Rabbits on the Moon (Sess)

GEAR

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#1
OE 102
January 5th; 11:08AM
Lunar Orbit
Gringal Class "Rapunzel"
Lunar Colony Outskirts



Light crested the bleach white surface of Luna in the distance, as the long, rod-like form of the Gringal Class Rapunzel made its way across the stars, its tail engines glowing a faint blue as its plasma engines carried it forward. Within its castle-like front tower, a pair of pilots sat in its control center, their features obscured by a pair of silvery helmets, the lights around them... dark, and quiet. Normally, such an environment would hardly be conductive to any crewmember's personnel... Save that these ones were anything but human. The Lunar Kingdom had made great strides in the field of automation in recent years - and disguising such machines so that they could at least appear in such a way that guests didn't gawk after them had become something of a vanity contest between the various houses.

"Sir Enfield. We are approaching the testing area." Said one in a flat, monotone voice as a man floated into the command room, placing a gloved hand on the shoulder of one's chair.

He was a tall, broad-shouldered man of around his mid-thirties, his long blue hair floating loosely behind him, his own face partially hidden behind a cerulean visor that reflected the dancing lights of the instruments in front of them. His name was Gerrart Enfield, and his family had been in service to the Royal Family ever since its rise to prominence in the Lunar cult. A peerless duelist, his formal title was the "Knight of Knights", and he was in turn privy to more of the Moon's secrets than any other... A burden that, more often than not, weighed heavily on his mind.

"Right on schedule." He noted, surveying the readouts over the Release the Gablins, and place them in Motion Pattern Cycle A… I'll go and make sure the little prince is awake."

"Roger."

Enfield smiled inwardly, knowing his attempt at humor was lost on mere automatons... But, when you spent as much time in their company as he did, you found small ways to amuse yourself.

From the central, dividing section between the two towers that made up the Rapunzel''s mass, a multitude of small containers were released into the stars around them. Telltales winked on across their surface, and each box - about a dozen in number, broke apart, revealing the form of several diminuitive machines. They were white with gold trim, and scarred from many battles, each one's skirted, legless form carrying a short, ruby-tipped lance and shield. A dozen rabbit-eared, cone-faced machines perked up at once as their artificial intelligences sensed one another, joining invisible hands in the vacuum, spurts of plasma jutting from their fairy-like wings as they began to assemble, drawing a perimeter in the debris-littered sea.

As this was going on, Enfield made his way down the otherwise deserted corridors of the ship towards the living quarters, thinking about the mission he had been asked to undertake. A new prototype machine, one developed by their estranged fellows on Earth at the request of the royal family itself, the Genion… And they had handed it to him. No envy filled Gerrart's chest - only pride, that he might witness history in the making... But at the same time, his mind churned.

There were many secrets in that machine, he had noted... Not the least its power source, the likes of which he had never even seen before. It was superior even to the D-Extractors mounted on Sir Exeter's Ark Saber class machines, though according to the technicians, the two were similar enough in function... Still. He had his doubts that involving those that had departed from their midst was anything but wise.

Coming to a halt in the pearl-colored halls, he thumbed the intercom for his young ward's room, sending a pleasant chime throughout its confines as he waited, floating back against a wall, arms folded patiently.

It was time to face the day.
 

Hitura Rael

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#2
Sleep was the furthest thing from the mind of Einfield's young ward. James had tried for an hour or two before getting up to pace his room. When that became too dull to continue (after about five minutes), he sat down and tried again. Then stared at the wall, shifted position, tried again, and finally gave up completely. Anxiety and anticipation roiled around in his stomach like two massive serpents entangled in a fight to the death.

Of course any sane man would get up and do something to ease the anxiety or take his mind off it. This youth however, was quite inexperienced with this upheaval and had no idea what to do with himself. On a ship full of automata and his stomach pitching the way it was, his normal relaxation methods would be a waste. Plus they had eaten dinner not long ago. Einfield would just tell him to get his ass to bed if he went to go talk to him. Bastard was probably asleep himself. He still didn't know how that man did it.

He wiled away the remaining hours by cleaning, reorganizing, and getting ready for this. He frowned as he straightened out the cuffs and collar of his uniform. One burning question remained in his mind. Why the hell was he the one testing this new machine? Einfield was much more experienced and would put the thing to better use! His wallowing was interrupted by the chime echoing through the room. He wouldn't say he jumped out of his skin... but he had to take a few deep breaths to calm himself down before he opened the door.

