Episode 49 - EXO Force 2015

The The mines are silent.  Only the sound of dust being whittled along the rubble by the northern wind can be heard on this side of Sentai Mountain.  Still, security is tight.  There are ever vigilant guards patrolling the perimeters and listening devices and sensors honed in to detect any movement within the caved-in mine shafts.

The raw materials are no longer accessible to either robot nor human.  Meca One and his various copies along with his legions of Iron Drones and Devastators are on the run.  They are without their resources to create an endless supply of robots and mechas, the large exo-frame vehicles that have been converted into deadly war machines.  That is not to say they are beaten, their numbers are still greater than the remaining human population but not significantly so and although they still posess a huge number of mechas they are not as effective as the human pilots who themselves are restocking their own ranks with machinery of their own.  Without access to a plentiful supply of raw materials, strategy would be the key to victory.

Ryo, newly promoted to Chief Engineer and in command of his own company of Alpha Troopers (the front line infantry that do not use the large exo-frame mechas but perform the duties of defence and front line support with their high technological weapons, vehicles and exo-suits) has learnt to be careful with integrating technology.  Painfully so with the events of the Golden Tower still vividly clear in his mind and haunting his every actions.  He has taken apart every Cyclone Defender exo-suit and ripped out and replaced every bit of Golden City technology with designs of his own making, swearing that nothing in his charge would ever be manipulated by outside forces again.

Sensei KeiKen has tasked Ryo with the problem of maintaining and enhancing the mecha numbers.  Scavenging was the main order of the day for most of Ryo's company of men, looking for metals to re-cycle and re-purpose.  There is enough material outside of the deep mines to repair most of the damage from skirmishes (of which there have been few) and for everyday maintenance, but not nearly enough to build new mechas to swell the ranks.  There is, of course the huge cache of Golden City mechas lying the other side of the Golden Tower wormhole Ryo activated.  However, there is also an immense army of Meca One's mechas piloted by Devastators and Iron Drones - all fortunately deactivated, but should that change then so would the human's fragile stronghold in the war.  KeiKen wants to recover as much of the technology beyond the wormhole as possible believing that the Golden Tower overrides on the Golden Guardians, Blade Titans and Sky Guardians can be disabled, but Ryo is opposed to this.  It was the first time he had ever disagreed publicly (or privately) with the Sensei, a show of defiance against the man he had respected all his life above all others.  Takeshi agrees with Ryo but holds his voice along with Hikaru and Ha-Ya-To who are more or less stunned into silence.  It is only when Hitomi sides with Ryo, stating that the risk is just not worth it that changes her grandfather's insistence on reclaiming the tech.

The new Memorandum 2015 grants a small tactical force entrusted with the task of permanently deactivating any and all robots situated on the other side of the wormhole.  Currently a small team of four EXO Force land and air pilots headed by Takeshi are on the other side, they have set up a base camp with the aim of destroying the deactivated robots of Meca One and salvaging what raw materials they can.  No electronics or anything with circuitry is allowed to return through the wormhole, and Takeshi has ordered his team to incinerate everything they find.  He is fully behind Ryo with this one.  It's going to be a long mission, but Takeshi is intent on completing it personally and returns after each trip leading a new sortee.  He has insisted that no-one should enter the wormhole without his explicit permission and has setup his own personal land mecha team to guard it Earthside, Takeshi's men are fiercely loyal to him.  Each one owes him their lives, in one way or another they are in his debt and not even the Sensei would be able to get them to stand down.  Ryo has a small team of Alpha Troop technicians helping sort and recycle the mecha mechanisms recovered by Takeshi and his small team of two Grand Titans, and an Aero Booster.

Meanwhile, Ryo had been revisiting the old technology.  It was solid technology, not as sophisticated as Golgen City tech but no less effective.  Power core technology provided immense energy output, but it was difficult to construct and even the robots could not replicate it, their early mechas that used it were modified human-designed mining mechas and their early attack vehicles used spare power cores from the supply stores in the quarry as the source for their energy canons.  It was a high output design but such was the potential of the power core that this output was but a trickle of the power core's actual potential.  The robots tried to open the floodgates to the power core's output, but Ryo knew that due to it's purposeful design it would become unstable if that was ever done and the robots proved him correct leaving several large craters where they had tried.

What intrigued Ryo most as an engineer was the Supernova mecha, it had a focused energy blaster connected to a power core, but it's high power attack was from solar energy collectors that focused all that energy into a high discharge capacitor which was the Supernova's Trident.  Despite all that power, it couldn't damage the Striking Venom.  Ryo had been reconstructing his own version of the Supernova, like the Grand Titan XS he had constructed it from the ground up and had painstakingly assembled every bit of insulated cable, welded every single rivet.  However, he didn't have a shell to start with.  Just blueprints.  This Supernova was constructed from the nut up, literally.

