Von Doom 1221607971|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover
What had started as an uneventul day quickly plunged into the realms of madness. Masato had been enjoying hot dogs with Miku and his newfound allies… when that came in. Wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve, he and Miku shared a knowing nod to one another… before they both vanished in a flash of light.
The skies in the Great Mountains have grown strangely gloomy… clouded over but not quite became stormy. Thunder rumbled off in the distance, and far up in the skies… a streak of light flashes into existence before expanding and reshaping itself, solidifying into the Zeorymer of the Heavens… which had, much to the surprise of MechTech and possibly Winry, up and vanishes from the Union hangars.
Zeorymer hovers up in the heavens with its thrusters holding it in plac. Against the dark skies it's almost just a silhouette, visibly simply because of the eery luminescence the four orbs visible across its body… one on each hand, one for the eye, and one in its chest, give off.
Zeorymer of the Heavens. A design worthy of a measure of respect, even to a man whose incredible intellect was rivaled only by his own insurmountable arrogance such as Victor von Doom, undisputed monarch of Latveria, governor of New Doomstadt and, not to forget of course, Field Marshal of the Confederacy and therefore the source of most problems the Union faces every single day. Pondering the report given to him by Dr. Shu Shirakawa, this leader had come to a decision. Zeorymer interested him — while he had certainly seen more impressive things in his life none of them had come from human hands. This technological wonder was different. Perhaps even inherently superior to his own personal armor, were it not for the man inside.
Still, the idea of this Zeorymer did not leave his mind since this report and it had indeed been some time when he had allowed himself a proper challenge in this war, for his role of a leader did not often give him the privilege of fighting simply for the sake of combat. Nor to merely spend time studying a fascinating machine in a field test. However, he was Doom, and his desires were paramount.
Thus, it was that suddenly, right in front of Zeorymer, the metal-clad shape of Dr. Doom appeared from out of thin air. A trace of energy could be detected at this very moment, perhaps the result of a teleportation device, but that was all. No fancy lightshows nor any telltale sounds. Doom was not here to impress, though his majestic bearing certainly did that well enough on its own as the energy readings from his armor began to increase, indicating that he was apparently raising his energy output to more appropriate levels for combat.
"Excellent. It seems that the Union can still recognize and accept charity when it is given," Doom said, his ever-commanding voice booming over the area, "What is your name, pilot?"
He apparently did not care where they were or had no need to study their surroundings — a plateau of red rock, situated right next to a deep canyon chasm.
Zeorymer doesn't move from its spot in the sky, though Doom would probably have no trouble picking up the sensor sweep directed his way from the technological titan hovering before him… an extremely sophisticated attempt at analysis one'd expect from a gargantuan science ship. "My name is Akitsu Masato… and my copilot's is Himuro Miku." Ask and ye shall be given it seemed. MAsato identifies himself simple as that, his voice warbling between the innocence of a simple teenager… and something far, FAR deeper that didn't belong, ending up in something almost raspy. "You're Victor von Doom, the Field Marshal of the Confederacy's Elite? A man of many accomplishments… I've heard plenty about you." Plenty enough that he sounds wary… disbelieving in this situation.
Yet, he still came.
"As it should be. I am, after all, an enemy to all those who would affiliate themselves with the Union and only fools walk into a challenge unprepared." His cape was whipped around by the harsh winds of the terrain as his eyes narrowed and took in the shape of Zeorymer. He, unlike his very-soon-to-be opponent did not scan his enemy. However, he did look. And to a technological genius such as Doom, most of the time that was enough — being able to recognize the purpose of entirely alien machinery and to instinctively grasp its operation was only one of the perks a man of such dizzying intellect had at his disposal.
Zeorymer's scan revealed a few things, though not as much as one would hope. Apparently Doom employed some form of radiation shield that kept scans from actually going beyond the surface, though it was fairly obvious from the energy readings that his main offensive weaponry was situated within his gauntlets. And that his armor was made from some strange alloy which seemed to incorporate titanium, though what else was in there looked like something that did not exist in very many worlds.
