"Am I to guess that you have a plan of some kind?" Jessica13 asked, still holding on for dear life.
"My thought was simply to surprise them with our presence, distract them, and give the other Knights a chance to breach their line with a minimal loss of life," he replied.
"That doesn't sound like a plan," she retorted waspishly. "That's barely even a concept."
"I am open to additions to the plan," he replied and she could almost hear a hint of hurt in his voice. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the time to explore it or attempt apologies.
"Can you keep us moving?" she asked. "I think I have an idea but I need to use the grappler."
"Understood," Mini said, quickly disengaged them from Bulletfoot mode, and kept their movements sporadic and unpredictable as the gunfire around them grew more intense.
"I will definitely regret this," Jessica13 said. The bumps and bruises from their last fight still made her body ache, and their erratic course at breakneck speed only made it worse.
Mini guided them toward the line the enemy attempted to hold against the Knights. The Cinders were at the front and coordinated their defense to halt the Knights’ advance and more importantly, try to keep Hammerhand at bay. That was the weakness she intended to exploit. Hopefully, she thought grimly, but pushed the doubt aside and readied herself for what she needed to do.
It was difficult to aim the grappler while they were in motion, and Mini called up the same software they used to aim the rifle on her back. It wasn't quite as accurate but at this range, it didn't really matter. She found her target and launched the dart to streak forward and drive home in the arm of one of the Cinders.
She wasn't sure what she had expected to do other than distract it, but the mech didn’t budge from its attempt to keep Hammerhand pinned in place with its thrower. The flechette gun turned toward her and while it was angled a little awkwardly, the effect would be the same. The type of rounds that were fired from that kind of gun would cut through her armor and find her rather vulnerable inside with ease.
Jessica13 twisted away from the Cinder's line of fire and yanked at the chord that was still attached to its arm. The motion hauled the mech around without her realizing what she had accomplished at first. As soon as reality clicked in, she continued to drag the mech's thrower away from Hammerhand's shield and toward the Lancers that tried to protect it.
Flames coated the enemy mechs and the screams were audible. The heat wouldn’t damage the steel or even the mech itself overmuch, but they would cook the inside, which happened to be the pilot. The temperature would rocket in their cockpits to the point of being unbearable.
A few tried to climb out, but that only let more of the heat in along with the flames. The shrieks sounded almost inhuman as the men tried to beat the fire away, but the fuel stuck to their bodies and it wasn't long before a few hung half-outside their mechs, wreathed in smoke and filling the air with the acrid smell of burning meat.
Those that had actually encountered this problem before were easy to find as they acted quickly to scoop up dirt from the ground around them and shoved it onto the places where the flames burned to stifle them quickly before things grew too hot.
Even with only five of the Lancers dead and a few more distracted, it was the only opening Hammerhand needed. He dropped the shield and advanced quickly on the Cinder that still had her dart attached, which she retracted hastily when she saw the hammer swing in from the side.
The enemy mech was busy trying to acquire her and Mini for another shot and didn't realize that the Excalibur was behind him until it was too late. The blow from the rocket-powered hammer resulted in an audible crunch that lifted it off its feet and catapulted it into the wall of fire that still burned brightly.
The sight of Hammerhand bathed by the red glow of the flames and the occasional flicker of lightning was truly awesome to behold, especially when he was surrounded and flanked by his fellow Knights. Power seemed to radiate from his mech as the vents opened quickly and appeared to cool the fire around it as well.
Jessica13 stowed her grappler, moved herself to the safety provided by the Knights' position, and once again assumed the regular role of a support mech. She reloaded her rifle's mag before she took a handful of crates to where her teammates fought their way through Athena's forces.
It had seemed like the mechs had only been there to slow them, but they fought with every intention of trying to win. They had to know they had no chance, especially when Hammerhand gave legend to his name and simply crushed them, sometimes two or three at a time, with his hammer. The Knights dealt with those that hadn't been removed from contention already with their own unique sets of skills.
Taylor moved quickly in his Sherlock, supported by his Watson, and protected Hammerhand's flanks to ensure that none could get around his shield and hammer. At the same time, the Predator broke away, circled its leader, and surged into the enemy ranks.
It moved swiftly and deliberately and used the close quarters to its advantage. The chainsword dealt severe damage to the limbs of the mechs and rendered them immobile before it cut carefully into the cockpits so as to leave the mech itself intact while it could still drag the pilots out.
None of them retreated, asked for mercy, or even thought to take Hammerhand up on his offer.
Jessica13 shook her
