Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon

Chapter 24: Escape

The mercenary took advantage of the staggered enemy and quickly kicked it, taking it down and assault boosting out.

Ayre let out a sigh of relief as she was glad that he was fine after that. They reached the outside and saw a familiar ruin.

"Is this... the outskirts of Institute City?" asked Ayre.

<<Seems to be. No place else to have ruins I shall think.>>

Suddenly, Pater's voice boomed over.

"This is V.VI Pater. Calling all security team members." he said, "Raven, the independent mercenary undergoing re-education has escaped. Be alert for anyone hiding in the environs of Institute City, tighten the net."

"...Raven. Arquebus is on high alert," said Ayre with worry, then suggested, "Use your scanner to evade combat situations."

<<I will. Can't wait to get OBSIDIAN WING back.>>

Raven then began guiding JAILBREAK throughout the city. He saw a few enemy MTs keeping an eye out, looking for him. He slowly moved over to a ledge where the coordinates were aiming at. They then spotted massive circles of light across the place.

"Searchlights." Ayre identified, "We'll be in trouble if they spot us."

Raven took off to the buildings on the right side of the area. There, he spotted more enemy MTs including a few helicopters.

Already too much.

He got JAILBREAK up to the top of one building and engaged assault boost once it was fully charged up. However, it quickly ran out of charge, causing him to land back on the ground, thankfully not in the eyes of the enemy.

Luckily, there was a vertical catapult. But once he was lifted upwards, he saw that one of the enemy had noticed him.

"Enemy contact!" shouted a squad member, "AC, old model!"

"It's Raven!" another member realized, "Neutralize the fugitive!"

"Raven!" Ayre shouted in warning, "The searchlights!"

Raven forced himself to start assault boosting. A familiar voice came along on the coms.

"Emergency beacon intercepted." said Chatty Stick, "...Been a while, tourist. Good to see you're still kicking. Chief's coming to pick you up. Head to the rendezvous point."

"He's from RaD..." Ayre realized, "Carla... She must be involved with Walter's mission..."

<<Strange to me.>>

Raven had no choice but to risk every ounce of assault boost power to get to the edge of a cliff, where the coordinates ended.

"This is the rendezvous point." said Ayre, then gasping in fear, "Enemies detected!"

Raven looked back, seeing the enemies as they approached.

"We've found Raven! Close the noose!" shouted a squad member.

V.VI Pater's voice returned, saying that he had received orders from V.II Snail. Apparently, if the target resists the description of Raven's current situation and usual attitude, they are authorized to use lethal force.

Of course they are. Snail hated Raven like a lot, though not as much as Iguazu.

"Stop Raven by all means necessary." he ordered, "You have your orders!"

They began to swarm JAILBREAK as its armor was beginning to be burned off, some machinery being exposed from the attacks. AP dropped down to 30%, and Raven's repair kits were all burned out.

"Raven...!" said Ayre in fear, "There's too many of them!"

<<Just a little more!>>

"...Wait! I'm picking up something else!"

<<Better be friendly, sick of this already!>>

Suddenly, an AC came by, flying at high speed. It had a pair of WS-5000 APERITIF Seige Missile Launchers on its hands and two WS-5001 SOUP Scatter Missile Launchers on its shoudlers. Ayre was the one to quickly analyze it as FULL COURSE.

"Hey tourist," she greeted, "having a little trouble?!"

"Carla...?!" asked Ayre, shocked.

"Walter... he asked me to look after you. Don't mind if I do."

She then sped up her AC even faster in order to get to the mercenary.

"Company! It's another AC!" shouted a squad member before being shot down by Raven's machine gun.

"I'm reading... RaD?!" said another, "The Doser junkyard...!"

"That's Carla's AC..." said Ayre, looking at it again, "She's backing us up, Raven!"

Carla then joked that she doesn't just design weapons, saying that they'll know what she meant. It didn't take long to shock the two as she used the weapons to take down multiple enemies at once.

"There's a lot of them, chief," Chatty warned, "but they're just MTs."

"You should let me handle this." Carla argued.

"RaD needs you in one piece."

"You're missing the point, Chatty. This is our tourist's grand escape, I wouldn't miss it for the world!"

Raven didn't expect to feel like some celebrity. Well, ever since Operation: Wallclimber, he was becoming quite the popular mercenary. But he also didn't expect to get insulted the moment someone on the coms then mentioned about JAILBREAK being "ancient," asking if that was really Raven.

"Raven, fight back!" he heard Ayre encourage.

The mercenary himself frowned, his pride hurt, pressing down the stun needle trigger with pleasure, ending that MT pest.

<<Just did.>>

FULL COURSE then landed right next to the little AC.

"...Looks like we're clear." She said, "We'd better book it before more company shows up."

"Sending a chopper." Chatty notified, "We retrieved the tourist's AC, too."

"...Once we've caught our breath, let's talk."

Raven knew what Carla meant by that.

Her apparent "connection" to Walter's mission: Burning the Coral. All the while, he was beginning to wonder... is it... probably for the best? Then again... no... he wouldn't know just what to do with... her...

________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks for Reading!