He realized his hair was a wild mop of bed head just as the first sliver of Sir Einfield was revealed. Too late now. He fought back the indignant blush, the warring excitement, dread, and creeping tiredness from showing on his face.

"Good morning."
 

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#3
Enfield's head tilted up as the young man exited the room, the fatigue clear in his features. It was only natural, he thought, that James would be tired... This was one of their first times away from the Moon itself. For some reason, even for him, the first night on a new ship was always the hardest... and his heart went out to him, briefly.

"Morning yourself, tiger."

Something floated forward in the air, to bump into James' forehead, slightly. Upon closer inspection, it would reveal itself to be a nutrition shake of sorts. Someone had papered over the usual, boring militaristic jargon on the side with a colorful cartoon sticker of a knight, and scrawled "SUPER PILOT FUEL MK-VI EX" in red marker across its surface... Yet, a glance at Enfield would reveal nothing, the man's poker face truly a work of art.

"Breakfast." He explained, giving James a pat on the shoulder with a smile that conveyed nothing but utter confidence.

"Better get used to it... We've got a few of these tests to run. How did you sleep?"
 

Hitura Rael

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#4
"How's my favorite silver pine tree today?"

James smiled playfully up at Enfield. His eyes went cross as he watched the cup float into his forehead, then snatched it out of the air. His head tilted curiously as he read the label. The corner of his lips turned down slightly and struggled to stay there. The sticker was amusing. Enfield definitely put an effort in making the morning memorable.

"Ah. I'm not really hungry this morning."

His voice betrayed the half truth. He was starving, but his stomach was still rather... full of butterflies. If those butterflies were the size of Tokyo and attacking the stomach lining. The confidence Enfield showed him only strengthened the battering beasts.

"I uh... I didn't sleep."

That one, he would not lie about in any capacity. It would do him no good to lie about it anyway. He was sure it was plain on his face.

"Bit too excited to sleep."

A confident lie by omission.
 

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#5
Enfield gave him a quizzical look, folding his arms once more, clearly... Disappointed that his carefully prepared ruse had failed to elicit a response. At the man's... Creative nickname however, his eyebrow gave an errant twitch.

"P... Pine tree...?!" He grumbled, reaching up to take a lock of his hair between his fingers. Admittedly... He was more than a little self conscious, and the brief flicker of discomfort across his otherwise stalwart features was nothing short of comical in its intensity. Enfield quickly turned his back to James, clearing his throat loudly.

"...I'll have you know I'm a mighty oak, full of the vigor of youth! Pine tree... R-ridiculous..."

One could almost see small stars bursting into being about his head as he proclaimed it loudly, with no small amount of dramatic flourish. The man had a talent for leading the charge, and it showed... Even when the charge, in this case, seemed to be headlong into social embarrassment.

Reflecting on James's anxiety, however... Such jitters were common, and he was no stranger to them himself - it was better, perhaps to allow him to pass on his meal than end up cleaning it out of the young man's helmet later on, he reasoned. Sometimes the first time out was the roughest... But at the same time, it was he that had pressed Selene on the issue, confident in James' abilities. You couldn't protect him forever, he'd reasoned, especially if anything the Alabaster Lady predicted recently came true.

Dark times, ahead... Or so it seemed.

"As for your meal... Suit yourself."

Shrugging, he grabbed ahold of a handle sticking out of the wall, and began leading the way towards the hangar. The two were whisked along the pearly innards of the ship in near silence - it truly seemed as if it were just the two of them. As he led the way, Enfield turned to look back, calling out as he did so:

"You read the manual at least, right?"
 
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Hitura Rael

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#6
"Yeah."

He let the cup free float to reach over and fluff Enfield's hair.

"Might pine boughs." He chuckled and stepped away to let the hair go. "Pines are just as full of vigor and youth as oaks. Maybe more, since Oaks lose their leaves every winter. Pine needles stay year round."

"Thank you for the attempt at spicing up the cups though. I appreciate it. It's kinda cute."

He grabbed the cup back out of the air and took hold of one of the handles. Despite his protest, he did take a few sips of the thing.

"Hmm... Manual... manual... Which manual is this again?"

He gave Enfield a slightly blank and innocently confused look.

