~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Chronicle Nine - the Fat of the Land ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The Leviathan was a mighty battleship. It could cruise over land, sea and air with its great powers. However the one piece of terrain it could not traverse was space. The ship was too large in size to be able to make it to space. The fundamental problem with all battleships like the Leviathan. Such a scenario made it easier to acknowledge the importance that Protocol (both New and Holy) placed on its few leanings in space. Travel into space was significantly more difficult than scientists of previous eras could have predicted. Thus getting entire armies into space was not a three minute thing. It had taken nearly a day to get the Chrysalis Meta Suit forces (comprised heavily of Gusions and led by Terry/Bishamon and Celaph/Orobas) into the Sky Cord. Something that was confirmed when morning started to descend on the Leviathan and the landscape around it. But now the easy part was over, here came the hard part. Pulling off this little coup. Three people stood at the platform of the Leviathan's bridge. One of them was the commander of this whole operation, Colonel Cecelia Faye Beatrix. Beside Beatrix was her second in command and future wife, Major Sophia Mariette. And next to Sophia was the co-leader of this mission, put in that position at the behest of Celaph himself. And that woman was Chizu Yagata. Things didn't change much on this ship. Chizu and Beatrix still didn't like each much. But for the sake of the mission, they would be forced to work together. Chizu pressed her left hand into the railing (brandishing her engagement ring) and called out to the helmsmen of the ship. "Report. What's the current status on Celaph and Terry's team?" Helmsman #1 replied slowly. "All 202 Gusions, the Bishamon and the Orobas have ascended the Western European Sky Cord, ma'am. It will take only ten minutes for them to launch from it now. Which means that they should reach space in time for the battle." Chizu nodded in acceptance of that. Then she leaned over the railing and stared at the distant image of the Sky Cord on screen. It was a fabulous piece of machinery, really. In terms of height it was about three kilometres straight up. Thus its peak could not be seen from the ground level. Its white metal presence climbed up from the hills of the countryside and inched its way into the clouds. From there on it could give means to reach space. It most cases the Sky Cords were more like lifts with an additional propulsion than anything else. Ascending them did not take long However they were constructed for the transportation of goods and light shuttles, not Meta Suits. Adjusting to that change meant taking things slowly lest the Sky Cord was overstressed. Chizu knew that better than anyone. It was the reason that getting their half of the Anti-Holy Protocol army into the Sky Cord had taken so long. Chizu adjusted her headset and sighed. "I see. And what of Miss Mishima? Have you been able to restore communications with the Oriax yet?" "Uh, no ma'am," Said helmsman #2, "the Oriax has shut off all its transmissions with Chrysalis, the Leviathan, and EDEN. And there's no way to trace Lieutenant Mishima on that suit, either." "That's not surprising," Chizu commented, "The Oriax was built with radio frequency jammers to block... or at the very least, distort; radio frequency signals for stealth missions. And yet I can't help but wonder why you'd let Terry Hennig walk off scot-free after knowing that he aided in Yumi Mishima's escape." Sophia answered that one. "Lieutenant Mishima didn't 'escape' because she is not a prisoner Though she may have temporarily absconded without permission, we will take full steps of punishment against her. And the reason Lieutenant Hennig was not punished after he admitted aiding her escape is because we have more important things to worry about. Don't we?" "Maybe so," Chizu stated, "but the Oriax is still Protocolian property." "Holy Protocol or New Protocol?" Sophia asked sarcastically "The Oriax was created in the Ochiai Underground Research Facility, below the Shinrai Building. The scientists controlling the site were loyal to Celaph above even the Upper Council at that point. Naturally, we regard the Oriax as a possession of New Protocol now." Sophia scowled. "Is that all you can think about? Protocol and Celaph?" "I'm only investing myself in New Protocol's best interests," Chizu said, "that is what I consider most of all in my work. How can you blame me for that?" The Major stared at Chizu for a moment. "...You're nothing like the girl I met six months ago." Chizu closed her eyes. "Chizuru Matsubana was just a fabrication. A disguise I used. And those days are over now. My concern is for the continued success of my group and its leader. Such a thing is not a crime, is it?" The two subordinates, Chizu and Sophia, the two women who were in love with the people that commanded them (Celaph and Beatrix) glared at each other. Sophia knew from the beginning that Yumi had left partly because of her feelings for Chizu. And it angered her to think that Chizu still only looked at Yumi as a disposable pawn for her organization's plans. Even Celaph had made moves to change himself and his opinions on the rights of the people. Yet Chizu was still the same as always. Still icy and cold. And Sophia couldn't trust someone like that. Especially not Chizu. Helmswoman #3 suddenly interjected. "Colonel Beatrix! It's started!" "What?!" Beatrix uncrossed her arms, "What are you talking about?" "The battle, Colonel! The Panzer Satellite has detected battle contact involving the first half of our military forces! The Divine Blade have already begun their assault upon the New Protocol Meta Suit Division!" Sophia altered the position of her glasses. "Damnit. Bring the satellite's images up on screen, please." The overhead video screen that framed the front half of the Leviathan's bridge switched from the outside view of the Western European Sky Cord to space. Though the cameras of the world's most powerful earth-orbital satellite, the Panzer, they could see the battle beginning between the Divine Blade and the New Protocolian half of the Anti-Holy Protocol Resistance Forces. In the close distance was the glowing white presence of the moon, surrounded in stars and darkness. On the moon was the Lunar Station, the thing that Holy Protocol was gunning for. Soon the explosions of defeated Meta Suits began. The trail of exhaust burning from the thrusters of all those Meta Suits illuminated space. As well as the exchange of laser fire. The Amons, Baals and Zagans of the Divine Blade went head-to-head with the Amons of the NPMSD. All seven of the people on the bridge watched the clash begin from their positions. This was it. Chizu folded her arms. "What suits are the Divine Blade using? And how many of them are there on the battlefield?" "The Divine Blade's troops seem to consist of Zagan-types, Baal-types, but the vast majority of them are Amon-types," Said helmsman #2, "The suit leading the DB is definitely the Morax suit of Selena Fol, the new leader of the Divine Blade. And according to these readings the DB definitely number at about 570 suits." Sophia mused. "That's more than we were expecting I guess Meta Suit production was increased in Holy Protocol after all that's happened in the past six months." "How many Meta Suits does the NPMSD have?" Beatrix asked Chizu. "Around 250. That was the most we could manufacture since the Great Schism The costs of training, production, and materials set us back in such a way that we could not do more to bolster the force." "So the NPMSD are outnumbered by more than half," Beatrix replied, "the battle will not last long if Lieutenant Hennig's team procrastinates. How long will it take for the Chrysalis forces to enter in the battle?" Helmswoman #4 answered that. "About 1140 seconds, Colonel!" Beatrix's face hardened. "...That should be enough time for the NPMSD to hold out on. Lets just hope that they can muster the courage and strength to do that. It will be disastrous if they can't." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Antarctica The continent surrounding the South Pole, arbitrarily defined as the region lying south of the Antarctic Circle. Occupying 10% of the world's surface, it was almost 1.5 times the size of the USA. Antarctica contained 90% of the world's ice, representing nearly three-quarters of its fresh water. It had an area of 13,000,000 sq km/5,019,300 sq mi; ice shelves which fill the surrounding seas add a further 1,300,000 sq km/501,930 sq mi to this figure. Antarctica could be divided into two regions, separated by the Transantarctic Mountains, which extend for 3,500 km/2,175 mi and whose peaks, many of them exceeding 3,000 m/9,850 ft in height, protrude through the ice. The larger region, known as Greater or east Antarctica, is comprised of ancient rocks lying mostly at sea level, which are approximately 3,800 million years old. In contrast, Lesser or west Antarctica is 150-200 million years old and had mountain ranges buried under the ice. These include the Antarctic Peninsular and the Ellsworth Mountains, in which the highest peak in Antarctica, the Vinson Massif, is located; height 5,140 m/16,863 ft. The few peaks that are visible above the ice are known as nunataks. Two vast seas, the Ross Sea and the Weddell Sea, cut into the continent. Between them lies the mountainous Antarctic Peninsula, which was originally connected to South America before continental drift. Only 2% of the land was ice-free. With an estimated volume of 30 million cu km/7.2 million cu mi, the ice-cap has an average thickness of approximately 2,000 m/6,600 ft, in places reaching depths of 4,000 m/13,000 ft or more. Each annual layer of snow preserves a record of global conditions, and where no melting at the surface of the bedrock has occurred the ice can be a million years old. It was because of all this that Antarctica was the perfect place for isolated Meta Suit battles. The ice and snow was easily traversed by mecha, and more importantly, there was little that could get in the way. In a snow field of the most southern part of Antarctica, Victoria Land, the Raum Meta Suit stood it wait. Its large metallic arms were crossed against each other while snow slowly descended on its armour from the clouds above. Freeman sat in the cockpit of the Raum with closed eyes and crossed arms, waiting for the one he knew he was destined to face. A twinkle went off in his heart. One which he knew to be his senses telling him that the Eros was near. Then the sensors of his Raum went off. The video screen in his cockpit focused on something in the distance. It was the Oriax, flying at him at a tremendous speed. She had found him. "So you've come, Eros..." Freeman remarked. The Raum lifted its mighty right arm and opened its palm. Out from it came the Palm Gatling barrel. A barrage of bullets was shot in the Oriax's direction, the rapid-fire sound echoing throughout the snow fields. The Oriax darted to one side of the shots, flying around their path and descending. The heavy twin feet of the Machine God landed then to the ground, their sensors acting in place of traction. The Raum and the Oriax faced each other across a space of 300 metres. Which was not very much, considering the size and speed of the Meta Suits. Yumi pressed a few keys on her control pad to assume direct communications with Freeman, enough so that she could see his face on her video screen. "Freeman I have come as you asked." "So you have," Freeman said with a smirk, "...and I knew you would find me. You and I are drawn together by fate. Both as descendants of the Novus Deus... and as parents to that which should have been a true God. We are the next step. The true force and light. The alpha and the omega. We are not members of the flock. We are selected to be its leaders." The Japanese girl frowned. "I didn't come here for debates about the relevance and importance of our shared existences. I came here to settle this thing between us. But before we begin... I have questions that only you can answer." "Speak." Freeman offered. "Rain Harland. The boy at Green Cloud. He was swallowed up by a sphere of his own Qi energy. That same thing happened to me. And I suspect that it happened to you as well. Explain that to me. What is that experience?" Freeman chuckled in his cockpit. "Heh, heh, heh. Some might argue our unworthiness because such things can take place within our hearts. Even I don't want to believe that. But I can't renounce the possibilities, either." "Answer my question!" "Very well, Eros," The Westerner began, "By now you must have heard the tale of the origin of mankind. Novus Deus came down to the world and breathed life by spawning the Bio-System entity. That entity divided itself into multiple forms which would become known as humanity. The sustained mental connection between humanity was shattered by the thirst for knowledge by a single woman. The Second Sin. The sin that provoked the death of the Novus Deus. That is the way modern homo sapiens came into being. Those were the events dubbed as the 'Seven Keys'. However those times were far more important and detailed than Protocol would have originally suggested to you. Which says much of the organization's true nature when taking into consideration the importance of the Novus Deus to its doctrines." Yumi growled "What's your point?" "I'm getting to it. The Second Sin cast a darker shadow over the world than most people actually realize. When that woman, who solely attempted to monopolize the data of the Interlink, committed the Second Sin, it hailed the first ever divergence from our God's true grace Because of her action, the first and penultimate evil was generated. The Second Sin itself was given an incarnation, becoming manifest in a solid, physical form That form is what the ancient humans called Astaroth." "Astaroth?" Yumi blinked. "That's right. The counterpart to the Novus Deus," He said, "as Asch Metzereph, the second Tablet of Destiny, states; 'Where there is a God, so too shall there be a Devil'. A force that would oppose the virtue of the Novus Deus to the bitterest end. There was a meeting between the two before the death of the Novus Deus. The nature of that meeting is unknown to us. Though we do know that the Astaroth died shortly afterwards. While the Novus Deus died and its corpse transformed into the original Eros and Thanatos, the Astaroth underwent a similar demise. Its being separated into two forms. That of its body, and that of its soul. The corpse of the Astaroth remains buried somewhere beneath the ice of this continent we now stand on. Far too deep for Protocol to reach. And its spirit? The spirit maintained its own psyche and foresaw its own revival We now refer to that spirit as the 'Heart of the Astaroth'. In a bid to reassert itself on the face of the world, the Heart of the Astaroth soon sacrificed its mentality to yield a wave of spores which have been dubbed as the 'Seed of the Astaroth' Each of those seeds were embedded within select human beings across the globe. Thus the Heart of the Astaroth could preserve itself in the souls of a small portion of humanity. The modern-day descendants of those people, people whose genes were infected by the Seed of the Astaroth, are called 'Ashtars'. That boy you spoke of, Rain Harland, happens to be an Ashtar" Yumi narrowed her eyes with thought. "...Rain..." Then Freeman continued. "Ashtars are unique in that they have the ability to fuse their essence with the Heart of the Astaroth. What happened to your friend is the beginning of that. We call it Periodic Phase Sealing Phenomenon or 'Divine Hibernation'. The Qi of the Ashtar in question will consume them upon experiencing some sort of mental surge as a result of a traumatic event. Sadness seems to be the most preferable emotion to cause it. Once an Ashtar undergoes Divine Hibernation they then become tantamount with the Heart of the Astaroth, giving them great powers and all new control of Qi-flow. This state is the first level of symbiosis with the Heart of the Astaroth, referred to as 'Demi-Gnosis'. This Demi-Gnosis state is something both you and I have attained. If an Ashtar surpasses that level and achieves a full symbiosis with the Heart of the Astaroth, a Complete Gnosis, they become an entity known as an 'Ishtar'. Not even I know the powers that are on offer to a form of such strength, but... an Ishtar would far transcend our own strength. I suspect that the Triad of the Inquisition have delved their hands into the Ashtar legacy because they seek to manipulate the powers of an Ishtar. If there is ever anyone strong enough to reach that level." Though Yumi consumed all that was said to her, she focused on Freeman's mention of the Triad of the Inquisition. "...That name. The Triad of the Inquisition. I know that they are the ones pulling all the strings. Even Princess Ashura is just a puppet to them. Who are they?" "The Triad of the Inquisition, Aherg, Ein and Karahi, are three ancient Ashtars who have attained Demi-Gnosis. But rather than gain an increase in fighting ability or Qi strength, they were blessed with increased intelligence, trans-dimensional presence, and physical longevity. They are all at least 2,400 years old. However they do not have the ability to sustain themselves in the natural world. With their combined Qi they made a slight alteration in the fabric of time and space and weaved themselves a small and personal dimension in which they could exist. That dimension can only