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Last time on the moon route we checked out some space rocks and met a(nother) girl with blue hair, who apparently came to us before going to see Kyosuke in Ethiopia 18. Then we heard that the Federation attack on the Earth Cradle was a dismal failure, even though that didn't happen until after Ethiopia 18.




As the Shirogane approaches British waters, Lee takes a report on the African debacle. Kenya, Sudan, and Ethiopia have all taken up arms alongside the Divine Crusaders; Federation reinforcements have moved from Europe to support the fighting in Libya, and the conflict is quickly spreading to Egypt as well. Lee asks about the Hagane; they were waylaid in the Arabian Peninsula and never had the opportunity to join the fighting. He is, perhaps, unsurprised to learn that the Hagane was once again absent from the scene of a crisis.



A coded message comes in: the fleet elements are to gather at the Azores Islands off the coast of Cape Verde. Lee silently vows that the DC remnants will never be permitted to cross the Mediterranean...

-----



Ring welcomes the Hiryu's crew to Mao Industries. She apologizes for being unable to deliver the Wildwurger and Mk. III on schedule; unsurprisingly, recent events have thrown a wrench into their production timelines. On a more positive note, the R-1 is ready for action. Additionally, the Wildfalken-L will be ready to go shortly; they've been rewriting its OS, since the DCs have almost certainly done a full analysis of the captured Falken-R.



Meanwhile, of the two Huckebein prototypes, the L model with its Tronium Engine will need another month, along with the two AM expansions. The R model, equipped with a conventional engine, is ready to go - but at Laker's order it's already been deployed for data acquisition. Unfortunately, Ring isn't at liberty to divulge the pilot's name, though Sean can take a guess.



So that just leaves the question of the Wildwurger. Yuan hesitantly says that it's almost ready for rollout... but at the last minute the two lead engineers have had a difference of opinion on the design.

-----



Rio: "Long time no see, Leona. How've you been?"
Leona: "Well, thank you. You haven't changed either."
Rio: "How did my miso recipe work out for you?"



Leona: "...I'm on my tenth attempt."
Rio: "I-Is that so..."
Rio: (How can it be that hard to make miso soup?)

Just keep turning that knife, Rio.



Ryoto details the adjustments he's made to the R-1 at Dr. Hamill's direction. The coating on the new joints should allow for a faster combination and separation for SRX. He also accepts the data Ryusei gathered with the R-Blade, which should be a great help in bringing out the mass-production model. Ryusei already knows about the plans for the cannons and Tesla drive, but at the moment the basic frame is still in the shop.



Ryusei comments that Ryoto's really settling into his role as an engineer; not only has he been a great help to Dr. Radom and Dr. Hamill, but now he's doing SRX work as well. He insists that it's no big deal. Rio laments that his piloting skills are going to be missed.



Ryusei: "So you're going ahead with that, huh?"
Ryoto: "Y-yeah... when things settle down, I'm going to ask for a discharge. To be honest, I'm not really cut out for combat. I can support you all better with my work here."
Ryusei: "I get you. If that's how you feel, then go for it."



Leona: "Maybe you'll be an executive here one day."
Ryusei: "Yeah, you can take over when your father-in-law retires!"
Ryoto: "That's, uh... well, we haven't really..."
Rio: "I think Dad still needs time to warm up to the idea."

I have to say, with all the horrendous will-they-won't-they JRPG couples out there, it's refreshing to have one that just says "yeah, we will, eventually." Actually, Super Robot Wars is pretty good about that overall.



Conversation turns to the Huckebein Mk. III and its detachable frames. Work on the Boxer frame is coming along - sort of a miniaturized SRX, in a nutshell - but Ryoto's still not sure about the balance. The other frame, based on the R-Wing, is farther behind. Ryusei is regretful, since he was hoping to have the extra firepower in combat as soon as possible (as well as seeing a new robot), but there's nothing to be done.

-----



Excellen: "So, this is the world-famous Wildburger, huh?"
Tasuku: "I hear it's basically the Alt's concept, but lighter."
Excellen: "I see that. Feels like something's missing... the right arm's too skinny."



