Resistance of steel

Chapters

Into the chaos
New allies
Moon knight
The king of braves
The three snipers
Freeden
Wings of Rebellion
Three way battle
The wild ones
Race against time
Dividing factor
Guardian Angel
The king awakens
Critical Mass
The Machine Brothers
Beyond the new door
The Black Knights

Into the chaos

Resistance of steel

Chapter 2: Into the chaos

Narita mountain

Zero watched as the Britannians made their advance. He had just ensured the loyalty of his Black Knights with the help of their own, surrounded status. They had no choice now but to rely on him if they want any chance at winning and surviving. He sat in his custom Knightmare, the Burai where he watched the Britannian forces advance towards the summit of the mountain. Finally, they were close enough. "Right, all preperations have now been completed! Black Knights, prepare to move out." He announced to his troops.

The Burai he and most of his Black Knights piloted, were actually rather small, bipedal Mechs with a landspinner propulsion system, which was practically a wheel, attached to the heel of the machine, allowing them faster movement. The large, blocky cockpit in the chest gave it a hunched appearance but it was neccessary as part of the emergency release, which would save the pilots life in case the Knightmare gets destroyed.

At the summit, his Black Knights stood ready. His earlier speech has worked as well as it needed to work. While most of them were not happy with the current situation, they seemed determined enough and had faith in him. "We the Black Knights will launch a surprise attack on the Britannians from the summit of the mountain. You will charge down the mountain from point three, out goal is to capture princess Cornelia."

He then looked into the direction, where their strongest Knightmare, the Gurren Mk-II stood, piloted by the Black Knights ace pilot Kallen. "Kallen, use penetrating electro number three, we will wipe them away with one blow." If his calculations were correct, the cylindrical devices he placed on the summit, would destabilize the mountain enough to cause a massive landslide, that will decimate the Britannian troops.

"Got it, output confirmed." Answered the red headed young woman, that was the pilot of the Gurren Mk-II, Kallen Kozuki. She took a deep breath and readied herself for the battle that would now begin. Her Gurren Mk-II was different from the other Knightmares, not only because it was red in color instead of black. It had an all around sharper design and the right hand was fashioned into a frightfully large metal claw.

Said claw rested against on of the cylindrical devices, spread over the summit. "Wave surger level is ready and holding, activating gauntlet now." After these words, Kallen activated the greatest weapon of the Gurren, the radiant wave surger. A wave of energy shot out of the Gurrens claw and surged through the cylindrical device, which dug itself into an underground water reserve, causing the water there to boil.

At first nothing seemed to happen but after a few moments, the earth started to shake. Zero smiled as the ground in front of his troops started to rumble, before part of the summit started to collapse, burying a large part of the Britannian forces under an avalanche of mud. The landslide seemed to be even more destructive than he anticipated, moving further down to the city at the base of the mountain and taking many of the buildings with it. 'Maybe I should have asked a physics teacher or perhaps Nina to help me.' He joked inwardly.

Not even his Black Knights knew, that their brilliant leader was still a student, currently staying at the Ashford Academy in the Tokyo settlement. In school he used the name, Lelouch Lamperouge but even that was just a disguise. Only very few people knew, that he was the son of the emperor of Britannia, once brought to Japan as political hostage before the invasion. When he was just little, unknown assailants attacked the palace his side of the family resided in and killed his mother, severely crippling his sister in the process. His goals were not to free Japan, even though it was an effect of his intentions, he wanted to create a peaceful word for his sister Nunnaly and find out who was responsible for the death of his mother. For this goal, Britannia had to fall.

Kallen, who is half Britannian herself, also went to the same school. Her father was Britannian, her mother japanese but today she had to be called an eleven. After the britannian empire took over half of Japan, it was renamed area eleven, robbing the people living there of identity.

It was no time to joke though, the landslide did what it was supposed to do and isolated Cornelias forces, cutting off all chances for reinforcements. After a large part of the enemy forces were wiped out, Zero gave the order to move out and the Black Knights advanced down on the enemy. His Burai clashed with the enemy Glasgow's, which they were modelled after, while ground troops took care of the small fry.

There was only a short interference, as a small group of enemy soldiers blocked his path. A grin spread on Lelouchs face as he recognized one of his attacker. "Orange boy." He greeted him, reminding Lord Jeremya of his ruse a little while ago, where he placed mistrust into the Britannians ranks and saved his old friend, Suzaku Kururugi from being used as a scapegoat.

As the enraged Britannian wanted to attack him though, Kallen and her Gurren Mk-II leapt between them, taking on the enemy Glasgow's. Lelouch could not help but admire the strenght of this new Knightmare, as it grabbed the enemy's head and activated the radiant wave surger. Under the enormous pressure of the energy wave, the metal of the other Knightmare bubbled up and parts of it started to pop like it was made from wrapping foil, before it finally exploded. Lelouch only briefly aknowledged that the pilot seemed to have escaped with the ejection system, as Kallen moved towards the next enemy, forcing the others to retreat.

Cornelia only had very few soldiers left, as her personal knights and a large part of their forces were still cut off from her because of the avalanche ealier. She and her personal escort, including her knights were stranded, unable to advance any further. Cornelia cursed Zero for this trap. Suddenly there was something moving behind them.

Her Knightmare was the Gloucester, a far more advanced Knightmare than the standard issue Glasgow. It was a brighter purple in color and was armed with a large lance.

Four customized Burai's leaped out of the forest and started to attack. The movements were swift and the large chainsaw bladed Katanas they wielded cut through her troops as if they were nothing. "The japanese liberation front?" As she watched in surprise, she first wanted to face them head on, as she got a better idea.

"Your highness, you have to retreat." Urged Gilford, one of her loyal knights. "Understood, meet me later at point nine." She ordered as she broke through two of the attackers, musing how weak they were, even with their new Knightmares. The only dangerous point in her plan was the canyon she would have to pass through. What she didn't know was, that Zero expected just that.

Princess Cornelia made her way through the canyon that would lead her to point nine, where she hoped her emergency plan would work, as she saw something in her way. 'Of course Zero would lay a trap here, how stupid of me.' She mused, as the red form of the Gurren faced her. She heard Gilford as he tried to warn her. "I got the message Guilford." Was her answer, she was ready for this duel.

Not afraid of her new enemy, she pointed her lance forward and charged. This attack however was a failure, as the unknown Knightmare proved itself to be much more than just a custom model and dodged the attack. Cornelia barely had time to react before the counterattacked followed. Trying to evade and get away from this Knightmare at the same time, she used the slash harken, attached to her Knightmares chest to latch onto the edge of the canyon and pulled herself up.

She took a quick look down again, wondering what kind of Knightmare that was, as she suddenly heard gunshots. 'Damn it.' The Black Knights reinforcements were here and were giving the red unit support fire from above. The situation seemed to get even worse for her. Suddenly, the speakers in her cockpit crackled to life. "Can you hear me, Cornelia? This is the checkmate."

Cornelia knew who this voice belonged to. "Zero." Her hated nemesis, the man who killed her half brother and former viceroy of area eleven, prince clovis. No, she absolutely refused to be caught by this haughty coward, who won't even show his face and instead hides behind a mask.

"Yes, should we celebrate our reunion? Of course, you'll have to surrender to us first and after that, there are a few answers I wanna ask you. And in case you're wonderin, no, your reinforcements won't get here on time. I win, Cornelia." Figures, she thought, he wants me to spill all kinds of military secrets and plans. Now it was even more important that she would not be caught.

"You're a fool Zero." She said and faced the red Knightmare again. "This one, if I take this one out I'm free and clear." The red Knightmare was fast but it was still one unit and Cornelia prided herself in her combat abilities. She quickly raised the machine gun she held in the other hand and took aim, a quick burst should cripple the unit for the finishing attack.

The Gurren however, quickly leapt forward, dodging the fire effortlessly. Cornelia quickly fired the slash harken again. Since these weapons were not very visible, they always tended to take the enemy by surprise. However, even this attack failed too, as the Gurren deflected the harken. Cornelia allowed herself a smirk, she had to admit that she was impressed. However, she could not be defeated here.

"You got some moves." She told her opponent, as she thrusted her lance forward. The Gurrens hand shot forward, grabbing the tip of the lance and holding it in place. Cornelia first wanted to try and overpower her enemy, as a strange, red energy wave shot out of it's hand. 'What kind of weapon is this?' She wondered, as the metal on the lance bubbled up and her right arm exploded. Again she heard the sound of a machine gun and her left hand got damaged, causing her to drop her gun. She was completely unarmed now. "Coward, attacking from behind." She cursed, looking up at the Burai that must have belonged to Zero.

"Really? And your own methods don't show acts of cowardice?" He mocked her. Away from them, the britannian forces suffered heavy losses, the battle seemed to be lost for them. There was one thing Cornelia needed to do. She opened up a communication channel to her knight Guilford.

"Guilford, you protect Euphie. I won't surrender." Her pride and the pride of the britannian empire was at stake, she would rather die fighting than to surrender to these elevens. "As an imperial princess I'll fight to the last!" As she exclaimed this, she took a fighting position again. Even without arms, she would not give in to the enemy.

As she charged at the enemy Gurren however, the ground shook and the wall of the canyon exploded. The dust from the explosion obscured the vision but as it settled, a white Knightmare with golden decorations and a blue colored rifle in it's hands could be seen standing there, the Lancelot.

The pilot of the Lancelot was Suzaku Kururugi, he was the test pilot for this new Knightmare, despite the fact that he himself was japanese. His hopes were that, if he could make a good example, he would be able to change the brutal dictatorship of the britannians from the inside. Right now he had the chance to prove himself, right in front of the princess, so he urged her to flee.

The scene however was distupted, as a strange, green glow was seen in the sky. All fighting immediately stopped as everyone in the are looked at the sky, where a large sphere of green light formed. Those near the light took cover, thinking that this was some sort of new weapon, employed by their enemies. The head of Zero's customized Burai poked up from behind a tree, as he observed the strange phenomenon.

'What is this? A new weapon? It is possible, the britannians probably did not want to reveal it prematurely.' Mused Zero, not knowing that princess Cornelia was thinking the same at the moment. Their questions what this light was were answered, when the light disappeared, leaving a large, white and blue robot behind.

Twilight and Rarity could feel the fall as Granteed appeared in the air. As if it was an instinct, etched into their minds, the two mares stabilized their position before they hit the ground, causing Granteeds knees just to buckle slightly instead of falling over. "Are you alright Rarity?" The purple unicorn asked her friend after this bumpy ride ended. "Yes, thank you my dear. Let's see if any of the others are here with us."

The Granteed turned it's head, assessing the situation. The two pilots were shocked when they saw the base of the mountain they landed on and saw the city, buried under a landslide. "Oh no, I hope nopony got hurt. Rarity, let's go and see if we can help somehow." Rarity agreed. They had to meet up with their friends but at least they should see if anyone needed their help before the started their search.

Since the Knightmares around them were still unmoving behind their cover, Twilight and Rarity had no idea they were being observed until a much smaller, white robot quickly moved into the way and pointed a strange, blue object at them. "Halt, in the name of princess Cornelia, identify yourselves." Demanded the pilot.

"Don't let them escape Kururugi, I want to know who they are and what they want." Those were the orders with which Cornelia sent Suzaku to confront these newcomers, while she herself used the confusion to escape. While she fled, Cornelia wondered who sent this giant mech. It was clearly a super robot, what should mean that either the Photon Power Labs, Saotome Labs or GGG were behind this, as they were the only factions known to her, which possessed super robots and this was obviously not that museum piece, slash company mascot, Dai Guard.

Twilight and Rarity stared in wonder at the figure below them. They did not know what that object was he pointed at them was but from the knowledge they had about the Bellzelute, they guessed that it was a weapon. At first the two of them didn't know what to do, they have never guessed that the inhabitants would also have robots. For now they at least wanted to comply with that wish and opened a communication channel. Despite the fact that they just learned from the Granteed how this works, they marvelled at such a technology, that would allow long range communication as if they were right next to each other. "Hello, we are Twilight Sparkle and Rarity and this is our robot Granteed. We mean you no harm and only wanted to see, if we can help out in that city."

Suzaku, Cornelia and Zero, who used the fact that the pilots of this strange mech did not use any blocks and listened in, raised their eyebrows at these names. 'What kind of names are that? It sounds like something a small girl would come up with. Obviously they are codenames but why use something so... childish?'

Suzaku did not know what to make of this situation and Kallen has moved her Gurren Mk-II into position to attack if it was neccessary. Cornelia however already had a plan. "I am princess Cornelia of Britannia, you are trespassing in britannian territory, we will confiscate your robot."

The hearts of the two unicorns stopped for a moment at these words, they couldn't let them take the Granteed, they still needed to meet up with their friends. "We are sorry for trespassing, we will just leave now but we can't let you take Granteed." Both of them hoped they could go. They did not mention their friends yet, as they wouldn't want these people to go after them in case they were hostile.

"Kururugi, fire a warning shot at them." Ordered Cornelia, not in the mood for negotiations. Twilight and Rarity had no time to react as a bolt of blue energy shot out of the Lancelot's VARIS rifle and hit them on the shoulder. The weapon itself did not do any serious damage but the sudden attack still shocked both unicorns. "I repeat, surrender and exit the mech or else we will destroy you."

Rarity got over the shock first and fear turned into anger as she adressed the princess. "Just what do you think you are doing? We come here without any ill intents and you brutish barbarians attack, wanting to steal our robot away from us? For a princess, you definately lack manners." She scolded.

As Cornelia heard this direct insult to her status, she became furious. "Kururugi, I want you to disable this robot and capture the pilots immediately, kill them if you have to." She ordered the princess, not willing to let a bunch of unknown pilots with ridiculous names critizise her.

Zero however smelled an opportunity, a potential new ally. He meant to contact one of the japanese super robot institutes. Super robots, were large and powerful machines, that often utilized exotic weapons and power sources. Real robots like the Knightmares they piloted were smaller and faster, often easily mass produced. A super robot would not only boost their firepower but having such a powerful robot amongst their ranks would be good for the morale. "Kallen, assist these pilots and take out the Lancelot."

Twilight moved the Granteeds arms in front of the chest, where the cockpit was positioned as the white robot fired two grappling hooks from it's waist, which embedded themselved into the metal. The Lancelot grabbed one of it's sword from behind its back and prepared to pull itself up to attack the Granteed. However, another hook shot from a different robot and severed the steel cables, connecting the Lancelot to the Granteed.

Twilight and Rarity quickly looked down where the hooks came from and saw another robot, similar to the one in front of them but in red and a large claw. The cables were quickly reeled back into the chest, as a new voice contacted them. "My name is Zero, don't worry, I will help you escape."

Even though Zero wanted them to become his allies but right now they were in a delicate situation. Those pilots were confused as it is, they did not need another faction trying to pull them in. But if he helped them escape and then followed them, they would remember the Black Knights as friendly helpers after calming down.

Confusion and fear spread through the minds of both unicorns as they started to run. Now they could see that there was apparently a battle going on, which must have also cause this landslide. "This is terrible, we landed right in the middle of a battlefield." Said Rarity, horrified as she saw some of the Knightmares shooting at each other. "Let us just get out of here." The Granteed now ran down towards the base of the mountain, the Lancelot in hot pursuit.

From one of the screens inside the cockpit, Twilight looked as the Lancelot chased them. The Granteed was big but slower, they needed to lose him somehow. Behind them, the Lancelot prepared to fire the rifle again, before the Gurren shot out from behind the trees and grabbed the VARIS. A burst of red energy surged out of the claw and the rifle exploded in the hand of the white Knightmare.

Suzaku did not let this deter him. Quickly he drew his sword again and slashed against the Gurren, which quickly jumped backwards to dodge. "Kururugi, do not let that unknown robot escape." The new Knightmare of the Black Knights was impressive but this Granteed was still entire unknown, they had to find out more about it.

Suzaku was in a difficult situation, he had to chase the large robot, which would normally not be a problem but he himself was pursued by the enemy Knightmare. Despite his predicament, he held great respect for the pilot of the red unit. Whoever it was, he or she was a very talented pilot.

It was like a twisted dance as the two Knightmares exchanged quick swipes with sword and claw, occasionally using their slash harken to pull themselves further. Finally, the Gurren managed to grab the blade of the Lancelots sword and used its energy wave surger to destroy it. With this, the Lancelot was unarmed. Kallen took her chance and knew that the Lancelot had a second sword, which she could not allow him to draw. Next she grabbed the torso of the Lancelot and prepared to destroy it for good. If the enemy loses his trump card, they would be one step closer to victory.

As Kallen wanted to destroy the white Knightmare for good however, gunshots rang through the air and the bullots hit the radiant wave surger, letting it spark a few times before dieing out. Kallen curse as a small group of britannian soldiers came out from behind some trees. More bullets hit her leg, immobilizing the Gurren.

"Kururugi, this is Viletta Nu, we will provide reinforcements." Viletta used the confusion from the sudden appearance of the Granteed to escape from the group of rebels that pinned her team down. "Thank you very much, princess Cornelia ordered us to capture this giant unit." Viletta looked at the Granteed, which briefly stopped to look at what happened. "Understood, let's destroy this enemy and capture this unit."

The pilots of the Granteed gasped as the Gurren was hit. They did not know who piloted it but whoever it was, helped them. "Twilight, we need to help the red one." Urged Rarity, already trying to decide what weapons to use to fight back. "Agreed, we can't abandon the pilot after he helped us, prepare the orgone slave."

The Granteed turned around proper and the britannians opened fire. Their bullets barely dented the armor but both pilots knew that they could not just stand there and absorb the enemy attacks. Twilight took careful aim as a green glow came from the gem in the middle of Granteeds chest. "All units, fall back. The enemy is about to attack." Shouted Viletta, as she retreated. Suzaku also jumped to the side as he noticed that the Granteed was aiming at him.

A stream of green energy shot out of the Granteeds chest, together with crystaline particles. The shot went past the Lancelot but it damaged its left arm and leg, causing it to fall flat on the ground. A cluster of green crystals started to form around the damaged zones, while the Granteed turned around to the other units. Twilight did not want to do any harm, so she aimed for the legs, which were almost instantly destroyed and the cockpit blocks ejected themselves.

Kallen meanwhile managed to get the legs of the Gurren to work again and watched in awe at the power of this machine. If they could get these guys as allies, they could do much more damage to britannia. She decided to at least thank them for helping her instead of fleeing and opened a comm channel. "Thank you, you saved me there."

Twilight and Rarity sighed in relief, as they saw that the pilots did not seem to have been hurt, as the pilot of the red unit contacted them. "No need to thank us darling, you helped us out too, that's what friends are for." Said Rarity, making Kallen wonder how they could consider her a friend that easily.

Before they could continue their exchange though, more britannian troops arrived. "Damn, I hope that beam can be fired more than once, here they come." The Gurrens radiant wave surger was broken but Kallen still had the slash harken and a knife to fight with. With the Gurren she went into a fighting position, waiting for the enemy to make contact. Behind them, Zero arrived too, flanked by two more Burai. "I hope you are all well, let's finish this now, then maybe we can have a little chat, there are a few things I'd like to talk to you about."

Rarity quickly checked the Granteeds energy level. The orgone slave was poweful but unfortunately, it took a lot of power from the engine. "Twilight, if we stay here and fight I would suggest that we stick to weaker weapons for now, or else we will be defenseless while the Granteed recharges." They didn't want to fight but they also did not want to abandon the people who helped them.

Both sides were ready to fight, Zero was trying to quickly formulate a battle plan while the britannian forces, which were greater in number, tried to surround them. Everyone just waited for the battle to start, as a beam of energy shot from the sky and destroyed one of the Glasgows. "What was that?" Wondered Zero, as he looked up into the sky.

Two figures were floating in the sky high above them, one of them was a white bipedal mech with blue chest and shoulders. On one arm was a folded up blade, the other arm had a shiel attached to it. In the middle of the chest was, what looked like a green sphere and a v-shaped fin was attached on it's forehead.

The other one was very similar to the first but it had a forest green paintjob and held a large sniper rifle in one hand. This must be the unit, that shot the Glasgow. Suddenly the image of a bald man with a beard, sitting on a chair appeared on the screens of all pilots and began to speak.

"I would like to address this statement to every single human being born and raised on Earth or the colonies. We call ourselves simply Celestial Being. We are a private armed organisation in possession of the mobile weapon Gundam. The main objective of Celestial Being's activities is to completely eliminate acts of war from this world. We do not act for our own benefit or for personal gain. We have chosen to intervene for the greatest goal of all to rid ourselves of the scourge of war. As of this moment I make this declaration to all humanity. Territory, religion, energy no matter what the reason or excuse if there is an evident act of war being carried out, we will commence intervention with our force. Any country, organisation or corporation that promotes war will also be a legitimate target for our intervention. We simply call ourselves Celestial Being. We are an armed organisation that was established to eliminate all acts of war from this world. I repeat... "

This message was heard not only on the battlefield, all over the world the people heard the message of this man called Aeolia Shenberg. Some people knew him for being a great mind in the field of physics and engineering, as well as being one of the developers of the Gundam type Mecha. Now it appears that there were even more of them in manufacture.

In the field base of the britannians, princess Cornelia just returned as the message was played out. "Eradicating war? Doesn't this fool know that it's the natural order for the strong to conquer the weak? Who does he think he is, thinking he could order the britannian empire around?" Her younger sister and sub viceroy princess Euphemia had more mixed feelings on the matter. While she did not share her sisters love for battle and would love to see peace, she was not sure if this approach was the right one.

Zero on the other hand contemplated the plans of this man further. "Aeolia Shenberg? I know I heard this name before. If these Gundams are powerful enough to perform these interventions his plan could work but it would not solve the issues of discrimination, unless he has other plans for that." Now he was faced with another problem. If they really did what they announced, he would have to calculate their arrival into his plans. But, if he planned this well, he could probably use them to his advantage.

Twilight and Rarity got more confused by the minute, who was this man, why did he build these so called Gundams to eradicate war and who were they even fighting? Rarity desperately looked at her friend. "Twilight, we really got into a situation we shouldn't be in, I suggest we just get out of here before we get in too deep." The other unicorn agreed, they had to help the princess and find the others, they couldn't afford to get caught up in these fights. "We are very sorry," she announced over the intercom. "we can not get involved in any of this." With that, the Granteed turned around and ran.

They both felt guilty for just leaving but both of them has ever seen or heard of war. Equestria was a very peaceful land and the thought of such great fights was something they could not even imagine. So it happened that their minds, incapable of understanding what was going on, refused any further orders and were set on retreat.

Setsuna F. Seiei, Gundam Meister and pilot of Exia, looked down on the scene. Today was the first strike of Celestial Being and the beginning of the end of all wars. The britannians with their survival of the fittest doctrine, would most likely become prime targets for them. The Glasgows and Burais opened fire at their new targets, so both Gundams started to move.

The green one, Gundam Dynames, was piloted by a pilot with the codename Lockon Stratos, a masterful sniper. Being a long range fighter, he flew higher to get a better overview of the area. He took aim with his GN sniper rifle and opened fire, piercing the Knightmares with only one shot. Bluish green energy particles were dispensed into the air from the engine on the Gundams backs, as the flew through the air, causing a slight glow to accompany them.

Gundam Exia, being made for close combat, dove down into the ranks of the Knightmares and unfolded the blade on it's arm. Several Knightmares charged the Exia, hoping to take it down. At first the Exia didn't move as Setsuna closed his eyes in concentration. "I am Gundam."

Lockon looked at his partner as he stood still. "What's the matter Setsuna? Don't tell me your Gundam is malfunctioning." He asked. From the communication channel he only heard how Setsuna muttered that he was Gundam, leaving Lockon to wonder what he meant by that, before Exia charged in.

The first Knightmare was cut in half at the waist, as the blade of the Exia cut through it like it was butter. A Burai tried to shot the Exia while the blade was still cutting through the britannian Glasgow, only for it to jump out of the way of fire in the last minute, towards the attacker. A swing from above severed the Burais head and right arm, causing the escape pod to activate. It was already difficult for the Knightmares, since the Gundams were considerably larger but they seemed to even have superior speed.

The Gurren and the Lancelot were still heavily damaged and even if the Lancelot could still move, without the VARIS rifle it couldn't do anything as the sniper was far out of reach of the slash harken. "All units, secure the Lancelot and retreat." Came order from princess Euphemia, who was not too stubbornly prideful to see when the battle was lost. Her sister, Cornelia, glared at the screen showing one unit after another being destroyed. This is impossible, how can they just wipe out all of their troops? She hated it but Euphemia was right, they did not have the units neccessary to go against the Gundams, so she did not protest as she soldiers carried out the retreat order.

Zero saw how some of the Glasgows grabbed the Lancelot and dragged it off. If they fled, his Black Knights would be alone against the Gundams. "The britannians are retreating, everyone fall back immediately." He already knew he needed more firepower and if he was lucky, the Granteed would soon help him. After all, with his Geass the pilots couldn't really defy his orders.

Setsuna and Lockon watched as the fight broke up, just as planned and the Black Knights and britannians retreated. The armed intervention was successful. But what really caught their eye was the Granteed. "Setsuna, do you have any information about the big one fleeing over there?" Lockon already aimed his rifle at the unknown unit, ready to take it down.

"Negative, the unit did not seem to be affiliated with either side and only defended." Both Gundam Meister didn't know what to make of the unknown unit. Lockon pondered if he should shoot or not. After all, they seemed to be just at the wrong place at the wrong time and attacking innocent people would not fit into Aeolia Shenbergs plan. "Alright Setsuna, let us return to base and report to Sumeragi."

Both Gundams now took off into the sky again and Lockon chuckled. 'An unknown unit, appearing out of nowhere and not fitting with any organization or data, Tieria is going to have a fit.'

Author's Note

Here goes the first proper chapter. At first I wanted to include all teams but then this part got longer and I realized, for the sake of introducing everyone properly, the first parts will have to be long, so I uploaded what I had to reduce the waiting time.

New allies

Resistance of steel

Chapter 3: New allies

Russian tundra:

It was already nighttime and a snowstorm was raging over the tundra. Still, a lone military jeep was driving through the storm. The man driving the car looked over to the only passenger next to him. The poor woman has just been through a horrible experience, he could not watch any longer, he had to get her out of that facility. He saw that the young, red haired woman was biting her fingernail, a common nervous habit but she already made her finger bleed. "Stop it." He demanded. It was a bumpy ride and he didn't want her to bite her thumb off.

"Let me bite... if not, kill me..." was her traumatized response. The poor girls psyche was clearly suffering, still he had to stop her. "Cut it out." He demanded again and this time, he grabbed her hand to pull it away. A sharp pain went through the drivers hand, the girl has bitten him instead. Blood flowed out of the wound but he could not be mad at her. Images from all the cruel experiments went through his head and he knew, this girl needed help, not scolding. "They've done such a horrible thing." He mused with his hand still in the girls mouth.

They then went over the hill and saw their destination. "Look, it's a mountainous area, we can go back!" The girl loosened her bite on his hand to look up. "We can go back home!" Said the man, as images of home went through the girls mind. The escape route was directly in front of them, it would not take much longer.

In his joy, the driver did not see that something was approaching. The two of them had been followed by a military helicopter, which now fired a missile at them. It impacted on the ground, directly in front of them and the car was pushed over by the force of the explosion, landing upside down. The girl was thrown out of the car while the driver was not so lucky and was crushed underneath. Only his hand was sticking out at the side, holding a CD.

Fortunately, the girl was unharmed, she stood up and went over to the wreaked car. She did not have to check the pulse to know that the driver was dead, instead she picked up the CD from his hands. Looking at the CD inside its case, she was oblivious to the attack helicopter approaching from behind, until it's opened fire.

The woman was not hit but the bullets hit the jeep, causing the wreckage to explode and throw the red head into the snow. Paralyzed by fear, she could not bring herself to do anything as the helicopter pilot continued to shoot. What he wasn't aware of was, that he himself was in the crosshairs.

An alarm signal went off inside the helicopters cockpit and the pilot turned the machine around to face the attacker, as a second warning signal flared up. "A pincer attack?" From one side, a giant knife was flying through the air, impacting on the side, while what looked like a fist made of green crystals was hitting him from behind, causing the helicopter to stagger.

The red headed woman watched in awe, as a gray colored, bipedal mech approached from behind and grabbed the helicopter, while the pilot was struggling to get control back. The robot forced the helicopter back, before throwing it to the ground, where it exploded. The woman knew exactly, what this machine was. "Arm.... slave..."

From other nearby areas, the sound of fighting could be heard. The Armslave that just saved the girl had no interest in those battles however. The pilot had two missions now, rescue that girl, along with the CD and look out for wherever that fist came from. There was no unit in their organization that could fire such projectiles. "Sousuke here, cover me while I secure the target."

"Understood, be careful. We do not know anything about the unit or it's capabilities." Came the radio response of one of Sousukes team members, Melissa Mao. She went over to him with her own Armslave, looking out for the unknown unit.

From the nearby woods, the two pilots of a purple robot were watching the scene. At first they hid from the sight of the vehicle, as it was suddenly attacked. Shocked at the sudden violence, they were paralyzed for a short time. Still, they had to save that girl, so Pinkie Pie activated one of the Coustwells weapons. Orgone energy was pumped directly into the fist and crystalized, before they hurled it at the strange, flying machine. Applejack and Pinkie were surprised, that somepony else seemed to have the same idea.

As the knife hit the helicopter, they let the Coustwell duck down again, before anyone could see them. The emerging robot, looked a lot like Coustwell, only that it was steel grey and more simplistic in design. It also was a lot smaller than the Coustwell. While they had to duck down, this new robot could easily stand behind the treelines.

It was impressive, to say the least, to see this unit wrestle the flying machine and toss it to the ground. "Well, looks like someone was already here for the rescue, I just hope that creature will be fine now." Said Applejack while looking at the woman, kneeling in the snow from behind the treelines. "Why don't we say hi to them AJ? If they are here to help this one, they must be nice. Maybe we can find some new friends, that would be wonderful."

Applejack rolled her eyes in response. Even though Pinkie was shocked at the sudden outburst of violence, she recovered very quickly. "Before we make any new friends, we need to look for our old friends. Besides, nopony can guarantee us, that they will also be nice to us. They seem to be guard, military types. An unknown robot could easily spook them into attacking. Let's just wait here until they leave."

Sure enough, one of them left his robot, having it kneel down near the woman. The soldier approached her and it looked like the two of them were talking, at least the woman was. At first everything looked fine, until the pilot suddenly stabbed something into the womans neck. Applejack and Pinkie Pie did not know, that it was a simple sedative, so they thought that the pilot of the grey robot was attacking her. "AJ, this other guy stabbed her!" Yelled Pinkie Pie. Applejack meanwhile, had a grim look on her face. "Attacking innocent.... whatever they are called huh? I'm gonna teach them some manners."

While the attacker carried the body towards his own robot under the watchful eye of his teammate, the purple giant rose from the trees and jumped into position. "Whoa there, what do you think you're doing?" Cried Applejack angrily, taking up a battle pose with the Coustwell, just as the attacking pilot reached his robot. The other machine immediately moved in between them, pointing its weapon at the Coustwell. A static sound echoed through the cockpit. "Halt, who are you?"

It was, without mistake, the voice of a woman in the other robot. "Mah name is Applejack, I can not let you just go on and hurt others. Ah thought you were going to save her but it looks like you are just like those other villains." She and Pinkie could hear a groan coming from the speakers. "That's right, you just rescued her so you could stab her yourself." Added Pinkie Pie.

"Wow, you really don't know anything and still leap into battle. That girl isn't hurt, just sedated and we were going take her to a safe place. But the more important question is...." Without further warning she shot forward and drew a knife, holding the tip directly in front of the Coustwells chest. Due to the size difference, she had to hold the blade very high but it still caught the two ponies off guard. "Who are you, what is your mission and who do you work for?"

Both mares were unsure what to do. If they lied, they could be caught up in a battle but if they told them the truth, it could endanger her friends. "We are Applejack and Pinkie Pie, our mission has nothing to do with you and will not cause you any damage. Who we work for is a secret but nothing that should concern you." Aside from her names that did not give them any information but it was still the truth.

Melissa Mao cocked her eyebrow. Applejack and Pinkie Pie? Those have to be the weirdest callsigns she has ever heard. Still, despite the complete lack of information, she did not have the feeling that she has been lied to. It was a strange feeling. All her military instincts told her not to be so trusting, espeacially concerning strangers but there was just something about this one that made her feel like she said nothing but the truth. Still, she was a professional soldier and she would not fall for any traps. "And if you lied, you could give any enemy groups information. No chance, you will go with us. Surrender and you won't be harmed."

"Just a moment." Applejack cut the communication channel and turned to Pinkie. "Alright, we have to decide quickly or else she'll get suspicious. If we surrender, we can try to explain our situation but there is also the chance they will steal the Coustwell." Pinkie gave her friend a reassuring smile. "Oh, I have the feeling they are good people, let's go with them."

During her long friendship, Applejack learned to trust Pinkies instincts. She reopened the communication channel. "We will go with you. But one thing is clear. We will not abandon our previous mission." It could be difficult but if they are really as good as Pinkie Pie believes, they won't harm them.

"Alright, fair enough. If your mission really poses no threat to us, that shouldn't be a problem." A third robot now emerged from the forest. "Alright, then let's take in these lovely ladies for a little chat." Together they made their way towards the extraction point.

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash scanned the area as they flew through the sky. When they arrived, they started out in a mountainous area, surrounded by forests. Not too much out of the ordinary but one thing really stuck with them. Yesterday they discovered an area, that looked like something devastating happened there some time ago. A large, circular patch of land looked as if a giant fireball landed there, completely scorching a circular area. Rainbow Dash noticed that there were wreckages of other robots on the ground but she did not say anything about it. Fluttershy has closed her eyes, not wanting to think about the poor, woodland creatures that might have gotten hurt and those news would not have helped.

They have discovered tracks, leading from the point of the catastrophe. Whatever caused these tracks, it was not far away. They followed the tracks for a while, as they lead them to a desert. Both of them flew for a while, until they finally saw what caused the tracks. It looked almost like a huge ship, made entirely of metal. Despite the fact that there was now water around, it sailed over the sand almost as if it was in water. "R-Rainbow, who are they?"

"I dunno but let's see who they are, maybe they have seen the others." While approaching them, Rainbow Dash kept the weapons low, so they would not seem hostile to the crew of the ship. A hatch opened and two figures came out of the metal ship. They were about as tall as the Bellzelute, one with a white and red paintjob and what appeared to be folded wings on it's back, the other mostly dark green, with a huge barrel attached to one arm.

As they got closer, Fluttershy and Rainbow stopped and held up one hand, gesturing them to stop. The loudspeaker inside of their cockpit crackled to life, as the pilots of the other robots started to talk. "Halt, who are you two and what do you want?" Said one of them, causing Fluttershy to sink into her seat. Rainbow Dash frowned at the rude greeting but decided to play civil for now. "This is the Bellzelute, I am Rainbow Dash and my co-pilot is Fluttershy. We are looking for some friends of ours and wondered, if you have seen them."

Laughter filled their ears after Rainbow Dash introduced them. The cyan pegasus got angry at the other pilots. "What's so funny?" She demanded, as the others slowly calmed down. "That are your callsigns? Seriously? I have never heard a dumber name than that." The green visor of the Bellzelute flashed up and it took a more aggressive position under the control of the furious pegasus. "How about you come out of there and say that to my face?"

The other two also got into a combat position as they heard the threat. "Slow there, you are alone and we are also backed by the Freeden back there." A metallic thumb pointed at the ship behind them. This however did not impress Rainbow Dash. "Oh yeah, I bet I can take all of you on without scratching the paintjob." Fluttershy was practically on the bottom of the cockpit by now, shaking slightly. "Please Rainbow, let's just leave, we don't need to fight."

Another voice linked itself into their conversation. "I agree. My name is Jamil Neate, captain of the Freeden. I apologize for the rudeness of your welcome but I have to insist, that you either leave or lower your weapons." Fluttershy was glad that the captain of that ship also wanted to avoid an unnecessary fight, so she looked pleadingly at her friend. "Alright, talking to the captain himself is way better than to waste time with the small fry anyway."

What she could not see was the glare both mercenaries shot her, as she flew past them towards the open hatch. Inside of the hangar bay, the two of them were led towards a position, where they could park the Bellzelute. Fluttershy was curious but also a little scared at the strange creatures. They reminded her a little of monkeys but they only had hair on their heads. One of them, wearing a blue uniform and sunglasses, arrived in the hangar and stood on a gangway in front of the Bellzelute. "Alright, please come out of your robot now. I would really prefer if we could talk to each other face to face."

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy knew, that this would happen now but they hoped for the best. "Alright then but one thing. What you see might surprise you." The other two pilots have also arrived in the meantime and already opened their cockpits, ready to face that cocky woman. On the ground, a young but masterful mechanic studied the Bellzelute. This kind of mech was completely new to him, he would definately take the time to study it. In secret if necessary .

The cockpit opened and slowly, the two mares emerged from it. All of the present humans gasped as they saw two small horses emerge from the mech. They were even more shocked at the fact, that they had such a strange color scheme and seemed to have wings on their backs. Were those really the pilots or was this some sort of prank. A blonde woman entered and immediately squee'd as she saw them. "Awww... they are so adorable!"

The captain groaned a little at Toniya's attitude but his mind quickly went back to the bizarre picture before him. Two small, colorful, winged horses were getting out of the cockpit. Their names were Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy and they piloted a... actually, he did not know what kind of robot this was. His first guess was, that those horses were aliens, therefor possessing alien technology.

Witz Su, a man with short, blonde hair and pilot of the Gundam Airmaster, gaped in disbelief at the picture before him. The cocky chick that was the main pilot of the unknown unit was not a woman but a talking animal? At this exact moment he decided, he did not get paid enough to deal with this kind of crazy stuff.

Roybea Roy, who piloted the green Leopard Gundam, was also taken aback. For him, it had another reason though. When the quieter one, Fluttershy, spoke through the comm channel, he found that she sounded cute and wanted to try his luck with her. Now that she turned out to be a creature of mythology, these plans flew straight out of the window. "Well, so much for a cute lady but one thing is for sure. Between this and the Gundam we picked up, things are going to get much more interesting. Maybe I'll stick around." He said to himself.

In another part of the ship, a sleeping girl felt something strange. Two sources of energy entering the ship. One felt like an unbreaking shield, protecting all those it holds dear. The other felt like a warm and gentle breeze, wiping away pain. Tiffa Adil's breath became more relaxed and her heartbeat more steady as she was calmed by these two beings.

Teletha Testerossa, captain of the Mithril vessel TDD-1, better known as Tuatha de Danaan, was sitting across two ponies. When the Urzu team brought in the unknown mech, they were prepared for many things, not for colorful horses from another dimension to be the pilots. Especially memorable was Sousuke Sagara's reaction to seeing them. He pulled the alarm and forced her to the ground, with a piece of his vest he ripped off as mouth cover, since he believed them to be hallucinations, caused by nerve gas.

Even more memorable was the attitude of the pink one. Applejack has confirmed that Pinkie Pie was indeed an adult but she still acted like an eight year old on too much sugar. Both of them explained their mission and where they came from. Most of the stuff that didn't concern their mechs sounded like the script of a cartoon show for little girls but Kalinin seemed to be strangely captivated by their stories, often asking for details that were not even that important.

"Very well then, you are currently searching for your friends and wish to get the princess to a safe place?" Applejack and Pinkie Pie nodded in agreemend. "Sadly this world is not as peaceful as you hoped it to be. There are a lot of conflicts going on, especially in Japan. With the Britannians keeping hold on half the island, constant battles between them, the rebel forces and the photon power labs are daily routine." She explained. As far as she heard, war was something they were not accustomed to.

Applejack was a little confused. Teletha has mentioned the Britannian Empire before but they still didn't really know who they were. "You mentioned them before, who are the Britannians?" From what she heard, they have taken over an island nation, at least half of it. From that first impression, they sounded like some sort of evil empire.

Teletha took a deep breath and began to explain. "A few years ago, a terrible war raged on. The space colonies, that humanity used as a countermeasure against overpopulation, declared themselves independent from earth and also declared war on it. In the final days of the independence war, the colony leaders decided to use empty colonies as giant bombs against earth, dropping them down like meteors."

Applejack was shocked and even Pinkie Pie lost her happy glow. They had already heard how big colonies were supposed to be, they could not even imagine how anyone could think about using them like that. "But, wouldn't that have destroyed the entire planet? The planet they were born on?" How could anyone destroy their place of origin like that?

"Luckily, the earth federation developed a new weapon that could stop them. The Gundams, mobile weapons not unlike your Coustwell or the Armor Slaves we use. They were equipped with extremely powerful cannons, that could destroy these colonies. Most of them were destroyed, few managed to break through and devastate central Asia." She knew too well of the damage. In Russia, people even decided to move their population into domed cities, so that nature could recover more easily.

"Afterwards, the Britannian Empire became active. They used the anger against the colonies, which were still recovering, as well as the help of an organization called OZ, to take hold of the colonies under their brutal dictatorship." It was easy, using hatred and betrayal as weapons. All you needed was the right target and everyone would support you. "They did not stop there though. With the resources gained from the colonies, the Britannian Empire has conquered many countries, Japan being the latest. They are ruthless, taking away the name of the country and it's citizens, reducing them to second-class citizens and taking away their rights."

Pinkie at this point, started to cry. "Why? Why do they have to be so mean? Isn't it a lot better to treat others nicely and befriend them instead of doing something so cruel?" She wailed. Applejack put her hoof around her friends shoulder and comforted her. She too could not comprehend such cruelty. Not even Nightmare Moon seemed to be that bad in comparison.

"Well, the rebels seemed to get a new leader though. He calls himself Zero, we have no information about him other than his codename and mask but we do know that he is a tactical genius. Maybe we can use the next mission to try and contact him." She said, before clasping her hand over her mouth. She was such a fool, making an amateurs mistake and revealing secret information.

"What mission? Can we help?" Asked Applejack, while Pinkie Pie seemed to have calmed down. Teletha took a deep breath. Maybe she could remedy this, make them an offer. "Sorry, I already said too much but I have thought of something. Maybe we can help each other. If you work with us and lend us the Coustwell's power, we will use our intelligence network to look for your friends. You have already given us the description of their robots, so we should be able to pick something up."

The two mares huddled together and talked about the offer. If they agreed, they could be pulled into another conflict but the world they landed in seemed huge and dangerous, so a few allies would be nice and Teletha and Mitril seemed to be trustworthy. "Alright sugarcube, we'll help you. But unfortunately, as soon as we get the princess to a safe place, we will have to leave."

Teletha smiled and clapped her hands together happily. "I am glad to hear this. Maybe you even meet up with your friends on the way. Excuse me now please, I will have to brief Sagara and Mao about their mission, you will accompany Kurtz. Kalinin here will give you the details." The young captain and the mares exchanged their farewells for now, including an unexpected hug from Pinkie Pie, before they went on their ways.

While they were on their way to see this client of theirs, Applejack and Pinkie Pie have taken to sharing some stories with Kalinin. The two mares liked him immediately, since he had something grandfatherly about him, reminding them of their families back home. When they heard that he once saved the life of that one pilot, who thought they were hallucinations, they felt sad for the boy, having to go through that at such a young age. Pinkie decided, that this Sousuke needed a hug, unfortunately, they would not meet him for quite some time, as he and Mao had their own mission.

Finally, they arrived at the briefing room, in which their client waited with Kurtz. The sniper, that came from a country called Germany, was supposed to be their teammate. "Here we are, my client and Kurtz are both expert snipers, which will correspond well with your Coustwell's close combat specialization." When he opened the door, Kurtz and the client were already talking to each other.

"Wow, I can't believe we're actually gonna help out the black southern cross." Kurtz was smitten by the fact, that he would be working together with a sniping legend. The client, Gain Bijou, was considered one of the best snipers in the entire world. Everyone knew him best under the codename: "Black Southern Cross", named after a special maneuver he came up with. "I heard you are also pretty good Kurtz Weber, best sniper in Mithril." The blonde German blushed at the praise he received, when the door opened, revealing Kalinin and the two ponies. While Kurtz saluted before his superior, Gain stared in awe at the two miniature horses.

