[Asuka, in her plug suit, sits in the theater. Beside her is Ruri, wearing
an Eva-00 plug suit]
Asuka: Okay, what are YOU doing in a plug suit?
Ruri: Well, since Andrew insists on doing bad Eva jokes in these MSTs, I
might as well look the part.
Asuka: Where is Andrew, anyway?
[Andrew, wearing an Eva-01 plugsuit, walks in, making a victory sign at the
camera]
Asuka: Hey! We've got a MSTing to do! Where've you been?
Andrew [grinning]: Getting two essays finished and handed in! [Hallelujah
chorus starts playing in the background]
Asuka: ARRRGHHH!!!! Do you HAVE to remind me of that episode? [Insert your
favourite 60s Batman sound effects here]
Ruri: And now, the story...
At 06:48 PM 6/16/99 +0800, you wrote:
Hmmm... two Iczer fics. And Iczer-2, no less, the star of it. I like!!!!
^_^
Ruri: By the way, Andrew, I haven't seen any more chapters of your
Lightsphere recently.
Andrew: Hey, I'm still stuck for ideas! Anyway, don't either of you
complain. Your fics are getting priority at the moment, remember?
Asuka: "My" fic? I'm third banana to Kaworu and a girl who whines worse
than Shinji in that!
Andrew: Hey, at least it's got Eva in it!
So, here's my little contribution. And yes... it's a crossover. What else
can you expect from me??
Anyway, I wrote this in tribute to a certain fanfic author who I honestly
admit I forgot his name. He made the first Iczer-2 fic. He's the one who
wrote Ragnarok, an Iczer-2/SI/Goddess fic. You guys know him?? OR even
better, know where I can find him???
Ruri: This one's already been answered
Without further ado...
�� =================================
Space.
Andrew: The final frontier. These are the voyages... (WHACK!)
A black endless void of stars, planets, nebulae, and star systems.
����� Perhaps it might have been more than just that. To most, perhaps,
it was - but for someone like her, it had become rather boring. She'd
found enough of it in her travels across it for years now. She'd observed
a few primitive civilizations, never interfering in what she considered
trivial pursuits.
Asuka: Nah, too easy.
����� She had freedom. No one controlled her.
����� Her destiny was her own and no one else's.
����� Still, she felt lonely. Like a part of her was missing - a vital
link that marked her as who she was.
����� Long years had she been alone. Years that had stretched to a decade
or two. Decades that spanned into millennia after millennia of isolation.
Try as she might, that feeling persisted. It gnawed at her very being,
persisting in its efforts for her to take notice.
����� And now, after all these countless years of travelling the cosmos,
she surrendered to its call. However, she did so under duress - anything
to get rid of it.
�� =================================
Nikholas F. Toledo Zu Productions, Inc.
�������������� Presents:
��������� An Iczer Fanfiction
��� by: Nikholas "Radler" F. Toledo
�� =================================
�� Heart and Soul: Iczer in a Bubble
�� =================================
����� Funny how some things you were forced into became the very things
that actually made life, for you, so much more interesting.
Andrew: And I quote, "may you live in interesting times."
Ironic, really. Perhaps she should have listened to it a lot earlier -
then >she wouldn't have to worry about it all that much. Not that she did -
it was
just that it had been irritating her for so long.
����� She gazed at the city below her, the wind whipping her blood-red
hair behind her, revealing her elfin ears that marked her for who she
was. She watched the multitude of lights that lit up the city, saw them
with a dispassionate eye. She was, as always, unimpressed by the view.
Why would she be - it was all the same to her no matter where she was.
Andrew: I get the feeling that Iczer-2 is not someone who is easy to
impress...
Ruri: Whatever gave you that idea?
����� That slight glaze in her eyes betrayed her true feelings, however.
����� Much as she tried to put on an air of disinterest, the way her eyes
glazed over for just a couple of precious seconds gave away much of how
she truly felt. Not even one like her could learn all that was by just
being alone.
����� *Nagisa,* she thought fondly, remembering the young girl she had
used to strike at her sister. Another set of images came to the fore - of
a young girl smiling at the wild-haired little girl hugging her tightly.
Ruri: All right, time-frame established, post-"Iczer-3".
����� A small smile spread across her cold countenance, a simple smile
that looked like it suited the person well.
Andrew: Iczer-2, on the other hand is more suited to an "evil smirk" type
of smile. I've said it before, I like her better when she's evil.
Asuka: What, like how she acts in your MSTings?
Andrew: Oh, like you never hit me? [WHACK!]
����� If only she could see it herself.
