#IC: Max

[soughtserenity]

@cfthesoul

max sneaks into eli's room during a group hang out sesh for some alone time and reads her comics in her bed, under her blankets like she owns the damn place.

[passionsafire]

A thumping metal heartbeat sets an unsteady rhythm as a fire-red titan of steel lies trapped between fallen rivets and frayed wire large enough to barely fit in the giant robot's hands. Within its chassis, the buzzing tone of a bugged-out radio wave echoes from the center console of its cockpit. The pilot lies still, spiked-up hair drooped over his forehead, caked in sweat. A dented flying V guitar lies flat in his lap. Both pilot and Valkyrie, both equally battle-worn, were at least not so worse for wear as the environment of the wreckage-strewn corridor around them. Rubble topples from an exposed ceiling panel as a thunderous quake ripples through the devastated station. The unmistakable sound of explosions echo again and again in the distance like the repetitive beat of the drums of war. Faintly, in the undercurrent of the merciless soundscape, a crowd roars. Unintelligibly at first, but as the static loop of the radio circuit begins to drown out all other sounds, he hears it clear;

". . . Ba-

. sa-. .

ra. . ."

The pilot stirs, his numbed-out index finger twitching to life.

"Ba... sa ra..."

It's louder this time. The drums sound more coordinated, and his foot starts tapping along to the beat.

"Ba-sa-ra. Ba-sa-ra. Ba-sa-ra. Ba-sa-ra."

The call of the crowd meets his ears as he steps forward onto the stage. Spotlights beam down on him, bright enough to force his eyes into a squint. But he doesn't take his eyes of his audience for a second. They've all come here to see them play, to hear Fire Bomber! He can't disappoint them now, can he? Not after they've come this far.

"Basara! Basara! Basara!"

"How ya' feeling, EVERYBODY?!" Nekki Basara cries out to them, raising a single fist to the sky. The roar of the crowd erupts into a chorus of voices like rogue waves crashing against a rocky cliff. Boom, boom, boom from behind--Veffidas putting down a drum beat with the ferocity of a brawl. Ray's keytar fills the air with a cool synth rhythm while Mylene's bass fires up a deep, pounding riff.

"Alright, let's get started! FIRE!!"

"Basara?" A voice calls from behind, but he's focused forward, getting fired up with the fans.

"Basara." It calls again. His brow twitches.

"Basara!"

"Oh, come on! What's wrong, we're just about to get starte-" A flash cuts through his vision, throwing him out from his fevered dream and back into reality. As a burst of flame roars into the corridor, Basara's eyes burst open in a fury. He barely has time to get his bearings before another quake rocks his Valkyrie's chassis inside and out.

The radio in his forward console chirps out a scratchy query, "Ba..s...? Ba...sara? Are y.... re.....ng th...s? Wha.... y..... ....atus?"

The rockstar swipes his bangs from his eyes as he sluggishly reaches for his machine's controls.

".....ara? Co..... ..n Basa....a. Ba....sar...a!"

"Yeah, yeah, keep your pants on. I heard ya' already," he says, pulling his guitar to his chest. His Valkyrie reaches forward and pries itself free from the cage of wreckage that had collapsed around it before pulling itself to its feet. With a burst from the rear verniers, Basara accelerates into a veritable maze of crooked metal. The fire that burst out before has died, quickly, and judging from the fact that his machine's feet haven't touched ground since he got up must mean that space shouldn't be all that far away. A few more halls of twisted metal pass before he comes face to face with a pitch-black hole filled with a dim glimmer of light reflected off free-floating debris.

There we go. With a burst of speed, Basara and his Valkyrie clear the opening and come to a stop against the surface of an adjacent wall that seemed to have been blown clear from the ship it was probably just inside. He looks up and sure enough, there it is. As busted-up as a wreck could be, the carrier he just left floats past a solemn view of a blue planet awash with distant explosions, still falling apart before his eyes. It's an ugly sight. A sigh passes through his lips--what a waste of life...

"I've got a reading again!" Chimes the voice of a young woman across the radio. "Captain, it's Basara! We've found him again!"

Found him again? He wasn't aware he was lost. Then again, he did only just wake up. Wait... how long was he out for, again? Before he can rake his brain for an answer, the image of a familiar face flashes up on a side screen by his controls. An old man with greying hair and a pair of distinctive black shades worn under a helmet's visor.

"Basara!" Maximilian Jenius exclaims, his voice deep and commanding as ever. "We've been trying to contact you for half an hour! What happened?"

Half an hour? Sheesh. Talk about a power nap...

"I don't know. I just woke up a second ago... ship I was on got blown to smithereens, from the looks of it."

Max frowns and shakes his head. "I was afraid of that..." The stress of battle seems to have taken its toll on old Max. His face has been drawn into a half scowl from the moment he showed up on screen. It seems to soften as he looks back up at Basara, however. He might be trying to force a smile, but if so, he isn't doing a very good job. Not that he can blame him. "It's good to see you're alright."