Marion: "...Which is why the Wurger still needs more armor and weaponry."
Kirk: "I understand that, but the DC remnants are on the move. We have to make our deadline."
Marion: "Deadlines. Always with the deadlines. If you sacrifice the mech's basic concept, you'll pay for it later. Isn't that why you're still working the bugs out of SRX?"
Kirk: "...Think of it as an investment. We ended the war thanks to that mech."
Marion: "Yes, I still have to repay the SRX team for that, don't I?"
Kirk: "....."



Excellen: "Uh-oh... you two sound as friendly as ever."
Marion: "Lieutenant Excellen. It's been a while."
Excellen: "Sure has. Now, I was thinking about some improvements we could make to Weissy..."



Marion: "...Tasuku. I see you completed my improvements to the Gigan. What about the Sieger?"
Tasuku: "Yeah, that... it's a work in progress."
Excellen: "Um... about Weissy..."



Marion: "Do you have some complaint about the Weiss?"
Excellen: "Um... well, not complaints, per se... but if it felt more like a 'Super Weissy,' or a 'Weissy Nova,' or 'God-Gravure Weissy,' wouldn't that be great?"
Marion: "I have no idea what you're talking about. In any case, finishing the Wurger takes priority."
Excellen: "Aww..."



Tasuku: "We were just saying, the Wurger looks lighter than we were expecting."
Kirk: "It'll need a high degree of mobility to cooperate with the Falken in battle."
Marion: "I told you before. To properly complement one another, the Wurger and Falken should be opposites!"
Kirk: "But we've already seen the results from the Alt and Weiss..."



Excellen: "This will take a while."
Tasuku: "Yeah. You wanna go check on Arado?"
Excellen: "Let's wait until his exam's over. I don't want to get turned into a human pretzel..."

-----



Arado:
Radha: "Oh, is something the matter?"
Arado: "U-um... this pose is a bit..."
Radha: "That's the lotus asana. Is it helping you calm down?"
Arado: "It'll help me fall down in a sec..."



Radha:"Oh dear. At your age, you should be much more flexible than this... but all right, you can relax now."
Arado: (I... I'm alive...)
Radha: "I'll have the results prepared soon, could you wait a little while?"
Arado: "Yes'm..."



.....



Radha: (As I thought, he has the symptoms of brainwashing. That's probably what happened to the memories of his past.)



Radha: (And these reactions... they match data collected at ICS. And... his project. No, it couldn't be...)




Arado: "Wh-what the!?"
Radha: "An alarm?"
Arado: "No way!?"
Radha: "I'll go see what's happening. You stay here."



Arado: "....."



Arado: (This... might be my chance!)

-----



Mission 18: Who to Fight



Unidentified Lions are moving over the lunar surface. They give no response to attempted hails - not unlike the enemies fought in the L2 sector a short time ago. It's too early to say that they're the same, but it's a safe bet that their intentions are hostile. Lefina orders a warning broadcast to Cerevis City; the Hiryu will take position to keep the enemy out of civilian areas.



Meanwhile, Ring and Yuan are overseeing the evacuation of Mao's staff into the designated shelters. Project staff - Dr. Hamill and Ryoto - are moving their prototypes to the lower blocks. Ring checks which units are ready for use: a Schutzwald, an MP Huckebein (of course smile:, and the Falken-L. She, Radha, and Rio will join in the battle. Realizing that he can't stop her, Yuan agrees.



Arado: (Huh, she didn't lock the door. Nobody in the hall... it's now or never!)

The game shows Arado on the Hiryu, even though he'll be in the hangar at Mao Industries shortly. Oops!




The Hiryu clears out the first wave with a full missile barrage, then Lefina orders the PTs to take up the battle.



Launching in the R-1, Ryusei can already feel the increased responsiveness.



As for the enemies... are these DC remnants? It seems odd that they would strike here when the main action is in Africa right now. Leona thinks that these are somebody else entirely, but has no suggestions when Excellen questions her further.



Whoever they are, they have high-mobility units, and those need to be prioritized to keep them out of the city. Battle begins...