Ryo wanted to include high discharge/high capacity storage cells into his Supernova, a lot of cells.  And he didn't like the Trident, instead he multiplied the number of energy canons in proportion to his extra cells.  That was a lot of energy canons.  Supernova's solar collectors would collect the energy which would be stored for discharge from either the Trident or (more effectively) stored to a much higher capacity inside Supernova itself for a devastating blast that would be more than quadruple that if the Trident.  The beauty of Ryo's design also meant that Supernova's power core could trickle charge all of it's cells for high discharge in a little over a minute, which meant that this mecha was no longer restricted to daytime strikes.  This bespoke mecha would not be mass produced, it was too costly to produce in quantity and it's sole purpose was firepower, a siege weapon.  It couldn't compete with a Grand Titan on a head-on assault but at distance it could destroy anything before it got close enough to pose a threat.

In what seemed a subtle but significant show of rebellion, this student of Keiken removed all the subtle flashes of white from this Supernova's colour scheme.  Replacing it with a fully yellow with red paintwork over the standard grey and black exo frame.  Sensei Keiken's use of Golden City technology may have saved the humans of Sentai Mountain, but it was his irresponsibility that used it to create Meca One the source of all the misery and terrible tragedy that has afflicted the humans.  Ryo wanted this mecha to show no allegiance to the Golden City, despite it's golden appearance.

A storm was coming, a mechanical storm ready to take on all who stood in its way.  It would not be an easy battle but they were prepared for it now, and it had to happen.  Sooner, rather than later but before that battle commences there would be more pieces to play in this game of chess. Strategy would be the key to victory.

Episode 48 - Game Changer

This has been a terrible war.  The robots have been relentless.  Humans have been driven from their homes, forced to survive in communes and then driven off again.

Since the discovery of the Golden City and the secret of the Golden Tower - that it was not just a factory of advance EXO technology but a gateway to other dimensions, the balance of power has changed yet again.  Where once Meca One and its robots overwhelmed in legions, they have been reduced to numbers comparable to the humans they have not so far exterminated.  It has been a bloody and costly war, but just as the tide was turning in the humans favour, the robots has showed that they can adapt as well as any mammal in a new environment.  Ryo's accidental imprisonment in the parallel desert world with the bulk of the deactivated robot armies gave him time to examine the pulsed out robots and mechas, and to improve the humans use of technology in the Golden Tower that was transported with him.  When he finally returned in the original Grand Titan re-designated "XS" with more power, abilities and improvements, he immediately set about modifying the human mechas and victory seemed imminent.

However, Meca One rediscovered teleporter technology from the Martian colonies and used it to capture nearly all the humans and their mechas and the tide turned yet again.  A logical machine would have eliminated the human threat there and then but Meca One was no ordinary machine, Sensei Keiken built him to be more human and that was his mistake.  Meca One wasn't just an efficiently cold and calculating machine, he was also the most ruthless and he developed a taste for it.

The few humans that remain free were now going to try and turn the tide once again.  Only this time there would be far reaching consequences for the robots if they succeeded.

Modified Stealth Hunter/Bombers were on their way to the robot's mine headquarters, Hikaru moved on ahead in his Silent Strike S, a fitting name for his mecha as he was to deliver the first strike in this most important of operations.  With his high velocity sniper weapon the three listening posts are disabled before they detect what has hit them, paving the way forward for the Stealth Hunter/Bombers.

Takeshi is now on a sole mission to take on all the heavy mechas guarding the humans in the slave labour camps.  Ryo has added even more bells and whistles to his "XS" but he is just one man in an EXO frame.  The robots are now aware something is afoot with the destruction of their listening posts, but they do not know what or where.  The first thing to secure are the human prisoners.  Hikaru lets loose.  His particle beams hit their targets, he fires his missiles and his Gatling rips apart anything that gets too close.  The robots send in air support, the jungle terrain make it difficult for Sonic Phantoms to fly by and be effective.  Which is just as well as the robots only have two remaining flying crafts of that type, however they have several recommissioned Fire Vultures.  Heavy flying mechas, built not for speed but to hover spewing rivers of fire.  Not effective against Stealth Hunters but against a Grand Titan they have an airborne advantage, something Ryo has accounted for in his design of the "XS".  Hikaru fires booster jets, not the type for supersonic flight but the type to cushion great drops and to take great leaps and suspended flight.  The Fire Vultures are easy prey now, but their numbers are causing problems as they come in from all directions.