�� =================================
����� A young woman grappled futilely with the keys that were slowly
slipping away from her hands. They could do little more than struggle
uselessly as the keys dropped to the ground. A small curse could be heard
coming from the woman as she slowly knelt down to retrieve her keys. She
swore under her breath as the groceries she carried shifted uncomfortably
against her sore arms. If she did not get this stuff onto the counter
real quick, she was going to hate herself.
����� Besides, her chocolate cake was with the groceries.
����� Swiping the keys off the floor, she hurriedly inserted one, twisted
the lock open, burst into her somewhat-messy foyer and scrambled towards
the kitchen with her armload of groceries that were slipping away from
her grip.
����� With her precious load of chocolate cake in mind, she half-
stumbled, half-fell into her kitchen, reaching it in the nick of time as
the groceries slipped free from her grasp and onto the counter. With a
sigh of utmost relief, she slowly stood up, brushing away the locks of
red hair that swayed in front of her face, mentally taking note that
perhaps it was high time to have her hair cut.
����� She then moved towards her computer, leaning against the plush
chair she'd spent a pretty penny purchasing. Certainly well worth it, as
she tended to spend whatever time she had to herself jacked into the
internet superhighway.
Ruri: Continuity flaw here - the author said it was thousands of years
since the end of Iczer-3, and BGC is only 2032-3.
Andrew: Uh... maybe it's like "The Starlight Crystal" by Christopher Pike,
and Iczer-2's gone to the end of time and started again from the beginning?
����� The computer activated itself, demanding the usual password
protocols and whatnot she had installed for security measures. Nothing a
great hacker like herself could handle. Then again, there weren't that
many who could get one over her, something she prided herself in. A
useful tool to fling to Priss when she went around teasing her about her
weight.
Andrew: And of course, since Nene's so worried about her weight, she's
gonna wolf down the entire chocolate cake by herself.
����� Smiling, she logged on, totally forgetting about bathing, eating
that chocolate cake, and a certain little meeting that somehow skipped
her mind...
�� =================================
����� She found herself wondering if this little trip she'd forced
herself to take was worth it. Clearly, the people of this planet
certainly have grown...She grappled for the correct word but found
herself unable to come up with a decent enough word to describe the aura
of silent defeat and utter helplessness she was feeling all around her.
Andrew: Ah, the feeling you get when you have 6000 words' worth of essays
to do.
����� She drew the trenchcoat she had purloined earlier closer to her. It
would not do for any of these people to see her clothes.
Asuka [to Andrew]: NOT A WORD!
Andrew: Uh, okay. [POW!]
Asuka: I said, NOT A WORD!
She did not want
to attract undue attention. First thing was some clothes, clothes that
fit.
����� Her memories hinted upon some sort of building and people. She
glanced at the huge conical edifice that seemed to loom before her and
everyone else, cloaked by foreboding that warned anyone of what could
happen should anyone oppose it.
����� She smirked, wondering how long it would take her to blow the
building up into its subatomic parts.
Andrew: Five seconds
Asuka: Fifteen
Ruri: 2.3
����� She shook her head. That was not it.
����� Perhaps it would be wise if she sought help. She winced at the
word. Never had she let herself be helped in anything, not even for
something as simple as searching for proper clothing. Eyeing the people
around her, she began to wonder about that. What could she lose if she
asked? These people were of no danger to her. Hardly anything she could
not handle without having to resort to using her abilities.
����� And besides, those that did were either long dead or living in fear
of her. Not true, but close enough for her.
�� =================================
����� "Give me all your money, bitch!!"
Andrew: Famous last words?
Ruri: Famous last words.
����� She eyed the man with distaste clearly written in her face. She had
encountered their kind the first night, relieving them of some wads of
colored paper and plastic chips that one person had later labeled as
credit chips.
����� Feeling rather merciful, she decided to ignore the fool.
����� (Not like he was going to be any trouble for her, really.)
����� Running a hand through her wealth of blood-red hair, she turned
back to where she came, not even caring about the man who was demanding
money from her.
����� "What the hell?!" screamed the man, running to intercept her.
����� Without missing a beat, a slim hand shot across the air,
backhanding the offensive human into the air. The force of the blow threw
him a good ten meters and into a wall where he hung for a few moments
before gravity took over. Her arm stayed in its position for a couple of
seconds before she shoved the hand back into her pants.
����� A gush of wind behind her tugged at the edges of her overcoat as
she left the alley once more and rejoined the flock of humanity outside.
����� She did not relish having to mingle too long with humans. It still
made her uneasy. She was an Iczer, designed to protect - or, in her case,
destroy those who opposed her masters. Still, that was the past, one she
had helped in destroying, alongside her sisters.