He grinned after Einfield's reaction.

"Yeah, I read it. Probably should have reviewed it last night instead of laying in bed staring at various parts of the wall or reorganizing everything five hundred times."
 

GEAR

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#7
"You haven't been slacking in your Dendrology studies, at least!" Laughed Enfield, after a brief look of horror as James feigned ignorance.

The young man was full of good humor, and time with him was never dull. Enfield, for his part, wasn't too familiar with trees - his occasional foray to Earth was... Nothing he would care to talk about, as the deeds he undertook during those times were... Well. Nothing he could - or would - talk about with most people. Such was the life he led.

The two entered the hangar of the ship, stopping at the first cordoned off section - one of several that housed the ship's onboard mobile weapon contingent. About them, several technicians on loan from DEI floated about in spacesuits, Enfield giving them a nod as he floated past. They were gathered around an azure machine that was all hard edges and gleaming metal - an ochre visor nestled underneath a bladed antennae, currently dim, gazed down at the two as they entered. The Genion, arguably the most cutting-edge machine on Luna - even moreso than the vaunted Astranagant. According to the schematics... There existed a great many black box components that not even he was privy to in their function.

Enfield didn't care for being left out in the dark, especially by outsiders... But in this case, he didn't have much a say. He just had to make sure that it worked. He pulled to a stop besides the Genion, hand coming out to grasp its shoulder armor as he looked it up and down, thoughtfully.

"I ask because the pilot suit process is, uh... A little unusual. Different from what we trained on." Said Enfield, scratching the back of his head as his brow furrowed. Some of this newfangled technology didn't really agree with him - but if there was some way to make it easier on James, he was all for it.
 

Hitura Rael

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#8
"Man the look on your face, wish I had a camera." James laughed with Enfield. One had to entertain themselves on a scarecly populated trip. Humor was good for bonding anyway. Thankfully Enfield had a great sense of humor.

His attention turned to the cobalt monstrosity looming in the hangar. The humor slipped from his face. "They been up all night?" James motioned to the techs floating around. He gave them a smile and a nod as they passed. Anything to distract from the monstrosity above them. Everything about the Genion was intimidating. The most advanced machine on Luna... and they were having him test it.

"Really should have given this to you..." James let out a slow breath to hide the welling anxiety. "Yeah... I guess technically this is going to be training on it now. Any tips?" He didn't sound hopeful. This was all new after all. New, unknown, and intimidating. "You sure you don't wanna pilot this thing?"
 

GEAR

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#9
"Selene has... Other things in mind for me." Said Enfield after some thought, giving a sigh.

The dictates of the Lunar royal family weren't exactly things he could ignore, he thought. Enfield had looked after the newest monarch since she had been little more than an infant, and he a trainee-knight. Their bond, it seemed, was close... But it was hardly something the older man cared to elaborate on, even in close company, shrouding his relationship with the young queen in mystery.

"Besides... This thing isn't really my style." He laughed, giving the Genion an affectionate pat as he did so.

While James might only have scarcely seen it... Enfield's preferred machines of choice were massive in scale, the titanic so-called "Special Mobile Weapons"... sometimes better known by their colloquialism: Super Robots. The azure-haired knight wouldn't even know what to do in a relatively compact machine like the Genion - though it still towered over most conventional planetside designs at 26.5 meters. What few times James might have seen him take to the field... Were short and violent affairs, the jovial man before him seeming a completely different entity from the feared Knight of Knights.

"As for tips... Well, let me show you."

With a tap, the cockpit of the machine opened like a clamshell with a hiss of escaping, pressurized air. The interior even had that new car smell that people often complained about planetside, but Enfield didn't seem to mind as he drifted close to it. He tapped a monitor, bringing it to life, where it displayed a simple readout.

TS-DEMON: ONLINE
Please Submit Pilot Biometrics for Registration.
Place palm on scanner.
"This is the best man-machine interface around... Or, so it's been billed." He said, gesturing to the display as he did, continuing:

"Go ahead, give it a try. You'll see what I mean."
 

Hitura Rael

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#10
"That sounds vague and open ended enough to make some unsavory jokes. But I'm not about to make them. Anxiety is paralyzing my brain. Probably not a good idea to either with everyone around." He motioned to the techs around them as subtly as he could. No need to draw attention to themselves.