Ha-Ya-To's Falcons storm in and relieve Hikaru.  Their light mechas are less well armoured but their smaller and more manoeuvrable EXO suits easily compensate against the less evasive Fire Vultures which leaves Hikaru free to take on Thunder Furies.  Humans in Uplink mechas appear, the artillery is here against the Senteries.  Suddenly a large mecha rips through the skies through the flying robot mechas and lands squarely on top of a Thunder Fury, it looks like a Blazing Falcon and it's tearing up metal.  Ryo is onboard.  "I did it!" he screams.  Did what?  Takeshi looks to the east and he sees humans.  Lots of humans.  Some soldiers but mostly civilians carrying heavy weapons and charging downward towards the robots.  There is an enormous crash.  It's not nearby.  The robots pause and all at once they synchronise their actions and turn and flee.  The Stealth Hunter/Bombers have hit their target, the mine has collapsed.

What's happened?  Ryo has determined the location of the surviving humans and has rallied them together, a ragtag bunch of old men and untrained civilians but they are determined and know this is a vital strike against the robots.  The soldiers are locked up on holding camps waiting to be processed, but they are being set free by Hi-Ya-To's company of mechas and joining in retaliation to their mech il captors.  The mines have been hit be deep ground penetrating explosive warheads and collapsed.  Meca One no longer has his supply of raw materials to build robots, no robots no mecha pilots.  Game changer.

Episode 47 - Resistance

Seven mechas make their way to an old outpost of the Golden City.  Once abandoned but refitted with essential supplies and ordinance.  Target lock, Takeshi's Grand Titan XS prepares for evasive manoeuvres.  This is all too familiar, Takeshi thinks to himself.

"Stand down."  A familiar voice and a large blue mecha steps out of the shadows.  It's Hikaru in a newly commissioned Silent Strike "S" mecha.  "S" stood for how special the improvements were once Ryo completely refitted and redesigned the original that was damaged in the first Striking Venom attack.  Only two Triple "S" mechas were constructed due to the difficulty in securing the parts for the stealth technology.  Faster than the original model, with more power reserves and armaments.  Sophisticated network and communications hardware, and improved accuracy and weapons systems (along with bombing attachments).  The stealth capabilities of this mecha made it not only invisible from electronic detection but whisper quiet in silent mode, the new reflective field also made it difficult to see in flight as digital chameleon camouflage projection blended it in with it's surroundings.

In the background some modified Stealth Hunters could also be seen powering down their weapons.  Then from the shadows an unexpected mecha comes forward.  It's Ryo in his Blazing Falcon.  "I've been working on this for a while in my lab, but stopped when it was decided to go with the Golden Guardians as a defensive mecha.  I guess I'll be restarting this project sooner rather than later!  It's good to see you, friends!"  Ryo climbed down from his mecha and shook Takeshi's hand.  "When I realised we couldn't go up against this new Striking Venom, I jumped into the most aerial combat mecha at hand.  It's no Stealth Hunter but it flys better than a Golden Guardian and has better close combat ability thanks to some new mods.  I met up with Hikaru and some of his pilots and we just made our way down the mountain out of the Striking Venom's line of sight.  I know you have questions."

The friends settle in, several pilots all hidden in a retired bunker.  Their mechas being repaired and weapons replenished.  It seems that Meca One created a new Striking Venom with extra armour to compensate for the previous version's shortcomings.  An integrated teleportation ray dealt a more devastating attack than heavy canons ever did by beaming the human's hardware away once a lock was established whereas a canon lock would cause damage but could not guarantee removing the enemy from the battlefield, which the teleporter literally did.  A huge amount of power would be necessary, but the Striking Venom was a large machine.

Analysis of Takeshi's data taken from his Grand Titan XS has suggested that once the Golden City mechas were disabled with a virus sent from the Golden Tower, they were teleported away.  These radiation signatures differed from those inflicted upon the Sensei Keiken and Ryo mechas which seemed to be teleported to a different location within the Golden Tower where a wormhole took them away.  Ryo was troubled.  Several dozen locations have been successfully activated, but there was no way of knowing from the data which location or locations were used to exile their colleagues.

Meanwhile, Ha-Ya-To was sulking away in the hanger with a envious glance over at Hikaru's Triple "S". Takeshi brings Ha-Ya-To some soup rations.  "No thanks."' Ha-Ya-To says.

Takeshi's sits down next to his friend.  "Humph, you're going to need your strength.  If I know Ryo, he's got a plan and it's going to need you at your best.".  He can see Ha-Ya-To wasn't impressed and still looking at the Triple "S" mecha, almost yearning.

"Ha-Ya-To.  That's an impressive mecha, fast, stealthy and armed to the hilt.  Swords and high-velocity rifles, not really your thing though.  Is it?"  Ha-Ya-To fidgets.  Takeshi continues, "You've always loved flying fast, Ryo knows this and gave you the Aero Booster.  You now command a team of interceptor pilots who fly those mechas.  The fastest air combat hardware we have, hardware that also detaches into ground mechas for city defensive counter-measures.  You're also lead pilot for missions involving Falcons and White Lightnings,.  Reconnaissance and escort duties.  You were the only pilot Sensei Keiken trusted with the River Dragon.  Your skills are not just in the air, but on land and water.  Your acrobatics are well known to us, and you've always favoured smaller and more manoeuvrable mechas much like Ryo does.  You can fly Stealth Hunters and Silent Strikes, but you wouldn't be able to execute the kind of aerial moves you like without ripping their wings off!  Ryo said he had to strengthen the Gate Defenders because even they couldn't withstand the kind of punishment you inflicted on them.".