Basara wipes a bit of sweat from his cheek, putting on a strong face of his own (and doing a considerably better job of it.) "Don't worry so much, old man. Just got the wind knocked out of me is all."

Seeing Basara in such a spirited mood gives Max the energy to chuckle. How about that? If he didn't know any better, he'd say the rockstar's thick-headedness was starting to grow on him. "Glad to hear it. Now, that's enough chatter. I need you back here, ASAP. We're regrouping around Lagrange point L1, but Delta Flight has been cut off. I'm moving in to support, and I want you as backup."

A grin flashes across Basara's lips. "You mean you need me to bring the show to you? Didn't think you were that big of a fan, gramps!"

"Take this seriously, Basara. Walkure has already pulled back. That means we need to rely on your songs for support," Max says.

"Walkure, huh?" The rocker says. "Shame. I'm not great at doing second-fiddle, but I wouldn't mind singing along with them sometime!"

The captain smirks. "I could arrange that. After you start following orders, that is."

"Tch..." Not the most innacurate dig he's ever been given--but in his defense, he works a lot better when he just goes with the flow, anyway.

"Don't worry, Delta Flight and I won't be your only audience for this one. Or did you think I was going alone...?" Max asks, Basara arcing his brow in response. Just then, a few other fresh faces flash across his screen.

"ALRIGHT! A battle between robots just wouldn't be complete without the right music! I'm getting pumped up just thinking about it!" Says a young, silver-haired boy whose eyes almost seem to twinkle like stars at the prospect of a real battle between mechs; Ernesti Echevalier, the boy from another world.

"Indeed. I'm eager to hear your songs as well, Nekki Basara! Charging into the fray with a song at our backs... I couldn't think of a better way for a warrior to enter battle!" Says a blonde pilot with a half-scarred face and an ecstatic grin just about as wide; Major Graham Aker of Solbraves.

"Not the worst motivator I've ever heard of. Shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, though, right? I'll be glad to have you with us too, Basara." Says a man with a scar over one eye and a robotic prosthetic replacing one arm; Kincaid Nau, a space pirate from the Crossbone Vanguard.

"Hah... you're really throwing together a party, huh, gramps?" Basara laughs. "Not a bad bunch we've got here... alright, then! Hope you're all ready..." Basara gives his guitar one quick, preparatory strum. It howls out a pleasant tone in return. "...This one's gonna knock your socks off!"

His signature red Valkyrie rockets off the loose wall, kicking it away into the darkness as his machine shrinks away into the backdrop of Earth against the black, ominous void surrounding it; a single bright, shining light in a starless sky.

"LISTEN TO MY SONG!"

——————————————————————————————————————————————————— Part 1 | Part 2 |

[chloesimaginationthings]

Everyone “hates” Mike in the FNAF movie..

[arttuff]

happy #pridemonth from the #justiceleague

[heyheresathou]

how do y'all not let the things you like consume your entire being

[sexwithstilinskiandhale]

I have my ✨️ spark ✨️ back (hyperfixated on a new gay non-canon relationship)

[neighborhoodude]

got that (trauma of losing everything and being an entirely different person) dawg in me (my head forever against my will) 😍

[mysticalcatpeanut]

Just wanted to point out, Arrax (Lucerys' dragon) is also son of Syrax (Rhaenyra's dragon)... so both mothers are mourning in this scene

[sapphyreblayze]

Justice League America by Adam Hughes - Who's Who in the DC Universe #7 (1991)

[bawsixteen]

Why he's so random and unpredictable😭😭🤣.

Oh btw Charles, i found your first employee. He's very hardworking, and he's funny. He's name issss:

Max Verstappen.

Give him a chance please

[the-last-hipopotamovolador]

FIONNA AND CAKE AND SIMON AND MARSHALL AND GUMBALL AND EVERYONE AND ADVENTURE FUCKING TIME!!!!!

[soughtserenity]

@upsidedown-byers

" So William which comics did you bring? Let me see your treasure and I'll tell you its worth "

eleven is sitting next to Max who is sitting on a tower of pillows like royalty nodding equally as excited

[passionsafire]

It has now been well around half a week since Maximilian Jenius and the various pilots he'd called together were attacked by a force of unidentified attackers in Earth orbit.

It was at once both entirely unexpected and wholly foreseeable... but it wasn't like they had much choice. With the unrest around the Earth Sphere being what it is, it'd be impossible to make any kind of noise without some faction or other picking up on it.

This time was a bit different, however, more coordinated. The Gigasion hadn't seen them until they were right on top of them. Even Exsedol agreed; this wasn't some random attack. This was planned. Which means it's even more imperative that they don't take their next moves lightly.

"Captain on bridge," an artificial voice chimes, signalling Max's presence to the bridge crew as he walks in and into his chair.

"What's the status of our descent?" He asks.

The ships' navigational officer answers, "We've just hit 31,000 kilometers. We'll be entering Earth's atmosphere soon, sir."

