Their transport helicopter was nearly at the offloading point when Ayre received an urgent message from her Liberation Front contact with a briefing attached.

[We have an urgent situation developing at one of our Belius locations, and would like to retain the services of Raven to defend it. The timeframe is very short, and we are prepared to arrange for high speed transport for her AC across the Alean Ocean if necessary. Please let us know as soon as possible if Raven is available for this mission. Briefing is attached.]

She quickly sent off a message to let the Liberation Front know they were available and in the Belius region already.

"Raven, we've received an urgent request from the Rubicon Liberation Front. They were prepared to fly us back over to Belius within a few hours if we accepted, so I've let them know we're on the continent and our location. They'll be there shortly after we land to pick us up, along with your extra munitions and weapons. Here's the briefing," Ayre explained.

The voice of Rainer, part of their Belius Command, sounded rather worried as he spoke during the briefing.

"Raven, we have a mission we'd like you to take on." Rainer greeted, "The objective is to defend the Gallia Dam complex in the Belius region. Arquebus has been using independent mercenaries to step up pressure on the Rubiconians while fighting the PCA. They might be laying the groundwork to take effective control over the entire planet."

Images of two ACs flashed next, then a number of diagrammed images showing best-guess frame and loadout compositions.

"They've dispatched two high-ranking independent mercenaries to raid the dam." Rainer further explained, "You'll need to be ready to take on both ACs at once: ASTER CROWN and UMBER OX... As you know, we have few cards to play. I hope we can count on you."

Raven sat for a moment, taking it in, before he sprung into action.

<>

"Of course, Raven," Ayre responded. "I've already let the Liberation Front know where to pick us up and told Carla to cancel our berth on the return trip for her cargo hauler."

<>

"Based on the Liberation Front's projected travel method, they anticipate sometime in the next 6 hours," Ayre estimated. "We should be able to make it there by helicopter by then."

<>

...

Rainer could feel the tension that had been tight in his shoulders begin to unwind when he received a message back from Raven's operator just a few minutes after he sent the request.

They were in the Belius region already and were available to sortie. He'd been given coordinates to send a chopper to, and one was already lifting off.

The fact that they had any forewarning about the impending raid on the Gallia Dam was a very lucky break, and Raven being available and nearby even more so. It was still worrying, seeing as it was two of the highest ranked independents Arquebus had hired, but if there was anyone who could make this work, it would be Raven. He'd seen him do incredible things fighting the PCA machines, and with the way he dismantled Dolmayan, by his account, meant he was possibly the most dangerous pilot in the system.

They'd need all of that talent and a healthy dose of luck for the dam to make it through this onslaught. Dunham was en route as well to support if necessary, though Uncle Flatwell had advised that he be kept in reserve or possibly even ordered not to deploy.

He was far outclassed by the pilots who would be fighting this battle; It wouldn't be worth sending him to die for nothing.

...

Raven triple-checked his weapons were mounted as they approached the drop zone. Their Liberation Front contact had informed them that they'd spotted enemy transports inbound, so it would be a hot drop to quickly try to stall them.

He'd decided to keep the laser blade. The usual machine gun was replaced with a WR-0777 SWEET SIXTEEN Shotgun. Meanwhile, the Zimmerman shotgun on the left shoulder was to be replaced a pile bunker to go with the laser blade. The Zimmerman shotgun on the right stayed right where it originally was.

It would be more dangerous to get close, but the promise of killing the targets made it worth it, not to mention the slight mobility would be worth it.

"Raven, we're dropping in 10. Get ready," Ayre warned him.

The clamp system rotated and backed into open air before OBSIDIAN WING was falling. Combat mode activated and her sensors came to life, showing the third dam substation around her. Ahead, a fight was already raging as the opfor broke through the first substation and began to engage the garrison at the second. He didn't hesitate to activate his assault boost, rocketing forward across the snow covered crags to get to the action.