Ha-Ya-To smiles.  "I can still dream though, can't I?".

Hikaru and Ryo walks into the hanger, "I want Ha-Ya-To to fly with me.".

"No.", Ryo insists sternly.  "You have pilots under your command that you've trained, you trust them to have your back.".

"It's not my back I'm worried about.".  Hikaru retorts.  "We're going to need teamwork but because of our limited numbers we're also going to have to work independently.  Can you think of a better pilot to take on this mission?"

"I know.".  Ryo says in agreement, "but we're going to need Ha-Ya-To and his Falcons to do something much more dangerous if you're going to even stand a chance of success.  And Takeshi, you're going to have to provide backup from the ground by yourself.  I'll try to provide support but I'll have to break off early on.  We're all going to need to perform over and above if we're to succeed in this.".

"Why are you both so serious?  What exactly are we planning?", Takeshi asks.

Ryo replies, "To end this war.".

To be continued...

Episode 46 - Regroup

Takeshi heads down to the old Sentai fortress.  It seems an age ago when this place was what he called home.  Before the mountain split in two and the beginning of the war with the robots.

His Grand Titan has all of the Golden City's data regarding Martians but Sentai Mountain has had more recent contact with the colonies in the past.  It's time to do some data scavaging.  It's a long trek down but his mecha makes it a lot easier than on foot and the added rocket packs lets him leap and hover past many of the obstacles.

It's nighttime as Takeshi approaches his old home and academy.  There is a sense of sentiment in seeing the old place but the soldier in him puts his feelings aside as there are more pressing matters at hand and he doesn't want to wait a moment loner than he has to.  Previous experience has taught him that any unnecessary delay encourages mishap.

Hmmm.  Multiple target locks.  And they're all on him.  Takeshi thinks that maybe this is one time when haste may not have been the wisest choice.  The Grand Titan has already detected danger and has readied itself for battle stations.  All weapons charged and ready, XS style.

Friendlies detected.  Six targets acquired, all friendlies.  "Takeshi?  Is that you?".

Takeshi recognised the voice of his friend and colleague, Ha-Ya-To.

Six mechas emerge from the shadows, all Gate Defenders that have been designated "Falcons".  "What are you doing piloting one of those?",  Takeshi assumed Ha-Ya-To would be in a Aero Booster.

Ha-Ya-To sighs.  "Long story.  I guess we have time as we should lay low in the darkness."

Takeshi follows Ha-Ya-To and his pilots to the docking bays.

Meca One was attacking.  That much you know.  We were holding back his Sonic Condors.  It was bizarre why they were attacking forces that outnumbered and outgunned them.  I was assigned a reconnaissance mission by Sensei Keiken to spy on Meca One.  There were six of our Falcons (Ryo's Gate Defenders that were modified for agility and manoeuvrability) and two White Lightnings as escorts. That's when it happened.

Devastators infiltrated the command centre and sent a virus that turned our Golden Guardians, Sky Guardians and Blade Titans against us.  All the Golden Tower mechas were affected aside from the Cyclone Defenders.  They just all shutdown.  Then they were disintegrated.

"No, I think they were teleported".  Takeshi interrupted.  "Martian technology".

That's not right, that's not what happened.  It was Meca One.  He created another Striking Venom.

That sent a shiver down Takeshi's spine, the Striking Venom took down virtually every mecha sent up against it.  It was his Grand Titan that eventually stopped it but not before it was fried to a crisp.

This Striking Venom was improved, it's weaknesses were removed and it was equipt with a new weapon that disintegrated everything in it's path.  It took out all the stationary Golden Tower mechas, then the MDTs and our aerial forces.  My White Lightnings couldn't escape it's beams of energy, only the agility of our Falcons managed to escape by fleeing down the mountain out of it's reach.  I assume it then proceeded to wipe out the ground forces which would have only consisted of the few Grand Titans and Uplinks/Cyclone Defenders which would have been easy pickings for Meca One's own army if he didn't decide to disintegrate them.

Takeshi takes a moment.  "It can't just be us.  There was no wreckage and I can't believe that everyone else was taken in just a couple of hours."

Hi-Ya-To ponders, "Why do you say they were taken?".

"Because that's the analysis L.01 gave me, and I trust Ryo's inventions like I would trust our friend himself.", Takeshi was adamant.  Hi-Ya-To could see this and took faith in his comrade.  "Then let's go look for them.".