"Understood. Tell all hands to be at the ready for entry," Maximilian says back. The officer nods and follows through while Max turns his attention to other matters. Namely, the Gigasion's next stop: Tokyo harbor.

"I already took the opportunity to radio ahead, Max." From an opening in the bridge's floor adjacent to the captain's chair, the macronized head of Exsedol Folmo, the ship's advisor and one of Max's oldest friends, rises into the room. "...That is what you were just thinking of, no, Captain?"

"Ah..." Max would have been surprised, had it been anyone else. But Exsedol has always had the mind for that kind of thing--always one step ahead. The old archivist certainly knows him well. "Thank you, I was just planning to do that."

Max has had a lot on his mind lately... doubtless, Exsedol could tell. But that's all part of the job, isn't it...? Always thinking, rarely resting. Hardly have time to breathe, except for when he's back in the pilot seat... not many feelings can compare to the rush of nostalgia he feels, setting foot behind a Valkyries control stick. Always feels like... well, like "home."

Atmospheric entry is coarse as always, especially with the amount of debris that's swimming in the upper atmosphere. As soon as they meet cloud cover, a message reaches them over the communicator. An old friend of theirs from a previous operation expresses their eagerness at being their welcoming committee this morning.

"Quite the energetic type, that Commander, isn't he...?" Max comments, an amused smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Energetic isn't quite the word I would use, captain..." Exsedol says in response. "In fact, I'd say he reminds me of bit of you when you were younger."

". . . Come again?"

A sudden flash of red cuts through Max's incredulity in an instant, a warning siren sounding from the bridge consoles. Max doesn't even have to read the text that flares up in front of them to know what's coming.

"Captain...!" One of his officers says, swiveling around to look at him in a flurry.

"I see it. Raise our combat alert status and prepare to scramble fighters on my command!" Max responds.

"Aye, sir."

The captain pinches the bridge of his nose, heaving out a sigh under his palm. Exsedol barely needs to look at him to know what he's thinking. "Our pursuers are certainly persistent ones," Exsedol states, parroting Max's thoughts near exactly. "They aren't going to let us to descend so easily."

Max nods. "We've known that from the beginning," an explosion above the Gigasion's deck sends a shockwave ripping across the ship. Max, off-balance but mostly unphased, lifts the brim of his hat to view the battle brewing past the bridge's viewport just over their heads.

"The only uncertain factor was how many of our number they'd shoot down before we'd made it," the captain says, his stalwart expression not betraying even for a second the bitter tang of remorse on his tongue.

His Zentradi advisor saw through him easier than most, however—if he was still miclone-sized—he might have rested his hand on his old friend's shoulder as a sign of support. Instead, he'll have to rely on the tone of reassurance in his voice.

"Quite the challenging conundrum," he says, "But not one we haven't surpassed before."

Max falls silent and the hurried chirping of the bridge's instruments count each wavering second between one thought and the next. Just as he's about to speak again, one of the technicians spins around from their monitor; the only color on their face is the red light from the combat alert warning.

"C... Captain!"

"Report," Max says, regaining his composure in an instant. A skill he's down right mastered over the years.

"It's the radar, sir... the enemy—their number just doubled—no, tripled!"

"An error?" Max asks.

"Checking... negative, sir! The system's coming back clean!"

"Perhaps they're jamming us..." Exsedol councils. "Have we established visual contact?"

Another technician from across the bridge turns back and nods. "Affirmative!"

"Put it up on the monitor," Max orders. In a flash, the image of the blue-rimmed skies above the Gigasion appears. For a few fleeting seconds, the scene seems almost clear, until...

"Is that...?"

"Enemy fighters?"

"Doesn't look like any aircraft I've seen..."

Over the chatter of the bridge crew, Max hears Exsedol utter a name under his breath. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices the Advisor's brows furl as expression turns grim. He's about to call his name when he notices a figure in the topside camera that he didn't before. His eyes widen as the realization of what they're seeing begins to dawn on the entire bridge.

"Captain..." One of them mutters.

"I see it," he says, curling his fingers around his chair's armrest. "So they've even started to deploy them now..."

From the darkened skies above their heads, a dreaded enemy descends—where they saw one, dozens more begin to appear before their eyes, dotting the horizon like a field of stars.

"The Noise..."

——————————————————————————————————————————————————— To Be Continued . . .

Part 1 | Part 2 |

[vivalechat]

It’s so embarrassing when your rival has another rival… like what do you mean I’m not even your worst enemy? You’re mine.

[fcb-mv33]

Jsjsj drama queen👑👑

[maxpadelchampion]

its actually so funny to me that’s Charles’ ice cream shop is in milan because you know who lives there??? PIERRE GASLYYYY. I’m so convinced Pierre was like “I don’t see you enough calamar” “Think of the view calamar” “we can eat ice cream together in the sun and talk trash about people” “milan is WONDERFUL” when charles was like oh I want to open an ice cream shop somewhere in italy.