"All right." Guy took a quick glance around. "We're almost done here anyway."

When they had finished, the crew and rescue workers piled into their vehicles to return to the Kushinada. They had to treat their injured right away, and prepare for the next time they would search for needed supplies.

***

As the copy of Helena incinirated the forest below, he stood on a branch, watching. Hmmm. He figured R.D. would have trouble eliminating her former comrade. The woman Matt loved, no less.

He almost found that...insulting.

He might have to step in if R.D. was unable to bring himself to destroy her.

The air boiled away around him as the heat beam swept past, incinerating a swathe of vegetation from the forest. He was lucky to have channeled the water and ice energies through the Dragon King Armor, preventing any major kind of damage. Immediately as Helena swept past, R.D. blasted out of the foliage, locking on to Helena's wing joints, limbs, and tail as energy gathered into the weapon systems.

The hip cannons swung up into position in unison with R.D.'s arms snapping forward, causing all the pistons in both arms to slam down at once. Green rays of burning energy burst from the fists of his arm cannons, while golden projectiles exploded from the barrels of the hip cannons. The torso cannon sucked in a line of energy before erupting forwards in a crimson-cored azure wave of plasma, searing and irradiating the air as they sped towards Helena's backside.

===In Repli-Earth===

Hyuuma had radioed the Kushinada as they drove back to the camp, and when Hyuuma and Guy arrived in the GunGlue, Papillon was waiting for them nearby, approaching as the GunGlue settled down near the truck Matt rode in on.

"Well, come along, kid," Hyuuma said as he got out of the helicopter. He motioned for the other three to follow him to a large building, set apart from the Kushinada and the J-Ark. Unlike the various ruins in the destroyed city they had just come from, this building, while of the same architectural design as the city, stood out as it looked perfectly restored--a testament to the skilled workings of the Carpenters.

Edited by RisingDragon on April 28, 2008 at 20:15:49.

As Matt stepped out, his gaze settled on the building. It looked near to new, especially amid the destruction around them. It must've been one spot-on job.

"The Mobile Unit is the combat, rescue, and intelligence forces that are fielded primarily by the Gutsy Galaxy Guard," Papillon explained to Matt, "They are a series of fighting mechanoids. Many civilians call them super fighting robots."

"We're currently keeping the Mobile Unit in storage here," Hyuuma said as they walked, gesturing to the facility. "Currently, we've got all but one of them deactivated, to preserve their A.I.'s until we can complete the repairs to their frames, then let the A.I.'s self-repairs finish the job. The one who is still on... well..."

Papillon stepped in for Hyuuma, to explain the situation to Matt. "Galeon is the least damaged of the Mobile Unit. However, we cannot remove the Genesic Machines from his body at this time. Only two of our crewmembers know anything about the Genesic Machines. One of them was sent back to Earth, the other is still recovering in the infirmary. As such, we must wait until she can move about on her own before we address the problem."

Edited by RisingDragon on February 11, 2008 at 21:28:19.

"...super fighting robots?"

...Mega Man?

A grin began to spread on Matt's face. "Are they...giant robots?"

"They vary in size," Hyuuma said, noticing the grin on Matt's face. Did they have an anime fan on their hands? "But even the smallest one of them is bigger than any of us. So yeah, I'd say they're giants."

Oh, hell yes.

"You realize I must now see these giant robots, of course," Matt said plainly, folding his hands behind his back, a feat he was surprised he could manage with the useless wingspan of the armor.

Papillon smiled slightly at Matt's new enthusiasm--it's the happiest any of them had seen him since he woke up.

Hyuuma walked up to a keypad set into the wall next to the massive sliding doors. Pulling a keycard out of a vest pocket, the large man swiped it through the reader and punched in a short sequence of numbers. With a loud rumble, the doors to the storage hanger shifted open at a moderate pace, revealing a darkened interior. The doors soon opened fully, shuddering once as they locked into place.