"W-what are they? They kinda look like horses but why are they painted like that?" He stuttered. Kurtz has not yet told him about the passengers they picked up from the last mission, knowing exactly that Gain would never, ever believed him if he didn't see them himself. "Well Mr. Bijou, we have found them during our last mission and they followed us home, so we decided to keep them." He joked.

Slowly, Gain approached them, not taking his eyes of them for a second, until the pink one jumped right in front of him. "Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie, I heard you are a friend of Kal here, so I bet you are really nice because Kal is really nice too, so I am very glad to meet you. Your friend here also asked us to help you out with... we don't know yet but we agreed to help you with whatever." She said quickly, while shaking Gain's hand so hard, he thought it would fall off at any moment.

Applejack came next and gently pushed Pinkie aside. "My name is Applejack, it's a pleasure to meet you. Like my friend here said, Mithril asked us to help you out in exchange for helping us find our friends. I'm sure we can get along well." She too shook his hand, much more gentle than Pinkie.

They were real, those ponies were really real. That was the only thing Gain could think of right now but were they serious, that they would be his teammates? He gave Kalinin a questioning glance, while Kurtz tried his best not to laugh at the nickname Pinkie just gave him. "Are you sure that's a good idea? I don't really think those two have what it takes to be soldiers. Where do they even come from? Why are there talking horses?" He demanded.

Kalinin took a deep breath. "Apparently, they come from another world and were sent here by their ruler, to get said rulers sister to a safe place. They were separated from their friends at their arrival and are now on the lookout. During the last mission, we have found them and they agreed to come along. Also, while they have no live experience yet, their mission is to escort you, not to engage in direct combat, so they should be fine."

Applejack looked over to Pinkie, who seemed to feel insulted by Gain but AJ had to agree. Neither of them are soldiers or even want to be soldiers, they should stay out of fights if they are not absolutely necessary. She just hoped this escort would go smoothly. Kalinin meanwhile addressed them again. "Applejack, Pinkie, you and sergeant Weber will escort Gain Bijou to siberia, where you will assist him with the Exodus."

Gain took over the explanation. "Due to the colony drop, large parts of the asian and east european environment have been heavily damaged and the people decided to move into large, domes cities to let the land heal. However, we believe that it has healed enough, to allow the people of our target city to return to their country of origin, japan. Exodus however is outlawed by the Siberian Railway corporation, which controls most of the cities and London IMA, which makes it more difficult. You only have to get me there, no further assistance is required and you could just stay inside the hangar, until we are close enough to the ocean again, to get you back to the Tuatha De Danaan."

It did not sound so bad. Just bring Gain to that city and he will help them return, then Mithril would surely have info about their friends. If they are really lucky, they might even meet them again during the trip. "Alright then, mission accepted." Responded AJ. "Okie, dokie lokie, leave everything to us." Added Pinkie Pie.

While Gain was still weirded out by the idea, that talking horses were going to help him, he was still grateful. "Alright, I heard they will just drop off two more agents on Japan, before getting us to the indian coast. Since the Britannians and their partners of OZ have a very tight security around the sea, we will have to go through the wasteland. There will be enough possibilities for us to refuel and rest though."

"Very well then, prepare for the mission. In two days, around 0600 we will drop off sergeant Sagara and Mao, then we will head for India. You are dismissed for now." Said Kalinin and left the room, while Kurtz still saluted. "Sir, yes sir!" After Kalinin was gone, Kurtz relaxed his pose. "Alright, looks like a road trip ahead of us, this is going to be fun."

Pinkie Pie went over to Kurtz, a huge grin on her face. "This is gonna be super, like hiking. Only that we have giant robots and the route is kinda long but still, we can camp and roast marshmallows and sing around the campfire." Pinkie already liked Kurtz and the feeling was mutual, as he petted her on the head. "I can already tell, you and me are gonna be good friends."

Applejack and Gain just sighed and shook their heads at their partner's antics.

Moon knight

Resistance of steel

Chapter 4: Moon Knight

Both Spike and Luna were a little scared as they went through the portal. Luna wondered, if she would ever see her sister again and a small tear ran down her face. Spike wondered if Twilight got here safely and when he would meet her again. Both however, wondered what this world would be like. The flash disappeared, leaving only the Vorlent in the air.

The two pilots observed the situation. It appeared to be evening and they were floating over an ocean. Spike immediately activated the thrusters on the Volrent to make sure it stays that way. First they would have to get a sense of direction. Luna made the machine turn around to see, if there was any land nearby. Indeed she could see some lights in the distance and decided to head there first.

As the two of them got closer however, something seemed to be off. At a closer distance, they could see columns of smoke rising from the buildings and something seemed to be moving. Without a doubt, something bad was happening there right now. Luna did not know this world yet but she would surely not just fly away if anypony needed help. Even though she was not sure if there were any ponies here, besides herself and the element bearers.

At first the two of them thought they were just dizzy from the teleport but as they got closer, there was indeed something moving in that city. Gigantic statues seemed to be attacking the city. Those statues were about the same height as the Vorlent. One was still in the city itself, the other was walking towards a mountain. As they almost reached the shore, they saw something else too. From the rubble of what looked like it used to be a mansion rose another giant.

A strange feeling went through Luna's body. There was something strangely familiar about that giant robot. She couldn't help but stare at it for a while, trying to figure out what was so familiar, until Spike shook her shoulders. "Luna, wake up! We have to do something." Luna was taken out of her thoughts as they almost reached the shore now. The statue attacking the city was still standing in the water.

"Right, let's go. Spike, prepare the orgone blade." Spike nodded and went behind his own console again, rapidly pressing a number of buttons. It was a strange sensation, piloting this robot as if he hadn't done anything else his entire life but right now it was just a blessing. The right arm of the Vorlent glowed in a green light and a blade that appeared to be of an emerald-like crystal was formed, coming from the wrist.

Baron Ashura, a strange creature that was half man, half woman watched the familiar form that rose from the rubble of the mansion. Ashura looked like the right side of a man and left side of a woman were sewn together, split clean in the middle. Seeing the form in front, it remembered the day that the god Zeus has betrayed the other gods and sealed them behind that accursed door. Rage like some could only imagine burned inside of the creatures mind, even blinding it from the other attacker.

The giant statue that attacked the mansion crumbled as a giant, black fist punched right through it's head. Kouji Kabuto has managed to pilot the steel giant his grandfather calls Mazinger Z. It started for him, when those statues attacked the city. He wanted to get his brother and grandfather to safety as a flying machine was sent to him by his grandfather, the Pilder. Since the controls of the Pilder were similar to his motorbike, he quickly learned how to fly it, making his way back to the mansion. That is when his grandfather gave him another present, the Mazinger.

Even though the statue was already there and interrupted the first docking attempt, Kouji finally managed to dock the Pilder with Mazinger Z and as if on instinct, he managed to activate the first weapon, the rocket punch. The fist of the black robot was propelled through the head of the statue and through the air before it returned to the arm it belonged to. "This is the Mazinger Z? What an amazing power." He marvelled, as he looked towards the ocean.

At first, Kouji thought that there were enemy reinforcements as the other robot flew towards the shore, he got ready for battle. To his surprise, the glowing, green blade sliced through the neck of the other statue, still standing in the water. "Is this a new army robot? How did they get here so fast." His little brother however didn't care as long as somebody was helping them. "Who cares? The military is here and this robot is so cool, almost as cool as this Mazinger." His fear was now as good as gone after he saw both of the giant statues decapitated.

"Alright, let's go then. I'll just need to make it clear that I'm not with those goons." He wanted to go on greet this soldier, as he saw something else approaching. It was much smaller and easy to miss. "Brother, there is something approaching!" Warned his little brother, as the object came into view. This strange cross between man and woman was running towards the Mazinger at an insane speed, jumping high into the air.

Normally this should be no problem but there was something about this thing, it's strenght was enourmous. When it slammed into Mazinger Z, the giant robot staggered backwards and fell over. Kouji couldn't believe what he saw. One person toppled over such a powerful machine. He got a good look at it, while it stood on the Mazinger's face, repeatedly pounding on it while yelling something about Zeus. That's right, Kouji has seen old pictures of the god Zeus in some of his grandfather's books. Mazinger Z looked a lot like Zeus.

From the forests surrounding the city, a lone figure watched. Sayaka was one of the pilots of the photonic power labs and pilot of the Aphrodite A, their currently most powerful robot. When she heard of the attack on the city, she first assumed that the Britannians are trying to invade but was shocked, that there were completely unknown enemies. While waiting for reinforcements, another unknown unit appeared and attacked one of the statues.

Aphrodite was a very feminine-looking robot in appearance, going from form to face. Even the head looked a bit like she was wearing a tiara with the cockpit as centerpiece. From this reinforced glass dome, the pilot had a good outlook on the surroundings.

"Father, the situation has gotten more and more complicated, several unknowns are in the area and they all seem to be on different sides. What am I to do now?" She asked, while her father assessed the situation. He was the head researcher of the photon power labs, which just recently begun providing the rest of Japan with energy. They hoped, this alternative to Sakuradite would give them the edge they need to beat the invaders back. Now it seems, he will have to concentrate on a new enemy.

"Sayaka, contact the unknown pilots, which defended the city. If they are potential allies, we will have to combine our forces. Also, keep away from that person attacking the demonic-looking mech." If that mech could be taken out so easily, then Aphrodite may be outclassed too.

Her father was right, alone she could probably not do too much, not with everyone else patrolling the borders right now. That unknown pilot though might just give them the edge. "Alright father, I will sneak into the town and try to get some allies." With that, she slowly moved her Aphrodite through the forest, keeping her head low. From afar she could see more of those statues rising, just as the mech with the green energy sword went into the city.

At the shore that mech would have had no problem dealing with them but there were still people in the city and with superior numbers, the buildings would give them room to lay an ambush. Suddenly, Sayaka noticed something. "Wasn't Dai-Guard at the expo at the bay today."

It was true, the mascot of the twentieth century security corporation was displayed at the expo earlier. Dai-Guard was an impressive mech at the time, when the Heterodynes still attacked. At first, Dai-Guard was a mech designed to fight them back but they disappeared and the project was cancelled, even though it was fully operational. Since it still belonged to the corporation, they kept it and used it as a mascot.

As she reached the city, her pace quickened and she moved through any side street big enough to fit through. If her guess was right, the unknown would head towards the mountain and therefor take the most direct route. She just hoped this potential ally would not be ambushed beforehand.

Luna decided to take the route through the city instead of flying over. Not only did she want to keep the element of surprise, in case the other enemy didn't notice her but she also wanted to get a closer look at the creatures living here. There was no such luck though, they were all cooped up inside of their homes. Still, everything here seemed way too artificial with all the steel, stone and concrete. Only the few odd trees stuck out.

As she rounded a corner, she came face to face with another statue. It seems like the enemy reinforcements have arrived. Spike gave Luna a worried look. "I know you wanna help Luna but I don't think we should meddle in here too much. We don't even know who we are fighting." The baby dragon was right, Luna did not even really know why she immediately went for the attack.

"We are sorry Spike, you are right. Just take on the ones in the way, then we will flee from the battlefield and look for the others. Let us try the beam rifle." Spike nodded and activated the weapon in question, while Luna took aim at the approaching statue. The Vorlent's arm, holding the rifle, rose. A green glow came from the barrel of the gun, just before a beam of energy shot out, hitting the statue right in the chest.

It was thrown back and skidded along the street, right towards a large building. Luna now realized, that it might crash into the building and hurt the ones living inside. Quickly she flew over to the skidding statue and stomped on it, making it stop just before the crash. With a sigh of relief, she prepared to leave now, as her movement was stopped. Too late did the pilots realize, that the statue was still functional and grabbed the Vorlent by the ankle.

The Vorlent crashed down, face first, as the statue tried to rise up again. Luna and Spike were slouched over their consoles, almost thrown out of their seats by the crash. Rolling to the side and looking back, they got their bearings and aimed at the statues head, before it could attack. Another energy beam shot out of the rifle, hitting it in the head. This time, the statue did not rise up as the head was shattered into pieces.

As some of the rubble was thrown against the building, Luna and Spike feared for the people inside but luckily the damage seemed to be superficial. "Whoever they are, they build very sturdy homes. A tower back in Canterlot would have taken more damage." She observed.

"We are going to take more damage if we don't get out." Urged Spike, whose young mind was already experiencing too much. Even though he had his fair share of excitement because of the adventures Twilight and the others always went through but he was still a baby dragon. Stress was not something he could handle too much of yet.

"Yes, we are sorry, we should have been more careful." Maybe they would need helmets or something else to pad themselves with. During the crash now they could have been seriously hurt. It was almost a miracle that neither of them had crashed the console with their heads. Slowly and carefully she tried to get the Vorlent to stand again. From the corner of her eye, she could see something moving.

Spike sunk back into his seat, it was another one of those statues. Luna quickened the pace and looked towards the other direction. A second one was closing in. This wasn't good, they were on the ground an in a pincer, if they didn't get up right now, this might be the end for them.

The statue ahead was walking towards them and Luna and Spike still had to pry off the hand that grabbed the Vorlent's ankle. As it went past a cross section though, a giant fist collided with the statues face. "Who is that?" Wondered Luna, as the giant form came into view.

It looked a little bigger than the Vorlent with a red chest, shoulders and helmet. A grey plate marked the face and what looked like a golden star on its forehead. Its hands and feet were black in color. The statue crumbled under the force of that punch and fell to the ground, as their savior stood before them, steam coming out from some vents on its chest. "Do not worry, Dai-Guard is ready for action." Announced an energetic sounding male.

While this new arrival was a big surprise, the two pilots of the Vorlent were also glad for the help. From behind Dai-Guard, a shadow appeared and ran towards the red giant. At first, Luna wanted to warn her savior of an attacker but instead of receiving a blow from behind, the form leapt into the air and over Dai-Guard. This robot looked even stranger than Dai-Guard with its Tiara and those weird mounds on its chest. Luna wondered what they were good for, maybe they held a weapon.

Feet first, the second helper jumped onto the other statue, hitting it square in the chest. The giant form skidded along the ground for a while, before coming to a halt. The statue was still moving but a foot to the head quickly silenced it forever. "Wow, the Aphrodite from Photon Power Labs, about time you guys showed up." Came the male voice again.

Inside the Vorlent's cockpit, Luna was talking to Spike. "Alright, they are speaking the same language as we do, so we should be able to explain our situation. Although we should probably not tell them too much, too soon. They might want to confiscate the Vorlent. But for now, they are our only allies, so let's greet them." Spike nodded in agreement and opened up a communication channel.

"Greetings, I am Luna, pilot of the Vorlent. With me is Spike, my co-pilot. Thank you both for your assistance. We have just been travelling through, when we noticed the attack on the city." She greeted them, hoping that they would hold off any questions for now. The first reply came from the Aphrodite.

"My name is Sayaka, my father is the head researcher at Photon Power Labs, nice to meet you and thank you for helping the city out." Sayaka was still wary of these newcomers. Luna and Spike, that sounded like Britannian callsigns, maybe they were spies. She did not want to jump to conclusions though, Britannians wouldn't risk their lives and expose new military robots to save their enemies.

Next came the reply from the Dai-Guard. "Hi there, my name is Akagi. I was working at the expo today. When these weird statues attacked, me and my friends Ibuki and Aoyama decided to use the Dai-Guard to fend them off."

"What are you talking about? You decided to use Dai-Guard and then you dragged us into the cockpit." Came a female voice, laced with annoyance. Luna and Spike giggled a little as they heard this. As strange as the circumstances were, this little laugh helped them a lot, coping with the situation.

Luna and Spike felt some kinship with the four pilots around them already, maybe they will even be able to make some friends in this world. If she was to stay here, Luna will be in dire need of some friends. The thought bittered the mood a little for the Princess as she remembered, that she might never see her sister again.

Suddenly, a cold feeling of dread washed over them. At the horizon, a wall of dark clouds moved in on them. The strangest part however, was the humanoid shape that could be seen in the clouds. "This is enough. Baron Ashura, retreat for now."

The cross creature between man and woman looked up in fear at the huge shadow of its master, Dr. Hell. Baron Ashura feared, that it disappointed its master. The punishment for failure was always severe. "Please master, just let me try to get Dr. Kabuto on our side. He will see that there is no point in resisting." It pleaded, pointing at an old man with a really ugly scar over his face, running through his right eye.

Dr. Kabuto was sitting there, together with his grandsons and a detective, who was investigating his activities, due to a series of murders. He knew the truth though. Before Professor Saotome requested his assistance for a special project, that kid that Tsubasa took under her wing, Jin Hayato got rid of some of Ashura's spies.

For a moment, he couldn't help but wonder what would have become of Jin without the Kurogane house. That kid had such a temper and fighting spirit but not an ounce of care for others or discipline. Better not to imagine such a possible catastrophe when another one was happening right in front of them.

Kouji and his little brother were sitting right next to their grandpa. They were not only faced with this insanely strong creature but also an entire troop of soldiers with strange, golden colored helmets. After the Mazinger has been downed, this Ashura guy tore the cockpit of the pilder open and dragged them out. Both brothers were still shocked, that such monstrous strength even existed.

The strangest part however was, when this Baron Ashura bowed down in front of their grandpa, as if he was it's master. While the other mechs battles against the remaining statues, Baron Ashura tried to get his grandfather to join him and his master, Dr. Hell. When grandpa remained stubborn however, it even tried to coerce Kouji, promising him a position as general of Dr. Hell's army.

Then the shadow came and while the detective and his little brother were shaking in fear, his grandfather only narrowed his eyes. "An even bigger pain in the ass just showed up." He exclaimed, as the silhouette stared down at them.

"It's been a long time." The silhouette of Dr. Hell greeted him, as if they were old friends. Juzo however, felt no kinship towards the owner of the giant shadow. "By far not long enough. I see you haven't given up on those world domination plans."

A deep laugh filled the air around them. "Indeed, it is as the Britannians say, the world belongs to the strong and I will prove to be the strongest. You can choose your side now Juzo, do you wish to be on the winning side in the coming war or do you want to be an obstacle? You didn't build this robot for no reason, you surely must have an answer."

All eyes were on Juzo Kabuto now. The detective, Ankokuji wondered if the old man was really some maniac, bent on world domination while Kouji wanted to know, what exactly grandpa wanted him to do. Finally he opened his mouth again. "I made a promise to my good friend Aoelia Schenberg, that I would never use my technology for evil purposes."

Detective Ankokuji was taken aback, this old coot was friends with Aeolia Shenberg? The man who earlier returned from presumably being dead to the leader of this shadow organization Celestial Being? "Wait, what do you know about Shenberg and Celestial Being?" He demanded, before one of Baron Ashura's soldiers knocked him back down. "Silent you worm, the professors work is too big for you to even understand." Demanded Baron Ashura, while Dr. Hell started to laugh.

"Ah yes, Aeolia Schenberg. That old fool who wishes for world peace through superior firepower. Tell me, am I so different from your dear friend? You know, once all nations are united under me, there will be no more wars." He reasoned. "But if you decline, I will have no choice but to destroy you and the Mazinger the choice is yours." After these words, the dark clouds dispersed and Dr. Hell disappeared from the scene. Baron Ashura looked at Professor Kabuto. "What will your choice be?"

Everyone's eyes were on the old man as he sat there, deep in thought. "It would be unreasonable, not to at least listen to you won't it?" Kouji and Shiro went pale as they heard this, was their grandfather really going to help that madman? Kouji's hands trembled, wasn't he going to pilot Mazinger to put a stop to this? Would he now instead pilot it in the name of Dr. Hell? "Grandpa, you can't possibly be serious! Are you just gonna let that insane idiot order you around?" He tried to stand up but Baron Ashura was quick on his feet and punched him down again. "Don't you dare insult Dr. Hell like this!"

A hand touched Ashura's shoulder, as Juzo Kabuto gently pushed it away from his grandson. "Calm down Ashura, let's sit down so you can tell me all about it. Kouji, I want you to take Shiro and go back to the Mazinger. Let the adults talk." Baron Ashura laughed and gestured to his soldiers. "Lead them, they are soon going to be on our side. You will like it boy, being a general of Dr. Hell's army will hold great benefits."

The professor looked back at his grandson. "Maybe you can use Mazinger to get rid of those others down there, might gain a bit of favor." He pointed his thumb down at the city, where the other mechs were still standing. "It's always a good idea to keep an ace up your sleeve." Kouji wanted to protest at first but then he thought about his grandfather's words. Always an ace... of course. "Alright grandpa. I will do as you say."

Ashura grinned, this day could not have gone any better, now this cursed machine that looks just like that traitor will be on their side. "Clever boy, just go along and your reward will be great." Shiro however could not understand why his brother would do something like that. "Bro, Gramps, you can't be serious."

Kouji forcefully took his brothers hand. "Come with me, you will be safer that way." The soldiers herded the two of them back to the Mazinger. Kouji could only hope that he was not mistaken. Professor Kabuto then sat down and patted on the ground beside him. "Now, come closer and sit down. I wanna hear everything about your plans."

At the foot of the hill, the three mecha stood, their pilots discussing the situation. "Who was that creepy dude?" Asked Spike after he finally calmed down. Not even Nightmare Moon was that scary at her first appearance. Not that he would mention her near Luna.

Akagi heard that name somewhere before, wasn't sure where though. "I know I heard of him before. Sayaka, do you know who that was?" He asked the pilot of the feminine robot. Sayaka indeed knew who that was. "That was Dr. Hell, a renowned scientist in the field of biochemestry, his skills were legendary. Some say, he could even bring back the dead. I don't understand, why would a biochemist try to take over the world? And where did he get those statues from?"

Luna and Spike remained quiet through this explanation. They did not even know what a biochemist was supposed to do. Spike was still a baby dragon, while Luna did not catch up entirely about modern times, so a lot of scientific fields developed without her being there to witness it. Frustration rose in the Princess of the night. Hearing something like that made her feel stupid. "Anyway, we should now look for the other robot."

The others agreed and together, they made their way towards the mountainside, where the robot from before has fallen. On their way, Luna thought about the whole situation. Was she even safe in this dimension? She has been here for not even a day and already, she was being pulled into a battle. She sighed, as the exile now sounded completely pointless to her.

A loud explosion shook her out of her thought though, as a bright flash of light could be seen at the mountainside. "What was that? A bomb?" Wondered Sayaka, quickening her pace. Dai-Guard was following closely, while Luna was distracted by something else. On the screen of the Vorlent, a strange energy reading came from behind. She quickly turned around but only saw a large cloud.

At first she was ready to dismiss it but then she remembered something. "Wait a minute, the sky was perfectly clear a few minutes ago!" Luna now took a closer look and saw a shadow inside of that cloud. "Everyone, look, there is something in that cloud."

The other two turned around, eyes on the sky, as something emerged from the cloud. It was huge, with a demonic face staring down. A large fin was attached on its back and on both sides like wings. It could only be described as a flying fortress. The most shocking thing however, was who was standing on top of it. In a military uniform stood a man, grinning wickedly down at the city. Everyone looking up gasped, as they noticed that this man's head was not attached to his neck, instead he carried it in his arms and still seemed to be alive somehow.

"Baron Ashura, it seems you have failed in your task. Now, this machine, as well as our other guests, are not allowed to stand in Dr. Hell's way. I, Count Brocken have been sent to take care of this problem. If you are still alive, I suggest you get away soon." The man announced. "The bombing beast, Groizer-X10 will make sure, that this city will be completely wiped out."

Luna gasped as she heard this. Wiping out the entire city? She looked around at all the tall buildings around here. Those beings living here, they must be more numerous than ponies, this city was bigger than Canterlot. She had to imagine what it would be like, if Canterlot was suddenly wiped out and the mental image made her shiver.

A hatch at the belly of the mechanical beast opened up and something fell out. It was looking rather rotund from down there and quickly descended. It was hard to make something out but it looked like the object had both legs and wings. Sayaka and Akagi were frantically trying to think of something they could do but sadly, Aphrodite and Dai-Guard were not meant for flight or long range combat. By the time this thing was in range, it would be too late.

Spike was also imagining how Ponyville got wiped out by something. Imagining the town he grew to love so much burning almost broke his heart. He and Luna were determined to stop it somehow and they already knew what to do. "Spike, redirect all energy towards the beam rifle, we are going to shoot it down."

Luna aimed upwards while an incredibly large amount of energy was pumped into the rifle. Luna had no idea if this would work but she had to at least try. The excess energy was dispersed from the mech in a fine, green steam from vents at the chest, knees and back. Finally, Luna fired and sent a brilliant beam of emerald up at the falling mechanical beast.

From above, Count Brocken laughed as he saw them. "Fools, once it starts it's descent, Groizer-X10 won't go anywhere but down. There is absolutely nothing that can stop it." As the beam impacted with the mechanical beast, it only seemed to slow down for a while, before continuing it's fall.

Neither Luna nor Spike were ready to give up though and they fired again. This time, Groizer seemed to stop entirely for a moment. This caused Count Brocken to take a closer look. A lot on energy would be necessary to stop Groizer like this, if this weapon could produce such energy... he decided, once this was over he would check the wreckage. Dr. Hell would surely reward him for delivering such a strong weapon.

Still, what's done is done, Groizer would fall for sure and he could only hope that enough scrap metal would be left over to salvage. Count Brocken could see another energy beam coming up. He wondered, what effect it would have this time.

As the emerald energy collided with Groizer, the beam just wouldn't let up this time. On the ground, large amounts of orgone energy were pumped into the beam rifle. Under the unending barrage of the Vorlent, Groizer did not only stop this time, it almost seemed as if he was pushed back up. Count Brocken was in shock, this should not be possible. "Amazing, this energy source would need to be almost as potent as an entire photon energy reactor."

Everyone watched with bated breath as the falling beast was pushed back up. Even at such a long range, the Vorlent's weapon was incredibly powerful. From underneath, they could even see how the hot energy was slowly melting the armor of the mechanical beast and it would not take much longer to destroy it. "Come one, just a little longer." Muttered Luna, hoping it would be enough.

"This is it Princess Luna, we almost got it." Exclaimed Spike, excited and glad, that they could put a stop to it. But just as the energy beam almost tore through the Groizer, a warning sounded in the cockpit. The energy ran out. "No no no NO!" Screamed Luna as she desperately tried to get just one more shot.

The two pilots started to panic, along with their new friends in the Dai-Guard and Aphrodite. "Can't you get any more power?" Asked Akagi.

Luna frantically tried to but all systems that were not essential already shut down due to the power shortage. "I can't, if I used any more, I wouldn't even have enough energy left to pull the trigger. And even if, it wouldn't be enough." Spike meanwhile tried to up the generator output somehow, hoping they could get enough before the bombing beast fell.

Groizer X-10 was already plummeting down again, already halfway down to the ground. All the pilots there were in panic, unable to stop it now.

Suddenly, they could hear something. As they looked, a large number of soldiers in strange, golden helmets ran past them while thunderous footsteps came closer and closer. Whatever approached, it was gigantic. Finally the source of these footsteps came closer and the lumbering giant became visible.

For a moment it just stood there, before the pilot inside let out a loud roar. "Out of my way! I will not let these bastards escape. They will pay for the death of my grandfather!" From the voice it was clear, the pilot was more than furious, he wasn't even paying any attention to the situation, just jumping to the first target he could see.

Sayaka approached him, they need him to calm down. "Wait, there is a bomb falling, we must stop it before it destroys the entire city." A giant, black fist shoved the Aphodite aside, crashing her against the side of a building.

Dai-Guard took a battle stance now. "Hey idiot, if that bomb falls you're gonna die too." Yelled Akagi. His co-pilot Ibuki tried to reason with him. "Please, I am sorry to hear about your grandfather. I lost my own father a long time ago but you must calm down.

The black mech raised his fist in front of itself, before a rocket engine propelled it forward. The street did not give the Dai-Guard any room to evade, so the flying punch collided with it's face, sending it falling backwards. The Vorlent was also hit by the rocket punch and they did not yet have the energy to duck fast enough, causing the Vorlent to be knocked against a building, just like the Aphrodite.

Luna and Spike held onto their seats as good as they could as they fell. As they opened their eyes again, the black giant was running past them, pursuing the fleeing soldiers. Luna pushed a button on her console. With the last bit of energy, the Vorlent's cockpit opened up. "Where are you going Princess Luna?" Asked Spike.

"I am going to make this pilot listen." She answered, before she took to the sky, flying after the mech. Sayaka, Akagi, Ibuki and Aoyama were looking towards the Vorlent, as the cockpit opened and something emerged. As Luna flew after the other robot, all of them had a look of shock and surprise on their face. "Is that... a winged unicorn?" Wondered Ibuki, silently worried that the crash may have caused some brain damage.

Anger was all that Kouji could feel now. He knew from the tone of his grandfather that he had something planned but detonating a bomb to try and take this... thing out? The guilty party was clear, if these soldiers hadn't appeared this would have never happened and his grandfather would still be alive. His last words echoed through his mind. "Kouji, Mazinger Z has the potential to either be god or devil, you decide what you wish to do with this power."

Right now there was only one thing, revenge. He was preparing whatever weapon this robot may have, he wanted to annhihilate every single one of these bastards. He almost had a group of them, when something landed on top of the pilder. Kouji looked up, hald expecting this Baron Ashura again. Instead, it was a horse. A small, purple horse with a blue mane was standing on top of the pilder and it had wings and a horn.

All rage momentarily forgotten, Kouji, his little brother Shiro and the detective they picked up before grandfather died were staring at the figure above them. "Wait, what is that? Some kind of monster?" Asked Detective Ankokuji.

The horse then began to speak in a loud voice that rattled them, even in the pilder. "CALM YOURSELF! EVEN WITH THE TRAGIC LOSS YOU MUST THINK ABOUT THE OTHERS. IF THAT BOMB FALLS, MANY MORE GRANDCHILDREN WILL LOSE THEIR GRANDPARENTS, MANY GRANDPARENTS THEIR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN. DO YOU WANT THEM TO GO THROUGH THE SAME PAIN?" She shouted at him, so that Kouji's ears started to hurt.

"I don't know what to do. Grandfather built this Mazinger Z but I still don't know how to pilot it properly." He looked up. If Groizer fell down any further, the city would be damaged, even if he somehow shot it down. "I don't even know if I even have a long-range weapon."

"Giving up so soon?" Asked a new voice. They all turned their heads towards the newcomer, a woman wearing a kimono. She had short, brown hair and Detective Ankokuji noted that this woman was very pretty. "Listen well, Mazinger Z is invincible."

It was a bold claim but this machine was truly powerful. She pointed at the sky, directly at the falling bomb. "Photonic Beam." She said. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and fire the photonic beam." She ordered.

The Aphrodite and Dai-Guard also arrived on the scene. Sayaka was shocked to hear this, that machine ran on photonic power and could even fire a beam of it? She remembered well, how that energy was discovered thanks to the Japanium ore they found beneath the earth where the photon power labs stood now. It is said that photonic power was even stronger than Sakuradite.

"What can we do? How do I activate the photonic beam?" Asked Kouji. He hoped this weapon was not too complicated, he needed to act fast. "The left side of your weapons panel! There must be a switch you haven't used yet right?" Shiro momentarily forgot his grief and reached over his brothers shoulder. "This one right?" He flipped a switch and the panel split open, right where a dial was attached.

Out of curiosity, Kouji pushed the dial and Luna flew away, as two small beams of energy came out of the Mazinger's eyes and flew towards a rock out in the ocean. An explosion could be seen, as the beam hit. Everyone was impressed by the power of the beam but still had doubts it would be enough.

A compartment in Groizers wings opened up and a number of bombs flew down. Explosions rang all around the three mechs as Luna used her magic to deflect some of them. "Idiot, you fired too fast and they noticed us. Now do as I say. You two..." She pointed at the Dai-Guard and Aphrodite. "Help the Mazinger to stay steady. Kouji, get into a stable position. Set your hips and take a stance."

While Kouji got into position, the woman took a thin, long pipe out of her kimono and started stuffing it. "Like this?" He asked, while the others were holding the Mazinger. "Yes, now turn the dial without pressing it."

Kouji did as he was told and large amounts of energy were pumped into the Mazinger, glowing out of the joints. "Now take aim." Luna flew away from the pilder as Kouji locked his look onto the Groizer. He had to shoot now or else the city would be destroyed. "Now, keep dialing until the color on the energy bar changes to red, then press." Instructed the woman, as she calmly smoked her pipe.

Kouji quickly dialed the power up all the way, until the color changed to a crimson red. Now was the time to fire. "PHOTON BEAM!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, as he pressed the button. Two large beams, glowing with enormous energy shot into the air, spiraling around each other in a helix. Luna gasped as she witnessed this huge amount of energy.

Finally, the photon beam hit the bombing beast, pushing it up again without any difficulty. Now Luna was in real awe of the power. She thought the Vorlent was impressive but this was another class altogether. The last pieces of armor were melted off of the bombing beast and an enormous explosion shook the sky, as the Groizer X-10 exploded under the assault of the photonic energy.

Luna could only see that the flying fortress retreated after this loss but she was too glad to care, the city was saved, the enemy retreated. She flew back to the Vorlent were Spike was watching the spectacle, his jaw almost hitting the floor. The two embraced in celebration before the weariness of their journey and the fight took it's toll on them and they fell asleep inside the cockpit.

Author's Note

Sorry, this took way longer than it should have. My problem with writing is, that I am too easily distracted. I hope I could write a good chapter, so it was worth the wait.

The king of braves

Resistance of steel

Chapter 5: King of Braves

Eight years ago, before the Britannian Empire conquered Japan, the organization GGG was focused on space exploration rather than defense and Guy Shishio, the son of their top science officer Leo Shishio, was sent to their first manned space flight during winter. Everything went well and GGG could bring good news from their first venture into space but an unknown object fell towards Earth and Guy was in the unfortunate position, to be in its path.

Normally he should be dead after the comet destroyed the shuttle, leaving Guy to drift in space but another object appeared. It was a machine, shaped like a lion, that took him with it down to earth, where he was returned to GGG. The injuries he sustained were grave and most of his body had to be replaced by machines, turning him into the first cyborg on Earth.

What they did not know yet was, that the lion machine had another passenger with it, a baby.

Isamu and Ai Amami were driving through the snow. Both of them wished for a child but until that fateful day, they had no such luck. As they were driving, Ai was wishing upon the stars, that they may be blessed with a child. A wish that would soon be fulfilled.

Suddenly, something was approaching them from the front, large and menacing. Isamu couldn't get a good look, before the snow that was shoveled right at them forced them to a halt. The force of the impact, knocked the couple out of their car, letting them fall down on the soft snow. As they laid there, a feral growling sound came from right in front of them. They both looked at the source of the noise and were horrified to see a large, metal lion staring down at them.

Isamu wanted to run for his life, as he saw the lion staring down at them but his wife Ai held him in place. There was this strange feeling, that the lion wanted to give them something. Indeed it bend it's forelegs down, until it's chin rested on the snow and it opened it's mouth. Inside of it, there was a baby boy, unafraid of the situation, happily laughing at them.

It became clear, that this child was meant for them. No longer scared of the beast, Ai approached it and picked up the small child, now her child. After picking him up, the lion growled one more time, before flying into the dark sky. As Ai held her new son, she could see a sigil glowing on his forehead for a short moment, it looked like a green glowing letter G.

For a long time, Twilight and Rarity were eerily quiet as they piloted the Granteed through the country. The two equines were very accustomed to peace, landing right in the middle of a battlefield was very traumatizing for them. There they were, just wanting to get their princess to a safe place and the first thing that happens when they arrive at the new world, some tyrannical ruler wants to steal the Granteed.

For now they avoided every and all signs of civilization, afraid they could be pulled into another battle if someone saw them. Still, they had to get food somewhere, even though they were ponies they didn't want to graze every single day like their ancestors.

After they went past a mountain range, they arrived at the coast, to which they stuck for now. That is, until they saw a city in the distance. Roads lead in and out of the city, making it nearly impossible for them to get past them by land and there was a big island they built on too. "What are we going to do Twilight? These creatures are very numerous, slipping by will be nearly impossible in the Granteed." Asked Rarity, as she tried to find a way for them.

Twilight was also scanning the terrain, looking for a way to get past the city. With eyesight alone, this task would be nearly impossible but thankfully, the Granteed could zoom in for a closer look and analyse the city from afar. Thanks to this, Twilight saw their path. "The majority of the city is on this island, with a harbor on the main land. I wonder what this building in the middle is, looks important. But anyway, I think the water between the island and the rest of this land is shallow enough for the Granteed to walk over." Twilight answered.

Carefully they approached the coast and gently lowered Granteed into the water, before activating the thrusters again. The water started to boil a little, causing some steam to rise. They would have to stop that, once they could walk Granteed on the edge of the harbor. As they got closer, they noticed how the water seemed to get dirtier and dirtier, until they saw trash floating around. "This is just uncouth, throwing all of this garbage into the river like that. Granteed is going to need a nice, long wash after this." Complained Rarity, disgusted at the thought of practically swimming in trash.

Twilight did not share that particular dislike for the uncleanliness itself but it still seemed a little wasteful. The sonar in the Granteed did not pick up anything so far, although there was a strange energy reading nearby. "Rarity, keep your eyes open. I am not sure, but we have something here that could be a problem later on."

After their first encounter on this world, both mares felt their fur standing up in alert. If they get caught in a fight here, someone could get hurt or at least the harbor could be severely damaged. Even though the first impression has not been a kind one, neither believed that these creatures were all bad and that many were just living their lives as they themselves would.

At the same moment, a class of young children was on a not so far island full of garbage. Their teacher decided, that even in a time of crisis the children should learn about protecting the environment. As the war with the Britannians began, those issues have been ignored a little. They were in the right mindset too, wandering around a little and even looking for things, that can still be used.

Mamoru Amami was one of those students, looking around and laughing, as their teacher was being pestered by a swarm of flies and a flock of seagulls. He wandered off a little, while his classmates stuck together, when he suddenly got a really strange feeling. It was foreboding and made him a little nervous, although he dismissed it when he found what looked like a cave made of trash.

In his curiosity, he couldn't resist exploring a little. Inside the cave, he arrived at a wall of old TV's. He silently wondered, if they still worked and if yes, why anyone would just throw them away, as they suddenly came to life. Mamoru was startled and wondered, how those TV's even got the energy as the pictures of four strange people started flashing on the screens. As he looked down, he also saw a bunch of cables, moving around on their own like snakes. Scared, he ran outside again, where his teacher was standing.

"Mamoru, what were you thinking running off like that?" Scolded his teacher. At first, Mamoru wanted to tell her about what he saw, those strange images on the screens and the moving cables, as the ground suddenly started to shake. Teacher and student almost lost their footing as the ground rumbled and a giant pillar of dust and dirt rose from the ground, where the trash cave was.

The trash seemed to have gotten a mind on it's own and formed a large body out of trash. Some sort of purple gem made the core in the chest and on either side it had large arms, resembling spiked clubs. The face was elongated and had a horn sticking out of the forehead.

As the teacher and the other students saw this giant made of garbage, they fled to the boat that carried them to the island, in an attempt to flee. However, their boat was rocked and they stumbled onto the ground. One girl by the name of Hana, fell out of the window and barely managed to grab onto the boat, clinging for her dear life and screaming for help.

Mamoru was the first one up on his feet again. As he heard the cry for help, he dove out of the window to get her, without even thinking about it. His classmates followed, as they made up a chain of bodies to help their classmates. Hana almost fell but Mamoru managed to grab her, while their classmates pulled them back onto the boat. Now that the girl was safe, they took a good look at their surroundings.

The children were afraid as they felt the boat moving seemingly on it's own and a look back confirmed their fears. While they rescued Hana, the trash monster made the boat part of it's body.

Together they were five children on the boat, Mamoru, Hana and three others. One girl, one big kid and the smartest of the class. They looked around for their teacher but apparently, she did not make it to the boat and was probably still on garbage island. A loud roaring sound came from above, as the defense force jets flew their assault.

As they passed the monster, still holding the boat, the kids ears hurt from the massive blast of wind and they had to duck down. The trash monster only raised one of it's club like arms, which opened up, almost like a flower. Mamorus and his classmates could feel how the air got hotter and then, a beam of energy shot out of the creatures arm and destroyed both jets.

From under the water, Twilight and Rarity panicked as they felt the tremors. Was there an earthquake? Did somebody spot them? Twilight quickly scanned the surroundings, as she saw the large trash monster. Rarity was visibly disgusted as she saw this. "As if monsters and garbage alone weren't bad enough, now they have to combine. Twilight, what should we do?" She asked.

It would normally be obvious, helping the people living here but this situation was different. The very first thing they learned about this world was, that the locals had a very strong and aggressive military, so it might be better to leave it to them. "I hate to say it but we should probably stay out of this. We still don't know if we managed to escape from our pursuers, we shouldn't give them a fresh trail."

They could hear the explosions and the measuring instruments of the Granteed picked up the sudden spike of heat. Every now and then, they turned around, wondering if they should step in after all, as they were in a moral dilemma. Their task was clear, find the others and get Princess Luna to a safe place, if such a place exists in this world. Revealing themselves again would endanger all of them. But they were very close to a city, innocent people could get hurt if they didn't help.

As they got closer, they moved even slower to avoid detection. But they could now also pick up noises. At first they thought, it was just the monster but it sounded too strange for that. Almost like it came from several sources at once. Twilight just had to know, so she had Rarity scan it more closely. A gasp came from the alabaster unicorn mare. "This monster has absorbed a boat, there are some children on it."

This immediately changed their plans. If it was some sort of military, they could at least defend themselve but children? "Rarity, activate the thrusters, we're going to help them." Rarity did as Twilight asked and the water started to steam where the Granteed stood. The screaming children looked at the shadow, that rose from the water. Finally, the Granteed broke the surface right in front of the trash monster and a womans voice could be heard. "Stop right there, we're going to save these children." Twilight announced.

The children looked in awe at the robot that appeared. Was this some new military machine? How did it get here so fast? It did not really matter for them right now, the children only cheered as their rescuer arrived.

Their cheers were cut short however, as the monster raised an arm and it's club-like appendage opened up. They almost expected another blast of heat but instead the temperature seemed to drop. Twilight had the Granteed raise it's arms in defense, as a saphire blue beam shot out and connected. They flew a few meters back and Twilight wanted to lower the arms again, but found them frozen in place.

"What the hay?" She tried to free Granteed's arms but the cracks only started to form slowly. In the meantime, the trash monster approached them again. "Quick! Break free!" They heard one of the kids shout.

The arms of Granteed still shook as Twilight tried to break free but the time would not be enough. "Quick Rarity, use the orgone beam." She said, while looking right at the head of the beast. As Rarity started the activation, a crosshair appeared on the screen. Twilight took careful aim. She needed to stop it for a moment, without hurting the children.

The golden ring on the forehead of Granteed glowed green, as an emerald beam of energy shot out of it, hitting the monster in the face. As it staggered back a little, Twilight and Rarity were first worried that the children might fall into the water but luckily, they managed to cling on. Finally, the ice cracked and the Granteed broke free. "Quick Twilight, grab the boat as long as that monster is still staggering."

Rarity did not have to say that twice. Twilight had the Granteed storm forward, arms outstretched and as she was close enough, she grabbed the boat and pulled it out of the knee of the monster, where it was lodged in. It finally fell over, as they got more distance again. A quick scan later, both mares saw that the kids seemed to be alright and breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you all alright?"

A small boy with a brown mane came forward and waved to them. "Yes, thank you. But our teacher and the rest of our class are still on the garbage island." He said, pointing towards the island.

They turned around and saw the rest of the trash island, where a group of kids and one adult were stranded. "They seem safe for now but you sitll need to get away. We'll bring you to the harbor, just run as soon as you are there." Twilight said, as they made their way. Before they could reach the harbor however, a loud roar filled the air. "What was that?"