be reached by an Ishtar, or by summoning from one of the Triad. Consequently only a few people like myself and Celaph, have ever met them face to face." "What are their plans?" Yumi questioned. "Alas, not even I know that," Freeman replied, "all I know is that they seek a holy redemption in the eyes of God, knowing themselves to be Ashtars, ones tainted by the seed of the original evil They somehow did that by removing the Seed of the Astaroth from their bodies. I am at a loss to explain how they could have retained the Demi-Gnosis state if that is true, but it would probably explain why the Triad of the Inquisition cannot sustain themselves in the physical world." "...I see," Yumi said softly, "I just have one last question. Are we Ashtars? Do you and I possess the Seed of the Astaroth like Rain?" Freeman sniggered derisively. "...The answer is no. The Tablets of Destiny do not say that our forefathers were possessed by the Seed. There is absolutely no one who has a universally accepted explanation as to why you and I have attained Demi-Gnosis. Some say it's because our bloodlines are still 'impure' because of the Second Sin. And since it was the Second Sin that gave birth to the Astaroth in the beginning, the Triad of the Inquisition seem to share that view. As well as that bastard doctor who had the nerve to address me, Geist Fahlem. But know this, Eros. Our fates are tied to this point only. Our child was forsaken by destiny and became nothing more than a pale Vulnus Deus. However God's will is righteous and he has decreed our fate. One of us will enter into the new era. And it will be me..." Yumi's face hardened, re-gripping the control sticks of the Oriax. She wasn't about to die here. Not when she had heard that. She had to keep living. To know the full truth about everything. And the first step towards that was defeating Freeman. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The space region outside Sector 4 of the Moon Block was now swamped in the flames of destruction Already wrecked and burned pieces of defeated Meta Suits lay drifting in the gravity-less void of space. Their dead pilots were nowhere to be seen in the wreckage, lost forever after being blown to bits. But the battle was still on. And slowly, slowly but surely, the Divine Blade was wearing down the New Protocol Meta Suit forces. The energy trails of the exhaust of the Meta Suits still flashed from point to point as the two armies proceeded to destroy each other. Both knowing that they had a mission to fulfil. At the head of the Divine Blade's assault was the Morax. Inside the Morax was the new leader of the Divine Blade herself, Selena Fol. The Morax flew out into the crowds of NPMSD Amons that were heading her way. At least four of them. NPMSD Morax #1 and #2 raised their hand cannons and aimed in the Morax's direction. The chain of fire came seconds later from those cannons. The Morax ignited its thrusters and darted to one side of the laser fire. Flying to one side it jetted forwards with its own laser cannon in hand. The Morax pulled up its gun and fired into the torso of NPMSD #2. Hard laser fire was buried into the armour of the mecha. Soon after it exploded, hurling its scraps of oil and painted steel every which way. The other three Amons owing themselves to New Protocol rushed at the Morax from opposing sides. One of them shot out blasts from its own beam rifle. The Morax vaulted upwards to avoid those shots. Which them nailed the other Amon behind her. While 'above' the two remaining suits she fired two heavy blasts in either direction of her from below. The blasts from her cannon hammered into the heads of the last two NPMSD Amons in her way. The following damaged triggered off explosions in the memory circuit of the suits. Effectively, this immobilized them. While the Morax retracted its gun arm, Selena sighed within the cockpit. "Hmph. What a bunch of no-account amateurs. And I left Earth for this?" The leader of the Divine Blade tapped a few keys on her control panel, which brought up a screen of what was taking place on the far west quadrant of the battlefield. Her soldiers were having the hardest time there. So she would probably have to go other there to help them out, considering that this side of the battlefield was under control. Just as Selena was prepared to fly to the west sector of the fight, her sensors picked up something else coming towards the battle from directly behind her. The Morax shifted around to see what was coming. And when her cameras caught onto the sight, Selena gasped. "Goddamn it!" She expressed, "Chrysalis!" The Fol girl would have known those Gusions from anywhere It was them. In all their glory It was an army of a few hundred Uvalls headed off by two custom-model Meta Suits, the Bishamon and the leaner Orobas. They came into the battle between the NPMSD and the Divine Blade with exceeding speed and made their mark as soon as they did In moments of entering the battle, fresh explosions from the DB side of the conflict began to rend the quiet of space. The Bishamon M-2 charged in head first for the fight. It pulled up its right arm and the steel of its gauntlet parted. Out came the Bishamon's Wrist Cannon. A blast of pure, concentrated Qi energy was fired from it in a beam pattern. That beam then burned through the steel torsos of at least eight opposing mecha. The Bishamon came flying through the thick cloud of smoke that resulted from the following explosion. Which put it on the other side of the field. It extended its hand and its Gatlings came from its palm. A shower of bullets was blown across everything in the Bishamon's crosshairs. Hundreds of bullets were buried into the armour of the five Amon flying in its way. They were all gunned down by that rapid fire attack, causing them to be engulfed in their own combustion. The Bishamon then retracted its Wrist Cannon and its palm Gatling. Terry pressed a few keys and scanned the field for what was going on so far. The battle had suddenly taken a turn for the better now that Chrysalis' Uvalls had entered into the fray "Heh," Terry smiled, "Looks like we got here just in time." Suddenly gunfire came down in his direction. The Bishamon burst its thrusters on and jetted to one side of that incoming fire. Its head cranked back to get a good look at the one shooting at it. It was the Morax. The Meta Suit of the Divine Blade's leader floated downwards until it was hovering at a similar height as the Bishamon. Then Selena called out to the Bishamon's pilot. "Heh, heh, heh. I didn't want to believe it. When I saw your mecha at Green Cloud, I didn't even recognize you. But after what Leena told me... there is no doubt that you are the one..." "What are you talking about?!" Terry yelled, "You're Selena Fol, right? That chick who's taken Naam's place as leader of the Divine Blade?" Selena smirked at her video screen. "Don't play dumb. I know it to be true. Now throw off your guise! Show me your true self! I don't want to fight you at a Qi rating of 7,400! I want to fight you at your full power! Evolve into your true form! Show me the power you presented when you destroyed the Third Defensive Line of Ix Nos Babel!" Terry's eyebrows arched. This girl had to be insane. He was not the one who beat the Third Defensive Line, six months ago. That was done by the Asmodeus, piloted by the living corpse of his mother. "What the hell are you on about? I destroyed the first two lines but the other one was..." "Silence!" Selena barked, "I know who you are! Terry Hennig! Nephew and murderer of General Naam! No matter what your true power is, I won't let you get away with it! I won't let you get away with it!" "What the?" The Morax came screaming forwards with its gun at the ready. Blasts were fired. The Bishamon flew upwards and a diagonal angle to avoid those shots. It then reached behind its back and gripped the hilt of its Giant Energy Katana. The Bishamon quickly withdrew the sword and converted Qi energy from its generator to the sword. Terry's Meta Suit then slashed downwards to produce a huge, sweeping arc of Qi force. That arc hacked right through the metallic hands of the Morax. The beam rifle was thereafter dropped. Selena scowled. "Damn you!" The Bishamon then flew forwards and did a half-loop through the air of space, then came back around while twirling. The sword, charged up with bright green Qi, was thrust up with the Bishamon's charge. Which was buried straight into the shoulder of the Morax. Selena grit her teeth and shut her eyes, expecting her suit to blow. But it didn't. The sword had struck a non-vital area. But her Morax's right arm could not move an inch (not that she would have been able to do anything with it now that the hands of both arms had been cut off). Terry spoke out to Selena. "...I'm guessing that General Naam was important to you. I can't say that I'm surprised. That guy was tough. If not for the improvements that the engineers made to my Bishamon, I probably would have lost to him again But Naam was also the destroyer my village. The murderer of my father, his own brother. And he had those bastards in Ix Nos Babel implant the living remains of my mother inside the Asmodeus Meta Suit; the suit that wasted the Third Defensive Line. He screwed around with the Hennig Family for years. And I had to settle my debts for that. If that hurts you then I'm sorry. I never wanted this life for myself. But I have a job to do now. Your people are threatening life itself. And there's a world down there that needs defending If it means taking you out then..." The Bishamon withdrew its blade from the 'wound' it had carved into the Morax's right shoulder. Oil leaked from it. A double-grip was then applied to the Bishamon's sword. And it was buried straight into the chest of the Morax. A fatal blow. The red suit then flew back on the charge of its thrusters to escape the following explosion It killed Selena Fol instantly. Terry lowered his head with a sigh. "...I have no choice." