Click to see the mission!
Aaaand, Ichitaka’s really climbed up the kill ladder with his massacre of the Earth Alliance mooks in the past mission. Only one kill separates our top aces from each other.
Random HP, armor and EN upgrade went around but Jeeg and, especially, Goh got some extra firepower for something I’ll want to do this mission.
And the Vardant and Hind-Kind are event units today, so Tetsuya and Shizuna had to join in together. Not ideal but it’s only for this mission, so we’ll be fine.
Ichitaka/Miu
Jeeg/Kyo
Yagyuu
Tetsuya/Shizuna
Iczer-1/Shizuru
Goh/Mira
Off we go.[/i]
We open at JUDA, Ishigami welcoming our team back. Reiji apologizes for moving the squad without clearing it with him first but, with the jammed comms, Ishigami doesn’t fault his decision. When Goh asks, Ishigami passes intel of our other half protecting the PLANTs from the Alliance’s nukes and being set to watch over the Frontier.
The Quarter’s been assigned to our team and, with that, it’ll be up to us to handle it if the Frontier Fleet does anything off. In exchange, while they remain cooperative, the Alliance will be unable to do anything against them without clearing it with us first.
Seems to Kyo that the Frontier got a better deal than we did out of this, but it beats leaving the Blue Cosmos free to tag them as enemies of Earth. On a different subject, Ishigami looked over a certain report Kyo submitted, and if it turns out to be correct, it’ll be nothing short of extraordinary. Kyo fears it’s not an impossible assumption, taking a look at the offworlders and the Katou Organization, so this certainly warrants further investigation.
What are they on about? Ishigami only says that things might be bigger than he expected. Still, it might not have anything to do with us, so he asks Reiji and Goh to pay him no mind. Goh won’t press the subject, but does raise the point that many of the organizations working with LOTUS joined presuming there’d be no secrets between us. If Ishigami knows something about the Katou Organization, Goh figures he should tell us.
Ishigami apologizes but figures it best not to say anything at the moment – Goh should understand, having previously kept the fact that he’d been fighting side-by-side with his ex from Anna. Fine. Regardless, Ishigami’ll tell us when the time is right and asks only that we carry out defending Earth from external threats while the rest of our crew remains in space.
Goh confirms, ready to take on any of the Mimetic Beasts, Katou, Darius and Jama foes – inwardly, he hopes Anna is watching over him.
Over by the mess hall, Ichitaka feels good to be back home. Mind, he’s checked with Rachel and Maki and there still hasn’t been any new clues regarding Grife. Shizuru sighs that it’s tough when your only option is to wait stuff out but it wasn’t all bad news: seems like Alice’s AI is showing some good growth over this time.
The door opens right then, Emi coming in with a batch of tea for everyone. Yamashita does wonder why she’s doing that, and she figured she ought to help with something since she can’t actually fight like we can.
Still, that’s some awfully green tea she’s serving – especially considering it’s supposed to be BLACK tea. Tsubaki takes a whiff and asks: “is this dried seaweed?” It is, much to Emi’s surprise, as she was sure she used the right stuff.
She apologizes profusely and moves to fix it, though Miu offers to do it herself – and teach her how to make tea in the process! As the two leave, Mira sighs that while she heard the girl had some partial amnesia, she’s shocked she can’t tell dried seaweed from tea leaves.
Ishigami hasn’t really told us much about her story and Alice didn’t even have time to compile her physical data – she’s been too focused on her subpilot duties. It’s still frustratingly tough for her to balance out both jobs at the same time but Shizuru tells her to keep at it. Indeed, Alice promises to stay the course!
“Hey, Shizuru, I don’t get any of that pep talk?” Tetsuya asks. “Nope”. Aaww…
By JUDA’s infirmary…
: How are you feeling, Nagisa?
: … Why are you here? You’re the last person I wanted to see.
: Nagisa…
: And stop calling me that, like you’re my friend! It’s your fault I went through that hell!
: I apologize for forcing you aboard the Iczer Robo… But you’re my partner and, as such, I need you to fight.
: Get out! Now! I don’t wanna hear any more of your crap!
Nagisa throws a glass at her.
: Nagisa, calm down. You just woke up, so don’t stress yourself out.
: Ms. Ogawa… Where are my mom and dad…?
: Still missing, I’m afraid…
: But why?! I thought that region went pretty much untouched by the Junius Seven drop!
: JUDA’s using all of its resources to find them, so please be a bit more patient.
: (Nagisa… when Cobalt attacked, your parents were already… but telling her the truth now, when her body and soul are so wounded, would be too much.)
: …And whose fault is it for putting me in this mess?
: …
: Didn’t I tell you get out?! What’re you still doing here?!
: Let’s go, Iczer-1. We should let her rest…
: Hm… Nagisa, I pray we’ll be able to fight together again soon.
They leave.
: …
: (Why… Why did you pick me? No… I don’t want to fight – I can’t.)