Twilights question was quickly answered, as they saw something flying towards them. It was smaller than them and as it got closer, it seemed to be a quadruped. Mamorus felt something familiar, as the figure got closer. Twilight and Rarity got ready to fight, in case it was another enemy.

A distand memory filled Mamoru's head, as he recalled the roar. Then he got a good look at the machine, it was a lion. Mamorus could clearly tell now, he saw this somewhere before! But what was it doing here? Where was it the whole time?

Granteed went into a battle stance, in which it could protect the children. They put the boat into the water and let it float away a little, before getting ready to intercept the lion robot. "What is wrong with this world? First we get pulled into a fight, then a junk monster and now a lion?" Complained Rarity.

The lion got closer and closer, almost in range now. Twilight let the Granteed pull it's arm back, ready for a punch. But then she noticed something. The lions course was off, it wasn't heading for them but for... Twilight turned around and saw, that the trash monster was up again and aimed at them with the ice beam. Rarity reacted quickly and shut off the thrusters, just before the monster fired it's beam. The Granteed sank and the ice beam shot above them, instead freezing the lion in the process.

Together both of them sank, Granteed and lion. "Rarity, this lion didn't attack, it wanted to help us." Said Twilight. "Very well then, let us return the favor." Rarity activated the thrusters again and they swam over to the frozen lion, where they started to break the ice.

Above them, a lone figure stood on top of a bridge. It was a single human, with long, red hair. He wore a suit of armor, golden in color and looked down at what happened. "Galeon and the unknown are down, the kids are safe for now. Come on, let me do something, the city is at stake." He said. "I can handle it." One more time he checked his energy supply in his chest. This man was a cyborg, half human, half machine. An accident in the past, forced this procedure in order to save his life.

A voice called him over the radio. "Understood. Make sure the children are okay, the mobile unit will break through the monsters barrier and weaken it. We can confirm that the unknown is still operational and in process of freeing Galeon. Get ready until then."

That was exactly what the figure wanted to hear. "DRILLGAO!" He yelled. The machine of the same name, was a tunnel tank, looking a little like two vehicles attached to each other and equipped with some of the strongest drills on earth. It could easily tunnel through the hardest rock and waited just below the seabed. It broke the surface and went up through the water, propelled by it's own thrusters. Twilight and Rarity could catch a quick glance, before it broke the water surface, directly below the trash monster.

"EQUIP!" He yelled next and a golden helmet with a green visor appeared on his head. With one large jump, he quickly went down.

The drill tank rammed into the monsters chest after breaking the surface, before falling back down. The man in the golden armor meanwhile, jumped onto the boat to look after the kids. "Are you all alright?" He asked, while the children cheered, now that they would be saved. "Thank you Mr." Mamorus said, which seemed to emberass the cyborg a little.

"Hey, don't call me Mr. I'm only twenty years old." He said, as the boat shook and some black piece of metal hit him in the back, throwing him back out. The trash monster has quickly recovered from the attack and reclaimed the boat as part of itself. It stood directly under the bridge, while the Cyborg swam in the water.

He watched, as the monster changed form, briefly looking like some strange sort of worm, morphing into a new shape while jumping onto the bridge. Said bridge was for trains and as the trash monster took form again, he could see that it became a train. This did not stop the cyborg however, as he gave chase.

With the help of GGG's very own high tech train, Linergao, the cyborg managed to chase the monster towards town hall, where it transformed into its bipedal form again. The people still inside were looking at the monster in fear, as it raised its arms. Screams echoed from the building, as the arms split open and energy gathered within.

It was clear, that the monster aimed to destroy the city hall and it looked like it was inevitable, as a loud roar could be heard. The frightened children, still trapped in the boat that became part of the monsters body, cheered as they saw the lion robot from before. Behind it was the other robot, that first tried to get them out.

"It seems the cavallery has arrived." The cyborg said. "I still don't know who you are but it is clear that you are very brave and I can respect that. Now, let's finish this monster off." He said to the Granteed, before leaping towards the lion. "FUSION!" He yelled, and the green gem on his arm glowed brightly.

Twilight and Rarity wondered what happened now and were a little shocked as the man jumped straight into the lion's mouth. But quickly, they saw that he was not really eaten. The lion turned and changed form, slowly taking the same, bipedal form as the creature now within. The golden lion head now at the chest, while another green gem was on the robots forehead. "GAIGAR! Alright, first we save the children." He yelled.

The trash monster had aimed at them in the meantime, so both had to evade it's energy beams. The lion mech yelled for another of GGG's machines, the Stealthgao. A fighter plane, made for transportation.

"Alright, Rarity, aim for the head." Twilight switched position again and the Granteed shot another Orgone beam at the head of the monster. It stumbled back, while the other robot sliced the front part of the boat off with the lion's claw, before making his way towards the roof of the city hall with it. There he gently put it down and checked on the kids..

"Are you kids alright?" He asked. One of the boys, Mamoru, jumped on top of the deck and yelled towards his savior. "Thank you mister!"

"Stop calling me mister, I'm only twenty years old." He said. Just before he could go back to his ally however, a black cable wrapped around his neck and he was electrocuted. Loud buzzing could be heard, as a monstrous shape came into view. The trash monster has grown itself a makeshit propeller and flew up to them. With another cable, it held the Granteed in its grasp.

The cyborg cursed, now there was only one way to win this.

In the GGG headquarter, mission control got a signal from Gaigar. "Chief, GaiGar is requesting permission for final fusion." Said Mikoto, who worked at the control center of GGG. While Galeon was still very mysterious for the organization, they managed to create some data links and controlled the Gaomachines.

Leo Shishio, the top scientist of GGG and father of the cyborg, better known as Guy Shishio, was worried about this though. "The chances of the final fusion to succeed are very low. In the worst case, Guy might be crushed inside of GaiGar.

"The percentage does not matter. With a courageous heart, one percent can become one hundred." Answered Koutaro Taiga. All members of GGG valued courage above all and so they all could agree. Now they could not afford to take their time and be careful. Even though the danger was high, they needed to take those chances. "Final Fusion, approved."

"Alright." Mikoto quickly typed in the program codes to all gaomachines, to make sure everything would work out. "Final Fusion, program drive!" At the last part, she slammed her fist into a panel next to her. The button underneath would send the signals to the gao machines and GaiGar, for initiating the final fusion.

The gem in GaiGar's forehead glowed brightly, as Guy got the signal that the final fusion was approved. "About time! FINAL FUSION!" He used the lion claw to snap the cable holding him and a hurricane of green mist surrounded him, pushing the trash monster back. Granteed was freed and landed safely on the ground, from which its pilots watched their ally.

The gaomachines broke through the mist and surrounded Gaigar. First drillgao approached from underneath, while Gaigar turned around one-eighty degrees at the waist. Like boots, the twin tunnel tank attached itself to it's feet, with the drills at the knees.

Next, the arms folded back and revealed a hollow part. The train, Linergao, went in and compartments opened up underneath on both sides.

Finally, Stealthgao used the folded arms to attach itself to Gaigar's back. The turbines were underneath the open compartments of Linergao and attached themselves to the new arms, coming out of them. As they were pushed in, the hands came out of the other end of the turbine, as they detached themselves from the plane.

Lastly, a helmet that was carried by Stealthgao, was put on top of the mechs head. The final fusion was complete, all gaomachines attached to GaiGar. Guy Shishio and the rest of GGG already had a name for the complete form, which he loudly announced. "GAO GAI GAR!"

"Final Fusion, successful!" Announced Mikoto and the entire control center errupted in cheers.

The complete robot now stood in front of the trash beast, dubbed EI-02 by GGG. The right hand started to rotate. "Broken Magmun!" Yelled Guy, as he thrusted the spinning arm forward. The hand detached itself and flew directly towards EI-02's head.

Twilight and Rarity saw their chance, as the monster was sent tumbling backwards and attacked too. "Send power to the hands, I'm using the finger crusher." Granteed flew towards EI-02 and slammed its hands into the beast, piercing the mechanical body.

"Alright, out of the way, I will finish it. Hell, and heaven." They heard from behind and turned around. GaoGaiGar's hands were glowing, one malicious red, the other bright golden. A tornado of green energy was forming a tunnel between GaoGaiGar and EI-02 and Twilight made Granteed move out of the way.

The trash monster was still stunned, as GaoGaiGar glid towards it, arms outstretched. They burrowed deep into the monsters chest and grasped something. Guy believed, he had the core of the beast and pulled out the strange, purple ball. The main body fell apart and exploded, now that the core was missing and Guy was starting to crush it.

As the first cracks appeared however, somebody yelled. "STOP, don't destroy it!" The voice came from above and the mech pilots were surprised to see a small boy, glowing green and with four sets of wings, looking like those of a dragonfly on their back. Guy stopped, as instructed as the body flew towards the core.

The boy started to chant something, as the trash monsters core started to dissolve. The pilots gasped, as a human was suddenly in the grasp of the lion mech and Guy was horrified at the implication, that he almost crushed that man. Before he could ask that kid who he was however, he flew away again.

In the GGG central, they too lost track of that kid. "It's no good, not even the sattelite can track it now." Kousuke Entouji, the intelligence operator and programmer of GGG said. "But still, we should try to contact the pilots of this mech now."

Guy Shioshio heard this and turned around to face them. "Thank you for your help. I don't know who you are, but risking yourself to save these children showed that you have courage. Please, if you wish come with me." He offered. Better not to try and force them, or else they will just run.

Twilight Sparkle and Rarity briefly discussed what to do and finally decided, that the pilot of the other mech was a good guy and maybe he and his friends could help them find Luna and the others. "Alright, my name is Twilight Sparkle, my co-pilot is Rarity, nice to meet you." The Granteed reached out, to shake hands.

While Guy was a little perplexed at these strange names, he smiled and shook Granteed's hand. "Guy Shishio, pleased to meet you." And with this gesture, a new friendship was formed.

Author's Note

And after it took way too long, again, here's the next chapter. GaoGaiGar is the new anime introduced and as you may guess from some of the names and the shouting out of things, it is not as serious as some others and aimed at a younger audience. But still, I reccomend that you check it out, since it's still awesome. Although I admit, writing those parts felt a little silly.

The three snipers

Resistance of steel

Chapter 6: The three snipers

The three robots were now on their way, heading for Russia. Mythril had their route picked out already, making sure they would go through areas that were mostly devoid of large population centers and frequently pass by an allied outpost to refuel. The only difficulty was the Coustwell, since noone at Mythril knew what kind of power it ran on. Even Applejack and Pinkie had only limited knowledge. They knew what it ran on and that they would not face any trouble but they had no idea how exactly the orgone energy worked.

Back in the Tuatha de Danaan, the engineers of Mythril looked at the green crystals and found out two things in the limited time they had. First was the fact that those crystals produces and absorbed energy, when they absorb enough they can self replicate. From their viewpoint they could be the ultimate source of energy. For now they did not absorb or produce much, letting the energy absorb into the machine instead of the crystals, powering it in the process.

Applejack and Pinkie could also raise the energy output and have the crystals grow in a specific way if they wanted to, building up one of the Coustwell's attack systems. Both ponies were really stumped at their own knowledge. Applejack in particular never had any interest in complicated machines, especially considering she preferred to do work by hoof but now she was piloting a machine so advanced, not even the brightest minds in Equestria could begin to understand it. And on top of it, she automatically knew how it was controlled.

The walk along the coastline was mostly peaceful, only having to go further in sometimes to avoid coastal cities. In the outposts, Applejack and Pinkie only got out briefly, since they were declared top secret. It was especially hard on Pinkie, who was used to constantly move around. Only the commanders of said outposts were aware of their identities, so the ponies usually waited for the repair crews to leave the hangar before coming out. Most of them believed it was a joke when they heard about the Coustwell and were still surprised to see two colorful equines.

Even though they were also very suspicious, the friendly nature of the two quickly won them over and Pinkie was glad to make new friends. Gain Bijou was quiet most of the time, while Pinkie and Kurtz quickly became good friends.

While they waited for the other robots to be maintained, Applejack mused how bittersweet the situation was. It seemed like the struggle between good and evil, which they themselves already experienced, was on a much larger skale here. Still, it felt good that they found some good people already.

After everything was finished up, they were quickly on their way again, walking through the land. When they were further away from civilization, they would make their machines run, reaching an amazing speed. Even though they were far away from their destination, this way they would not take long to reach it.

Still, Gain Bijou mostly remained a mystery to them. While Kurtz loved to chat with them on the way, Gain mostly kept quiet. Applejack then decided, to ask him about this exodus movement. "So Gain, what exactly are we going to do there in this Siberia?" They already learned, that they would be moving an entire town, something that both mares were very curious about. The very thought seemed impossible but so did many other things they have already witnessed so far.

Gain sat pretty relaxed in the seat of his machine. This type was called, silhouette engine. Learning about all the different types of mech was pretty interesting so far and every type felt very unique to them. From the Knightmare Frames, who propelled themselves on wheels, almost like on roller scates, to the super robots from Photon Power Labs and to the Arm Slaves from Mythril.

"Once we get to our destination, I will let myself get caught by the Siberian Railway. From the jail, I will make my way towards the museum of Duke Medaiyu. He got some old overmen there, which should still be operational. Those machines are far more powerful than the silhouette engines and can provide cover, while they get the city ready as climax to the festivities." He explained to them.

As he said "festivities" Pinkie Pie was even more hyped about their mission. "A party? We need to make sure that we get there on time, I don't wanna miss it." She said. "I hope they have music and cake and balloons, I have to see it." She was bouncing in her seat, causing the Coustwell to move funny, earning a chuckle from both snipers, while Applejack tried to calm her friend down.

"You will have to wait just outside of the city but don't worry, once it starts you should be able to take a peek at the parade." Gain assured, which seemed to satisfy the pink pony for now.

They walked for a few more hours, as they suddenly heard a series of noises. Kurtz told them to stay put and went ahead to investigate.

Activating his Armslaves electronic cloaking device, he got closer to the source of the noise. He has seen enough battles to know, that there was a fight going on. This was problematic, as they had to get past this point, since two cities were nearby at each side of their route.

Finally he saw what was going on. It was typical to see battles nowadays but this was something different. Several OZ Leo's, greyish-green mobile suits without any really distinguishing features beside the yellow screen instead of a face, were battling and losing to a single figure.

The other mobile suit looked almost like a samurai of old times with a small, round shield attached to one arm, holding a beam glaive with the other. It was mostly white and blue in color, except for the red chestplate. The beams shot by the Leo's were effortlessly dodged, while it cut down the enemies.

It was impressive to watch as one Leo tried to slash it with a beam saber, only for it to jump over it, land on the other side and slice it in half. From his position, Kurtz could see the unknown mobile suit from the back. Slowly he tried to retreat, he thought they could wait it out and then sneak past, once the battle is over. However, one beam from the Leo's was heading straight for him, forcing Kurtz to jump out of the way.

There was an attachment on the right arm of the unknown mobile suit, looking almost like the head of a dragon. It extended towards the Leo's and a bright, hot flame shot out of it, incinerating the rest of the Leo's.

The pilot then turned around and looked at the small crater the armslave caused, when it had to jump to the side. Some dirt and mud stuck to the armor, betraying it's cloaking device. Kurtz muttered some curses, as the head mounted vulcan gun of the mobile suit opened fire. "Gain, AJ, Pinkie, I have been found and need some help here." He shouted over the radio, while ducking for cover.

As he tried to hide back in the forest, he cursed the fact that Melissa wasn't here. Being spotted with the enemy that close was the worst thing that could happen to a sniper. With her close combat expertise, Melissa could take this mobile suit on, or at least distract him long enough to give him a clear shot.

Reactivating the ECS at this point would only waste energy, instead Kurtz backed up and fled into the woods, his pursuer close behind him. The mobile suit was fast, no way to outrun him and if he smells a trap, his companions might be in danger.

Turning and twisting his path, he finally saw two friendly signatures on his radar again, one approaching them from the side, the other a good distance away. "Hey there, I brought a new playmate." He greeted them, as a green fist, seemingly made of crystal flew at the Gundam from behind the trees, while a shot from a sniper rifle came from the other side.

The pilot of that mobile suit had good reflexes, managing to block the orgone fist from one side. The shot from Gain's sniper rifle however, hit him in the back, damaging the hull. Kurtz got a little more distance and then turned around, aiming his own sniper rifle at the Gundam. "Alright buddy, you are surrounded, surrender peacefully and no one has to get hurt." He announced over the speakers.

Wufei cursed inwardly at not seeing the trap from a mile away. "This is it, they must not get a hold of the Gundam." All of the Gundams that are part of operation meteor were fitted with a self destruct mechanism, to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. It was top priority, to make sure of that at all costs.

He quickly typed in the neccessary data, to release all locks on the self destruct, as a warning sign flared off. A bright purple beam descended from the sky, impacting on the ground just before the assailing Arms Slave, who jumped back in surprise. Wufei was shaken in his cockpit and hit his head, losing consciousness.

All eyes went towards the sky, where two more machines, similar to the Gundam flew down. One green, a sniper rifle in hand, the other blue with a blade attached to it's arm. "Hey, aren't those the Celestial Being guys?" Asked Kurtz, as he recognized the machines from the news.

The two immediately attacked. The blue one folded out it's blade and charged at Kurtz, while the green one aimed at Coustwell. "AJ, to the right." Said Pinkie, who had an edge no one could possibly predict. Her Pinkie-sense warned her of dangers, like for example the exact moment the enemy sniper would shoot.

Said sniper, known to his organization as Lockon Stratos was silently amazed at the pilots abilities. Several shots were fired already, and not one of them hit yet. The purple robots pilot must have hones his instincts perfectly. "Setsuna, you take care of the purple one, leave the others to me."

"Affirmative." Was the barebone answer of his partner, as they switched targets. Lockon was now in a sniper duel with the Silhouette engine and the Arms Slave, while Setsuna duelled the unknown, purple mech.

Pinkie Pie's sixth sense was working on overload as the quick mech kept slashing at the Coustwell. In another situation or if they were just observers, the two ponies would have been very impressed with the performance. Quick slashes, followed by a turn and another slash, switching between the large blade attached to it's arm to two beam sabers. The robot was almost dancing with them.

While it certainly looked that way, Applejack did not feel like dancing, as she followed Pinkie's instructions how to evade the attacks. The quick movements left no place for any counterattacks, unless they wanted to take a hit. "Duck, hop left, lean back." Even Pinkie seemed a little distressed, bombarded by dozens of twitches.

Their comrades did not fare much better. While they were two against one, the other robot was capable of flight, giving him a much higher ground. For a sniper, that was a great advantage. A bullet flew from the nearby trees, which the green Gundam effortlessly dodged and returned fire. Kurtz Arms Slave lost it's hiding place again and he had to run from the enemy fire again.

These machines were just too powerful and the ponies were just not experienced enough to use the Coustwell's power properly. With the battle going like this, they would soon lose unless... Applejack got an idea. "Kurtz, Gain, let's all group together. Pinkie and I will draw the enemy fire, you two take care of these blockheads. We'll all move towards the green one."

"A risky plan but considering I don't have anything better right now... let's do it." Replied Kurtz. Coustwell, Arms Slave and Gain's Gotchko were running towards each other, from all sides of the sniper Gundam. Lockon Stratos was surprised by this maneuver and he did not know, which one to shoot at. He had to change positions.

While he flew away, Applejack saw her chance. She turned around, blocking another slash from the blue Gundam. "Pinkie, ready the orgone fist, Kurtz, Gain, aim at the sniper and fire when the fist flies." With all the force she could muster, she pushed her assailant away, before doing a quick turn. The Coustwell's fist shot towards the green mech, while Gain and Kurtz shot another volley at him.

The emerald fist was no problem for Lockon but the other snipers managed to foresee his evasion path and while he managed to dodge one of the bullets, the other hit the right leg of his Gundam, severely damaging it. "Setsuna, I got damaged, let's pull back for now." Before his partner could retaliate, they both took towards the sky and flew off. This was very bad, this unknown mech, just like the other one at shatter mountain... this was certainly something VEDA did not warn them about. They would report to the Ptolomeus, this will need to be addressed as soon as possible.

Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Kurtz Weber and Gain Bijou were exhausted from their battle, panting heavily as the adrenaline wore off. "That was scary, I hope we won't have to do this again." Said Pinkie Pie, curling up a little in her seat. Even though the danger went away, she could almost still feel the twitching.

"Sorry girls, this was certainly unexpected." Kurtz felt kinda guilty, nobody prepared the ponies for this, they expected an easy job, escorting Gain to his destination. Then his eyes fell on something different, lying discarded on the battlefield. The Gundam they fought, before the others showed up. "Hey, do you think the pilot is still inside?"

The others faced the damaged machine. "If he is, we shouldn't just let him lie around. You said earlier, that the next station is nearby?" Asked Applejack.

"That's correct, want to carry him?" Applejack made the Coustwell nod. "Alright, I will just get the pilot outta there, then we can take this baby with us." Kurtz left his M9 and dragged the unconscious pilot out of the cockpit, surprised at how young he seemed to be. Gain held him with the hand of his Gotchko, while Kurtz and the ponies carried the Gundam.

Even though he attacked them earlier, it would just feel bad to leave him behind here and if he came to consciousness again, maybe he could explain why he attacked, and which group he belonged to. Either way, they would have a nice, long talk after this.

The rest of the way was thankfully uneventful, as they managed to get to the seemingly abandoned garage, that would serve as a checkpoint.

Inside, the crew still believed that the message about the ponies must have been a joke, until Applejack and Pinkie hopped out of the cockpits. The confusion was soon dying down, as Pinkie yet again befriended everyone at the base. Their cuteness and friendly attitude, quickly won them over, while Kurtz and Gain brought their guest towards a room they turned into a makeshift prison.

After a while, AJ and Pinkie joined them, as they waited for the pilot to wake up. Slowly, Wufei opened his eyes. He looked at the people in front of him and cursed under his breath. Being taken prisoner was the one thing he was supposed to avoid at all costs. Now the least he could do was keep silent, no matter what. His gaze then fell upon the two ponies and a look of confusion could be seen on his face. 'Did they drug me? What kind of truth serum makes the victim see colorful animals though? I need to be careful, I feel fine but this must be a hallucination.'

"Hold your horses sugarcube." At this point Wufei wanted to smack his own forehead. Hold your horses? Sugarcube? If this was part of his subconsciousness, he would need to meditate for a while. "Ah can assure you, me and the pink one here are real. My name is Applejack, this here is Pinkie Pie. We piloted the Coustwell, the purple mech you saw earlier."

Wufei ignored the two of them however. "What the hell did you guys slip me?" Kurtz laughed a bit, as the pilot was still convinced that everything was just a hallucination. "Nothing buddy, we had a hard time believing it too. Apparently, these two are from a different world." He pointed at the two ponies next to him.

"Don't mind him sugarcube, I wouldn't believe it mahself if one of you guys showed up in Equestria." The orange one said to the German sniper. Even that could still be part of a hallucination however, if said man didn't answer. "Or like Sousuke thought, that your mech deployed some sort of hallucinogen, to mess with out heads."

The pink pony started to laugh at the memory, how said soldier acted. "That was kinda funny, how he crawled around the ground with his shirt up to his nose."

This was the ultimate proof, no one could just pretend to talk to a hallucination like that, not without some minor slip ups. But this opened a whole new line of questions. Why were they here? What's their relationship with Mythril and how will this affect operation Meteor? "And what is your goal here then?"

"We came here because Princess Luna needed a safe place to stay. Some meanies want to hurt her but we heard they are too strong to beat. So we took the Princess, some other mechs and brought them here. But now we are seperated and need to find each other. I hope the others find a lot of new friends too, so we can all celebrate together when we meet up again." Said the pink pony, like a child on a sugar high. Wufei was instantly annoyed by her.

"And you?" Asked Gain Bijou the prisoner. "I think we can safely say, that you are not with Celestial Being. Yet you pilot a Gundam type too." This was the big question. There were enough fighting factions as it is, now it seems another has joined the fray.

Wufei however remained stoic. "My mission remains a secret, nothing you do will ever make me reveal my goals." He was now prepared to face any kind of torture, he only wished he could have done more damage first.

Nothing came however, as the two men and the two ponies got together to whisper about something. Wufei was sadly unable to read lips but obviously the ponies suggested something that did not quiet win over the others. But after a while, it seemed like they got into an agreement. "Say kid," started the blonde man. "we could gather that you are enemies with OZ, is that correct?"

Wufei nodded. After they saw him waste an entire squad of their mobile suits, denying it would be pretty senseless. "You know, we are too enemies of OZ and the Britannian Empire, shouldn't we logically work together then?"

This suggestion was insane, how could they even think of this? He attacked them just a few hours ago and now they want him to be their ally? He could immediately see what's happening here. By softening up to him, they hope to learn more about his Gundam and his goals. Fair play, this would allow him to turn the entire thing on them. "I see your point... maybe we can form an alliance, as long as we fight the same enemy."

He had to surpress a smirk from forming on his lips, as he purposely made himself sound more naive than he is. Perfect, this desaster might actually turn out in his favor. "You may call me Wufei."

The green haired man with the thick coat stepped behind him and freed him, allowing the boy free movement again. One instinct told him to use this chance to escape but he was outnumbered and did not even know where they are right now, so playing along might be the best option for now.

"You know what this calls for? A PARTY!" Yelled the pink pony, while throwing her hooves up, spreading confetti everywhere. This confused the human onlookers a little. Where did she get that confetti? Kurtz and Gain were pretty sure, that she went into the room with empty hooves.

"That would be lovely Pinkie but I doubt they have any party supplies here." Added Kurtz. Pinkie Pie lost her bounce as she heard this and looked at him sadly. Those were the world famous puppy dog eyes, which turned disciplined men into marmelade. "B-but we can see what we can put together."

Wufei felt a sweatdrop gather on the back of his head as he watched the display. The pink pony cheered, while an exasperated Kurtz went off to ask the workers here about anything they can use for a party. He wondered in what kind of mess he got himself into.

The party turned out better than most were expecting. It turned out they actually did have some cake one of the soldiers smuggled in recently. It was not a big one, pretty basic but Pinkie Pie managed to cut it evenly, so everyone got a piece. They also had some fruit at the outpost, including a few apples that Applejack quickly converted into non alcoholic cider.

The men here had some board games to amuse themselves in their free time, as well as a radio. Pinkie did not seem to have any aditional confetti, so they used some paper and made some out of it. The whole party was functional, if pretty understated.

Wufei never felt more out of place than now. He was surrounded by what should be professional soldiers but now he was the guest of honor for a party, that by all means should only appeal to little children.

What was even worse, they treated him like a friend, despite not even knowing what he would do or if he even was on their side. He noted, that he could probably sneak to his Gundam and kill them all, while they were celebrating. It would be easy, so why not? First Wufei wanted to ask, why did they treat him that way.

He approached one older looking man with brown hair and a beard, the head mechanic in this outpost. "Say, you are a professional soldier, why did you approve of... this?" If this was Mythril, then his respect for the entire organization just fell.

The man just looked at Wufei and smiled. "Why did I approve of this party? The reason is simple, in these troubling times, we need to remind ourselves that life is more than just constant fighting. And besides, the apples for the cider would have gone bad soon and the cake was not part of the rations anyway. On top of that, we are far enough away from civilization, that we needn't worry about being spotted by any enemies."

"Enemies like me?" He asked sarcastically, even though it might arouse suspicion. But still, this mans words rang in his mind. More than constant fighting? Wasn't that the life of a warrior?

A knowing glint was shown in the mans expression. "You know, I have an idea what you're thinking. This must be a trap? Maybe I can turn it on them?" Wufei silently cursed himself for acting on a whim like this. "Don't worry, I will only say one thing. No matter where you look for enemies, you should sometimes ask yourself if you really have to fight. You are not going against the world, not everyone is a potential danger."

The head mechanic looked over to the ponies, playing games with some of the soldiers. "Maybe something like them is what the world needs right now. Someone willing to just reach out a hand in peace, just out of good will. You too should try it." With that, he went off to collect his piece of the cake.

Wufei stood there for a while, simply stunned. He knew he was a possible enemy and won't alert anyone? He blindly trusted him? After a whle of thinking he came to a new conclusion. If these people also fought OZ, maybe he could use them to his advantage, so killing them should not be an option in the near future.

He then decided, that he might as well enjoy himself a little and went over to the bowl with the cider, helping himself to a cup. "Hmmh... this cider is actually very good."

Freeden

Resitance of steel

Chapter 7: Freeden

It has only been a few hours since Bellzelute, along with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy have been picked up by the large ship, the Freeden. The two of them were still impressed, how such a large ship, made out of metal, can float across the ground as if it was water. After the initial confusion died down, the two pegasi managed to explain their situation to the captain.

"So, you are here to seek asylum for your Princess?" Jamil Neate has been the captain of the Freeden for a while now and has seen many interesting things, nothing could have prepared him for this though. Right in front of him, there were two colorful ponies, talking to him. They looked like someone ripped them straight out of a cartoon and pasted them into the real world.

"That's right, so we want to go look for them now. Can you please just give us a map or something?" The rainbow maned pony asked. She was kinda brash, actually reminded him a bit of that kid they captured as they rescued Tiffa. In the corner of the bridge, the blonde communications officer, Toniya Malme, was cuddling the other one fiercly. Fluttershy seemed a bit nervous in the grip of the other woman.

It would be the easy solution, maybe he could just send them on their way and they all could pretend this never happened but he was not so ignorant. Something big was going to happen and just maybe he would regret sending them away then. Also, their doctor reporter that Tiffa became much calmer after the Bellzelute entered the Freeden.

The Bellzelute was another factor. Kid was never so excited as he examined it, the technology was something completely new and there was the fact that at least three other machines of that type existed. No, he couldn't just let them leave so easily but on the other hand, he can't just keep them as prisoners. "I could give you the maps but I have a better idea. It is not safe out there, especially alone. We can certainly give you additional protection and we meet a lot of mercenaries along the way, who might have some more infos on your friends."

Rainbow Dash contemplated the offer. She was not really a big talker or tactician but she knew a good offer when she saw one. "Sounds good but no funny business okay?" Despite the generous offer, she was still a little suspicious.

"Certainly, you will of course be able to leave whenever you feel like it." Kid will need to hold back a bit, so they won't think they just want to have the Bellzelute for themselves. While learning more about that robot and the orgone would be good, they were not robbers. Also, he wanted them to stay nearby because of Tiffa. If their calming influence could help her recover, he wanted them to stay close to her as long as possible.

"Good, because after that welcome you are a little TOO friendly." The glare on the pegasus was diffused a bit by the fact that... well, she was a cute, colorful pegasus. Among her own people she might be able to intimidate someone but even Jamil had to admit they were rather adorable, even though he had enough self control not to just cuddle with them. At that thought, he glanced towards Fluttershy and Toniya. "Now tell me, what reason do you have to keep us around?"

Jamil supposed, that he might as well tell them. The short time they talked and the more he learned about them, he figured that seeing Tiffa might even convince them to stay. "There is one thing. Please follow me." Jamil lead them towards the medical bay, where Tiffa was.

The doctor on board, Techcs Farzenberg, was sitting at the girls side, monitoring her condition. As he heard the door slide open, he turned around to see the captain. "She is a lot calmer now, unless something happens she should make a quicker recovery." Every time the captain came down to the medical bay, he asked about Tiffa.

When two ponies then followed Jamil, the doctor's eyes widened. Word already got around on the Freeden, of the two pilots of the Bellzelute, Techcs however thought it was just a joke at first but there they stood, two small, colorful ponies with wings on their backs. The yellow one, with the long, pink mane and tail, immediately approached Tiffa as she saw the girl. "Oh goodness, what happened to her?" She asked.

"This is Tiffa Adill, we have brought her on board for protection. She has special abilities, that some people want to abuse for their own profit. However, she has been present when a lot of people died." He gave a little pause, to let the ponies absorb the information. "She can read minds, she has felt the pain and terror of them all and it became too much for her to handle." Tears started to form in Fluttershy's eyes as she heard this, not only because of Tiffa but because of all those people who have apparently died.

"W-what does this have to do with us?" Asked Rainbow Dash, the brashness in her voice and posture fading. She tried her best to keep up the though act but was rapidly failing.

"When you two came on board, Tiffa became much calmer. From that I know, that you two are good peo... ponies. I hoped that, if you stay here just a little longer, it would help her recover." Jamil explained to them.

Fluttershy was leaning on the edge of the bed, holding the hand of the comatose girl with one hoof, before turning to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, we have to stay her, just a little longer. Jamil and the others can help us look for the others and we just have to help this poor girl." She pleaded with her friend.

Rainbow Dash looked back between Tiffa, Fluttershy and Jamil a few times, before sighing. "Alright, you have us convinced. We will stay her until the girl gets better. But you really have to help us look for our friends, this is also important to us."

"Alright, we have a deal then. We will need a description of your friends mech's, so we can ask anyone we come across if he has seen them. While your presence seems to be enough, I would like to ask you to visit Tiffa every once in a while. Doctor, these two hereby have the right to visit at all times." Jamil said, facing the still dumbstruck doctor, who slowly came out of his daze.

"Very well captain, I hope they can really help Tiffa." He figured that, if horses can be used for therapy, then this would be pretty much the same.

For the rest of the night, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy spend time on the Freeden, getting to know the rest of the crew. Fluttershy went back to the hangar for a bit, while Rainbow Dash walked around by herself.

In the hangar, Fluttershy was walking between the mobile suits, feeling a little scared. Even though she knew these were machines and that the pilots were not their enemies, they were still very intimidating. All that steel, formed into the human-like shape, almost like they were more of an extension of the pilots body. Was it like this for her and Rainbow Dash too? She hasn't thought about it too much yet but it just felt so natural, controlling the Bellzelute.

Deep in her thoughts, she didn't see the person in front of her and bumped into him. "Oh, I'm sorry, I really should have paid more attention. Are you hurt? Can I help you somehow?" She asked nervously. The person she bumped into was a child, yet he was in the typical clothes of a mechanic. She already heard of him, Kid, the head engineer of the Freeden. From what she heard, he was a prodigy at this early age.

"No need to apologize, I'm okay. It would have only been bad, if you had bumped into me while I had a torch on." He explained. "So... you are one of the alien-ponies... wow, I never thought I would ever say that sentence." As he looked at Fluttershy, he saw how insecure she appeared to be. Despite the fact that he was okay.

"Oh, sorry. I will stay out of the hangar then, so I won't bother you." Fluttershy was in a slump and already wanted to leave, as Kid stopped her.

"Come on, don't take it personal, you don't need to leave." He explained to her. "And if you actually were a bother, I would tell you immediately but just looking around is not bothering anyone. How about you come and watch me do maintenance on the Gundam X?" He could not really explain it but somehow he just wanted to make friends with this pony.

Fluttershy was still unsure if she should really stay but it would be rude to reject that offer. Also, it made her feel better to know that she wasn't bothering anyone. "Thank you, I won't be in the way. Which one is the Gundam X?"

Kid turned around and pointed at a white mech at the end of the hangar. It had two V-shaped fins on the forehead and a L shaped fin on the back. Fluttershy briefly wondered why it was called Gundam X then. The chest was mostly blue and red, had a green spot right in the middle though. There also was a long, thin barrel strapped to the back.

"This one is it, a real powerhouse. If the fins on the back spread open into the X-shape this Gundam got it's name from, it can gather energy from an installation on the moon, to power the satelite cannon." He explained to her. These Gundams were widely used as anti-colony weapon back in the days, so the satelite cannons existance was not too much of a secret.

However, that was not the part that really got Fluttershy's attention. "On the moon? How did a building get up there?" Did a group of people get banished to the moon? Did they build a city up there? And what did they do to get banished in the first place? Kid however laughed a little.

"We have developed the technology to fly into space, we can even build huge cities, whole biomes with forests and lakes. Compared to that, building a moonbase was easy." He was always fascinated by technology and being able to brag a little about humanity's advancements to an alien made him feel kinda proud. Although it did have it's disadvantages. Mankind was always aggressive, most of the technology only made the conflicts worse.

Together they went onto the mobile platform, being hovered towards the spot Kid wanted to inspect first. Fluttershy watched in awe, as Kid made sense of all those circuits, pistons, cables and other mechanical devices that confused her. While shy at first, she eventually started to ask more and more questions, which Kid happily answered.

While Fluttershy was in the hangar, Rainbow Dash looked around the ship. Captain Jamil recommended, to her displeasure, that she didn't fly around too much to avoid drawing attention to the Freeden, so she was left with nothing to do pretty much. However, nothing could ground her completely for a long time.

She noted that the halls were pretty tall, so she could actually fly around for a bit, without risking to bump into someone. And even if, she could just apologize and be more careful. So she opted to use this as an opportunity to practice sharp turns, much to the surprise of some of the crew that passed beneath. While Rainbow Dash flew high enough, some of them still ducked as she approached.

While it felt good to spread her wings, this wasn't quite doing it. Rainbow Dash needed air and while the Freeden was not badly ventilated, it was just not the same. Here she was surrounded by metal walls, while otherwise she flew through the blue air, the wind at her side.

As she was lost in thought, she didn't notice that she was getting lower, until she crashed into someone. "Oh man, sorry, I wasn't watching." She said, rubbing her head and helping the man she knocked down up.

"No problem but please be more careful, I need to keep an eye on this prisoner." The guard said, pointing at the door he stood next to. From the other side, both could hear loud protests being yelled. "He's been at it for a while now, we picked him up when he was trying to fly away with Tiffa and the Gundam X." The guard explained with a sigh.

"Wait, so he is a kidnapper?" Asked Rainbow Dash and as soon as she said that, the prisoner was banging against his door. "You got that mixed up! I was trying to get Tiffa free from you guys!" He yelled at them. Rainbow Dash cocked an eyebrow as she heard this and looked at the guard.

"Well, while he might have had good intentions, there was no way he could protect her properly." The guard then looked into the cell, were the prisoner has retreated to his bed, before pulling Rainbow Dash aside. "Also, he is the reason why Tiffa is in her current state."

This piqued her interest, how could he protect her but put her into a coma? Wait, what was the reason for that again? While she thought about it, the guard continued to explain. "Several mercenaries were payed to retrieve the Gundam and Tiffa, when they were surrounded, he used the superweapon of the Gundam X to destroy them all. All that death around her was too much to handle."

This was it. While he may have had the best of intentions, his methods really needed improvement. Kinda reminded her of herself. That gave Rainbow Dash an idea. "Oh alright, keep guarding, I will be on my way." After saying goodbye for now, Rainbow Dash flew towards the bridge, where the captain was.

The next day, the Freeden was travelling through a forest area, at the edge of a desert. It was a strange sight, to have such biomes so close to each other but such was the damage of the colony drop. As far as they could see, no one was following them. Still, Jamil had a bad feeling, so he had all pilots, including Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash on standby.

Jamil was still thinking about the suggestion Rainbow Dash made. It seems like she has seen in that boy a kindred spirit. From what he understood, she was very brash herself, even though she only has the best for her friends in mind. Still, just trying to get that kid to join his crew? This was asking for trouble. Jamil knew that type, living alone for so long robs you of the ability to sympathize. Even now the prisoner was seemingly trapped in his little world, where he was the knight in shining armor for Tiffa.

It was not as if Jamil wasn't glad that he wanted to help but the kid just didn't know how. Rainbow Dash's suggestion to just give him the Gundam X and let him join was risky.

The captain of the Freeden was then snapped out of his thoughts by an explosion nearby. "What? Have we been discovered?" Asked his communications officer but the answer was negative, they weren't the target.

In the desert part, they saw another ship, along with some mobile suits, chasing after a target. It was a familiar type of mobile suit, a Gundam Ashtaron. It was a transformable mobile suit, currently in it's mobile armor form. As in glided over the sands, it almost looked like a purple crab with it's pincers.

Shots were getting closer and closer, as it was being chased down. As they got closer, the chasing group of six mobile suits were splitting up into two teams, one of them heading their way. "All mobile suits launch, defend the Freeden." Ordered Jamil. Now was as good a time as any to take on Rainbow Dash's suggestion. Jamil left the bridge, heading for the brig.

Outside, the mobile suits of the Freeden, as well as the Bellzelute launched, each taking on one of the attackers.

Fluttershy was shaking in her seat, why did they attack that purple robot and why were they know attacking the Freeden? This seemed to be a very violent world. Rainbow Dash however, was confident as ever. "Alright you jerks, you're gonna leave us and the purple guy alone or else we'll smash your suits to bits." She growled, as she drew the short launchers from the Bellzelute's hips.

Despite her confidence, Rainbow Dash was unsure of what to do in this situation. She didn't really want to kill anyone but she might have to in order to protect the Freeden. Then there was the fact that Fluttershy was with her. Would the other pegasus even be able to look at her, if she really did it?

In her hesitation, she almost failed to notice how the enemy suits opened fire. Evading in the last moment, the beam shot grazed the shoulder of the Bellzelute. Rainbow Dash quickly took into the air. "Fluttershy, it might be risky but I'm gonna try and shoot it's weapon out of it's hands." She announced. Fluttershy felt relieved, although there was this strange feeling, as if she was holding Rainbow Dash back.

Their partners did not have such reservation and quickly managed to down their respective targets by the time Rainbow Dash got a good shot. Thanks to the Bellzelute's maneuverbility, they managed to flank their enemy and get a clear shot, destroying the rifle and hands of the enemy suit.

By then however, the chased mobile armor moved towards them, probably hoping to get protection but was hit and laid in the sand. Behind it, the other pursuit team approached, together with the enemy ship. The confidence of the cyan mare started to falter, as she stared up at the massive ship but there was no choice, she had to defeat it.

By now, Jamil returned to the bridge, together with a young man. He had green eyes and messily kept, black hair. He was the prisoner, who stole the Gundam X and wanted to get away with Tiffa. Up to now, his experience in combat was limited to hijacking mobile suits to sell, this fight would be a first for him.

"What did you bring me here for?" The annoyed teen asked. Jamil only herded him towards the window, where the sound of explosions could already be heard.

Outside, the two other mobile suits, as well as the Bellzelute, were busy with the enemy ship. The Gundam Airmaster was currently in it's mobile armor mode, flying around the ship to draw fire. Whenever the ship redirected it's fire towards one of the others, he used the brief pause to take out one of the armaments.

The Leopard was mostly busy with the mobiles suits that came out of the ship. Since he was not as agile as the Bellzelute or the Airmaster, he had to rely on the cover of the dunes. Still, his armaments allowed him to deal devastating damage, whenever the occasion arised.

Despite their lack of experience, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew the Bellzelute expertly. While flying around the enemy ship, they took pot shots at the turrets with the orgone rifle. All three of them worked together as one, supporting each other whenever possible and gaining the upper hand, despite all other disadvantages.

"So this is a Gundam battle." The boy, Garrod Ran, said to himself, as he watched the scene. It was nothing like he was used to. Even when he had the Gundam X for a brief time, he was mostly just relying on it's technological superiority. When he was surrounded by all those mercenaries, he could do nothing but cower and would be dead if it wasn't for the satelite cannon. And said cannon was now the reason Tiffa was in a coma.

Finally, the battle drew to a close. Most gun turrets were already taken out and the supporting mobile suits were destroyed. The Gundam Leopard shot a barrage of missiles towards the bridge of the enemy, making a dent into it's base and probably shaking up the crew members.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy also saw a chance, to take out a row of the remaining turrets. Mid flight, the shot launchers of the Bellzelute flew off the hips and attached themselved to the top and bottom side of the orgone rifle, as they landed on one side of the ship.

The turrets were already moving towards them, so the ponies had to react quickly. The orgone rifle opened up a bit and the energy started to flow. Then Rainbow Dash pulled back the rear part of the rifle, making it almost look as if the Bellzelute was wielding a bow.

Fittingly enough, the orgone energy formed a large, crystalline arrow in front of the rifles muzzle. As the shot was fired, the arrow sliced clean through all obstacles, leaving several of the remaining turrets wrecked and scorching the side of the ship. Even the two pilots, who had the knowledge engrained into their minds were impressed by the strength.

