"Ugh, my head..." Vertin groaned, her hand instinctively reaching her throbbing skull. Her eyes open, scanning the unfamiliar surroundings. Bare, metallic walls rose around her.
"Where am I?"
A cool, dispassionate voice cut through the silence. "You're at Griffin HQ."
Vertin's gaze snapped to the source. A woman with a crisp, uniform stood a few feet away, her expression unreadable. Vertin's eyes then fell to her own hands and legs, tightly bound by a set of reinforced cuffs. A bitter laugh escaped her lips. "So, you guys decided to imprison me, huh?"
"You weren't exactly willing to come along, so we had to improvise," the woman replied, a faint smirk playing on her lips.
Vertin raised an eyebrow, a sarcastic tone lacing her voice. "And this is how you greet new people?"
"Not necessarily," the woman, identified as she stated. "But we are... interested in you."
"Well, it seems I'm quite popular, then," Vertin mused, looking around the stark room. After a moment, she sighed. "I suppose I don't have much of a choice, do I?"
"Good choice." she smirk widened.
The next few moments were a blur. Vertin was unceremoniously dragged to a different room, the metallic cuffs clinking with every step. She was seated on a cold, hard metal chair, as the woman taking the seat directly opposite her. The air crackled with unspoken tension.
"First question," she began, her voice devoid of any warmth. "Who are you? And who do you work for?"
Vertin met her gaze, a hint of defiance in her eyes. "My name is Vertin. I'm an EMS-10 Zudah prototype mobile suit."
Ash's brow furrowed. "Mobile suit? What's that?"
"It's a new type of T-Doll," Vertin explained, her voice even. "We're an advanced version of the types your using much more advanced "
"So, the company that made you is trying to create new kinds of T-Dolls?" she pressed, her interest piquing.
"Yeah, they sent me to test out my capabilities. But after seeing some T-Dolls surrounded, I decided to help them. And it seems by helping them, you guys captured me."
"Be quiet!" she snapped, her composure momentarily slipping. "I'm asking the questions, and you're supposed to answer!"
"Chill out, bro," Vertin retorted, a lazy grin on her face. "But please, continue."
She cleared her throat, regaining her composure. "Ahem. So, the company that made you is called Zimmad, correct?"
"That's right."
She glanced towards a large, one-way mirror on the wall, a silent acknowledgment that others were observing.
"Alright, final question," she continued, her gaze returning to Vertin. "You don't seem to be located by radar or any systems. It's like you're a ghost. Can you explain that?"
"I was designed for covert operations," Vertin said, a hint of pride in her voice. "I'm equipped with a miniature electronic disrupter that blocks radar."
She narrowed her eyes, a suspicious glint in them. "You seem very calm, and you're giving us information quite easily." "(Is she telling the truth? The memories from the T-Dolls who interacted with her seem to confirm it, but there are still things she's holding back)" she thought
Behind the mirrored glass, a certain scientist, her eyes gleaming with predatory fascination, waited patiently.
"This T-Doll, or as she calls herself, 'mobile suit,' is absolutely fascinating," she murmured, her voice barely a whisper. "Her ability to disrupt radar and scramble communications... it's incredible. I want her in my lab. The data I could extract from her is immense, and if I could replicate this, T-Doll evolution would take a massive leap. But the most interesting part is this company, Zimmad. Do we have any information about them?"
The man beside her shook his head. "We've found some data about the company, but their location remains elusive."
"Well, it seems this company wants to be secretive," she mused, a thoughtful frown on her face. "But I wonder why send their Doll to a war zone to test out its capabilities? That's one reason, but something just doesn't add up." Her fascination with Vertin was palpable, tinged with a hit of suspicion.
"Do you think her company will try to get her back?" the man asked.
"Probably," she replied. "But for the most part, she's remarkably compliant."
"Maybe, maybe," she acknowledged. "But make sure security is heightened. Who knows, her company might just send people to retrieve her. She's incredibly valuable."
"Yes, that's precisely why I've increased security and patrols," he reassured her.
"Very well. I must be off. I need to get back to the lab." She strode out of the room, and the woman entered, greeting the man.
"I've completed the interrogation. She answered everything well, but I feel she's not telling us something,"
She reported.
"Yes, I know," he said, his gaze fixed on the mirror. "But don't let your guard down. Her company might come back to claim her."
"Yes, I know. Should I double the security around her?" she asked.
"Yes, add more guards outside her cell," he instructed.
"Understood." she turned and left the room.
