Part 62: Mission #59: Things Fall Apart

I have decided that if the Bulls lose the series, someone will be permanently barred from submitted wanzers. You should probably hope that either I calm down or that the Bulls pull this out.

Mission #59: Things Fall Apart



: Now you're sure we're gonna make it...?
: Shut up and get going!
: Ahh!


: Alisa!
Apparently Alisa can't even manage to walk in a straight line without fucking it up. No wonder Kazuki goes ballistic whenever Alisa is in danger, she has the survival instincts of a suicidal lemming that just took out a large life insurance policy for his family.
{Liu, who is behind Alisa, helps her stand.}
: Thank you, Liu.
: What're you doing? Hurry up and go!



And now we have to go to the control room to sink Ocean City so that Okinawa isn't destroyed, even though MIDAS exploding underwater would seem likely to cause a tsunami. Oh, wait, that's right, the radiation that MIDAS creates is apparently neutralized by water, which makes zero sense. Let's got this fucking shit over with already.



: The destabilization will permanently sink the block.
: Found it. It's a DHZ landing craft.
Man, that's lucky...by which I mean it's completely contrived that we'd just happen to stumble on a landing craft.
: All right, we'll use that to escape. Alisa!
: Setting to maximum power. Okay, let's get out!



: That's it!
: Hurry up and get on!
: All right, Liu!
: Okay, hang on tight!



Yep, it turns out that Ocean City has a irrevocable self-destruct protocol that can be activated by a random stranger in only a few minutes. Sounds safe.



Will we make it?



Hard to say.



Although the pillars supporting the platform we're on probably isn't a great sign.



And as the ground under us begins to disintegrate, the landing craft finds traction hard to maintain. On the plus side, if Ocean City sinks, I guess we'd float...for the few remaining seconds before MIDAS wiped the party off of the face of the earth.



Wait, did the designers of this place put bombs in every building in Ocean City in the event that they may, one day, have to blow up the island for some reason?



Evidently so. The future, ladies and gentleman! A soylent chicken in every fusion-pot, and a shaped explosive charge in every basement!



And the landing craft stalls. Well, I suppose it's fitting this branch should end with the party being killed by the consequences of their own moronic actions.

: Are you all right, Liu!?
: Tch...



Oh, good, Lukav is here.

: Lukav!
: Lukav... You haven't run away yet!?
: Apparently Rosavia didn't do her job. So be it.



I don't even care anymore. Hell, we've already blown up a half-dozen of your wanzers so far, and, in this game, a giant wanzer just means that I can never miss hitting it.



: Are you trying to exterminate humanity with MIDAS!?
: Yes. If you are left to your own devices, the world will be destroyed. I wish to create the ideal nation before that happens.
Humanity did let the Miami Heat happen. Maybe...maybe it's time for us to die...
: I've just about had enough of you! Ideal nation my butt! I desire nothing you have to offer! Who decided the world was going to end anyway!?
: History shows that humans continue to make the same mistakes.
: Those who accept their mistakes can avoid making them again. The people who repeat their mistakes are bullheads like you!
: ...? Are you implying that I am nothing but a pathetic human!?
: Yes, Lukav. It doesn't matter how you were born. Both you and I are just mere humans. Think about it. You must be sensing some panic. You're probably terrified of Kazuki now. That's definitely an emotion.
: Silence, Real Number! You say I feel fear? I am not dominated by my emotions!
Christ, are you really going to go with the 'power of the human spirit?' Really? And I still have to do the other branch? Fuck.
: Lukav, you could never hope to surpass humans. You're the failure. You don't even understand emotions!
: Shut up! I am superior. There is no one who can best me!
: Don't get so cocky! You don't have the power to change the world!
: I am like a god! Imperfect humans like you couldn't possibly comprehend me!
Lukav is apparently the emo messiah, destined to finally teach all parents that they don't understand what it's like, until he is betrayed by Judisturbed Iscariot, who sells him out for a thirty dollar gift certificate to Hot Topic.
: Fine... I guess I'll have to show you... by force! Yeah, but in the end, you're only a human!



Liu, Kazuki, Miho, and Mayer. I wish I had more than two shields for the squad, but shields weren't popular among the thread, so here we are. And before you start thinking that Liu could finish this battle in one shot, while Lukav isn't immune from Body Smash, the mission requires you to kill all of the enemies. Now, they appear to be your run of the mill Shunwangs and Lenghes but...



The weapons aren't anything special, but they have 'S' ranks in those weapons. That's about...five levels ahead of our best units...and we're outnumbered. Lukav's crab monster isn't even the biggest threat. Don't get me wrong, he can hit you hard, but the Lenghes hitting for 600 damage a pop is much scarier because they almost never miss.



Of course, if you blow them out of their wanzers, they're nothing special.



And Lukav promptly shoots a missile that does over 500 damage. I really, really wish I had more shields for this map. Lukav has 12 missiles, and, if he runs out of those, he has a grenade launcher. Also, there's exactly one accessible square on this map that's outside of his missile range.



Miho is not doing well, to say the least.



Wrong arm, Miho, wrong arm...



Kazuki's not doing much better than Miho, especially since, as the first wanzer selected, the AI targets him first. Still, that doesn't stop him from taking a few enemies out.



It's a slog, to be sure. There's really no avoiding the enemy, and they hit harder than you, so it comes down to battle skills and tactics.



Kazuki finally succumbs to the enemy. In fairness, that's pretty true to the performance of the Berzuki.



Miho gets knocked out shortly thereafter. It wasn't a great mission for her. She couldn't stand up to the Lenghes, and the Shunwangs had superior range.



And Liu gets hurt by a cheap battle skill. It's cheap because I wasn't the one using it.



Things are just not going well all around. This, fortunately, was on the enemy phase, so Mayer was able to climb back into her wanzer.



Liu is hanging on by a thread. He doesn't have a shield, so if Lukav manages to get a lucky shot, I'm pretty much fucked.



Since I'm rather concerned by that possibility, I decide it's time to deal with Lukav. Come on, Body Smash...



Come on, Body Smash, damn it, where are you?



Well, Lukav's dead, I guess that's all that matters.



Oh, now Body Smash goes off. Great.



Damn it. Oh, well, tomorrow I'll upload a bonus video that will prove that this was just bad luck.



: Impossible... Am I...going to lose...?
: It's all over...
: Yes, and that means you've settled your vendetta.
: I see...yeah...
: What're you getting all sentimental!? We gotta get out! MIDAS is going to explode!
I don't know, isn't this kind of like Terminator 2, where we've got to dump Alisa into a vat of molten metal to ensure the secret of MIDAS is never used again or something? No? Are you sure?
: All right. Get on the landing craft, everyone! We're getting out of here!



And our party leaves, as always, leaving naught but devastation in its wake!

Next Time: Kazuki and pals manage to botch the happy ending!