Previous Chapter: Chapter 7: Lost Memories Next Chapter: Chapter 9
Aya: Masaki, could you tell us a bit more about Lord Feil?
Excellen: Ooh, I wanna hear that, too.
Mio: Me too.
Carla: I’m interested too!
Masaki: Yeesh, everyone sees his face and suddenly he’s super popular.
Presia: He’s got quite a few fans in Langran, too.
Aya: So, what kind of person is he?
Masaki: Well, I think you’ll get it when you meet him… but he’s serious, and though he’s the crown prince, he’s pretty down to earth.
Presia: Yeah! I can talk to him like normal. He’s even eaten at our house!
Aya: A kind prince… He sounds lovely.
Masaki: (Aya’s a bit shallower than I thought…)
Tytti: The lord is a very good person. He is actively thinking about this world’s future.
Masaki: Yeah. And with General Kirkus’ rise to power, Langran is divided when it should be as one.
Tytti: Langran helped keep the world in balance, but this war has caused the power to shift to Shutedonias.
Masaki: The president of the Shutedonias union, Zoleuschard[1], is extremely powerful… and he has the backing of the Trinity PMC… At this rate, all of La Gias will become a warzone, right before our eyes.
Tytti: And in order to prevent that, we need to work with the lord and the people under him to diminish Shutedonias’ power.
Masaki: The people who are affected the most by war are the normal citizens… We need to do something fast.
Excellen: …
Masaki: Why are you making that face?
Excellen: I just didn’t expect such a serious response from you.
Carla: It’s… weird.
Masaki: What’s that supposed to mean?!
Presia (What kind of stuff was Masaki known for on the surface?)
*BWAAAR*
Masaki: What!?
*Bridge*
Feil: Currently, we are facing a surprise attack from the enemy. Could I please ask you to head south of Banan and attack the enemy’s main group?
Tetsuya: Will you be okay without our aid in the city?
Feil: We’re get by somehow. And further, if the main fleet is attacked, the ambush squadron might withdraw.
Tetsuya: Understood. We will head for the southern reaches of Banan.
Chapter 8: Zamzeed’s Heart
Rodney: An enemy ship, eh? Shucks, this is the worst. We jammed the radar for our surprise attack, but it looks like it worked against us. And looking at that ship, it’s the one from the surface. This is gonna be rough.
Ridge: General Jesh! There’s Elemental Lords with the enemy!
Rodney: Oh? Which ones?
Ridge: Cybuster and Goddess!
Rodney: Aw, man… We’re fighting strong enemies. Well, we’ll have to send that out.
Ridge: Bu-but that’s!
Rodney: I don’t care. I’ll take responsibility. Prepare the first equipment level.
Ridge: Who will pilot it?
Rodney: I will. It’ll work out somehow.
Ibis: That’s the enemy’s main force? Doesn’t seem like that many of them…
Rai: It would be wise to consider there are reserve units inside their base.
Masaki: Whatever happens, we still have to attack them! Let’s go!
Chapter 8: Zamzeed’s Heart
Victory: All enemies defeated
Defeat: The Hagane is shut down, or Masaki, Tytti, or Mio are shot down.
SR point: Within 2 player phases, shoot down more than 10 mechs.
*Turn 2 enemy phase*
Tytti: As we expected, reinforcements.
Masaki: If it’s that few, it doesn’t matter. We’ll take them all out in one shot!
*Turn 3 enemy phase*
Rodney: Enough already. Open the hatch.
Ridge: Please wait, General! We can’t get the spirit control percentage above 75!
Rodney: Around 70 should be fine. There’s no way to fight an Elemental Lord without another Elemental Lord. Now hurry up and open the hatch!
Tytti: Z-Zamzeed!
Masaki: No way! They had that in there this whole time?!
Yuuki: Do you know that machine?
Masaki: Yeah, that’s an Elemental Lord!
Ryoto: So that’s the third one!
Tytti: Z-Zamzeed…. Ricardo!
Masaki: Tytti?!
Tytti: I’m… I’m fine.
Freki: Calm down, madam.
Tytti: Right... But who is controlling Zamzeed?
Rodney: Well then. I can’t use all of its power, but I can at least fight. Since I’ve come this far, I better prepare myself.
Geri: …Most likely, the pilot is a Shutedonias soldier.
Freki: Or they could be using a Geas. Zamzeed’s element is earth… If they had someone who could use that magic, then they could control the machine. But since they would have to fight against the machine itself, it would be extremely difficult to control…
Masaki: That’s right, Elemental Lords chose their own pilots. They can’t be tamed like some dog!
Mio: That robot looks like it’s crying.
Masaki: ?!
Tytti: M-mio… you can tell how Zamzeed feels?!
Mio: Yeah… it’s crying…
Tytti: …
Masaki: There’s no mistaking it. She can pilot Diablo, and she can hear Zamzeed’s heart…
Tytti: Mio has… been chosen by Zamzeed?!
Masaki: Exactly.
Tytti: No! That’s impossible! It can’t be her!
Masaki: Tytti, I know how you feel.
Tytti: Masaki, I’m not still hung up on the past. But for her situation…
Irm: …In any case, since they have an Elemental Lord, maybe we should take it?
Masaki: I agree. Tytti, we’ll talk later. First, we have to deal with Zamzeed!
Tytti: I understand.
Mio: But… How do we take it?
Masaki: It’s a shame, but we’ll have to take it by force. It’s pretty sturdy, but don’t overdo it.
Mio; Understood!