Ha-Ya-To leads Takeshi to the acadamy control room.  "Power's low but we have enough to search the computers.  Tashi!".  Ha-Ya-To calls one of his pilots.  He looks at Takeshi.  "Well, we haven't got all night and I'm about as good with computers as you are!".

Lt Tashi analyses the sensor arrays from the Sentai Fortress.  "There is a lot of teleport activity that matches the data from Grand Titan L.01 at the beginning of the attack, then there is a new energy signature mixed in with the old.".  Tashi looks to Takeshi, "We need to run this against your mecha for further data, sir.".

Takeshi nods, he leads them to his Grand Titan XS and feeds in the data chip.  "Energy signatures suggest a two phase execution".  There's silence, L.01 picks up on this and adds: "A teleportation beam directed at the Golden Gateway would suggest sending the target through the portal.  The number of total energy signatures completed from the Striking Venom suggests that no more than 20 mechas escaped."

Twenty!  That means perhaps upto another thirteen mechas escaped.  We need to regroup.

In all likely hood, the only mechas that could have escaped the Striking Venom would have to have been aerial unless one of the wall defence squads of uplinks, cyclone defenders and MDTs decided to abandon posts and run.  Ryo would have likely been at one of these posts or the command centre with Sensei Keiken.

"No.  Ryo was examining the Devastators that broke into the city."  Ha-Ya-To says.  "He would have been in his lab.  He was examining the Devastators that infiltrated the Golden City.  If he saw the Striking Venom attack he would have weighed the consequences of joining in the fight or retreating.  We just don't know what he would have chose.".

If, assuming the majority of those that escaped were pilots of flying mechas (like the Falcon section) then there should be Stealth Hunters and perhaps even Ha-Ya-To's detail or Aero Boosters - but where could they be hiding?  That's a lot of hardware that needs maintenance.

"Sensei Keiken showed us some Golden City outposts, most were still functional but one had been abandoned by the original inhabitants of the Golden City long ago.".  Takeshi turns to Ha-Ya-To, "Didn't you and Hikaru use that as a training base and refuel depot?".

To be continued...

Episode 45 - Vanished

Three hours.  It's been three hours since Takeshi fell asleep and now his alarm is ringing.  Except he didn't set his alarm. This is a red alert.  Takeshi gets up and looks outside his room to see what the commotion is about but there is no commotion.  The alarm is ringing but there's no one there.  He wanders out into the courtyard, it's deserted.  He does a sweep of the compound and it's empty.

The alarms have been ringing for over an hour, Takeshi is a heavy sleeper but even this is bad for him.  Over 24 hours on a training exercise cleaning up robot wreckage is pretty mundane work.  No, it's boring, really boring.  And he was up giving lectures on mecha strategy for the whole afternoon just before that.

What happened in the last hour since the red alert?  His rookies have gone and so have their Grand Titans.  Whole squads have disappeared, it looks like they were in a hurry from the tripped over chairs and mess they left behind.

Takeshi finds his own Grand Titan in a recharging point.  It still needs it's ammunition replenished but it's fully powered up.  Everything's quiet so Takeshi reloads his mecha's armaments. So quiet, perhaps this is how Ryo felt when he was all alone on the other side of the wormhole.  No.  He knew there were no humans there with him and he still built this mecha up to be stronger and faster than before.  He had a survival instinct about him, Takeshi would never dishonour his friend by underestimating his resolve.  His own situation is not the same.  Not quite.  There should be humans nearby, Takeshi just needs to find them or at least find out what happened to them.

Stealth may be the better option for now, Takeshi removes the beam rifle from his mecha.  Time to go exploring on foot, his Grand Titan is on standby and tracking his location.  Just in case.

This is eerie, the Golden City is just like when they first discovered it.  Standing proud but desolate, a city abandoned generations ago dating before the great disaster that isolated Sentai Mountain from the other tribes of mankind.  The further Takeshi wanders through the city the less sure he is that is was actually abandoned.  Only a mere hour or so ago this city was bustling and well defended.  What could have happened in less than a hundred minutes while he slept?  This city was alive and busy, now it looks as it did after being empty for decades.  Abandoned, except he knows his comrades would never have abandoned their posts so easily or quickly.  Perhaps the original inhabitants of the Golden City didn't abandon this place either.  We're they captured?  Unlikely.  A surrender couldn't have happened so quickly, and the alarms were still ringing when he awoke.  Takeshi wishes he wasn't such a heavy sleeper.

It's been three hours now.  Takeshi has wondered through the city and there is nothing.  No sign of activity.  No sign of life.  No sign of anything.

What would Ryo do?  Probably tinker with something and use his knowledge of electronics and mechanics and come up with something to help him.  Takeshi doesn't have Ryo's skills, but he realises that he does have one of Ryo's inventions.  One of his best and newly modified with all the latest improvements.