Cut to Misaki Middle School, Isabelle’s latest bit of news is of the Armas once again running amuck at the town of Misaki in Miura. It’s still unknown who were piloting the units or how large the extent of the damage is. Kouichi grumbles at them covering up the Katou Organization’s attack as Armas running amuck.
Quatre walks on over and sees that he’s watching the news, noticing that that “white Arma with the horns” isn’t even shown on the tape. Kouchi yells that the Linebarrel ISN’T AN ARMA, but soon slumps back in his chair: “The Linebarrel… my… (No. I don’t want or need that thing…)
Risako and Yajima inch over, the girl asking if Kouichi knows one Sheryl Nome – he doesn’t, and doesn’t care either. Well, she’ll tell him anyway: it’s this big-time singer from the new “Frontier Colony”. From what Risako’s heard she’s really pretty, but she can’t find any pictures or videos of her.
Kouichi calls FAKE NEWS and tells Risako that that’s not a colony, but a fleet of giant migrant ships built by the PLANTs. She should know better than to believe that. Still, Risako doesn’t appreciate his know-it-all attitude. Quatre, inwardly, sees that the rumor mill’s already running wild – seems like they couldn’t keep the information under control.
Either way, rumor has it that Sheryl’s songs are pretty good, but Risako hasn’t managed to hear anything – the only available sources are some leaks. She figured Kouichi might’ve heard about those and they haven’t spoken much recently, so… He once again sighs that he doesn’t care.
But a new problem arises, with Furuya stomping into the room and demanding Kouichi step outside. Sounds good to him – a good way to alleviate his bad mood – and a distraught Risako and Yajima run after. Quatre follows to keep watch, despite wanting to do more.
But it doesn’t take long for Kouichi to tear through Furuya’s mob – what happened to all his huffing and puffing? But Kouichi’s got a lesson to teach him and kicks the guy’s ass a bunch. With a battered Furuya begging forgiveness, the kid’s glad to see he now understands how strong he is (Linebarrel or not, he’s still THE STRONGEST!).
But he stops when Yajima and Risako tell him to, knowing he’d only be bullying the weak – Furuya’s favorite pastime – were he to continue. Oh, and he better not catch him messing with Shinji again OR ELSE. Furuya promises not to… only to raise the point that Shinji actually got transferred elsewhere.
Kouichi doesn’t remember hearing anything about that, which annoys Risako, as Shinji came to talk to him about it the day before he left, but seems he was just ignored. B-But Kouichi’s been busy being a Champion of Justice and all that.
Furuya silently fumes over his attitude, figuring he’ll need to ask one Domyoji for help; Kouichi then tells him to run off and not try this again. As Furuya and his mooks go, Risako is worried about Kouichi: he’s been acting like a thug lately and she’s heard tell of him picking fights with other students. He harrumphs and tells her to leave him alone before setting out.
Risako is confused but is sure that SOMETHING must’ve happened to make him change like that – and she figures Yajima knows something. “Can you wait until tomorrow? I’ll go talk with Kouichi and, then, I’ll tell you everything,” he says.
She agrees to it and promises to bring lunch for three tomorrow – hopefully they can all eat together as they used to. Quatre’s watching from afar, hoping nothing’ll come of whatever Yajima’s planning, but…
And he’s reported it all to Ishigami, who’s rather bothered by news that Kouichi’s taken to picking fights with regular folks as a way to showcase his strength. Seems like losing the Linebarrel pushed him over the edge. Ishigami asks Quatre to keep watching, figuring they’ll need to take action if Kouichi goes on acting like this.
One other thing: did Quatre hear of anything strange happening in Misaki yesterday? Not really, but Reiji says they’ve detected a Machina over there yesterday – several times, even, but the signal quickly disappeared, so they couldn’t get a bead on it. Like a ninja or ghost, Ishigami quips.
Well, anything happens, Quatre’s got his Sandrock ready to go. Wasn’t the thing supposed to be sealed away? Sure but Wufei and Trowa DID unseal theirs, so Quatre figured he couldn’t keep his stashed.
As he signs off, Ishigami ponders Kouichi. Reiji isn’t surprised at what they’re hearing, though: “He’s still just a middle-schooler, without a single clue of how he should use his strength… I know very well how that’s like.” Still, Ishigami doesn’t want to do anything yet – he believes the kid’s got the goods.
We’ll see about that later, as Yui reports the Machina signal reemerging within Misaki… and it vanishes just as suddenly. Are their sensors on the fritz? Rachel said everything’s fine, though. Ishigami, inwardly, seems to have an idea, though: “A disappearing Machina… One that got picked up after I left?”
Mission 8 (Rescue Route) – The Price of Justice
: What’d you call me here for?
: … Are you really gonna keep with that shtick?
: What?
: Kouichi, please… go back to how you used to be.
: Aah?
: Risako… she’s really worried. Said you’re not the Kouichi she knew, that you changed so fast… And I’m on the same page as her.