����� As she walked, she began to wonder. She could feel the faint
tugging within her soul slowly pulling her towards an unknown
destination. Having little else to do, she had opted to follow that
unseen thread toward what could be the answer to her existence.
����� She frowned, wondering where that thought came from.
����� Her sisters had chosen each an Earthling to bond with them, both of
whom were related to one another by blood. She wondered if this was what
prompted her return to this world. If so, she wondered if the line of
Nagisa Kano still existed after all this millennia of absence.
Ruri: There's that millennia thing again...
Andrew: You could say this fic's been affected by the millennia bug.
Ruri: Gravity blast, standby.
����� Time held little meaning to her kind - much less so for her than
any of her sisters.
�� =================================
����� Nene wilted under the combined stares of her friends. Red-faced and
ashamed, she flashed her cutest smile and mumbled a weak apology, which
her friends hardly heard and rarely heeded, by tradition. Of the three
women before her, only one eyed her with that piercing look that bored
through her defenses like butter.
����� Sylia held her questioning gaze the longest, the others merely
raising their hands in the air in surrender and proceeding to their work.
Nene mumbled a more coherent 'sorry' to Sylia before she left the room,
practically leaping for the door, nearly plowing into a surprised Mackie.
����� Nene retreated back into the garage where she found Priss working
on her bike.
����� "You think Sylia's angry with me?" Nene asked in a small voice.
����� Priss went on with her cleaning for a bit longer before she put
down the rag and faced her long-time friend.
����� "Not really. Mad, yes, but not enough she'd want you shot or
anything gruesome."
Asuka [Priss voice]: She's saving that for the character designer from BGC
2040.
Andrew: Hey! I kind of liked those designs!
����� Nene stuck out her tongue at Priss before leaving with an injured
air about her. Deciding she needed something to take her mind off her
current predicament, she hopped on her scooter and left for a bit more
shopping - anything to get her mind off it.
�� =================================
������ She stopped, a small frown crossing her face as she eyed the
people around her - she tried to discern this feeling of danger she
suddenly felt. One hand gripped an imaginary sword, as if reassuring
herself that it would be there when she needed it.
����� Somehow, she had a feeling she'd -
����� A powerful explosion rippled across the face of the building above
her, showering everyone with pieces of concrete, steel, and glass. The
screaming began even as the sounds of the dying and the injured were
drowned by even more powerful detonations that reduced the upper two-
thirds of the building into so much rubble.
Andrew: Okay, who let Akane near the oven?
����� She raised one arm above her, pulverizing the large junks of steel
and concrete that fell her way. A small cry caught her attention.
����� Whirling around, she saw a red-haired girl lying on the ground, her
legs pinned down by a large section of steel and stone. She could feel
the pain the woman felt and her silent plea for help.
����� Without really knowing why, she moved towards the distraught woman.
Only when she was directly in front of the woman did the redhead take
notice of her presence. Sea-green eyes met her own ruby ones.
����� For that single instant, she felt something different. A sort of
completeness.
Andrew: Iczer-2 and Nene? Interesting...
����� Frowning, she grabbed the section of steel and stone with a little
effort and tossed it aside. She bent down to pick up the girl and
disappeared in a flash of light.
�� =================================
����� Nene stared in stunned disbelief at the strange woman - or was it a
boomer? - that had saved her back then when that thing collapsed on top
of her. More than that, she could not believe what she had done to her
next, when they had somehow magically reappeared on top of this building.
Somehow, this strange woman had healed her legs, mended broken bones and
torn ligaments. That should have been physically impossible.
����� "Who are you?" she finally managed to say at the woman who stared
at her with those cold red eyes. Nene tried not to shiver, being reminded
all too well that they resembled the eyes of a boomer.
����� "I am called Iczer-2."
����� Nene blinked. *I was right!!* she said to herself. "You are a
boomer, then?"
Andrew: Well, sort of...
����� Iczer shook her head, a smirk parting those thin red lips of hers.
"Nothing like those pathetic little creatures you humans have invented. I
am Iczer. That is all."
����� It was Nene's turn to be confounded by her cryptic speech.
*She's an Iczer? Just what the heck does it mean?* she wondered. Nene
irritably rubbed her ears, wondering where that strange buzzing sound was
coming from.
����� Iczer-2 stared at the delicate looking female she had rescued from
certain death. Her mind whirled with a dozen questions she wished to ask
but hesitant to even voice them out, unsure what reactions they would
cause upon the woman.
����� Once, she would have used force to get what she wanted. Time spent
with her sisters - short as they may have been, over the countless
millennia - had taught her to temper her rash attitude, but it did not
Andrew: There's that millennia thing again...
serve to shut it off completely. Old traits did indeed die hard.
