tallgeese back from the clash and smirked as he saw the dragon-like mobile suit begin to glow orange. “Neat trick, but would you like to see the real thing?” the Diver’s eyes darted down to his Trans-Am activation panel and then back up at the Wyrvan. Did he really need to use it on her? What if there was a stronger enemy to come?

Gotta’ get past this enemy first before I can even start to worry about that, but…

“Nah, you know what? I don’t need mine to beat you,” the diver smirked. “I’ll just take you down old-school, starting with this,”

The Tallgeese QUEST aimed its cannon at the Dogastier still laying on the ground, shooting at it three times. He was hoping that, if it took enough damage and exploded, it might give him the opening he needed. After firing his shots, Icarus flared his thrusters and pointed his sword forward, both hands gripping it tight as he brought it towards the Wyvran once more.

[FrostyFoster 448]

Everything was dark for the Fleurs leader. He assumed it was all over for not only the match, but his role in the Diver Force. “I… I don’t want to see it.” He kept his eyes closed, hoping that somehow, this reality in GBN wasn’t happening. “I keep messing up. Every. Single. MISSION!” The mobile suit he was in shook, confusing the Diver as he opened his eyes. His Gunpla rolled across the dirt, landing on its back as Zander watched, his own Gunpla’s hand pressed forward in the air.

“What? You… pushed me out of the way?!” A large slit into the side of the Nu Origin’s torso was prominent, but it wasn’t near the cockpit area. “I can’t believe it.” The Fleurs leader made his mobile suit slowly stand, noticing his machine’s wound. “I get it now. Was this just a test?” The injured mobile suit began walking to the Crossray as the crowd watched intently. Wade brought his own Gunpla’s arm out towards Zander’s, ready to shake it. “Thank you. You and Leon really helped me.” However, the Crossray didn’t move an inch as its beam saber still glowed.

That is until it pulled Wade’s beam saber out.

The Nu had just enough time to react, but not enough time to defend. Two alternately colored beams slashed in many different directions, cutting directly through some armor as Zander laughed. “You are the dumbest Diver I have ever played against!” Wade grunted while the slashes continued, not stopping once the enemy decided to toss one aside, grabbing the Nu’s head. “I’m not letting your stupid mistake give me the win.” With all its might, the Crossray pulled the Gunpla onto the ground, sending the Nu’s head into a pile of mud.

Tears flowed inside the cockpit of the broken mobile suit, which now looked more like the Narrative Gundam than its intended creation. Placing its foot on the torso of the machine, the Crossray stood triumphantly, spinning its blade to point downward. Wade only heard one more sentence. 

“No one will remember Fleurs.”

The crowd awaited the kill, as did the defeated Divers prior to Wade, but it never came. A white light appeared below the clouds, crashing down like a bolt of lighting onto the Nu. Zander and his mobile suit were blown away by the sheer power of the blast, only barely landing back on its feet. “Wait. Did he?...” The Gunpla that stood across from him was completely enveloped in white, with only yellow lights protruding from the eyes. 

“No. I won’t let you!” Pulling out his second saber, the Crossrays blasted to the bright figure, only to be met by colorful items. At first, Sneaker had no clue what he was seeing, but as he squinted, he knew he had to speak up. “Are those flowers? I think the Nu is sending flowers into the Crossray!” Rose, daisies, and many vibrant fleurs covered Zander, who was now violently shaking his controls. “Crossrays! Why won’t you move?!” What looked like two opposites on the battlefield, one filled with color and one with none, caused the crowd to become silent, only reacting when they heard a sound everyone in GBN should know well.

It was the sound of a Newtype.

A flexatone signaled the end of this battle as one large white bolt appeared in front of the Nu Origin. Only putting its right hand out, the Newtype flash sent itself to the Crossray as Zander screamed in defeat. Slicing through the waist, the Starshiners mobile suit was no more. Its explosion rocked the landscape, not touching the glowing Gunpla. Gradually, the light dimmed, leaving nothing behind, except for a single small red rose.

The Dogastier corpse exploded, sending debris toward the dragon-like Gunpla. “Damn you!” Blaze blocked most of the attack with her wing, but didn’t move after. The two Gunpla were frozen in time, ready to strike, but unable to. Meanwhile, the Neo Natter, grabbed ahold of the Noblesse tigher. “Niccce try!” He spun the enemy toward his own weapons, but again, the two machine stopped, sword bits floating in place.

“TIME IS UP!!!” Sneaker screamed as the audience almost broke the sound barrier with their noise. “Not only did we see one of their players acquire their first special move, but with two teammates left, the winner is Fleurs de Noblesse!!!” The Divers were then teleported back onto the platform, the crowd chanting Fleurs’ name, though only two players stood atop their winning team’s section of the podium…