Gar fell and hit the ground. He was now in the command center with both Nova’s and Father Time looking down at him.
“Did you do it?” Father Time asked.
Gar quickly nodded. “I think so. I spoke with you, General, in the past.”
General Nova helped pull Gar to his feet. “Then you succeeded. I remember that conversation.”
“I wasn’t clear. I was so scared and slipping. I hope I didn’t confuse you.”
The General laughed, “it was a little confusing, but we figured it out, eventually. Don’t worry.”
All at once, the whole compound shook, and the lights flickered. The sound of explosions and laser fire immediately grew closer. Again, the place shook, and the power failed, then kicked back on.
Director Nova ran to the door. “Looks like the enemy is taking shots at the base.”
General Nova joined him and both watched the mecha’s belonging to Drochah firing wildly at the base’s defense shields. Friendly Mecha’s were attacking them, but it seemed like they were focused only on the base.
“This makes little sense.” Director Nova said. “Why would they let themselves be destroyed to attack the base?”
The General ran back in and looked at the sensors on the main map. “It makes perfect sense. Those Mecha’s aren’t driven by real people, just clones designed to obey Drochah. They have no fear of death.”
“So?”
The room shook again as more fire hit them.
The General said, “They have been ordered to attack us, and they will do so even at the expense of their own safety. I don’t understand why? I thought they were just a distraction to keep my forces from attacking Drochah directly.”
Director Nova said, “he must realize we have a plan. He will send everything at us to stop whatever we’re doing.”
“He might succeed!” The General yelled over another explosion. He pressed his comm button. “Max! Where are those six mechas?”
“Almost finished! Just tell those jerks out there to stop firing at us. This whole building is about to fall on my head.”
A massive explosion rocked the place, and a brilliant orange ball of fire consumed the main watching post. The General yelled, “hurry!”
Ginna slammed against the side of her cockpit as she took a heavy blow from one of Drochah’s older clone mechs. She turned and blasted a hole in the enemy’s side and then shoved its remains over. Putting one mechanical foot up on the fallen mecha, she showered the enemy lines with hot lead.
“DIE YOU BASTARDS!” She screamed.
A voice came over her comm. “Commander, the enemy is still primarily targeting the Nova Compound. It has taken heavy damage.”
“We have to stop them at all costs!” Pressing down on her controls, she charged forward, all weapons blazing.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING, COMMANDER!?”
Ginna yelled, “what I have to! Follow me! If we succeed, we will never even remember this day. I won’t have happened. If we fail, we’re dead anyway!”
With a last yell of courage, she plowed her mecha into a group of heavy artillery mechs that were attacking the compound. Five Mechas, six including hers, exploded in an amazing fireball.
Her sacrifice was not lost on the others. They may not have understood all she said. They understood the need. In moments, the lines of ally mechas launched themselves at the enemy. One by one, they destroyed legions of Drochah’s mechs at the cost of their own lives.
“All mechas, stand back!” A voice spoke from a distant hill.
The lines of friendly mechs all stood in awe of an old mecha, one of the earliest designs. It had a dangerous, nuclear core that has since been outlawed. The pilot flashed a signal and all the friendly mechas hunkered down. The giant green mecha rocketed up and then slammed down in the middle of the battle zone. The eruption was followed by a mushroom cloud that split the heavens. Enemy mechas and a few friendly were scattered across the area as nothing but debris.
The cheering of the surviving friendly mechas was cut short when a new line of Drochah loyalist came marching over the distant hill, still focused on the compound.
A young man turned on his comm. “CHARGE!”
Director Nova rushed outside to see that mushroom cloud in the distance. The shock wave met the shields of the compound and buzzed across them.
“What the hell just happened?”
EB, still holding his little paws in the air, said, “some big, ugly green mecha just dive bombed those nasty mecha things and blew them to heck.”
Rutkowski, the gangster, added, “them mechas on our side, they are going kamikaze on the enemy. Bravest bunch of numbskulls I ever seen.”
General Nova joined them, “my people know the meaning of courage, sacrifice, and the dangers of failure. I hope their sacrifices won’t be in vain.”
“They won’t.” Director Nova assured.
Father Time stepped out and looked at the clock in his hands. “Time is falling apart. Hurry.”
Director Nova walked over to his scientists. “Are they ready?”
Dr. Henderson gestured to the open bays and the six strange-looking people groggily waking up. “This is the best I can do.”
General Nova tapped his comm. “Max, are you ready?”
“On my way.” As he said this, seven large mecha suits stomped up to the compound and then lowered down and opened their cockpit doors. Max clicked off his comm and smiled at them from the lead mecha. “See, no sweat.”
“We’re sweating hard, Mr. Max.” Director Nova stated. “Dr. Henderson, get them in.”
Both scientists and both Nova’s helped the six avatars into the mechas. It was a strange group, one was just a living book, one looked like he was part lion, another was a beautiful pink woman, yet another comprised mechanical parts himself. None were simply human.
Once they were secured, General Nova tapped his comm unit. “Okay, avatars, I’ll be guiding you from inside my base, and Max will take the lead once you get up there. Listen to us and let the mecha’s work on their own. I am just getting you into position. From there, you know what to do.” With a set of six acknowledgment beeps, they were ready.
Director Nova told his people, “Dr. Henderson, Dr. Osteen, get inside with the General.” He pulled a gun with one hand and an enormous sword with his other. “Gar, you know what we have to do.”
The Gargoyle of this time period joined Director Nova. “Yes.”
The six mecha jets activated, and they rose into the air. None of the avatars were piloting them. The navigation was being handled by the General from inside the compound. Outside, Director Nova and Gar watched with bated breath as their last best hope rose into the sky. Max blasted off as well, rising above them.
“INCOMING!” EB suddenly bellowed.
A volley of missiles slammed into the mechas from one enemy in the distance. Three of the six faltered for a moment, but continued upward.
Gar took off and flew up. He let the next volley hit him in the chest. The explosion sent him flying back, crashing into the ground. He brushed himself off and then rushed right back into the defense.
An enemy mecha raced toward the compound. Nova ran toward it, firing his gun at first, but then meeting its leg with a well-placed slash from his sword. Several important cords were severed, and the mecha crashed to the ground. Nova didn’t stop there. He dashed toward the enemy lines, with only his sword and gun to attack.
Father Time levitated in the air, his eyes glowing a yellow light. The clock he carried hovered in between his hands. When another set of missiles bypassed Gar’s defenses, Father Time turned them into arrows that did no damage. He waved a hand and the lasers on one of the mecha’s turned into old flashlights.
EB laughed, “keep it up, changed them all into old model T’s.”
“I can’t alter time that much, or risk damaging everything.” Father Time said as he turned more weapons into useless antiques.
EB looked up at the ascending mechs with the avatars in them. "I hope to god this works."
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