Takeshi boards his Grand Titan, his Grand Titan XS.  What to do?  His friend Ryo knows he's not technically gifted, lets try talking.

Takeshi speaks to his mecha, "Where is everyone?".  The console illuminates and a light blinks.  "No life forms detected.  Area identified as The Golden City, population depleted cause unknown.  Scans indicate residue tachyon particles.".  Takeshi was able to keep up with what was said until the last bit.

The console blinks again, almost as if it detected an uneasy pause.  "The source of the residue radiation may be attributed to the use of a teleport rather than wormhole activity.".  Thank you, Ryo!

A teleport.  A mass teleport.  Hundreds of thousands of people gone in such a short amount of time.  The robots don't have this kind of technology.  Who has?

"Arghhhh!  Who has this kind of technology?", Takeshi shouts at himself.  He is so annoyed with himself for not even knowing where to look.

"Martians.  The Martians and the Human Martian Colonists have compatible technology, but it is unknown whether they have scaled up to this capacity.", the Grand Titan's console blinked again.

Takeshi pauses.  It's a starting point, Takeshi thinks. Thank you again, Ryo my old friend.

Since many generations ago, Sentai Mountain has isolated itself from the rest of the world.  It started with the great disaster that shook the world.  Since the aftermath, the old civilisations either disappeared or they rebuilt themselves from scratch forming tiny pockets of humanity all across the world.  It has been a long time, some of these pockets must have thrived like Sentai Mountain.

The Martian settlements were from the time of the Golden City, Mars was not affected by the great disaster but communications with those colonies have been lost since then.  No contact has been made for generations.  It's not even clear if those colonies survived without help from the home world, although transmissions have been sent there from Sentai Mountain none were ever received.

The old Sentai Fortress seems a good a place as any to start looking for answers.

To be continued...

Episode 44 - Under Attack

The North wall is under attack.  Airborne robot mechas bombard the defences from above and heavy artillery mechas attack from below.  A platoon of Golden Guardians are deployed under the command of Hikaru.  With their numbers greatly diminished, why are the robots attacking now?  Counter-measures have been put in to detect covert robot infiltrators, and a frontal assault with just 2 squads of air and ground mechas will offer little threat against the humans.

Ryo is concerned, Sensei Keiken is also a little perplexed as to why the attack is happening when there is no chance of success.  A diversion?  Overly cautious and prepared for a covert attack, Ryo organises squads of Uplinks and Cyclone Defenders to patrol the streets and portals for any signs of a breach.

Takeshi and his rookies have returned from the Golden Gateway, he wants to join in but he knows his squad is exhausted and doesn't want them to put others in harm's way.  They're fresh out of the academy and are not yet combat hardened, and they've been up and operating for over 24 hours.  Hikaru seems to have everything under control.

More robot mechas, Iron Condors - none of these were reported on the other side of the wormhole, supersonic mechas designed for aerial attack.  Meca One's squadrons are more or less intact and they are lethal.  Sky Guardians will need to be deployed to counter, but good pilots of that calibre are in short supply.  Hopefully, the half-dozen Mobile Defence Tanks inside the Golden City can help keep them at bay.  Hikaru knows that his platoon of Golden Guardians will be out manoeuvred in the air, they have firepower and shielding but their flight capability was not designed for high speed dogfights.  Ha-Ya-To joins in on his Aero Booster and manages to surprise an Iron Condor, ripping it's wings off and cutting through it's fuselage like it was paper.  He is followed by three Sky Guardians, but more importantly another MDT has arrived to ward off the Iron Condors or at least threaten them to keep their distance.

Meca One is giving a show of strength.  We must not under-estimate this robot.  Sensei Keiken talks to his granddaughter about deployments.  Ryo tells Takeshi that something has been reported in south-eastern sector, nothing threatening but would Takeshi mind having a look on his way back to barracks.  His squad of Uplinks and Cyclone Defenders are inexperienced and he would be more comfortable if Takeshi would perform a reconnaissance of the site.  Why not.  His squad is not best prepared against airborne enemies and Hikaru is a good commander and aerial tactician, he has just been reinforced and is more than capable of holding the fort.

Takeshi summons his two rookies and gets them to follow him back to the barracks with their mechas.  They take a short diversion to the location in the south-eastern sector that Ryo specified.  The Uplink and Cyclone Defender pilots have kept their distance and have held a perimeter.  Sewer access has been breached.  Suspicious, but Takeshi thinks it'll be good for his rookies to get their mechas dirty.  Literally.  He certainly doesn't want to wade through sewage.  Before Takeshi can give out his orders there are Devastators on the edge of his sensors, hiding behind nearby buildings.  A sudden firefight erupts from behind, they are being fired upon!  Turn, return fire.  Ten Devastators are detected now.  One wide spread EMP blast from Watabi and it's over.  Good reactions thinks Takeshi, and smart enough to lower the power so it wouldn't penetrate the active shielding around their Grand Titans.  They are all Devastators, and no Iron Drones.  This must have been important to use Devastator's as ground troops.  Unheard of, even.  Hopefully Ryo can get some information from these deactivated Devastators, assuming their circuits haven't been fried beyond repair.