: So that’s what you’re up to…
: Huh…?
: The little baby you’ve been taking care of since forever got strong and you don’t really like that, do ya?
: So talking really ain’t getting me anywhere… I figured as much. Then let’s settle this, Kouichi.
: Settle what?
: Didn’t say before that you didn’t need my help anymore?
: Yeah. I’m way stronger than you now.
: Then prove it – prove you don’t need me anymore.
: You wanna go? For real? You better cut it out, ‘cause you’re not winning this.
: … Bring it, Kouichi!
: Urgh!
: So? You run your mouth like that and this is all you got?! You think because I lost the Linebarrel that you can take me?
: Aargh…
: You’re wasting your time. You’re gonna lose.
: !
: Then… put your money… where your mouth is…
: You still not throwing the towel…? Fine. Then I’m gonna have to bash you into the dirt ‘til you realize that I’m in a whole different league!
: Gworgh…! What’s wrong…? I’m still… up…!
: You…!
: (What… What’s going on…? Didn’t I want to beat him?)
: (Didn’t I wanna be like him?!)
: (Then why… why do I feel awful with every punch I land on him …?)
: Uuurgh…
: S-Stop this already! Can’t you see that this is impossible for you?!
: I… I took care of you… just ‘cause I wanted to catch Risako’s eye…
: !!
: But I… never realized how that was making you feel… I’m… a selfish lowlife… And that’s why she never really looked at me that way…
: Y-Yajima… Why are you telling me that…? I-I’ve always thought of you as—
: A Champion of Justice… huh?
: Y-Yeah…
: Well, relax, Kouichi… I’m just a brat… a common brat.
: Yajima…
: Sorry, Kouichi…
: No, I’m sorry… I never considered how you—
: Waaah!
: Capture the Linebarrel… Eliminate the Factor…
: Wh-Why…?! The Linebarrel isn’t here anymore!
: Hrk… Kou…Ichi… You alright…?
: Yajima…!
: (That steel beam… It ran him through…!)
: Urk…!
: Y-Yo, Yajima, stop pulling my leg! Hang in there!
: Hrrgh…
: Damn it, what the hell should I do?!
: Kouichi… What matters… isn’t what you should do…
: Huh…
: But what you… want to do… You’re finally strong… so use that… for good…
: Eliminate the Factor…
: Run… Kou…ichi…!
: Huh?!
: Yajima… You…?!
: No biggie… Same ol’… song and dance…right?
: YAJIMAAAAAAA!!
: Failed to eliminate the Factor… Failed to eliminate…!
: You can’t say you’re sorry after all this time… Don’t give me that now…! You…!
: AAAAAAAAH!!
: Line…barrell…!
: Yajima… You said that what matters is what I want to do, right? Then, I…I…
: I wanna kill that son of a bitch!
: Capture the Linebarrel! Eliminate the Factor!
: You…! Raaaaaargh!!
: I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you if it’s the last thing I do!
: Is that… the Linebarrel?! And a Machina… is it—?! (By the other city block.)
Beep, beep!
: Quatre, the Linebarrel’s back at Misaki!
: I know! It’s right next to me, fighting some unknown Machina!
: And the Linebarrel warped even without any input from Emi…!
: Does that mean it’s fully accepted that guy as its Factor?!
: Whatever the case, I’ll try and hold down the Linebarrel and that Machina with the Sandrock!
: Please do. Reiji and the others’ll be there soon!
: Copy that!
: I look away for just a second and this happens… damn it. Let’s go, Sandrock!
Quatre rushes over and grabs the Linebarrel.
: Kouichi, stop! You’re going to level the whole city – all that’ll come from this is more sorrow!
: OUT OF MY WAY! He… He killed Yajima!!
: Yajima?! No…!
: Yajima… he protected me from the attack and…! Damn it all! LEMME GO!
: Argh!
: You killed him! DIE!!
: Don’t let anger and hatred guide your hand…! I have to do something or he’ll go down the same path I did!
: We’ll lend you a hand with that, Mr. Gundam.
: You’re with the Dragon’s Hive, aren’t you?
: Oh, you folks know about us? Impressive, Preventers.
: No time to give them props, Kurara! We need to do something about the Linebarrel!
: Goddamn, it’s like this kid can’t go a day without going ballistic across town. Then—
: The red Dancouga!
: What, again?!
: Let’s try this a bit more seriously today…
: Hrk…! This is so not the time for this!
: Seriously, this mission just went from bad to worse…!
: Screw it, then! Go even badder and take ‘em all on!
: Good answer, Sakuya. Now we run wild and keep going ‘til we drop…!
: At this rate, the town’ll…!
We need to bring down the Stray Machina without losing Aoi or Quatre; that said, you’ll want to focus on downing the R-Daigun before that, as it carries a nice E-Save part. It’ll run below 14k HP, so this’ll call for a wee bit more strategy – first off, just hold the line until LOTUS gets here.