"Let's get started, Raven." said Ayre, "ASTER CROWN's pilot, King, has an 89.6% mission success rate. His reputation for finesse is such that he's advertised as the ideal mercenary. UMBER OX is piloted by Chartreuse, an aggressive bulldozer with unrivaled firepower. Those who've seen her at work call her an unstoppable force."

They'd tapped into the local comms network, and the two must have noticed Raven as he approached.

"You must be 'Raven'..." The voice on the open comms channel had originated from ASTER CROWN. It was King. "Not a name I expected to see attached to a hostile AC. You know our priorities, Chartreuse. Let me deal with this."

A radar warning flashed, a trio of laser beams flashing past OBSIDIAN WING as he dodged.

"Give me a break, King," the other pilot answered, exasperated. "That bossy attitude of yours doesn't do you any favors."

King's shield absorbed the first blast from his lighter shotgun and stayed up. It was one of the Arquebus ADD models, designed to provide incredible mitigation during extended use. He could see the radiator elements beginning to glow, a sure sign that it was nearing shutdown.

The Sampu handgun King carried pelted OBSIDIAN WING, slowly wearing down his armor off various parts of the body. The shield dropped, and suddenly ASTER CROWN raised a fully charged Harris linear rifle.

Raven smashed his quickboost, barely managing to escape the trajectory; The powerful round likely would have ripped an arm off if it hit near the elbow, or cracked an armor plate. He activated a repair charge before launching a heavy shotgun blast, the trailing bullets rocking ASTER CROWN as he tried to pursue.

A moment later Raven smashed his foot into his chest, launching him back and following with a volley of light shotgun fire, followed by a quickly-reloaded heavy one, staggering the quadruped machine. He recovered before he could get close to pile bunker range, the blow glancing off a redeployed pulse shield while he expended a repair charge.

"This is more of a challenge than I'd anticipated... I haven't seen anything like this since - !" he grunted.

The massive triple barrel laser cannon suddenly swung into firing position and a timely quickboost dropped Raven back off the upper edge of the dam substation to evade the shot. He turned, finding Chartreuse engaging a small MT squad, their numbers rapidly falling. A shotgun fired as Raven assault boosted forward, catching his opponent unawared. The second shotgun blast followed by a kick sending UMBER OX careening over the edge of the dam wall, glowing with the telltale flash of the repair system.

"You don't know when to quit," Chartreuse snarled. "Just like all the other Ravens..."

Her voice was oddly fond for someone who had seemed so angry. She deployed pulse armor before trying to ram Raven in response, hitting only air.

"There's more to them than meets the eye. They might not be so different from the other Ravens after all." King's voice seemed almost respectful, if grudgingly so.

Other Ravens?

"What 'other Ravens?'" Ayre was evidently just as confused. "Wait, Raven, King is closing behind you!"

Beneath his helmet, Raven smirked.

They make it so easy.

OBSIDIAN WING crouched, the overboost system deploying and charging, the blast of assault armor enveloping both enemy ACs and shattering the pulse armor protecting UMBER OX. Sensors indicated the same energy overload from ASTER CROWN, likely having caught his shield.

The long body of UMBER OX made it difficult to score a blow to the torso, but she could just as easily cripple the machine. Raven swapped his laser blade and began to charge it as he dashed into range, the blade slashing at the torso, forcing an ACS overload on UMBER OX, followed by a pile bunker slam, the massive spike ripping into the hover tank module from the front. The thrusters sputtered and died as the weapon obliterated the internals.

"Chartreuse! Withdraw!" King shouted, "Abandon your AC!"

"Why won't you die...?!" Chartreuse's voice screamed through the comms as UMBER OX crashed to the ground, immobile.

It could still operate its weapons, but it was a sitting duck. She heeded her partner's advice and ejected a second later, launching high into the air. All that was left was King.