����� Still, she was curious. This feeling of completeness was something
her sisters had oftentimes mentioned when they were with their Nagisa.
She wondered if this could be it? A part of her felt it was indeed what
she was searching for in this remote world. Another questioned this
seeming ease in which she had found her goal.
����� Shaking her head, she approached the woman, kneeling beside her as
she stared deeper into those sea-green eyes that seemed to sparkle with
mischief. Frowning, she cupped her hand under the woman's chin, her eyes
searching for something even she could not fathom herself.
����� "What are you doing?" Nene demanded.
����� "Are you the one?"
����� Nene blinked. "Huh?"
����� <Are you the one?>
����� Nene jumped, eyes wide with disbelief. "How did you do that?" she
wondered out loud.
����� Smiling, Iczer sat down beside the woman. "Your name?"
����� "Nene, Nene Romanova" came the reply.
����� Iczer was surprised by the level of control this woman had. She
showed promise already. It was good this one does not show fear so
readily.
����� "And what do I call you?"
����� "I am called Iczer-2."
����� "Uh-huh. Can I just call you Iczer, maybe?"
����� Iczer-2 nodded. "As you wish it."
Andrew: Okay, we know where this is going... geez, I wonder what'll happen
when Iczer-2 meets Sylia.
�� =================================
����� A week passed since her little brush with death and, somehow, she
found herself actually glad it had happened. Had it not, she would never
have met the being known as Iczer-2.
����� Nene flushed a bit as the link passed to her how Iczer felt about
it as well. Certainly, it seemed like a dream - for the both of them
actually! She'd gone out with Iczer every time she could get away from
her duties at ADP HQ, not to mention her involvement with the Knight
Sabers.
Andrew: So does Iczer-2 knows about Nene being a KS?
Ruri: It's probably a fair bet.
����� Everywhere she went, she felt the familiar presence of Iczer-2 with
her - something associated with the link they shared. Perhaps it was the
bracelet Iczer had given her to were at all times.
����� Ever since her encounter with Iczer-2, she felt invigorated. Like
she could take on GENOM all by herself. She gasped at what Iczer felt
about it: a sense of eagerness, a primal craving that she herself found
intoxicating.
Andrew: And for more about that primal craving...
Ruri: You realise Warhammer's not gonna like the fact that you did that scene?
Asuka: Gee, ya reckon?
����� Nene found herself crashing back to earth as Noriko nudged her
shoulder. Looking back at their superior, she hurriedly dove into her
work once more, idly wondering when Iczer was going to help her learn
more of those moves she'd been taught by her newfound companion.
����� It may have sounded strange before, but it felt just right indeed
to her now. Whatever it may be, she was thankful to have met Iczer.
����� Of course, her friends were rather suspicious of her sudden change
in attitude. Priss and Linna were still unwilling to believe that she'd
actually passed Level Six in the Training Room. Even Sylia was impressed
by it.
����� Still, it all paled to what it was doing to her physique.
Andrew: You might want to slightly alter this bit, and describe it a bit
better. As it is, it brings to mind rather scary images.
����� Nene grinned as she happily went back to work, shelving her
daydreams for later.
�� =================================
����� Something woke within the depths of the deep, its cold red eyes
glaring at the screen before it. Long had it taken him to restore himself
to what he was - longer still, as he sought out the necessary changes he
had to make before he presented himself once more to his future bride-to-
be.
Andrew: Ladies and gentlemen, we present Mister Grand Plan of Vengeance!
����� He was impressed by her performance as she strove to become that
all too important balancing force against GENOM. He had to give her
credit for trying - not that she wasn't succeeding.
����� Of course, it really was going to be for naught.
����� Tomorrow would herald his rebirth. And with it would come the
mastery over all the boomers the world over.
����� He will have the OMS tonight.
�� =================================
����� Somewhere within the depths of GENOM Central HQ, a young woman
trembled uncontrollably at the hulking boomer that stood before her.
Mumbling incoherently, she slowly backed away, silently screaming for
help. Tears ran freely down her face as she backed away, her heart
pounding with terror.
����� The red eyes glowed.
����� She tried to scream but found her mouth being invaded by a mass of
writhing tentacles...
����� [Get your heads out of the gutter!!! you are not gonna find any
hentai here....]
Andrew: Awww, no fair!
Asuka: WHAT?!?!? You die for that!
