Chương 35: Ch. 32 - Fighting A Higher Level Frame

"Next!" yelled instructor David.

"The Dungeon doesn't play by the same rules as you. Danger doesn't only come from the monsters it spews, but sometimes by the very people that are supposed to help you!" We were in the sim for hours. The squads were mixed each round. Instructor Pascal was in a higher level Tank unit with loads of sustain and moderate damage. By this point, we had a specialization so I was piloting a low level Walker unit. Ania was squad leader for this round. My knuckles went white from my grip on the throttle.

The chat was filled with people saying it was a done deal with Ania and I in the same squad. She didn't have a specialty. She was proficient with every single unit. She thought she would challenge herself by doing this test in a Gatherer Unit. It dealt no damage what-so-ever.

"Why are you in a Gatherer unit?" I asked.

"It'll be fun this way," she said over comms. Her voice was smug with arrogance.

"The instructor is level 20 and we are in level 3 units," I said, doing my best to hold back my frustration.

"That means the three of us have to carry you through this."

"Stefano. When have I ever needed to be carried for anything? And besides. This is good training. What if I don't get a unit by the second floor. I need to know how to survive until I can get one."

"Ania," said instructor David.

"I know better by now than to question you. But, I will remind you that this is technically an evaluation. Failure would put a mark on your otherwise flawless record. The time for experimentation was before today. Your father-""Its fine," she said.

"I got it. No need to bring him into this."

"Very well," said instructor David. The light on my screen flashed and I gripped the throttle as tightly as I could manage. The arena came into view with instructor Pascal hovering just above us. He fired before we even got settled. Patrick's mech was blasted, and his integrity was in the red. We scattered and a second shot rang. Patrick's mech exploded and we were down to three. No, not three. Two and a Gatherer unit. I banged my fist against the hull of the sim.

"Damn it, Ania!" I yelled. I pushed forward, dodging instructor Pascal's beams as best I could. Ania was hovering and Alia was at her wing. We fired, shooting it at all angles to make it pick it's target. Instructor Pascal didn't know who was in what unit or whom he was contending with. But he must've known that Ania was in the Gatherer, because he was peppering her with shot after shot. She moved gracefully in the air, like she was anticipating each and every round. She laughed over the comms.

"Can you take this seriously!?" I asked. I kept shooting and shooting at instructor Pascal, but his health stubbornly didn't budge.

"I am," she said. Her voice full of glee. I was getting closer. I pulled the blaster closer, switching it full auto. The mana bar was plummeting as I peppered it. His attention turned to me, taking a shot. I put the blaster shield in front of me before it disintegrated, saving me from a direct hit. I pushed lateral to it. Alia closed the gap, pushing the blaster at point blank into the Tank unit. She fired full auto. It's health trickled down to about halfway. Ania got atop it and slammed the hook atop it.

Instructor Pascal turned his attention to Alia and used the spike from it's chest, exploding Alia's unit. I rushed forward, underneath instructor Pascal at where Alia's unit had just exploded. Pascal's blind spot. Another hook hit my shoulder, it was Ania's.

"What?" I thought. She shoved her unit at the instructor's and pulled mine with the same yank. We crashed into Pascal. Her firmly planted at the top and me at the threads in the bottom. The sim shook to mimic a portion of what it would feel like. She pushed the throttle to full and blasted Pascal with the heat from the thrust. Its integrity was plummeting. The constant source of damage ticking and eating at the integrity along with the mini-gun firing full bore. An impossible maneuver… for most.

Ania was laughing again. I turned and helped her, yanking the cord to keep her in place. Instructor Pascal thrashed as we kept out if its sight. As we kept Ania firmly planted atop it. Finally its integrity zeroed out. A moment later, the simulation ended after the pilot would've been cooked from the integrity being depleted. No more protection. The class erupted as the sim went black. It was another Ania victory. This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

She stepped out, being greeted to shoulder pats and congratulations to us both. She turned to me, a smirk on her face as she winked at me. Her long blonde hair pushed away from her hazel eyes. Her light caramel skin glistened with sweat.

"Congrats," said instructor David.

"Creativity is how you beat a stronger enemy. Truth be told, you weren't supposed to win." Instructor Pascal stepped out of the sim, clapping his hands at the accomplishment.

"Bastille to Stefo," said Jeromy. I shook my head back to the present.

"Sorry," I said.

"What were you saying?" Jeromy sighed.

"I was asking, what if he's right outside?" he said.

"Ilonar said she'd drop the shield for a moment. I have the Walker unit, so I'm flying out first. I'll distract him as long as I can while you and Luna get into position," I said.

"This plan seems reckless," said Caddie.

"Need I remind you, you are piloting for two now."

"Not now, Caddie," I grumbled.

"I mean, yeah, we got the plan," said Jeromy.

"But slow playing us leaving is risky, my guy."

"We don't know what your mech can do yet, Jeromy. And Luna needs time to set up," I said.

"And, let's not forget he's injured," said Luna.

"Pushing him too hard might reopen the magical stitches Yula used on him."

"It. Is. Not. Magic," said Caddie.

"It is-""Caddie, please," I interjected.

"Not now."

"Didn't you say you would be fine calling it magic?" asked Luna.

"So long as we don't muck about with the reality of it. I already have one dude that treats math like a 'how you doing?' I don't need a dame spouting explainable phenomena as gobbledygook" said Caddie.

"… What?" I asked.