"Well, come on in and see for yourself, kid," the GGG second in command said, inviting Matt inside.

Matt strode inside-even though he was glad for his recent perfect vision, it was still damn dark in here.

Then Guy flipped on the lights.

Matt's eyes widened to their fullest as he saw the prone bodies of the Mobile Unit. Leaning against the wall they sat-the head of massive blue robot slightly leaned toward the head of the red one next to him. Opposite of the two, a whitish-pink robot and a black robot were resting. These robots seemed of a different build than the first two-though they shared the same overall details, these robots were more slender and feminine. To the left of the black robot sat a massive machine, half yellow and half green, with a large grill covering its chest, its arms limply placed on its lap. One arm ended in the large chamber of a cement mixer, and the other, the carrying bed of a dump truck.

But in the back...good lord.

In the back, sitting in a way that it looked right down the middle at Matt, was the battle-worn body of a familiar super robot, one that he himself had used in battle.

"GaoGaiGar?!"

It seemed everyone's eyes shot to Matt. This kid had been literally in the dark concerning the Mobile Unit, and no one had filled him in on what it is or what its purpose was. Or what had actually happened to it.

And yet, he immediately recognized the strongest of them the moment he laid eyes on it?

"Kid," Hyuuma started, slightly unsure, "You know of Genesic GaoGaiGar?"

...uh oh.

Damn it! That was real smart...he'd better come up with an excuse, FAST!

"...well, yeah," Matt lied, trying to keep his cool. "I-well, I-I've HEARD of it before...Taiga told you, right? How I did, you know, the dimensional hoppin' thing? Well, I-I-you know-I SEE things, okay? I've seen some weird stuff in my day. You know, I can't really remember whether I've seen it in a dream or not, but I DO KNOW that I've heard about it before. Word...you know. Word gets around."

...well, that turned out well. Right about now, his ears would be burning.

But then it came to him. "Wait!" He snapped his claws. "I remember now!"

"You do?" To be fair, Guy wasn't really buying it.

"Yeah!" He pointed at GaoGaiGar. "On the world I come from, we've got cards!"

"Cards?" Hyuuma said skeptically, folding his arms across his massive chest.

"Yes!" Matt kept jabbing his finger back and forth at the robots. "There are collectible cards of those guys! They're part of a, like, a game!"

"A game?" Guy asked.

"Yeah, it's like-it's a robot fightin' game. A card game. And you make a deck of cards, and you fight robots and stuff with each other. And those guys, and GaoGaiGar, they're in that game!"

Hmmm. If Matt really was a dimensional traveller, then it could be very well possible that aspects of this world existed in other worlds, even in different ways. In Matt's world, apparently it was through cards. Still...Matt really seemed on edge. Was he just overly excited...or was he trying to cover himself?

Guy liked to believe it was the former. After all, Matt seemed to really like giant robots. "Well, that makes sense, then."

"If Mamoru were here, I'm sure we could ask him. It wouldn't surprise me if there were games like that in our dimension," Hyuuma said, turning back to the Mobile Unit. "Anyways. This is the main reason why we're stuck. We can't really go anywhere until we've repaired them. So we've been gathering supplies to use in the reparations."

The GGG second in command pointed a finger at the far back of the room, at what looked to be a giant gold-colored box. If one looked more closely, they'd see that it was actually a truly gargantuan robot head. "Goldymarg was designed as GaoGaiGar and GaoFighGar's ultimate final attack, but his body was mostly destroyed in a previous battle. As we were short on time, we were forced to install what was left of him, including his A.I. into the Takehaya. We'll have to rebuild his original body, which is going to take a long time, compared to the rest of these guys."

OmegaX was standing over a large tower "now it is time i stop observing and begin my plans" he thought as he lifted his sword and the sky turned into a blood red.

"NO!" bellowed Damian, as Lust and Carnax began yet another battle. He had to stop Carnax; he had to squash him before damage could be dealt to Lust and thus displease Ziatoch. With a fierce motion, Damian slammed his right hand into the face of the earth, cracks rippling from the place his glove had touched ground.

