Chapter Text
The sounds of footsteps and the scrapping of metal fold out chairs filled the empty room, as two men walked in front of the crowd, moving before a whiteboard. “Alright good for nothings, listen up!” Shouted one, his black hair and beard with white streaks holding a commanding presence before the group of soldiers, “We all know the situation around that PCA worm, BUT!,” Michigan slammed the whiteboard behind him, his dog tags swinging with a faint jingle, “That little birdie, G13, managed to snag the rail gun from those Coyote dozers, and we’ll be working hand in hand with Arquebus on this sortie, who’ll be sending out the Vespers’ second and twelfth as well as a certain Handler Walter sending in a couple RaD junkers. So we need some volunteers for bait! Who’s up?” A cruel sarcastic smile stretching across his bearded face. He looked across the room catching the glances of several Redguns, G3 Wu Huahai, his dark sickly scarred face blending in with the bags under his eyes, a crooked smile permanently etched across his mouth, G6 Red who stood stiff and at attention fully taking in every word his idol spoke, G4 Volta who blankly stared at the ceiling his broad shoulders bumping into El Condor Pasa who sat beside him, and Mayano Top Gun sitting beside Luminox a wide smile across her face as she watched Michigan’s lecture. “Egh… I ain’t dying to no Worm,” a black haired man said, rising up from his seat attempting to leave. “Ah! Would you look at that! Iguazu, being a man and stepping up first? I never would have expected that from a sorry excuse like you!”
“Egh!? What?!? Hell no!”
“Anyone else want to join G5?”
“Hey listen to me geizer, ain’t no way in hell am I going to-“
“Ai!” a voice from behind the crowd called out cutting off Iguazu, its accent unmistakable in its owner, Taiki Shuttle.
“Would you look at that! Someone actually excited to be here!”
“Tch, HELL NO!! I’m not going on a sortie with her! I’d rather carve out my eardrums with the mess hall’s plastic spoons,” Iguazu shouted at Michigan.
“Get off on your own time Iguazu, but if you really can’t handle this little partner project then we’ll send you out ahead of schedule, see how well you do solo mister lone wolf!”
“Augh… shit!” Iguazu called out dropping back down in his fold out metal chair, arms crossed, kicking his legs up on the back of the seat of G16, Mambo. His messy hair flopping to the side of his head covering the metal plate fused to his skull. Mambo looked back at him, wide eyes trying not to provoke him, then slowly turned back to the whiteboard. “Daw c‘mon Guazu! We're gonna have some fun ‘ere! A good ol’ hunt!” Chimed Taiki, her chipper American southern voice grating on his ears. Iguazu sulked into his jacket as another figure in the back stands up, the Balam AC trainee Meisho Doto, “W-Wait Taiki…”
“Hm? Ye Doto?”
“U-Um… please reconsider, it’s dangerous and…”
“No shit!” Shouted Iguazu, muffled by the collar of his jacket. “Gun Five! If you have something to say, do it like a man and get your head out of your ass!” Scolded Michigan, “Doto, I understand your concerns but we’re here to fight, and Taiki here takes that to heart! You’ll need that if you want to join the Red Guns!”
“That’s it!” Iguazu said, kicking down Mambo’s chair as he stormed off, done with hearing Michigan’s voice. “Ei!” Squealed Mambo as she slammed into the floor, her nose now bleeding from the impact. As Iguazu walked off, the attitude of a moody teenager radiating off of him, an Uma rushed into the room, slamming into Iguazu’s side, he stared at her about to chant out a string of insults like a personal motto, but chose against it to not waste his time. “Forgive my absence Sir Michigan, a king has to attend his ceremonies after all!”
“You’re excused Opera, we already have the slots filled for the Worm hunt, so take a seat or go back to whatever you were doing.”
“What?! The king must perform feats worthy of his title, such as slaying a grand beast like the horrid Ice Worm that ails us!”
“Maybe next time Overlord,” chuckled Michigan as Opera slumped down in the chair between G4 Volta and Doto. Taiki Shuttle walked up behind Doto and Opera grabbing their shoulders and pushing them closer to one another, smiling, as a dorkish smile crawled across Doto’s face, “Sorry there little prince, first come first serve, but I’ll bring back its head for yer mantle, ye?”
“Heh, a King built upon a false foundation can’t stand proud! Michigan is the primest example of a true king, the Hero of Jupiter! The next beast is mine to slay! I heard that G13 took down a giant arachnid beasty and now I miss out on the worm!”
“S-Spider?” Asked Doto. “Yeah heard it wa-“ Opera was cut off by Michigan trying to get back on track. “Alright class let’s get back to the lesson shall we? Or are we going to chatter for the remainder of the session?” Silence filled the room, “No? Great! Nile, take it away!”
“Many thanks teach!” Said the mustached man standing on the other side of the room, brown hair slicked back into a mullet, “So you see the Worm,” he spoke as he walked to the white board, “its body is covered in close to like 9ft thick metal plating, so no cracking through that,” he continued as he pulled out a marker and began to draw a poor rendition of the Ice Worm, each movement squeaking against the whiteboard, “However, around the thing’s ‘mouth’ there’s no plating whatsoever-“
“So jus’ shoot it in the mouth then?” Taiki interjected. “Sadly it isn’t that easy, it has a Coral shield on top of the overkill plating, a shield that only G13 can handle, seeing as they have the stun needle launcher, so y’all protect G13 and once they take out the shield move in and smash its face in!”
“Sir yes sir!” Shouted the crowd in the room. “Gun Nine, you stay on stand-by if worse comes to worse, but it’s unlikely with the crew we’re bringing in.” Nile added as Gentildonna shook her head, helping Mambo with her bloody nose by holding a tissue up to it, “Like the legendary Heracles against the hydra! We will strike this beast down!”
