[b]Endian[/b]

The Machina Commander resisted the urge to growl from frustration as she watched the tactical flow of the battle, not exactly appreciating how things were going at the moment. The defenses that had been carefully planned for the Elicitor were proving less than admirable against the angels that assaulted them on the decks. Oh, Grafdakka was proving good enough, but he was sadly appearing to be the exception to the rule here. 

Several things vied for her attention all at once, proving less than welcome in those moments. For example, the giant plasma torch set off inside the ship, perilously close to the Cargo that they were transporting home. Fortunately there were units nearby, who seemed to be handling the situation already. There was also the arrival of the Angelic special unit, though Grafdakka seemed to be able to handle him when he wasn't busy dealing with the Demons. Endian was fine with that, since the more the demons fought each other, the less of a chance they had to fight the Machina. Third was the tripping of internal sensors inside the Elicitor, indicating that they had intruders. She had already acted to try and deal with that, but it was proving to merely be a deterrent, and not a solution. Oh, and the swarm of bats. That wasn't helping either.

Most annoying though was the fact that one minute they were striding along, and the next thing she knew the submersion protocols had been activated, the Fortress starting to burrow underground. "Who ordered that," Endian snapped as she accessed logs, practically doing a double take to see that it was Grafdakka who had activated it. Oh, she was going to have a serious talk with him once this was over. 

Her eyes widened then as things rapidly went off the rials again, alarms flaring as internal systems locked down, defenses shut down, and bulkheads unsealed to allow free access for anyone inside. "What is the meaning of this," she muttered as hse tried to override,even as officers abandoned their posts. 

Turning to face them, she was taken off guard by the proclamation, and it was only a swift reaction from her drones that projected a shielc, deflecting the blast away from her and her assistant, keeping them intact even as the explosion blew out the windows of the bridge and damaged the equipment. For a moment the Machina simply stood there, surveying the damage and coping with what had happened, before her face darkened in anger.

Turning to her assistant, she gestured quickly. "Guard this door. No one gets inside." She couldn't do so herself, not when she had to focus.

Walking over to one of the still intact consoles, she jacked in and let her mind open, striking out into the system to try and brute force it open any way that she could. It wouldn't be impossible, of course, but it was going to take time. Time that they might not have. So to compensate, she activated the intercom (which wasn't locked out due to being a non-vital system) "All units be aware, we have corrupted units on board, and enemy infiltrators. Be on alert, and use your initiative to determine if erratic behavior is a threat."

That said, she returned to what she had been doing, trying to break through the encryptions and such. The sooner that was done, the quicker they could get back to fighting this fight. It certainly distracted from the sudden return of the rose petals that began to interfere with the Submersion Protocols, sending up more alerts and alarms that Endian couldn't do anything about. 

Meanwhile the Machina reacted as best they could to the sudden news. The group down in the cargo hold would find units approaching rapidly, well armed and ready to assist Regia and the maids in resisting the now in progress escape attempt. They might be small in number for w, but soon more would appear. They were there to command if Regia deemed it necessary. 

Fighting broke out across the Fortress, the Machina reacting to sabotage and destruction, beginning the hunt for the corrupted Machina, as well as the demonic infiltrators. They had some openings now, but it would not be long before surprise wore off, control was reasserted, and they were trapped again. They would have to act quick if they wanted their prize.

Meanwhile automated guns fell silent, leaving the exterior of the Fortress defenseless. Needless to say, the Machina were in a bit of a situation. 

[hr]

[@KoL][@Rune_Alchemist][@Ryonara][@Lonewolf685][@TheWindel][@Shyla Nesthorn]