[IC] Evolution of Conflict: A Sci-Fi Mecha 1x1 FaithfulMuse and Stern Algorithm

[Stern Algorithm]

When the twins arrived, Sion got up and asked Blythe to follow him into a separate room. Meanwhile, Maya stayed and asked Claire to sit down.

"I just wanted to say you did a good job in the simulation," Maya began, "even though you 'lost' you fared quite well against Tera who had more offensive options. I also understand that neither of you were really meant for combat, so you showed good adaptability and composure out there. That's all I realyy wanted to talk about, we've reviewed everyone's performance and are just giving our evaluations one-on-one. And don't worry about Blythe, Sion was rather impressed."

---

"You took down Orpheus in the simulation. Impressive," Sion said to Blythe, "In the right hands, that cog would be a monster, but you slipped past its overwhelming firepower and its defenses. Granted, Orpheus wasn't meant for dog-fighting or dueling. Anyways, I just wanted to let you know that you did well. And no, this wasn't a competition, so your sister did fine even though she technically 'lost' the 'match'."

[FaithfulMuse]

Blythe shrugged at what Sion said last. "I didn't expect Claire to be criticised for losing her match either way. Her cog isn't one meant for combat, so I don't see how one would expect her to win a one on one fight." She simply said. It perhaps seemed a little arrogant, but Blythe knew that she had done well. Not because she had won the match, but because she was confident of her combat skills, regardless of what the test had said about her.

Claire nodded, reassured to know that despite having lost the match, they still thought that she had done a good job. "Blythe has the potential to be a good cog pilot. Maybe she won't be one of the best, but she can still be a valuable addition to the team." Claire said to Maya. Sure, Blythe wasn't exactly kind to her teammates, she was distant and more than just a bit rude to Solomon, but she was also determined to become a good cog pilot, anyone could see that much.

[Stern Algorithm]

"Well, that will be all," Sion said, being his usual tight-lipped self.

---

"Actually, Blythe might be the best pilot among the ensigns; she may even be better than me and Sion, though Sion probably won't tell her that," Maya said, "There's an emotional and personal side to cogs. You want to help and heal people, so your cog has the ability to repair other cogs. Israfil is...afraid, so Orpheus is heavily armed and armored, to keep enemies as far away as possible. Solomon wants to control others, so his cog literally has little slave units flying around it. So what does that say about Blythe? The fact that Nyx is so...plain...I think is indicative of her desire to prove herself as a pilot, no tricks, no gimmicks, just pure skill. At least, that's my assessment."

[FaithfulMuse]

Blythe nodded and left the room once Sion assured her that they had nothing else to talk about. To her, that was perfectly fine.

"If I were you, I wouldn't describe Blythe as plain, nor her cog, if there's an emotional and personal side to them. Blythe may be more complicated than you seem to think." Claire said to Maya.

[Stern Algorithm]

"Sorry," Maya apologized, "You're right, it's actually a pretty high-performance machine." After that, Maya dismissed Claire.

[FaithfulMuse]

Claire nodded and got up, leaving the room.

[Stern Algorithm]

A few days passed. The fleet located another group of ships smuggling supplies to the insurgents in the region. The smugglers retreated into an asteroid cluster so the Ascendancy fleet pursued. orders were issued to have the cogs launch as their maneuverability would be advantageous in this terrain.

"Alright, we're breaking up into two teams," Maya ordered, "Claire, Solomon, you're with me; Blythe, Tera, Israfil, you're with Sion."

The teams launched. Maya led her team, going from asteroid to asteroid, staying out of sight of the enemy ships; Sion did likewise, but from another angle.

[FaithfulMuse]

Claire and Blythe both followed their orders, not really saying much but staying focused on the mission instead.

[Stern Algorithm]

"We'll hold position here," Sion declared. They were standing on an asteroid, behind a rock outcropping. Peeking over the outcropping they could see enemy ships, though when Mayura opened its sensor array, everyone got a digital layout of the battle field sent to their cogs. "As long as Mayura stays here undisturbed, we'll have eyes on the enemy," Sion said, "Orpheus will also use this position to engage in long-range bombardment. Our job," Sion indicated himself and Blythe, "is to defend this position. Engage and disengage at your own discretion. I trust your battle instincts, but protecting these two is our highest priority. As this is my...first time commanding, I will keep my main unit here as well." Sion's Fury split into three seemingly identical units. One hovered near Orpheus and Mayura, the others flanked Nyx. "My auxiliary units will aid you."

---

"Our team will weave in and out of combat," Maya explained, "but our main objective is to damage the ships, our secondary objective is to defend the other team if they are getting overwhelmed. I will defend Asteria; Legion, you're our main damage, so go wild, but don't stray too far, come back to Asteria for repairs. Alright? Commence operation!"

