Apeiron: Legend Of The Infinity Mecha

Chapter 6

The Mega Mecha News came on TV in the living room inside the Apper household, an unheard-of event to anyone else. Mr. Apper hated mechas and everything to do with them. This was caused by his first marriage being destroyed when a Berserker ate his wife. Mrs. Apper didn't have anything against the Custos, but was terrified of Berserkers themselves, so much that she had developed a clinical phobia of them. This was caused by a Berserker eating her parents right in front of her as a little girl, and nearly eating her. But the TV wasn't turned on this time for entertainment, it was for reassurance. This News program had managed to install a massive surveillance system throughout the city, but it was very selective. The cameras were only supposed to activate when they detected the presence of a Custos or their pilot, allowing the News to pick up on anything interesting while staying out of everyone's business. Along with this system, the News tried to provide a service by listing all the pilot conversions that occurred, allowing families to see what has become of their loved ones. Of course, this system does not extend to Berserkers, due to the fact that you never really know who is inside one unless you saw the person being pulled into a pod, and the bodies disintegrating upon death.

When both of their sons had been missing when the two parents arrived home that evening, they feared the worst. This had lasted for two whole days. They had feverishly called the police, until they had been ordered not to call again. So, they had rushed over to the TV and turned it on, and what greeted them did nothing to ease their fears. The normal news networks were flooded with grim reports of devastation and death, due to the Herald's unexpected arrival. The Herald itself visited every city on the planet on a yearly basis, only once in a blue moon did it visit a place twice a year. The city had already received its annual visit in the middle of June, but now it was the beginning of September. So, the people of the city, along with their guardians, were completely caught unawares with the arrival. Of course, due to copyright and legal privileges, Mega Mecha News has exclusive ownership over featuring fights and videos of the mechas. So, the normal news didn't show any identification of pilots, but it did show in one clip a destroyed section of the path used by Grant and Finn to and from the younger boy's school. Having nothing short of going to the website of MMN (which both detested more than the show) they turned to the station, which didn't broadcast a conversion live, due to the fact that no one would be watching at the time, preferring to show about two or three days after.

"Well would you get a load of that feed!"

Cried Bond as a video played on screen of a familiar knight themed Custos decapitating a Berserker with a sword causing Mrs. Apper to wince at the sight of the monster, even headless.

"Well there is another score for our knight in shining armor,"

Cheered Bond.

"but as it turns out, that is in fact the last score this pilot got, MORE ON THAT IN A MINUTE!"

A grin came across his face.

"Now we go over to the Berserkers!"

Animations and music played for this while Mrs. Apper hurriedly left the room, leaving her spouse glaring at the screen.

"Unlike usual, we actually have two subjects who caught our eye this conversion. One is the usual Big Bertha, but today we have an additional candidate for the title. A powerful rouge whose stage name will be Darkness, as for why you will see in a minute."

Bond turned to a screen that pulled up a diagram of the metal rhino, Big Bertha, before its run in with the dragon.

"This guy is your stereotypical 'dash and bash' sort, simply running around smashing through things. It was with this behavior that he got his kill count, even though this type of behavior is extremely common for a Berserker."