125. Once a Trainee

The Arcanite signatures beeped erratically on Zetius's radar. His wide eyes snapped to the screen. A hundred red dots entered his scan range like surging locusts.

The inside of his hull simultaneously blared red as per battle protocol.

"What's going on?!" Zetius muttered under his breath. "Cubie! Connect me to the main bridge!" he ordered sharply.

Next to him, he noticed the enormous Arcanite engines revved with even greater intensity. The Zeigerlich soon engulfed itself in a blue, semi-translucent shield. Its course shifted downward, performing a nose-dive.

"Connecting!" Cubie replied, and a moment later, background noise echoed in the cockpit as Sandria's face appeared on the screen. She appeared calm and collected despite the tense atmosphere.

"Zetius! We're going to nose-dive under the cloud. Return to the hangar now!" Sandria ordered firmly.

"Listen, Sandria. You need to deploy combat drones fast. My scanner picked up hundreds of Armatus mobile suits rushing on our location!"

"What?!" Sandria's eyes darted to her large screen as red markers flared across Zeigerlich's radar. She grimaced but quickly composed herself.

"Operators, enemy units deployed. Unleash the Armatus drones now!" she commanded, gesturing with her hand.

Zetius's dark green Armatus flew close to the battlecruiser, matching its speed as they gradually descended.

His eyes snapped to the north, where looming black dots were visible across the orange horizon, resembling a swarm of insects.

"Hades's hell! This can't be happening when we're just hours away from Solis Aeternum!" Zetius grimaced inside the cockpit, adjusting his position. His arc coat rustled as he shifted.

"Zetius, report back to the hangar!" Sandria commanded. Behind her, Aurelia's face loomed in the background, her expression full of concern.

Sighing to himself, he complied. "Alright, I'll let your drones stroll them for now."

The giant panels on each flank of the dark, green vessel slowly opened, exposing the mezzanine floor packed with dozens of Armatus units. Soon, they began to fly out in orderly patterns like mechanical bees.

The swarm of Armatus drones flew past his mobile suit, causing ripples in the air. His cockpit swirled slightly before the gyroscope stabilised him and his thrusters steadied.

Zetius motioned his Armatus to drift across the sky and entered the mezzanine floor. Once inside, he landed heavily on the checker plate flooring, the metal clanking loudly under the crushing weight.

The metal panels rumbled as they closed, and the howling noise ceased. Aurelia frantically jogged from the hangar entrance towards his Armatus.

His torso's hull swung upward, and Zetius dropped six metres to the floor. His knees bent slightly to absorb the impact.

"Huh? That's convenient," he mused. Even he was amazed at his newfound endurance. Cubie zipped downward, hovering at his left shoulder.

"Zeta!" Aurelia bellowed as she approached, her boots clapping on the metal. Behind her, Friederich emerged from the hallway.

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Nodding to Friederich, Zetius suggested firmly, "You two don't have aerial combat capability. You'd better stay here and protect the crew." He stressed the point, glancing at the erratic technicians in the background. Some were loading Armatus arsenals, others ran diagnostics for a second deployment wave.

"Zetius, the fifty drones have now engaged the enemy bots. The frontline is holding," Cubie reported.

He immediately glared at her, confused.

"What do you mean, Cubie?" he asked, and his friends also directed their gaze towards her curiously.

"I'm still connected to the Armatus system remotely. I've been able to see through the drone's visors," Cubie explained, her voice remaining coherent and smooth.

"Nice! I didn't know you could do that," Zetius praised, patting her rough edges. She hummed like a purring cat. Weird feeling, he thought to himself.

"I agree with you on this one, Zetius. However, let's see how long they can hold out against the knights," Friederich interjected nonchalantly.

WHACK!

Suddenly, the entire ship rocked violently, throwing Aurelia forward. Quick on reflex, Zetius grasped her shoulders to steady her. Friederich, however, fell onto the floor, groaning softly.

"What was that?" Zetius blurted, sweeping his eyes across the hangar, where crates had toppled and debris and spare parts were scattered across the floor.

"The shield absorbed the impact. Now at seventy-two per cent integrity," Cubie reported, her blue light flickering erratically.

"Zetius? It seems like they've got lancer types! They'll outrange us at this rate," Sandria's voice boomed out of Cubie, who now acted as the comms unit.

"Hades's!" Zetius cursed. He knew what he had to do. "I'll sortie!" he reported to Sandria.

Swiftly pulling his hands back from Aurelia, he spun towards the Armatus suit—

A hand gripped his wrist midway. He turned to see Aurelia, genuine worry painted her face.

"Please be safe!" she said, her voice almost pleading.

A smile spread across his face. "Of course. You two stay here and protect them on board. I'm counting on you both!" he said, glancing between Aurelia and Friederich. His elven friend nodded solemnly in acknowledgement.

"Cubie! Let's get cracking!" Zetius exclaimed with a thrill, then dashed forward, propelling himself upward with a fire blast as Cubie zipped alongside.

***

"I apologise that it's come to this. You are our only option," Sandria's voice crackled through the comm, a hint of regret and guilt in her tone.

She wished she could, but she didn't trust the defected trio of Armatus Knights in the cockpit just yet. Unlike common Mechanii or work crews, who were employed and worked for financial reasons, it was a stark difference for the Knights. They sought glory above all else.

From what she'd heard of the Knight Institute, their ranks ran thicker than bloodlines. The defective knights would need to pass security clearance before she felt comfortable enough to allow them back into their killing machines.

"Don't worry about it! I'm actually confident in my piloting skills!" Zetius said, his voice grounded.

"Okay, ace pilot Zetius. I can entrust you to come back alive, right?" Sandria probed, seeking reassurance.

"I betcha! At one time, a Platinum Knight was my teacher, you know." His words grew heavy towards the end, a flash of the good old days with Rhok slipping into his mind.

She smiled faintly at him before nodding twice and disconnecting the comm.

Quickly shaking the thought of Rhok's betrayal away, Zetius knew he had a task at hand to focus on. He flew his Armatus through the air, putting more distance between himself and the battlecruiser.

[Beep—Beep—Bepp!]

Erratic warnings flared out.

Bzzzzzzst—WHACK!

A colossal beam of condensed light shot out, cleaving through the cloud. It zeroed in on him with inconceivable speed to human eyes.

However, Zetius grunted as he reacted within a split second. His thrusters roared, throwing his mobile suit to the side.

The destructive beam narrowly grazed him. He could almost feel the searing heat.

Zetius took a sharp turn, watching as the beam veered away from the Zeigerlich. It was now clear that the shot was aimed at him.

He grimaced, feeling a storm brewing within.

"Now it's my turn! Cubie, be my second eyes and ears!" he commanded, as his Armatus lurched towards the battlefield. The microbombs and dark smoke already clouded the distance ahead.

"Understood!" she replied as they surged forward, racing through the enemy lines.

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