This was the ultimate weapon of the Bellzelute and it deserved that status. While they were glad that they had such power available, it also made them worried. Was anyone hurt with that shot? They silently swore to only use it if everything else failed. That was not just an ethical decision however, since this shot also drained a good portion of the Bellzelute's energy.

Something then flew up into the sky, a flare. The signal was a bright yellow. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy got a message from the Freeden's bridge, explaining to them what it meant.

The different ship crew's, wandering the wastelands were called Vultures, after the carrion eating birds. Communication between ships was mostly done using these flares. The yellow signal was a surrender, it meant that they didn't want to fight anymore.

Captain Jamil accepted the surrender and allowed the other ship to gather the remains of their mobile suits, as well as any surviving pilots and escape with them. They in return, welcomed the pilot of the mobile armor on board.

In order to keep the ponies a secret from the outside world a bit longer, they faked a fault in the cockpit, that would require the pilots to stay inside for a bit longer. This did not keep them from getting a good look however.

The pilot of the purple mobile armor had a clean, sharp look to him. While they didn't know humans for long, this was pretty much how they would picture a noble of their species to look like. That brought up the question what he was doing in that robot, right in the middle of the desert.

"I don't know Fluttershy, I just have this weird feeling about him." Said Rainbow Dash, who's instincts told her that this guy was trouble. She may have had that feeling before and was wrong, like when Nightmare Moon returned and she briefly thought Twilight was a spy for her but everything about that guy screamed at her to keep an eye on him.

"It is a bit strange but the poor man was just chased around the desert. At least he should get the chance to rest for a while. And who knows, maybe we can become friends after all. You should give him a chance." Argued Fluttershy. While she was also nervous about him, her kindness won over.

After the man, Oulba Frost, was shown to his room, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy finally left the cockpit of the Bellzelute. While walking away, Oulba Frost shot a curious look at the machine. The look in his eyes was strange, almost as if he was mentally somewhere else for a moment. The pegasi however shrugged it off and went to talk to their own rooms. With that visitor present, their freedom to move around the ship was limited but maybe it won't be too long.

During the night something happened. The guard that stood in front of the brig got a whif of something strange smelling, before losing consciousness. Shortly after that the door opened and the prisoner escaped.

After following the forested area for a while, the Freeden stood by a large field. A short distance away, Garrod Ran was kneeling on the ground. For the past few days, whenever they were in the right area, he would sneak out and get a few flowers for Tiffa. He didn't know if it helped but at least he was doing something.

Right now he had a few, nice flowers picked again and stood up to return. The night wouldn't last forever, so he had to be quick. As he turned around however, he saw captain Jamil, standing right in front of him. Garrod cursed inwardly, as he was spotted. "I knew it was you."

Wings of Rebellion

Resistance of steel

Chapter 8: Wings of Rebellion

It has only been mere hours after the fight. Luna and Spike were now inside the hangar of the so called: "Photon Power Lab" where one of their allies during the last hours hailed from. Sayaka was her name, piloting the Aphrodite. There was also the Dai-Guard but the robot has been disassembled in order to be moved back to it's owners base. "Pray tell, why could our other allies not join us?" Asked Luna, while their mechs got transported into the repair hall.

Sayaka still sat in the cockpit of her own mech and was a little confused by the antiquated speech that this girl, Luna, used. It was a little iffy, since she heard that some noble Britannians used that manner of speech to sound sophisticated. Still, a Britannian would have never helped to defend a Japanese city. Unless it was for infiltration purposes. A completely new model, not fitting with the Knightmare Frames the Britannian Empire normally used, would also throw off suspicion.

Still, she could answer that question without telling so much. In fact, she wondered why the two pilots didn't know of Dai-Guard. It was a pretty big deal back then, when it was first built. "The company that owns Dai-Guard has taken it back to their own headquarters. What the pilot did back then was already not the usual business of them, so I guess he acted on his own. Not exactly smart to just take a robot like that without permission from his boss but I admire his spirit."

The 21st Century Security Service Company was pretty known for being by the book, there was no way they would have just approved of such an intervention without an okay from the army. Sayaka couldn't help but wonder how they fared now.

Somewhere in the headquarter of said company, three people were being chewed out by their superiors. Akagi, Ibuki and Aoyama, the three people who piloted Dai-Guard winced as the head of the accounting department listed all the costs of the buildings that were damaged during their fight. As it is, it seems that even when they save the city, someone still has to pay for repairs. "Alright, you three just get back to work. Maybe we can get the Photon Power Labs to pay for some of the damages." He said, before leaving the three pilots in shame.

Back in the Photon Power Labs, the two mechs were now locked in position, as the maintenance crew prepared for all kinds of repair and recharging work. Some of the scientists were already preparing to ask the pilots of Vorlent about the energy system they use. After spending all energy to shoot down that bombing beast, they barely managed to scrape together enough energy to move it, so it took a while until they could finally get inside.

The cockpit opened. Sayaka had left her own mech first and was eager to meet the pilots personally. For now they only had their voices. Sayaka had to think about them for a bit. Maybe it was just bad reception but... this Spike guy sounded really young, almost like a kid. No chance though, children didn't pilot combat mechs, especially not such advanced models.

The cockpit of the Vorlent was not open and they could already see the pilots moving. Something was off on the shape though. The eyes of all present widened as they saw, what came out of the machine. Not a human but what looked like a dark-blue unicorn with wings. On the back of the mythical being was a small, reptilian creature.

The creature nervously approached them. For a moment they wondered, if this was some sort of prank. But why would a pilot pull a prank like that? Taking a reptile and a horse into the cockpit would only be an unnecessary danger. Then it spoke. "Greetings, my name is Princess Luna of Equestria, I have come to your world, seeking asylum."

Tsubasa Nishikori was currently smoking her pipe and enjoying the view of the garden. The city recovered fast as far as she heard. Even now, only hours after the battle ended, people were already repairing the damage, fixing buildings and replacing broken windows. Thankfully, her bathhouse did not suffer any damages. A slight smile crept on her face, as she imagined all the tired workers, who might want a relaxing bath after work.

More important however was, that Mazinger Z was still right in the middle of the battlefield. The pilder was missing, so nobody could pilot or steal it. However, that only means they would have to get Kouji and the Pilder, before they could continue their fight against Dr. Hell.

It was still a complicated situation and she wished that Hayato was still here. She remembered when she first picked the kid up. He tried to rob them, demanding all their money and free housing. It was a little shocking that he threatened to kill them if they didn't comply but that made it more amusing, when Cross put the brat in his place. Normally she would have just thrown him out, let Django take care of him but she had this strange feeling.

Despite her initial plans, she decided to take him in and tame the beast. As the years went by, Hayato learned some self control. He was still a wild one but much less of a rabid animal.

Then there was the day, professor Saotome showed up, asking for his help in a project. Tsubasa was sceptic at first, fearing it could be a trick but a gut feeling told her to let Hayato go. Still, she hoped he was okay and that he would return to the Kurogane house soon.

As for Mazinger Z. Django was currently keeping an eye on it, so it should be fine. And the police? Let them search all of Atami, it doesn't make much of a difference. But for now she had to go. She stood up and turned to leave, before addressing the elderly woman, Kikunosuke. "I will be picking up Kouji from the police department, Yasu, Sensei and Cross will come along. You take care of the house while we are gone." The elderly woman gave a slight bow, smirking knowingly.

In the Photon Power Labs, Luna and Spike sat down with Sayaka and her father, Professor Yumi. They have by now explained their situation and the circumstances, under which they came into this world. They even told them of the three other mechs, piloted by their friends.

"So your friends are also in this world, theoretically anywhere?" He stood up and walked around a little. This could be difficult for them. "I hope they are nearby. Not to imagine what would happen if one of them materialized right in the middle of the Britannian mainland." That technology in their hands, that could spell the doom of the free world.

Luna however did not understand why that would be a problem. "What is Britannia and why would that be a problem?" She asked. Was it a dangerous place? Were Britannians some savage beast like wild dragons, whom have abandoned all honor in favor of giving in to their greed completely?

"The Britannian Empire is a very cruel country. They believe that only the strong should have any rights and that those who are weak are second class citizens. They are very brutal in their expansion plans and even managed to take hold of the north-eastern part of this very island state." He explained to them, as he went over to a computer. After hitting some of the keys, a map was projected onto a screen on the wall.

It showed a large island, one half blue, the other red. "We are currently here, at the border between the still free Japan and the area the Britannians have already conquered. While they managed to get a hold of half the country, we and some other organizations have managed to keep the other half free so far. Unfortunately, since we do not have many resources, we can only defend for now." He lamented. It was sad to know, that half the population had to live under this brutal dictatorship now.

"It's true, I had to fight them off several times already." Interjected Sayaka. "The robots they use, the Knightmare Frames, are not nearly as strong as my Aphrodite, which is why we have been so successful in defense so far but they shouldn't be underestimated, since they can also be produced in large numbers." A few times it was a close call for her, as she got too cocky and relied too much on Aphodites strength. "If we can get the pilot of Mazinger to help us, maybe we can do something. I also heard that a new rebel group has formed under a very competent leader."

Whenever a tyrant rules, rebellion was a given. Luna has heard of the rebels that opposed king Sombra in his brief rule, before she and her sister toppled the tyrant. Due to his magical strength, those rebels were too soon in chains but luckily, that did not last long. Luna was taken out of her thought, when a man came rushing into the room. "Professor, we have received a message from out scouts. The Britannian Army is planning an assault."

Sayaka's face held something between a wince and a scowl as she heard this. "Of course, they see an opportunity and use it. We need to move in to defend." The last thing she wanted was for the Lab and the city to fall into Britannian hands. If that happened, the rest of Japan would be sure to follow shortly.

"Sayaka, Aphrodite A got damaged and the Vorlent is still not fully charged." The Professor explained, nervosity in his voice. "You would not be capable of fighting with maximum strength. Also, I do not know if we can count on Dai-Guard to be deployed again." The company controlling that robot, did not have the same scouting resources, so it was doubtful they even knew of the predicament.

"We have no choice. With some luck, the assault force will be weak. After all, they must have just recently gotten word of what Dr. Hell did as well." Sayaka assured her father. "And even without their strongest weapon, Luna and Spike can still do a lot of damage in the Vorlent." She said, gesturing towards the pair.

Luna took a step forward. "If a friend is in need, it would only be right to help them. You can count on my assistance." Spike stepped forward as well. "Don't worry, I'm sure together we can send them right back to where they came from." Despite his apparent confidence, his voice faltered slightly.

For a moment there was silence, as Professor Yumi contemplated the possibility. It was dangerous to send them out without proper repairs and refuels first but he had no choice but to trust in their strength. "Get ready and stay by the hangar. It will still take the Britannians a while to get here. We will repair and recharge as much as we can, you will move out in an hour." Sayaka, Luna and Spike nodded, before heading off towards the hangar.

About one and a half hours later, the Aphrodite and the Vorlent were moving through the forest near the mountain. Luckily, despite the exotic technology, the Vorlent accepted Photon Energy as means to recharge. While not at full capacity, they could at least fight properly now. Still, they limited themselves not to fly or use the ultimate weapon of the Vorlent, unless they have no choice.

Aphrodite was a bit worse off however. While the damage from the previous fight was not severe, they couldn't do any proper repairs. Instead they just bolted steel plates onto some of the damaged parts. It was not the most effective way to do things, certainly not the prettiest but it would have to do for now.

In the distance, they could see something moving towards them. "Watch out, our size puts us at a disadvantage in this forest. Try to keep low and keep your eyes open." The Aphrodite went into a crouched walk, followed by the Vorlent. They heads still peeked over the treetops but they didn't stand out that much anymore.

Luna was nervous, as they looked through the rows of trees. With their relatively small frames, those Knightmares could be behind every corner. They were bulky of course, which should make it easier to spot them. Spike readied the rifle, so they could fire the second they saw one of the enemies.

Sayaka looked back as she heard the humming of the activated rifle. "Please be careful. It would be very bad if we accidentally started a forest fire." At these words, Spike deactivated the rifle again. It was true, if they started a fire, it would spread quickly and could threaten the lab and the city.

Then they could see something behind the trees. It was still some distance away but some large shadows were moving around behind the treelines. "Sayaka, I think I spotted the enemy." Luna said, carefully pointing one of the Vorlents arms at the direction. "Understood, stay low and avoid direct confrontation until we are closer."

With a faster pace, they marched towards said shadows. When moving in such large mechs however, stealth was often pointless and the Britannian Knightmare Frames opened fire upon them. Aphrodite and Vorlent were running in between the trees, using them as cover while sprinting towards the enemy.

Luna and Spike got one good look at the first Knightmare Frame, before the Vorlents fist charged forward and took it's head off. The alicorn princess noted, that these were much boxier than the robots she saw up to now. As the upper part exploded, she saw how the large box on it's back was jettoned out of the frame and flew off. "What was that box that just flew off?"

Sayaka way busy herself, minimizing the damage to herself while taking out enemy frames. "Those are the cockpits. Knightmare Frames are designed, so the cockpit and pilot are removed from the rest of the frame, should it get too damaged." She explained, as the steel plates that covered some of the damages were being targeted by the enemy fire.

This was the first thing she heard, that she liked about this situation so far. At the very least, those Britannians did not completely disregard their soldiers lifes. "Alright, as long as we do not aim for the cockpits we can avoid any bloodshed." This put her mind at ease somewhat, as she was now not forced to kill them. Spike was also glad, as he readied the energy blade of the Vorlent. A low swipe later, two Knightmare Frames lost their legs and the cockpits shot off into the forest.

Despite the fact that their mechs were superior in strenght, the situation was still scary. Deep in the forest, they couldn't know how many enemies surrounded them. It seemed like some shots were randomly coming from the treelines. Aphrodite was fine, since Sayaka already had experience and managed to dodge most of the shots but Luna and Spike lacked such experience. Still, the Vorlent was much more agile, which allowed them to strafe their targets.

After a while, the two of them have managed to round up all their targets for now, leaving behind only piles of scrap metal and some cockpits, shooting off into the forest. Sayaka noted, that they would collect the scrap metal later to use it for themselves, a smart thing to consider. Not only would the enemy lose it's assets but they would gain new ressources. It was clear that the materials used by them were far inferior to those they used themselves but they should still have their uses.

As they were sure that all enemies were downed, the two of them made their mechs stand upright again. The damages done to them were visible but they were still not in danger. Most of them were scratches or indents. "We have won Sayaka, these fiends will not be a danger anymore."

"For now at least. Thank you very much. I don't know if I could have done this alone." Said Sayaka, although there was something fishy about this. They have taken out a dozen Knightmare Frames, roughly estimated. Normally there are a few more, especially considering that they should have had time to build up, since the local assault base was very quiet lately.

Their attention was drawn by an explosion, going off right in between them. Both jumped back, nearly falling over. They looked around and saw among the cliffs, several more Knightmare Frames. These however were not armed with simple rifles, they had rocket launchers, aimed right at them. "In the name of the Britannian Empire, surrender immediately." One of the soldiers yelled at them, using the Frames intercom.

Luna and Sayka cursed, while Spike sat in his place, looking clearly afraid. "P-princess Luna, what should we do?" He asked the Alicorn. It was a bad situation. The Vorlent could fly but then Sayaka would be alone on the ground. Against this advantage, she would have no chance. The Aphrodite could not fly and if she tried to flee, they could easily hit her.

"Luna, Spike, run." Said Sayaka, stepping in front of the two. "This was not really your fight to begin with, it is only fair that you get away. I can still stall them. Just tell my father what happened. They can put up the shield, until the others are back or we get some support elsewhere. But under no circumstances must they get a hold on your Vorlent."

"S-Sayaka..." Luna could not believe what she heard. She was supposed to just leave her behind? If Spike wasn't here, she would have fought to the end on her side, without a second thought. But he was here in the cockpit with her and she would not risk the life of this young dragon. "Spike, you take control of the Vorlent's movement. Return to the Lab and report what happened. I will use my magic to aid Sayaka."

Spike was at a loss now. He wanted to run but he also couldn't leave them behind. "Princess, I won't let you alone." Luna was grateful that he felt this way but now they were all still in this bad situation.

"What are you waiting for? Get out of your mechs." The Britannian soldier shouted again and all of the Knightmare Frames got into a fire ready position. Their patience ran dry and the head of the squad was about to give the order to attack, as something else showed up on their radar. From the side of the cliff, something flew towards them. It was shaped like a combat jet with a white, red and blue frame. It looked a bit like a bird with the talons underneath, where the wings were.

As it was closer, suddenly the joints shifted. This was not a jet, it was a mobile suit. The top of the jet became a shield, while the weapon was held in the other hand, pointed right at them.

A young boy with brown hear, wearing a green tank top and black shorts, was looking at the monitor in front of him. All of the enemy Knightmare Frames were in his line of fire. "Targets aquired, commencing attack." He said, in a cold, emotionless voice as he pulled the trigger.

On the outside, the Knightmare Frames tried to switch targets and shoot the enemy mobile suit down. However, their attempts were meaningless, as a larger, yellow beam of energy shot right at them. The strength of this attack must have been enormous, as it cut through all six of the Knightmares like they were nothing. Metal melted under the forces and they were practically ripped apart.

While the rescued pilots down in the forest were glad for the sudden rescue, they were all shocked as they saw, that even the escaping cockpit pods were destroyed by the relentless attack of the winged robot. Was this force really neccessary? And who was that pilot? Luna asked Sayaka but she did not know anything about this mobile suit either.

The beam died down, leaving only a smoking trail of destroyed cliffside in it's wake. As the mobile suit turned towards them, Luna, Spike and Sayaka were nervous. The Britannians were already bad but a weapon this strong would not leave them with any chance in this position.

The boy however had a different goal. He had a mission and the first step was, to win the trust of the Photon Power Labs. For this purpose, he waited near the Britannian base after his arrival. A chance like this was of course golden. A last second rescue and they would be too grateful to think that anything was off. With their help, he could advance in the overall goal.

With that in mind, he lowered the buster rifle and flew down, hailing them. "I am a member of the Japanese rebellion. I have managed to acquire this mobile suit and hereby offer my assistance."

So he was not hostile but really an ally, thought Luna, breathing a sigh of relief. But something seemed really off about him. His voice was almost like a golems, without any real motivation behind it. He sounded like reading from a script. Still, she would not insult someone who just saved her life. "Thank you very much for your assistance. My name is Luna, my co-pilot's name is Spike. We are here with Sayaka Yumi." She said, while gesturing towards the Aphrodite at the latter part.

"Hello, thanks for rescuing us. That beam of yours, that was really strong, I think it's as strong as the best weapon of the Vorlent." Spike said, kinda admiring the weapon. Even though he grew up in a peaceful environment, it seemed like boys just love flashy technology.

Heero mustered the unkown mech with care. In his mission briefing he learned about all the robots of the Photon Power Labs but this one has not appeared in any of his intelligence, as well as the pilots. Then there was the other robot that appeared yesterday. "My name is Heero Yuy, with your permission I will join you and assist you in combat." He said, still without any emotion in his voice.

Sayaka then spoke up. "Very well then, we appreciate your support. Let's head back to the base." The others agreed and so they headed back into the lab, where the mechanical team has already prepared everything for proper repairs. The metal that the Vorlent was made out of, was made up of a very exotic mixture from what they analyzed while they were gone. It seemed like the steel was mixed with a small amount of the green crystals, that were found in the energy generator of the mech. Fortunately, the self replicating nature of those would make it possible for them to repair any damages, if the Vorlent did not infuse normal steel with the crystals itself.

Sayaka and Heero were already out and the plates from the makeshift repairs were being removed from the Aphrodite, while they brought in the Alloy Z, that they used for proper armor. One of the engineers already approached Heero. "Hello there, just in case we need to repair your mobile suit, what is it made of?" He asked the teen.

"Gundanium." Was the short answer, that drew the looks of everyone in earshot. Gundanium was a downright legendary alloy, which is used to make only the best mobile suits, which were then called Gundams. Posessing one of those could make you a rich man in the wastelands of the colony drop.

The cockpit of the Vorlent then opened and Heero wanted to get a good look at these pilots. If those unknown factors were here, he would have to gather new intel himself but as long as they acted like the other accosiates of the Lab, he would act as planned. Maybe he can try to extract some information about the weapon systems of this machine. If memory served him right, the co-pilot stated it to be on par with his Wing Gundam's Buster Rifle.

As he saw however who stepped out of the Vorlent, a look of surprise spread across the otherwise stoic face.

Three way battle

Resistance of steel

Chapter 10 A three way battle

“I'm asking you again, where is it?” The large man asked Kouji. After the events of last night, Kouji Kabuto was too tired and passed out, soon after he destroyed that falling beast. He only remembered how he was lying on the ground, next to Mazinger Z, the detective right next to him. There were also his little brother and his grandfather. Kouji still could not believe it, his grandfather was dead. Just that morning they were bantering during breakfast, Shiro got scared by his scarred face again...

“I keep telling you, I can't remember a thing.” Despite his grief, Kouji refused to let this bastard see any weakness, so he remained stoic. But there was still another, pressing concern. “And anyway, where is Shiro?” He demanded. Even if he lost his grandfather, he at least still had his brother, he needed to know he was okay.

Detective Ankokuji was just cleaning his ear with his finger, as he suddenly remembered. “Ah yes, the kid. That reminds me. HEY, IS ANYBODY THERE!” He yelled, as Kouji suddenly got a very bad feeling.

“Hey, what do you want to do with my little brother?” He asked angrily. If they harm as much as a head on his body, he would rip them to pieces with his bare hands and use Mazinger Z to destroy the entire police station. It also seemed very fishy that the police would use such methods.

“Nothing, just gonna ask him if he knows, where the Pilder is.” The detective replied, a strange undertone in his voice. “Depending on his answer, I may have to hurt him a little.” That confirmed Kouji's suspicion. They actually wanted to get the information they wanted, by threatening his brother.

In another part of the police station, a young boy was waking up just now. He was so tired from all of yesterdays events, that he immediately fell asleep after he got something to eat. Outside, it was already dark. They have spent the entire day in the police station, while the police still asked his brother questions. “I wonder how long they're gonna need.” Strangely enough, there was almost nobody in the room with him. Shouldn't they watch him? The only person in the room was hunched over at a table, apparently asleep.

Shiro got up to go and wake the cop up, as he slipped and fell. It hurt, as he hit the ground but there was something strange. He had something wet on his hand, did somebody spill his drink? Shiro looked at his hand to see what it was and went pale. It was blood.

Now that he was sitting on the ground, Shiro saw all the bodies laying on the ground and let out a frightened scream. He could already figure out, that the slouched police officer was also dead. He needed to get out. Shiro made a dash for the door, dodging the corpses on the floor, as he heard voices coming from outside.

“What do you think he wants with the kid?” One man asked. “He'll ask about the Pilder of course.” His partner answered.

“And what if he also plays dumb?”

“Then I'll use this. Maybe seeing his brother getting killed right in front of his eyes, will make the other guy talk.”

A short, metallic sound, like from a knife was heard outside. Shiro got very scared, they were going to kill him! “I need to get out.” Shiro quickly went to the window, there was no other choice now. He opened it up and looked down. His room was too high up, he would break his legs if he jumped. Behind him, Shiro could hear the two men trying to get in and see their silhouettes behind the door. There was no other choice now.

With that, the door creaked open.

In the Photon Power Labs, Heero Yuy had been introduced to everyone and everypony. Now that the Britannian forces were beaten back, they finally had the time to do some proper repairs and their mechs were almost fixed up. In the city, no one would even know that there was an attempt at invasion for a while and that was probably for the best. The events of last night were bad enough, the civilians did not need to hear more bad news.

While keeping his affiliation a secret, Heero explained that he was fighting against the Britannian Empire and their allies from the Organization OZ. Then there was the school he was staying at, during his time on Earth. He still had to take out that girl, she saw him on the beach in his spacesuit.

“Very well then Heero, we would be pleased to have your assistance.” Professor Yumi said. He still felt bad though. First his daughter, now this kid. It should be the adults that fought in battles, not the young ones. Instead he sat here in the lab, behind an energy field and turrets.

“Understood, I will be assisting you in the fight against the Britannian occupators. As soon as all combat units are repaired, I would suggest an attack on their base nearby. With their troops decimated, the resistance would be light.” The boy said, in a somewhat creepy monotone.

This was a quality of Heero, that was kinda unsettling for the others. They had met soldiers before, but none of them were quite this cold. “Not too hasty Heero. There has been a new threat confirmed and we need to find the pilot of this robot.” Professor Yumi pressed a few keys on the console and the screen in the room showed Mazinger Z, still lying against a ruined building, surrounded by police.

An unwelcome delay but getting their hands on this machine would be a considerable advantage. “Understood, we can eliminate the police forces around the perimeter and secure this combat mech.” He suggested, much to the shock of everyone around him.

“We will do no such thing!” Luna said, practically offended at the suggestion. “These police officers are just doing their job, keeping the populace save. I guarantee, if you harm them I shall personally punish you.”

“I have a mission. If you impede my progress, I will kill you.” Heero threatened the princess, who was shocked at his words. He had to get used to the idea, that there apparently was a world full of colorful ponies but it would not make a difference to his mission. She can be as magical as she wants to, he decided to treat her as any other human resource.

Professor Yumi sighed as Luna and Heero continued to bicker about their methods. He decided to look at the screen, which showed the footage of several cameras around the city. Wherever he looked, police officers were busy searching the area. Every picture was practically full of uniformed people.

At this point, something seemed strange to him. Where did all these policemen come from? He was certain, that Atami did not have so many officers. “Wait a minute, something isn't right here. Those can't be all local police officers.” He exclaimed, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

Heero cursed himself, for not noticing this himself. There was of course something strange about the situation. If what he heard of this new enemy was right, he might have already infiltrated the city. “You are right, we need to head out immediately and investigate. I will take the Wing Gundam and head towards the police station.” He said, before making his way towards the hangar.

This was bad, the repairs and recharges on Aphrodite A and the Vorlent were not finished yet, they couldn't just head out with patchwork repairs again.

“Professor, I still have considerable, magical powers. I will accompany Heero and assist him as needed. With my abilities I can stay out of sight.” Princess Luna said, before following Heero. At the door, Spike stopped her.

“Wait, let me come with you.” He demanded.

“I am sorry Spike but no. This is way too dangerous, you are not protected by the Vorlent out there and unlike an adult, your scales are not as thick and your fire not as strong.” Luna hated having to tell him this but she could never forgive herself, when the dragon that Twilight hatched and her sister raised was hurt or worse. “But I promise you, I will come back. Please take care of the lab for me.”

Spike raised his claw and opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something but in the end he just sighed and stepped aside. “Thank you Spike.” Luna said, before running after Heero.

There was a second reason she wanted to go with him though, she wanted to make sure he won't harm an innocent person.

Staying steady inside of Wing Gundams cockpit has certainly been a challenge. This robot was made with only one pilot in mind, so Luna had to squeeze in behind the seat. Heero was not happy to let her into the cockpit of his Gundam but ultimately decided, he needed to win their trust if he wants their help.

Right now they were halfway to the city already, the Wing Gundam was transformed into flight mode. Now it resembled a bird instead of a winged human. “We are almost there, try to stay quiet, I have to concentrate.” Heero ordered. Luna scoffed but didn't say anything. As rude as Heero was, she still wanted to give him a chance. Also she believed that there was more to his behavior than just rudeness.

The voice of Professor Yumi then chimed in through their communicator and several pictures appeared on the side of the main screen, showing several masked men in places, where police officers stood just a moment ago. “Heero, Luna, it is confirmed that these policemen were fake, these soldiers must belong to Dr. Hell.”

This was really bad. Those soldiers must be everywhere in the city now. While Luna was visibly distressed, Heero kept his cool and assessed the situation. “It would be impractical to just sweep the entire city with Wing Gundam. If the enemy has disguised himself as the police, it would be common sense to assume that they use the police station as headquarters. If we take out the leader, the rest of the troops will retreat.”

That sounded like a good plan, this way they would also lower the risk of getting innocent people killed. Sayaka then chimed into the conversation. “Don't destroy the police station! The pilot of the big robot that helped us was taken in for questioning, he is most likely there for interrogation.”

This of course complicated the matter. One shot with the buster rifle would be enough to destroy the station but now they had to rescue the pilot of that black robot first. That meant having to find a suitable landing place, going in, getting the pilot out and then destroying the police station. “Understood, prioritizing rescue mission.”

Luna then got an idea. “Wait Heero, I can use my magic to defend myself and teleport. You just drop me off at the station and remain in the air. As soon as I managed to rescue the pilot, I will teleport him onto the roof and give you a signal.” She offered him. That way they wouldn't need to let the Gundam unguarded and Heero could provide a distraction.

Heero looked back at her briefly. “That would make the rescue operation easier. Our target will most likely be in the holding area. That means he will be in the lower levels. Try to remain undetected for as long as possible.” Maybe it was not so bad to have this pony princess with him. She has already shown him that magic was real, this could prove useful. Even though it was still strange that he had a talking, magical pony in his cockpit.

Finally they reached the city, where they headed straight to the police station. The soldiers they passed saw them but would not be able to alert their leader in time if Luna was quick. But as they finally reached the building, there was something going on on the roof. Floodlights were pointed at a child, standing at the very edge and another person was there too. Luna recognized him. “The robed one, that is the leader of the enemy troops.”

This may be a stroke of luck. The enemy leader was basically served on a silver platter, one burst with the vulcan gun would take care of him. Normally he would use the buster rifle but he did not want to harm the child.

Baron Ashura turned around and looked into the sky, as it heard something approaching. Wing Gundam stopped only a jump away from the roof and transformed in midair. The limbs shifted, turning it back into the humanoid form, looking straight at Baron Ashura.

“Taking out enemy leader.” Heero said, before firing the vulcan gun. What he did not expect, was that Baron Ashura just leaped into the air, higher than any human should be capable of jumping, dodging the fire. Instead of taking out the enemy leader, Heero just shot the roof full of holes.

“Damn you, did you really think that would be enough to kill me!” Baron Ashura yelled at Wing Gundam, as it landed again. For the first time, Heero was unsure what to do. This was clearly not a normal human being, now he could also see this strange creature, as if one half of a man and one half of a woman were sewn together. But he also saw something else. A woman in a kimono, quietly approaching Baron Ashura from behind and calmly putting a hand on it's shoulder.

“Wait, I saw that woman, she helped the pilot of the large, black robot to destroy the mechanical beast.” What was she doing here and why did she start talking with Baron Ashura, as if she knew it. Baron Ashura wanted to turn around and grab the woman, but as it's hand touched hers, electricity started to surge through its entire body, lighting up the entire roof.

“It seems like she has the same idea as we have.” Another potential ally and apparently a skilled assassin. A bright flash came from the area where the front door was but Heero could not see what happened from his current standpoint. Just a moment later, an explosion came from the area and they could see the windows in the building shatter.

“Oh no, I hope the pilot we came to rescue was not hurt. Heero, I'm going to go out now, keep an eye on Baron Ashura.” Luna said, as her horn glowed and she teleported out, just a few feet above the Wing Gundam. The woman still stood behind Ashura. She was currently not shocking it with whatever weapon she had but the strange hybrid was hunched over. It was strange, knowing how strong Baron Ashura was and seeing this woman completely in control of it.

By now the woman had Baron Ashura against the rails and was preparing to strike down. At this point, someone else came onto the roof with sword in hands. He was not a soldier for the enemy but a civillian. “You bastard! I will never forgive you for killing my grandfather!” He yelled. That was him, the pilot of that large robot.

Startled, the woman let go of Baron Ashura, allowing him to get away from her. “Ah, thank you. All I needed was to get away from her for a moment.” It said, before raising the staff it held into the air. “Now, come! Mechanical Beast Nonakago H2!”

From the air, something floated towards them. Another one of the mechanical monsters. This time it was large and oval, with something that looked like a face on it's abdomen.

Heero aimed the twin buster rifle at hit, prepared to fire, as something else came up. “ALARM! IT'S A HETERODYNE! FROM THE COAST!” One of the soldiers yelled, running up towards the police station. All eyes were now on the coast, where a large, cross shaped creature. On the arms were some sort of feelers attached. It was now floating straight towards them.

In the Photon Power Labs, Professor Yumi, Sayaka and Spike were watching how Heero and Luna went in to save Kouji. They watched how that mysterious woman took down Baron Ashura without problems and how the mechanical beast and the Heterodyne appeared. “What is that?” Asked Spike, pointing at the screen that focused on the monster.

“A Heterodyne. One of those monsters has appeared over a decade ago. The robot Dai-Guard was built to defeat them after an entire city had to be destroyed to kill the one that appeared. No other has shown up and Dai-Guard was left to the twentyfirst-century-security company.” Sayaka explained. “Father, we have to call them. If a Heterodyne appeared, then Dai-Guard should be equipped to handle it.”

“Good idea Sayaka.” Professor Yumi went to the phone. He and the CEO of the company knew each other. The Photon Power Labs are good customers of his company and frequently bought security technology from them, in order to protect their technology from Britannian spies.

While they waited for anyone to pick up, Spike thought about the situation. They had this evil empire to fight, then there was this Dr. Hell guy and now there were monsters just randomly popping up. Was this really the safest place for the princess? Right now it seemed that they were just moving from one disaster to the next. And what about the others? Twilight and Rarity just had to be okay, he wouldn't want to imagine what could happen to them in this apparently, unceasingly hostile world.

Finally someone at the other line picked up. “Hello... who are you?” Professor Yumi asked. Spike and Sayaka were confused, shouldn't the professors acquaintance have picked up this call? “What do you mean Dai-Guard has been placed under government control? Shouldn't you have launched it by now?” Professor Yumi sounded very angry.

Instead of the CEO of the twentyfirst-century-security company, someone named Shirota picked up the call and explained, that the government of the remaining Japan has seized control of the company and Dai-Guard. The company was currently under investigation, now that the crisis level has been raised.

“Listen well, the enemy has the city under control, a Heterodyne has appeared. We have some new allies but they are not enough to deal with all of this. Sayaka can confirm, you have some very skilled pilots for Dai-Guard so launch it if you want to protect the people of this city.” Professor Yumi argued.

The situation seemed grim indeed. Shirota has already received the report of the enemy troops in the city, as well as the mechanical beast and Heterodyne. Now that the professor has mentioned the pilots from yesterday, this might be an opportunity to test them. “Very well professor, this might go against military protocol but this is an emergency situation, we will launch Dai-Guard.”

In the city, Kouji, Tsubasa and the others were fleeing the scene, while Heero kept the mechanical beast busy. Current objective was to destroy the enemies, while keeping the collateral damage at a minimum. The civilians at this point were fleeing their homes, despite Baron Ashura's troops on the street. Said soldiers were taking cover themselves, as there would soon be a three way battle between the mechanical beast, the Heterodyne and the Gundam.

Luna knew, without the Vorlent the enemies were too big for her to take on. Instead she kept to the shadows. With raw power she would not help at all here but if she could cast the right spell at the right time, it would greatly assist Heero.

Heero himself was observing the mechanical beast, looking for a weak spot in the thick armor. His Buster Rifle was strong but he already heard from Luna that the armor of those mechanical beasts was also powerful. While he did not exactly know the strenght of the Vorlent's weapons, a rough estimate would be that it is on par with his rifles power.

The 'teeth' that the mechanical beast sported then folded to the side like fins. They charged with electricity and the lightning arced towards the Wing Gundam. Heero tried to fly away, getting more distance between him and the enemy but it was futile. As if they were in fact whips, the bolts of electricity wrapped themselves around the limbs of his Gundam and pulled him closer.

The mouth of the beast opened as the upper body started to float upwards. The opening was big enough, so that the Wing Gundam could easily fit in there. Heero tried to escape from the electromagnetic net but none of his controls wanted to obey. “The mission was a failure.” There was one thing left. He would try to activate Wing Gundams self destruct sequence, to protect it's secrets and take out the enemy. But just as the mechanical beast tried to close him off, princess Luna appeared.

The princess was protected by what he could only assume was a magical shield, that dispelled the electromagnetic net as it tried to capture her. She flew towards Wing Gundam and increased the size of the shield, to engulf Wing and free him. “Heero, quick, fly away. I cannot keep this shield up for long.” She sounded strained, so Heero wasted no time. He reactivated the boosters and flew quickly out of the beasts mouth with Luna.

The alicorn quickly got herself to safety, on top of the nearest building. Not only did she need a lot of energy to hold off that robots powers, she also needed to create a fairly large shield to protect Wing also.

After he ascended far enough in his opinion, Heero turned Wing around and faced the Nonakargo again. There also was the Heterodyne, which was getting closer. Something was strange about it though. As far as Heero knew, the Heterodynes caused a lot of destruction in their wake but this one seemed to make a direct beeline towards them.

Something else also got into his sights. A few trucks, speeding towards them. There was a portable crane and all the parts of Dai-Guard. “Reinforcements have arrived.”

The wild ones

Resistance of steel

Chapter 11 The wild ones

Three figures were sitting at a campfire, surrounded by their robots. The Shenlong Gundam, Coustwell and G9 Gernsback were covered in leaves to hide them from sight. It took quite a while to gather enough but it's better to be safe than sorry. Wufei quietly sat against a tree, while Applejack and Pinkie Pie were joking around at the fire.

Gain Bijou however was not present for now. A nearby outpost reported trouble and requested assistance, which he volunteered for. Plans were quickly made, so he could rejoin them at the next outpost on their route. It was sad for them to have to part but Pinkie Pie was already planning their welcome back party for Gain.

Kurtz, who was talking to Tessa on the radio of his mech, then came back to them and sat down. „Alright everyone, I just got the following message. Something important was stolen from the Saotome research facility and they believe the thieves will be in the area.“ He announced to them. „They also have their own unit after them.“

Wufei spoke up. „Should we pursue them?“

Kurtz shook his head. „We are still heading for our original destination. We will only engage them, if we happen to run into them. Otherwise everything stays the same.“ He explained. Their unit was small enough and time was of the essence. Too many distractions could proof themselves fatal for the plan.

Applejack then raised her hoof. „One question though, what exactly do these people do? Ah would like to know before we get anything back for them.“ Technology could be quite dangerous, that was something she quickly learned here. It was actually quite ironic. When they were transported into this world, Applejack wanted to be as careful as possible, so they won't destroy anything with the Coustwell. Now there were more than enough people here, where they have to worry about the Coustwell getting destroyed.

Kurtz put a finger on his chin. „I don't know exactly. From what I've heard, they are researching a new energy source. It's supposedly powerful but unstable, so we are to exercise extreme caution. The captain said, if we are not sure we can retrieve the package without damaging it, we are to abort the mission and continue with out own, staying silent.“

These orders were pretty logical to him. If they have stolen some new form of energy reactor, it would be unwise to risk blowing up half the countryside. And the pursuit unit from Saotome should know what it's doing. They were probably scientists, who would exercise an almost surgical precision.

Suddenly Pinkie Pie's left eyelid twitched three times and a shiver seemed to go through her. Applejack for some reason seemed to be nervous. „Uh Pinkie, what does that combination mean?“ She looked around, as if she expected to be jumped by a bear or something. She saw the confused expression of Kurtz and Wufei and started to explain. „Sometimes Pinkie can predict future events with a series of strange twitches. Ah know it sounds silly but it's true.“

The two humans still couldn't quite believe it. Many tried to predict the future and only got a hit with luck, if at all. With slight bemusement, Kurtz remembered the entire year twenty-twelve stuff, where many people believed the world would end. The new years celebration was probably pretty awkward for them.

Pinkie Pie then explained her prediction. „I don't get that combo too often, I just know that it means someone will be proven wrong about something they believed very soon.“

Kurtz then laughed at this. „Oh, is that all? Good then that we won't be attacked in our sleep. But seriously, if you can predict the future, we should use you as an early warning system.“ He joked.

„That sounds like a good idea to me. That way we will be one step ahead of any enemies.“ Applejack chimed in, apparently not noticing that Kurtz was just pulling their legs. „But ah think we should go to sleep now, we still have a long day ahead of us.“

A good idea, since they were up for very long every day lately. Kurtz agreed to take the first watch. They all crawled into the little tents and soon fell asleep.

Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Wufei were currently waiting for Kurtz to come back from his scouting trip. They were about to cross a large, open area and needed to make sure no one was nearby to spot them. Right now they were by a cliffside, still shielded from view. Finally the radio buzzed and they heard the german snipers voice.

„You three need to come here immediately, I've found the thieves we heard about yesterday.“ It was a strange coincidence, that they found them just after hearing about the theft but they needed to see the situation for themselves and went on their way, climbing up. „Make sure to keep your heads down and avoid making too much noise. They are currently going through the pass on the other side of the cliff.“

The others slowed down a bit and were very careful. Giving away their position would ruin their chances and put them into a bad spot, so they slowly crawled up. On the top they saw Kurtz's M9, slouched behind some rocks for cover. „Alright, we have to be very careful now. They are about to pass underneath, you take those rocks over there and on my signal we push them down on them. That should be a nasty surprise.“

„I prefer surprise parties but I guess we can't do that.“ Said Pinkie, trying to bring in a little fun. She was clearly not happy with the idea of fighting even more but she needed to cheer up the others more than ever now. They got into position and, on Kurtz's signal, they caused the rocks to fall down on them.

Now that they were out of cover, they got a clear look at their enemies. The arms slaves they were using were all roundish, bulky humanoids with sand colored plating. As they looked up, Applejack and Pinkie saw their heads, lacking any features aside from the four, red eyes.

They have heard from Kurtz about this model on the way, these are called: Savage. They scattered, trying to avoid the falling rocks but many were squashed or heavily damaged. For a brief moment the ponies were horrified but as the enemies opened fire, there was no more time to think. Wufei wasted no time and leapt down, prepared to engage the enemies in close combat. With some hestitation, Applejack and Pinkie followed with their Coustwell. Even if some of the enemy pilots died because of the rocks, now they could avoid additional deaths.

Kurtz was no good at close combat, he decided to use his rifle from up top. The higher ground was making it difficult for the enemies to hit him and they were busy with the Gundam and the Coustwell, it couldn't go better. As soon as they had won, they would round up the surviving enemies, tie them up and use one of their emergency beacons.

With clearer view he also saw, that one of the rocks had hit the truck, that stored the stolen goods. The container was badly dented but did not seem to have been too damaged. „Oh man, I hope the stolen goods are not damaged, otherwise the captain will have me scrub the toilets for a month.“

The battle was quickly decided in their favor. The escort was not too big to begin with and their ambush only helped to weaken them further. Soon all the Savage units were unable to continue combat and they had to surrender. Under Applejack's and Pinkie Pie's watch, the pilots were tied up, so they couldn't call for reinforcements after they left.

Now that the situation has calmed down, Kurtz then noticed an opening in the container. „Wait a second. The container is open, I need to check if everything is alright in there.“ He did not notice how the enemy soldiers seemed to get really scared and the sky darkened. Just as Kurtz was about to take a look inside, they heard a loud howling.

In the plains, a lone figure stood, howling towards the sky. It was humanoid but the red skin, too large build and horns quickly destroyed any delusions about it being human. A storm brewed overhead, with the eye right above the creature. Something came down from the eye of the storm. It was a huge creature, almost like an insect with a demonic head and dragonfly wings on it's back, with a sickly yellow color.

„What the hell is this?“ Wufei asked in shock, as he ran back to his Gundam. Everyone got ready for battle. Applejack and Pinkie Pie readied the Coustwell for combat. Kurtz repositioned himself on top of the cliff, to get a clear shot on the beast. Looking through the video feed of his sniper scope, he aimed at the head of the creature.

They could see, how the gigantic creature picked the smaller one up from the ground and held it in front of its head. There was a strange glow in the eyes of the larger monster. „Are they communicating somehow?“ Kurtz wondered, as he watched. Then, without warning, the insect-like giant stuffed the humanoid into its mouth and ate it. The ponies who watched it felt nauseous as they saw the blood on the skull-like face.