All of a sudden the attack subsides, the robot forces retreat from the North wall and airspace.  Curious.  Just what exactly happened here?  Takeshi reports in and gets a clean-up crew to take over.  He and his rookies are exhausted.  Whatever's been going on will just have to wait until he gets some sleep.  So much action all around in the hour since they returned from the wormhole, Takeshi doesn't like missing out but he's sensible enough to know he's useless to his friends in his present state.  He heads back to barracks.

To be continued...

Episode 43 - Rookies

It has been 2 months since Ryo's rescue from the other side of the wormhole.  Sensei Keiken has forbidden all travel through the Golden Gateway and sensors have been vigorously working to detect any presence of a wormhole opening up from the other side.

Ryo has been working hard supervising upgrades on all the mechas, and overseeing the production of new mechas.  All have been fitted with triple redundancy circuits and safeguards and shielding against EMPs.  They have been upgraded with better targeting and communications systems and an excess of power and batteries.  Stealth Hunters have been rolling off the production lines as have two new advanced Silent Strikes and a quartet of Aero Boosters, the former two being retro-fitted with a massive bombing arsenal.  Meca One's armies have been badly beaten and air supremacy is necessary to keep it that way with Sky Guardians providing aerial support for the bombing raids on the robot factories.  Uplinks have been retro fitted with better networking but Ryo has decided to concentrate on Cyclone Defenders in the new production line as general purpose mechas for construction and civilian defence within the city walls.  The other remaining Golden Tower mechas have been upgraded but have not been mass produced as their parts are somewhat more difficult to manufacture without the original machinery and resources have been allocated to other areas of manufacturing.  Ground war is going to make use of EMPs against the enemy which will affect the robot pilots even if their mechas offer some active EM shielding so Ryo's plans for his modified Grand Titans are being implemented, albeit slowly as there is a plethora of Golden Guardians which defend the perimeter of the Golden City along with an attack force of Blade Titans and the airways will need strengthening before any ground assault force can be assembled in any great numbers.  Sensei Keiken's team of specialised mechas are always prepared for jungle reconnaissance as they are well adapted for stealth in that environment, but any major advance on Meca One will likely be more direct than covert.

Takeshi has been making use of both Grand and Blade Titans, although his L.01 designated Grand Titan is the only one so far fitted with thrusters and additional beam rifle plus extra EMP power to overcome any passive EM shielding of less than 5 metres thick or active shielding that would require more than the output of a power core.  Battle training has been fun, leaping tall buildings and taking down flying targets, but Takeshi has been getting restless of late.

Sensei Keiken has decided it is time to return to the other side of the wormhole to perform some clean-up operations.  Takeshi is to lead a team of newly qualified pilots on Grand Titans through the wormhole along with Ha-Ya-To as reconnaissance in his Aero Booster.  Great.  Rookies.  Supply of pilots are an issue.  Robots can be manufactured en masse but humans must be trained.  Meca One has lost most of his mechas but manufacturing Devastators and Iron Drones as pilots is easy compared to the mechas that they pilot.  With humans the problem is the other way around, numbers of mechas are now being steadily built up but the pilots needed to work them require time intensive training.

Takeshi prepares his Grand Titan XS, as Ryo affectionately calls it. L.01 will lead L.04 (which Formed part of Ryo's rescue party all those weeks ago) and L.07 (one of the completely new upgraded Grand Titans to roll off the production line), the latter two Grand Titans will be piloted by Takeshi's rookie lieutenants.

The Golden Gateway is activated and the gate party are assigned clean-up duty to destroy and catalogue as many enemy robots and mechas they can find within a 24 hour timeframe.  Ha-Ya-To flies into the wormhole, his upgraded Aero Booster speeds up and cuts out just before entering.  An analogue sensor detects the EMP generated by the wormhole and when this subsides it mechanically restarts the Aero Booster mecha's systems less than a second after it reaches the other side.  Ideally, Takeshi would follow suit with his Grand Titan's thrusters and enter the same way but no other Grand Titan has been fitted with thrusters and he needs to show his rookies how it's done on foot.  He accelerates his mecha towards the wormhole and leaps in, Ryo's upgrades have included an active EM shield that covers all of the Grand Titan's vulnerable systems (made easier as this mecha was designed specifically this way) but as an extra safeguard the detection of the wormhole in it's immediate forward vicinity will trigger the mecha to switch off while in mid-air jump and mere milliseconds upon exiting on the other side of the wormhole Takeshi's mecha is fully on and starting to scan the surrounding area.