The other mercenary had backed off to a distance, clearly wary of more tricks. He seemed content to pepper Raven with long range fire as he tried to chase him, the quadruped unable to keep up with the much lighter machine as she evaded around the dam's structure.

"Wait, Raven, I'm picking up another AC!" Ayre's voice was tinged with worry.

An unidentified AC usually meant bad things, especially when they were engaging a known mercenary group. Suddenly, another voice was speaking on the comms channel.

"Do you read me, Raven?" a woman's voice asked.

It did.

"Your imposter must be an impressive pilot to take on the two of them at once." they said, "Let's see how far they can fly... on borrowed wings."

Shit.

"Raven..." Ayre was clearly very worried now. "The woman speaking is likely the operator for that pilot, or perhaps Branch. Is this what they meant when they said other Ravens...?"

King's AC crested the dam behind them, weapons at the ready, and ate a blast from his shotgun directly to the right front leg. His repair kit fixed the armor a split second later but could do nothing for the mechanism, greatly hampering his ability to maneuver even under boost.

"You're late..." King growled. "The imposter already forced Chartreuse to eject. We can't take chances!"

Raven lashed out with a kick, pushing the heavier AC back off the dam and jumping down after him, a pile bunker streaking out to further rock ASTER CROWN.

...

Ayre watched as her partner tried desperately to remove King from the fight before it became a two versus one. The pile bunker was hampering his efforts terribly, absorbing anything he threw at it. And at this rate, by the time he forced it to overheat the other Raven would arrive.

She accessed the communication systems of OBSIDIAN WING, linking into it via Raven's implants. It was a trivial matter to manipulate the systems to mimic the voice Raven could hear from her, and a second later she tapped into the local frequency.

"This is Raven's Operator." She spoke, "The Gallia Dam is under our protection. Withdraw if you want to survive. Continue fighting and we will destroy you."

She could feel her partner's surprise at her voice on the comm channel before he focused on the fight again, now more determined than ever. There was a mission to complete.

King was hovering a couple dozen meters off the frozen ground, trying to keep his distance to avoid another kick when he assault boosted forward, staying low and dodging a blast from the laser cannon. The low speed of the hover mode made it easy for Raven to get below the enemy machine, the bottom undefended by the pulse shield.

He charged the laser blade and released it, the laser's blade ripping through the thruster assembly on the bottom and upwards into the generator. ASTER CROWN shuddered before falling to the ground, leaking fire.

"You're strong... Worthy of your name..." The ejection system fired as he cut his losses before he got killed.

"Thank you, King." The voice of the original Raven's operator was heavy. "We've lost both of them, Raven. Just focus on the enemy."

...

Raven turned to face the incoming enemy pilot. They were in overboost travel mode and closing fast. They'd clearly not been deterred by Ayre's declaration, so he'd fight. To the death if necessary. He activated another repair charge, leaving only one. The other AC was named NIGHTFALL.

It wondered what they were up to before they got called over here. The operator for the other Raven spoke again.

"Augmented human C4-621. You stand in the way of our target." she said, "We'll see if you can live up to the name you carry."

The enemy pilot seemed intent on closing to melee range, not firing well within the range their missiles were locked on.

400 meters.

300 meters.

200 meters.

100 meters.

From this range, she could see the identical frame, the only difference being the coloring. As NIGHTFALL got closer they brought their legs up, aiming to kick him. His blast of assault armor enveloped them in return, sending them crashing to the ground and skidding past on the ice.

Shit, lost that opening.

A heavy shotgun blase pursued his target as he assault boosted, NIGHTFALL kiting backwards and peppering him with weaponry before delivering a kick when he got too close that stunlocked him for a second. The distance was too great for a charged hit from the laser sword, but it didn't stop them from leaping forward to gouge his core armor, forcing him to use the final repair charge.

"A Raven is a symbol of resolve." said the enemy, "The will to choose what one fights for."

"Stay focused, Raven," Ayre cautioned. It was followed by the sensation of a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I believe in you."