As the monster finished its meal, it looked at them and charged. „AJ, Pinkie, Wufei, we have to destroy it somehow. We can't just let that thing rampage through the country.“ Kurtz ordered and opened fire. The bullets from his rifle chipped away at the carapace of this monster but did not seem to do any significant damage. Kurtz grimaced as he noted, that he would need to shoot at this thing all day to even cause any serious damage.

The size of this monster was impressive, thought Wufei, as he got closer. Even his Shenlong Gundam only went up to the things knees. When he entered close combat range, the beast swatted at him with it's oversized arms. Swiftly he jumped over the swipe and brought his beam glaive down on it.

Wufei thought, this would be enough to cut one of it's arms off but instead he had great trouble cutting through the flesh. With his glaive stuck in the arm of the beast, it brought him up to its face. „Oh no you don't.“ Wufei said, as he raised the arm with the dragon fang towards it and a stream of flames shot out. This seemed to be more effective, as the monster recoiled.

By now Wufei also managed to unlodge the Gundams beam glaive and jump down from the arm again. As the monster was still staggering, Kurtz and the ponies aimed a volley of the orgone fists and rifle shots at its face, managing to knock it down. „And the insect is swatted.“ Pinkie cheered.

Their cheers were quickly dying down though, as the monster got back up. As they looked at its face, they saw that the damage was still not enough. It quickly dawned upon all of them, that they could slow this thing down at best. „Everyone fall back. We have to flee to the next outpost and give an evacuation warning to all Mithril outposts in this area.“ Kurtz ordered. Their attack was a bust, now they could only reduce the damage.

„What about those guys?“ Applejack asked, pointing towards the soldiers they tied up earlier. They were all clearly scared out of their minds. Many desperately tried to get up and flee. „I know they are our enemy but we can't just leave them for this monster.“

Kurtz sighed. This was bad, the ponies would never forgive him if he left the enemy soldiers to die. „I'll let them free, you try to distract that thing just a little longer.“ With that he packed up his sniper rifle and jumped down to the bottom.

As he landed, a large explosion rang through his ears. „What the? The M9 is not that heavy.“ But then he heard another explosion, coming from the direction of the creature. It seems like reinforcements have arrived.

The reinforcements were about three, large combat jets. One was red, the other silver, the last one yellow in color. Whatever explosives they used in their missiles must have been the really good stuff. The monster was now visibly hurt and angrily swatted at them. However, with their maneuverability, these attempts remained fruitless.

Inside the cockpit of the red jet, the pilot was grinning. „Alright guys, let's not waste anymore time. Those Mithril guys look like they are in trouble. CHANGE GETTER-1.“ He yelled and the three of them flew in formation.

The ground-bound troops wondered what they were doing, as they started to fly in a line with the red one in front, silver in the middle and yellow at the end. The giant monster started to spit lightning at them but even with that, the three pilots remained undeterred. The three jets started to connect, forming one large ship.

That was not all though. The form shifted and twisted. Arms and legs formed and they could now see the head of the humanoid form, almost as tall as the monster they fought. The combined robot flew straight towards the insect-monster, ramming it's fist into it before landing a few dozen meters away from it.

Everyone got a good look at it now. Almost like a horned, red demon it stood tall with wing-like appendages on the back and sharp looking blades on its arms.

„Holy shit, those guys know how to make an entrance.“ Kurtz noted, as he watched them go in for their second attack. The monster did not even get any time to recover, before getting another, red fist into its skull.

As the red robot jumped in the air, trying to deliver a flying kick however, the beast managed to grab it and throw it away. As it landed, the monster tried to smash it with its tail but the allied pilots managed to evade and go for the next attack.

The mouth of the monster opened its jagged jaw and shot an energy beam, hitting the red mech right in the chest, sending it flying again. The others were worried that this might not be enough and they had to flee after all but their spirits were raised as the robot got up again. „Alright everyone, let's at least distract that thing.“ Kurtz ordered and continued fire. He did not have much ammo left but it was unlikely they would encounter a larger enemy on the way to the next outpost.

Applejack, Pinkie and Wufei followed suit. Wufei jumped in front of the monster and used the flamethrower of his dragon fang again, burning the monster and blocking its sight.

„Alright Pinkie, let's try out best.“ Applejack said. With the pushing of a few buttons, the attachements on Coustwells shoulders came off and flew towards the monster, combining in mid air. The Coustwell followed suit, attaching the two on its hand. Next Pinkie Pie channeled much of the orgone power into that claw and a crystal grew, creating an even larger claw.

With this, they rammed the right leg of the beast. The orgone crystal shattered, after they slashed open a huge gash on the leg. For a moment the ponies were squicked out by the blood coming from it. The broken orgone crystals then reacted, exploding wherever they were flying through the air and damage the beast further.

The main pilot of the red mech grinned at the sight. „Looks like they are not as wimpy as I thought. But anyway, let's finish this. GETTER TOMAHAWK!“ By now some sort of spiked ball came out from a compartment on the back and a blade and handle came out of it, creating the weapon.

Charging at the monster, it tried to take them out with lightning again, blindly firing past the flames of the Shenlong Gundam. With a jump, they bridged the final distance between themselves and the monster, bringing the large tomahawk down on it, as the Gundam and the Coustwell jumped away from the monster.

It was a clean cut, right through the middle. Blood was gushing out of it, as the monster fell dead and exploded. As the beast was confirmed dead, cheers went through the air, by all the pilots and even the soldiers that were still tied up.

After the battle, the pilots of the Getter robo disassembled their robot into the three individual jets again and landed nearby. The leader of the group, Ryoma quickly checked on the container. To their horror they learned, that more of the Oni, as these monsters were called, must have escaped during the fight. Professor Saotome gave the Getter team the order to accompany Kurtz and his entourage.

But first a little briefing was in order.

The Gundam, M9 and Coustwell approached the trio and kneeled down, so their pilots could get out easier. „Who lets a child pilot a multimillion war machine?“ The tallest of the Getter pilots asked. His name was Hayato. He used to make his living robbing people, until he tried it at the wrong place and was quickly subdued. After a few more years, he mellowed out somewhat, although he still loved a good fight more than anything.

Wufei remained stoic however. He was above letting himself be provoked like this. As Applejack and Pinkie Pie got out of their mech however, the Getter pilots eyes shot wide open in confusion. „First of all, thanks for saving us back then. Second, yes you are seeing this. These two ponies are the pilots of the Coustwell.“ Kurtz said, gesturing in the direction of the two.

As Applejack and Pinkie Pie introduced themselves, the three of them reluctantly shook their hooves. Ryoma, Hayato and Benkei all at once took a deep breath and figured, nothing was impossible. After all, they were piloting a giant robot and fought against demons.

„Alright, we just destroyed a giant monster and got introduced to colorful, talking ponies. How about we keep moving before a purple dragon shows up.“ Ryoma suggested. As Pinkie Pie asked him how he knew Spike and explained how he was the assistant of her friend, who was a unicorn, Ryoma felt a headache coming on.

The question how they could follow without drawing attention was also answered quickly. It turned out the Getter robo could be combined into more than one form. The second form, with Hayato as main pilot had a giant drill. With this, they could tunnel through the ground beneath the group. So they got the Getter team into their radio frequency and headed for the next outpost.

On the way, AJ and Pinkie explained their situation and how they got here.

„Alright, let me get this straight.“ Ryoma started. „Your princess gave four powerful weapons of mass destruction to a farmer, a hyperactive, a bookworm, a diva, an introverted vet, an athlete, a baby and her schizophrenic sister?“ He counted.

While AJ really did not like the way he talked about her friends and the princesses, it was about right. „Yes, and now we need to find them and get princess Luna to a safe place.“ She added. „Also, princess Luna doesn't have some mental issues, she was possessed by an evil spirit.“

This did not make the situation any saner in Ryoma's eyes. „Anyway, those guys you are hiding moonbutt from must be pretty tough if you weren't gonna fight them with those mechs.“ He said, earning an unsees angry look from AJ and laughter from Pinkie Pie.

Benkei remained pretty quiet during the introductions but now he had some questions. „Say, have you ever heard about Amaterasu?“ He had this strange hunch about Celestia. Maybe she was connected to the sun goddess Amaterasu. After all, the horse was a sacred animal to her.

„No, never heard of her. Why do you ask?“ Answered Applejack. From those three she liked Benkei the most. Ryoma was way too respectless for her tastes and Hayato for some reason creeped her out. She felt as if he was dangerous.

„Well... in the Shinto religion the goddess of the sun is Amaterasu. Horses are the sacred animal to Amaterasu. So I thought, since your princess raises the sun, that she was somehow connected to her.“ Benkei answered. It seems his hunch was wrong.

„Actually, we're ponies, not horses.“ Said Applejack, somewhat surprised to hear this. The parallels were there, so she understood why Benkei would make the connection. „But maybe you can ask Luna if we meet her. She would know more about that.“ That is, if they meet her. The world was big and they had a lot of work already.

„Meh, ponies are just small horses anyway.“ Said Ryoma, clearly bored with having to sit there while they tunneled through the earth.

Benkei and Applejack decided to ignore him. „There was even a story, how Amaterasus brother, Susano-o almost created an eternal night and was banished. Although to the mortal realm instead of the moon.“ Benkei then explained. This got the attention of both ponies. The parallels were really astounding.

„He was jealous of her power, so to vent his frustration he burned down her rice fields, flayed a horse and threw it into Amaterasus loom and killed one of her servants.“ This story made the ponies nauseous. This Susano-o must have been a nightmare of a brother. Applejack was pretty sure not even Nightmare Moon was that bad.

Not knowing how ill the ponies felt, Benkei continued the story. „Amaterasu was so upset, she locked herself into a cave and refused to come out. Only through a huge festival could she be persuaded to come out again to raise the sun.“ He explained.

Pinkie Pie, who was first to recover grinned widely at the last part. „And that's why a good party can make everything better.“

„Sorry to interrupt your storytime but we're at the outpost. Here we're gonna restock, repair and pick up Gain Bijou again. He's not gonna believe what he missed.“ Said Kurtz, as the group reached their destination. With the Getter at their side and reunited with their friend, everything was looking up.

Author's Note

Okay, embarrassing story here. I almost had the chapter finished when I noticed that I completely forgot Gain. That's the reason he was not present for this chapter. I hope I can avoid this mistake in the future.

As for the Getter team. While Ryoma and Hayato (especially Hayato) are not as psychotic as in the series, I am not going to make them tame. That's something that just doesn't seem right.

Race against time

Resistance of steel

Chapter 12 Race against time

It has been a day, since Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy joined the crew of the Freeden. In the short time, they got along pretty well with everyone else. For now they were still kept a secret from their other guest, Oulba Frost, as they did not yet know if he could be trusted.

One thing that annoyed Rainbow Dash however, was that she couldn't go out for a fly. „I swear Fluttershy, I can actually feel my wings degrading.“ She complained, flapping in place in their room. Fluttershy listened to her friends woes. She herself would have liked to get some fresh air too but was more patient than Rainbow Dash.

„I know how you feel but we shouldn't draw unnecessary attention. It's difficult but since pegasi are apparently very unusual in this world, we would be a big deal." She tried to mediate. She knew how all of Equestria would react to a completely unknown animal, suddenly being spotted. A slight shiver went down her spine, as she imagined being put in the spotlight like this.

"Still, sitting in this room all day is so boring." The aggravated athlete said, slumping midair. Finally resigned, she dropped down on her bed and slammed her face into the pillow, sighing loudly.

Fluttershy really hated seeing her friend like this. Now she really wished Pinkie Pie was here. The party mare knew better how to cheer other ponies up. But then an idea hit her. "Say Rainbow, how about we visit Tiffa? I'm sure she would be happy." It was the best thing she could think of right now, even though it won't help too much. But she also wanted to help the comatose girl.

Rainbow Dash turned and thought about this idea. "Yeah I guess. We did promise and it's better than doing nothing." She got up and stretched a little, before they made their way to the medical bay.

On the way, the athletic pegasus started another conversation. "Say, is it just me or did that guy we picked up yesterday seem fishy?" Rainbow was a little mistrusting in general but something about this Frost guy seemed... off. It was as if he planned something.

"He seems a little scary but I hope he's a nice guy. But remember what we thought about Zecora, before getting to know her better?" Fluttershy reminded. It was still a little shameful for them and the rest of Ponyville, how afraid they were of the zebra. Zecora turned out to be not only nice but also a very talented herbalist. Many ponies would seek her, if they got sick.

Prejudice seemed to be an awkward topic in this world too. When they talked to some of the crewmembers and told them the story, many of them seemed to be genuinely surprised. They even said, that they can hardly imagine such nice and adorable ponies to be like that.

This was a little thing that aggravated Rainbow Dash too. She was cool, she was awesome, not adorable. When Toniya from the bridge wanted to hug her again, she tried to assert herself as cool by telling her the story about her sonic rainboom. This attempt backfired horribly, as Toniya imagined it and only found it more adorable. Other crewmembers of the Freeden almost had to get a crowbar to pry her off of the pegasus.

Finally they arrived at the med bay, where they could already hear the doctor, talking to captain Jamil. As they entered, before getting a chance to greet, they saw that all present were visibly distressed. Garrod Ran, who was also present, seemed to be the most upset. "Captain, is something wrong?" Asked Fluttershy, worried for Tiffa.

"We do not know how why but Tiffa's condition is getting worse." The doctor answered. "It is treatable but I just don't have the medical supplies here." The ponies eyes went wide. The life of the girl was in danger and the doctor did not have the means to help her. Also, they talked with other crewmembers enough to know, that they should not expect a hospital with advanced equipment and supplies anywhere nearby.

"What are we going to do?" Rainbow Dash asked, while Fluttershy went to Tiffa's side, softly stroking the girls hair.

"Let's gather all pilots for a mission briefing." Captain Jamil answered. "The Alternative Company has the supplies we need. We will get some of them for Tiffa." A grim determination was in his voice. It was clear that he would do anything to keep Tiffa safe.

On the bridge of the Freeden, all pilots were gathered for the briefing. Captain Jamil explained the situation, as well as their plan. Rainbow Dash and Jamil had talked about Garrod already and decided to let him use the Gundam X. It was clear that he cared a lot about Tiffa, so he won't try anything stupid while she was in danger.

Witz and Roybea however, seemed to be not so thrilled about this. "So you are telling us we should risk our lives, attacking the Alternative Company, so we can save the life of this girl?" Asked Witz.

"Well, of course, we can't just let her die." Answered Garrod. He could clearly hear that those two did not want to partake in this. Their attitude really pissed him off.

"Our contract was to get her on the Freeden, we did that." Added Roybea, already getting ready to leave. "Our work is done here, there is not more we will do." With that, he and Witz turned to leave, only to be blocked by Fluttershy.

"Please reconsider, this little girl needs our help." She pleaded. "We can't just abandon her."

Roybea shook his head. "People die every day. Even if she is a Newtype, that's not much of a difference." He ranted. Those ponies were way too naive. When they attack, there's a chance of more of them dying. Just letting it go was the best option. "In your little fairy tale land such line of thinking might be heroic but this world is much harsher. If you don't watch after yourself, no one will. Just get used to it." He finished, shaking his head lightly.

As he faced Fluttershy again however, he saw what was probably the last thing he expected of her. The eyes. Her eyes had this cold, icy stare in them. Both he and Witz recoiled, as they saw the meanest glare they've ever witnessed. Despite all they went through before, this filled them with more fear than anything before.

And then she started speaking, an angry rant of her own. "Yes, so much I've learned. This world is very harsh. But you know what? It won't get any better as long as people stay selfish and don't even try to change a thing. If you want to go, fine but I will stay here and help. Because that's how the world becomes a better place, by taking risks to help others."

Roybean and Witz practically felt every word rattling through their bones, as she finally stopped that stare. The rest of the bridge crew, minus Rainbow Dash, looked at them dumbstruck. They were not entirely sure, what they just witnessed.

"J-just this one mission. Then we're gone." Said Witz, unable to put up any more resistance. How did she do that? He's met people that had a pretty intimidating look about them but nothing nearly as intimidating as this.

Also a little surprised but quick to recover, Jamil explained the next part of the plan. "In one regard the two of them are right. Attacking by ourselves will only get us killed. Luckily, I know a few Vulture Captains nearby, who still owe me a favor. I think now is as good a time as any to call upon those favours." He said. "For now, let's just rest for a bit and gather our strenght."

The pilots present nodded, before retreating to their rooms.

The wait for the others was the worst. As Jamil thought about the upcoming battle he felt a wave of nostalgia. The Gundam X, together with the Leopard and Airmaster. This was not the first time he saw such a lineup.

The war with the colonies had just reached their decisive point, as they intended to use their trump card, the colony drop. Jamil remembered piloting one of the first models of the Gundam X, charging the anti-colony weapon as the Airmaster and Leopard pilots protected them from the enemy.

Back then, the Britannian Empire was a welcome help for a change. Together with their OZ allies, they managed to up the production of mobile suits against the colonies, so that only few actually did manage to enter earths atmosphere. Still, the tragedy of it all was firmly burned into the captains mind.

Looking at the Gundam X alone made him feel uncomfortable. In a way he was thankful for Garrod, as he himself could never manage to pilot this machine again.

Back in those days, Newtypes became nothing but weapons, now he would make sure that Tiffa never experienced the same.

She was peacefully sleeping right now and without a doubt, Garrod was with her. The kid was really determined to protect Tiffa, so maybe he and Jamil were not so different. The captain only hoped, that they would not share the tragedy, that befell them in the past.

Finally, the ships of his comrades arrived. There were three in total, all people that Jamil knew too well. Jamil greeted his friends and invited them onto the ship, where he explained his plan. They will fake a pincer attack from the sides, while a frontal assault will commence as soon as the moon is up. Against the enemy forces, they would need the power of the moon.

They even let Oulba Frost tag along after he expressed interest in the operation. It seems that he hoped for good pay in exchange for his help. Right now he was making some adjustments to his mobile armor, something he insisted to do himself. Kid almost saw that as a personal insult.

Just as he was leading Garrod to the hangar however, an explosion rocked the Freeden. Jamil and Garrod were almost knocked off their feet but managed to recover and ran for the hangar.

As they arrived at the scene, the mobile armor of Oulba Frost was operating and a large hole was shot into the side of the hangar. Oulba left the hangar and Jamil went down to the hole, looking outside. By now he realized that Oulba must have been a spy. And that means... "Tiffa!"

Outside of the Freeden, the mobile armor shifted its form. Arms and legs revealed themselves and slowly it was upright in the air. The mobile suit form of this Gundam then flew up to where the medical wing was. Claw-like appendages reached out from a compartment on the back of the mobile suit and rammed right into the wall, tearing it open.

The Freedens doctor quickly entered the room, only to see Tiffas bed in the hands of the mobile suit. "Wait, she is not supposed to be moved." In the face of a kidnapping, that attempt was futile though, as the mobile suit cradled Tiffa in it's hands, before flying off.

As Jamil then looked to the direction the mobile suit flew to, he noticed several other suits on top of a cliff. One of them especially stood out amongst the rest. A large, red mobile suit with wing-like appendaged on it's back. Suddenly though it practically buried its arms into the ground and the belly expanded, revealing a new weapon. Recognizing the cannon, Jamil sounded the alarms and headed for the bridge, as fast as he could.

It was pure chaos. The mobile suits of the Vultures have met the assailant of the Alternative corporation. Many were quickly destroyed due to the high ground advantage and the red mobile suit. After the initial attacks, it turned back from its cannon mode, to mobile mode again to join the battle. The pilot must be amazingly skilled, as no one seemed to be able to even scratch him.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy barely managed to keep up with the others. Even telling the difference between friend and foe became difficult for the two of them, having no combat experience. The cyan pegasus peered back at her friend. Fluttershy was near a panic attack and took to focusing solely on the control panels, just following Rainbow Dash's orders. It was painful to see her friend like this, they needed to end this fight quickly.

Then a target appeared. The leader of the enemies was right before them, claws deployed. They looked freakish, longer than they should be and very thin compared to the legs. A flash of anger went through Rainbow Dash, as she saw him strike down another ally. "Fluttershy, we'll take down the leader, then this is going to be over." She said, only earning a squeak in response.

Taking both the shot launchers, Rainbow Dash decided for a guiding shot, followed by another shot into the direction he'll evade to. This was surely a foolproof plan. As she lined up the shots, the enemy turned in her direction, almost as if he felt that she was planning an attack.

No longer having any time to think, Rainbow Dash fired. To her shock however, instead of dodgin to the anticipated side, the enemy mobile suit jumped high in the air towards her. Rainbow Dash wanted to jump away as the overly long claws came down on her from above, slashing the Bellzelute across the chest and sending it to the ground.

Both mares screamed, as they were shaken in their cockpit and they were fearful as they saw the clawed mobile suit looming over them. Rainbow Dash wanted to stand up quickly, to get away but a red foot was planted firmly on the Bellzelutes chest, pinning them down. He raised his claw again and both ponies closed their eyes, anticipating the final slash.

Instead a howling sound was heard and they opened their eyes again to see what it was. More howling sounds could be heard and energy beams flew past them, forcing the enemy leader to back off. From the direction the beams came from, they saw the Gundam X, Garrod came to save them.

The enemy was forced to back off, so Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy managed to get away. A vulcan gun, attached to the shoulders of the Gundam X fired a barrage at the enemy leader. His claws were retracted again. He reached his arm out to the Gundam X and he revealed his own beam gun, attached between the claws. Garrod managed to avoid a direct hit but his vulcan gun was gone.

Now the Bellzelute and the Gundam X stood up against this mobile suit.

It was crazy. Despite fighting with two against one, neither the Bellzelute nor the Gundam X managed to get a good hit against their enemy. It was almost like he could anticipate their every move. "R-Rainbow, we're almost out of ammo." Warned Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash muttered a curse.

Garrod himself faced the same problem. After two more shots, his beam rifle only sputtered, not managing to produce any more beams. With his vulcan gun gone too, he had to go into close combat range. He drew the beam saber and charged at the enemy.

"We have to help him but the Bellzelute doesn't have a single close combat weapon." Up until this point, neither mare believed this would even be an issue but now they really wished they had some option now. And with the skills of the enemy, they were sure that the chances of them hitting Garrod by accident were higher, than the chances of hitting the enemy.

"Alright, we'll have to improvise. Let's tackle this guy to the ground and let Garrod finish him off." Rainbow Dash suggested. Fluttershy did not like this plan at all but didn't want to argue with her friend right now. In this kind of situation she felt useless. Now she didn't want to hinder her friend.

The Gundam X and the red mobile suit had their beam sabers crossed and it was a struggle, which machine was stronger. Rainbow Dash moved to the side behind the enemy and prepared to charge.

The target came closer, Garrod holding him in place. Rainbow Dash was already sure of victory, as her target came closer. This little push and he would be defenseless. Maybe they can even avoid any more deaths by getting him to surrender. With this in mind, she did not notice the shadow on the ground, growing larger as she charged on.

Before she was able to reach the enemy, the mobile suit of Oulba Frost reappeared, landing on the ground right in front of her. Rainbow Dash did not have the time to react, as the fist of the mobile suit crashed right into the Bellzelutes head, sending it flying again. The force of the impact made it slide across the ground for several dozen meters, before coming to a halt.

"That guy again?" Asked Rainbow Dash, clearly dismayed. One of those was bad enough, there was no way they could beat both of them at the same time. But as Oulba was about to attack, someone shot at him. All eyes turned to the direction the shots came from. The Airmaster and Leopard Gundams were finished with all the low-level grunts and now came to their aid.

"Sorry it took so long, those flies were annoying to swat." Said Roybea over the radio, as both of them opened fire again on the two enemy leaders. Finally the odds were in their favor. With new hope, both mares brought the Bellzelute back to its feet.

What followed was a bizarre dance, as the pilots of the Freeden and the enemy leaders fought. The Bellzelute swiftly circled Oulba Frosts machine, together with the Leopard Gundam, unceasingly keeping up their fire. In the air above, the Gundam X and the Airmaster chased the red unit, as it tried to get its claws on them. Even with their cooperative effort, the battle was still even.

On the bridge of the Freeden, Jamil ordered the time until moonrise to be calculated. When the moon is up, the Gundam X could win this fight. "Captain, ten minutes and thirty seconds to moonrise." That was it, only a little longer. But ten minutes were hours on the battlefield.

Suddenly though, there was this strange feeling of dread. Something was coming.

A bright ball of energy flew at the battlefield and caused a large explosion, as it landed close to the Freeden. A photon torpedo. Only a large mobile armor could fire something as strong as this. There was no doubt that the Alternative Corporation was behind this. The fight broke off and the mechs scattered. Everyone was now just focusing on avoiding the shots.

At the Alternative Corporation, the CEO stood by, as the four-legged mobile armor fired one shot after another into the direction of the Vultures. Cables connected the mobile armor, standing almost as tall as the building itself, with their main reactor. There was no doubt that they could completely obliterate all of their enemies. "Keep firing until you are absolutely sure they are all dead. After this, we can unlock the secrets of the Newtypes, thanks to Tiffa." He ordered.

His men complied and performed an artillery carpet bombing. None of them could possibly get close now and even if they had long range weaponry, they wouldn't risk killing Tiffa. Victory was assured.

His mind wandered to the one weapon that could still be a danger to them. The Gundam X. The satellite cannon could soon be used, the moon was going to rise soon. It did not matter though, he couldn't stand still long enough to fire at them, as long as their mobile fortress continued the assault.

Just before the moon rose tough, a howling sound was heard, coming closer. The CEO looked in the direction the howling came from, only to see a barrage of missiles hitting the mobile armor, reducing it to scrap metal. "What, who is this?" He screamed in panic, as something else came into view.

The mobile suits guarding the corporation were being cut down by the long, curved swords of another mech. The security forces shot back but were quickly shut down, as more missiles were fired, destroying all of them. The CEO of the Alternative Corporation looked back where the shots were coming from, expecting an entire army.

Instead of an army though, a lone mobile suit stood there. Red in color and boxy in design. Shoulders, legs and torso sported compartments, holding the missiles. All of them seemed to have been fired from this lone Gundam. In one hand it also sported a large gatling gun and the chest compartment held two machine guns. The entire machine was practically made out of weapons.

"No... this cannot be... I was so close..." the CEO stuttered, as the two machines finished off all of his men.

Confusion ran through the ranks of the Freedens crew. Why did the assault suddenly stop? Garrod already got the Gundam X into position, in order to fire at the Alternative Corporation.

Jamil, sensing that Tiffa wanted to help them direct the satellite cannon, quickly went to Garrod, in order to relay Tiffas help to him. But just before the barrage stopped, Tiffa ordered them to stop.

Roybea, Witz, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy stood by, after managing to chase off the two enemy leaders off for good. While Fluttershy was glad that the fighting finally stopped, the tension kept her nervous.

Then, two figures were approaching them. Everyone got ready in case these were enemy reinforcements but Jamil felt something. "Everyone hold your fire." He ordered over the radio. "These are not our enemies and they have Tiffa with them."

Whoever these people were, as long as they brought Tiffa back it didn't matter for now. Garrod greeted the pilots, who handed over Tiffa as a peace offering and asked for permission to come aboard the Freeden. Even with what happened with Oulba Frost, it was highly unlikely that this was another trick. If it was, they wouldn't have brought Tiffa here.

Back in the hangar, which was being repaired after Oulba's escape, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy stayed in the cockpit again, while the others greeted the new pilots. Both of them were fairly young. The taller one had brown hair and bangs covering one of his eyes. He had a very stoic expression.

There was also a shorter boy, with short, blond hair. He on the other hand cheerfully greeted the crew of the Freeden. "Hello, my name is Quatre and this is Trowa. I am glad that you allowed us to come aboard, nice to meet you."

Dividing factor

Resistance of steel

Chapter 13 Dividing factor

It has been a while now, since Zero and his Black Knights officially joined GGG. The Black Knights moved into the hangars of GGG and everyone seems to be getting used to the two ponies, also being new allies of this organization. Curiosity was the natural reaction, so many of the rebels approached Twilight and Rarity, asking many questions about them and their home world. Only Zero himself, along with his assistant kept to themselves. She was a mysterious woman with long, green hair. They did not know her real name, just like they didn't know Zero's, she just calls herself C. C.

Still, the ponies did not learn all that much about Zero and the Black Knights themselves. Wanting to know more about their allies, they decided to ask some questions themselves and searched for someone who could provide them with answers. "I just don't know, they all seemed pleasant enough. But somehow I still get a strange feeling about this." Said Rarity, as they walked the halls.

It was true, the Black Knights were relatively friendly after introductions. Some of the members even wanted to pet them, scratch their ears or give them sweets. And while it was a little embarrassing to be treated like that, it was still a nice gesture. "Don't worry Rarity, once we'll find out more about them, everything will be clearer."

Then they saw her, the pilot of the red Knightmare, Kallen. They did not have much time to talk to the red-head before, although a first impression made her very similar to Rainbow Dash in their opinion. This similarity made the two of them feel more comfortable as they approached her. "Uh, hello Kallen. Do you mind if we ask you some questions?" Twilight asked, as they got closer.

Kallen was in deep thought. She trusted Zero's judgment, he has not lead them astray ever since he took over after all, but this situation seemed to be growing over their heads. Getting the support of GGG was an understandable goal but these people were just so... goofy. She kinda doubted they took the situation entirely serious. And then there was the matter with these ponies and that monster from space. The mere thought of yesterday's events gave her a headache. And said ponies were now standing in front of her, wanting to talk. "Alright, what do you want to know?" She asked, not wanting to be rude. The two of them struck Kallen as naive and still green in matters of combat but they were friendly enough so she didn't want to antagonize them.

"We were wondering if you could tell us more about Zero." Twilight asked. Hopefully Kallen would not be mistrustful, as she asked for information about their leader.

Kallen already wondered when this question would be asked. "To be honest, we don't know that much about him. He pretty much appeared practically out of thin air and contacted out group before we became the Black Knights. Said to meet us on a train where he somehow managed to get an entire compartment to himself." Kallen crossed her arms and thought about those days, where their little rebellion suddenly got this huge boost. Before meeting Zero, getting one Knightmare Frame was their biggest victory yet and now they were practically an army.

"But... in Shinjuku we were cornered by the Britannians when he suddenly started giving us directions. To be honest, if we hadn't been desperate at the moment we would have ignored him." She said. It was foolish to just listen to everything an unknown voice told you. For all they knew it could have also been a Britannian, luring them into a trap. In retrospect she was glad to put that trust in him. They have really come a long way by now.

"Other than that I can tell you that he has got to be the most theatrical person I've ever met. He loves grand speeches and gesturing, almost as if he sees the rebellion as a stage play." Kallen then looked around to see if there was anyone else in the hallway, before kneeling down to the ponies and whispering. "Just between us, some of the Black Knights believe that this is true. That he does this for attention. He certainly does love plans that would have him save us in the last moment." She said, before standing up again.

Both mares took in this info, now trying to get a better picture of this man in their heads. Was it really true that he was just playing the hero for the sake of looking good? "You know, while I can't really fault anyone for thinking like that, I don't feel that he's just trying to earn glory." Twilight mused, not completely sure herself. "If that was the case, he would not seek allies so willingly because then it would mean he has to share the spotlight." Twilight remembered that stage magician, Trixie, who came into Ponyville one time. She only let other ponies on stage in order to humiliate them, not to assist her. Wherever that mare was now, Twilight hoped she learned her lesson and cleaned up her act. Trixie was not a bad magician, not at all, she just needed to treat her audience better.

"Maybe, I just hope his last-second rescues don't start going wrong." Kallen responded. But there was still something she wanted to know herself. "But now I've got a question for you. What exactly are you doing here? I don't think you are just tourists from another world, considering that you possess a pretty impressive super robot."

Twilight and Rarity thought it was only fair that their new ally learned what their plans were, so they told her about the others and how they needed to find a safe place for Princess Luna. As they mentioned their friends, Kallen was already very curious. If the robots these friends piloted were anything like the Granteed, they could make for an impressive force. Then they told her more about Luna herself, how she and Celestia were responsible for day and night, which Kallen found hard to believe.

Finally, they told her about the adventure that bonded them together as friends, how they defeated Nightmare Moon and reunited the royal sisters. A warm smile was on both unicorns faces, as they recalled the touching reunion. After a thousand years, Celestia and Luna finally embraced each other again and ruled together. As they looked at Kallen though, their smiles faded into nervousness. The red-heads reaction was quite the opposite of theirs. Instead of a warm smile, a look of pure anger was on her face.

"Let me get this straight, this Princess Luna tries to take over the world in a temper tantrum, because she didn't feel appreciated enough and gets away with it?" This kind of behavior was typical for royals. None of them ever faced the consequences of their actions. If the peasants complained, all they got was mockery, if they rebelled, they were struck down. "Ugh, I'm done here. But your Princess is not better than those Britannians. In a just world, she would at least not have been given back her title after that but what does it matter. Only the lowly peasants may have suffered under tyranny if you hadn't succeeded."

Twilight and Rarity were shocked by the sudden hostility and tried to calm her down. "Darling, that's not right. Princess Celestia cares very much about all ponies, she just believes in redemption and second chances." Rarity tried to explain. She knew a bit about the equestrian justice system. For the rare cases of a crime being committed, it was the usual approach to sentence the criminal to community service instead of jail. And that was not just a method to have the damages repaired. It served primarily to give said criminal a sense of purpose in the world and to help him find something constructive to do for a living.

Kallen only shook her head as she turned away from them. "You are helping a criminal escape from punishment. The execution might be extreme but you are protecting her. If a crime goes unpunished like that, doesn't that tell the criminals that they can do it as often as they want without consequences, as long as they say they are sorry? Think about it." With those words, Kallen walked away, leaving two distraught ponies behind.

Somewhere deeper in the GGG headquarters, Zero sat in his new room. While it would serve him well as a base of operations, he would have to return to the Ashford Academy sometime tomorrow. His sister and the teachers would surely miss him. It was difficult, trying to avoid being identified as mastermind of a rebel army, when you had classes all week. Luckily, he already had a reputation for skipping class and often staying away from campus for a few days, even before founding the Black Knights. It would serve him well now, since he had to oversee the operations. Nobody would find anything new or odd about his behavior.

"I have disabled all cameras Lelouch, you can take your helmet off now." Said a girl with long, green hair. She wore white pants and a jacket, which had longer than necessary sleeves and straps attached to it. It was a strange outfit, almost looking like it was intended as a straight jacket. C.C had been tasked to disable the security cameras for good. Zero already requested them to be shut off for privacy but he preferred if C.C did that, so he could be sure that they don't just switch them on again to see his face.

As he touched the hidden buttons on his helmet, the neck parts folded upwards to allow him to take the mask off. Underneath was a young man with short, black hair and purple eyes. Lelouch had a frown, as GGG did not meet any of his expectations. "When I met with GGG, I was not prepared it to be lead by a bunch of immature goofballs." He groaned. "And then there are these ponies. This just can't be real." They were factors he couldn't possibly prepare for and that is what really annoyed him. Unknown factors made plans fail and everything hinged on plans working exactly as intended for him.

He looked at a mirror and his eyes, his Geass. He may have been manipulative but the thought of completely overriding another person's will still made him uncomfortable. He thought back on the first command he gave. Sometimes he wondered why he even did that, he didn't know what those powers did exactly, so why did he order those soldiers that cornered him to kill themselves? He also wondered if he should have waited longer. This power sped up his plans but maybe it would have been better to prepare a little longer, in order to find out more about his enemies and potential allies. It did not matter though, his rebellion began and he could not back out of it now. Even if he erased all traces, people would be less likely to trust him if he returned after abandoning him. Unless he faked his death, then he may be revered as a messiah figure. People loved miracles.

"It is not their company you want, is it?" C.C rebutted, as she sat down on the bed, her cheese-kun plushie cradled in her arms. "As long as they have strong mechs, their personality doesn't matter, does it?" The mysterious woman had the feeling that Zero missed something important. It may be true that the members of GGG were very naive and immature but they were all one hundred percent serious about their goals.

"Their naivety will be a problem in future plans. War is like chess in one aspect in particular, sometimes a sacrifice is necessary." He explained. "If they shut down all strategies that do not conform to their rosy worldview, they might cost us victory." He knew Princess Cornelia, she would use such notions against them the second she has the opportunity. He already expected a lot of hostage situations.

"And what do you plan to do against that?" Asked C.C. It was interesting to watch Lelouch, his grand plans and intrigues, she wondered how he would weasel his way out of this problem too.

"They need to see that I am a more capable leader. Force them into a situation where Taiga could no longer give any orders and then take control." He answered bluntly. Before C.C could respond however, they heard a knock on the door. Lelouch quickly put on his helmet again. "Come in."

Behind the door was the small child, Mamoru, holding a picture. To Zero he was also a point of interest, since he learned that this child could not only predict Zonder attacks but also turn their cores back into people. "Uh, Mr. Zero, I was wondering if I could get an autograph." He held the picture towards Zero and pulled a pen out of his pocket. Lelouch took the picture, which showed him as he first appeared before the public.

Lelouch was not one to pass up chances like this. Mamoru was vital to GGG's operations, so getting the kid to trust him could be a great advantage. "Of course, Mamoru was it?" He asked, as he took the pen from the child, who nodded in confirmation. Lelouch quickly signed the photo: To Mamoru, from Zero. He took care not to use his usual handwriting. It was one part of his preparations. To make sure nobody could use signatures he may have to write in order to learn his identity, he learned two different writing styles. "Here you go, is there anything else you would like?" He asked, while handing back the photo to the grinning kid.

As Mamoru thought of a question to ask though, his smile faded. He didn't know how Zero would react to it but he still wanted to know. "Just one question. Why did you destroy the entire city down at Shatter Mountain?" For many Japanese, Zero was almost like a messiah figure but he was also extremely destructive.

"You see, sometimes even good people have to do bad things. Otherwise the bad people win and that outcome would bring only more and more suffering." Lelouch clearly remembered the funeral. One of the victims of Shatter Mountain was the father of his classmate Shirley. "Do not believe I don't regret all the deaths, I do. But especially now I can't stop anymore, or else their deaths will have been in vain. I owe it to all those, who became victims of this war to see it through to the end."
On the bed, C.C allowed herself a small smile. She knew better, Lelouch went into this wholly unprepared for these kind of consequences. He pushed everyone aside, so he would not have to deal with personal losses and was angry that his plan failed.

Mamoru however was swept up in his grand speech. "You know, some people believe you are a bad person but I think you just want to help everyone." Wrong again, while freeing the people from Britannian oppression was one of his goals, Zero primarily wanted revenge against the emperor. "Just try to be less destructive, the others will see it too then."

That was something Zero could not promise. He would always choose the most effective way, no matter what. But before he could answer, something strange happened with Mamoru. For a moment it seemed as if he was glowing green. "What was that? Is everything alright?" He asked.

"That was the sign, a Zonder is attacking!" Without fail, sirens started to blare through the halls of the GGG headquarters.

The Granteed was flying behind the Linergao, which in turn held some of the Knightmare Frames of the Black Knights. Kallen in the Guren MKII looked back with concern, as she spotted the Burai of Zero. Behind him in turn was that green haired woman, C.C. Even though Zero repeatedly stated that he prefers to lead instead of just hanging back and give orders, she still thought it was irresponsible. The entire rebellion would fall apart, if something happened to Zero and he continued to put himself into harms way. On the other hand, it was also admirable in a way.

The Zonder lifeform has been confirmed to have taken over several older trains, as it emerged at a station. With the path it took, they would have a hard time intercepting it outside the nearby residential area. From the Granteed, Twilight and Rarity looked with concern at the houses by the railway. If the Zonder met them here, they would have a hard time avoiding damage to the area. "Zero, what should we do? We have to make sure these people don't wind up homeless because of the upcoming fight." Twilight asked.

"Speed will be of the essence. With luck we can intercept it before it reaches the residential area, if not we have to destroy it before the fight escalates too much." He calmly responded. While the destruction of the enemy had the highest priority, letting too many people die or lose their homes would be bad publicity. Some might say that someone with a noble cause needn't worry about PR, it was quite the opposite. People didn't join a rebellion or supported it, if they suspected the rebels of being worse than the tyrant. Saving civilian lives was usually a good method of improving ones image.

Then something appeared in the distance, with an ominous red glow. It seems that luck was not in their favour today, as the Zonder possessed train sped directly towards them. It almost looked like the two trains would crash, as the Zonder shifted form. Stopping dead it seemed almost like all the metal has turned liquid, forming into a more humanoid shape. Like the junk Zonder before, it now showed it's true colors.

"Take it out quickly, Kallen, C.C, disengage from the Linergao. Taiga, have Guy form GaoGaiGar immediately. We must finish this as quickly as possible." Zero ordered, as he had his Burai jump off of the train, followed by the other two Knightmares. While Kallen landed with grace and C.C managed to keep her Burai standing, Zero had no such luck and fell down. It was a little embarassing but luckily, his teammates had other concerns.

Galeon arrived at the scene immediately, as Guy called it. In the headquarters, the commands for initiating the final fusion were already typed in by Mikoto. The girl has only performed it once before, though there were many drills in case it finally happened. By now she could be blindfolded and would still be able to perform the initiation. "Final Fusion, program drive!" She called out, smashing the button under the glass panel.

Like a swirling storm, the GaiGar spread a green mist around itself. The Knightmare Frames and the Granteed had to gain more distance, so they won't be swept up in it. The Zonder tried to use the transformation to his advantage for an easy kill. Even with its massive size, in the end he was repelled by the green storm. Finally it died down, revealing the combined super robot beneath. Inside his Burai, Zero mused, maybe they could use that to their advantage in the future.

His plans for future maneuvers would have to wait though, now they had a monster to deal with. The green hurricane dissipated and the form of GaoGaiGar came into view. "Everyone, surround the Zonder, we must not let it move too much." Zero ordered, as Granteed moved to the back, while he and Kallen took the sides.

The Zonder meanwhile got back up and it's bulky arms opened up. From inside, missiles were fired at GaoGaiGar. "Protect Shade!" With this call, Guy made his mech raise a hand in front of him, while an energy field formed. The others marveled at this technology, as none of the missiles managed to do any damage to him. For a moment they felt relaxed, believing that this would be easier than they though, until explosions sounded from the surrounding area.

While GaoGaiGar managed to deflect the missiles from himself, the town around him was not so lucky. Several buildings were already damaged and the people were fleeing. Seeing the damage his defense cause, Guy lowered the protect shade, taking the damage instead of rerouting it to the surroundings. "Guy, what are you doing? Raise your energy shield right now!" Zero ordered him.

"I can't! If I do that, the buildings around us will be destroyed." Zero scoffed at the answer. It seems that it doesn't occur to Guy, that the town will be wiped out completely if they lose. With this kind of attitude, all the power in the world would not help them. Everyone they fought could easily take the battle to inhabited areas or take hostages and GGG would rather surrender than risking anything.

"Alright, I will shoot in the path of the missiles, maybe I can shoot some of them from the sky before they hit GaoGaiGar. Kallen, go for the Zonders legs, Twilight and Rarity, you attack it from behind." He ordered and took aim. Despite his lack of practical combat experience, he managed to destroy some of the missiles in the air, reducing the damage GaoGaiGar received. Unfortunately, the shrapnel raining down caused even more damage to the area, while Guy pleaded him to stop.

Zero also looked at the area where the Zonder stood. If Kallen was successful, it would fall over on some more buildings and the inevitable explosion when it is destroyed, will leave a large crater. As much as he hated to admit it, there was no way they could fight without causing collateral damage. Then, the voice of Taiga came through the communication channel. "Wait! We have something that might help. Guy, prepare for the dividing driver."

GaoGaiGar took into the air and there the others could see it. Something was flying towards them. Everyone wondered what kind of new weapon that was, as it attached itself onto GaoGaiGars arm. With the new weapon attached, he dove down and rammed it into the ground, revealing the new weapon to be some sort of giant jackhammer. Steam was expelled from it, as it shot something into the ground and a wave of energy ripped through the street.