Around him, in a six foot diamter five holes of darkness appreared, and from each a body clambered from it.

The first was suited in completely covering armor. Not a gap of fabric nor a light spot for a joint. The top of his helmet was spiked into almost a crown-like shape, with higher points in the front and lower in the back of the full helm. In spiked gauntlets he held two-handed a beautifuly dark sword, with a dark edge and a purple aura, it was a fitting weapon for a such a deathknight. Malcaloth.

The next clambered forward. Clad in a black more humanish armor with a trim of purple, he stood slightly higher than the average human held a longsword in on hand, and a shield made of the same material of his armor in the other. Maleficus.

The third to come was dressed in dark black leather. His corpse could easily have fit the agile type, one not easily hit, and his bow of twisted fiery metal seemed to match his apparel and body. Trivendus.

The fourth to come stood a foot taller than the rest. His body was easily the hugest in every dimension, and he wore armor similar to the first knight's. From back to hands came a massive battle axe, with a deep ebony metal trimmed with crimson lining. Jugalag.

The fifth and final to come forth merely floated out of the gaping hole into the other world. Robes of darkness swirled around him, yet his staff made of what appeared to simply be shadow clung to his back. His face was covered by a cowl and a rippling aura could be seen emitting from his feet. Kel'Thuzad.

Damian's eyes narrowed, and he spoke once more now in a complete growl of enragement, "You trifle with the Destroyer of Worlds, Carnax, and you trifle with each type of fury Hell has been cursed with." Damian spun his head to Lust and spoke yet again, "Lust, I ask you let your thirst for battle be quenched another time. You must not come to harm."

(OOC: Whatever happened to "Only Balance Programs can use The End!"?)

"Defensive formation!" Damian barked at those who had risen up to fight for him. Each knight took his place, the Kel'Thuzad in the back, Jugalag in the front, and Maleficus and Malcaloth on either side of them. Damian knelt down in the middle of the four and placed his right index finger over his left arm. With a stroke, blood drew Damian lay it onto the ground below. "If we must, we will travel to a place he cannot follow," Damian said quietly as he began to draw an intricate design on the ground with his blood.

A black swath of energy leapt from the brush. Forming jagged points at the end, like a claw, it engulfed R.D. within its mass. Briefly he knew utter cold and total darkness until the energy faded as soon as it came, leaving him prone along the forest floor. Overhead, the powerful beam seared by without striking its intended target.

"You're wasting your time," Malvettix spoke, stepping in front of R.D., his eyes focused on Helena. "The longer you hesitate, the greater the chance that you'll die."

***

"...I see."

Matt was still staring at the massive GaoGaiGar. Out of all the dimensions he could have stumbled into, he came into this one. He remembered how he came to pilot GaoGaiGar-when Cackletta, evil witch of the Beanbean Kingdom, captured the Beanstar and grew to enormous size, he and R.D. summoned powerful robots to defeat her once and for all. At the time, he didn't know where the inspiration for his robot came from, and now here it was before him. It was somewhat intimidating, to say the least. Still, he remembered the great strength of GaoGaiGar, and how its power helped him destroy Cackletta and free the kingdom from her evil. It was good to see that it helped battle against evil in this world as well.

"It kinda sucks to see them like this," Matt mentioned. "If I knew any sort of mechanics, I'd help fix 'em."

As darkness suddenly pressed in all around him, choking him off from everything, R.D. began to panic. But it passed just as quickly as it came, and R.D. found himself staring up at the cold sky above.

Grunting, R.D. stood up from the ground as Malvettix spoke. A sharp frown creased his face, though his helmet obscured it from vision, but kept silent while he spoke. "So you're here to help?" he asked skeptically, stepping forward to stand beside Matt's antithesis.