[Evangelion unit 02 appears out of hammerspace, grabbing Andrew. Next,
remember what happened to Kaworu? Only difference is Asuka doesn't agonize
over it first]
����� The woman collapsed on the floor as she tried vainly to remove the
offending thing from her mouth. Her eyes went wide in shock as she felt
her body go on fire. Her eyes went wider still at what was happening
slowly happening to her.
����� She screamed and screamed. But it was useless.
Andrew [Resurrected]: Resistance is futile. You will be assimi>SMASH<
[Asuka uses Eva-02 to pound Andrew again]
����� Within an hour, the young woman was a fully functioning
boomer/human hybrid, thanks to the nanites that even then reconstructed
her remaining flesh. It did, however, leave enough organics that was
needed for the task. It had the time to do a full reconstruction later
on.
����� She turned to its companion, motioning for it to wait as she headed
towards the elevator.
����������� GENOM CORP SECUIRTY ELEVATOR
����������� Please insert security key and stand by for
����������� retinal and voice print analysis.
����������� Access Key: 12AF0005O-ALPHA01-1299
����������� Retinal Access...... Scanning...... Complete
����������� Voice Print Analysis.....
����� "MATRIX."
����������� Voice Print Analysis..... Matched
����������� Code.... OK
����� "Welcome, Miss Miyuki Kobiyakawa."
����� Grinning, she entered the elevator, her companion moving beside
her. The doors closed as Miyuki opened the access panel on the elevator
and inserted her access key into it while punching a number sequence on
the elevator's buttons.
����� "Next stop: the OMS," she announced.
Andrew: And this is where the biological waste product rapidly approaches
the rotating cooling device.
�� =================================
����� The next day, Nene was surprised to wake up to the sound of frantic
pounding on her door. She felt her bed shift slightly as another body
rose to check on the door. Her eyes snapped open as she literally jumped
out of bed, racing towards the door to intercept Iczer.
����� While doubtless no harm could possibly happen to her companion,
only a few people did visit her or pounded the door like that. She had
almost made it had she been a fraction of a second sooner.
����� Iczer opened the door only to find herself greeting the floor as a
slight weight smashed her from behind. Normally, these things never
happened to her, but even Iczers were prone to these things, especially
one who had just woken up.
Ruri: Although the question of whether she needs sleep is not actually
addressed.
Andrew: Iczer-3 did.
Ruri: She was shown sleeping, but I still consider it doubtful whether she
requires it.
����� Three pairs of disbelieving eyes stared at the two who lay sprawled
on the floor.
����� Priss whistled. "Never thought you went thatta-way, Nene-chan."
Andrew: Look who's talking.
Asuka: Hey, just because there're a bunch of fans who reckon she's... it's
no excuse to make those sort of comments!
����� "I can't believe you could do such a thing, Nene." This one from
Linna. "Would you mind some company later on?"
����� The blush that came to Nene's face drained out as she stared wide-
eyed at Linna's sudden proposal. She really wasn't sleeping with Iczer.
Well, a little bit of kissing and touching here and there - but that was
it!! A small part of her brain wondered what else could that be called.
Andrew: Although the kissing and touching will hopefully soon lead to
bigger and better things.
Ruri: Gravity blast, charging.
����� Bashing the thought away with a mallet, she calmly excused herself
>from her friends, dragging her companion back into her room to change.
Besides, she needed to warn Iczer to be careful around Sylia; no telling
what Sylia could find out.
����� Iczer then decided it prudent that she left for the time being, as
this would cause less trouble for her. Nene assured her she could stay
but Iczer was adamant about it.
����� "You don't need to think that you'd hurt me, Nene. I admit that I
have yet to even understand a fraction of your Earth customs, but I have
learned what my sisters have tried to tell me. Having you is an
experience that I cannot forget. And, if I can, I would want you to be
with me forever."
Ruri: She should be careful about saying things like that with the KS in
hearing range.
����� Nene blushed red at that.
����� Iczer laughed softly at Nene's reaction. It was strange how fast
she was changing - only a few days here on Earth and she had changed so
much. Perhaps there was something to what her sisters had said.
�� =================================
����� Sylia sat by the sofa, her eyes watching the door intently. Linna
and Priss could only sit there, watching Sylia with a curious eye. If
this had been any ordinary day, no doubt the two of them would have been
pestering Nene about this.
����� This was not the case, however.
����� Sylia wondered about the strange woman who had greeted them at the
front door. Nene had been spending quite a bit of time with her newfound
friend. She was wary of the woman, as she remembered the woman eyeing
them all, gauging them.
����� Still, this was not the time to be worrying about that: someone had
the OMS.
����� That was enough to send a chill through her body. Only a handful of
people knew of its existence. No one outside that little circle knew of
the OMS. Anyone who did ended up dying with the information. For someone
to have found out about it and manage to get away with it cleanly spoke
volumes of his capabilities.