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ As they always did, the Triad of the Inquisition stood surrounding the circular pool that acted as their window to the world. Inside of their spectral dimension, woven into being by the force of their own Qi. Such was the people of people who could attain the state of Demi-Gnosis. It might not have been the perfection of Complete Gnosis, but it was enough to cement themselves as superior. Aherg, Ein, and Karahi watched the circular window to the activities of the world. On it they could see the space battle between the Divine Blade and the combined forces of the NPMSD and Chrysalis "Hmm. It seems that Celaph's helpers have arrived," Aherg stated, "I would have never believed that he would so debase himself as to join ranks with our enemies. We should have foreseen this." Ein nodded "It is a disappointment. But our plans continue regardless The Kingdom of God will be rebuilt anew and we shall ascend. Celaph and his dreamers will not stop fate. Not even if has deduced our plans." "Forget not the reason, correct?" Karahi suggested, "this is only an offering to the Novus Deus and to fate. Now that all the pieces are in place for the final reckoning of the Sermo Period" "Yes. You speak truly," Aherg looked behind himself, "Now reveal yourself, Destroyer of the World, the Second Star." The shadows behind Aherg suddenly parted by his command. And this exposed their knight apparent, Deathcatcher, the one who was formerly Rain Harland. Stood behind him was the darkened reflection of a Meta Suit. One of the three Gods of Wrath, the Diablos. The Meta Suit to which Deathcatcher's Qi was currently resonating A smog-like aura of purest sapphire blue rose up from his body. "Your time is now." Aherg commented. Deathcatcher lowered himself to one knee. "...It shall be done." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The semi-organic wings of the Oriax flapped back when the suits thrusters kicked in and pushed the Oriax backwards across the snowdrifts. A trail of bullets followed the mecha along as it did so. Each bullet buried itself in the snow, leaving behind a trail of indentations. And those bullets were raining down from the Gatling Palm of the Raum. The black opposition to the Oriax followed its white counterpart through the air with its arm extended and jerking with the force of rapid fire. The Oriax flapped backwards then separated its arms. The power of the Qi generator enfolded Yumi's mecha in the shape of a circle. The Qi Barrier took over and shielded the Oriax from the bullets of the Raum. Those bullets bounced off the force field until the Raum withdrew its Gatlings. The black suit stopped moving and then dove straight downwards at the Oriax in a head first dive. The Oriax flapped its wings and flew away from the Raum's diving point. Freeman's mecha smashed into the build up of snow that was beneath their feet. That snow was forced across the near landscape, unsettling the many snow heaps that had gathered up around them. The shockwaves unhinged them all in the current area, and those shockwaves did not end until the Raum burst back up from the snow at a thirty metres distance from which it had entered. When the Oriax was faced with the Raum again, a burning glow emanated around its right fist. That glow of Qi energy cast itself into the shape of a blade. The Gauntlet Blade. The Oriax then rushed at the Raum with the emerald-tone blade of energy at the ready. The two suits reached within striking range of each other. And the Oriax slashed at the lower torso of the Raum. The Raum itself darted away to escape the possible damage of the blade. Oriax's slash was flowed by more when it started swiping its arm back and forth, in and out, to strike down the suit. The Raum continued to dance and dart its way out of those attacks. Then shot out its fist from nowhere. The punch smashed the Oriax's 'face' directly, cracking the steel outline of the mouthpiece. The force of that punch knocked the Oriax back, its feet skidding across the snow of the Antarctica continent. The Oriax lowered itself to two knees and dug its steel hands into the snow to slow down its skid. Which was when the Raum came flying in with its thrusters going at full blast. The Raum led forwards with its shoulder protruding. Then banged into the body of the Oriax. There was a loud crash. One so loud that it could be heard within half a mile's distance. The Raum pushed the Oriax forwards along with it in a charge. The two Meta Suits both smashed violently into a rocky hillock, covered in snow. The brunt of the blow was received by the Oriax which was left in a gigantic crater in the frame of the stone. The Raum flew upwards with that, then pushed its arm outwards. The compartment in the palm, the one with the right Gatling barrel in it, opened thereafter. And another stream of bullets, along with the echoing sound of their rapid firing, cut through the chill air. The Oriax was still for a moment, pinned down on the rock. Then it acted. The Wave Generator inside its body now began humming with action. And from the mouth of the mecha came that result. A sonic discharge, something akin to a scream, radiated from the Oriax. Its extremely high frequency decibels instantly shattered the stone the Oriax was trapped on into shards of rock. And then those sonic vibrations made contact with the bullets fired from the Raum. The moment that those bullets entered the radius of the Oriax's Sonic Upsurge Wave (or SU-Wave), they were disintegrated The Raum reacted to that action. And produced an SU-Wave of its own, a violently soft sound that matched the Oriax's tranquilly rigid one. The hymns of destruction collided with each other in an invisible collision. Though it would have seemed that the two Meta Suits were simply singing at each other, it was more along the lines of a battle of sound. Both forces trying desperately to outdo the other. The undetectable sound waves continued to strain against each other. Causing damage to the land around them. The ice that made up the frozen fjords leading out to sea started to shatter. Cracking in places that scattered in motion across the ice. The rocky build up within the vicinity of the SU-Waves starting breaking up along with the ice. The ground beneath soon started shaking because of the stand off between the two forces of sound. The increasing aggressive tremors caused by the confrontation of the SU-Waves shook the snow above it. The ground itself started to part directly below the point of exchange. Until it began to collapse into itself. The miniature earthquake tore apart the ground within a 168-metre distance of the conflict. The snow, ice and rock within that area found itself crushed under the combined might of two sonic discharges that struggled to overpower each other. Then the war of sound ended. Both the Oriax and the Raum were forced to end their SU-Waves at the same time, exhausting that ability for the time being. The Raum then jerked its metal right arm to its side and its hand started glowing. A blue Gauntlet Blade shot out from the hand, with a straighter broadsword shape as opposed to the scimitar-shape of the Oriax's. The Raum then dove down in the Oriax's direction. White suit itself reproduced its own Gauntlet Blade. The Oriax flapped its wings and bolted forwards into the air The two suits met in the air and locked blades with each other. Bolts of friction escaped the point of connection; the green blade of the Oriax now locked with the blue blade of the Raum. The faces of both Meta Suits were facing each other. Presenting a clear view to their pilots. Yumi scowled inside the cockpit. "I refuse