Twilight Shooting Star

Meanwhile at the bottom of Edison. Riker is working on the enemy's Mega Armor troops. His combat machine continues to move swiftly to avoid the opponent's aggression while counterattacking.

"Kendall…, Ramona, Jean, Simone… this is for all of you. Rest quietly in heaven. I will avenge what these demons have done—"

BEEEP-BEEEP! BEEEP-BEEEP!

There was a warning sound from the Ride Armor radar that Riker was driving. On the cockpit monitor, he could see the arrival of several Mega Armors from behind Cloudbase US-2.

"Reinforcement? Well, I am not afraid!" Riker growled.

Instead of looking for a way to get out from the battlefield because he might be surrounded, Riker stepped on the control pedal and directed his Ride Armor towards the troops who had just arrived.

"Which imbecile dares to challenge us alone, using only one Ride Amor?"

Miguel's voice was heard saying to Aiden who was sitting so calmly behind the controls of his Mega Armor. He smiled thinly, almost imperceptibly, then answered.

"An outrageous idiot. Flame 01, 02, as the fool come to us, we break formation. Burn 01 and 02, make a reverse maneuver, and shoot the Ride Armor at will!"

"Roger that, Captain!"

Of course, Riker doesn't know the opponent's plans. He continued to get closer to Aiden and his friends.

"You all going to die…!" he said confidently as he prepared to open fire.

BHWOOOSH…!

"What the—"

Instantly, Riker was shocked. The robots that were coming towards him scattered. The rest instead moved backward while brandishing their beam weapons.

"An ambush…?!"

BHEW! BHEW! BHEW! BHEW!

A reddish beam of light shot simultaneously and aimed at the Ride Armor that Riker was driving.

Lucky for him. Seeing his enemies break their formation, Riker immediately moved his yoke so that his combat vehicle dived vertically upwards. He was also slipped off from the hail of gunfire.

"That was close…!" Riker said to himself.

However, he couldn't relax. Because Miguel and his friends were ready to open fire.

BHEW! BHEW! BHEW! BHEW!

Once again, Stella Polaris' troops forced Riker to avoid them. His Ride Arm then zigzagged and even twisted so those beams couldn't hit him directly.

"Damn UEF insects…!" Riker cursed.

BHWOOOSH…!

One of Stella Polaris' Mega Armor followed, then blocked Riker's Ride Armor. The driver of the Draco Custom Space Booster Commander Type is none other than Aiden Wildemann. The Mega Armor immediately drew one of the two curved and jagged swords slung on its back.

ZHNNNGGG…!

But that's when all the members of the Pyros squadron saw it. From Ride Armor form, their opponent's silver-white combat machine transforms into Mega Armor. The Stella Polaris soldiers were shocked.

"That is…"

"How could that be…"

"He…"

"Mega Armor…?!" Aiden was surprised while his enemy continued to slide towards him.

"Now you see my true form!" thought Riker.

The Mega Armor driven by Riker is nicknamed Silveraven. It does have a Ride Armor mode. Apart from being equipped with a hyper energy beam cannon, Silveraven also has a katar on its left arm which looks bigger than its other hand.

ZRIIING…!

The weapon hidden in Silveraven's arm sticks out, ready to face the enemy.

"Close combat. Good. I like it," Aiden said to himself as he swung his sword.

CLANG…!

Yellowish-red sparks were created when the two Mega Armor weapons collided. For a few moments, there was close combat between Riker and Aiden.

However, Aiden's Mega Armor martial arts movements are certainly much more skilled. So, Silveraven was pushed back several times due to his slashes.

"That's all you have, cockroach? If this is the case, I won't have to bother shooting you, so I can take your frame to Benedict Engineering!" Aiden muttered in Draco's cockpit.

At the same time, Riker starts to think. "This Draco is too strong; he is the commander. If I continue to fight him, I might lose. Like it or not, I have to find a way to get out of here!"

Quietly, Miguel, who piloting a purple Draco Custom Space Booster Commander Type, has raised his beam weapon. He intended to land a sneakshot on Silveraven.

"Can't you be steady for a bit, silver devil? Maybe you are looking for a way to escape. But I won't let it happen. Once I lock you in, then you will…" Miguel whispered.

FHEEEWWW…! FHIEEEEWWW…! FHIEEEEWWW…!

"Who…?!"

Miguel was flabbergasted. Suddenly, a high-powered energy shot that seemed to come from quite a distance dispersed the formation of UEF's robots.

