Amidst a desert storm, soldiers are waiting patiently within their Guardian Mechs, one Perses standing in the middle-- a circle formation surrounding them, the Perses Mech itself kneeling, as if praying to a god not there. A mech driver sighed, clicking various buttons and tapping screens as they flicker wildly, the chassis swaying back and forth in symphony against the storm outside.

He took water out from a small compartment near his feet, uncapping the bottle and taking a sip before grabbing a bag at his side, holding a razer out from within, pouring a bit of water into his hand, wiping his face down with it, looking at himself through a black screen in front of him, feeling the individual stubble on his chin. He gently ran the razer over it, cutting the hairs at the root.

Somewhere else, a mech sits, shaking against the flying machine it was inside of, locked into a mechanism keeping it in place. The ship groaned, turbulence causing it to quake further, audibly groaning against the dirt and rubble outside, that groan becoming louder, the doors beneath the mecha's feet opening from under it, caught by the mechanism latched onto its arms, legs dangling above the tan smog below. The latch released and the mecha dropped, barreling through the air down to the earth below.

The Guardian Mech screamed violently, the radar showing a bright red light descending on their location-- "Eyes up!" One yelled over the radio, the Perses activating in that very instant, moving to a standing position, its head tracking the general area where the mecha from before is seemingly dropping from, their head going lower and lower, drifting back slowly, the Guardian Mechs getting into position, rocketing past the Perses Mech, guns readied. A four-legged Guardian Mech headed the charge, a cylindrical head peaking out from a small metal neckbrace, a pile driver on one arm, and a massive machine gun on the other.

The Perses' thrusters flared up, flame-spitting out from their right causing them to spin around to look behind them, a mech, slightly larger than them met their sight, that white mecha contrasting from within the smoke of the desert storm staring them down. The Perses Mech flew into the hair, the four-legged mech moving in from under their feet, almost flying straight toward the mech in front of them-- a Deus Mech.

The Perses Mech opened fire on the Deus Mech who began using their thrusters to avoid the shots, the fire soon stopping as the four-legged mech caught up to them, the spike in their pile driver reeled all the way back, the servos and springs unlocking sending it shooting forward, the four-legged mech slamming their arm into the Deus.

Just the spike reached their chest plate they seemingly disappeared right in front of them, "Beh-" the Perses Mech couldn't get the word out before the four-legged one was run through with a long blade, a blade which folds a hundred times a minute amitting a blue glow. The storm subsided, the steam on their blade becoming visible, bits of dried blood and organs melting against the sword. The Deus Mech pulled the sword out from the machine, sliding to the right of the now-dead hollow shell beside him, the blade spinning into place, turning it off and locking it into the arm like a sheath, their hand shifted upward, a small barrel peaking out from their wrist.

The Perses Mech screamed, them and the Guardian Mechs now firing upon the Deus Mech, each round slamming against their Zacin Shields, the blade sliding out from their off arm, thrusting forward to the Guardian Mechs, disappearing in front of their eyes once more, within that millisecond, one shot being fired into one of the Guardian Mechs killing whoever was inside instantly, the shot itself causing the entire Guardian to explode.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

The Guardian closest to the Deus Mech used thrusters to get away from them jostling the pilot within, sweat pouring from their face, causing steam to fill the cockpit. Once they moved a certain distance away from the Deus they took a mask from a compartment and placed it over his mouth, keeping oxygen in his lungs as the air started becoming thin. "Shields up!" A Guardian shouted, the man within this mech in particular following suit, attempting to regain his composure, pressing the mask against his mouth, breathing heavily. The sound of gunfire kept them alert, consistently moving across desert dunes, keeping track of his comrades from afar. "I'm wasting too much energy..." He mumbled before immediately being alerted by his radar - the Deus Mech was right behind him.

A brief scream could be heard followed by the sound of multiple explosions coming from both the Deus's gun arm and the thruster tanks within the Guardian Mech itself. The Perses Mech closed on in the Deus, pointing a massive shotgun at their head, a booming roar coming from the chamber after pressing the trigger. Their arm flew upward due to the recoil, the Perses dropped the shotgun, grabbed the barrel, and cocking it, a shell flew out, digging into the sand below, and emitting steam.

The Perses boosted backward, using it to make a sharp turn to look behind them, they got a flash of the mechanical monster, almost pulling the trigger before watching it fly straight toward a Guardian Mech who had been speeding towards them as a form of support, firing in the direction of the Deus before being cleaved in two, the mech climbing on top of the two halves, kneeling down as if it were some sort of beast, quickly snapping towards the next Guadian Mech, cleaving off its limbs and throwing the cockpit at the Perses who was attempting to catch up to the Deus.

The Perses caught the cockpit midair, quickly placing it down. As they looked up, they almost met the Deus's blade, using their boosters to dodge the attack, the tip of the blade sautering the tip of their head, a black smoldering spot revealing the inner machinations of the Perses Machine.

A hellfire of bullets sprayed out from their machine gun arm, the Deus speeding across the dunes. "I KNOW WHAT IT IS!" A Guardian yelled, two guardians sticking close together, shooting out supporting fire at the Deus Mech which was flying in the air. "IT'S THE CHRONOS!" The machine landed far away from the group which didn't stop firing at them.

The Chronos shot across back over to the group breaking the sound barrier, slamming into one of the Guadian Mechs with their feet causing the machine to fall over, the blade in one hand spinning wildly as it bisected the other Guardian beside them. "DIE!" The Perses yelled as they closed the distance between them and the Chronos, firing another shotgun shot towards the Deus Mech's head, missing again, their arm flying off their shoulder within a split second. "FUCK!" The Perses spun around, firing their machine gun at the Chronos, each shot bouncing off their deployed shields. A shot goes off, and the transmission was cut. An entire group was wiped out by one mech, a monster amongst many.

***

A wide expanse and a ship orbiting a planet. It lay dormant for many years, still functional, and capable, and is holding a variety of preserved food and water. Adrift in space until finally, an oddity occurs, dropping in from nothing, floating around in the ship which preemptively filled the empty inside with oxygen, dimming the lights, as if being considerate to the one who had just entered, the AI in the ship... it appeared to be sentient.

A young boy, 16 years of age, with short black hair and bags under his eyes.