Victory: Reduce Zamzeed to below 5000 HP
Defeat: Previous conditions + Zamzeed is shot down
*Zamzeed v Tytti*
Tytti: Get out of Zamzeed’s cockpit right now!
Rodney: Ya big dummy! I can’t do that!
Tytti: Then I’ll have to make you…!
Rodney: Come and try it!
Tytti: (Ricardo… I’m sorry…!)
*masaki V Zamzeed*
Masaki: You think you can control Zamzeed?!
Rodney: Oh hey, you look as fiery as a Saturday hare!
Masaki: What’s up with this guy’s accent?
*bring him doooownn*
Rodney: Oooh, I went too far. I can’t move. If this keeps up, I’ll be captured by them… Looks like I have no choice but to leave it and run away!
Shiro: Masaki! The cockpit’s opening!
Masaki: Bastard! We’ve got you!
Rodney: Hey man! I’m not that big of a dummy. We’ll probably meet again. Anywho, we’re skedaddling!
Kuro: He’s running!
Masaki: Heh, he seemed quick to get out of here.
Aya: But we’ve made the enemy fleet withdraw, and we were able to get Zamzeed back.
Masaki: Yeah… and Feil was probably able to do something. Everyone, thanks for helping with this operation.
*Hangar*
Masaki: Zamzeed… I guess we couldn’t recover it without destroying some of it.
Mio: It does look beat up… Can we fix it?
Masaki: I’m sure if we go meet up with Lord Feil, we’ll find a way.
Mio: …Hey, Masaki. How does it feel to ride an Elemental Lord?
Masaki: …
Tytti: …
Mio: When I saw Zamzeed, it looked like it was crying. Like it was ashamed to look at its brother or family. And I felt like I had to save it…
Masaki: (That kind of feeling…)
Tytti: (So she is…)
Masaki: With Elemental Lords, you make a contract with high-level spirits, and they give you powers.[2] It’s like a person. So when they choose a person to pilot them, that person can sympathize with them. So Mio… Because you understand how Zamzeed feels, that means you were chosen by him.
Mio: But that’s…
Masaki: There are privileges and duties that come with being a pilot of an Elemental Lord. Lord Feil can probably fill you in on the details. But mainly, they do not swear allegiance to any power. They have a duty more important than countries.
Mio: Huh…
Masaki: Further, whenever there’s a threat to the boundary between worlds, or if La Gias is facing disaster… They have a duty to help.
Mio: And that’s all?
Masaki: That’s what I thought at first. But the position and duty of an Elemental Lord Pilot is very complicated.
Mio: So… It's a big responsibility.
Masaki: Yeah. That’s obvious when you consider how powerful they are. And you must be strong of heart. If you’re weak willed, the guardian spirits will deny you.
Mio: …I think I get it. Thanks, Masaki.
Masaki: Well, that’s unusually polite of you. You should act like that more often.
Mio: …One last thing. You said that the pilots of Elemental Lords don’t have to follow the leaders of countries… So why are you and Tytti fighting under Lord Feil?
Tytti: That’s because Lord Feil is fighting for the good of the world.
Masaki: Yeah, that’s what we believe. We’ve decided to help the lord. There’s a lot of things in this world we want to protect.
Tytti: (Things we want to protect… but back then, I…)
Masaki: Where are you going, Tytti?
Tytti: I’m heading out for a bit. Don’t worry about it.
Masaki: Tytti…
Mio: Did something happen between Tytti and Zamzeed?
Masaki: Yeah… The former Pilot of Zamzeed was…
*Outside*
Tytti: (Ricardo… Zamzeed has chosen a new pilot. I knew this day would come… After all, you’re not here anymore, but Zamzeed still is…)
Irm: …Can I have a moment?
Tytti: …Irm, was it? Do you need something from me?
Irm: I was just worried about you.
Tytti: You mean… you’re hitting on me?
Irm: Oh no, I only make advances on ladies who smile. What kind of hobby is taking advantage of crying people?
Tytti: I was crying?
Irm: Yeah… In your heart.[3]
Tytti: …
Irm: Are you crying… because you remember the last person who was piloting Zamzeed?
Tytti: That’s in the past now… I’ve finished letting people see those tears.
Irm: But Zamzeed has returned. To you and Masaki.
Tytti: …
Irm: You don’t need to worry anymore. That’s what I feel Zamzeed is saying.
Tytti: …!
Irm: Well, I’m not the chosen pilot of that mech, so I don’t know what really is going on…
Tytti: …Thank you, Irm. I feel a bit better.
Irm: Oh, you’ve returned to smiling. That’s better, that kind of smile suits you. Anyway, bye!
Tytti: (Zamzeed’s feelings… That’s right. Right now, Langran needs the Elemental Lords… If Zamzeed has chosen Mio… Then that’s something I have to accept, Ricardo…
*bridge*
Feil: …You were able to make the enemy retreat, and you recovered Zamzeed… Well done, Masaki. I thank everyone for their help.
Masaki: Lord… what’s the situation over there?
Feil: The enemy panicked and fled. All that’s left is to recover the capital. Let’s meet at Mt. Gajetta.
Masaki: That mountain… I don’t have a lot of fond memories there.
Tetsuya: Set a course, helmsman.
Previous Chapter: Chapter 7: Lost Memories Next Chapter: Chapter 9: The Captured Queen
[1] Grave Zoleuschard, from my sources
[2] Litterally make you pregnant with ability. wat
[3] Irm I can’t tell if you’re cheesy on purpose or what. Stahp it