Feel free to tangle with the Daigun to start lowering her HP some, but ignore Kouichi or the Machina.
Gundam Sandrock Custom (Quatre Raberba Winner)
Pilot Skills:
Sword Cut
Shoot Down
Shield Defense
Guard
Support Defense L2
Attack Combo L1
Spirit Commands:
Scan
Focus
Mech Features:
Sword
Gun
Shield
Resupply Module
Anti-Beam Coating Mantle
Squad Bonus: HP+500, land terrain rating: A, debuff immunity
Our first EW Gundam makes for a pretty nice squaddie, and he’s made of sturdier stuff than usual. The squad bonus plus resupply module’ll help him fit in with many Supers, and there’s also the fact that he’ll eventually learn Bless.
And, if anything, he works well on water, so keep that in mind for whenever it’s needed.
Now let’s just move Quatre and Aoi due north – don’t waste time going after anyone this turn.
Enemy Phase!
The R-Daigun’s out of range, but the Stray Machina guns right for Kouichi.
: You killed Yajima! And now I’ll make you pay – by killing you with my own two hands!
: Capture the Linebarrel… Eliminate the Factor…
They both regen a lot per turn, so this’ll go pretty much nowhere.
Player Phase!
: Everyone!
: They got around pretty fast alright. Still, just a bit longer and…
: Quatre, are you hurt?
: I’m fine; and more important than me is Kouichi. We need to stop him – fast!
: What happened?!
: Apparently his friend… Yajima Hideaki shielded him from that Machina’s attack and died.
: !!
: Oh, no…!
: And Kouichi’s lost control because of that…!
: Kujo, Nagumo, this is a battlefield. There’s no room for needless sentimentality.
: “Needless”—?! Our friend just died, Reiji!
: I know, but he’s got a point – we can’t afford to be sad now. Look ahead. Spending time grieving’ll mean even more battle damage throughout town.
: …!
: Don’t let your emotions get the better of you; focus instead of ending this battle. Troops, coordinate with the Dancouga and the Gundam and immobilize the Linebarrel!
: You got it! There’re only a couple of guys to fight, so let’s go and wrap this up quick!
Beep, beep!
: Hold on, Kenji! These signals are—
: The Katou Organization!
: We’ll be bringing you in today, Linebarrel.
: Quatre… I figured it was only a matter of time before we ran into each other.
: Wufei…! I’ve some questions for you to answer!
: What do we do, boss? Leave the Gundam to forehead there?
: And do we try bringing in the Linebarrel or the stray? (Yulianne)
: The Linebarrel always takes priority – keep that in mind.
: Yeesh, these Katou guys just don’t quit with trying to snag the thing!
: Let them come ‘cause this’ll always end the same: them running for the hills!
: This’ll only get worse if we let the Katou units engage the Linebarrel and set Kouichi off further – keep them away!
: Roger!
Can’t lose Reiji and Yamashita either. Now that we have our group and some morale fodder, we’ll want to get either Goh or Jeeg hyped enough to use their strongest weapon, to be supported by Ichitaka. Popping Fighting Spirit with that combo SHOULD be enough damage to wreck the R-Daigun around 14k HP.
We’re not in range, though, so everyone heads onward.
Enemy Phase!
Here she comes, but Mira’s covering Aoi.
???, taking little damage: “Do you think you can defend the Earth with that? From them?!”
On the flip side, she can’t even pop Mira’s barrier.
Here it goes again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu5UvBqpx88
: Those moves… It’s like he’s a completely different person from when we fought before.
: Has he awakened as a Factor…?
About half the Katou Armas are moving in.
Player Phase!
As Reiji moves in, Goh starts building morale.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NxlAYWBm_k
Only now did I remember to get the Neo-Okusaer’s melee attack on camera!
And that survivor easily falls to Kenji.
One for Iczer-1, the other for Ichitaka.
Moving Quatre close enough to bring in Wufei.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLGzjMcMMLg
Also, damn, I dunno if they gave him more “oomph” or if those Armas are just so fragile.
Enemy Phase!
Perfect, except for him running underwater…
: Are you really fine with the war you’re waging, Wufei?!
: Silence! I’m trailing this path because I believe in it! And in the name of true justice, I’ll endure any and all pain!
: If that’s all you’ll say, then so be it! Come and fight me, Wufei!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_km_0vtSQuI
Wufei: “This is the path I chose, Quatre!”
Quatre: “I’ll also fight my own battles, Wufei!”
Aoi shaves off another 5.5k off the Daigun, with Goh taking a kill, Ichitaka and Miu taking…4. I was even holding him back, but Miu herself got very crit-happy!
Dmitri’s moving in now, but had nothing in range.
Player Phase!
Kenji took the first enemy of this pair, Goh has the other.
Ah, you’ll work.
That’s both down. Shizuna and Tetsuya nabbing the adjacent target.
Reiji’s got this nice combo opportunity here.
No kills but it leaves everyone very close.
