[StratoSpear]

Not going to imagine that or even click that link... That's just... wow.

And I'm finally done with (a portion of) the last scene in the current chapter I'm working on

Spoiler for Retreating...?:

“Tch… Give up already…!”

The Replicas suddenly receives instructions from an unknown source to retreat, the coincidence could not have been much more convenient for Inami who raises a brow upon seeing the drones slowly reversing then turning away from him completely.

‘They’re actually retreating…?’

“-Inami, we’re seeing the formation retreating on our radar, what happened?-”

He rests the buster sword’s tip on the ground, puzzled by the sudden shift in the drones’ behavior; Almost an hour ago, the Replica Jabbers were hell-bent on terminating him before going for the Academy, heedless of the damages they’ve sustained unlike now where they simply retreated as though they have completely given up on their objective.

“I… I don’t know, Gerald-san. They just stopped and left…”

“-I see… Guess that’s mission accomplished then. What’s your status?-”

Inami checks on the Minerva’s system; its armor integrity is well within the green range while its barrier power is down to sixty percent and slowly replenishing.

“Moderate barrier damage but the unit’s armor integrity is still in top-notch condition.”

“-Good, that means we don’t have to pull you back here to get it repaired. Remain on standby at Chiba, I have a feeling that they’ll be back… Also…-”

“What is it?”

“-Our satellite picked up a powerful explosion about fifty clicks east of Choshi’s coastline.-”

An explosion, if it is anything short of a military exercise, is bad news to anyone’s ears. Given the area’s no-fishing rule, it would be very odd to even have a lone oil tanker passing by despite being a probable source of the explosion. Nevertheless, he is stunned by the news and remains silent while Gerald resumes.

“-I’ll get to the point, Arisawa. We have a rogue Infinite Stratos on the loose. Codenamed Silver Gospel, the United States’ prototype IS went berserk days ago and has been reported to be heading for mainland Japan… and it seems the Academy attempted to intercept it.-”

“What…? But aren’t they’re just—?”

“-They didn’t have any choice it seems. While you were fending off the replicas we noticed two IS were sent to intercept the Gospel off the coast… The two retreated after the explosion and the Silver Gospel was heading north-east before it disappeared from our sights.-”

“Optical camouflage?”

“-Most likely. In any case, return to Chiba and get some rest, you’ve done well holding the replicas from reaching the Academy. We’ll ring you up if anything else crops up.-”

As instructed, Inami ascends to the sky and purges the Type One from his back where it automatically transforms into its primary platform flight mode. He lands on the Type One and immediately makes his way back to the Katami Dojo, growing concerned for the well-being of the Academy personnel that has been sent to intercept the Silver Gospel.