The green light shots were also aimed at Aiden. So, the captain moved away from his opponent to get away from the shooting range of the enemy who had not yet appeared.

"As I predicted beforehand… he's not alone!" Aiden thought angrily.

In the darkness of outer space, there was a carrier-type space battleship hovering. Right under its bridge, a Mega Armor lying on its knees carrying a high-energy beam sniper.

The blue Mega Armor with a combination of orange on certain parts continued to fire until UEF's Mega Armor was disorganized.

"Stella Polaris... turns out not as great as people say," said the pilot in the robot calmly.

"Don't be arrogant, Dino. Our job is to save Velasco," a woman spoke to the pilot over the communications network.

"Yeah, yeah… don't worry. I'm focused on our objectives, really."

Knowing that the UEF formation was scattered because someone was helping him, Riker immediately broke through the blockade. He knocked down several enemy Mega Armors.

The robot he controlled returned to its Ride Armor form and sped towards Earth.

"Heron to Velasco, can you hear us?"

Suddenly, Riker received a communication transmission. For a moment he was unsure, who was Heron? Friend or foe? He didn't answer immediately. Moreover, the communication does not display an image.

"Heron to Velasco, we're the ones who back you up, can you hear us?" a woman's voice heard again.

"Yes... it's Velasco, I heard you, Heron. Loud and clear," said Riker finally.

"Sorry, we couldn't pick you up because apparently, UEF is partying here. Inevitably, you must escape alone. We'll meet 'down there'," the voice explained.

"Okay. See you."

"Be careful. Over and out."

Suddenly, Riker felt relieved. There should indeed be people extracting him. However, the situation is not possible. Just as Riker felt calmer, the warning sound on his radar sounded again.

BEEEP-BEEEP…! BEEEP-BEEEP…!

"What else is this...?!" Riker was annoyed.

The Alpha Pack squadron of ESTOS arrives. 6 Mega Armors nicknamed Lupus moved after Silveraven. But Riker is reluctant to face them and continues to spur his robot towards his destination.

"To all units, remember, we will only catch the silver-white bogey, don't destroy it!" Lieutenant Colonel Alexis Saunders, who was in the cockpit of his Lupus Commander Type Custom, gave the order.

"Yes, sir!" said his subordinates in unison.

In the Lupus that she was driving, Karenina focused on looking at the target in front of her.

Now, it could be said that she was interning at ESTOS. If she succeeds in capturing the silver-white Mega Armor, there is a possibility that she will be recommended for duty under Alexis.

"I will catch you, silver robot..." said Karenina while her index finger was ready to open fire.

BHEEEWWW…! BHIEEEEWWW…! BHIEEEEWWW…!

But suddenly, several shots were fired at the Lupus squadron so that their formation was disintegrated, and Karenina was furious because of it.

"Damn! Who dares to disturb me?"

Karenina looked at the radar. Far from where she was, an unknown ship fired at her squadron.

"Who the hell …"

"Pack 01, Pack 02, retreat! It turned out that the silver-white bogey brought his friends. Drive them away!" Alexis Saunders was forced to change their main objective.

"Aye, Commander!"

In the cockpit, Riker can truly feel relieved. His pursuers were kept busy by the appearance of his friends who also began to leave the battlefield.

He continued to spur Silveraven, which left traces of bluish light like fireworks in the sky. Soon, he will enter Earth.

***

At the New Haven space airport. As she got off from her space jet, Elxi von Rochelle took a deep breath. That's what he always does every time he sets foot on Earth.

Elxi looked up to enjoy the air and the violet evening above her. Then up there, she could see celestial bodies that glowed like water droplets shooting down from the sky.

The object had a tail like a firework spark. Elxi placed her palms on her eyebrows, so she could look at the light.

"Meteor?" asked Pierre, Elxi's personal bodyguard.

"Possible. Whatever it is, it looks beautiful, doesn't it?" Elxi answered with a smile.

"It is My Lady."

Victor von Rochelle, who was busy with the people welcoming him, called Elxi. His daughter complied.

Still smiling, Elxi looked back at her shooting star which was getting farther and farther away.

Through the corner of his eye, Victor caught the same sight as her daughter, but he chose to ignore it. Even so, he said these words in his heart.

"That is… 'Rochellium Light Powder'…?"

Far from New Haven space airport. On the balcony of a luxury condominium, a young man was standing there with a telephone to his ear.

"Sorry Aubrey, the incident that occurred at Edison just meant that this development project had to be completed sooner than previously scheduled."

"Yes, Ms. Benedict. I understand."