Next through is Lt. Kura in L.04.  A good landing on both of his mecha's feet, he proceeds to march forward.  Then Lt. Watabi in L.07.  Where is he?  Suddenly a Grand Titan falls head first through the wormhole and lands on it's front.  Lucky there are new reinforced bull bars protecting the cockpit.  The mecha unceremoniously picks itself off from the ground.  A move that Takeshi thinks this rookie has practised often.  A misjudged leap.  Takeshi remembers falling flat on his mecha the first time he went through the wormhole, but that was before the upgrades, he did land on it's feet on the other side but lost balance and his footing while trying to boot it back up.  These upgrades to the circuitry has done more than add resilience, these mechas feel so much faster and more responsive now.

Regroup!  Up on high ground, 200 metres magnetic North from here.  Ha-Ya-To performs a fly-by before scouting the area, his Aero Boost sonic booms in a northernly direction.  He will go as far as a half-day's walk for the Grand Titans and then scan the radius of the wormhole.  One day is not a long period of time for an operation, but this is a training exercise and a chance for him to try out his improved Aero Booster's scanners and firepower.  Takeshi thinks it would have been more tactical to bring Hikaru and a Silent Strike, but he is busy leading an assault on Meca One's base of operations.  Still, right now listening to all those sonic booms he thinks that at least bringing a Silent Strike or Stealth Hunter woud have been a good idea.  His scanners detect faint interference a kilometre to the north of thir position, he tells his rookies to prepare for a run in double-time.

There is a sign of a battle here.  Takeshi remembers this.  It's where Ryo fought off two Fire Vultures.  There are parts of an Iron Drone under some wreckage, but it's not complete.  Head and chest parts are missing, removed.  There is also just one Devastator here among the ruins of a single Fire Vulture which also looks cannibalised.

Be on alert.  There is a crash site not far from here where there should be several dozen deactivated Iron Drones.  Hopefully still deactivated.  Time to alert Ha-Ya-To, he needs to keep a lookout.  That's if anything within 20 kilometres of him hasn't been frightened away by his sonic booms.

No signs of activity, all of Hikaru's wreckage sightings have been confirmed and another three sites have been unearthed.  Unearthed?  Yes, actually excavated.  We are not alone here.

Keep within network coverage, that's about a kilometre and a half.  Spread out and destroy the designated targets shown on your HUD.  Keep your eyes peeled for any robot activity, we don't want to take any chances here.  The two lieutenants move out and begin to sift through the wreckage, using the dragon fang claws of their mechas to crush any power cores and to slice the head sections of any Iron Drones or Devastators.  Large battle mechas nod vehicles may be destroyed with appropriate firepower.

They work through the night.  There's a lot of ground to cover and this isn't going to be completed overnight.  The spillage fom the initial wormhole covers a section of almost 15 kilometres radius through desert and mountain terrain.  A slice of the pie has been mapped out for this excursion, and even that seems tight given the time they have.  Only an hour left before they rendezvous with the wormhole, Kura has finished and is ready to head back to the rendezvous point but Watabi is behind so he decides to go over and help.

There have been legends of the Golden City for many years, even when the city was discovered and everyone was relocated to it mystery surrounded it.  Who were the original inhabitants?  Where did they go?  Does the Golden Gateway show where they disappeared to?  If it did, then what happened and where are the descendants of that great civilisation?  So many questions and Sensei Keiken is trying to unravel the mystery but the war with the robots isn't over yet and there are other priorities.

Sensors pick up so much static from this orange sand, we've cleared our quota so let's head back.  Kura leads the way.  Ha-Ya-To is flying over the spill area and taking more readings and aerial pictures.  Takeshi is destroying a deactivated Thunder Fury but his Grand Titan is flight capable so he should reach the rendezvous point before the rookies.  Watabi collects samples of the sand, it's a good idea Kura thinks.  Watabi thinks he has so much of it in his cockpit from falling over, he may as well put a positive spin on it.

It's been an uneventful training exercise.  No combat, but that's not a bad thing.  At least the Grand Titans have been put through their paces across rough terrain and the rookies have become more fluent with their handling of their mechas after sitting in the cockpit working and sleeping for a whole day non-stop.  Everyone's tired now.  Next time Takeshi thinks a camp will need to be established for a longer training exercise.

A wormhole opens up at the expected coordinates at the correct time.  It will be a relief to get back home and relax out of the cockpit.  One moment into a golden light in what seems like mere seconds is actually not even that before the team in their mechas appear back inside the Golden Tower.

Systems restarting.  Wait.  What's the commotion.  A little disorientated, Kura see people running around frantically.  There is a whining sound.  No, not whining.  It's the alarm.  He can now hear explosions outside.  We're under attack.

To be continued...