[dcs_p]Xandar flipped himself over, feeling a shot of pain across his right shoulder. His
slow focus adjusted on a masked soldier at the top of the stairs. Xandar fired his
own weapon desperately, though he’d not even aimed the TK rifle. The
concussion retarded his usual reflexes, resulting in the rifle firing into the nearby
wall. As the blasts from the gun caught his clothes afire, the masked attacker
fired his own rifle. Xandar fell still, his leg ablaze in a slow-spreading heat.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]Devon’s Direwolf shuddered. Several fires burnt their way across the tired Clan
Mech’s body, biting into the machine’s myomer musculature in several spots.
Smashing his triggers once again, he released a barrage of pulse lasers. The
trio of weapons scored lucky hits on the 95-ton Albatross he was facing. The
resulting enemy Mech’s misstep caused its large bore X autocannon, or LBX, to
miss again. The terrible burst of fire blasted holes in the ferrocrete surface of the
Dropship LZ. All three of his lasers had struck the right shoulder. Kilojoules of
energy were absorbed in a flash of heat that severed the Blakist Albatross’s arm
clean from its body. The pilot, no longer able to balance the machine, took the
Mech into a slow fall that crushed more armor off the machine’s chest.
Devon glanced at his readout. He’d managed to disarm his opponent of more
than half of their weapons, but still his enemy held a significant advantage over
him. Devon closed the distance as best he could, eager to send his last flight of
short range missiles directly into the downed foe. Only his battered leg actuators
kept him from reaching the Blakist.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]As he fired the last of the missile ammunition, Devon realized his enemy was
launching its own SRMs. Before he could twist the Direwolf’s torso to the right
and show its strongest side, five of the Blakist’s six missiles ate into his Mech’s
inner workings. The Direwolf’s anti-missile system had long since run out of
ammunition. Warning lights flashed yet again, with Devon choosing to ignore
them as he had the past dozen times. He squeezed his pulse laser trigger again
and watched two beams fry away more from the Albatross. His eyes darted
down to the warnings to confirm that he had indeed lost one of the lasers. This
is it.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]Devon’s eyes flashed back and forth, to and from the weapons readout and his
enemy before him. The Albatross was attempting to stand. Even as his pulse
weapons finished their cycle he smashed the triggers again.
Surat![/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]The lasers had failed to stop the Albatross. Turning its torso as it righted its
upper body, the half-destroyed assault Mech aimed out again at Devon. It had
been reduced to only its extended range large laser and its LBX autocannon.
Devon watched helpless as his enemy punched holes in his Direwolf’s shielding.
The precious energy that had once been used to power the enormous gauss rifle
in his Mech’s left arm was now leaking out, bright flashing radiation that brought
with it both awe and nausea. Devon’s eyes could not focus. The Albatross’s
form seemed to twist in on itself as ripples of raw power washed over the
Direwolf’s cockpit. Devon’s hand moved to his ejection controls as he awaited his
lasers to finish their cycle. He moved it back to his trigger.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]I will not. You will take nothing from me. You will not change me.
I am Nova Cat.[/dcs_p]