Pop, pop, pop, they all fall to Ichitaka, Aoi, Yamashita and Quatre.
Enemy Phase!
While Wufei’s trading blows with Quatre, Yulianne finally comes over and target’s Goh.
: Pleased to meet you folks. My name’s Yulianne Faithful, Captain of the Katou Organization’s 7th Unit.
: And I’ll be making sure none of you bug us ever again!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngpEmsGNXUo
Sawatari and Dmitri make the objectively better choice of attacking Yamashita… though he was protected by Ichitaka and his barrier.
Player Phase!
The R-Daigun’s pretty much ready to be killed, though our units aren’t in position. While that’s going on, we’ll get rid of the other Katou midbosses.
Boosh.
Dmitri sniffs at yet another failure, but warns that they haven’t given up on the Linebarrel yet.
As he runs off, Shizuna groans that she wanted to finish the guy off. Granted, Izuna didn’t expect a captain to die easily.
Sawatariiiii.
Out you go again.
Sawatari isn’t happy at his streak of failures – Masaki’s gonna have such a laugh at him. Then, at least, he’ll…
Goh sniffs that the guy always knows when it’s time to quit – a tough foe to get rid of, and Mira figures we’ll likely be facing him many times.
Some softening up from Goh and Ichitaka brings Wufei into the red.
Done.
Seems like Wufei’s orders deem the Linebarrel going berserk as an acceptable outcome. Still, he’ll need to keep on fighting – for what’s to come.
As he leaves, Quatre doesn’t understand why he always sets himself to trail such painful paths.
Enemy Phase!
Aaah…
Good thing I didn’t do much damage to her. The couple of remaining mooks fall to Aoi.
Player Phase!
Alright, pop Strike (to bypass the Daigun’s Stealth) and Fighting Spirit and off we go.
Perfect.
The R-Daigun gets a call from someone who says this is good enough for today – time to head back. As she goes, Kurara groans over it slipping through our fingers again.
When they asked before, Tanaka swore that he had no idea what the thing was and while Aoi doesn’t know for sure whether he’s being legit or not, silver lining is that’s one less enemy for us. Now carry on with their mission.
With that done, now it’s just a matter of handling the remaining enemies. We’ll start with Yulianne and go for the Stray Machina:
Tsubaki learns Attune from this, too!
Yulianne knows that it’d be dangerous to carry on with this and moves to take off. Plus, she can’t well give us her undivided attention now. We’ll play again some other time.
Kenji has no idea where she’s running off to and Kyo ponders if securing the Linebarrel isn’t the Katou Organization’s goal here.
: Capture the Linebarrel… Eliminate the Factor…
: If only I’d spotted this Machina before…!
Tetsuya gets a boost to Support Defense, while Shizuna takes more Prevail.
: Alright, the thing’s immobile!
: STOP! HE’S MIIINE!!
: Yamashita!
: Got it!
Yamashita: “The hell is this Machina’s Factor thinking?!”
: Done and dusted!
: !!
: …What did you do? That guy killed Yajima…! I wanted to at least, at least get revenge for him… and now YOU TOOK THAT AWAY FROM ME!!
: You’re gonna pay for that…! You’re just as bad as that killer and I’ll destroy every single one of you…!!
: W-What power is this? It’s overwhelming!
: The earth… the very air is shaking!
: He’s fully awakened as a Factor…!
: Haaaaaah!
: This reaction… the Vardant’s afraid?
: The Hind’s also acting weird!
: What’s going on…?!
: HAAAAAAAAH!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FI8eoVHqC-o
Everyone’s HP gets cut in half!
: A beam weapon?!
: He had something like that under his sleeve…?!
: Always gotta have at least one secret weapon, huh…!
: That’s the Executor…!
: Executor, as in one who doles out the death penalty?
: Get real! No one here’s gonna take any death penalty!
: Emi, can’t you use your power to stop the Linebarrel like you did before?
: My voice isn’t reaching it… I keep trying, but it’s being drowned out…!
: The system’s isolated itself and is out of control. My guess is the Linebarrel can’t process all the raging emotions inside Kouichi Hayase.
: I feel the rage and violence corrupting the budding justice within him. If he’s not stopped, he’ll be dominated and consumed by this false justice…
: Damn it all! And if he fires that weapon again, the whole town’ll go up in smoke!
: But this is mine and Kouichi’s home! Our friends live here too…!
: And he’s going to destroy it himself…?! We can’t let that happen!
: (I can’t let him make the same mistake I did under the Zero System’s grip! That sort of tragedy mustn’t happen again!)
: The Executor’ll need some time to charge the energy for another shot! If you can stop the Linebarrel in that window…
: Copy that. We’ll immobilize the Linebarrel before it can use its weapon again!
Now you just need to bring the Linebarrel below 10%. He’s no different from our previous encounters, really.
Oddly enough it doesn’t SEEM like wrecking it is a game over, but I wasn’t about to try.
