Chapter 3: Front 1.5; Combat – Part 2/2

She had almost forgotten it and this time she cursed herself, 'Focus damn it, you'll always be called Rookie if you keep messing your timings up.'

So enthralled with studying the two contrasting fighting styles of those before her Una had nearly forget the next part of the plan.

 According to Kolme, Sabban would indeed lose. There had been no hint of concern when he'd said this and Sabban hadn't stirred either but now seeing it with her own eyes Una began to doubt how exactly she was meant to change that outcome, it felt as though just getting close to the two enemy fighters migth spell your doom.
 The cold metal of the controls had by now become uncomfortable against the sweat of her palms and she was forced to constantly mop her brow.

She took another deep breath, desperately trying to focus her breathing while the acrid smells of the cockpit filled her nose. It had to be right, a second out and the sniper or the Red-mech would have her.
  '10 to 1 eh? Screw that, you always were overconfident in class Sabban Vint.'
Her mech all but stood stationary, only making small movements to keep in line with the battle, the sniper still held its place, never moving, always ready.

Sabban's mech glided forward rapidly, it's remaining shotgun held out, Arc-Staff in his off hand. Una watched as he blocked the enemy's own blade and then raised his gun to chest height. Mere seconds off landing a direct hit to the torso region of the enemy, said foe replied in kind - Clearly having never been pushed off-balance by Sabban's gambit, it backflipped effortlessly in spite of it's stocky size and landed a kick squarely to Sabban's own chest region, causing his mech to spiral backwards from the force of impact made by the cartwheeling foe - The shotgun shells firing off against nothing but empty space and his machine moving well into the range of the enemy rifle's sights.

Una rammed forward the control levers once more, griped hard the controls and launched forward. Like a bullet with her shield held outstretched before her, she smashed bluntly into the unsuspecting red mech, the force causing it to move backwards until it could finally activate it's own thrusters and halt The Rookie's approach.

Indeed her momentum failed and she hung in the air almost peacefully for a moment or two, her shield pinned against the enemy's arms, the rest of her machine hanging lazily in the vacuous space behind the shield - Almost giving the appearance of a person leaping through the air to embrace another.
 It had been enough, she had once more blocked the snipers path with it's own comrade's form and given Sabban time to recover. There was only one question remaining;
 'What Now? Was that in the plan?'

She wetted her lips gently, filling her whole monitor now was the face of the enemy, that strange sloping triangular head, with it's massive red eye that seemed to dwarf her whole being - And it's collection of smaller red dots crawling around like those of some cruel insects, swarming around her monitor screen.

 It was a very long couple of second. She breathed as best she could.

The Red Mech began to move now, keeping one hand still a-hold on her shield, it stretched the other to its side and drew forth one of its Arc-staffs, the thin weapon sliding outwards like a telescope with painful tedium.
 Una didn't know how to react, she reached for the thruster controls, to try and put some distance between them but she was far too slow, the Arc-Staff came colliding down between the shield and her Vijaik, in an instant the front armour began to melt against the plasma, her monitors all in unison began to flash a deep crimson hue matched only by that single red eye filling the main view-screen, the noise of the alarms alone dazzling her senses.

As for the Red machine it's off hand began to tense, it pulled back it's shoulder, never releasing it's hold of the shield, till finally in one flush movement it tore the shield free of it's steading - All while spinning around, blade still in the other hand slicing a second massive gash through Una's mech - In effect creating a massive cross-like shape across the entirety of her machine's upper body.

The impact was enough to cause her whole vehicle to drift haplessly backwards a few paces. She found herself thrown back into the seat of the cockpit from the force of the onslaught, clutching at her stomach she gasped for air, now far harder to come by then she'd ever thought possible - As she writhed from the physical winding of the inertia.
 Glancing upwards, desperately reaching out for the controls to do something, anything, she saw that single ominous eye once more, seemingly pulsing brighter than before. Mirrored only by the pale glow of the Arc-Staff now racing rapidly through the air towards her chest in single fencing like motion - To deliver the finishing blow.

****

"Not half bad I guess."
 The calm words came as a muffled slur over the radio connection and upon her monitor she watched as the Red eye and glowing weapon were replaced by the back end of another machine - One of a deep blue, almost brown hue.

Just like that it passed, her defeat was over, for a time atleast as Sabban picked back up the fight, having had chance to regain his bearings he quickly fought back off the monstrous Red-Vijaik in quick succession, a whole new duel of blades beginning between the two once more.

For her part just Una stared out, still trying to reclaim her breathing but it was no longer just that which ailed her. Her mind raced, screaming at her to run: 'To run, to run, to run anywhere that isn't in view of that cruel lonely red eye!'
 Her throat wretched but she helded back the urge to be vomit. A minute atleast seemed to of passed when she finally fixed her posture and attempted to dry her soaked face with the sleeves of her uniform.

'It's nearly done, just a little more and the plan is over, You can do it, You definitely can do I- Do what again?'
 She trepidatiously felt her way around the controls and instruments of the cabin, it suddenly felt so very small. Claustrophobic almost with its's myriad of artificial lights and screens, it's cold steel control levers and panels of uncaring switches.

Trying desperately to recompose her mind she began processing the information said screens portrayed, the plan hadn't exactly covered the unpredictable specifics before her. The battle had moved away from her now and was clearly entering it's final stage.
 The Red mech having almost already beaten Sabban before, was now pressing another merciless attack.
For his part, despite his heroics in rescuing his young colleague, Sabban had been reduced to a purely defensive pursuit, no longer able to get in any of his own offences.

