Sigma/Star

Chapter 72: Enter Beijing Part 5

Chase and Porter were exhausted. They had been running through the winding streets of Beijing for what seemed like ages, trying to get back to their Goliaths. All the while they were hunted by the earthen Goliath, one that they did not fully understand or comprehend but also one they didn't want to spend any extended period of time studying.

Finally, the pair burst into the clearing that led back to the landing strip. They could see their Goliaths, among a few others, still standing in the waning sunlight. Behind them, the dirt battlesuit was tearing through the city, its massive steps clipping the edges of buildings as it tried to walk along the roads not designed for it. At other points it found itself trapped behind the new, high skyscrapers that dwarfed it and blocked the easiest paths, causing it to have to tiptoe around the little villas that made up much of Beijing.

Up ahead at the landing strip were two more metallic spheres, one of which was surrounded by piles of scrap metal, the other floating in a large pool of water. Porter and Chase each took note of them, aware that they could turn into some strange form of earth golem at any moment. Porter hastily flashed the insignia he still had at the entrance to the strip, tilting his head away as best he could to avoid suspicion. Chase didn't have to worry about being caught as his coughing fits had him covering his face and were keeping everyone away.

A very kind, elder gentleman directed the boys towards their proper Goliaths. He was just a worker in the area, not a soldier, and so Porter could relax a little around him, using up the walk to catch his breath as best he could. His bloody arm was certainly attracting attention from those he passed, and he could only imagine what his dirtied face looked like, with its dried trail of crimson running down his ear. Still he seemed to be given space. Someone who was going around with what was assumed to be a war wound obviously needed some room and shouldn't be bothered. Little did the workers know it was just a shard of glass that had caused the slice. The less they knew.

Porter boarded into the White Storm after graciously thanking the man for directing them back to their warmachines. He had to very cautiously take a seat to avoid further hurting himself, and it took a bit of wiggling before he could safely wrap his hands around the controls of his Goliath. The viewscreens in front of him instantly sprung to life as the boot-up sequence began. Chase was doing the same in the South Star, and the lights across the hulls of their battlesuits, all the way up to the eyes, ignited in the evening sky, turning them into sparkling figures of military prowess.

"Chase, let's get a move on out of here. I'm going to contact the academy and see if they can send for a pick up." One of the alarms went off in the cockpit of the White Storm and Porter glanced up to see a large rock hurling through the air straight towards him. He felt a tightening across his chest, panicking in that instant as he knew he could not react fast enough with his crippled arm.

There was a deafening boom as the South Star's fist rocketed out to meet the boulder, pulverizing it and sending heated fragments sprinkling down onto the hapless people below. "Roger Porter." Chase's voice had grown serious and sullen. Nearly seeing a moment of failing to protect another, Chase must have fallen into his darker mood. At least that meant he would follow orders now.

The twin metallic spheres rose up before the pair could begin their escape, and each one seemed to drag up their surroundings with them. One was pulling the scrap metal together to build its body, while the other controlled the water it had been sitting in, turning itself into a clear Goliath composed entirely of the liquid, with only the orb in the middle. The newly formed battlesuits turned to face Porter and Chase while the old foe, the earth golem, drew closer, crossing the gap between the city and the strip.

"Oh, this isn't going to be good at all," Porter muttered.

* * * * *

McCormack sat in his cockpit, eyeing the battlefield in front of him. It was quite a marvel whenever two of the nations combined their forces, bringing out some of the largest armies to stand upon the world, with some of the biggest weapons. To his left was Irina, the Ice Queen. She was sitting in quiet meditation, as she often did before any conflict occurred. McCormack spent a moment reading some of the inscriptions written all over the Jabberwocky's frame, never having understood Irina's fascination with the literary realm.