Well, it was worth a shot to get Enfield to do the initial testing. Really, who the hell put an eighteen year old newbie in charge of a top notch, state of the art, EXPENSIVE machine?

"Ah yes, True. It's too short for you. Probably couldn't hold your ego anyway. Oh hey, there's the brain working again." He smiled weakly. "Though in seriousness... I could see you banging your head on something in there. I think you got all the tall genes in your family for the next three generations."

He sighed and turned his attention back to the blue and white monolith, watching Enfield open the cockpit. A displeased smile crossed his lips. Not exactly the kind of tips he was asking for. "Should have brought some air freshner or something." New plastic, leather, and cloth were never a good combination of smells in his book. "It's like you're trying to torture me." He grinned playfully. It would be something either of them did to the other. After all, there was little harm in little pranks... as long as it didn't touch Enfield's hair or involve calling him 'Jimmy'.

"I'm sure other things have been called that... right before they crashed to the ground, exploded, sunk, or failed to start in the first place..." Maybe that was a little TOO dark. He took a deep breath and moved in to plop down in the cockpit and hovered his hand over the scanner. He hesitated for a moment before letting his hand rest on the scanner.

Biometrics Accepted....

Well, that was painless. Oh but he spoke far too soon. He frowned as the hairs across his arm stood on end. A brilliant flash of light emitted from the cockpit, the changes happening in an instant to those outside. James had the displeasure of seeing that light creep up his arm and spread out across his entire being, preceeded by a slightly unpleasant tingling, a mix of 'my foot fell asleep' and 'i touched the bare live wire'.

He cringed as the light faded. "Yeah. Next time you get to do this first." He sighed and shifted to look over his clothes. Whatever the hell this machine could do, it completely replaced the uniform with a blue pilot suit accented with whites and pale silvers that thankfully left enough to the imagination. He would not admit that at least the style was something he was fond of. He could move around in it, but he didn't feel exposed.
 

GEAR

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At the sudden flash of light, all but Enfield - secure in his visor, covered their eyes briefly. When the latent energy had subsided, they peered in. Enfield gave a whistle, and clapped his hands. He was joined not soon after by the techs in a round of applause - though it seemed more self-congratulatory than anything else, as the DEI personnel took notes and talked amongst themselves in jargon that only they could understand.

"Hey, it worked! Lookin' sharp!" - The azure haired man gave a thumbs up and flashed a grin that belonged in a toothpaste commercial. "...Not that we hadn't tried it before, or anything." He added at length, lamely, upon seeing James'expression. Suddenly however, he brightened, pounding a fist into an open palm in excitement.

"Alright... Now, time for the fun part."

Enfield tapped one of the side monitors, currently displaying a holographic readout of the ship, as well as the surrounding area. A dozen or so red blips milled about among the debris fields.

"We scattered some training drones out on the field earlier... Get out there and hunt 'em down, just like the simulations. Give everything a good shakedown, yeah?"

The technicians pulled away, floating back to their various stations... But Enfield lingered slightly, waiting for them to go, before leaning in once more, a look of gentle concern on his features:

"...It's all a little sudden, I know. But just... Bear with it, for now." He said, suddenly serious as he pushed his visor up with a forefinger, brow creasing in thought.

It was true that James' normal training had been... accelerated at the request of Selene... But that still didn't explain where this machine had come from, or why it was so important as to be pushed ahead of other projects. Too many questions, he thought, not enough answers... But, he was going to get to the bottom of it - it was something of a contradiction that the man who despised manipulation more than anything else was the most trusted of a monarch widely regarded as calculating and machiavellian herself... One of many that seemed to define Enfield's character.

"How are you feeling?"
 

Hitura Rael

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#12
"Well at least I'm not sitting here naked in a pile of ash that was once my uniform." He shrugged. It was too bad there wasn't a mirror to see how 'sharp' looking he was. "I swear you missed your calling in life with that smile." He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Tested it yourself huh? What'd it do to you?" Probably something big, loud, and flashy knowing Enfield.

"Was this not the fun part?" He forced a smile, then let it slip as he turned his attention to the monitors. "And how high is the difficulty setting for this excercise?" He narrowed his eyes as he inspected the layout of the field. He let out a slow breath and watched the monitors as techs slipped away one by one. Enfield was the only one left before he could launch.