Sakuya: “Did you quit being a Champion of Justice, guy?”; Aoi: “Don’t even try. You’re not being heard.”
#1 Alice: “The Linebarrel’s moving like a rabid beast!”; Ichitaka: “Hrm… can I actually stop him now…?”
#2 Ichitaka: “Kouichi… did you forget all about me in your anger…?”; Alice: “I sense an overwhelming impetus coming from him…!”
#3 Ichitaka: “Yajima’s death wasn’t his fault! No way!”
#4 Alice: “What do we do, Ichitaka?!”; Ichitaka: “I dunno… First off we gotta get the Linebarrel to stop moving…!”
#5 Ichitaka: “I’m just as shocked over what happened to Yajima, but if you keep with this…!”
: Why the hell are you hounding me?! I… I just wanted to get revenge for Yajima!
: Yajima… I’m… so sorry! YAJIMAAAAAA!
: He’s going to fire the Executor again!
: No, he won’t!
Quatre goes and grapples the Linebarrel again!
: Beat it! Get it inside your skull that you can’t stop me!
: Lord Quatre!
: We’ll assist you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-x-0klHbKA
Quatre: Kouichi, don’t let anger and hatred control you!
Quatre: Here we go, Sandrock! We’re putting a stop to the Linebarrel!
: Now, Yamashita! Throw him at the town outskirts!
: Y-yes, sir!
Yamashita moves by the Linebarrel.
: Go, Hind! Bullet Arm!
: You’re mine!
: Yajima… I… I wanted to be like you…
Power dooooown.
: Is it over?!
: Yeah – the Linebarrel’s stopped.
: Then let’s recover and get it back to JUDA.
: What about Kouichi? Is he alright?
: Don’t worry. I think he just passed out.
: We’ll bring him in as well, of course. He can’t be left at large now that he’s awakened as a Factor.
: The town took some damage but at least we avoided the worst.
Sirens!
: Still, we’re gonna have a lot of folks coming over in a bit.
: Then we should hurry. Goh, help me get the unknown Machina sorted out.
: I’ll be right over.
: Sorry, but I’m afraid you can’t have your cake and eat it too.
: This was our Machina to start with, so we’ll be taking it.
The Katous run to where the Stray Machina was destroyed.
: Heey, they made off with the thing!
: Were the Katou soldiers just waiting for a chance to steal it?!
: Do we go after them?!
: No, just head back to base. Chasing those guys after all the damage you took would be suicide.
: And the mechanics agree. That wouldn’t be good to either you or your units.
: Hurry home, people! I want to get those repairs started as soon as can be!
: Please do, Rachel. This was a way tougher than what we usually get…
: And that boy, Kouichi! Once he’s back up, Imma whoop his ass ‘til he mellows out some!
: Sis, he just saw his friend get killed…
: And him wanting payback makes it A-OK to bulldoze the whole dang place?!
: Sis…
: … Well, we should get going too.
: Thanks for the help, pilots of the Dancouga. It was only with your help that we could recover the Linebarrel.
: No need. We didn’t really help that much courtesy of that mysterious red bot.
: You don’t know what it is?
: Not really, nope. Do you?
: The Preventers have an ongoing investigation, but, unfortunately, no…
: I’ll have them get in touch with you if we find anything.
: Thanks, Quatre…. Oh, and you, the Rushbird pilot.
: Y-Yeah?
: I’m glad we managed to save Kouichi here.
: …
: Bye, LOTUS. See you guys around!
: But maybe if I was stronger, we could’ve wrapped this up without the town taking any damage…
: I’m sure Yuu would’ve handled things way better…
Had we attacked Kouichi before he hulked out, we could’ve gotten a couple of convos:
: Kouichi, stop! You’re gonna hurt the people of this town too!
: SHUT UP!! OUTTA MY WAY!!
: Damn it, why can’t I ever get through to him?!
–
: Hey! Stop and calm the hell down, you!
: I’m getting payback for Yajima! RAAAAAARGH!!
: So before you wouldn’t listen right, today you can’t hear right? Whatever the case, the fact that we always come to blows with you is REALLY starting to wear thin!
Back at Shangri-La, Masaki mulls over their failure to capture the Linebarrel – but at least they manage to recover the missing Apparition. Katou isn’t bothered, satisfied that they were capable of bringing out some of Kouichi’s power.
That wasn’t his or the Linebarrel’s full might, though – more like the very first cry of a newborn. This mewling child has finally stood up with his own feet and Katou can’t wait to see how he’ll grow.
Masaki, meanwhile, has some combat data to analyze.
Cut to Dragon’s Hive, Tanaka is very insistent that he’s got no idea what the red bot is. Serious, for how long is he gonna give them the run around? Kurara isn’t having it, though: she draws her gun and suggests he start talking if he values his life.