His assault armor would still be on cooldown for a while, leaving no room for a sneaky overload. He activated overboost as NIGHTFALL did, both rocketing toward each other and exchanging kicks, stalling each other. The NIGHTFALL swung its pile bunker and OBSIDIAN WING matched with its own pile bunker, deflecting the other weapon with his own.

The two dropped down, circling each other and jockeying to get to their desired range. OBSIDIAN WING pursued as the original Raven kited back up to the dam substation, dodging a blast from the Songbirds that would have cracked the core armor, returning a blast from his machine gun and dual missile launcher that nearly shattered the right shoulder armor, only a quick repair charge preventing it from failing.

"Yes, Raven, I feel it too. This mercenary has potential." said the operator.

They sounded almost impressed, and Raven felt a flash of pride before he tamped it down. Now was not the time to get overconfident.

"Huh. The will to choose..." Ayre mused.

The looping trajectory of a JVLN missile finally caught the enemy pilot, NIGHTFALL stumbling as it jumped and losing speed. A quickboost put him in range, the laser sword delivering a crushing blow to the chest, the follow up kick wrecking the sensor pod and exposing the internal frame as parts of the armor were torn off.

Two repair charges managed to patch the hole, and now they were both on their last legs. NIGHTFALL fell into a crouch and Raven quickboosted as fast as he could, the Alula's quick recharge saving him as he escaped the inner blast radius of the assault armor, taking only minor damage from it but burning all of his energy.

"Raven," the mysterious operator spoke. "King and Chartreuse have been located and evacuated."

A jump helped throw off the tracking of the incoming missiles but could do little for the AC flying at her. Her pile bunker came out, meeting the kick head on before the right hand shotgun delivered a blow to the already weak torso armor. NIGHTFALL's stance was poor with the damaged leg, and a kick in return sent it flying back, skidding across the ground. The generator didn't seem to be breached, but the pilot likely wouldn't give up.

Sure enough, NIGHTFALL stood again, only to be rocked by a light pile bunker slam embedding into the damaged right leg and exploding, wrecking the internals. Try as they might, the original Raven couldn't keep upright after that level of damage.

OBSIDIAN WING approached slowly, laser blade and Zimmerman shotgun trained on the AC.

Ayre spoke again on the comms channel.

"The two Branch members said something about 'other Ravens.'" she asked, "Are there more of you?"

"It's a title, passed down through generations of mercenaries who champion the free will 'Raven' stands for." The woman's voice seemed almost desperate, likely realizing how close her pilot was to dying. "They choose what to fight for, and take to the skies in flight."

Both machines stood silent, watching each other. Raven could feel her partner's curiosity.

"If that's what being a Raven means... Then that's the name I want to keep calling you." Ayre's voice was determined. "Should we offer them one last chance to withdraw? From one Raven to another?"

<>

When Ayre next spoke, it was on the local channel.

"We offer you one final chance, from one Raven to another." she offered, "Leave this conflict and do not return. Or next time it will be your death."

No words were spoken in return. NIGHTFALL's ejector system fired, launching the original Raven's cockpit pod backwards across the ice. They watched as a rescue helicopter picked it up, flying off back west, away from the dam, toward whatever support vehicles they had brought.

...

Dunham sat in his AC, standing atop the final substation of the Gallia Dam. It was eerily reminiscent of the last time he'd seen this happen. It was a shock to hear that the Raven he'd seen fight against the Redguns was some kind of impostor, but it was clear as the battle dragged on that it was only in name.

"Rainer, do you copy." Dunham asked, "All enemy ACs have been eliminated. Raven sent them home in armored coffins."

It was a heavy silence, Rainer likely shocked by the savagery of the fight.

"I copy." he answered, "I'm letting Raven know that they can use the repair facilities at the dam, please make sure they're available. Taking on all three members of Branch at the same time... Raven is going to change the tide of this war."

https://youtu.be/WEsibVKPNA0

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