The man lingering was unexpected. James looked genuinely surprised at him. "Well. I feel like I simultaneously jumped in ice water while touching a low voltage electrical current with a metal object. Is my hair standing up?" He exaggeratedly ran his hands through his hair to smooth it down, i.e. make it worse. "I had JUST got it to the level of 'I just got out of bed' that I like..."

He smiled up at Enfield. "But being serious? Nervous. First time on the field and it's in some strange peice of tech from who knows where with who knows what seated into it... But I guess Selene has her reasons. She wouldn't have me working with this thing if it were dangerous, right?" "I'll be fine once the performance and test anxiety go away. I'm sure you remember what it was like the first time you took to the field all those many many ancient cycles ago."
 

GEAR

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#13
Enfield listened to the young man's worries, nodding along as he joked and rambled along, no doubt full of nervous energy. He had seen it a thousand times before, but it never got any easier.

"I didn't get the chance to try it myself... Not that I'd like to see what it would come up with, for that matter." He said in regards to the uniform. "All things considered, yours turned out pretty well."

When James mentioned the difficulty, he folded his arms and cocked his head, quizzically, as he began to recall the settings for the test. "I've adjusted it to your experience level. Not going to be a cakewalk... But challenging enough. The drones are smarter than they look. Be careful not to let them flank you."

At the mention of the first time he had stepped onto the battlefield, however... Enfield simply gave a small, sad smile, averting his gaze for the first time as he was lost in thought.

"...You'd be surprised." He said quietly. "Some things you never forget."

...Just as quickly, however, he recovered, his bright smile returning... Though, one had to wonder just how much of it was genuine. He slapped the side of the cockpit and kicked off, giving a two fingered salute as he pulled away to join the rest of the technicians. Overhead, alarms began to come on as the airlock prepared to open, but Enfield's voice still rang clear over it, calling out as he left:

"You've got this! Now, show us all what you can do!"
 

Hitura Rael

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#14
"Hey, as long as you didn't put it back down to baby levels or set it for your experience level." James leaned back into the seat and made the final adjustments, including putting on the helmet. Never leave the hangar without it!

"Sorry bout poking at the age joke. I didn't mean to upset you with it." He reached out to pat the older man's arm before letting him push away from the suit. "When this is over I'll make a REAL breakfast." The cockpit inched closed once Enfield was clear, his encouraging words the final sounds from the outside slipping in.

James took a deep breath and slowly released it. He flipped off communications, both in and out, and sat in the quiet for a moment to gather his thoughts. "Well. It looks like you and I are going to be partners from now on. But I think we'll get along fine. This should be a cakewalk once we're used to each other. So, let's do our best and impress everyone." He didn't want to think or voice how it would make Selene look if they tripped up at the gate or finish line.

James flipped the communications back on and slightly regretted the immersion in the noise from the outside world. He would find a way to concentrate with it in the background. The launch bay opened. His hands gripped the controls tighter. By some miracle he kept his voice straight and composed. "Genion ready to launch."

The few seconds to get the green light felt like a still eternity, soundless and breathless, standing on that razors edge before everything went to hell in a hand basket. The Genion bent at the knees slightly before it was thrust forward and catapulted out into the open space rushing toward it. And then in the glow of thrusters and the far distant sun, it was free. James released the breath he didn't know he had been holding as the machine basked in the freedom of space before gently touching down on the pale surface of the moon.

"Well, that wasn't so bad." He felt better, now that he was out and actually conducting the field test. There wasn't the looming pressure of waiting anymore. Better to get to it then. He surveyed the monitors for the targets. The Genion kicked off of the moon's surface, angling toward the debris field. The azure machine used the larger chunks to keep the momentum up with minimal thruster use. The smaller chunks were something of a fun little obstacle to dodge and test the mobility of the Genion with. But he was not just playing around. He kept an eye out for the drones, readying the Genion's glaive as it twisted through the debris field.
 

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#15
As James made his way out to the debris field, kicking off chunks of it as he went, the Genion's impressive display would have come to life under his hands. It maneuvered like a dream, dancing between the detritus of wars long past like a ballerina, responsive to even the slightest touch. As he learned its contours, so too was there a sense that it was learning his, TS-DEMON rapidly sculpting its own internal processes in responses to its new owner.