Fine, fine! He’ll talk, though the best he’s got is speculation – nothing 100% certain, which is why he figured he shouldn’t tell. Still, Johnny figures there’s gotta be SOMETHING that he knows for sure and, indeed, he can tell them that the thing’s called R-Daigun! That’s some info he got from the top.
And? And that’s it. Sakuya’s quickly losing his patience as Tanaka’s not the one out there risking his life; and while Johnny, the former salaryman, understands how being the middle man’s like, this is getting out of hand. Tanaka sees that but he can’t answer what he doesn’t know.
They’re interrupted when an angry Seimi walks in, demanding to know what kinda battle they got into that got her Dancouga so beaten up. Furthermore, today’s counseling day and Ru’s been waiting forever for Team D to turn up.
Aoi lets Tanaka off the hook for today but the team tells him to get in touch with his boss and make it crystal clear that they want answers and soon (not that they’re expecting good ones, mind).
Inwardly, his status as middleman notwithstanding, Tanaka does want to know what his organization’s working towards. Maybe he should try and poke around a bit?
: Yo, what’re you doing, Kouichi?
: Yajima?! You’re alive…!
: What’s with that look? There something on my face?
: You’re alive… thank god, Yajima…!
: Hurry up now. Keep sitting there and I’m gonna leave you behind!
: Ah, hold on, Yajima!
: Kouichi…
: Wait! Don’t leave me here, Yajima!
: …
: YAJIMA!!
But that was just a dream, as Kouichi wakes up at JUDA’s infirmary. Yui’s there with him and she tells that he’s been asleep for two days. She was starting to get worried, with how long he was taking.
Kouichi thinks for a bit and remembers fighting with the Linebarrel… and Yajima. Where is he?! Kouichi jumps out the bed… but how about we pipe down and put some clothes on first? Woops.
A bit later, Yui’s showing him around the JUDA HQ building – the world’s premier medical equipment corporation! She properly introduces herself as the president’s secretary, but Kouichi sniffs that he doesn’t really care for who she is: “Ooh, the dossier was right. You DO have a pretty big mouth… if nothing else,” Yui quips.
As Kouichi begs her to forget whatever she saw while he was naked in that infirmary, Yui leads him up to Ishigami’s office.
And Ishigami’s very welcoming, introducing himself and calling Kouichi over to share in some sushi he made. A bit of time later, Ishigaimi’s said his piece and invites Kouichi to join LOTUS.
When the kid asks, Quatre enters and gives him the rundown of our work for the UN’s intelligence department. Wait, what’s he even doing here?! Quatre apologizes for never telling him but, yeah, he’s an infiltrated agent tasked with keeping an eye on him.
Ishigami proclaims that we need Kouichi’s abilities as a Factor and Quatre asks if he’s willing to fight for world peace. He could atone for his wrongdoings by being a legit Champion of Justice.
By the hangar, Reiji’s passing the news that Kouichi’s awakened. Ichitaka wants to go and see him now but, of course, that’ll have to wait until his meeting with Ishigami’s over. And, yes, the guy’s planning on inviting him into LOTUS.
Yamashita and Shizuna are VERY much against letting someone who went as crazy as he did with that Machina join, and both Goh and Tetsuya concede that he’s a very difficult sort. Our previous fights with him, his unwillingness to even listen, made that very clear.
Ichitaka asks them to forgive him: “I’ve known Kouichi since forever and he’s not really a bad guy. He just got too excited when he FINALLY managed to fulfill his dream of being a Champion of Justice…”
Rachel’ll concede that people who awaken as Factors have been known to be over-defensive but you can’t really handwave all he did with that excuse. And while Goh understands that Ichitaka wants to help his friend, he can’t in good consciousness say that he’s suited to pilot.
Yamashita very much agrees with that assessment, but, as Reiji says, this call belongs solely to Lady Une, not us.
Back to Ishigami, he’s explaining that JUDA’s history as makers of medical gear is simply a front – their actual job is to coordinate with the UN and deal with any force that threatens the world. Kouichi obviously knows of the Katou Organization after their many attacks, and Ishigami shows him a picture of their commander: Hisataka Katou
In other words, that guy’s the one to blame for the attack that killed Yajima. Mind, he’s not the only enemy to fight as there are also the Mimetic Beasts, Jama Kingdom, Cthulhu, Darius Army and more. Which is why, Quatre concludes, we need Kouichi and the Linebarrel’s strength and he hopes he’ll accept.
Ishigami will understand if he needs a bit of time to process it all – this IS a bit heavier than anything a regular student might face normally – but he says there’s nothing to be scared of. Kouichi doesn’t appreciate his condescension and says he’s not scared.
Whether he is or not, Ishigami says he’s got plenty of comrades here – not just him and Yui, but Quatre and everyone else he’d fight alongside with. With that, he beckons the kid to follow.
Over by Djibril’s place, he and Logos Guy have heard what happened with the Linebarrel… and his take on it is that the thing could be really useful in SLAUGHTERING COORDINATORS! If the intel’s right, that lone Machina can level an entire city!