This had culminated in his being struck twice by the cyan rifle wielder whom had taken advantage of Sabban's more hurried positioning to strike around the Red-Vijaik, claiming for itself the left leg of Sabban's machine and from the elbow down of the right appendage, further landing a number of lesser hits to the limbs and backpack.
 Una had been growing more depressed observing this gradual dismemberment of her ally's mech until a thought crossed her mind; 'They think I'm already dead!'
 Indeed if her sensors were even remotely right it seemed the massacre she'd taken had reduced her armour to ash, especially that of her frontal sections but by some miracle it had failed to pierce the cockpit.

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From the outside her Vijaik must of appeared as a floating husk with the cockpit seemingly having been punctured - Just another random piece of space debris.

As she sat there free floating, this new information in mind, she began to think on what would be the best course of action.
 A part of her still screamed for a retreat, preferably to an alternate solar system if possible, but she knew it wasn't the time to sit idly by.
 This was her chance, the time to prove herself to the others, but simply charging the Red enemy again surely wouldn't do, no she'd be hit by the sniper first as soon as she showed any signs of life, no doubt.

'Nothing fancy, just buy time, time for the last part of the plan, yes the plan, right. The plan...'
 It took easily another minute or two but finally she decided on her course, carefully she reached to a panel on her left and in one simple act, flipped a single switch.
 A small note flashed in the top corner of her main viewscreen:
Magnetic Clap A Released.

She held her breath expecting at any moment for a streak of navy to come straight for her, for the enemy to easily see through her rouse, but no such thing occurred. The sniper's scope remained firmly trained on Sabban, who continued to desperately fight back slash after heavy slash from the Red Vijaik.

With still baited breath she watched her rifle, now floating freely from it's restraint, move slowly up across her monitor screens and with all the precision her trembling and saturated hands could manage, she moved a single finger of her mech's own gargantuan hand, a metallic finger multiples bigger than her own hands in their entirety.

The seconds moved on, her trap painstakingly lain, the weapon continued it's journey sluggishly upwards, all the while her eyes also focused on the still ongoing clash. She knew really it couldn't of been that long, the fight was going too badly for it to of been more than a few minutes - Sabban had by now been reduced to just a lone arm and single staff, at this point it seemed almost as thought the Red-Machine should of already won.
 In fact it struck Una that the Red-Mech actually seemed almost not to be trying, it's movements had slowed from before, there was little visual injuries to be seen compared to Sabban's Vijaik and yet in-spite of this the battle continued on.
 Sabban's machine growing ever more battered as it desperately sought to fend off seemingly lazy but powerful strikes from the Red-Menace and even more powerful attacks from the Cyan-Bystander in the back.

Nonetheless it was clear to Una that she would need to act any moment now, unless the final stage of the plan came first, she'd have to buy more time and like a scheduled event that moment came.

The Red Machine effortlessly, side-lined a desperate counter from Sabban before grabbing his mech's final arm and swinging the whole machine afield in one big broad motion like some mechanical wrestler - Straight into the snipers line of sight.
 The sniper fired.

In a remarkably stroke of almost unnatural intuition, Sabban almost seemed to of predicted the enemies firing path to the detail as he reached out still in free fall, and grabbed a passing piece of debris - Una's discarded shield in fact - tossing it with blinding accuracy at the incoming line of deathly Blue energy.
 
The shield predictable melted away in a matter of moments but it had been enough to stop the beam striking Sabban's crew cabin.   Now there was just the Red machine closing in, but it seemed Sabban was all out of bright ideas on that front, with no more tricks to prolong his defence. Sabban's brown Neo-Type, reduced to a single arm for limbs, floated helplessly as the enemy closed in, it seemed the Red one would final stop playing and deliver the last-blow.

----

Una sprang for a second time that day, the rifle had by now been hooked on to her Vijaicks outstretched arm, which from afar simply looked like a natural happening, pieces of debris floating around one another.
 Moving subtlety as possibly, she confirmed the hook she'd made from one, lone outstretched digit, grabbed the weapon proper, took aim and fired a slew of shots in the direction of the Red enemy.
 It stopped dead in it's tracks, appearing to easily sidesteps the orange-coloured barrage with minimal effort before turning it's attention back to Sabban's mech which was attempting to stabilise itself with what little thrusters remained.

But Una was determined now, talking a more careful aim, she readied herself for one last shot, one direct strike right at the moment the enemy went to take out her comrade - When it would be most vulnerable mid-swing with one of it's mighty Calibre blades.
 She never got that chance however.

The sniper had already taken aim before Una had finished lousing her first shots but now seeing Una ready to fire once more with a great degree of certainty, the enemy unit seemed to hesitate and change tact.
 At the crucial moment it took the mark, destroying Una's rifle rather than targeting her cabin. Threat dealt with the Cyan-machine re-aligning itself ready to finish her with a simple shot to the ruined frontal armour of Una's mech, where the Red machine had already struck it before.

'That's it then', she thought as the explosion of her rifle filled her viewscreen. She lay back reluctantly in the chair.
 There was nothing else to do, even if she tried to shield Sabban with her mech's body, she'd first have to get there and she clearly had no time left - She felt a small pinch of pride for having managed to atleast grab her rifle and slow the enemy before getting detected, better than she had expected from herself - 'Though of course not enough to make any real difference.'

No weapons remaining, no-where to take cover for very long in that vast colourless void, and thanks to the damage from earlier or some other technical fault, her monitor unhelpfully informed her that ejection was:
'Not an Available Option at This Time.'

'Not a bad try though right? I mean better then having your mech stolen this time eh? ha..ha...
 What a difference just one day can make, just yesterday I was......'

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