"Did you like that? I have been familiarizing myself with old vernacular from Earth history. Quite intriguing." I had so many questions I couldn't ask.

"So, we got the plan?" I asked again.

"Got it," said Jeromy.

"Same," said Luna.

"Alright," I said. I took a deep breath. My hands weren't shaking as much. My legs weren't trembling so bad. My foot was tapping to the beat of my heart. I gripped the throttles. I was in my element. Outside, earlier, I had nothing. As vulnerable as anyone else. But here, in this seat, I was in my element. My limbs felt lighter. My head felt clearer. I took another long breath. I counted to four. Then exhaled to four. I did it again. Then one last time.

"Let's go," I said. I swiped on the screen and accepted the hanger eject. The locks came to life and moved me closer to the launch platform. It brought me to the edge. There were no more goblinoids falling into Et'ium. They were flying back. The shield turned off. The fuzzy look of it, clear. I launched and not a moment later, a beam fired at me. But I was ready. I was already spinning, dodging it before it could it. The thrusters were maxed out.

The force of the sudden acceleration had me fighting my neck muscles to stay on straight. I dropped to the wall, and stepped out. Lunging lateral of where the beam was fired from. He fired again. Then again. Each shot was getting closer and closer to hitting. But I was making up ground. His aim wasn't the best. I shot at his mech, barely moving the integrity bar that hovered just above it. I closed the gap, slamming the temp shield on the hot bar.

Caddie spit it out and it oozed like a protective layer over the Aegis. A shot hit the shield, breaking it immediately. But I was close enough. I reached for the dagger and slammed it into the blaster. I clicked it, turning the weapon into a ball of metal. He reached into his inventory to pull a second one, but I was too fast. I plunged it into his arm, pressing the trigger again. A small chunk of his armor came off. He shoved me as he equipped a second blaster.

"Just give me the access!" yelled Hernando over the comms.

"Give me the access to the hidden settlement!"

"I can't!" I yelled.

"Liar!" He shot again. I slammed on the temp shield again, gaining distance. The energy bar was plummeting, sitting at 3/4 and dropping.

"I'm not lying!"

"You don't get it! I need to find this hidden settlement. I need to!" There was a desperation in his voice.

"You killed your teammates! The only thing you need is a court martial!"

"Shut up!" My shield popped and my integrity dropped. His shot barely grazed me. I spun, but he closed the distance, slamming a foot straight into me. I braced as the sudden movement had me straining to keep steady. My energy was down to half. My mana wasn't refilling as quickly. But he was on the ropes. Jeromy shot at his back. The gatling gun, chipping away at his integrity with each shot. I righted myself, and pushed forward.

"Stefano," said Caddie.

"Little busy here," I said. I kept pulling at Hernando's attention. Each time he turned to Jeromy, I would get to his face, stabbing with the dagger before retreating as fast as I arrived. We got his integrity to half. He stopped moving.

"Enough," he said.

"I surrender."

"Stefano," said Caddie, again.

"Open your cockpit then," I said.

"And go to stand-by." Hernando's mech raised its arms. But he wasn't making any indication of going into stand-by mode.

"Stefano," said Caddie.

"You have incoming. Luna confirms it." My gaze flipped to the map, littered with red dots. The goblinoids were coming back. Or a second wave.

"He's bluffing!" I yelled over the comms. He reached into his inventory and pulled a shield bubble. Activating it to surround him. We couldn't touch him now with range weapons. I flew forward, pulling for the dagger when he started shooting. Each time I got close, he just littered the area with rounds. Air mines flew from his shoulder cannon, creating a zone that I could not pass through.

"I have debts," said Hernando.

"Debts I need to pay. You're in the way."

"We are running out of time," said Jeromy. He was right. If we retreated, he'd just wait for us somewhere else. Somewhere we wouldn't see coming but he would. A place with a clear sight line that I couldn't dodge as easy. This was our one chance. If we could get his integrity to zero, he'd be force to dock, or leave. Repair fluid dripped on his mech and the integrity bar rose from half.

"We need to get back," said Jeromy. My indicator lit up. A ping of confirmation.

"Not yet," I said.

"Stick to the plan."

"We are running out of time," said Jeromy.

"I know," I said.

"Caddie how long?"

"About forty-three seconds before you are in firing range of the goblinoid fighters."

"Alright." I reached into the inventory and tossed monster part at the mines. Each one exploded with the debris I kept chucking at it. Each one lost was less credits for later. He started shooting again. He nicked me, dropping my integrity by a third. I didn't stop throwing stuff at mines, forcing their detonation.

"Twenty seconds," said Caddie. I moved through the opening in the mines. Jeromy cleared as many mines as he could with his mini-gun. Covering me. My mech hit the shield with a thud. Hernando didn't notice. I turned, aiming the thrusters at the shield. Very awkward on a Walker Frame, but I did it anyway. Jeromy's aim was true as he shot the hook within reach. I grabbed it as he flew in the opposite direction. I slammed the thrusters forward, held in place by the tensile strength of the rope.

The thrusters were screaming and my energy levels were taking a nose-dive. He finally noticed that his energy levels were cratering. Along with the shots from the Jeromy's mini-gun. He fired once, but not before running out of energy. The lack of thrusters messed his aim and it grazed me. Another nick. Another third. His shield popped. The rope released. He kicked his thrusters back up, just in time for Luna's shot to hit him directly.