---

Orpheus peaked over the outcropping, opened its shield cape and released a blistering salvo of beams. Obsidian charged forward with Asteria following close behind, and Legion flitting about nearby, releasing its Demon Bits which began firing. The enemy ships released interceptors in the form of Strikecraft, while also retaliating with point defense guns.

[FaithfulMuse]

Asteria followed after the others,waiting fir an opportunity fir her to be helpful. She wasn't meant for combat, but the cog was going to be needed for repairment.

Blythe did much the same as he sister. Nyx was best in close combat, but there was nothing hostile closeby and they had to protect Mayura as well.

[Stern Algorithm]

Orpheus' attack was enough to draw most of the strikecraft to them, leaving the path fairly clear for Maya's team to advance. A few of the strikecraft broke off to attack them, but Legion was able to make short work of them. The team approached one of the ships, but Obsidian took position on front, sustaining minor damage from ship's anti-strikecraft guns.

---

As the bulk of the enemy strikecraft approached, Sion ordered, "Nyx, we mustn't let them any closer or we'll get overwhelmed, take as many of them out as you can, I'll back you up."

[FaithfulMuse]

Nyx aimed at the ships coming their way, managing to take out several of them. The ships were harder to miss from a long distance, but from a distance like this, Blythe found it far less difficult to take them out. Still, even though things went well for now, Blythe quietly wished that there would be a way for her to aim better at opponents that were further away.

[Stern Algorithm]

The strikecraft weren't nearly as maneuverable as a cog so Nyx successfully shot down many of them, while the Fury's sub-units provided support. The enemy capital ships began using their stronger, long-range cannon to bombard Sion's team's position. Their asteroid was getting pummeled, and Orpheus was unable to shoot as freely.

---

Seeing their plight, Maya ordered, "Legion, take care of those cannons while I work on the thrusters. Legion zipped away, dodging the spray of anti-aircraft guns while Obsidian began punching at the part of the ship around thrusters in an attempt to disable them.

[FaithfulMuse]

While the others wee fighting Asteria looked around carefully, making sure to spit it if someone needed her aid.

[Stern Algorithm]

Obsidian had successfully punched the thrusters enough to disable them. Meanwhile, Legion had managed to destroy many of the cannons that had been hitting Sion's team's position. However, the strikecraft were starting to swarm around and overwhelm Nyx, even disabling one of Fury's subunits. Fury's main unit tried to clear a path for Nyx, but it was slowly getting surrounded.

[FaithfulMuse]

Although they were with many, Blythe didn't even consider for one moment that giving up would be an option and kept firing, trying to help out Fury. Things looked terrible for them, but that would become the case in more fights and Blythe wasn't one to back down from a fight. She considered combining Asteria and Nyx, but wasn't sure if the cogs were close enough to one another.

[Stern Algorithm]

Asteria and Nyx were too far apart to combine. Meanwhile another of Fury's subunits was shot and disabled, leaving Nyx alone, surrounded. Fury's main unit, which had stayed behind with Orpheus and Mayura, was unable to clear a path for Nyx. Sion didn't want Orpheus to fire on Nyx's position for fear of hitting Nyx, though it probably would have cleared out a good number of the harassing strikecraft.

Then, having taken care of some of the enemy ship's cannons, Legion swooped over to the swarm of strikecraft, sending his demon bits to shoot down the strikecraft with precision. His distraction gave Nyx the opportunity it needed to make its way out of the cluster of enemy fighters.

[FaithfulMuse]

Blythe quickly made sure to get away from the group of enemy fighters, but she wasn't quick enough. As she was making her way away from them, the cannon from another ship hit Nyx. Although the cog wasn't destroyed it got damaged, and the shock caused Blythe to shake in her seat quite heavily, even so much that she hit hard against the cog's control panel with her head, which started bleeding and made Blythe lose her consciousness, not even giving her the chance to say a swear upon being hit, which was very much unlike her.

Claire, who had been unable to see what was going on, kept making sure that those she could see were not in need of repairment.

[Stern Algorithm]

"Blythe's unconscious!" Tera yelled through the commlink. Mayura kept track of the pilots' vitals.

"Shit!" Solomon said, pushing Legion into the fray in an attempt to extract Nyx.

"Let's go back him up," Maya said to Claire, and boosted in Solomon's direction.

[FaithfulMuse]

Claire nodded and quickly headed into Solomon's direction. She didn't know how Blythe got unconscious and couldn't help but worry if she was alright.

Blythe remained unconscious and her head kept bleeding.