to lose this fight, Freeman!" "Eros..." Freeman said to her, "...only one of us can make it into the new era. Only one of us will see the end of the Sermo Period, and carry this planet into the divinity of God's bosom. That person... shall be me!" The Raum then kicked from the leg. Its foot knocked the stomach area of the Oriax. Yumi's suit was pushed out of the Gauntlet Blade battle and thrown downwards in the air. Oriax shot up its left hand in reply and opened the palm. Its Gatlings poured out a heavy surge of bullets. The Raum lowered its Gauntlet Blade and reformed its Qi Barrier. The bullets shooting from the Oriax's Gatlings bounced off the shield without so much as a dent. Once the Oriax retracted its Gatlings at the fruitless nature of the attack, the Raum went on an attack of its own. It down straight down at the Oriax in the morning sky. It energized its Gauntlet Blade again. Then, mid flight, it slashed. The keyed up Qi manipulation cut straight through the left arm of the Oriax, slicing it off in a single stroke. Oil and electricity leaked from the circular joint of the arm And inside the cockpit of the Oriax, Yumi released a bloodcurdling scream. All the pain Oriax felt, she felt. The metal arm fell downward until it landed on some loose rock under the snow, destroyed by the SU-Wave crash. The Raum then acted again and slashed at the Oriax again. Yumi was too caught up in the agony to notice But she knew the results implicitly when a searing pain crossed the upper half of her leg. Yumi shrieked with agony once more when the Raum cut the right leg off the Oriax. It was a blow that was so frank and so strong that the Oriax could not sustain its hovering. The white suit fell out of the Antarctica skies and crashed into the snowy ground, the light in the Oriax's glass-plastic eyes flickering. All the while the Raum remained hovering in the air. Freeman smirked. "Just as I thought. No one is more worthy than I am This is the end of the road, Eros. A silent hymn to the one who owns my heart. The mother of my child. I bid you farewell." In the water-sphere cockpit of the Oriax, Yumi whimpered and groaned at the pain she had received from the damage done to her Meta Suit. Though there was no actual bleeding or damage done to her own body, the nerves of her flesh had the same pain threshold as the Oriax when she piloted it. Ever since that day, six month ago. The day she underwent Divine Hibernation. The day she gave birth to another worthless Vulnus Deus. It had all come down to this. There was no way that she could continue to fight in this condition. "Am I finished...?" She asked herself. Things around the area fell quiet. Eerily so. Beads of sweat dripped down the outlines of Yumi's face when she lay in the seat of the cockpit, waiting for Freeman to deliver his finishing blow. It was then that Yumi heard a blip. It was an indication of a recorded message being opened by the central processing unit of the Oriax. It startled her for a moment. Yumi knew that it was not Freeman who had sent it, and there was no one around for miles who even knew of where she was. So the message had to have been programmed into the Oriax itself. The message needed no ushering from Yumi for it to be opened, and suddenly it started. The face of a man came on screen. A man who looked to be in his late twenties, wearing glasses and bearing Asiatic looks. He was a stranger to Yumi, but strangely enough... he looked familiar to her. As if she had seen him before. "I have no way of knowing who it is that will be listening to this," Began the recording, the man's lips moving in unison with the words, "but my suspicions are that it will be you, Yumi. When I worked with your father, his bitterness towards the Ochiai Underground Research Facility provoked me into investing myself in the development of the Oriax. I knew he would have wanted some form of assurance in terms of your safety. I have not forgotten that in the many years since Doctor Katsuragi's death. So I am doing this for you. By now I have undergone many changes, so you will not recognize me. But for now, you can refer to me as Doctor Geist Fahlem. The fact that you are seeing this message means two things. One, that you have attained symbiosis with the Heart of the Astaroth, and two, that you are in a situation that has caused the Oriax serious damage. Thus, to protect you, I have installed means inside this data cube to warp the Spectral Circuit and provoke the Oriax's full metamorphosis into its true form. The bio-mechanical device you are piloting contains the same restraints on itself that Dr. Katsuragi once placed on your own powers. This is not my own doing, but rather that of the commanding scientists in the development of the Oriax. The beauty of this machine is that it contains a nano-molecular 'derider' which renders it unconnected to either Meshezabel or the Ragnarok System. Taking this into consideration, your suit has no immediately foreseeable destiny. You are free, Yumi. And the fact that you are seeing this shows that you are in danger. Therefore I have no choice. Because I believe that you are a fundamental part of this planet's final destiny. You will have to see and confront the revelations yourself... but in this way, I can aid you. If you still have the strength, tap the code Q5F6XS97HI into the control panel. This will activate the derider and that will override the restraints placed on the Oriax. However, know this. When you press that code, you will not be in full control of your actions. And if you have attained Demi-Gnosis... there is an extremely good chance that you will resume Divine Hibernation. Thus if you are receiving this message AFTER your 'union' with the Thanatos... the world will be a very different place when you awaken. The choice is yours." Yumi closed one of her eyes and breathed in heavily. This seemed like a fateful choice she was making. But if this thing that Geist Fahlem had spoken of could help her, then she could not afford to ignore it. Yumi tapped the code into the control panel as she had been told. And then leaned back on the seat to wait for the results. At first nothing happened. All she could hear was the sound of her own arduous breathing But then there was a reaction. A huge one. One that would have untold ramifications The video screen ahead of her was suddenly filled with the text 'De Mundo' over and over and over again. Then from the underside of the panel, five cables slithered out. Yumi blinked. The cables were actually moving as though they were alive. Like snakes, those thin cables shot out at Yumi The girl yelped and felt five small but stinging pricks on her flesh. One cable latched onto her left arm. Another cable latched onto her right arm. The third reached out and attached itself to the right side of Yumi's neck. The other one touched the right side. The final cable touched Yumi's left temple. Very thin needles embedded themselves inside Yumi's skin from those cables. Giving them direct access to Yumi's bloodstream. And the one at Yumi's temple had connected to her brain. A certain substance was pumped from the control panel through the cables and into Yumi's blood. Suddenly she released a horse shriek of pain, reverberating louder than her previous ones. A set of sallow blue veins started popping up all over her skin. And the glint of blue in Yumi's turned a dark red. The flaming silver force of her Qi once again appeared, enveloping her whole body. And she could not move. Only scream in total agony, while her actions had their effects on the Oriax. Freeman looked stunned as he stared at his video screen. The Oriax was moving again. It somehow, with only one arm and one leg, managed to shift itself up into a standing position. Then something miraculous happened. Something that not even Freeman could have predicted. Qi energy extended from the damaged shoulder of the Oriax. One that shone brightly and then wove itself into the shape of an arm. Once the glow faded away, a new metallic arm, polished and shining, was left in its place. As if it had never been damaged. Then the same thing happened with the leg of the Oriax. A new one was created in place of the absent old one. More of that glowing Qi surrounded the torso of the Meta Suit, while Freeman looked on dumbfounded. "Regeneration?!" He stated angrily, "that's impossible!" Suddenly a transmission came into him from an outside source. Freeman scowled and pressed a button on his control panel to see who it was. Then the visage of Dr. Geist Fahlem appeared on screen. "Greetings, Freeman Ronove." "You?! What do you want?!" "There's no point in getting angry now," Fahlem assured, "your fate has already been decided You see Mister Ronove, I have been monitoring your actions via the satellite uplink provided to the Temple of Tlazolteotl. I know all