What happened then was, what truly amazed everyone. The street parted and the Zonder fell down the crevice that formed itself. It looked like space itself was being expanded as buildings were moved away until a large crater remained. Now it dawned upon them what this weapon did. It created a battlefield.

"Wha.. how did you do this? I've studied magic all my life and I never thought something like this was possible." Twilight was completely dumbfounded at what she saw. Rarity remained mute, her jaw almost hitting the floor at the sight around her. Both of them however were relieved, that they won't have to worry about the surroundings anymore. There was nothing down in the crater, that they'd have to worry about breaking.

"No time to explain. The dividing driver is still new and we don't know how long this will hold, finish off the Zonder immediately." Taiga ordered, while the other members of GGG carefully monitored the repression field that made this miracle possible. The Black Knights, that were in the room were every bit as surprised as Zero, Kallen, Twilight and Rarity. One comment neatly summarized everyone's thoughts. "Did they just tell the laws of physics to go fuck themselves?"

Zero managed to regain his composure. "He is right, perform an all out attack now!" He ordered, as he adjusted his aim to the Zonders head. Kallen followed suit. The claw of the Gurren MK-II opened up, as she charged. She managed to get a good grip on one of its legs and let energy surge through it, making the metal bulge and twist under the extreme heat.

From behind, Rarity has already redirected a large amount of orgone energy into Granteeds hands. Fingers first, they buried into the shoulders of the Zonder. With arms, legs and head under attack, it had no chance anymore to defend against the final attack.

"Hell, and heaven!" The hands of GaoGaiGar were glowing again, one bright golden, the other in an almost malicious looking red. He folded the two of them together. The Stealthgaos turbines roared as the pushed him towards the stunned Zonder, where Guy rammed his mechs fist right into the chest, where the core was. Guy remembered how the last time, a person was inside of it and the orders to retrieve the core, so he was as careful as possible.

As he finally pulled it out, Kallen and both ponies distanced themselves again, as the coreless body now slumped to the ground before exploding. Cheers echoed through the comm system, at this next victory. Zero meanwhile has muted himself from the system. He looked around the area and grinned. This technology was amazing, only a few modifications and this dividing driver would be the ultimate weapon. Britannian bases could be destroyed in mere seconds. A cold laugh filled the cockpit, drowning out the cheers of his comrades.

Guardian Angel

Resistance of steel

Chapter 14 Guardian Angel

In the photon power labs, all robot pilots were gathered, as Heero wanted to tell them something important. As everyone was assembled, he started his explanation. "I will have to leave for a while. I am still disguised as a student at a school near the border. To maintain that disguise, I will have to show up at a social event, I was invited to." His thoughts went to that Relena girl again. As she invited him to the party, she made it clear that she knew everything about him. Including his participation in operation meteor. She was a danger to the mission and hopefully, he could eliminate her.

"Well, have fun at the party then Heero." Sayaka wished him. "I wish I would have to go to a party for those reasons. If I left without good reason to just celebrate, I'd feel kinda guilty though." Spike could not agree more. He still felt kinda guilty that he couldn't stay awake to help, as Twilight and the others went against Nightmare Moon. At that last thought, he glanced towards Luna, who was just looking out a window at the sunset.

"Since your cover relies on everyone at the school thinking you're a student, I give you permission to leave. But here, take this." With that, Professor Yumi handed Heero what looked like a wristwatch. "These watches have a built in alarm signal. If there is any trouble over here while you are gone, they start to vibrate and blink red. Just in case something else comes up. I have more for all of you as well." Out of his pockets, he drew even more of these watches and handed them out. Luna, who was still unfamiliar with modern technology, despite the Vorlent, first had trouble to put it on, until Sayaka helped her.

Kouji, who managed to finally calm down somewhat after he and his brother got to the labs, gave Heero a friendly slap on the back. "Try to pick up a cute girl while you're at it. No reason not to have some fun." Sayaka rolled her eyes at this, while Heero's expression remained unchanged. "Negative, personal relationships only endanger the mission." Was the stoic teens only answer. Kouji concluded that Heero did not have a stick up his ass. It was an entire damn tree.

Princess Luna meanwhile, had a bad feeling about that party. She did not entirely trust Heero yet and she was not sure, if he really just wanted to keep the act up. "May I accompany him? With some illusion magic, I can disguise myself as a student as well. After what happened here lately, the Britannians must be riled up. He may encounter problems along the borders." She suggested. Luna also carefully monitored Heero's reaction. As she suspected, there was a slight flinch.

"That is an excellent idea, Heero, you will take Luna and Spike with you." While Heero and Luna exchanged glares, Spike was more than happy that he would get to go to the party. Not taking her eyes off of Heero, Luna prepared the illusion. She turned Spike into a human child, roughly ten years old by the looks of it, with a suit and green, spiky hair. She herself turned into an elegant looking teenager, so she would look about Heero's age. She already was wearing a midnight blue party dress, while her hair stayed the same, light blue color. "I am ready."

Everyone was speechless at this show of magic. Even though Luna has already told them about her abilities, shared by many unicorns in Equestria, it was still magnificent to behold. "Excellent, maybe this particular spell will prove useful in the future as well. Now, while you are there for a mission, I still wish you three have fun at the party." Professor Yumi said, with a warm smile on his face.

That settled that, Luna and Spike would now accompany Heero. Princess Luna did not miss the glare though, that he sent her way. It confirmed that he planned something, now the question was what he planned.

After preparing their mechs and rehearsing their cover story, the three of them flew low, to avoid radar detection. Heero already knew a route that would allow for undetected flight and lead them to the school.

Heero's school was almost like a castle, Luna and Spike mused, as they looked out the window. Party preparations were complete it seemed and everyone was waiting for the start. The Princess was a little nervous though, since it has been so long. Even during the Grand Galloping Gala, she preferred to stay in her room that night. Now she was not only going to attend a party, she would do so while maintaining a disguise.

Next to her, Heero sat at the desk, typing away at one of these machines, a computer. It was strange for both Luna and Spike, since they did not get the knowledge how to operate it fed directly into their minds. At least Heero seemed to know what he was doing, as he erased all of his files. "Tell me Heero, even when you delete all your files, won't the other students know that you're gone?" Spike asked him, looking over the teens shoulders.

"I did my best avoiding contact, in order not to endanger the mission. Because of that, they won't have any strong memories about me and forget that I have ever been here." He answered. Right now, Heero kinda reminded him of Twilight, before they came to Ponyville. Only focused on the task, not interested in any friendships. He could hear the voices from the students outside, all looking forward to the coming party.

With his task of deleting the files done, he allowed himself a look outside. "Sometimes even short distances can mean the world. If it was not for the news, the battles of yesterday might as well not have even existed here." He mused. Then he saw her, Relena Darlian.

Luna was a little confused, as the blonde girl stepped out. Immediately everyones' eyes were on her. People were whispering amongst themselves and looked at her with sadness and pity. Some other girls went over to her and started talking. "Heero, do you know what happened to her?" She asked him.

"Her name is Relena Darlian, her father was liaison between the Earth and the colonies. He represented the nations, not part of the Britannian empire or allied with them. During a visit to a colony, he was assassinated." Heero answered, before starting to pack up his belongings. Now he needed to figure out how to lose the two of them, so he could take care of her.

Hearing those news greatly saddened Luna and Spike. It must be very hard for this girl, to lose her father all of the sudden. As she looked back though, it seems the girl has already left. Luna couldn't help but think about her. While she was sad, she seemed to possess great inner strength, allowing her to not let this tragic loss break her.

While Heero thought of an excuse to leave for a while, Luna and Spike helped him pack. As they were done and almost left though, the door opened up and the girl, Relena came into the room. "You are off to fight again, are you?" She asked Heero sternly, before seeing Luna and Spike. This seemed to surprise her, as she was under the impression Heero worked alone.

A clicking noise brought her attention back to Heero, who pulled a gun on her. Luna immediately dropped her illusion upon seeing this and focused on the gun. With her magical grip, she fixed it into place, so he could not even pull the trigger. "I knew you were up to no good. Forget about this, we will go now!" The alicorn princess half snarled.

Relena was prepared for Heero to point a weapon at her but this? Now the boy who piloted the Gundam was accompanied by something she thought was a mythical creature. This may be bigger than she anticipated. "Heero, who is she?" Relena asked, not taking the alicorn. A small part of her wanted to ignore the danger and pet her.

Angrily, Heero turned towards Luna. "This girl knows too much, she might tell OZ about my identity and now about you and they will tell the Britannian Empire." He explained to her. "Are you willing to endanger all the others just for her?" He asked, nodding his head to Relena.

"I've met Dr. J." Relena the said, causing Heero to let out a surprised gasp. "So you can be surprised too. Ever since I met you, it's always been me who gets surprised." She continued, while walking closer to Heero. Luna and Spike meanwhile wondered, who this Dr. J was and how he was connected to Heero. "If you kill me now, you'd cause quite a commotion and your friend here won't be pleased either. That is, if she wasn't holding you back right now."

She had a point. If Relena hadn't gotten the drop on him, he could have planned this out much better. Also, after she met the Dr., Heero wasn't so sure if he should kill her at all anymore. This was not a lucky guess, he would have to wait for her explanation. Luna could feel him relax his grip on the gun and in turn, released her magical grip on his arm. The gun was lowered again. "There is a nice party going on, you should at least stay until after the dance." Relena then said, before walking away again, shooting one more look towards Luna and Spike. Heero got the hint.

Later that night, Luna and Spike stood near the buffet, while Heero danced with Relena. It was obvious the two needed to talk and a dance was the perfect opportunity to do so. Luna watched the two of them nervously after what happened in Heero's room. Spike on the other hand, happily munched away at the buffet. "You really got to try this Luna, it's really good." He invited her. The princess smiled, she wished she could forget her worries as easily.

A stranger then caught her eye, as he continued to glance in her direction. This put the alicorn on high alert, was this a spy of the enemy, who caught on to her? He approached her and Luna could feel goosebumps on her skin. She looked over to Heero, who was still talking to Relena. She couldn't get his help without attracting attention. Before she could formulate a plan B though, the young man already stood in front of her. Swallowing a lump in her throat, Luna greeted him. "H-hello."

Something was amiss though, this guy seemed just as nervous as her. "Hello there Miss, I was just wondering..." For a moment he seemed to think about his next words carefully. "Would you care for a dance?" He held out a hand, smiling at her. He then noticed her surprised expression at his invitation. "Well... I think you are a very beautiful lady, I would be honored to have this dance."

Suddenly Luna felt her heart flutter. Even if this was an illusion, she still felt warmth flowing through her at the compliment. "Thank you, I will gladly accept." She said, giving the man her illusions hand. It may feel a little stiff to him but luckily, Luna could also give the illusion of touch, while he lead her to the dancefloor. This was a party in a foreign land and she was a princess, not accepting at least one dance would be terribly rude she thought.

Spike watched, as Luna and the unknown man went to the dancefloor, as he happily munched on some of the treats. Due to his upbringing by ponies, he steered clear from anything that looked like meat though. Then the young dragon could feel some people standing behind him. Slowly he turned around, to see some girls. One wore a pink dress, the other a bright red one and the third wore a blue dress. Other than the colors, all looked pretty much the same to Spike. Rarity would have most likely noticed some finer details. "Hello there young boy, are you a student here? You look a little too young to be one." The one in the blue dress asked.

The sudden attention made this Spikes turn to be nervous but he remembered the story he and Luna had for these situations. "I'm Heero's little brother, my big bro invited me and our sister Luna there to the party." He pointed towards the two, as he mentioned their names. Luna could see, that he had some attention himself now and prepared Spikes illusion, so it would feel real too.

"Ah, I didn't know he had siblings." The girl in the pink dress said, causing some sweat to go down Spikes forehead. "Especially such a cute little brother." The dragon blushed at the compliment, momentarily forgetting that it was directed at an illusion. Then the red dressed girl chimed in. "Well, Heero is a bit cold but still a pretty cute guy himself, it would make sense that his little brother would be adorable."

Heero looked at his two partners, who were obviously enjoying themselves. Relena just announced, that she was on his side in the conflict. The question here was, is she telling the truth? And if yes, what could she possibly accomplish? A loud howling noise broke him out of his thoughts. "What's this?" He asked, looking in the direction the noise came from. The other guests heard it too, as an object came closer from the horizon. "Oh no, that's an OZ suit carrier. They've caught on to this place." Heero exclaimed.

As Luna noticed the carrier too, she shouted for everyone to run. Her dance partner first wanted to drag her with him to safety but only grasped empty space, as Luna teleported herself and Spike away, before dismissing the illusions. Heero was also caught in the teleport, as she brought them back to their robots. "Heero, we can't let them hurt any innocent party guests, we need to stop them now!" She ordered, as she climbed into the Vorlent with Spike.

Two of the enemy mobile suits descended from the carrier, by the time the Wing Gundam and the Vorlent started up. Both were purple in color and very boxy in design. Even the head featured no face but a rectangular, yellow screen. One of them also was equipped with a flight pack, allowing him to remain airborne while his partner descended onto the ground. One thing Luna and Spike also noticed, that they were significantly larger than the Knightmare Frames. The two Leos, as Heero called them, stood as tall as their own mechs.

This means trouble, as they are most likely tougher too. And the one that could fly, also had the advantage of mobility. Heero wasted no time though. The moment the groundwalking enemy touched down, he already had the Wing Gundam's shield raised to protect himself. The airborne Leo, Aries type as Heero called it, opened fire and the energy beams of its rifle painted a line of destruction before them.

While Heero relied on his shield, Luna told Spike to activate Vorlents thrusters, so they could take the battle into the air. She aimed the Orgone Rifle at the Aries and opened fire, as it also had to dodge the Wing Gundam's gatling gun. The Aries fired at her and while they managed to evade his fire, a look back made Lunas and Spikes blood run cold. The party guests were in a panic. While they were still far enough away to avoid endangering innocent civilians, they were close enough so the shockwaves of their battle knocked some of the feeling people off their feet. Any closer and casualties became a possibility.

The Leo on the ground was not tackled by Heero, throwing it on its back. One problem down, Luna knew she had to end this as soon as possible. If the enemy suit was too good at dodging rifle fire, maybe close combat was the key to victory. "Spike, re-route energy from the rifle, to the blade." She ordered.

"The blade? But he might hit us if we get too close." The young dragon protested, yet he still followed the order.

"The Vorlent can take a few hits without too much trouble, the civilians down there can't." Was Luna's explanation. The green glowing energy blade formed on the Vorlents wrist, as Spike also put more energy into the thrusters. Luckily for them, this maneuver seemed to take the enemy pilot by surprise, as his aim was way off. Just before the Vorlent was close enough, so it couldn't dodge anymore though, it flew downward. The OZ pilot tried to readjust his aim but Luna rose up right behind him again, slashing the Orgone Blade upwards through the suits legs. Above it, she kicked the thrusters, damaging them and sending the enemy hurling towards the ground.

For a moment it was silent again. Luna was thankful, that they managed to protect the partygoers, as well as Relena. "Alright, that was all I think." She said, surveying the area. It seems they could avoid direct damage to the building, although the surrounding forest became a mess. "Fluttershy wouldn't be happy. Think about all the critters that lost their home... or worse." Spike said, as they looked around.

"It's not over." Heero then chimed in, pointing towards an aircraft. Smaller crafts were exiting through the hatch. Quickly they recognized what they were, more Aries units. The Leo on the ground also managed to stand up again. He barely managed to get out a few shots though, as Heero moved in with his beam sabre. The mobile suit was cut in half, eliminating all possibilities of it interfering again.

In the same moment though, the Aries units started their attack. Two of them were firing at the Wing Gundam, while the third went for the Vorlent. Heero activated the wing thrusters, propelling himself backwards to avoid the shots and missiles, although he was now standing right in front of the building. "Fools, you will never hit my Gundam." He mumbled, as he jumped up and swiped his beam sabre at the two Aries, which got too close.

After their destruction, he noticed something on the ground. A person was still standing there, a magnified image revealed that it was Relena. "What in the world is she still doing here?" Heero wondered, as a stray missile of the remaining Aries hit the side of the building, right where Relena was standing. The girl was knocked off her feet and rubble fell down. For a moment she thought that this was her end, as the heard the sound of stone clashing with metal from above.

In the last moment, Heero moved the Gundams shield over Relena, protecting her from the rubble. "What the heck am I thinking? I would be better off without her." He was moving, as if on autopilot. Without even registering his own actions, he moved himself in a vulnerable position to protect this girl. The Aries landed behind him and continued firing at the Gundams exposed back.

Luna reacted quickly and had Spike re-route energy back to the rifle. A blast of Orgone energy, connected with the suit at the shoulder, destroying its arm. "Now that were all, but what is Heero doing there?" Spike wondered. Luna moved the Vorlent closer, where they could see it. A small smile crept on their faces as they saw Relena, protected by the Gundams shield. "It seems that our friend changed his mind." Luna said softly. But now they would have to take Relena with them.

The journey back to the Photon Power Labs was filled with tense silence. For safety reasons, Luna insisted that Relena would travel in the Vorlent. It was understandable for Heero, even though he doubted that he could have done anything after all. He himself couldn't quite understand what was happening. He was supposed to focus solely on the mission, so what was happening to him?

Finally, Spike broke the silence. "So Relena, I imagine seeing me and Luna is quite a shock to you." He asked, wanting to bring at least some topic to break the ice. This was the best he could come up with, since Relena still eyed them with awe the entire time.

"You can say that again." She responded. Despite all the stress recently, first with her fathers death and then the attack on her school, she found herself disarmed by the magnificent sight of the two. A real dragon, who she found surprisingly adorable and a winged unicorn princess. "I have never expected to meet a baby dragon and a winged unicorn princess."

"Alicorn." Luna interjected. "My species is called alicorn. Although there are only three of us. Me, my sister and my adopted niece, princess Cadance." The latter was a big surprise for Luna as well, since she was... not there when Cadance became an alicorn. Her expression became sour again. Spike, Twilight and the others could return to Equestria someday. But would she ever see her sister again? Banished to this wartorn planet was not the lonely stasis from the moon but it might as well be.

Relena saw her expression and recognized it from herself. Loss. She has gotten the quick explanation from them, why Luna was here to begin with. Luna might never see her sister or niece again. "I'm sure your sister misses you too. I know what it feels like, I miss my father very much." As she said this, Relena put an arm around Luna.

The princess was thankful, that she had found a friend that could sympathize with her. The thought of staying with people like her, eased Lunas mind. She wanted to thank her, as a large, purple beam almost hit the Vorlent. Heero immediately transformed his Wing Gundam back into mobile suit mode, as they aimed their weapons at the sky, where the shot came from.

"I am Tieria Erde, Gundam Meister of Celestial Being. As instigators of conflict, your mechs will now be destroyed. If you wish to survive, put down your weapons, land and exit your mechs." The pilot of the bulky mobile suit ordered. The large Gundam had its weapons charged and aimed right at the Vorlent.

Tieria had gathered the info from the Veda supercomputer. The transformable mobile suit, according to their intel, belonged to operation meteor, so he would participate in many more terrorist strikes if he wasn't destroyed. The other mech was dangerous for a different reason. There were absolutely no information about it, who developed it, how their tech works or who the pilot was. If Veda was to create a plan of action, such unpredictable variables couldn't be allowed to exist. "You have on the count of three to put your weapons down." He warned again, the muzzle of his beam cannon glowing.

"Luna, I will take care of this. You get Relena back to the labs." Heero ordered.

"But Heero, what about you?" Luna asked, worried about him. They couldn't endanger Relena but she wanted to help him.

"NOW!" Heero bellowed the order, as he fired the Wing Gundams vulcan cannons at the Gundam Meister. He knew that this won't do a thing but it would give the others an opportunity to escape. As predicted, the Gundam of Celestial Being opened fire upon Heero.

Now they really couldn't squander the chance. Spike rerouted all energy into the thrusters, as Luna set them back on their course. In the rear camera they could see, that their new enemy has noticed their escape and took aim at them, only for the Wing Gundam to appear in front of him, buster rifle raised.

The two Gundams were now locked in a faceoff, both their weapons charged and ready to fire. "We know all about you. In order to prevent future combat scenarios, brought on by you, your mobile suit will now be destroyed." Normally, Celestial Being only performed armed interventions when the battle was already underway but made exceptions when future battled were guaranteed.

Heero tried to calculate the strength of the enemy weapon, based on the size of the explosion, the last shot caused on the ground. It was not the best method but his estimate placed it around the same level as his buster rifle. "Negative, I will kill you."

Both pilots pulled the trigger at the same time, firing their immensely powerful weapons.

The paradox was, what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, this however was more like what happens, when two unstoppable forces met. Even though they managed to get far away by the time the shots were fired, Luna, Spike and Relena could see the bright explosion behind them. It was, as if a miniature sun has formed and quickly died.

The hearts of the three sank, as they feared the worst for Heero. Relena put her hand to the monitor, that showed them the explosion behind them. "Please be okay Heero, I need you." She whispered weakly.

The force of the blast had reached the ground and propelled a lot of dirt into the air, forming a thick cloud of smoke. Luna stopped the Vorlent and turned around. Even with the danger this presented, she wanted to know if Heero survived. He took on this risk for their sake, this was the least she could do. Despite all the issues she had with him up until now, he proved himself to be a good friend after all.

It was only a few seconds, although they felt more like hours, until something came out of the smoke. Luna raise the orgone rifle, fearing their attacker to be back. Her fears were put to rest however, as she instead saw the sleek frame of the Wing Gundam. All three of them cheered, as he flew towards them.

The Wing Gundam was heavily damaged, as it was caught in the blast but at least Heero was still conscious. The Vorlent flew underneath the Wing Gundam, in case the engines gave out but that won't be a problem. Back at the Labs, they could do the repairs, while Heero would rest.

Back at the battlefield, another figure rose into the sky. "Tieria Erde, reporting. The destruction of the operation meteor mobile suit failed, returning to the Ptolomeus for repairs." As the Virtue Gundam flew towards space, the pilot was distraught by his failure. "I failed, because of me, Veda's plan was messed up. This was not supposed to happen..." The rest of the way, the distressed mutterings of Tieria Erde would continue.

The king awakens

Resistance of steel

Chapter 15 The king awakens

It has been a week since Kurtz, Gain, Applejack and Pinkie Pie have met the Getter team. By now they were deep in Siberian territory, managing to avoid enemy encounters up to now. At first, Applejack scolded the three hot-blooded pilots of the super robot for actually wanting to fight but after a week of just going from Mithril outpost to Mithril outpost, she too began to feel bored as well. While she still loathed the idea of having to fight, at least it would give her something to do. She missed Sweet Apple Acres, she missed bucking apple trees and feeling the satisfaction of good, honest work. Most of all, she missed her family. She wondered how Granny Smith, Big Macintosh and Applebloom were doing. With all the time they were gone now, were they worried?

Pinkie was also not doing so well. Not all outposts had the supplies for even a small party and the cockpit left her not much room for movement, which was a horrible experience for such an active pony. Running around outside for a while was also out of question, due to the snowstorm currently raging outside. "Ooooh, when are Gain and Kurtz gonna be back? I'm soooo bored." She complained. She too missed home. Pinkie Pie always loved making sugary treats in Sugarcube Corner and seeing the smiles on their customers' faces as they ate. She also missed her other friends. Not that Applejack wasn't fun to be around but it would be far better if they were all together again.

Currently, the Getter Robo and the Coustwell were holed up in a small tunnel that Hayato made, using the Getter-2. It was quite impressive to see the transformation. The Getter team also explained, that the Getter Robo had a third form, although it was not as practical right now, since it was an amphibian machine. "Don't worry Pinkie, once the party gets started, we'll know." Ryoma assured her. It was still strange for him to talk to a talking, pink pony but slowly he was getting used to it. He and his co-pilots were already looking forward to the start of the migration. The Siberian Railway Patrol won't like an entire city walking away from them, which promised some good fights. "Hopefully we can finally sleep somewhere warmer than here. Man, I could really use a hot drink by now."

A few moments later, Ryoma could hear knocking on his cockpit. Was there a person in this hole? If yes, why didn't they notice him. He was ready to knock that guy out, in order to make sure he couldn't alert the Siberian Railway Patrol but instead he was greeted by Pinkie Pie, as he opened the cockpit. With a warm smile, she handed him a mug of what looked like hot cocoa. "Here you go." She said, as she handed him the hot drink. "But... how..." He could feel a headache coming up, as he tried to think of a way how on earth Pinkie managed to make some hot cocoa here. A screen flared up to show Applejack. "Ryoma, she's Pinkie Pie. Don't question it. She follows the laws of physics only very loosely." With no choice but to accept these facts, Ryoma just thanked Pinkie, before closing the cockpit and drinking his cocoa.

While the others were talking, Wufei was meditating inside of his Gundam. Chaos swirled all around him, as factions all over the world seemed to become active. And then there was this revelation about the visitors from the other dimension. Normally he did not believe in fate but he couldn't deny that something big was about to happen. For now he would go along. The Siberian Railway Corporation was just the supply branch of the domeopolis administration. London IMA was the head of the domeopolis project, who also had ties to OZ. Maybe he could continue his mission after all.

Now they all could just wait, until Gain and Kurtz were done.

Gainer Sanga's day has started so well. After playing video games all night, he finally won the "Game Champ" title. The fact that he could play with Cynthia, best player he knew and his rival only sweetened the deal. Now he was wisked away right in the middle of class and thrown into a cell. Gainer had brown hair, kept relatively flat and rectangular glasses. He was still in his boring, grey school uniform.

The guard did not listen though, so he had no choice but to sit down and wait. Hopefully, someone would be able to tell them why he could not possibly involved in the Exodus movement. He thought it was a silly idea too, just taking an entire city and leaving? If people really wanted to leave home that bad, they could just move to China or western Europe or something. The Siberian Railway really seemed to be paranoid about something too, judging from how crowded the cell was. Several men and women were in here with him.

Once more the celldoor opened, although no people were thrown in, instead some bread and water was passed to the inmates. He thought, that this was better than nothing right now, especially since he missed breakfast. With a quick thanks, he accepted the piece of bread one of the other inmates broke off for him, as they passed the food around. For a moment Gainer wondered, if they were also thought to be with Exodus and taken right from their homes and workplaces. Then there were those two. One green haired man and a blonde man were thrown in yesterday. Most of the time, the two of them slept, most likely since there was nothing else anyone her could really do. Gainer decided, he'll do something nice and always saved them some bread and water while they were sleeping.

Today was the day of the festival, Gainer remembered, and even though he planned on playing video games all day again it would be really nice if he could see it. The guard opened the door, to collect the water bucket and mugs, as suddenly the green haired man grabbed the guards arm and delivered a devastating uppercut, using the metal mug for extra impact. Everyone in the cell was dumbfounded at the sudden violence and most were worried what would happen now.

The blonde man also rose up now, while the other grabbed the keys and threw them to the others. With this, they could free the other prisoners if they escaped. "I'm leaving, you guys are coming?" He asked with a tone of voice, as if he asked them whether they wanted to get something to eat or not. None rose, aside from the blonde man. They all were afraid there would be even worse repercussions, if they fled. After all, they have been taken prisoner once, the Siberian Railway could just imprison them again. "Even if you have legitimate complains, you won't do anything. I guess that's the way of the people, living in the dome cities." He taunted, before leaving.

Gainer couldn't let that sit. Not only did he want to get out, he wanted to prove himself. The two men looked surprised as he rose up and stepped out of his cell. "Are you sure?" The green haired man asked, making it sound more like a challenge than an actual question. "I guess I'm just not the kind of person who belongs here." Was Gainer's answer. It was technically true, since he was arrested on wrong premises. With a smile, the green haired men gave him a gun. "Name is Gain by the way." He said.

"I am Kurtz, now let's leave before his buddies arrive." Said the other man, pointing with his thumb to the unconscious security guard. "I'm Gainer." Gainer answered, as they already ran, to the jail exit and up the stairs. Gainer was nervous about the gun, he never fired one in his life and now there are good chances he would have to.

In front of the duke's palace, the noise of the festival was only barely audible. Despite being stuck on guard duty for tonight, the two guards still enjoyed themselves, talking and drinking a little. Most of their superiors were at the festival to oversee things, so they didn't need to worry about being caught drinking on the job. "Here you go." The one inside the small guardhouse said, pouring another glass for his friend, who accepted it gladly.

Before the two of them could continue their talk though, they heard laughing and slurred singing. Two men, clearly drunk were approaching the palace arm in arm. The green haired man in the large fur coat laughed while the blonde one sang some sort of song in a foreign language while holding a bottle of beer.

So much for the quiet shift. It was a bit odd for two drunks to wander so far away from the festival but then again, who knows what's going on in their heads right now. Still, the armed guard hoped, he could get them to leave without too much drama. "Hey you, you can't enter..."

He didn't come much further as the coated man suddenly delivered a punch to the gut, while a teenager bolted out from his hiding spot beneath the coat and pointed a gun directly at the other guards face. Since he still only had the bottle in hand, there was not much he could do but let the blonde guy knock him out.

Guards were pretty low on the premise tonight, so the trio managed to get to the museum wing without any further problems. Gainer still wondered what they were doing there and most importantly, why didn't he just go home. He was already out of jail and what those two were doing really wasn't any of his business. With a sigh, he figured that it was too late now anyway.

"The gun." That order brought Gainer out of his thoughts, as Gain demanded he get his weapon back. Gainer didn't need to be told twice, he felt uncomfortable holding it anyway. Using his coat as a silencer, Gain shot open the lock, leading them inside. In the museum wing, Gainer couldn't help but stare in amazement at the many overmen that were displayed. The duke was known to be a collector of exotic things but all these old Overmen must have been difficult to acquire.

"It this the one?" Kurtz then asked, pointing towards one of the overmen. It was blue and had white armor on the chest, legs and arms. The white helmet was round and had some cable coming out, making them look like hair. Instead of a face, there was a blue, round plate with two green lines running down by the middle. Immediately, Gainer felt a connection to this particular Overman.

"Yeah, that's the one." Answered Gain and Kurtz started to fumble with the drawer in the pedestal, that the Overman was resting on. Were the keyes in there? As the drawer was opened with a loud cracking noise, that pretty much answered that question. What surprised Gainer though was, that Kurtz tossed him the key. "Here you go, see if you can open the cockpit."

"Y-yes." Gainer answered nervously. Why did they want him to do that? Did they want to check for traps? It was possible that these old Overmen were secured with traps and those guys just didn't want to be the ones triggering them but Gainer didn't care at the moment. If this works, he could pilot a real Overman for once. The excitement was enough to let him forget the situation he was in.

Gainer climbed towards the chest of the Overman. That's where the cockpit usually was, so there should be a button somewhere. Maybe under the armor. A click later, the chest armor rose up, leaving the body of the Overman exposed, now there must be a second button. Gainer quickly found it and almost like a coat with zipper, the Overman opened up and the seat was pushed slightly outwards for the pilot. "Alright, I've got it." He informed Gain and Kurtz, as they talked about how the duke might have had ulterior motives for collecting those old Overmen.

While they were busy, Gainer sat down. He really wanted to know how it felt to be a real pilot. But then, the seat retracted back into the cockpit and it closed up. "Wait!" Gainer tried holding the cockpit open but his hand got stuck, leaving him no choice but to pull it in. That moment he was glad, that this was an Overman and not any other mech, or else his arm would be gone now. The muscle engine these things were made off, were solid but at the same time much softer than any other material. In fact, some Overmen seemed more like living creatures than machines.

The Overman then activated and the first question that appeared inside the ball shaped cockpit was the new registration. "So it needs a new id." Suddenly, an epiphany hit Gainer. This morning he managed to win the title King in his game, maybe that was a good enough inspiration, so he decided the name for this Overman. "King Gainer."

On the outside, Kurtz and Gain saw the glowing in the Overman's faceplate and the lines were moving, indicating that it became active. "You know Gain, that kid isn't half bad, with some training he could be Mithril material." Complimented the German sniper, as he saw the Overman rise. "Ah good, he got it going." Gain, who was standing on the podium with the Overman, climbed into its hand first as Kurtz followed after.

"Alright kid, now gently try to stand up, can you do that?" Gain asked, as he already felt the movements. Suddenly though, as King Gainer was almost standing, the arms jerked up and Gain was thrown against the ceiling, causing Kurtz to wince in sympathy. Fortunately for Gain though, Gainer managed to get control back in time to catch him. "Sorry, I'm not used to the real thing." The kid apologized. Even though the controls were identical, the feeling was different from the game.

"It's alright, I'm okay." Gain replied, still holding a hand to his back. That machine was pretty strong but that's the reason why they are here in the first place. "Now gently lower the hands so Kurtz here can hop on." Gainer did as he was told, although Kurtz was a little unsure if that was a good idea after what happened to Gain.

"Okay, I'm on and not smacked against the ceiling, time to get out of here." Kurtz said. Then, before Gain could ask for control of the Overman, loud bangs echoed in from the outside and holes were punched into the wall by gunfire. "Oh damn, there they are." The Silhouette Engine of the Siberian Railway swiftly fired a hole into the wall to enter and pushed another Overman that was displayed to the side. Gunfire from outside still pinned them down as Gain and Kurtz took cover behind King Gainers fingers. "Oi kid, how about running?"

The entering Silhouette Engine stopped in front of them and a hatch on top opened up. The "face" of the Silhouette Engines was not located on the top, the top was flat except for the entry hatch, instead it was on shoulder height, protruding to the front with a machine gun attached to the chin. Gainer recognized the blonde woman in the red jumpsuit that came out of it. This was the woman that has thrown him in jail this morning. "You're not going anywhere Gain Bijou, or should I say Black Southern Cross?"

Gainer recognized that nickname, wasn't that the infamous exodus expert? He didn't have time to think too much about it though, since the troops outside continued their assault. The only way to avoid the volley was for him to dive into the hallway. Seeing the wall getting closer fast, Gainer raised the hands of the Overman protectively, just before they rammed into it. The impact nearly knocked Gainer out of the seat and Gain and Kurtz would have been flattened, had he not protected them. "Gainer, we have to fly away, activate the photon mat and engage flying mode." Gain barked.

The photon mat was a powerful energy shield that the more powerful Overmen were famous for. The real knack though was, that they could even move the shields and use it for offensive purposes. Gainer quickly activated the photon mat, as the Siberian Railway soldiers caught up with them. The woman in the red jumpsuit, Adette, drew a gun and aimed at Gain. "End of the line for you." She snarled, before firing.

Gain and Kurtz closed their eyes as the shot rang but opened again as they noticed that they were still alive. Just in the nick of time, Gainer has activated the photon mat, causing the bullet to harmlessly bounce off. "Alright, now open up a path straight up." Kurtz said grinning. Gainer was now in more familiar territory, since he was getting used to the real controls now and sent a ring made of the photon mat upwards. All three marveled at the strength of it, as it cut a perfect hole into the ceiling. Losing contact with the ground, King Gainer flew upwards towards freedom.

As Gain said, Silhouette Engines besieged the castle from all sides. Gainer could see that only the one belonging to that high ranking officer seemed to follow them for now, he wasn't sure who she was again, although the first impression would possibly never leave him. It was a good thing he was inside the cockpit, so she couldn't see him. If that officer knew that he was inside the Overman, she could easily find out where he lived. After all, she barged right into his class to arrest him.

Inside of her room, princess Medaiyu finished her studies with her teacher Ms. Liubov and now she was itching to go to the festival. "Can we please go now? You said that I did well with my history." She pleaded, looking at her teacher with big eyes. It was one of the rare occasions she was allowed to leave her home high up. Their old castle was nice too but had been repurposed into a museum by her father. Sometimes Ana wished, someone would just come in and take her along for a journey. With a sigh, she looked out the window and wondered if the festival already started.

Just as that thought came though, she noticed a glow from the big globe in the middle of the room. "Isn't that photon mat energy?" Her panicked teacher asked, trying to get princess Ana behind her. From the hole that formed in the ground emerged a large robot, tall enough that it had to hunker down to fit in. But the strangest thing was the two men clinging to the side of it.

Ms. Liubov wondered if she should immediately call the guards but something held her back. For one, it was the way Ana happily running towards the two men, that nonchalantly stepped off the robot to greet them. "Good evening, we heard that princess Medaiyu wanted to see the festival, we have come to escort her." The blonde man said with a bow and approached the teacher. "Please trust us, we will keep the princess safe." Behind him she could see the green haired man help Ana into the Overman, which was piloted by a young boy who looked just as confused as she was. The pet ferrets of the princess were of course joining her and bounced around the cockpit already, much to the annoyance of the pilot.

Liubov barely managed to get any words out, as the cockpit closed again and they broke out the side of the room.

Pinkie Pie was really bored now. She knew why she had to wait but she hoped that Kurtz and Gain would be back soon. Finally, something happened. From the side of the great domed city. Applejacks jaw nearly hit the floor and Pinkies eyes widened as they saw massive city blocks, drawn by huge machines. It was almost like a parade, as they poured out into the snow in a single line, flanked by smaller machines. "Wow, that is the Exodus? This is amazing!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

Wufei remained stoic through this but brought his Gundam out of standby. It is to assume that the Siberian Railway would not want to lose their customers. Funny thing too, since they basically force all the people living in a domed city to buy their products. It was either that or starving.

Ryoma whistled, also kinda impressed by the huge march starting before him. "I've seen people moving but this is a bit larger than I've known. So let's be good neighbors and help them get their stuff to the new place." He said, starting up the Getter to join the escort.

"I bet those Siberian Railway idiots are standing there with their jaws on the floor. I like rebels, no better way to let the authorities know how little power they really have." Hayato added with a hint of excitement.

Benkei had spent a long time living as a monk in a small temple in the wilderness. All this new technology was mind boggling to him. Before being picked up as part of the Getter-team, he wouldn't have thought something like this to be possible. An entire city moving, it was impressive what people were capable off, if they put their mind to it.

A sentiment they all shared too was relief. Now they would be able to spend some time outside their mechs too. Being cramped up in the cockpit was not something they really wanted to be too long. Being among other people was also something they looked forward to. It was clear that it would be senseless to keep the ponies hidden from the city folk, so they would introduce them once the Exodus really got moving.

As the large house units moved closer, they could even see the familiar forms of Gain and Kurtz's machines. Among them was also a new mech, one that looked strangely more organic, as if it was actually a giant human wearing suit and armor, though his movements were somewhat erratic. As they got close, Applejack messaged Gain over the radio. "Howdy there Gain, I must say this is really impressive. Is that the 'new asset' you were talking about?" She asked, making Coustwell point at King Gainer.

"Yeah, some teenager we met in a cell was piloting it, he's pretty good too." Gain answered, as suddenly King Gainer almost fell over. Kurtz reacted quickly, holding the mech in place with his G9, gently lowering it onto its knees. "Heeey there, don't tell me the pilot is napping now." Kurtz said, as the cockpit opened and the pilot seat extended out of the chest.

Gainer was not looking so good, breathing heavily as he sat keeled over the controls, with Ana and her pet ferrets clinging onto the side. "Mr. Gain, Mr. Kurtz, Gainer is not looking so good, he seems very exhausted." She said. Luckily though, the teenager managed to hold on and catch his breath, as Gain offered to let Ana onto the hand of his machine. The little girl looked back at Gainer before climbing onto it. "You did very well, so don't feel bad that you got exhausted. I don't think many other people could have piloted this Overman as expertly as you did, so please take me with you on your Exodus." She said to him.

Applejack and Pinkie found this child actually pretty sweet, although they wondered why Gain and Kurtz picked her up too. But what happened next surprised them. That teenager, Gainer, suddenly got very angry. "You tricked me! You said you were arrested under false pretenses. I HATE Exodus." He yelled, as he ran towards Gain and tried to punch him, even though it was in vain, as the older man dodged every punch.

A few more punches were dodged by Gain, as the two ponies got enough. With the Coustwell's hands, Applejack grabbed the two of them and held them up in the air. Not a moment too soon, as the older, stronger and more experienced man clenched his fist to deliver a retaliation punch. "Would you two stop it? We're not enemies here. I'm sorry you have been deceived but this isn't gonna solve anything. And Gain, I'm really disappointed that you tricked this boy into joining." Applejack sounded very much like a stern mother that caught her colts fighting as she said this and the two men couldn't really do much to escape from the grip of the large machine.

"Yo AJ, if you have these children under control, I think we got company." Ryoma then called through the intercom. From inside the dome, several Shilouhette Engines were approaching fast. Ryoma had the Getter brandish his tomahawk. "Although, nevermind, this is gonna be easy." He then said with a cocky smirk. As the troops of the Siberian Railway got closer, they recoiled as the massive super robot came closer. "Alright, who wants to go first." The hot blooded pilot called through the speaker, as a sudden explosion came from the Getter Robos back and knocked it down.

"Ryoma!" Applejack looked to where the shot came from but could see it now. The snowstorm was lightening up a bit and several specks could be seen in the distance. More rounds were fired and impacted with the hull of the Getter Robo, pinning it to the ground. "Kurtz, Gain, you have to take out those snipers." Applejack yelled, placing Gain back onto his robot.

"On it, you and Wufei keep the others off our backs." As Gain and Kurtz then got into position to take out the enemy snipers, Applejack looked at the other person she was still holding. "You, I know you don't like this Exodus but many lives may depend on whether or not you help us. Please, pilot the Overman again." She pleaded with him, placing him back onto the cockpit, were a worried Ana was waiting for him. "Alright, I'll get Ana to safety." Gainer then responded. He still didn't like all of this one bit but at least the kid should be out of the combat zone.

With a smile, the two ponies watched as King Gainer took off towards the caravan of Silhouette Mammoths, pulling the city blocks. "He's real nice, good that you broke up the fight." Pinkie commented. "Now let's just get outta here." She then added, a little more nervous. From back further into the dome, shots could already be heard. Machine guns were blazing and robots were falling. Some hint of relief was brought to the Equestrians, as they saw the surviving crew fleeing from the wrecks. "Alright Pinkie, let's just make sure no one gets seriously hurt." Applejack said, as a sudden heat could be felt.

Turning to the source of the heat, the two of them saw the Shenlong Gundam being blown away by a burst of flame. Turning further to the source, another Overman was seen. This one was purple in color. The head was pretty flat and in its hands it held what looked like a huge bellow. The smoke coming out of the muzzle indicated, that this was really a giant flamethrower. "So, you think that you can just pack your things and leave. Not as long as I, Jin Yassaba, have anything to say about this." A loud, male voice boomed.

"Damn, should have known that they have an Overman too. AJ, Pinkie, keep him busy until we got the Getter free." Gain shouted, still firing at the snipers. He wondered, how they got an anti super robot task force ready out here as the answer hit him. The Amalgam soldiers they rescued. Information was an important good in todays world, no doubt they would at least wanna sell the information about a super robot on the move if the oni business failed. Looks like the Siberian Railway was the lucky customer. Worse still was, that the snowstorm hasn't died down completely yet. The enemy likely had special equipment for such occasion while staying somewhat protected. Now they could hide behind the storm while keeping the Getter Robo down. Every time Ryoma tried to stand up, another round connected. The damage wasn't that bad but the explosions made it nearly impossible to move.

The Coustwell meanwhile was jumping to the side as another jet of fire was shot out of the Overman's flamethrower. With Wufei still not responding, the two ponies had a real problem at hand. The pilot could concentrate solely on them and with the Coustwell being a close combat fighter, all they could do without getting horribly burned was to keep throwing the orgone fist at him. One after another did they shatter against the ground, as the enemy Overman dodged each projectile. "Is that all you can do? And with these pathetic machines you attempt an exodus." Yassaba continued to taunt them while getting closer.

"Applejack, this guy is crazy." Pinkie Pie complained, while keeping up the energy. A worried look at the display told her, that all the orgone fists and moving around was depleting their energy at a rapid pace. Soon they would not be able to counterattack anymore, if they didn't want to get roasted. "I know sugarcube, let's just hold out a little longer." The other mare pleaded. Hopefully, Gain and Kurtz have freed the others by then. Suddenly though, she could see something fly overhead, the Overman that Gain and Kurtz acquired. "Is that the kid from before?"