����� She knew, of course. And that she was still alive spoke well of her
own skills.
����� She did not relish meeting up with the old man. Not after what he'd
done to her family.
����� "Are we really going there, Sylia?" asked Priss gruffly, not
bothering to hide her displeasure over it. "Why the hell did you even
accept this job?!!"
����� "Normally, I wouldn't have even bothered with it. But, with the OMS
at stake, I have no choice but to accept," answered Sylia.
����� "What is this OMS, Sylia?" asked Linna.
����� Sylia glanced back at the retreating figure of the woman, watching
Nene stare at the woman before turning to greet them. "What's going on,
Sylia?"
����� "A lot. As we speak, Mackie's driving here with the van. Our
current situation is bleak. Someone has stolen the OMS, the Overmind
Control System."
����� Sylia heard Nene gasp. She quickly made a note to ask how she knew
of it. "Whoever has it must be stopped. For that, I've taken the liberty
- "
����� Her words were drowned out when Nene's wall TV came to life,
bearing the familiar face of Largo.
����� "PEOPLE OF EARTH: HEAR ME, AS I BRING TO YOU ALL THE COMING OF
ARMAGEDDON."
Andrew: Hmph. It's been out on video for months now, if I wanted to see it
I would've already.
����� Sylia stood up, her eyes suddenly cold and distant.
����� Turning around, she whispered in a barely audible sound. "Knight
Sabers, Go!!"
�� =================================
����� That was ten hours ago.
����� Already, half the world had bowed to the will of Largo, their
nations having little-to-no power at all to even put up even the
slightest resistance. Boomers all over the world rebelled, attacking
humans, slaughtering them even as defense forces and military units
fought a desperate war.
����� The USSD had voted unanimously in using the orbital beam satellites
but had found, to their extreme disappointment, that Largo also held
control of the satellites. No one in the USSD HQ had any time to do
anything about it as dozens of beam satellites lined in to target
military and government locations across the world.
Andrew: Well, at least Largo's doing SOMETHING good.
����� And, in MegaTokyo...
����� A desperate battle was underway, spearheaded by the combined forces
of GENOM's mobile defense squads and boomers that had been, before the
OMS had been stolen, lying within the depths of GENOM Tower - sentries
that had the same firepower as 55Cs but little else. With them came
hundreds of ADP officers, wearing full power armors on loan from GENOM.
No one really minded, as anything that helped was enough.
����� But their best was never really any good. Not against a hundred
mass-produced hyper-boomers.
Andrew: Any guesses how long they last?
Ruri: Based on their performances in the OVAs, I estimate that the entire
ADP will be wiped out within thirty seconds.
Asuka: I'll bet on twenty seconds.
Andrew: I'll give 'em forty-five. Hey, I'm feeling charitable.
����� Leon McNichol glared at the slowly approaching war machines with
ever growing apprehension. His entire team had been gutted. Not that the
others spread across the entire city were any different. GENOM's boomers
- those that had been built without the OMS system integrated within them
- were doing very little, not against hyper-boomers and not with this
much.
����� No less than two dozen undamaged hyper-boomers approached his squad
of ten GM4-type equipped units. They were low on ammunition and too
massively outnumbered and outgunned to even matter.
����� Leon sighed, glancing at his companions.
����� "Looks like this is it," one muttered.
����� "Fuck it. If I'm gonna die, I'm going to take some of these
bastards with me," another cried out.
����� Leon smiled. "Not to worry, gentlemen. We've got all the time in
the world to take care of these bastards."
����� "Here they come!!" warned another.
����� A volley of missiles and particle beams swept through their ranks.
Two died almost immediately. The rest threw themselves flat on the
ground, their beam rifles firing back. Leon watched as two more of his
men were blasted away.
����� Leon cursed, having resigned himself early on that this was one
battle he was not going to be walking out of.
����� Suddenly, the incoming boomers were assaulted by a hail of
spherical energy that exploded all around them, taking out three almost
immediately, while the rest tried to home in on their aggressor.
Andrew: "There's always a bigger fish."
Asuka: [sighs] Well, I guess he had to make a Phantom Menace quote eventually.
����� Leon blinked, following the boomers gaze towards a nearby broken-
down building behind him.
����� A silhouette of a woman greeted his sights.
����� "What the hell?!!"
����� That was all he managed to say as the boomers began firing, a
couple of them taking to the air and launch airborne attacks.
����� Iczer-2 watched them come, waiting for the right moment to spring
to action. She jumped just as the first missiles and beam projectiles
smashed the building she had been standing on to so much more rubble.