“Sir yes sir!!!”
“Now move out maggots!!! We got a date in three hours!! Michigan shouted, slamming the board again with a loud crash, the crowd stood up, saluted, and single file left the room.
Doto strolled the halls of the Balam facility anxiously awaiting the deployment, she walked to Taiki’s bunk opening the door. “Uh… Taiki?”
“Hm? Ye Doto?” Taiki responded, tying the laces on her boots, having changed into a jumpsuit and jacket with lime highlights. “Are you sure you want to do this job?” Doto questioned, poking the tips of her fingers against each other. “Yeah of course! This is gonna be a fantastic hunt! I’ve been itchin’ for something like this for a long while now, like the ranches of my home back on Jupiter, gotta thank Michigan for that!, well… for what's left of ‘em, war took down most of the infrastructure even out in the farming sectors. But that’s why I’m here, to fight, to repay Michigan and make sure nothing like the Jupiter Wars happens again!”
“But what if…?” Doto paused at the end afraid to finish the sentence. “Hey, we run that risk on every mission, but I have a perfect record, heheh, so I’m good for this one!”
“But this isn’t like any other mission… it’s a-a…”
“A giant metal worm! Hah! …” Doto stared at Taiki Shuttle quietly, watery eyed, “hey if I go down in the field… then you get my badge, deal?”
“W-What?! B-But that’s your badge, you earned that! Why would… oh…”
“Exactly! I’ll be seeing you after the mission, I’ll get that last hit! Then I’ll be Taiki Shuttle, ‘The Worm Killer’ of the Red Guns!”
“Hehe, a-alright…” Doto stuttered, her nerves having been somewhat soothed. “Oh! by the wayyyy Doto~”
“Yeah?”
“When ya gonna tell Opera?”
“T-Tell her what?”
“C’monnnn! I’ve seen the way you’ve looked at her! When she sat next to you earlier, I saw the smile and starry eyes~”
“Augshuagah??!? Shhhh!!! K-Keep it down…” Doto stretched out her arms to try and cover Taiki’s mouth. Taiki smiled wickedly underneath Doto’s hands, “sho, when ya gonna tell er?” She trailed on, muffled by Doto’s grasp. “W-When the… t-time is right! Yep!” The chuckle Taiki let out from under her hands echoed in the room. Taiki and Doto would continue to converse, poke fun at each other, and tell jokes as Taiki continued to get prepared for the hunt, moving to the AC bay.
Metal scaffolding surrounded twenty, thirty foot tall Armored Cores, a ladder leading up to a walkway connecting to each mech. “Alright! move it! move
It! move it!” Shouted Michigan as Taiki Shuttle adjusted the belts attaching her to the piloting chair within her thin framed AC, which wielded two relatively small handguns and a linear rifle on its left shoulder weapon bay. “Someone go find Iguazu and drag his sorry ass here now! We have to set sail in thirty!”
“I’ll go get him,” responded an exhausted looking Volta jogging out of the hanger. “Taiki… how’s it going in there?” Meisho Doto politely asked her over an earpiece, specially made for an Uma’s ears. “All’s swell in here Doto! Making some final checks then I’ll be sound to move to transport.”
“G-Good to hear! … uh… While you’re out there, keep an eye on G13… you know the saying.”
“Aaaaaagh!” Exclaimed Taiki Shuttle dismissively, “Ain’t no curse on thirteen, last guy was just an unstable nutcase criminal like Iguazu an’ the ol chief got too cocky with her position. Sad to see her go the way it happened but can’t say that isn’t what happens when you pick a fight with crazy.”
“So you knew the original Gun Thirteen? Hm… just… make sure to stay safe out there Taiki.”
“A promise is a promise Doto!” Chuckled Taiki as she shifted the lever on the side of the dash panel, taking the AC out of standby mode, its limbs shifting slightly as its own weight was put back onto them. “Enjoy the show Doto! Make sure Opera sees me take down that Worm, getting to brag about that will be a hoot!” Metal clamps shot up from the ground encasing the AC’s feet as they moved along a track, hanger doors opening behind the mech as it was sent into the back of a large transport helicopter with four giant propellers a length and a half longer than an AC is tall. “What the hell Volta?!? Put me down now!!” Cried out an enraged Iguazu slung over the shoulder of Volta who was twice the size of Iguazu. “Give it up already, we’re stuck here so might as well put your ass into gear,” responded Volta. “Like hell! Michigan forced us into this and we made a pack to ring his neck the first chance we got!!”
“He and Nile beat our asses cuz we were some low lives scrounging on the bottom of the barrel, you’re lucky to be here, if Michigan didn’t take you in the IPFD (Inter Planetary Finance Division) would be hunting you down right now for all the debt you have.”
“Oh take it out of your mouth will you! Since when did you become such a fan girl for the old bastard?”
“Since I realized this is all I got now, so you better straighten your ass up or die in the field, I could care less at this point.”
“Ohoh!! Is that a threat? Getting rid of you will put me one step closer to Michigan after all!”
“Try and do something, I can break your wrists with one hand.”
“We’ll see about that!”
“HEY!! If you two are done making out in the back class then haul your ass into the AC!” Shouted Michigan, “Or I’ll send you to work in the mines on Mercury, how’s that sound? Choking on all that dust as you toil away under that heat, so far away from water and food, hoping the transports come on time!”
“Whatever…” Iguazu snarled as he thrust his hands into his pockets, walking towards his AC, Headbringer, growling and murmuring under his breath obscenities about Michigan, Nile, Volta, G13, and nearly every other pilot and faculty in the facility he knew by name. “Alright hunting party! Let’s roll!” Gleefully shouted Michigan in his rough voice.