As he flew into the storm, Gainer wondered why he was doing this. He promised to get Ana to safety, nothing more. And still he was now going outside to get rid of these snipers? Some of the shots were now directed at him though evading them was easy. The rounds were special, rocket-propelled grenades that were designed for larger, slower targets. Trying to hit a small and fast target was nearly impossible. As he got close enough, he could identify the mechs. "These look like Gain's Gotchko." The model seemed to be the same, even with the sniper rifle attached to the shoulder. The only difference was the arm, which Gain seemed to have replaced with that of a completely different machine. As King Gainer landed, the nearby pilots started to abandon their machines, knowing that they were completely outmatched in close combat. The first slice and the first mass produced Gotchko was a smoking heap of scrap. Hopefully that would be enough to help the others.

One missed wreckage was all it took. Tripping over the remains of a sihouette engine, the Coustwell was lying on the ground, Rush Rod towering above. "I'm tired of your games, surrender and step out of the robot if you wanna live." Jin Yassaba ordered, as he prepared another stream of fire. The two ponies inside looked at each other, near a panic attack as the sound of gunfire could be heard.

Wufei regained consciousness after the earlier fall and was now prepared for round two. "I refuse to let two civilians protect me. Come and face me." He ordered, readying the Shenlong Gundam.

Yassaba scoffed at the new arrival. "That worked out so well the first time didn't it? This time you will stay down!" He yelled, firing the flame towards the Gundam. This time, Wufei leapt over the flame and going behind Rush Rod. Landing perfectly, Wufei turned around and slashed across the enemy Overman's back with his beam glaive, leaving a deep gash. Still, it seemed that Yassaba was not ready to give up, as Rush Rod turned around while firing more flames, which Wufei only narrowly managed to evade. "You need much more to take me down." He bellowed again.

"Wufei, are you alright?" Applejack asked over the radio. It was scary enough the first time he was knocked down.

"Yes, I will not let him wound my pride any further. Stand back you two, this is a job for a real soldier." He scoffed. But before he could do anything else, a bright, purple beam hit the ground close to Yassaba, causing a massive explosion and knocking the Rush Rod far back.

"Is this enough to take you down?" The Getter Robo was standing again. Here and there the armor had slight cracks but otherwise they seemed to be alright. Applejack and Pinkie were glad to see that they were alright. Wufei on the other hand did not appreciate that this battle was stolen from him. After seeing their leader knocked out, the remaining troops of the Siberian Railway grabbed the Rush Rod and were on full retreat. "Sorry it took so long." Ryoma then said nonchalantly, although he sounded a little embarrassed.

"No problems Ryo, we're just glad you're okay. Now let's get onto the parade float and have us a nice victory party. A proper one this time." Pinkie Pie exclaimed happily. Now they would not be just a small group travelling through the wilderness. Lots of people would be with them now. Pinkie could also see Gainer returning. "And here's the guest of honor. I'm sure we will all be alright now." She said as cheers erupted around them.

Critical Mass

Resistance of steel

Chapter 16 Critical Mass

It's been a few days now since Tiffa finally woke up again. Things have calmed down afterwards, while they continued to travel north towards Russia. They left behind the desert area around India, where most of the devastation of the colony drop happened and entered a forested area. The Freeden was following a river for now, while Captain Jamil was talking to Tiffa.

"So you cannot sense any other Newtypes yet?" He asked her, earning a shake of her head as an answer. The Captain sighed, though he couldn't blame her after all that has happened. "It's alright, no need to rush. We will try again another time." Jamil said softly, after seeing a worried look on Tiffa's face. His goal was to protect all Newtypes from being exploited by people, desperately seeking power, so he hoped that Tiffa could help him. From the outside, he could hear the muttering of some of the crew, as if he wouldn't notice them. In a way it was a good thing that everyone was so worried about Tiffa. Even though Jamil could keep her safe, he would be busy most of the time and he didn't want the girl to be lonely.

Then there were also the two pilots they picked up after rescuing Tiffa, Quatre and Trowa. After what happened with that Frost guy, he had his men monitor those two closely, to make sure that no repeat of Tiffa's kidnapping would happen. So far they were not interested in her powers, though he still didn't trust them. Trowa was very distant, keeping to himself and generally avoiding contact, while Quatre seemed like a nice, young man. He frequently chatted with the crew and was very polite.

Outside the room, Garrod, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and two mechanics were pressed against the door, trying to eavesdrop. "Move over, I wanna hear something too." Garrod hissed to Rainbow Dash, pushing against her. "Neither of us are gonna hear anything if you are not quiet." She retorted and pushed back, while Fluttershy mostly just let the others closer. Suddenly the door opened and the group almost fell against Captain Jamil. Garrod and the mechanics hastily stood at attention and saluted, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were hovering just above ground.

"Aren't you supposed to perform maintenance on the machines now? You and the pilots as well, you need to work together to make sure all robots are in fighting shape." Jamil started to lecture them, though Garrod was not even listening. All the boy could see was Tiffa. He smiled happily, seeing her up again and flashed her a peace sign. Fluttershy also hovered a bit closer and waved to the girl. Tiffa was visibly happy that her friends were coming to visit and smiled back at them.

This heartwarming moment didn't last long though, as Jamill ordered everyone to get back to work. Garrod, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy followed the other mechanics to the hangar, since they still had to help with adjusting their machines. It was pretty difficult for the Bellzelute though, since the two pegasi only knew how to control it. Knowledge about how exactly everything worked was not included. Still, the skilled mechanics of the Freeden did a pretty good job at figuring everything out so far. Kid, the chief mechanic, almost saw it as some sort of hobby.

"Say, why is everyone after those Newtypes?" Rainbow Dash asked, as they walked through the metallic halls. She heard something about special powers, though she did not really listen to all the talk about them.

One of the mechanics sighed, figuring that Rainbow Dash didn't listen the first time Jamill explained it. "Newtypes are supposed to have an incredible focus and some sort of sixth sense. It's said, Newtypes experience some sort of 'flash' when they sense hostile intentions directly at them. They are also capable of sensing other Newtypes." He wasn't sure if those were all of the abilities a Newtype possessed but those seemed to be their main abilities. "I guess you can see why armed organizations are interested in them. The sixth sense alone would be a huge help, since that makes them pretty resistant to ambushes and the increased focus also helps with their piloting skills."

The ponies could understand that those Newtypes could make great warriors. Still, Tiffa was not the warrior type and they wouldn't want her to be forced into a fight. "Yeah, I can see that. But it's just wrong to try and force them to fight. Glad people like Jamill and Garrod are around." The latter blushed a little at Rainbow Dash's compliment.

Finally they reached the hangar, where a furious Kid was already waiting for them. "Don't touch anything." He angrily yelled at the apologizing mechanics, from on top of the. "If you are lacking so much professionalism as to leave the hangar during work hours, I won't let you touch a single screw." He huffed and jumped down onto the sidewalk, where Garrod approached to calm him down. "Hey hey, just calm down a little. We were all just a little worried about Tiffa."

It did not really help though. "You should be working hard too Gundam-boy. And you ponies too. Normally a professional pilot should always help the crew with adjustments before a sortie." He complained to them. Rainbow Dash just rolled her eyes, while Fluttershy actually did look pretty guilty and muttered an apology. "Although, I don't expect too much from you Garrod." As those words left Kid's mouth, Garrod looked pretty much ready to punch him in the face. Before the situation could escalate any further though, an announcement was made. "All hands, we will deploy in ten minutes, ready your mechs."

Vultures did not really have many options when it came to spare parts and new equipment. After the colony drop, many manufacturers were closed down as the Britannian Empire, in cooperation with OZ, took control of the colonies while the AEU licked their wounds. Years later, the AEU have never tried to reclaim their old facilities in the area. The former Human Reform League has split completely, leaving the Asian countries with independent leadership yet again. That meant that their facilities also remained abandoned. Those facts greatly helped the Vultures, as they would often salvage spare parts from the old AEU and HRL facilities.

The Freeden was currently near one of those facilities. An old warehouse was located in the area, still not picked clean by others. Witz and Roybea were already carrying some ammo into the Freeden, while the crew hooked the Gundam X and the Bellzelute up to some old machinery. With how old everything was, it was doubtful any of it would work but they could still get some spare parts from it.

"Alright, tow it in." Came the order from one of the mechanics, as the old mobile suit was secured. For moving large machines like those around, they had large platforms with wheels, that other mechs could tow along. The Bellzelute started to move, carefully bringing in their loot. It was dangerous work, since the old warehouses were about ready to collapse on their own. After Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were already out, they could hear the crew giving Garrod the order to move out as well.

"I can't believe those AEU guys would leave all this stuff lying around. These machines are far more advanced than anything we have back home." Rainbow Dash complained, as she looked back towards the mobile suit. Robots like those were only something she knew from those Science Fiction comics that Scootaloo liked so much. At some points she wondered if she's not sleeping and only dreaming all of this. "Makes me wonder why we don't have any of these cool machines in Equestria." It was not like they had a shortage of eggheads that could come up with robots, floating ships and such. Twilight was pretty much the biggest egghead she knew and the purple unicorn only had a computer that would probably make the engineers here laugh.

"Well, they don't have any magic." Fluttershy then commented, earning a quizzical look from the other pegasus. Upon seeing this, she elaborated. "Well... it's just that magic can solve so many problems at home. Most would think of using magic first, then try coming up with new technology. The humans don't have such a shortcut... I think." She explained, a little unsure of what she just said. Still, it kinda made sense to Rainbow Dash. Magic was pretty much part of everyday life in Equestria. Twilight must be having an existential crisis by now, in this world without magic.

Suddenly a loud crash came from the warehouse. Quickly Rainbow Dash opened the cockpit and flew back, where mechanics were already running out. Inside, she saw what happened. A piece of steel beam fell to the ground, nearly crushing some of the mechanics. Rainbow Dash saw that a few of them were apparently wounded and quickly flew back to the Freeden, to report the accident. On the way out she saw, how it happened. The platform that the GX towed had crashed against one of the pillars and caused part of the ceiling to collapse.

Later inside the Freeden, Fluttershy immediately volunteered to help the doctor, fixing up those who got hurt. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries. While the doctor popped a dislocated shoulder back in place, Fluttershy cleaned the scrapes of someone, who had to jump aside to dodge the falling metal. With many of the crew being stitched up, the remaining engineers needed some extra help too. Even though Rainbow Dash didn't really know anything about engineering, she took care of messages and fetched equipment for the crew.

At the door, Garrod was peeking into the room. After causing the accident, he wanted to make sure everyone was alright but he couldn't face them directly. All of them were surely angry at him for getting them hurt, just because he wasn't paying attention to where he was going. The others finally noticed that he was standing just outside the room, the door just a crack wide open. Not a word was said but the tension was thick in the room. Fluttershy herself wanted to say something to break the tension but she couldn't bring herself to say a single word, until Garrod finally left.

Finishing up quickly, Fluttershy went after Garrod, hoping she can help him. Flying down the hallway, she spotted him leaning against a wall, sulking in guilt. The young pilot noticed the pegasus and sighed. "I completely blew it, they must all hate me now." He said. His voice was ridden with guilt over being the cause of pain for all these people. Deep down he was also concerned. When he first fired the satellite cannon, he already knew that he would kill people, even though the sheer power of it still surprised him. Was it really that easy for him to hurt others?

Fluttershy put a comforting hoof on his shoulders. "They might be mad at you at the moment but I'm sure they will forgive you. After all, there were no serious injuries." She assured him. She did not think that Garrod was a bad person. As far as she heard, he just wasn't used to being around others. "You just need to take the others into consideration more. Everything will be fine, I promise." After the last sentence, she pulled Garrod into a hug.

Having been alone for a long time, Garrod was not used to being hugged. The most contact he usually had with others was usually whenever he sold mobile suits. Other than that, he always kept to himself. At least that was the way he lived until he met Tiffa. Still, it felt kinda nice to him. Slowly the arms of the boy also wrapped around Fluttershy's back, returning the hug. The pony smiled, feeling some of the guilt and tension slip off of Garrod.

The hug lasted until a cough got their attention. Quickly they broke it off to turn towards the source of the noise, seeing one of the women who worked on the bridge, standing in the hallway. "Excuse me Garrod, the captain would like to hear about todays incident from you." She said. In that moment, some of the tension returned to Garrod. Still, he didn't want to cause any more trouble, so he just nodded and followed her.

Luckily for Garrod, there was no penalty, since nobody got seriously injured. The incident still weighed heavily on the youths conscience. Right now they were on the way to the next town, where they would sell the mobile suits they acquired. The entire rest of the day, Garrod was brooding somewhere, while normalcy returned to the Freeden. Almost all the mechanics were on duty again, giving Rainbow Dash the opportunity to rest.

Still, with rest came boredom for the tired pegasus. Weather duty was often a tough job, especially whenever the clouds were being stubborn and sometimes she even got shocked when they had to discharge stormclouds by hoof again. On the whole, Rainbow Dash couldn't complain though. Being a weatherpony at least meant she could do what she loved most while working, flying. Right now they were far enough away from civilization, so she could take a quick spin. All she had to do was make sure those two pilots were asleep. Quatre and Trowa were a mystery to her. They usually kept to themselves and only occasionally took off in their Gundams to return later. They were clearly fighting someone, since their Gundams often returned with light damages and sometimes they picked up crates of ammo. From what she could see, Quatre's Gundam, the Sandrock, was more melee focused but Heavyarms, belonging to Trowa, was practically made out of missile launchers.

On her way, Rainbow Dash came past the sickbay and heard the captain talk to the doctor. "Garrod kinda reminds me of myself when I was that age." Jamil said to the doctor. "When I joined the military, I only had survival on my mind. I must admit, I never thought too much about other people." Was this why he was so lax on Garrod? It would make sense, if captain Jamil could sympathize with him better then.

The doctor smiled back. "Back before the colony drop, I only had this girl on my mind. Though sadly she is too far away now." He said with a sigh. Jamill was curious about that. "Is she in one of the colonies?" He asked. The doctor just shook his head. "No, in heaven." He answered. Rainbow Dash felt bad for the poor man. She first heard of this heaven and thought it to be a city like Cloudsdale, until Kid explained it to her. Rainbow could clearly remember how stupid she felt at that moment. One of the engineers talked about how he hoped his brother was happy in heaven and she suggested that he could write a letter and offered that she could give him a lift.

The pegasus didn't want to eavesdrop but her curiosity got the better of her. "You know, I am also reminded of myself when I look at Garrod. Everything can be very overwhelming when you experience it for the first time." The doctor then said, pouring some coffee for Jamil and himself. "By the way, I heard you didn't punish him for that incident. That might have been a mistake on your part." He then said. Jamil seemed a little confused at what the doctor meant. Why would it be a mistake not to punish him? "He has spent most of his life alone and is not used to receiving kindness. I've seen him while tending to the wounded and he feels terribly guilty. I believe he will want to do something to make it up and I don't think that it will be something terribly smart."

Rainbow Dash mulled over the situation. Despite having been a loner, Garrod was a good person overall. He seemed to like Tiffa very much and now that she thought about it, she knew why Garrod was so careless earlier. Working alone for most of his life, he never had to follow orders or take care of others, so he didn't know how to work in a team. Maybe she could help him with that. She was then shaken out of her thoughts, when a beeping noise come from inside. Rainbow peeked inside, apparently captain Jamil got a message from the bridge. "He what? Try to contact him and tell him to come back. I will be with you shortly."

Rainbow Dash managed to avoid being seen as she hurried off, now sitting in the cockpit of the Bellzelute again, together with Fluttershy. Garrod has taken the GX and has left the Freeden. Behind them, the two Gundam pilots, Quatre and Trowa mounted their own machines, having agreed to help retrieve him.

Sala Tyrrell, captain Jamil's second-in-command gave orders over the intercom. "Be careful, Garrod is heading to a former Federation power plant, those areas are extremely dangerous. Should the energy generator still be active and go out of control, the resulting explosion will be huge. The goal of this mission is to contact Garrod and get him back to the Freeden as quickly as possible." They all confirmed their orders, before the hangar of the Freeden opened up.

The power plant was already in sight. The building was old and desolate. "Excuse me, how dangerous are those plants?" Asked Fluttershy. Back in Equestria, most energy came from magic and while it could be dangerous, the unicorns had it under tight control. However, with the energy weapons she saw here, Fluttershy learned very quickly how much more dangerous this kind of power could be.

"Normally we would never go near these plants. We will also send out some vulture signals to warn others, who might be nearby." Sala explained. When left alone, these facilities were usually not dangerous. Try to remove some equipment however and the core can get unstable really quickly. Sala heard that there were some people, that actually went inside those power plants to grab everything they could, before the reactor became too unstable.

The two pegasi and the Gundam pilots were just about to leave as they saw something through the rear camera. It was Captain Jamil, getting into the cockpit of one of the mobile suits they managed to get earlier. "I will be coming along. People generally avoid these old power plants but I want to be sure." He said nervously. It was strange to hear the normally so stoic captain like this. Whenever Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy saw him, he was always perfectly calm. This was the first time he seemed... afraid. Still, they had to rescue Garrod, so there was no time to be afraid as they left the hangar, heading for the power plant.

The abandoned building towered ominously before them. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had been to the old castle in the Everfree Forest before but not even that ruin felt so menacing. If the stories they heard are true, what would possess the humans to use something that hazardous as an energy source? They guessed that the fact that this building was still standing was a sign that they could control it well enough for these purposes. Still, the ponies felt increasingly uncomfortable as they got closer.

"Alright, I don't detect any sudden rises of energy from within the reactor, so that Garrod kid hasn't broken anything yet." Quatre, who volunteered to watch the energy readings, reported. As long as the equipment inside wasn't touched, it was unlikely that they would be in danger but if the reactor goes critical there wouldn't be much time left to retreat. "Good thing is, even if he does damage something we would have enough time to quickly fetch him and flee, this building is in a surprisingly good condition." The cheery youth said.

"Alright, I still don't want to stay any second longer than I have to. That building gives me the creeps." Rainbow Dash replied. Trowa and Quatre haven't seen them yet and thankfully, they weren't too curious, despite their unusual names. The best guess was that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were just their callsigns.

"Relax Rainbow," Quatre replied. "it's just a building. It remained stable all this time, so it's highly unlikely that it would go critical al...." Suddenly the call was interrupted by an alarm, blaring from the speakers. "What the hell? What happened there? Even if the reactor would corrode too much, it shouldn't become unstable this quickly." The large tower, which housed the reactor, started to glow and they could see steam coming out from several holes in the structure.

"Detecting several heat signatures around the tower, it seems like Garrod was ambushed." Trowa said calmly. Despite the danger they were in now, the pilot of the Heavyarms did not seem the slightest bit fazed. "The fighting made the reactor go unstable, some shots must have hit the cooling system. I recommend that we retreat now. The enemies will most likely perish in the blast, when the plant explodes." Almost like a machine he remained monotonous.

"But Garrod would die too." Fluttershy protested with a gasp, not believing what she heard. How could Trowa be so cold, just leaving Garrod to his fate without even caring. "Please, we have to save him." She begged. Jamil would have the last word on this. Before he could say anything however, Rainbow Dash butted in. "Hay yes we're gonna save him, with or without you. Come Fluttershy, put some more juice into the thrusters." The brasher pegasus ordered and set course for the tower.

"Well Trowa, looks like those two lovely ladies didn't care for your advice." Quatre said, as the Bellzelute sped off. He could understand their reasoning. While he and Trowa had a mission that Garrod was not part of, for them he was a comrade and friend.

"Follow them, we must act quickly. Once we located Garrod, we will leave with him immediately." Jamil ordered, as he too increased his mobile suits speed to pursue them. "Once we engage the enemy we will rotate cover-fire duty while fleeing, should they continue to attack us during out retreat." It would surely be a difficult situation, having to retreat while they were under fire. He hoped that those unknown assailants would cease their attack.

The two pegasi could already see the repeated flashes of gunfire and hear the shots. "How insane are these people? This whole building is already dangerous and they seriously wanna fight here?" Rainbow Dash growled as the mobile suits finally came into view. The brown machines had no real marks, indicating that these were most likely mass produced models. Even the heads were featureless, aside from the slight protrusion where the camera was built in.

Rainbow Dash didn't waste any time and drew the Shot Launchers. With these pistol-like weapons, she took aim while dodging the enemy fire. In the last moment before shooting however, she hesitated. If she damaged the machines now, the pilots wouldn't be able to make it out of the area. The thought of killing someone, even if just indirectly, didn't sit well with the pegasus at all. Adjusting her aim, she instead aimed for the arms before firing.

In the cockpit, Fluttershy was adjusting the output of the thrusters as needed in order to evade the enemy fire. Somehow it was a bit scary how natural it all came. The knowledge on what she had to do was there but it was almost like the right instinct was injected right into her brain as well. Even with that though, Rainbow Dash amazed the shy mare. Despite their constant moving, she managed to aim well enough to shoot off the enemies arms, rendering them incapable of fighting without dispatching them completely. One after another, the mobile suits were forced to flee as the green bolts of energy impacted upon them until they were all gone.

For a moment during the fight, Fluttershy remembered flight camp, back in Cloudsdale. Rainbow Dash always loved to play hoofball, passing the ball around in midair and dodging the players of the other team. In a strange way, this was very much like that. Only that being slow here could have much worse consequences than just losing a game. "That was all of them but where is Garrod?" She asked, as the last enemy mobile suit left. The glow from the tower got brighter and she could see even more cracks in the concrete now. Some of the metal equipment closer to it even started to melt.

"Oh horseapples, we got to find him NOW." The two of them were close to panicking, as they spotted some flashes just a short distance away. "Over there, that must be Garrod." Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth as she flew in the direction of the flashes. If he was still fighting here, it would be very bad. That must be what caused everything here to go so unstable.

At the site of the battle, they finally saw what was presumably the leaders mobile suit. It was the same model as the others but painted blue instead of brown. One of the leader's underlings was still there, firing at the Gundam X. Rainbow Dash wanted to contact Garrod, telling him to stop and flee immediately, as he already drew the beam sabre of the GX and cut into the enemy mobile suit.

The mech was thrown back into some gas tanks, which ruptured, allowing the gas to spill out. Even after all these years, the gas inside those tanks was still contained until that moment but now it came into contact with the sparks, caused by the damaged electronic parts of the mobile suit and the scraping of metal against metal. A large explosion engulfed the tanks, completely annihilating them, along with the mobile suit. The old plating on the ground also couldn't withstand the heat and melted, allowing the flames to enter the underground facilities.

A chain reaction went off inside as explosion after explosion rocked the ground of the power plant. Fluttershy swiftly opened a channel to Garrod. "Garrod, the reactor is about to blow, please stop, we have to get out of here." She practically begged. The poor pegasus felt like her heart was about to burst in her chest from the fear. Luckily though, the enemy leader understood the situation and fled.

The area was turning into an inferno as the group made their dash back to the Freeden. Arcs of electricity danced around the tower, which was not riddled with holes. Any second now it would burst and destroy the entire area. Quatre was still monitoring the reactor. "This is not good, we're not gonna make it into the safe zone in time." He alerted the others.

The Bellzelute was a very fast machine, yet the pegasi inside wanted to remain close to their companions instead of just saving themselves. They had to do their best to make sure, everyone would make it back. "Don't complain, flee." Rainbow Dash's cocky attitude only masked her worries. Without a doubt, if they flew at full speed they could make it back but the others...

Finally the reactor couldn't take it anymore. The entire facility turned into a giant, bright sphere of pure energy, rapidly approaching them. Never in their lives, did Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Garrod, Jamil, Quatre or Trowa witness such raw energy. The Freeden was still nowhere in sight as the explosion got closer and closer. They could already feel the heat, the deadly sphere was too close now, escape was impossible.

The Machine Brothers

Resistance of steel

Chapter 17 Machine Brothers

It has been strangely quiet in the GGG headquarters, ever since they met the Black Knights. The Zonder did not attack again yet and the Britannian Empire has been quiet as well. Kallen, who was more open towards the others by now, guessed that the Britannians wanted to wait for either GGG or the Zonders to win, in order to attack the survivor. Another theory is that they preferred to know where Zero was and just kept the city surrounded.

If the latter theory were true, it would be very ironic though, since Zero has been gone for a few days now. His assistant, C.C. stayed behind, keeping an eye on the Black Knights. With the calm time, Twilight and Rarity had time to listen to some rumors. Both ponies sat in the mess hall of the GGG headquarters, together with a group of Black Knights, including their former leader Ohgi. "Sometimes I wonder if even our theft of that strange capsule wasn't set up by Zero. It was just too strange of a coincidence, that this top secret weapon managed to fall into our hands, just so we could get surrounded in Shinjuku and get help from a mysterious stranger." Ohgi did not hold a grudge on losing his leadership position. His goals of freeing the occupied Japan were more important than his ego after all and Zero has brought them one victory after another. It took them years, getting that one, busted Knightmare Frame Kallen used at first and now they had an entire hangar full of Burais, the Gurren and an alliance with GGG.

From what they gathered, that was also the very same day that Zero also assassinated the Britannian prince Clovis. "Say, when he killed Clovis, did any of you assist him?" Twilight then asked. If the meeting between Zero and the now Black Knights happened by pure chance, the masked leader must be incredibly intelligent and talented in the fields of strategy and infiltration. The studious unicorn couldn't help but feel a strange form of respect for Zero. She did not believe she could make up a plan like that on the spot.

Ohgi shook his head. "No, our entire group was together then. Only his assistant here could have possibly helped him back then." He said, nodding towards the green-haired girl, sitting at the far end of the mess hall. Said woman was overjoyed, as she learned that pizza was served today and happily ate some with the happiest smile on her face. It was a strange sight, since most of the time she was rather stoic.

"Yeah, I don't really see the cutie there sneaking past armed guards and offing royalty." Another member of the Black Knights butted in, Tamaki. He was not known to be the most talented soldier but he certainly was impulsive and fiercely loyal to Zero. "I bet Zero used to be a spy or something, long years of training under the toughest conditions, that is how he became a genius badass." He argued.

While prior training would certainly explain his skills, somehow the others doubted it. While usually covered by his large cloak, they saw that Zero was a pretty thin guy. No noticeable muscles were visible through his clothes. Special training was right out of the question, he may not even be working out regularly. Still, his strategies have brought the Black Knights one victory after another.

"No, not really. But he definitely has some kind of special trick up his sleeve. Remember Shatter Mountain? We managed to set up camp there without the Japanese Resistance even knowing we're there, despite the watchpost on the peak. Managed to surprise everyone." She still wondered what his motivation behind that was. Why not just tell the Resistance up front that they were coming to help them? The only answer she could think of was, that he wanted to play the savior again to play up his own reputation. "Well, I guess his 'miracles' do bring us a lot of recruits. Heroes do motivate people."

Heroes motivate the people. This sentence hung heavily in the minds of the two unicorns. After defeating Nightmare Moon and freeing Princess Luna of the dark influence, they did become heroes. Neither of them really noticed any changes in the way they have been treated but did they have the same effect on other ponies now? Twilight also thought back on her brother. He was always her hero, even long before he joined the guard. Twilight opened her mouth, wanting to throw in her own thoughts into the conversation, as an announcement rang through the speakers. "Would C.C.,Ougi, Kallen, Twilight and Rarity please come to the hangar? We have an important issue to discuss."

Just a few minutes later, the group arrived at the hangar. Most of the Black Knights mechs had to be hidden somewhere else, since the GGG facilities were not made to house so many machines. Only the Gurren, Granteed and Zero's mech were housed here. Many other pilots were patrolling the surrounding areas around the city, looking out for Britannian troops and other possible attackers. Still, regularly those defense teams received tools and materials to maintain their Knightmare Frames, as well as some GGG mechanics to help them.

However, along with their own mechs, Galeon and the Gao-machines, there were two new vehicles stored in the hangar right now. One was a blue, mobile crane and the other was a firetruck. In front of them stood Guy and Leo, with the old engineer looking very proud. "Ah, good to see you. May I introduce, Enryu and Hiryu, the latest additions to our team." He greeted them, gesturing towards the crane and the firetruck respectively, as he said their names.

At first everyone looked for the driver seat, wondering if they were new pilots. However, they couldn't even see a driver seat and no driver anywhere. And for that matter, what were they supposed to do with these vehicles? Would they now help put out any fires and help with reconstruction of destroyed buildings after fights. Kallen decided to speak up in behalf of the others. "Um... that's nice and all but could they step out of the cars please? It's kinda rude to remain in there during introductions.

"I am afraid that is not possible miss. You see, we are not exactly human." Came a polite voice from the crane. The really strange thing was, that the voice didn't come from somewhere inside, it came directly from the vehicle. Another voice, sounding more brash came from the firetruck. "Don't tease them like that, just explain what we are."

The two unicorns and the Black Knights members eyes widened, as the cars talked to them, while Leo Shishio just laughed a bit. "Sorry, I should have explained that right away. The two of them are the result of our research regarding artificial intelligence. Hiryu and Enryu are AI's, built into the vehicles you see before you. And to answer your question Kallen, aside from the obvious uses, they can transform into bipedal mechs and posses combat abilities. That way they will be able to help you in fighting the Zonder machines. And the Britannians, should they show up again." While telling them about this, he sounded less like an engineer, introducing his latest invention but more like a father, introducing his children to friends. Then, with a slight sigh he added. "They would also be able to combine, forming a singular, strong robot. For that their personalities need to be in synch though, however that is where problems arise. Also, a lot of energy is needed for the system change to occur. We managed to acquire some Sakuradite for that but we would prefer our new engine technology, based on the G-Stone of the Galeon to work properly." Sakuradite, the material that motivated the Britannian Empire to invade Japan in the first place. This superconductor was capable of managing high temperatures and conserving much energy, making it one of the most sought-after minerals on earth. Knightmare Frames rely heavily on Sakuradite.

"Is it my fault he is so slow to get in gear? I would combine at once if it means to destroy whatever menace arises." Enryu indignantly protested. From his hasty answer and tone it was abundantly clear that they were dealing with a pretty hot-headed machine there. "You forget that using too much firepower can deal a great amount of damage to the infrastructure and even endanger civilian lives." Answered Hiryu, sounding very calm and calculating.

"So, they need to be in perfect synch, yet they have completely opposing personality types. Seems like a pretty big oversight in their programming." Kallen was clearly not as impressed as before, when she said that. It seemed very counterproductive to her and she wondered, why they even bothered with giving them personalities. Twilight and Rarity on the other side were amazed by the two of them. Machines that were alive, something neither thought possible.

Professor Shishio noticed the tone and seemed a bit embarrassased that the others witnessed the two AI's fighting. "Actually Kallen, their personalities were not pre-programmed. The two of them were instead outfitted with highly advanced learning software and we spent the last six months teaching them everything they know." He explained. Of course they could have just programmed fixed personalities but the professor did not want them to be soulless combat-machines that only existed for battle.

In Twilights mind meanwhile, an idea started to spark. Just because she was involved in this war now, didn't mean her friendship studies stopped. This could be a unique opportunity for her. Teaching two artificial intelligences to set their differences aside, forming the first friendship between machines. "Professor, if you allow it I would like to help them get along better." She suggested. "If they are so good at learning, learning about friendship should be possible to am I right?" Her face had an eager grin, like a small filly that just got a new set of crayons and wanted to get drawing right away.

Professor Shishio didn't seem to be so sure about that idea. Still, if the symmetrical docking procedure was to work, the two of them needed to get past their differences. "Very well then Twilight, I trust you to get these two to cooperate." In the end it wouldn't hurt to at least try.

A wide grin of absolute glee spread out on Twilights face as she heard this. Professor Shishio could even swear he heard a squee noise. "Oh thank you, this is so exciting. This is a unique opportunity to teach two artificially created beings the value of friendship." Twilight already made a mental list of everything she needed. She could probably fill an entire book with the unique dynamics between sentient machines and document their progress. Princess Celestia would surely be impressed. "If you don't mind, we can start right away."

Three days later, Twilight Sparkle sat in the cafeteria, scribbling notes down and erasing them again. She was visibly less thrilled than before. As Guy entered, he immediately took note of that change in attitude. "Why so glum?" He asked, as he sat down with the purple unicorn.

Twilight seemed startled for a moment. She was so deep in thought that she didn't even notice Guy until he spoke to her. As he glanced at her notes, he saw that she was writing down possible trust exercises, some which were discarded due to the bodily limitations. "Oh, it's just... well..." Twilight was not sure where to start. How could she best put the issue? "They are stubborn. These two have polar opposite personalities and just can't seem to agree on anything." She thought that some creative roleplay, inspired by the many times she saw her brother play Oubliettes and Ogres with his friends, would help them see some similarities but it only seemed to make things worse. Twilights head fell onto the table, her horn leaving a small scratch-mark on the surface.

Guy gave the unicorn a sympathetic smile, along with a pat on the shoulder. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Lots of siblings fight, that does not necessarily mean they can't stand each other. Those two just have a very different viewpoint. I'm sure, if the need arises, they will be able to put their differences behind." He assured her.

Twilight did not really see it the same way. She always got along perfectly with her brother. For as long as she could remember, Shining Armor has always been the best BBBFF she could possibly wish for. Of course she heard of other pairs of siblings fighting but before going to Ponyville, she never really spent too much time on other ponies. And in Ponyville, all her friends actually got along very well with their siblings. Applejack, Applebloom and Big Macintosh were about as close to each other as she was with her brother and even if Sweetie Belle and Rarity had their differences, the little filly looked up to her big sister. "I guess so, maybe I was being too optimistic, thinking I could get them to be as close as I am with my own brother in one day."

This problem really did not have an easy solution at hand. It was possible to just reprogram the two of them but the very idea felt wrong. Hiryu and Enryu are their own people now, with unique personality. Reprogramming them had about the same implications as lobotomizing soldiers to make them follow orders more willingly. No, that was not up for debate.

As the two of them were talking a bit, about how they could get Hoyru and Enryu to work together, the door slid open, letting Zero in. The Black Knights immediately got up and greeted their leader, as he finally returned from the trip. "I'm back. There were a few things I needed to attend and I bring good news. A smuggling ring, carrying goods from the free regions of Japan to the occupied has agreed to help us deliver ammunition and other supplies to this base. They have their own warehouse at the harbor, at which we can pick them up." He explained. Thanks to his Geass, the negotiations were easy enough but Lelouch needed to show up at school again, in order to not raise suspicion. The Britannians believed he was here at GGG headquarters. Now he had the perfect alibi.

The Black Knights cheered for their leader. Securing their supplies would make sure that they can keep fighting for a long time here. Not being in the occupied area already did wonders for the morale, now that they weren't in danger anymore had anyone found out about their affiliation. Only the present GGG members had their trepidations about working with smugglers but there was probably no other way. All major weapon and ammunition manufacturers were in the occupied area, while the ones that were left to independent Japan only delivered for the military.

Before anyone could ask further questions though, the TV switched from the normal show to an emergency broadcast. "All citizens are advised to avoid the streets as an unknown machine has been seen rampaging through the streets. Our corresponded is live at the scene, delivering further details." The camera switched and showed a street that was basically ripped open and littered with busted cars. Finally, it showed the cause for this destruction. After what they have seen before, they recognized it as a Zonder.

All present people and ponies did not continue to watch though. On the order of Zero they all ran towards the control room of GGG, in order to plan their attack. "Why hasn't Mamoru contacted us? Shouldn't he be able to sense a Zonder before they manage to cause so much destruction?" Kallen asked on the way. Twilight wondered the same but figured that he may have been too far away from the scene or the pager was broken. There had to be some reason.

The sortie was quick and effective. While running towards the control room, Zero already had a plan figured out. The smaller Knightmare Frames of the Black Knights used their speed and small size to go ahead and get the attention of the Zonder, luring it back to where they already evacuated the area. Then, Granteed, GaoGaiGar and Guren would attack from different sides, damaging the Zonder and enabling Guy to remove the core like last time. Mamoru was not there though, so hopefully they would be able to quarantine the Zonder core until they could get the boy.

"Team two, we have made contact with the target, we'll lure him towards the Yamada intersection." Came the radio call from Ohgi. His unit was running from the Zonder towards the called direction, occasionally stopping and shooting a few rounds at it to keep the attention.

"Team one here, we'll come to support you."

"Team three, guarding the rear."

"Kallen here, I'm waiting at the intersection."

"Twilight and Rarity, almost there."

"Guy here, I need some more time until I'm there, keep it busy." Unlike last time, the Zonder was smaller and kept moving through the streets. They also decided to have Guy inside Galeon and fuse to GaoGaiGar right away. With the help from all the others, they could allow playing it safe at the expense of a speedy sortie, cause Granteed alone was good enough to keep any enemy busy. Hiryu and Enryu were also rolling out at the suggestion of Twilight. The two machines stayed at the sidelines and kept ready to rescue any civilians that were stuck in the battlezone.

Nervously, Rarity and Twilight looked out at the eastern street. Some of the Black Knights were leading the Zonder towards them and should arrive from that direction at any minute. Finally, the two Knightmare Frames of the lure-team came around the corner, stopping only for a moment to fire at the mutated steamroller, before coming at Granteed and Gurren at full speed, followed closely by the Zonder. "Alright, it's all yours, good luck." Came the message, before the Black Knights retreated to leave the battlefield. Herding that monster through the streets made it painfully clear that their weapons were insufficient.

"Alright, first we'll have to immobilize him. Twilight, Rarity, help me to stop him. Kallen, you use the radiation wave unit to destroy the wheel." Guy ordered. After his teammates confirmed the order, GaoGaiGar and Granteed charged. The unicorns felt more than just a bit nervous as a literal monster steamroller charged right back at them, either unable or unwilling to change course. If she had more experience with the Granteed, Twilight could have probably calculated if they had enough strenght. Thinking about it was useless though now and Guy's bravery was inspiring. He didn't even need to think about taking this challenge head on twice and his voice also radiated confidence.

The Zonder seemed to get larger by the second as they got closer. The arms of the Granteed were outstretched to get a hold on it. Then, with a loud clang and a shaking cockpit, the machines collided with the monster. With a loud rumble the road cracked open as the Zonder pushed them along before slowing down. "D-d-d-d-arling, I c-can't hold m-myself in this s-s-s-eat much longer." Rarity stuttered. The two ponies were shaken in their seats, desperately holding on to the controls. "J-just a bit longer." Twilight answered. They had no choice but to hang on. Otherwise the Zonder would just roll them over possibly crush them. Leaving Guy alone was no option either.

Just as they thought they would be shaken off their seats though, they came to a stop. Looking next to them they saw Kallen and the Gurren Mk-II. The metal claw was dug deep into the steamroller and with a bright, red glow the destructive shockwaves shook the Zonder. The large barrel broke and finally, it fell to the ground, no longer able to move. The front part fell to the ground with a loud groan as the Granteed and GaoGaiGar took a step back in order not to be taken to the ground as well.

For a while everything was silent. Did they really do it? Was the Zonder already beaten? The voice of Taiga broke the silence, as he called the pilots. "Well done team, now we'll have to find Mamoru so he can purify the core and get whoever was used for it out of there." He praised them. In the control room, the others were already using the pager they gave Mamoru to locate him. With the lack of warning from him, chances were he could be out of town. Perhaps a field trip he didn't tell them about. "Sir, it seems like Mamoru is already at the site."

After hearing this, the others looked around for signs of the boy, until they looked at the bridge that the Zonder had been going towards. Up there, leaning against the rails was Mamoru. From how exhausted the boy looked, panting heavily and knees shaking, he obviously ran here from wherever he came from. "He was close enough to get here on foot? Why didn't he feel..." Kallen was interrupted in her pondering as she realized what must have happened. "Damn it, he probably felt the damn thing and just didn't contact us." She said angrily.

Finally he managed to find them. As soon as he witnessed some of the destruction first hand, Mamoru got out of the bus and followed the trail of the Zonder. While going through the town, terrible guilt plagued him. So much could have been avoided if he just hadn't gotten so distracted. After catching his breath again he looked down at the scene. At the far end of the street laid the damaged Zonder, GaoGaiGar, Granteed and Gurren standing in front of it, looking up at him. More shame filled the boy and he would have ran away on the spot if there wasn't something to do now. He would surely not fail them now after already failing to warn them in advance.

From below, a fire engine drove towards the bridge. Mamoru recognized it as one of the two machine brothers GGG invented. "There you are, quick, hop on." The robot said, while his crane extended towards the boy. There were some stairs nearby but Enryu figured that this would be much quicker. The Zonder could still recover, so every second was valuable in getting Mamoru to the wreck.

The arrival of the boy however provided exactly the kind of distraction the Zonder needed to get back up. Eyes aglow, purplish tendrils hoisted it back up and mended the damage that Kallen managed to do. Before anyone had time to react, the machine monster was already driving forward, knocking Granteed and GaoGaiGar into the buildings to the side. Kallen just managed to use the slash harkens in time to pull her away from its path. "Watch out Enryu, the Zonder is back up and coming your way!" Warned Guy, pulling his mech from the damaged building.

Mamoru was already halfway over the rail as the approaching Zonder shook the road, causing him to almost fall. The boy screamed in fear, barely hanging by the edge of the bridge. Enryu had to drive away as the enemy approached rapidly, cursing silently as he didn't manage to get the boy to safety. Mamoru also did not get the time to climb back up and did not posses the strength to pull himself up. Guy already moved closer, ready to catch the child once the Zonder moved on but now it was holding its ground.

On one side of the bridge were now Hiryu, then came Mamoru, hanging on the edge, the Zonder and finally the three mechs GaoGaiGar, Gurren and Granteed. Through the tunnel, Enryu saw how close the Zonder was to the entrance. Quietly driving forward and getting Mamoru was out of the question, it would notice and attack him, also hitting the bridge. None of the could see where Hiryu was but at the moment they all had bigger concerns.

In Granteed's cockpit, Twilight was desperately trying to come up with a plan. If the Zonder was moving away, Enryu could rescue Mamoru and get him to safety while they dealt with the enemy but it seemed like he did not plan to move. Waiting for it to lose patience was also not an option, since Mamoru wouldn't be able to hang on for much longer. "Oh no, what are we supposed to do? If only my brother was here, he could come up with a strategy." The purple unicorn muttered. While she was always eager to expand her horizon and gather new knowledge, military tactics were never a topic she was too interested in. That was for her brother, who would later become captain of the royal guard.

Before any of the others could make a suggestion though, the voices of Hiryu and Enryu broke the silence, "Don't worry Mamoru, we'll save you!" Both shouted almost at the same time.

The Zonder turned around, only to meet the red, metallic foot of Enryu. The robot changed into his humanoid form and jumped over the bridge, drop kicking the mechanical monster and knocking it back. Mamoru cried out as the shockwave made him lose his grip but Hiryu's hand was waiting for him. The blue robot dove down beneath the bridge and caught the boy before retreating. "Are you alright?" He asked, on which Mamoru only nodded in response. Satisfied by this, Hiryu looked back at his brother. "We can't risk the Zonder harming Mamoru, let's finish this quickly. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked.

"Yes, for once we're in agreement." Hiryu and Enryu now stood next to each other, after the latter dropped off Mamoru, who ran for cover into a nearby alleyway. They saw the Zonder get up again. As they were now, it would definitely defeat them. For this the two of them would have to combine their power. "SYMMETRICAL DOCKING!" The combined cry of Hiryu and Enryu cut through the air as their bodies changed again. Each of them twisted into one half of the same body, their reactors and processors working in tandem now to give them double the power. The hydraulics in their arms and legs also combined their power to enhance their strength.

Seeing the two combine was awe inspiring. Twilight noted, that this combination might have been derived from GaoGaiGar. Before them now stood a large machine, right half red, left half blue with a grey head in the middle and a shining breastplate. Enryu and Hiryu have now become ChoRyuJin. The combined robot detached the cranes of his formerly seperate bodies from his hips and raised his arms. Now the second purpose of them became clear. In this form, they were basically Tonfa batons. Whirling them around, ChoRyuJin wasted no time clobbering the Zonder, before it had any time to retaliate.