Back in her cell, Vertin leaned back against the wall, a faint smile playing on her lips. "(So, did they find the fake company?) " she mused, directing the question to her internal AI.
[Answer: Yes, and they have not found anything suspicious for the most part.]
"(Good,)" Vertin thought. "(But AI, can I summon my units outside? Like, can I summon them outside the building or very far away?)"
[Answer: You cannot summon them far away, but you can summon them outside the building.]
"(Okay, that will work,)" she affirmed, a plan already forming in her mind.( This will help me gain the trust of G&K. I just need my 'company' to try and retrieve me, and almost escaping, my 'company decided' to 'lend' me to G&K for combat data. And with my summoned units, we'll form the Enclave Unit. Yes, this will work. I just need to wait for night. Hours crawled by. When darkness finally enveloped the base, Vertin instructed her AI to summon her units just outside her cell. She looked up at the camera watching her, then at the clock. The time has come. Start Operation 'BS My Way Through')
Precisely as the clock hit midnight, a deafening BOOM echoed through the corridor. A massive hole ripped through the wall of her cell, revealing the cause: a striking MS girl with sleek black hair and black armor covering her torso, arms, and legs. Her face was obscured by a helmet, a single crimson eye gleaming within. A formidable bazooka rested in her right hand, and a heat saber was sheathed at her back.
"So, you've come to rescue me," Vertin said, her voice laced with amusement. Behind the MS girl, another figure emerged—a girl wielding a colossal cannon. She had brown hair, clad in a Zeon uniform with green camo, gray, and desert colors, and a visor covering her face.
"Commander, let's go!" the MS girl urged, extending a hand.
"Very well. Lead the way." Vertin took her hand just as two guards burst through the cell door. Before they could react, they were mowed down by the 3-barrel, 35mm machine gun attached to the arm of the tank girl.
"Commander, let's hurry! Enemy reinforcements are nearby!" the tank girl yelled, before leaping out of the gaping hole and landing silently on the ground below with dom.
(AI, activate rigging!) Vertin mentally commanded.
[Understood... Activating rigging.]
"Good. Let's start." Vertin jumped down, her teammates landing gracefully beside her.
"Commander, Dopp is going to bombard the entrance while Magella will drop smoke to cover our escape," the MS girl reported.
"Copy that!" Vertin replied. Moments later, multiple missiles slammed into the main entrance, where operatives and T-Dolls were gathered.
"That's the signal! Let's go, Commander!" the MS girl shouted.
As they sprinted towards the entrance, Magella unleashed a thick cloud of smoke, blanketing their escape. Beyond the smoke, multiple armored cars and T-Dolls awaited, weapons aimed.
"You are surrounded! Drop your weapons and lay down on the ground!" a T-Doll yelled.
"Not happening! Dopp, now!" dom yelled. Before the T-Dolls could react, multiple missiles combined with relentless machine-gun fire tore through the armored cars, blasting a path through the blockade.
"Come on, this is our chance!" the MS girl exclaimed, but then recoiled as she was struck by fire from the surviving T-Dolls. The shots, however, did nothing.
"Pathetic! You can't even damage me! Die!" she growled, aiming her bazooka. Before she could fire, a voice from behind them yelled, "Stop! Stop! Ceasefire!" A man, waving a tablet frantically, ran towards them.
"Stop," the tank girl said, her cannon still aimed at him.
"Wait! I have something important to give you! It's from your company!" he stammered, beads of sweat trickling down his face.
"Give me that," Vertin said, signaling the tank girl to lower her weapon. She snatched the tablet and quickly read its contents.
"It seems our company is lending us to G&K," she announced, handing the tablet to Magella and Dom. After reading it, they both looked at Vertin.
"If we're with the Commander, if she says okay, we follow," they stated in unison. Dopp landed near them, a green-haired MS girl with a Zeon uniform, a jetpack with wings, and a Doppler cockpit acting as her helmet. Thrusters were attached below her feet.
"Commander, is it true we're going to help the people who captured you?" Dopp asked, her head tilted. Dom promptly delivered a light tap to the back of Dopp's head. "If the Commander says we're going to help them, then we help them," Dom corrected.
"Yes, yes, I understand! I'm sorry, Commander!" Dopp mumbled, lowering her head as Vertin chuckled at her cuteness.
Vertin then extended her hand to the Griffin commander, who was still visibly shaken by the attack. "I hope we didn't cause a ton of damage, right?" she asked, a wide, innocent smile on her face. The commander, sweating bullets and witnessing the destruction of his base firsthand, could only stare in nervous silence.