Indeed, Logos Guy now sees why Lady Une, JUDA and the Katou Organization were so keen on getting their hands on the thing. What will Djibril do about it, then? Nothing right now, but seeing how LOTUS captured the thing, it won’t be long before they can use legal, very democratic, means to make the Linebarrel theirs.
Djibril will handle that, while Logos Guy is gearing up to attack a place called Diokia real soon – look forward to it.
: Come in, come in. Allow me to introduce you to the people of LOTUS – they’ll be your comrades-in-arms!
: …
: It’s that guy… you’ve got some stones showing your face ‘round here…!
: Kouichi!
: Ichitaka? What’re you doing here…?
: What, did you forget all the times I called you when we were fighting?
: I… I was sure you were a doppelganger, like in Kivaider and stuff. There’s always a doppelganger.
: A doppel—… Well, I guess I see where you’re coming from.
: Really? You do?
: Mr. Ishigami, this really isn’t gonna work. Our teamworks gonna go right out the window with this idiot around!
: Now, now, don’t be like that, Yamashita.
: He’s right. Teamwork is something one builds over time.
: Oh, and I’m Miu Kujo – the Painkiller’s pilot. It’s good to meet you, Kouichi.
: Y-Yeah, likewise.
: Hayase, if you’re joining us then there’s something I want to tell you: you rely far too much on the Linebarrel abilities when fighting. You won’t go far with that.
: And, just as I told Nagumo before, you’ll only be a hindrance to others if you don’t train yourself up to a bare minimum standard.
: Then that means we’re gonna have to train together, eh, Kouichi?
: Hey, hold on there! I never said I agreed to fighting with you guys!
: Kouichi…!
: … Just take me home. If I’m going to be “a hindrance” then I’m useless to you, right?!
: Hmm… Well, I’d at least like you to think this through. I’ll be eagerly awaiting your positive answer.
: Don’t hold your breath…!
He leaves.
: Kouichi…
: So much for the negotiations…
: Not surprising. It was a lot for him to digest. Mr. Ishigami, maybe you should give him time to put his thoughts in order and then try again?
: That’s what I’m thinking, yes… Too bad. I was hoping he’d come aboard right away.
: Still, you didn’t expect him to even lend his ear in the first place, did you?
: I suppose not. Then let’s give him some time. If he still doesn’t change his mind, then…
: The hell? My uniform, my cell, they’re all brand new… Is this their idea of buttering up the new guy? Damn it, that guy oughta go and jump off a cliff!
: Kouichi…
: Ah… Emi.
: … Do you have even the tiniest grasp of what you’ve done?
: …?!
: You gained the Linebarrel’s power and what did you do? You thought of no one but yourself; you used that power only to satisfy your worthless, insignificant pride and arrogance…
: You went on and on about how you were a “champion of justice”, but you couldn’t even protect anything. Rather, you only made things worse for all around you. What you did wasn’t even like a child playing make-believe – it was worse than that!
: Wh… What?!
: You may have the abilities of a Factor, but you are absolutely not worthy of the Linebarrel. Your friend’s death… that was your fault!
: !!
: You’re despicable!
Elsewhere, F.S. is talking to someone. The guy’s seen today’s bout and found the awakening of the Linebarrel’s Factor to be quite interesting. Could it also be representative of the potential of humans? It’s still very much unripe, but F.S. is certain there’s huge potential hidden there. And he’s not the only one, he believes.
Indeed, the more strength they have to mount their resistance, the better; F.S. figures that’s precisely why the guy had the R-Daigun made in secrecy. It wasn’t just that mind, as the guy figures the R-Daigun’s actions will beget evolution. That’s what he learned from observing life’s history.
Was the bot the last surprise he had tucked away? F.S. won’t like his answer to that question – time is short, after all. In that case, F.S. figures he’ll go and make some preparations of his own in the interest of helping his precious friends.
Back at the Cthulhu Fortress, Sepia tells Sir Violet that she’s bid her farewells to Cobalt. Violet understands the grief she feels over losing her beloved but Sepia’s a fully-fledged warrior and cannot remain that way forever.
Indeed, she’ll take over Cobalt’s mantle and will strike down Iczer-1 as the commander of the Iczer-Σ. The sorrow and anger she feels must now be turned against the traitor and Sepia stands ready. She’ll personally destroy Iczer-1 and lay Cobalt’s soul to rest.
Good, as Big Gold’s already started working, so Sepia’s partner should be given life before long.
Sir Violet takes her to a room with what Sepia knows to be a Growth Capsule. Within is her partner, Iczer-2, who bids her good day. She’s another android like Iczer-1 and is looking forward to being good friends with Sepia.
Sir Violet can see that Sepia’s rather surprised, but tells her when Iczer-2 and Iczer-Σ are awakened and fully active, not even Iczer-1 will stand a chance. And Sepia is ready to fight alongside Iczer-2, promising Cobalt that she will get revenge for her.