===In Repli-Earth===

"In a way, you already are," Hyuuma said, clapping a hand on Matt's armored shoulder. "Just by helping us bring in the supplies to repair them. We'll get them fixed, eventually. Then you can introduce yourself to them."

"If you won't destroy the girl, I will." Malvettix grinned. "Whether it's really her or some copy created to kill you...it doesn't matter to me. What she is...is an insult."

***

Matt made a curt nod. "Well, yeah, that's pretty good. You gonna work on them today?"

"That's the plan," Guy remarked. "Why don't we get something to eat first? It's been pretty eventful today."

"She's a fake," R.D. said, almost defensively. "A fabricant."

R.D. raised his arm up, training it at the fake Helena, and gathering energy into it. "If you don't take her out, I will," he challenged the dark one.

===In Repli-Earth===

"Works for me," Hyuuma said with a sigh, "Let's get out of here. I'm starving."

Edited by RisingDragon on February 12, 2008 at 18:33:23.

Malvettix glanced sideways at the wielder of Lumiya. "Can you really strike down your own comrade by yourself?" he replied. Without a gesture, the ends of his coat split into tendrils of darkness. Coiling into drills, they stretched foward, lancing toward the false Helena.

Damian roared with fury as their surroundings went from the USA to Blood Beach. Standing from his previous position of kneeling, Damian wiped away the excess blood. Carnax had no idea what he was tampering with. As the attacks launched, Kel'Thuzad countered. A dome of protective energy erupted from the dead mage's hands, covering the six of them. In perfect sync with this, a volley of arrows shot from seemingly nowhere, landing scattered across the demons of Legion. Upon impact with the ground, an explosion followed with enough power to decimate foes near them and create craters in the earth.

As Helena began teleporting, R.D. decided it was time for a new trick. Pulling out the white Chaos Emerald, R.D. grabbed Malvettix by the coat while tossing the crystal up into the air. Touching the being was an entirely unpleasant sensation, even through the armor he wore it felt like he was dipping a bare hand into viscous oil. When the emerald landed, R.D. shouted, "Chaos Control!"

Instead of teleporting, however, time slowed down around R.D. and Malvettix, who was granted a short immunity to the effects of the manipulation. Letting go of him, R.D. was able to track Helena's movements, and countered with a Phase Blade as the clone slashed at him, parrying the blade. Time resumed the moment the blades connected, and R.D. shoved his weight into it to force her back, granting Malvettix the perfect opportunity to strike.

===In Repli-Earth===

Two days passed since the fateful collapsing of the warehouse, and life went on without much note. Repairs began on the Mobile Unit, but the process would be slow and unforgiving, without the full crew needed to repair everything in a short amount of time.

Within the main lab converted on the Kushinada, Papillon and her fellow coworker and boyfriend, Kosuke Entouji, worked diligently with Dr. Liger as they continued studying the strange shard that Matt had discovered. Tall and lanky, with a lazy face and hair pulled back into a ponytail, Entouji sat at one of the terminals, with Papillon across the room at another one. Within the center of the room was a table, holding the shard in a specialized container, a small anti-gravity field holding it aloft as the computers analyzed it.

A small beep went off at Papillon's terminal. "Analysis complete," she said, "Displaying results on the main screen."

A large monitor activated in one side of the room, and a stream of information quickly filed itself down it for all to see.

Malvettix swiveled about and lashed at Helena, slashing with dark blades made from the retracted drills. Fairly large in length and width, they easily cleaved through the air.

***

The computer began detecting familiar forms of energy within the shard. The monitor quickly filled with lines of code that soon revealed every form of energy they could think of-kinetic, chemical, energy generated from the G-Stone. Soon data about various familiar and unfamiliar minerals and materials scrolled down.

"This is amazing!" Liger said, watching in awe as the computer began to constantly declare errors over what it had found. "This shard...it's full of energies that we don't even seem to know about yet!"

Smoke began to rise from the terminals amid the crackling of broken circuits-there was too much to display! "Get out of the way!" Liger shouted. "It's going to blow!"