"This should prove educating for you and, if you indeed warrant my interest, for me as well."
Warrant interest. Masato grunts lightly over the radio. Apparently having Doom interested in him may not be his idea of a fun existence here! "Whatever happens… we'll see through this battle. Any chance to end this terrible fighting…" Even if common sense told him defeating, truly beating Doom wouldn't really SOLVE anything… "The risk is worth taking. Miku-chan, I'll be needing as much energy as Zeorymer can take!"
While Masato glances over the readouts… which cause him to wince… Doom would possibly detect a similar buildup in Zeorymer's power core, which seems to be centered around a dimensional distortion somewhere in the machine's torso. The orb set in Zeorymer's chest glows ominously in tune with this. "Hai, MAsato-kun! Don't do anything reckless like last time, okay?" Masato nods, not that Doom'd see that!
Zeorymer's hands ball into fists and its thrusters send it swooping away to a more proper distance for starting a duel!
As for Zeorymer's appearance? It does not seem all that strange as far as Super Robots go. The wideswept, spiky and heavily armored appearance seems to suggest it's more suited to a heavy assault than high-speed combat. A brawler, or melee specialist. This might be more reinforced by the obvious lack of any conventional weapons. No ray guns, no missile banks, no beam sabers… Yet there's a disturbing similarity with Doom's armor. There's two semispherical panels… on both wrists that glow along with the similar one set in Zeorymer's chest and eye. Chances are those are its weapons… whatever they're supposed to do. Possibly laser lenses or energy projection.
If Doom looked carefully enough he'd also notice a strange gleam around the entire mech… the telltale sign of an energy shield, but its quite faint compared to the distortion most gave a viewer.
Considering the piercing dark-brown eyes Masato would very well be able to see if he bothered to zoom in on Doom's face it may very well be possible that he had seen it. A ridiculous notion, of course, but his stare was so intent and directly leveled into the dead center of the screen that it seemed possible somehow.
The Doctor, of course, had no intention of backing up in order to prepare for combat — therefore, just as well that Masato did, a little distance was all the better to employ long-range weaponry. While inside his armor his strength was greatly augmented it alone would not serve him well against the Zeorymer.
"First, allow me to put things into perspective before we truly begin our battle — this should be well beyond your comprehension, boy!" A gesture. That was all, something that looked … kind of like one of those seals a Shinto priest would make during prayer, for Masato's frame of reference. And then, out of thin air, without any prior warning massive energy spikes suddenly leapt towards the towering mechanoid frame, aiming to pierce through both its energy shield and hull.
"…!!" Beyond his comprehension perhaps… beyond his ability to foresee no. Masato brings the shields to full th e instant Doom makes that gesture, expecting something mystic in origin coming at him— and he isn't disappointed. The Rocks spear through Zeorymer's shield… but few make it through the crushing forces present within. Several simply splinter apart on contact with it. Those that remain pierce the armor with relative ease and send sparks flying across its armor… but Zeorymer wrenches them free and CRUSHES them with ease in a single fist. The holes left behind shimmer… then vanish in swirls of coaelscing matter.
"So that's what magic looks like!" Masato observes over the radio. Miku lets out a shocked gasp… but Masato doesn't seem concerned at this development. Yet. Masato's fingers fly across a keypad…
Zeorymer responds by raising a single fist for the heavens. The Dimensional Coupler Cannon pulses—
And the very air around Doom compresses to such pressures… that some atoms in the air happen to fuse together in a way VERY unsafe to anyone nearby.
Thank heavens for Multiverse balancing. The skies erupt in a deadly, but somehow contained series of explosions!
Observant indeed. While it wasn't much of a conclusion that the strange energy that suddenly leapt from thin air with no logical explanation and seemingly at the command of a hand gesture was magic, it was still a fairly quick — and correct - conclusion.