that is happening. And the phenomenon taking place before your eyes is the only thing you were needed for. You see, this event was not destined to happen. According to the Tablet of Destiny known as Asch Metzereph, the force that the Oriax is becoming was not ordained to be born yet By all accounts this battle should have taken place anyway. The child that you and Yumi produced should have been a Novus Deus. However, by Protocol interfering as it did in the process, fate has been re-written. Thus we must adhere to the Second Cycle of Asch Metzereph. This era we are now in is called Sermo. It should have been the third and final period before the age of Synesis, the eternal time when God and the Earth shall be reunited. The interference of man has provoked the awakening of a new era. That era is Anthropos. And if the prophecy of Asch Metzereph speaks true, then Yumi Mishima is one of the three most important people to that new era. She is the First Star, De Mundo. Thusly she must be preserved until she can take the place that destiny has provided her with. The only way to do that was to incite a second Divine Hibernation. And as you know, Divine Hibernation only occurs with extreme mental surges. At this point, the only thing that could have triggered a mental surge strong enough to warrant the Periodic Phase Sealing Phenomenon is the unsealing of the Oriax's true form. That was your purpose all along." Freeman's blood ran cold. "...What? True... form...?" "Yes," Fahlem said, nudging his glasses up his nose, "the Oriax is a masterpiece of bio-mechanical engineering Not only was it made with cells owed to the 40th Vulnus Deus, but its operating system and Qi Generator are completely linked to the thought processes of the user's brain. That combined system is called the 'Soul Gear Engine'' The Soul Gear Engine itself functions systematically with the Oriax's inner self. A creature bound inside the Oriax by the physical restrains of the armour and the psychological restraints of the Soul Gear Engine. That entity I have dubbed Seraphiel. It is the foetus of a creature that our research teams found inside the Ancient Ruins 45 years ago. And it has the ability to manipulate the power of the Heart of the Astaroth. The existence of Seraphiel is inside that Meta Suit, both restrained and controlled by the Soul Gear Engine. It was a concept that was inspired by the work of the scientists at Ix Nos Babel, those who created the Asmodeus under this thesis. But that experiment failed because they had no system of control. My team at the Ochiai Underground Research Facility built the Oriax around the Seraphiel sample with the Soul Gear Engine as a control system But that proved just as austere. Because the combined force resulted in almost demonic form. The true form of the Oriax. That state is called 'Demiurge', the ultimate form of the Oriax. But because of its power, the scientists placed a restraint on the Demiurge. Preventing Seraphiel from exerting any sort of will upon the suit, and as a consequence, limiting its overall power by untold amounts. However... I knew one day that Yumi would need the full power of the Oriax in its Demiurge form. And that day has come. Though the Second Cycle states that 'the First Star shall not attain the true power of her weapon until the Anthropos era', destiny had to be bent in order to ensure Yumi's survival to that period. Only a Meta Suit such as the Oriax could allow that. Now behold, Freeman. Behold the true form of the Oriax." Freeman looked out through his video screen once Fahlem's image went off. And he found himself staring at an Oriax that was no longer the Oriax. The silver glow of Qi was now gone. What was left was a darker version of the previous suit. The colour of the armour had changed from white and blue to silver and amethyst The two wings extending from its shoulders were now accompanied by six more, making a total of eight. Each of those wings were at least 200 metres long, dropping large feathers from its expanse. This was the Demiurge. The mouthpiece of the mecha's head broke open to reveal a mouth. Framed with jagged teeth and green-coloured saliva. A loud and ferocious scream came from that mouth. One so loud and so vibrant that it shook the mountain ranges off in the distance. Demiurge then flapped its wings and forced itself into the air at the Raum. Freeman looked on in terror at the Demiurge came for him. The Qi reading on his control panel was reading in at over 70,000 units. "...No... this can't be..." Instinctively he tried to defend himself. The arm of the Raum pushed forwards and the palm opened, firing a hail of bullets in the ascending Demiurge's direction The Demiurge didn't even have to block them with a Qi-Barrier They simply rebounded off its armour. Not making a single mark or dent. The Raum retracted its Gatlings and then extended its Gauntlet Blade. Once the Demiurge came within reach, the Raum swung its arm downwards to slash at it. Demiurge swung back and raised its godly arm. The molecules of that arm started to dissolve. Then reassembled themselves into a hybrid version of the arm, one which extended like a whip. Demiurge's whip arm was hurled forwards with a lash that wrapped itself around the descending arm of the Raum. Stopping its attack dead. Freeman gasped. "No! This... thing can alter its own molecular structure!?" With little effort, Demiurge tugged at the arm of the Raum. Then ripped it clean off. Freeman screamed in the same way as Yumi had done before, feeling the pain of that action Demiurge swung its whip-arm away and tossed the dismembered arm of the Raum to the snowy ground below. Its arm reverted back to its normal state and then Demiurge blasted ahead, ramming into the Raum. Its hands gripped around the Raum's neck, forcing it back down to ground. Snow splashed upwards and stone was broken when the two Meta Suits returned to the floor. Demiurge pinned the Raum to the ground, its legs straddling the black suit. Then it opened its mouth. The SU-Wave was once again produced. And Demiurge released a huge current of sonic energy. But unlike previous ones this SU-Wave homed in on one point. The head of the Raum. Inside the cockpit, Freeman covered his ears and screeched with pain. His eardrums would pop at that rate. Then the head of the Raum exploded from the sonic tension. Freeman screamed again, while blood dripped down from his ear canals Both drums had been burst open. Demiurge released what was left of its neck and grabbed a hold of the Raum's other arm. Its grip was unbreakable And as it crushed the steel of the Raum's arm, Freeman wailed as his own arm felt that pain. The Demiurge gave one hard jerk of its shoulders and ripped the Raum's remaining right arm off the other shoulder The cockpit with filled with more of Freeman's shrieks, his confidence shattered at this outcome. "It... can't ... be..." He strained to say, "...Eros... please..." From his cockpit, he could see Demiurge lifting its arm and clenching it into a fist. That punch was aimed at the stomach. Where the cockpit was located (inside its own mini-dimension. Before Freeman could see more of what was about to happen, the image of Geist Fahlem reappeared on his video screen. "...Y-You..." Freeman seethed in agony, "...you've... done this..." "It is the will of fate," Fahlem decreed, "as I told you before. You are worthless. Your only task after the conception of the Vulnus Deus was to put Yumi and the Oriax in a life or death situation. One that would give her the necessary circumstances to unlock the true form of her suit. In that aim, oblivious as you were to it, you have been successful As a gift in respect of that, I shall tell you one last thing before you die." "...W-What...?" Fahlem smiled. "...Have fun in hell." Three seconds later the fist of Demiurge smashed straight through the stomach armour of the Oriax. It broke right through the torso and entered into the cockpit dimension, shattering its potency. Once the Demiurge ripped its arm out of the Raum, traces of blood and bone were covering its hand. Those were the remains of Freeman Ronove Knowing that victory had been attained, Demiurge tilted its head back and screamed a thunderous, bestial war cry. Its shriek ripped open the skies themselves, as the clouds parted around its area. New light shone down from above in the parted clouds, beaming down on a screaming Demiurge and the mangled remains of the Raum Then suddenly the silvery Qi of Yumi expanded around Demiurge. The creature continued to scream and yell while it was consumed by a sphere of Qi. This was the second Divine Hibernation that Yumi was subjected to. The second one caused by contact with Freeman. Soon all that was left was a gigantic sphere of silver Qi, and a cold, quiet snowfield. The fate of Yumi Mishima had not been decided... ...but rather carried on to a new age. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Far to the northwest of Antarctica, in Middle America, lay the Temple of Tlazolteotl. By now the Anti-Jupiter Wave defences had been levied around the temple itself to protect it from what was to come. In a corner of that temple was Doctor Geist Fahlem's private office since his stay there. The scientist stepped back from the computer he was manning and stood upright. The satellite link to the Temple could be manipulated from his computer. Giving him the means by which he could monitor the battle between Freeman and Yumi. "All has gone as planned," Fahlem commented, "Freeman is destroyed and Yumi has undergone a second experience with the Periodic Phase Sealing Phenomenon. Though I would have preferred not to unleash Demiurge so soon... necessity often makes for some very difficult choices. Now all that remains is for the Second Star to fulfil the last act of the Sermo age." A knock then came at the door. Fahlem said 'come in' to the person there. And the one who walked through the door was Leena Fol The teenage Holy Protocolian walked in the room and closed the door behind her For a moment she just stared at all the paintings, diagrams, schematics and blueprints that were littering the walls and floor of the doctor's cosy little room. She then spoke. "Hello, Doctor. Did you send for me?" "Yes, I did," Fahlem said, walking up to a nearby coffee table, "you see there is something that I must ask you, Miss Fol." "What is it?" Geist adjusted his glasses, then straightened out some papers. "Would happen to be in a relationship with Princess Ashura?" Leena gasped, blushing visibly. Someone had figured it out? "W-well, I..." "You needn't worry," Fahlem said with a chuckle, "I have no problem with such a thing. Another one of my 'children' is a homosexual And I have not told anyone else about your relationship." "T-thank you for that." Leena answered. Fahlem pressed his palm onto his ornamental katana. "There is no need for that. But let me tell you a certain story I think you will enjoy. The woman you call Ashura was not always known as Ashura. She was once a young girl named Leah Cloud. An Ashtar with incredible strength, in both will and Qi. Thus she was incorporated into the experiments of the Protocol organization. But I knew from the beginning that she was destined for great things. Perhaps that was why I was the most adamant in applying life-extending drugs to her, much in the same way that I had done to myself. Of course, though she is significant, that significance cannot shine through until she achieves her Gnosis. And she will not attain that level until she undergoes a Divine Hibernation." Leena blinked. "Why are you telling all me this?" "Do you know what the biggest problem is with Divine Hibernation?" When Leena shook her head for a no, Fahlem continued, "...it is a phase that can only be brought on by trauma and sadness That is the most heartbreaking aspect of it. Only through our own suffering can the power of the Heart of the Astaroth be attained. And when I ask myself why Princess Ashura has not yet attained Gnosis... I pondered on the reasons for it. Thus coming to one. Happiness." "What are you saying?" Suddenly a rush of adrenalin surged through Fahlem. Leena blinked when she saw him rush forwards in a stride. The seemingly frail young doctor launched himself at her and withdrew his sword. And seconds later, Leena was coughing up blood. Fahlem's katana had skewered her right through the cleft between her breasts Leena looked up, stunned and bloody. "...W-why...?" "Happiness is the bane of Astaroth," Fahlem said, "though it is a detestable force, Astaroth is needed for the new era. It is needed to build a Kingdom worthy of the Novus Deus. And it is needed for Princess Ashura to reach her true destiny. The happiness you are providing Ashura with is preventing her from achieving Gnosis. Therefore... you must die." Fahlem yanked his sword right out of Leena's carcass. And she toppled over, dropping to the ground. The doctor sighed, swept the sword to one side, and wiped the blood off of it with a cloth. He then sheathed the blade, and stared down at the motionless corpse of Leena Fol. "...I'm sorry. But as you said, child. One moment of slaughter for an eternity of happiness. Now that the Sermo age is coming to its end... we have no choice but to go on... and that boy, the one formally known as Rain Harland, now begins the last act." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ In the black heart of the space surrounding the moon, a sole Meta Suit flew. The force powering its flight through the darkness was far stronger than any normal Meta Suit could have imagined. That suit was the Diablos. Its dark amethyst armour shone off the glint of the moon's light. The wing-like structures extending from its back possessed thrusters of their own. Thus giving the Diablos a greater level of speed than any average Meta Suit could have possibly dreamed off. Inside the cockpit of the Diablos was the Second Star himself, Deathcatcher And in his eyes was an unmistakable glint of intent. He knew were he was going and he knew what he was going to do. Not too far ahead of the Diablos was his destination A place that was going to be the hub of mankind's evolution That place was known as Meshezabel. It orbited one side of the moon, a few miles in distance from the Lunar Station. And to look at it would be to see the creative and engineering powers of Protocol at its fullest There was no sight in the universe that could have been more ostentatious. The structure known as Meshezabel was huge. It was utterly gargantuan. Being at least 3.4 miles wide by another 3.7 miles long. Its structure was circular, almost like a hexagon, dividing itself a towering wall-like frame that ran in a skeletal structure across the expanse of the layout. In most cases it was the size of a small city But it was big enough to hold at least 0.5 billion people. Weighing in at an estimated weight of 7,612,550,440,670,450 tonnes; Meshezabel was at the least the perfect home and foundation for a race. However it was completely empty. All the internal buildings and external way stations of Meshezabel were totally empty. The scanners of the Diablos proved as much. It was almost as if Meshezabel was forgotten by time. But that would continue no longer. The Diablos flew over the wide vastness of the empty space city. Even at the full power of his thrusters, it took over ten minutes for the Diablos to fly into the centre of Meshezabel's presence. Putting it in Block D of the layout. There was a very large opening in the surface of Block D. The Diablos flew into that hole and descended into its cavernous innards. A long trail downwards was waiting for it. Once the Diablos reached the bottom of that elevator crevasse, the Diablos zoomed down the middle of one of three paths. Into that long corridor it flew, all the way to the end. The hall ended when a new room was exposed. The smell of metal was ripe in it. In the central part of that enormous room was a machine that would decided the fate of the world. It was the machine that Meshezabel would become most feared for. The Elymus Drive. Deathcatcher's Meta Suit landed to the titanium ground and it strode up to the tall machine. He pressed some keys on the control panel of his cockpit, a code which made the doors into the Elymus Drive open. Somehow electricity was still running on Meshezabel, even though no one had set foot on it for years. The Diablos marched into the Elymus Drive itself, its metallic feet clanging against the floor with each step taken. Once the Diablos was inside the Elymus Drive, the lights and controls of the machine started to come to life. And instantly, the Diablos started to link itself with the inner workings of the Elymus Drive. Thus giving it full access to all of Sky Continent Meshezabel's power. The chestplate of the Diablos broke off. Showing its heart stone, the item which controlled Qi projection in all Qi Generator Meta Suits. The stone started to glow with a very vibrant blue. The power from Meshezabel, magnified by the workings of the Elymus Drive, was fuelling an all knew ability in the Diablos. One that could only be unlocked once the Elymus Drive was activated. And now that day had come. 1/8 of a mile up, on the surface of Meshezabel, the automatic doors opened up for the execution to take place. But the space was then covered over by a thick pane of transparent plastic, one that acted as a kind of magnifying glass. Once the Diablos had been fully charged for the attack, Deathcatcher chuckled idly behind his mouthpiece and said, "You poor lost sheep of fate's advent. Hark the end of the Sermo Era. And let the sword of God baptise you all." And with that, Deathcatcher