Twilight quickly formulated a plan. "Guy, prepare that attack you used last time to get the core! We'll keep him in place." She ordered and rushed forward with the Granteed. With the pummeling the Zonder was subjected to, it did not even turn towards them as Granteed grabbed one of its arms. "Get the other one and turn it around!" Twilight ordered and ChoRyuJin followed suit. The creature resisted as they slowly forced it to face GaoGaiGar, whose hands glowed, one golden, the other dark purple. The Heaven and Hell attack was commencing.

Energy glowed brightly from GaoGaiGar, as it rushed towards the struggling Zonder. Nothing must go wrong now, so Twilight, Rarity and ChoRyuJin made sure to hold it extra tight, though it became increasingly difficult to do so. "Hurry, it's gonna break free." Twilight pleaded. Another yank and the Zonder managed to break her grip, though it was too late. The fists of GaoGaiGar rammed themselves into the chest. Now Guy knew what he had to do. He grasped the core of the Zonder and started pulling it out. The purple tendrils stretched, refusing to let go of it, before finally snapping. ChoRyuJin and Granteed stepped away, knowing what will likely follow next. As Guy turned around, the remaining body of the Zonder exploded.

Later, Mamoru purified the Zonder core, freeing the person inside of it. Hiryu and Enryu separated again and the repairwork could begin.

Beyond the new door

(Important Note: The fanfic takes place before season 2 of FiM)

Resistance of steel

Prologue: Beyond the new door

The Equestrian sky was shining in a bright orange light as the sun started to set. On a balcony of the Royal Castle, Princess Celestia was performing her age old duty of setting the sun and raising the moon. Normally, her sister, Princess Luna, would take that duty up again, but despite the fact that a few months have already passed since her return, the younger sister still has not recovered her former power. Even her appearance was still as if she had just been freed from the dark spirit that took hold of her soul, Nightmare Moon.

Finally, the task was done. The sky has taken a dark blue color now that the sun was gone and replaced by the moon, no longer bearing the silhouette of the mare that was imprisoned there, not even a year ago. Celestia mused the fateful day the seal was broken. 'I wonder if they are still up there.' One of the guards mistook her thoughtfulness for a look of admiration. “It is indeed a beautiful night your majesty.”

These words ripped Celestia right out of her thoughts, as she turned around and smiled at her guard. “Thank you... but this is nothing compared to what my sister could do.” The guard, however, remained silent, only nodding politely, causing an almost invisible frown to make it's way to Celestia's face. She knew why the guard was so silent all of a sudden. Even after months, there was still a large amount of mistrust for her sister, even in the royal guard.

Making her way back inside, the princess already saw some of the new night guards that have been appointed after the return of her sister. Celestia deemed it appropriate; to have guards in the castle that reflected Luna and her night but those who have been chosen, even those who actually got a promotion in the process, almost saw it as a punishment having to abandon their golden armor for a purple set. The fact that the night guard's armor was enchanted to give pegasus wings the appearance of bat wings, and turn their eyes slitted like a cat's, did not help those who would have preferred to be associated with the day.

Finally, Celestia arrived at her destination a room that mirrored her own bedchamber. Two of the newly appointed night guards dutifully stood guard in front of the door, only moving to bow down to the princess as she approached. Silently, the pearl-white alicorn stepped inside to see the occupant of the room; her little sister, Princess Luna.

Celestia smiled again, as she found the sleeping form of her younger sister on the bed calm and peaceful. Carefully, the older alicorn princess laid down next to her sister, enjoying the feeling of finally having her younger sister back. Softly she hummed a song they have known ever since their foalhood, hoping it would bring her pleasant dreams. Celestia just finished humming the nostalgic tune as she suddenly felt her mind taken out of her body and pulled to a distand place; a place that was already well known to her.

It was like floating in a dark, empty void... But Celestia knew better than to think she was the only one in this place. A dreadful feeling spread through her entire body as she felt three immensely powerful beings approaching her from the front.

"Celestia, do you know why we have summoned you here?" spoke the first voice, cold and uncaring- a shiver went down Celestia's spine just hearing it. This voice belonged to the God of ice. God of Ice was the title this being gave itself and that title was more than justified. Celestia knew, if he wanted to, he could freeze over an entire world within days. “No, what is the reason you summoned me? I made sure that everything would be in order, as instructed by you.” Her heart was pounding wildly. The regular meetings with these beings was scary enough, being summoned out of the regular checkup already promised a tragedy.

"It is about your sister, Luna." A second voice spoke up, old and cruel-sounding; the voice you would expect from an old warlord who has seen more battles than any mortal could ever imagine. He spoke with a tinge of anger in his voice.

Celestia's heart skipped a beat as she heard this. “W-what about Luna?” the princess choked. The memories of a thousand years ago were still fresh in her mind. Not only the battle against Nightmare Moon but also the aftermath. These gods deemed the destruction of their old castle an appropriate punishment for the disturbance. What truly put the fear of these beings into Princess Celestia's heart however, was how their mere presence transformed the Everfree Forest into the most feared place in Equestria. That day, the malevolent energies changed many of the creatures living in the forest, transforming them from normal animals into monsters.

The last voice was one of arrogance, of one who believed to be superior to everything else. 'When you banished her first, we assumed that Nightmare Moon would no longer be a problem. You know fully well how IT reacts to her. If the little monster realized this, we would have a problem.'

Celestias thoughts went back to the moon, she knew what the third being meant by that, she had to assure them that Nightmare Moon was over and done. “The elements of harmony have purged Nightmare Moon from Luna's soul, that won't be a problem anymore.” She put all her confidence in this, she had to assure them that it was true.

The second voice only huffed at this. 'We are the rulers of this land Celestia, we do not need one amongst us, who thinks she can rule alone. And don't be fooled by that excuse, it was her own greed and jealousy that caused the rise of Nightmare Moon in the first place.' Celestia had to keep herself from flinching. Deep down she knew, somewhat he was right, even though she herself had part of the blame for Luna's jealousy.

Celestia had no time to feel sorry for not paying more attention to her sister a thousand years ago though, she needed to act fast. “The issues that caused her to turn into Nightmare Moon have also been resolved, as soon as our subjects get used to her, everything will be back to normal.” She assured them, hoping that this would be enough.

'No, we cannot risk it.' The first voice spoke up again. 'Since Luna has proven herself to be unstable, we will not tolerate her any longer.' Dread filled Celestia when he said these words, she knew what he was going to demand next. 'Since she is your sister you may choose how to carry out the sentence but you will either execute her or banish her permanently. And I mean for all eternity, not just another thousand years.'

Tears formed in Celestias eyes, she opened her mouth but could not bring out any words anymore. 'You have one week, if Luna still exists in this world by then, we shall carry the sentence out ourselves and we will not be gentle with her.' Threatened the third voice again, giving her a horrible implication about what they would do with her.

The three beings were done for now and Celestia barely even noticed that her mind was returning to her body, still laying next to her little sister. Celestias whole body started to shiver as she looked at the sleeping form, horrified at the fate that awaited her. She gently kissed her sisters forhead, before standing up and walking towards the balcony.

Again, the solar princess looked at the night sky, deep in her thoughts. Luna was the only family she had, her beloved little sister and now, after being seperated for a thousand years, she was to lose her sister forever? Despair gripped Celestia as she started to weep openly, mourning the cruel fate that these monsters have chosen for her sister. She herself would have accepted any form of pain, as long as her sister would be safe but how would she do that? How could she save Luna?

Suddenly, Celestia could swear she saw a gleam on the surface of the moon. “Are they still there?” She whispered. After a moment of silence, all sadness in Celestias heart was replaced by determination. “I will not let them harm my sister.” With that, Celestia spread her wings and took to the skies. As she was far up, far over the clouds, her horn glowed and with a flash of light, she was gone.

The surface of the moon was cold and desolate, nothing but dust, stone and craters. A sphere of light appeared on the surface and a white alicorn emerged from this bubble. Ignoring the view of the stars she had on the moons surface, Celestia took off in search for some very special items.

The next morning she would learn how a panic almost broke out because of her sudden disappearance but for now, Celestia searched the moon for what she believed was her sisters last hope. It almost took her the entire night but finally she found a crater which housed something foreign, something that Celestia would take back with her, hoping that they still worked.

Three days have passed since that fateful night and six ponies plus a dragon were now walking towards the room, where the princess has summoned them. These ponies were Twilight Sparkle, personal student of the princess herself, a unicorn mare that loved nothing more than to learn new things. She came with the baby dragon she hatched as part of her entrance exam for Celestias school for gifted unicorns.

There was also Rarity, another unicorn and a fashion designer in Ponyville. Rainbow Dash, a pegasus mare that loved to fly fast and dreamed of becoming a member of the wonderbolts and Fluttershy, a meek but very kind pegasus who took care of all kinds of animals were also with her. The two earth ponies of this group were Applejack, who ran an apple orchard with her family and Pinkie Pie, an energetic pony that loved nothing more than to make her friends smile.

These mares were the bearers of the elements of harmony, magic, generosity, loyalty, kindness, honesty and laughter. This morning, all of them received a letter, telling them to come to the palace right away. Those mares and the baby dragon were confused that they would not meet the princess in the throne room but an old warehouse, that was not even used anymore and marked for demolition soon.

The staff of the castle could only guess what was inside. Three days ago, just before dawn, Celestia returned from a night of absence, teleporting into that old warehouse and not letting anypony in. Magic charms prevented any curious ponies from entering or even taking a peek through any cracks or holes in the old walls. Only Celestia knew what was inside.

“Maybe the princess wants to throw a surprise party for us, that would be fantastic.” Squeaked Pinkie Pie as she merrily hopped along the way. The others rolled their eyes, doubting that this was the actual reason they have been summoned but they could not help but laugh at their friends spirit.

“I highly doubt it Pinkie, I bet it's an awesome, top secret mission with the highest importance. We're gonna be heroes, again.” Exclaimed Rainbow Dash, who always loved an opportunity to prove herself. This was more realistic but some of them still doubted that. No matter, their questions would be answered soon enough, as they stood in front of the warehouse. It was one of the largest and could easily store a large house inside. Twilight, who was well trained in the arcane arts, was stunned as she felt the large number of safety spells on this building. “Wow, this warehouse is almost better secured than the elements of harmony.”

The others were impressed as they heard this, their curiosity increasing tenfold as they learned that this warehouse was currently the second most secure place in Equestria. “Well sugarcube, we should probably get in and find out what the princess wants.” Twilight nodded. “Good idea, I let her know we're here.” Twilights horn started to glow, sending out a special signal that the princess told her about in the letter. This signal would let her know when Twilight was ready.

The seven of them expected the door to open but instead, they were engulfed in a white light and teleported into the dark warehouse. “What's going on?” Asked Fluttershy, scared at the sudden teleportation and complete darkness they were surrounded by. Finally, they heard the voice of their princess. “I am so glad you came, let me show you something.” A golden glow could be seen in the room, before a sphere of light appeared near the ceiling, illuminating the room.

The pony mares and the baby dragon gasped and their eyes widened at the image that was presented to them. Four gigantic, bipedal beings, seemingly made of metal stood around them, in each corner of the room. Twilight and Rarity stood by the first one, white and blue in color, with a round, green gem surrounded by an outer golden ring on it's chest and some sort of golden ring adorning his forehead.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy stood in front of a much sleeker looking steel giant, looking at it in awe. Fluttershy was scared, intimidated by the unknown being. It held another strange object in it's hand, looking a little like a long tube, connected to a fin with a small bow on it.

Applejacks mouth hung open as she stared at the third giant, light purple in color. She could not see it precisely but something seemed to be attached to the back of it's lower arms. Pinkie however, seemed to have a sparkle of wonder in her eye, like a filly who found something new and exciting.

Spike stood in front of the last one. It was white as the moon, decorated with some purple here and there. Like the biped in front of Rainbow and Fluttershy, it held some sort of tube in it's right hand, although this one looked larger than the other. It also had some sort of fin on it's head.

From the mares, Twilight was the first to recover, approaching her teacher. “P-princess, what is going on and what are these?” Celestia first pointed to the one Rarity was still standing before. “This is Granteed.” She moved over to where Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were standing. “Bellzelute.” She pointed to where Pinkie Pie was knocking against the foot to see if the 'creature' was awake. “Coustwell.” Then she moved to the last one. “Vorlent.”

“Those are some really awesome sounding names but WHAT ARE THEY?” Asked Rainbow Dash who, despite her confusion, still had to admire these steel giants. They just radiated an awesome power, Rainbow Dash really wanted to take a closer look but Celestia quickly dragged them all towards her. “These are called mechs, I want you to pilot them.”

Twilight was shocked at how rough the princess was with her. First she wanted to say something but then she saw the look in Celestias face. Fear, sadness but also determination were etched into her eyes and even Pinkie became calm. “I have a mission of great importance to you, I will entrust you with something very close to me. I will give you all the details as soon as she comes.”

Before any of them could ask who was coming Celetia felt something and teleported another pony inside. She was no normal pony though, this one was another alicorn, the second princess of Equestria. Princess Luna was confused at the sudden teleportation and even more as she saw the four giants. “T-tia, what is going on here?”

“Luna, this is going to be very hard but I need all of you to listen.” All of them sat silent in anticipation of the tale Celestia was about to tell. “First of all I need you to know, that three gods rule Equestria from the shadows.” Her listeners were shocked at the revelation, most of all Luna. “TIA! We were never supposed to tell any of our subjects!”

“Wait a darn minute, if they rule Equestria with you, why don't they ever show up?” Asked Applejack, who would not even believe this if she did not feel the honesty in these words. Celestia took a deep breath before she continued with her tale. It would not be easy to tell Luna this but she had to know what was at stake. “They feed of the faith the ponies have in me. Only rarely do they interact with this world. As king Sombra took over the crystal empire, one of them froze over the entire region, isolating it from the rest of Equestira.”

Luna only winced at the memory of having wide, lush fields turned into a frozen wasteland while the others were shocked that he would do something like this. “But now they demand something I just can't give them.” She looked deeply into her sisters eyes. “They distrust Luna because of Nightmare Moon and demand that I banish her again, for eternity or... execute her.” All color left Lunas face and she started to tear up, while the other ponies in the room gasped. Fluttershy felt the distress of the princess and immediately went over to her to embrace her.

“This is horrible, why would they want you to do that?” Twilight demanded to know, not understanding how anyone could possibly demand something so cruel. She looked back at the Granteed, would they fight back now. “Is this why you are giving us these? To fight back?” Twilight asked, gesturing at the mechs. Rainbow Dash smiled a little, pumped at the idea of fighting a group of evil gods with these cool looking toys. “I'm in, let's do this.” She proclaimed.

Celestia and Luna recoiled at the suggestion. “That would be suicide, these robots have lost a lot of power when they freed Nightmare Moon, they are not strong enough to take on even one of them.” Said Celestia, inadvertently dropping this new information on them. “What do you mean by that? There were four stars aiding in her escape.” Argued Twilight, wondering if the four mechas were really involved.

“From a far distance, they really looked like stars didn't they? It took a long time until they focused enough power to break the seal but in the end, even when they had to sacrifice most of it they were successful.” Even Celestia did not know the details about where they came from. As far as she knew, Granteed, Bellzelute, Coustwell and Vorlent were there since the very beginning. “Now I want you to use them to escort my sister to a safe place.”

Luna protested at these words, even if it meant her death, she did not want to leave her sister again. “But Tia, I don't wanna lose you again. I don't care what happens to me but what if they are angry when they find out that I still live.” She was devastated when she learned about the sentence but deep down she thought it was her own fault anyway. If she just had better self control, wouldn't any of this have happened in the first place? Why should her sister endanger herself for her own mistakes.

Celestia wouldn't have any of that though. She shook her head and pulled Luna into a deep hug. “I have forced you to spend one thousand years alone, I will not let anything like this happen to you. I want nothing more than to know you safe and happy and even though I will miss you, at least I would know that you have found a place where you can live in peace.” She softly stroked her sisters back, both of them in tears by now. From that position, she looked at the element bearers and Spike, who also seemed to be saddened by what could be the last moments these two sisters would spend together.

“I will not force you to do this but please, help my sister find a new home. Even though we can't be together anymore, I want her to be safe.” It was strange for the others to hear this, Celestia was almost begging them. For the first time, they saw their princess completely and utterly lose control of the situation. The decision was clear for them.

“You can count on me princess, I will make sure princess Luna finds a safe place.” Twilights friends agreed with her. “We cannot let those ruffians harm her, not ever.” Rarity had to think about Sweetie Belle and what she would do in that situation. She would probably do the same.

“Yeah, those meanie pants won't find her, I am the best hide and seek player ever, I will find a good hiding place for her.” Said Pinkie Pie, giving Celestia a salute. “And if they do, they will never catch me while I get her to a safe place.” Added Rainbow Dash. Even Fluttershy seemed determined to help. “Don't worry princess, Luna will be safe with us.” Applejack, who had a little sister herself, understood how Celestia was feeling right now. “Ah will do my best princess.” Even Spike was with them. “No worries, I will help too.”

For the first time in these three days, Celestia felt truly happy. With the help of the elements of harmony and the four stars, her sister would live. Even though their seperation will hurt both of them, Luna would at least have a chance to live happily again. “I thank you very much. I will give you the elements of harmony as well. They will also help you to create a portal back, once you found a safe place for Luna.”

Celestias horn lit up once more and a well decorated box appeared in front of her. As this box opened, the elements of harmony were revealed and floated over to their rightful bearer. “Each of these robots needs two pilots, one for moving and the other for weapons and other systems. Do not worry about learning how to control them. I am not sure how it works myself but these machines will tell you how they work”

Twilight first wanted to ask how much time they had to learn the controls but this method intrigued her. “Do you mean they embed us with the necessary knowledge?” Celestia nodded in answer. “Yes Twilight, as soon as they start up with you inside, you will know what to do.” Her horn lit up once more and some sort of chute opened up on the chest of each of these robots. “Please enter now, I will help you inside. Choose which one you would like to pilot.”

Rainbow Dash did not have to think about which one she wanted to pilot. “I will take control of Bellzelute, who's with me?” Fluttershy was still very nervous about the whole thing. Even though she wanted to do everything to help princess Luna, these robots and their mission still scared her. She knew Rainbow Dash ever since flight school, she was her oldest friend so she decided to stick with her. “I am coming with you Rainbow Dash.” She said and fluttered up to her friend. Together they went inside.

Applejack looked up at the Coustwell. She felt a strange kinship with this machine, as if it was exactly the right one for her. As she looked at the entrance to the cockpit she saw Pinkies head poking out of it. “Come one AJ, let's take Cousty here.” Everypony wondered for a moment how Pinkie Pie got up there, Celestia hasn't helped her up, before remembering that this was Pinkie. Applejack looked towards the princess and was levitated up to the cockpit, where she sat down with Pinkie.

“You know, I really like the design of this one.” Said Rarity, walking towards Granteed. Twilight accompanied her. “I will come with you Rarity, I just hope that these machines can really tell us how they work, otherwise I will need some time to figure out their controls.” They did not need help to get there however. Twilight has gotten better with teleportation and could easily teleport herself and Rarity up.

This left Luna and Spike standing in front of the Vorlent. At first Spike was still a little scared of Luna because of Nightmare Moon but now he could see it clearly. Luna was just as much the victim as everypony else and now she needed help. “Well princess, shall we enter?” He asked while gesturing at the large robot. Luna however was still silent in the embrace of her sister. Spike decided to give them a moment together.

Both sisters cried into each others shoulders, wanting to take in as much warmth and sisterly love as possible before what would be the last time they see each other. “I promise Luna, I will try everything in my power to convince them to drop the sentence, then I will bring you back.” It was a nice thought, although Celestia knew that it would be nearly impossible. “Thank you sister, I will always think about you. I just hope that we will see each other again. I love you sister.” She cried.

The two of them stood there for a good while until Celestia finally broke her embrace and gave her sister a sad smile. “Go now, you are a strong mare, I am sure you will be fine in that other world.” Luna returned this smile and nodded. She levitated Spike onto her back, before flying up to the cockpit of the Vorlent. “I will promise you sister, I will try to live my life to the fullest, so you can rest at ease.” She swore. Even if she never saw her sister again, she wanted to make sure she won't have to worry.

Celestia could feel the pride for her sister swell up in her chest. “I love you too Luna, let no one take you happiness away.” As all the ponies sat down in the cockpit, the main pilot was in front, separated from the secondary pilot by a large console behind them. The secondary pilot was also slightly elevated, to allow them a better view. All the ponies and the baby dragon were at first confused at the mass of buttons, switches and levers in front of them, as well as the still blank screens.

Celestia knew she had to start them up for the first time. Luckily they were all still operable, so the others could do it themselves once the knowledge filled them. The pumped energy into the machines, whose eyes started to glow as they came to life. Small vents that were at some parts of the body hissed and let out a strange, green glowing steam that looked like it was made of tiny emeralds.

Inside of the mechs, the pilots heads were buzzing with new information. It was a strange feeling, almost as if they suddenly remembered something they have forgotten a long time ago. Pinkie noted, that it felt similar to some of the warnings of her Pinkie-sense. The confusing mass of controls suddenly became clear for them. The screens flickered to live, showing them all kinds of information while the big screen in front showed them the mechs point of view.

Celestia was glad that everything was in order but now it was time. She connected her power to the elements of harmony, worn by their bearers and focused on the necessary spell. “One more thing. The spell I use is not entirely stable, you may not arrive at the same place or even at the same time but you will arrive at the some world and ideally at the same day, give or take a few hours. Good luck.” After she wished them this, the four mechas and their pilots were ingulfed in some sort of green cloud. As these clouds shrunk again, they left behind empty space where the mechs used to stand.

All alone now, Celestia laid down on the ground and allowed herself to weep but despite her sadness, she was full of hope, hope that her sister would be fine from now. Celestia was also sure that, wherever she went, Luna would do great deeds that will earn her friendship and love, just like she always wanted for her sister.

After War 0015

Years after their establishment, a group of colonies have declared themselved indipendent from earth and started a war to secure this indipendence. In the long war, several combat Mechs, called Gundams were developed as a countermeasure. In a last ditch effort, the colony forces used several colonies as ammunition against the earth, letting them crash into the earth to cause wide devestation.

Due to the Gundams, as well as the appearance of a strange, lion-like UFO which cause confusion amongst the battlefield, most of the dropping colonies could be shot down, before entering the atmosphere. Only very few managed to land in parts of europe and asia, causing devestation. The environment also took a large deal of damage, forcing the people of Russia to move into large, domes cities that would cut them off of the outer world as a means of letting nature heal itself.

In addition to the devestation that already happened, a new threat emerged for mankind in the form of the Heterodyne. The Heterodyne were mysterious monsters, that appeared seemingly at random. To counteract those, the 21st Century Security Sevice Company, under order of the japanese government, created the giant robot Dai-Guard, to defeat those. Before it could be deployed however, the Heterodynes vanished, leaving no trace but the trail of destuction, caused by their rampage and the desperate countermeasures used to defeat them.

During the chaos that followed after the war, the Britannian Empire, with the help of the organization OZ, managed to take control of some of the colonies that still orbit earth as well as Japan. The rule of Britannia in Japan however, was not complete. The Photon Power Labs and Saotome Labs, created an impenetrable barrier, through which half of Japan retained their autonomy. Even though the guradians of the free Japan could not abandon their posts, various rebel groups have started their fight against the Britannian tyrants.

The scars of the war were still fresh and there were always those who sought to profit from the still raging chaos by gaining more power or selling weapons. There were rumors however, that an organization of mercenaries called Mythril, were trying to bring peace back, while other sources suggest an attempt of the colonies to use their own Gundams in order to fight Britannia on earth.

The Black Knights

Resistance of steel

Chapter 9 The Black Knights

Twilight and Rarity were brought into the headquarters of GGG after they helped to defend the city against what they learned was a Zonder machine. These Zonders were of alien origin and landed on Earth by a meteor, that also nearly killed Guy Shishio. If it was not for the help of Galeon, the lion robot, he would have surely died in space.

In return, Twilight Sparkle told everyone about her own story, how she went to Ponyville, Nightmare Moon, her friends and what they experienced during their time together. They also told them of their mission. "You see, finding the princess and getting her to a safe place is our highest priority now. Could you by any chance help us?" Pleaded the lavender unicorn mare.

Taiga was thinking about the possibilities. This Princess Luna needed help but they will be busy with the Britannian Empire and the Zonders. There was a mutually beneficial solution though. "We can help each other. If you help us against the Zonders, we will keep a lookout for your friends and we could also keep Princess Luna safe here." He offered. He was, deep down, a gentleman and couldn't just deny a lady shelter if needed.

"Thank you so much, after what I've seen, I am sure she would be safe here." Said Rarity, taking another look towards Guy. He was certainly impressive in how he handled that monster.

Inside of Twilight's head, an inner tactician was awoken, now that she had a better understanding of the situation. "Still, there are many dangers in this world. In order to keep Princess Luna safe, we might have to secure this country against it's invaders." A knot formed in her stomach as she realized that this meant going to war. "Are there any other allies we have?" She asked.

"Most of them are busy holding their own lines." Answered Taiga, before rubbing his chin, apparently in deep thought. "But after what you told me, you have gotten the attention of Zero. While I don't really trust guys that hide behind masks, he is definitely a genius." While he was wary of the masked rebel leader, he did have enormous respect for him. "Also, the way he rescued Suzaku Kururugi took a lot of guts, something we value very much here."

This drew blank stares from the ponies, who did not know who Zero was. "Oh right, you haven't seen it. Let me show you the video footage. Mikoto, can you please open the video file?" The woman nodded and brought up the video on the big screen.

Twilight and Rarity watched as the wagon drove past the large crowd, almost like a parade float, guarded by those machines they saw at the mountain. The announcer told of how the man, imprisoned on top of that wagon, killed one of their princes. The escort was lead by a man named Jeremiah Gottswald, who was apparently a high ranking Knightmare pilot. Then everything came to a halt, as something approached the escort. It was a lone vehicle, with some sort of box on top of it. Apparently the car belonged to said prince, or at least looked like his car.

It was indeed very impressive, when the masked and cloaked man revealed himself, staring fearlessly at the military robots in front of him, while he himself remained perfectly still. While the video did not show the driver clearly, they saw a shaking, hunched silhouette inside the car. "I must admit, I love his outfit." Rarity swooned, taking in the sharp design of his cloak. The way he stood there, he looked a bit like a chess piece, the black king to be precise. He was the very picture of calmness, as not even the arrival of more Britannian Knightmare Frames seemed to faze him.

The leader of the Britannians then ordered him to take his mask off and for a moment, it seemed like this Zero would comply. But as he already had his hand on his mask, he instead raised his arm and snapped his fingers. Behind him was a large box on the car, which now burst open, revealing a strange machine. Taiga turned towards the ponies and started to explain. "We don't know what originally was in that container. When Zero revealed himself it contained a harmless, colored gas that is usually used during festivals. Before that moment however, I guess the Britannians thought there was poison gas inside."

The equestrians were a little shocked, as the man who calls himself Zero loudly announced that he was the real killer of the Britannian prince. Regicide was something unfamiliar to both mares, and even then they never thought to hear about the murderer announcing his deed right in front of the military. Twilight could not imagine doing something like this but it made even less sense for her that he testified when another person was already blamed.

In a way, the whole scene was exciting to watch, even though a little scary. How did Zero escape together with the man he wanted to rescue? Regicide is not something one could easily get away with. "You don't want me to tell everyone about Orange do you?" Threatened the masked man suddenly. The ponies looked towards Taiga, confused to what Zero means by that but Taiga only shrugged. "We don't know what he meant with orange but..." He gestured towards the screen again, where the car with Zero on top got closer to Jeremiah Gottswald.

Wether or not Zero really had something against him, the tactic worked. Zero just ordered him to release Suzaku and he obliged. Zero stepped down from the car and the driver also left the vehicle, while the soldiers guarding Suzaku untied him. Right next to Jeremiah's Knightmare Frame, the released prisoner met the one who freed him. Before the Britannians could do anything else though, Zero pressed the button of a remote control and a pink gas came out of the container on the car and the spectators around them panicked.

During the panic, Zero and his companion jumped off the bridge, along with Suzaku. Luckily for them, a safety net caught all three of them and their pursuers were held off by Jeremiah, who was strangely determined to make sure they got away. Whatever this “orange” business was, it seemed to be really bad for that man.

With that, the screen went black again. “As you see, this man made the impossible possible and rescued Suzaku Kururugi without problems, despite being completely under equipped.” Mikoto said. “Whether or not we ally ourselves with him is a different question... to be honest, I have a strange, bad feeling about him.” There was something about Zero that made her and the rest of the GGG team wary. Not only his mask but also the coldness he depicted whenever he made a public appearance.

Twilight and Rarity were also unsure what to think of this man. It was good that he rescued that Suzaku guy but the fact that he can calmly admit to killing someone and endangering innocent civilians left a bad taste in their mouths. “I can't really make the decision for you. If you think it helps, maybe we could try to contact him. Although I can already tell you that I won't do anything that endangers innocent people.” Twilight announced.

“Don't worry, any strategy of his, that does this will be shot down immediately. Like what he did to Shatter Mountain just a day ago.” Taiga mumbled.

It dawned on the ponies now. “Did he... cause a huge landslide?” She asked, remembering their own entrance into this world. Did they really get in the crossfire of the Britannian empire and Zero?

“You were there? Yes, he killed a lot of people that day, when the landslide destroyed a good portion of the city at the base. Somehow I wanna team up with him, just so I can keep an eye on his actions. While effective, that was incredibly reckless.” Taiga said. If his expectations of Zero were right, he should be willing to trade his brutal methods for extra help.

For a little longer, the ponies and the members of GGG talked about their plans for the future, and got to know each other a little better. They quickly became friends, as they shared their stories. The courage they all have shown, certainly impressed the others and built a strong sense of respect for each other. Taiga was sure, those mares would fit in perfectly with their group and that they would be able to keep them good company, while helping them find their friends.

In the outskirts of the city, the Britannian forces that pursued the unknown mech were gathering. Princess Cornelia herself came along in order to pursue the machine that has appeared out of nowhere. Her personal knights insisted that she stayed away from the enemy territory, as they have gotten reports about a new super robot. The princess countered that they would have to investigate properly anyway and should use this chance to destroy the mech, before the elevens could use it against them. It was bad enough that other factions of the still independent parts of Japan had powerful robots.

Princess Euphemia, who had been in the command center during Shatter Mountain, had been sent back though, as she had no combat skills to protect herself and has not yet chosen a knight for herself yet. Furthermore, Cornelia loved her sister very much, while she needed to see some combat herself, this risk was too much.

As she lead the troops through the mountain range, she took a look at the white Knightmare Frame and sneered. What was that crazy scientist thnking? Letting an eleven pilot a new, experimental Knightmare Frame? It was unheard of, even though the pilot was confirmed to be a honorary Britannian. As if that wasn't bad enough, now they insisted on coming along. What guaranteed them, that the pilot of the Lancelot won't just desert and give this new technology into enemy hands? Even though he saved her life, she won't ever trust him. Princess Cornelia already planned to keep him close, so she can immediately kill him, if he makes one wrong move.

Finally she reached the spot, where their spy was already waiting. Dressed up like a hiker, he waved them over and saluted, as the princess got out of her Knightmare. “Your highness, the unknown mech is here. I can also confirm the existence of another super robot. Here are the pictures.” The spy handed over a series of photos, showing not only the robot from Shatter Mountain, but also the new super robot.

“This new machine is affiliated with GGG?” She asked, slightly amused as she looked at the design. Those elevens, they make their war machines look like toys for children. What was even the point of creating drill tanks, a stealth jet and a train to combine with the main frame, why not just build it in complete state. At this point the princess was convinced, that those people must be children when it comes to weapon design.

“Yes, the unknown mech from Shatter mountain also seemed to be allied with them. They teamed up and went to the GGG headquarters together.” The spy confirmed. Since GGG was the leading force in technology in this area, it was only natural that he would keep a close eye on them. Even if it meant swimming through the dirty water, he installed surveillance equipment in the area, the best he could get.

“Very good, you have served your country well. Since your cover is not blown, return to your post and continue to observe GGG.” Cornelia ordered. The spy bowed his head, before heading off towards the city again. The princess then turned around to the other Gloucester, which was piloted by one of her personal knights. “Darlton, please set up a communication relays, I will give them one chance to surrender. If our intel is right, they won't risk the civiians.”

“Everyone, we are being contacted.” Mikoto called out. This surprised everyone in the room, as no mission was underway and no external force should be able to contact them. Mikoto analyzed the signal, it came from the mountain range outside. “It's... Princess Cornelia.” A gasp went through the room. If the witch of Britannia was here, this will be a problem. Guy knew, even with GaoGaiGar's power, she would still have reinforcements and she was also a superior pilot. It would be a difficult fight. Still, they needed to hear what she had to say.

“Put her through, Twilight, Rarity, hide behind that console.” Taiga ordered, gesturing the pony towards the console Mikoto was sitting at. The two ponies huddled up, so anyone seeing the room through the screen would not see them. The face of the Britannian princess then appeared on the large screen. “Princess Cornelia, what an unexpected honor. Surely you must have gotten lost, being so far off the territory you have claimed.” Venom was in Taiga's voice as he addressed her. The injustice his fellow Japanese had to go through, under the rule of the Britannians never ceased to fill him with anger.

“I assure you, we know exactly where we are. And you know exactly why we are here.” Cornelia held a picture up to the camera, showing GaoGaiGar and Granteed. “We know that these two mechs are in your possession. The holy Britannian empire can no longer tolerate how you amass such weapons. I am willing to cut you a deal though.” She said with a smirk. The princess knew that everyone can be bought, if they just get the right price.

Taiga raised an eyebrow at this sudden offer. “Is that so? What would you be willing to offer to us?” The slightest smirk was seen on his face and the other members of GGG shared this expression as they waited for the answer of the princess. “Please keep in mind, the purpose of our mech, GaoGaiGar, is to fight the Zonders. If you know about it, you must also have seen the Zonder.”

“Simple. If you are willing to join the Britannian empire and surrender your mechs to us, you all shall receive Britannian citizenship and noble titles. You would enjoy all the benefits and can live worry free. As for those... Zonders, they won't stand a chance against the full might of the Britannian empire.” Cornelia was very sure of herself. No one would refuse such an offer. The remnants of Japan were on the defensive, they couldn't possibly hold out forever and they knew that.

Taiga rubbed his chin, apparently in deep thought. “That is indeed a tempting offer. Everyone here could live the high life. Wealth, power, what could you want more?” For a moment, the ponies had doubt that they would have to surrender Granteed to them but then they saw the smirk on Mikoto's face and knew what would come next.

Princess Cornelia was pleased. They made a push into Japanese territory and secured two powerful robots for themselves without too much trouble. “Very well then, we shall come to secure those robots....”

“Just a moment.” Taiga interrupted her, grinning at the camera. “I almost forgot the GGG bylaws. Just giving this city, GaiGaiGar and Granteed to you sounds awfully similar to giving up and the GGG bylaws clearly state, Article five, section one hundred and twenty: Under no circumstances must a GGG member ever give up.”

All other members of GGG stood up at this point, glaring defiantly at the screen. It was truly an impressive scene. Twilight and Rarity could feel the raw determination coming from all of them. Even though they stayed in their hiding spot, they too looked in the general direction of the screen, glaring at the princess. “They won't give up and neither will we. I don't think I could face the others again if we surrendered.” Whispered Twilight.

Rarity nodded her head in agreement. “I shall show that brute what a real lady is like.”

On the screen, princess Cornelia looked furious. “You will regret this. Your childish bylaws will mean nothing once your city burns. I will personally make sure you are all executed.” With this final threat, the screen went black again and the two ponies left their hiding spot.

Taiga turned around again to see the others applauding. “Alright, looks like someone else wants to threaten this city, let's treat them just like the other guys we have to beat up. Their soldiers are fueled only by blind obedience, we however are fueled by courage and willpower. No matter how many troops they send against us, no matter how furiously they attack, we will not lose.” At this, the room exploded into cheers. Everyones hearts were set on the goal, now they only needed to get ready.

After they had the confirmation that Britannian troops were nearby, it was relatively easy to find their location. Guy already piloted GaiGar, while Twilight and Rarity sat in the cockpit of the Granteed. They remembered the first time they met the Britannians too well but this time they won't run. “Alright, I hope you are ready. The goal in this mission is to beat them back, no reason to pursue. Rarity, Twilight, you won't need to worry about the enemy pilots as long as you are careful. All Knightmare Frames come with an ejection system for the cockpit. As soon as the frames have taken enough damage.” Mikoto explained to them.

As soon as the message about the impeding attack was out, the civilians were evacuated to shelters. Still, they did not want to leave them homeless after this is over, so they all had orders to make sure to minimize collateral damage. “Very well, we will be careful.” Promised Rarity.

A series of shapes were moving in from the mountains, the Britannian forces started their attack. “Alright you two, we will have to strike quick. Aim at their arms and legs.” Guy advised, as they stepped into the open. Now they could already make out the Knightmare Frames. Princess Cornelia was not there yet, all of them were the standard Glasgow types.

The enemy opened fire immediately, forcing Granteed and GaiGar to split up. Without the additional armor, GaiGar was a lot faster, allowing him to jump into the middle of an enemy group and swipe their legs away. The response were a bunch of falling Knightmare Frames and cockpits, flying away to get the pilot to safety.

Granteed had a more difficult time. Twilight aimed the head mounted orgone cannon, while simultaneously shielding with the arms. Finally they got a good shot. Rarity activated the orgone cannon, aiming between two rows of armor, blowing their arms off.

Even though they were outnumbered, Twilight, Rarity and Guy did very well against their attackers. With more Knightmares gone, the ponies did not have to fight so defensive anymore. Still, it was always a relief when they saw the ejection of a cockpit. Guy on the other hand became suspicious. He heard enough about Princess Cornelia, she was not the kind of princess to just stay behind, she wanted to be on the front lines. So where was her Gloucester?

“Guy!” Mikoto's voice suddenly alarmed them, “this is a distraction, three Gloucesters and a few Glasgows have approached from the east side of the city and are heading for the GGG headquarters.”

The hearts of all the pilots skipped a beat. Twilight especially cursed herself, since she was not even suspecting something like this. In retrospect, they should have put up an emergency plan. “Twilight, Rarity, Cornelia is out of your league, try to defeat the rest of these guys, I have to safe the headquarters.” Guy hated to leave them alone but if they reached GGG, everything would be lost.

A nod came from the Granteed. This was bad but almost all enemies were already taken out, so they should be able to handle the rest. Half a dozen Glasgows were still standing, even now that their energy got low, they should be able to handle it.

Deciding not to waste more energy, the ponies decided to trust in the Granteed's shields, as they charged. While Granteed was not a very fast machine, they still managed to evade the fire somewhat, as they shot down two more machines. The rest of them were almost in close combat range and Twilight already readied the arms for a strike, as something hit the ground right next to them, causing an explosion and knocking the Granteed off balance. Both unicorns quickly regained their senses, as the looked in the direction, from which the explosion came.

Six more Glasgows with bazookas have flanked them while they concentrated on the front. Twilight fearfully realized, that they have fallen right into their trap. First step, distract them with a frontal attack. Second step, lure one of them away by revealing their sneak attack. Last step, have some troops come in from the flank, while their unit is alone. “Surrender in the name of the holy Britannian empire.”

It was over, there was nothing they could do anymore. Without Guy's help, they couldn't defeat them and he was probably busy with princess Cornelia.

Twilight almost wanted to give Rarity the sign to power Granteed down, as another explosion rocked the ground. For a moment they wondered, if the Britannians lost patience and attacked but this time it was them who were attacked. “Who was that?” Rarity wondered, as a dozen black versions of the Knightmare frames appeared.

The Britannian troops turned towards the new arrivals, as they too were destroyed. This time the shots came from the direction of the city. Some more black Knightmares came into the open from between the buildings, one of them with a golden decoration on it's head, probably indicating the leader. Said leader opened contact with the Granteed. “I am Zero, we have met before but were not formally introduced I presume.”

This was the man, Zero. It was kinda exciting to meet him, after they already saw what he could do. They already talked about possibly teaming up with him and now here he was, saving their lives. “Thank you, my name is Twilight Sparkle and with me is Rarity. We still have to save Guy, he went to pursue...”

“I know, they have already been intercepted.” While GGG has fallen for the trap of the princess, they were at least smart enough to use code names. It would not take much longer to find their real names though. “Zero, we managed to catch up with Princess Cornelia.” A female voice chimed in on their conversation. Just as Zero expected from his top pilot.

“Understood, remember that our first priority is to make contact with GGG, do not pursue if she flees.” It would be foolish to take such a large risk now. If they lost the Gurren MKII, they needed to succeed in winning GGG over, just to make up for that loss. “Now, back to you two. I have come here to negotiate an alliance between GGG and the Black Knights.”

In the middle of the city, Guy almost attacked the red Knightmare frame that suddenly appeared, thinking it was another trap. Instead though, the red Knightmare frame attacked the Gloucesters, together with a few black Glasgows that came from any street and alley wide enough to let them through.

Cornelia and her knights were very skilled pilots but even all three of them could not fight off such an advanced machine and a super robot, while surrounded by more units. Guy saw his chance. “FINAL FUSION!”

It was approved immediately and GaiGar surrounded itself with a green energy field. Most of the Black Knights were entranced by the show and watched, as the Gao-machines entered the field and the combined machine emerged. “GAOGAIGAR!” The super robot was combined again and Guy was ready to kick those Britannians out of the city.

Cornelia knew better than to try and defeat them without backup. “Retreat, we will have to return with reinforcements.” She ordered. “Yes, your majesty.” Both knights answered. They stormed off to the direction they came from, destroying the Black Knights Knightmares on the way. Kallen had just finished reporting to Zero. It infuriated her that she could not pursue but by now she though it was better to listen to Zero. His plans were often questionable but he was a miracle worker.

Now it was time to get what they came for.

They gathered up much of the scrap metal from the destroyed Britannian Knightmare frames, as well as any spare ammo. With these materials, they could secure their own supplies for a long time. Guy, Twilight and Rarity went back into the headquarters first. It was quickly agreed, that the ponies would hide until a proper alliance was developed. Shortly after they went into the neighboring room, Zero came down the elevator, with Kallen and Ougi, his best soldiers at his side.

All eyes were on the man, clad in a black cloak. Guy was still suspicious of him but he was not ungrateful, he could respect the mans intelligence and appreciated the help, so he was willing to give him a chance. “Hello Zero, thank you for your help.” He greeted the man.

“Greetings, I have come here so we may join our forces. You too are now in the sights of the Britannian empire, only if we work together do we have a chance to repel them.” He announced. A rousing speech, only gaining a strange vibe through his machine distorted voice. His grand gestures he performed, while doing his speeches also made it look almost like a theater play.

“Well then Zero, we are not the kind of people too proud to accept help.” Taiga said, with a welcoming smile. But then his expression turned a lot sterner. “But if we are to become allies you will adhere to some rules. Number one is not to needlessly endanger innocent lives, like you did on Shatter Mountain.”

It was to be expected that they would want to enforce some rules. Being able to do that certainly would dispell any doubts about his intentions. “Agreed, I will adhere to that rule. Other rules will be adhered to as well, after reviewing them.” He hoped his plans would not be restricted too much, he needed to have some freedom and he couldn't abuse loopholes too much.

“Very well then, it's agreed. In that case, I am sure you'll want to meet the two pilots of the Granteed?” He asked. In secret, he wanted to see Zero's reaction to them.

“It would be a pleasure to meet them.” A quick meetin, a background check and everything would fall in place. With a bit of luck, he could win them over even if the alliance with GGG fails.

Taiga pushed down a button on his console. “Twilight, Rarity, we have some new friends for you to meet, please return to the command center.” Just a few moments later, the door slid open and Zero turned to face them. Ougi's mouth hung open and Kallen's eyes were wide, even Zero flinched in surprise, as two colorful ponies with horns on their heads entered the room. “Hello there, my name is Twilight Sparkle and this is Rarity.”