What struck her splashed harmlessly across her shields.
����� She smirked, bringing up her beam sword against the first of her
airborne opponents. The two of them met midair, her sword blurring as she
slashed the hyper-boomer into pieces. The others tried to blot her from
the skies, but she was too fast, too agile for their likes to even hit.
����� The battle lasted for five whole minutes.
Asuka: Geez, a little bit casual for her, don't you think?
����� Iczer-2 blinked, chiding herself for taking too long, before flying
off. She'd tarried long enough - Nene needed her help, feeling Nene's
growing desperation through the link.
����� *Hang on, Nene-chan.*
�� =================================
[SNIP]
����� "I would suggest you all surrender."
����� "FUCK YOU!!" Priss shouted. "We killed you once and we'll kill you
again, if we have to!!"
����� Largo laughed long and hard, motioning for her assistant to step
forward.
[All three groan and block their ears]
����� "Would you please teach these poor fools the futility of their
struggles, Miyuki."
����� It nodded.
����� "And don't hurt them too much. After all, one of them _is_ my
bride-to-be."
Asuka [Shampoo voice]: Is insane megalomaniac law. If insane megalomaniac
is defeated by man, must give kiss of death and kill without delay. But if
insane megalomaniac is defeated by woman, must marry her.
Ruri: Baka.
�� =================================
����� "Nene, watch out!!" Linna called out to her friend.
����� Too late - the hyper-boomer kicked Nene in the side, throwing her a
good ten meters and into the wall. Nene cried out in pain as she smashed
herself into a stop.
����� Priss growled, activating her boosters as she tackled it to the
ground. Without missing a beat, she knucklebombed it in the face.
����� A hand suddenly grasped her tightly around the neck, squeezing
slowly as the boomer stood up. Priss uttered a curse as she tried to
point her arm cannon on it.
����� "It is useless to resist, fool," it said to her in a strangely
human-sounding voice.
Ruri/Asuka [to Andrew]: NO BORG JOKES!
����� "What the hell do you know!!" Priss shouted back, letting out a
small cry as the boomer squeezed her throat tighter. "Fuck you, boomer
bitch!! If I'm going down, I'm going to take you with me first!!!"
����� It laughed before releasing its grip on her. Priss had little time
to rejoice as the boomer brought up its free hand and smashed its fist
into her stomach, punting her to a nearby wall.
Ruri: Actually, I believe the term "punt" refers to kicking.
����� It suddenly found itself parrying the strikes of the white saber as
it backed away, carefully trying to put the white saber between itself
and the green one.
����� Still, it did not matter in the long run. It was powerful - far
beyond any other hyper-boomer. Not bad for someone who had once been
human.
Ruri: The continuous use of "it" is a little monotonous. I suggest you
vary the term a little.
����� Something struck it from behind, eliciting a small cry from it. It
was all Sylia needed as she stabbed the boomer twice.
����� Roaring in anger, the boomer backhanded Sylia away while firing its
shoulder-mounted particle cannon at the green saber.
����� Seeing that all three of its opponents were down, it turned its
attention to the pink one. It smiled, showing its hands to the pink saber
as it extended its claws, wickedly sharp claws that could tear through
ten inches of reinforced titanium alloy into bits.
����� "That had hurt."
Ruri: "That had TO hurt."
����� "Uh... sorry??"
Asuka: Nice try, Nene.
����� Nene backed away, trying to remain calm. Nene shivered in fright as
the boomer displayed its razor sharp claws. Gulping, Nene mentally
screamed at anyone to help her. Looking behind the boomer, she saw her
friends groggily getting up but she knew that they would be too late.
����� Her mind screamed at her to do something - anything that might
delay her opponent. Running through her weapons inventory, she was
dismayed to see most of them were offline. That last shot she'd made was
it.
����� *ICZER-2!!!! HELP ME!!!!* she screamed as loudly in her mind as she
could.
Andrew: Largo ass-kicking time?
Ruri: Largo ass-kicking time.
����� "Time to die, little girl," it announced.
����� Nene closed her eyes as she waited for the inevitable to happen.
����� Seconds later, Nene opened her eyes to see the ruby orbs of Iczer-
2's eyes staring at her.
����� Iczer-2 smiled as she crushed the boomer's hands and tore it from
its shoulder with a casual flick of her arm. The boomer howled in pain,
backing away from the strange entity that had suddenly appeared.
Ruri: Either "Crushed the boomer's HAND" or "Tore THEM from THEIR shoulders".
����� Without warning, Iczer-2 leapt forward, one hand forming the beam
saber which she used to slash a deep rent across the boomer's chest.