commanded the Diablos' to fire by pressing a single button. There was a thunderous and deafening impact when the Diablos fired its Jupiter Maelstrom attack from its chestplate. The beam travelled straight up the wide shaft overhanging the Elymus Drive. The beam then zoomed through to the top where it hit the magnifying plate. Because of that plate the beam almost tripled in power. It shot up from the surface of Meshezabel and rose until it hit something else. An invisible pane of Qi-resistant glass that framed the upper half of Meshezabel's layout. The Jupiter Maelstrom bounced off it and was thusly redirected at the Earth. Upon that refraction, the Jupiter Maelstrom split off into billions of smaller blasts, each one thinner, but each containing the destructive force of a full one, still magnified by the machinations of the Elymus Drive. The attack became the Jupiter Maelstrom Omega, the ultimate power of the Diablos And each one of its blasts encroached on the Earth. A fair distance from Meshezabel was the battle between the Divine Blade and the combined forces of New Protocol and Chrysalis. The Orobas, Celaph's suit, raised its right arm and fired a shell from its rocket launcher. That shell crashed into an enemy suit and blew it up, taking down another target. But his mindset changed when he looked to his left, and saw those billions of beams inching down towards the Earth. From his position they looked small. And at first Celaph didn't realize the significance of it all. Until it hit him A haunted look passed through his eyes. "No... it can't be! It can't be!" The Bishamon, which was not too far from the Orobas, picked up on that from its transmitters and Terry addressed Celaph accordingly. "Heh, soldier boy! What's up with..." Terry silenced himself when he saw those beams heading for Earth. "...What is that?" "No... no..." Celaph repeated, "how could I have been so stupid!? How could I have been so blind!? The target of Holy Protocol was NEVER the AM-Cannon! They were after Meshezabel!" The half-German, half-American pilot was confused. "Meshezabel? What are you talking about? Do you know something about those lights coming from that side of the moon or what?" "...Meshezabel..." Celaph began with horror, "...is a space city that Protocol created over a ninety year period. It was designed to be the future of space life. But when it reached 92% completion, we abandoned the project. Space life was considered too difficult to pursue... and so many had died from suffocation with just the slightest of mistakes. So we forsook the project... but inside Meshezabel is a powerful system called the Elymus Drive. It amplifies force projections from cannons and Meta Suits and scrambles their power into divided beams which attack multiple points over a specific area... that is the horror of Meshezabel... someone has activated the Elymus Drive and used it. When those blasts touch ground... it won't be a matter of how many people are killed... but a matter of how many people survive..." Terry's heart raced. "But everyone's still down there! We have to do something!" "There is absolutely nothing you can do," Celaph said dejectedly, "it has already begun. Therefore it is already over." And so it was. Each of the blasts of the Jupiter Maelstrom Omega scattered over the face of the planet Cutting through the stratosphere and the clouds, right before making contact with the living world. No one could have understood what was happening. People in the Meta Cities and villages over the world saw the lights of blue descending at them A beauty that transcended any other sight. But those beams were the lights of absolute destruction. God's judgement had been brought down on the world. And there was no one who could stop it. Once the first beams of the Jupiter Maelstrom Omega touched ground, that fact was made perfectly clear. Explosions the size of mountain ranges overtook the world. Meta Cities across the globe were bombarded by them. Everything within range at least a mile's range of those blasts were literally vaporized into nothingness. Meta London, Meta New York, Meta Tokyo, Meta Beijing, Meta Paris, Meta Berlin, Meta Sydney, Meta Calcutta, Meta Moscow, Meta Dublin, Meta Baghdad, Meta Madrid, Meta Johannesburg, Meta Washington, Meta Warsaw; ALL cities in ALL countries in ALL continents were attacked and thereafter destroyed. Lives, homes, and memories were burned into nothing in the space of seconds. Everything without a sufficient defence was obliterated Including the Leviathan. By the time reports came in about the damage being done the world over, one blast consumed the entire ship. Sophia, Beatrix, Chizu and everyone else on it were killed instantly. And the Leviathan was transformed into nothing more than traces of warped metal. Even EDEN, the home of the rebel forces, was incinerated. Killing Father Bartholomeus as well as the 900,000+ people living there. Devastation and death overwhelmed the world. No one was safe. And in the five minutes it took for the Jupiter Maelstrom Omega to cast its last beam, no one could have done a thing to escape it. Of the 2.5 billion people still living on the Earth, only 23.7 million of them would survive the carnage. Shortly after the deliverance of that attack, rain started to fall on many of the worst effected areas. Liberals of future generations would one day argue that to be the tears of God. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ In the distant region of the Triad's dimension, they observed all that had happened to the world from the activation and use of the Elymus Drive. From the circular window, placed in the stone ground of their hall, they could see what had occurred and all the after effects. Though it could not be seen, there were smiles of glee on all their faces. But they were not the only ones who were in that dimension this time. They were joined by someone else on this occasion. Someone who was neither Freeman nor Deathcatcher. That someone was the man know as Doctor Geist Fahlem. Fahlem stepped out of the shadows and presented himself before the Triad of the Inquisition. All three, Aherg, Ein and Karahi, turned to him with auras of satisfaction. But Ein was the first to address him. "Excellent work, Doctor. You have proven yourself to be a worthy emissary to Bahaman. Your role as successor to the Keeper of the Source should be assured now." Though he was congratulated, there was not a smile on Fahlem's face "...I simply did as I was ordered, sir." "Nevertheless. It was good work you did, Shugo Yamamoto." Aherg stated. Fahlem's eyes rolled downwards. "I no longer use that name. That name is that of a human. And I abandoned my humanity a long time ago. What has happened now should be proof of that." "Do you grieve?" Karahi asked, "Should you not know better? This is the fate of the world. Death was brought down up the world as proclaimed by the Tablets of Destiny. Now that the rules have changed... we have no choice but to carry on ahead, is that not so?" "Yes." Aherg bobbed his head. "Good. The Sermo era is over. Deathcatcher has done his job well and so have you. But this is not the end. This is only the beginning. Now that the fat of the land has been swept from the board, we can concentrate on the construction of our kingdom. You will travel to Meshezabel at once and activate the nanotechnological factories on it. Once you do that we can begin the next stage in our plans." Fahlem nodded. "Yes, sir. Though I do have one comment." "Which is?" Ein probed. "Demiurge was freed a good 6000 years ahead of time. All though it is restrained by Yumi's Divine Hibernation, and shall eventually be re-controlled by the Soul Gear Engine, it does mean that... Seraphiel has a much greater chance of gaining a humanoid incarnation. The consequences of that could be catastrophic... even in comparison to what has just taken place." "Do not worry," Karahi affirmed, "even if it were to gain its own incarnation, with combined forces of the Elymus Drive, the Ragnarok System and Ix Nos Babel, we cannot be defeated." "I understand, then," Fahlem said, "I'll focus on Meshezabel and the finishing of the other two Gods of Wrath; Vassago and Mammon. A separate committee will have to be instigated for Lord Bahaman's total resurrection in the mean time... and Princess Ashura must be brought to Meshezabel. But all things concerned, our plans have not run into any problems. Things should go along smoothly from here on in." Aherg bobbed his head with a acknowledging grunt. "Good. We shall construct a new world in the true image of the Novus Deus. The age of Anthropos has finally begun." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ END OF MESSIAH: VULGIVAGUS SANCTIMONIA ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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