Sure enough, a 3D representation of the battlefield, like a sphere, projected itself before James, displaying the most immediately apparent of the training drones. Three of the machines had already picked up on his position, and were approaching quickly, the tail-flares from their skirt-mounted thrusters visible. There were a total of twelve hidden within the debris field... The rest, presumably, either hadn't detected him yet, or were maneuvering into ambush.

The three Gablins approached from his upper right, shields raised together, their lupine, cone-like heads angling to face the Genion. As one, they raised their lances - and let loose a torrent of fire, crackling bolts of energy lashing out from the Dimensional Energy Crystals mounted at the base of the weapons, blistering apart the debris around James. Ordinarily, these weapons were capable of much higher, more severe output - but thankfully, for the training purposes it had been reduced. Even so, his every response was being tracked carefully... And he would get a chewing out if he were to receive what would otherwise have been a fatal blow.
 

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#16
"Looks like we got their attention. Let's not give them a chance to box us in." James flicked his attention to the map, then back to the debris field. He waited until they were in sight and ready to fire before hitting the thrusters to soar above the Gablins. The energy bolts crackled against the blistering metal.

Right now, the debris field was a double edged sword, lending something of a shield to both. And the best way to get through a shield was to get behind it. The Genion descended, angled to fall behind the Gablin trio head first. The glaive split in the machine's hands, the two swords slashing as it passed by the Gablins, aiming to take at least two out with the arcs. James righted the machine in time to land on it's feet before kicking off the lunar surface again to drift backward, away from the Gablins.

"Just gotta keep moving and not get hit." His eyes flicked to the map again, checking for any incoming enemies.
 

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#17
The Genion darted up and over in a V shape, bolts of red energy slashing about its form as it easily maneuvered through the barrage. The built-in artificial intelligence of the Gablins had only the briefest of seconds to process this before the glowing green glaive slashed out, bifurcating all three in a single slice. Their composite pieces traveled forward a little further before detonating into plumes of dimensional-energy rich fire and some, casting a brilliant, sparkling light on the Genion's sharp, almost avian features.

As he kicked off the debris once more, movement below would have caused the system to light up in alert - a pointed spear jabbed through the debris, narrowly missing him. The Gablin below, which had been lying in wait, now struggled to free its weapon, as two more of its fellows emerged from similarly concealed hiding spots, charging James from his left and right with their lances, shields held high. The weapons were innocuous enough on their own... but if James had ever seen the Gablins used in real combat, he would have been aware that their explosive tips carried more punch than their appearance suggested.
 

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#18
James yelped as the Gablin spear thrust up from below. The Genion drifted back from the narrow miss, though James couldn't tell if it was the Gablin misjudging from the debris, his own reaction, or the Genion's. He hadn't really read the manual much... Not enough to know if it had it's own AI or anything at least. He looked over the weapon system and that was all he needed to know! ...Right?

He frowned as two more approached in a pincer maneuver. The AI unfortunately weren't dumb enough to collide if he moved at the right time... At least he didn't think they would. What the hell, why not? The Genion bounded backward as the two drew near enough. It was enough to give him time to get away from the lances. Hopefully the two AI would have to make some sort of split second decisions that left them vulnerable. As the Genion drifted back, the Punishers mounted on the hips folded out and let loose several bursts at the flanking Gablin in range.
 

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#19
Genion's punishers came up, and the Gablin in question dutifully raised its shield - but the sheer force behind the weapons, fired from this close, proved to be more than it had been expecting. The first shot pulverized apart its shield, causing it to lose balance before a second blast punched a hole through its chest, causing its eyes to flicker... and then die, before it turned into a cloud of superheated dust, like its fellows before.

The remaining Gablin, however, had managed to advance unimpeded, thrusters now carrying it foreward at full tilt. Rocking back slightly on its hip servos, it thrust the explosive lance out, aimed to strike strke at the Genion's outstretched right leg, trying to impede the machine's uncanny mobility.

Below, the Gablin that had attempted to spear him through the debris had finally succeeded in extracting its weapon, brandishing it triumphantly - it would be only a moment before that machine too was on the attack.
 

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"That's four." James breathed and turned his attention to the other Gablin just a little too late. The lance slid across the surface of Genion's right leg.

James made the split decision to take a less than calculated risk. He blindly swung the Glaive nearest the Gablin, to hopefully at least force it back. His attention remained on the other one that had been caught in the debris, firing the punishers at it. It would be in a position to strike a blind side if he didn't deal with it now.