Nutrient fluids burst from the 'wound,' the boomer holding its one
remaining arm across its chest.
����� Iczer-2 smirked as she walked towards the doomed boomer. Faster
than the eye could see, Iczer-2 grabbed the boomer by the throat, raising
it in the air as her fist slowly squeezed its neck. The boomer hung
helpless as it struggled to break free. Without any leverage, there was
little else it could do.
����� Tiring of the game, Iczer-2 formed a sphere of energy which she
aimed at its chest.
����� "Looks like you'll be the one who'll be dying tonight, my dear."
����� So saying, Iczer-2 released the sphere at point blank range,
blasting a hole through the boomer, killing it in seconds.
Andrew: Looks like she's in a good mood.
Ruri: Yes. Iczer-2 plus bad mood equals boomer blasted to smithereens.
����� She released her grip on the dead boomer, turning her attentions to
the one called Largo.
����� "I killed your little pet," she pronounced in much the same tone as
one would have said asking for a piece of bread. Glaring at the impudent
smirk on his face, Iczer-2 teleported directly in front of him and
started kicking him in the face.
����� The blow caught Largo off guard as he sailed through the air to
smash into the reinforced ceiling.
����� Without losing a beat, Iczer-2 once again teleported herself in
front of the man, unleashing two energy spheres at point-blank range.
����� Unlike the other one, Largo seemed to be built of sterner stuff. It
hardly mattered in the long run, as Iczer-2 grabbed hold of Largo's arms,
pinning them behind his back.
����� "I think you and I should take a little trip. I know of a good
place for power-hungry psychotics like you, Largo," she purred in his
ears before disappearing.
Andrew: "...Victorian state parliament!"
Asuka: Geez, you had to go and make a local reference, didn't you?
����� "Iczer-2!!!!" Nene cried out before losing consciousness.
�� =================================
����� Ten days had passed since the Largo incident. Mankind had once
again been rescued from the brink of extinction. Still, the time of
mourning was well past. Rebuilding would take many years and many changes
would undoubtedly take place - moreso now, with what had happened. There
would be an accounting of the incident.
����� But not now.
����� Even Genom appeared hesitant to even do anything, save helping out
in the reconstruction efforts across the world. Many would wonder why
this was so - in the end, it paled to the truth of it all.
�� =================================
����� Sylia gazed down at the ruins of MegaTokyo, her back turned to her
friends and those she had gathered in this office that had once been
Chairman Quincy's office. She still could not have believed that the OMS
was _not_ merely a tool but had been the very heart of GENOM.
����� The OMS was Quincy.
Andrew: I can believe that...
����� No wonder no one really saw the old man.
����� With the OMS destroyed, Sylia had become GENOM's CEO and major
shareholder, Quincy's successor - not to mention something more: he was
her uncle, one that had been looking over her since it had all began.
����� She had prided herself in her ability to elude GENOM, but now...
����� The truth certainly was painful. She was not, as she had once
thought, resourceful enough to elude GENOM. Her uncle had seen to it that
she and the Knight Sabers were left alone.
����� The revelations had been painful. Moreso to Priss, who had gone off
for some time to think it over. Still, she had returned, no doubt glaring
at her back.
����� Of all those that had been most affected, it seemed that Nene had
been hit hardest. ADP HQ was little more than a burning pile of rubble -
not that the rest of the city looked any different. Many of her friends
worked there. Too many friends lost. Too many griefs to bear.
����� But most of all, she had lost her link to the being known only as
Iczer-2.
����� Even now, Nene's tale was still somewhat difficult to believe.
����� Still, with what they'd seen her do back there in Largo's secret
base, it would be foolish of her to even doubt it.
����� A startled gasp caused her to turn around. Her eyes fell upon
Nene's bewildered face as the young girl beheld the woman who had
suddenly appeared behind her.
����� Smiling, Iczer-2 knelt behind Nene, kissing her lightly on the
cheek.
����� "I told you I'd come back," she said softly.
�� ======================== THE END.
Andrew: Good story.
Ruri: Yes, although the ending could stand to be made a little longer. And
the "millennia" thing didn't make sense.
Asuka: Hey, this is the third "Iczer-2 learns humanity" fic in the last few
weeks.
Andrew: Right. It's good to see some Iczer fics coming through, but it
would be even better if one had a different theme. Doesn't mean I didn't
like it, though.
All: Ja ne!
________________________________________________________________
Andrew Dynon
Things you really don't want to hear:
"Hi, I'm your nurse, Aino Minako."
* * *
"Stories have to be told to exist. They exist in the telling and retelling."
- Itzhak Roeh