The Req Gewehnr launched forward with a burst of energy, its remaining arm pulled back for a punch.
"You! How dare you!" Hanada shouted.
Before the fist could land, Obscudeid gave a faint smile and faded away like a ghost.
"That will be all," he said.
The Req Gewehnr's fist slammed into the ground—empty.
"What? He's gone…?" Hanada muttered, eyes wide.
Sora's voice came through urgently.
"Watch out!"
[BOOOOOOOOOOM!!]
A massive magma blast surged toward them—but all three mechs managed to evade just in time, diving in separate directions.
The Avantgarda raised its double swords, energy pulsing through their edges.
"I'm going in," Sora declared.
"Wait, Sora!" Sabine called out.
The Avantgarda dashed forward, blades ready to strike—but the Kaiju's tail snapped out and wrapped tightly around the mech's right leg.
"What?!"
The monster slammed the mech into the ground—once, twice, three times—before hurling it across the field like a toy.
"Aghhhhhh!!" Sora groaned as the cockpit shook violently.
"Sora!!" Sabine cried out.
Stelvane raised its gun, aiming straight at the Kaiju.
"Sabine, wait…" Hanada said.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"We need a plan before charging in. Our machines are too damaged to fight that thing without one…"
Sabine looked toward the smoke where Sora had crashed, then lowered her weapon slowly.
"…Rondo… Baynard…" she whispered.
Hanada opened his comms.
"This is Lieutenant Hanada Halfway of Blue Deathster—requesting backup! Two pilots down, and our mechs are severely damaged. We need assistance to eliminate the Kaiju ASAP before it reaches the city."
"Copy that, Lieutenant," a voice replied.
Hanada took a breath.
"We'll have to buy time until reinforcements arrive…"
"What's your plan?" Sabine asked.
Meanwhile, the Avantgarda slowly rose from the dirt, its frame sparking and staggering. Inside the cockpit, Sora groaned, blinking back to consciousness.
"Ugh… Machine status report…"
"Right leg unstable. Multiple inner frames overheating."
"Crap…"
The mech dropped to one knee, unable to bear its own weight.
"Is the Nexus Arsenal still usable?!"
"Negative. Mech systems are severely damaged. Activating the Arsenal now would result in full structural collapse and guaranteed pilot death."
"Oh come on!!"
Hanada's voice buzzed in.
"Sora! Listen—we need to buy time. The monster is moving toward the city!"
"What?! It's only twenty miles away?!"
"I know! Me and Sabine are doing the best we can!"
[BANG! BANG! BANG! BOOM!]
"You get your ass up and help us! Now!" Sabine shouted.
The Avantgarda lifted off the ground, engines sputtering, and soared toward the others to regroup.
"It's gonna take an hour or less before they get here…" Sora muttered. "That's not enough time… Damn it… I have no choice…"
The Kaiju unleashed another magma blast.
Stelvane raised its shield.
[KZZZZZZZTTT—BOOM!]
The shield exploded under pressure.
"Fuck! There goes my defense!" Sabine cursed.
The Kaiju's tail swept again, slamming into the Req Gewehr and launching it across the terrain.
"Ughhhhhhh!!" Hanada groaned.
"Hanada!!" Sabine and Sora cried out together.
The Kaiju began glowing.
Sabine's computer blared with alerts.
"WARNING: Massive heat signature detected… Nuclear level…"
"Nuclear?!" Sabine gasped.
"We need to do something!" Sora shouted.
Then—
A beam of energy pierced through the air and struck the Kaiju from afar.
[BOOOOOOOM!!]
"What?!" the three pilots exclaimed at once.
Sora stared through the smoke in disbelief. "They came…?"
From above, four Blitz Gigamobiles hovered in the sky.
"Alright, fellas! We need to stop that monster before it gets to the dome! Give it everything you've got!" Captain Igor barked.
"Roger!"
"Blitz Gigamobiles?!" Hanada said in disbelief.
"I called them…" Sora replied.
"What?"
"We'll talk later! Right now—we kill that thing!"
Among the pilots—Jagt.
"Blue Deathster… Who gave you the right to order our assistance?" Jagt muttered.
"Jagt!" Igor snapped. "Quit hovering and help! I know you're pissed, but lives are at stake!"
"Ugh… Copy, Captain…"
The Gigamobiles opened fire on the Kaiju.
The monster roared and lashed out—its tail whipped across the sky, destroying two Gigamobiles in a single swing.
"Oh God!" Igor shouted.
"Goddammit!!" Jagt clenched his fists and dove in.
He weaved between the Kaiju's attacks and returned fire. His Gigamobile's two rifles combined, its backpack shifting into a large energy system.
In the Blitz control center, alarms flashed.
"Goddammit, here he goes again!" Strazer yelled.
Inside Jagt's cockpit, Strazer's voice screamed through the comms.
"You idiot! You're using the mech's full power again!"
"Shut up, Strazer! I'm stopping this thing no matter what!"
"Blitz Cannon… Obliteration!!"
[BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!]
A monstrous surge of energy blasted from Jagt's cannon, engulfing the Kaiju in blinding light and smoke.
Sabine, Sora, Hanada, and Igor watched, stunned.
"Did he get it…?" Sabine asked.
As the smoke cleared, the Kaiju's glowing orange eyes pierced through.
It was still alive—and furious.
"Dammit…" Jagt hissed.
[WARNING: POWER LEVELS CRITICAL]
"Oh come on!!"
[System reboot: 30 seconds]
The Gigamobile began falling from the sky—but was caught by Igor's mech just in time.
"Captain…" Jagt murmured.
On the battlefield, Sabine and Hanada raised their weapons, standing back-to-back.
Sora stared at the monster, frozen.
"…Are we… Am I… going to die?"
The heat signature spiked again—dangerously high.
In that moment, Sora's mind flashed.
"We'll grow old and live a happy life together, alright?"
"Layla…"
The Kaiju opened its mouth, energy pulsing in its hands. It prepared to unleash its final, nuclear-level attack.
Inside the city dome, civilians looked up. Panic spread.
"Run! It's gonna kill us!"
People screamed, fled, cried.
"Is this it…?" Sabine and Hanada whispered.
Then—
A beam of immense energy shot from above.
[BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!]
The blast disintegrated the Kaiju in one shot. Its body exploded in a violent chain reaction, engulfed in smoke and flame.
"What?!" Igor gasped.
"Was that…?" Jagt blinked.
Through the smoke, a silhouette emerged—flying with grace and power.
A white mech with blue stripes hovered in the air, holding a massive railgun still glowing from the shot.
Hanada's voice trembled.
"That machine…"
Sabine stared in awe.
"The Eahalten Vogel…"
Sora whispered the name.
"Captain… Ruri Turning…"
Inside the cockpit of the Eahalten Vogel, Ruri's voice rang cold and calm.
"Target eliminated."