Doom's eyes widened as his armor warned him of the incoming attack a split-second before it actually hit. He instinctively raised not just his arms in order to protect himself but also his much-vaunted impenetrable forcefield. While it almost seemed impossible for something so small to withstand the sheer destructive power that was Zeorymer — he was Doom and it was ever the impossible that he strove for. The shield was just a moment too slow to prevent the damage entirely, straining Doom's armor for a moment before the brunt of the attack instead crashed against his protective barrier.
"Interesting," Doom's voice suddenly boomed from within the steam that rose and engulfed him from the entire attack perimeter. "Nuclear fusion through energy field compression, its destructive force multiplied by the fact that is is artificially contained within a certain space. I once used something similar against Kang the Conqueror, though I doubt that name means anything to you and your oversized unit. Now behold one of my own inventions!"
Doom suddenly pulled the handgun that had been on the side of his belt since the beginning free, pointing it at Zeorymer. By all accounts, it looked just like a regular gun. "An antimatter extrapolator, Akitsu! It will put a dent even in your Zeorymer's thick hull!" And as the monarch pulled the trigger, the weapon did indeed prove to live up to its name as a tight beam of antimatter particules suddenly shot towards Zeorymer. On contact, this would create quite the explosion. After all, if you find enough antimatter you could probably destroy the entire universe. Luckily, Doom's device didn't produce quite that much.
"Antimatter!" Not even Shu had been insane enough to use raw antimatter as an attack method, but Zeorymer's quick to alert Masato. "Miku-chan, quick, we need more power!" Another FLARE from Zeorymer's chest orb… and the shields flash brightly.
As expected it hits them. The resulting blast crashes through the shields and strikes Zeorymer right there in its torso. Armor melts under the sheer force, and Zeorymer… in the midst of it… VANISHES.
It reappears several hundred feet BEHIND Doom, the damage already repairing itself at the molecular level. Slowly… it erases all traces it even hit. "Getting through the shields and armor's not easy, but even if you do it's not enough!"
UP comes an arm, pointing straight at Doom. The Dimensional Coupler throbs with power… FWOOOOOOSH!! One giant beam of concentrated, pure destruction flies for Doom's back!
Luckily, Doom was not Shu Shirakawa and more than capable of channeling antimatter safely for his own purposes! After all, while it was that accursed Richards who had first found it, he too had done quite a bit of research on and in the Negative Zone — a parallel universe to his native one that was entirely composed of antimatter.
Still, the regenerative abilities of Zeorymer were impressive to say the least. Doom did not let his surprise show in what little was visible of his facial expressions, though, as he already formulated his next battle plan. Rather than activating his forcefield once again to escape he employed a different method to reduce the damage. Pressing a hidden button on his chestplate he activated his molecular density variation engine, effectively decreasing the density of his own molecules to the point that his entire form turned ethereal — not exactly the best defense against a beam weapon, but it lessened the damage just a little, enough so that the armor would be able to restore itself almost instantly. And then, while the beam just effectively passed through him, he dove right into the red rock beneath his feet. To all intents and purposes, it seemed like he had been disintegrated on the spot, as his current state also made it difficult for scanners to get a reading on him.
Of course, that hypothetical thought couldn't last long were it entertained, as Doom suddenly shot forth straight from underneath Zeorymer, elevating himself directly in front of the cockpit's position and pointing both of his arms straight at it.
A sudden flare of energy as the power buildup in Doom's armor quadrupled, the excess energy bursting forth from his gauntlets straight at his target in the form of a super-powerful concussive blast!
Masato's more than shocked! Zeorymer's sensors weren't designed to handle all of the Multiverse's craziness yet, so Doom's strategy works very well. "Shoot! He just—-" Masato doesn't even get anything more than that out as Zeorymer's torso is engulfed in the deadly blast. Armor disintegrates, the shields already having crumbled… and the entire cockpit section, once the blast dies down… is revealed to be entirely missing.
That only lasts for a few moments. Zeorymer wobbles in the air.. but yet again its regeneration kicks into gear. Matter swirls around the cockpit, coalescing in a matter of seconds into everything that had been destroyed, starting with the cockpit… then its pilot, who reappears bit by bit… then life sparks into his eyes again! Moments later the cockpit seals itself off again and the shields flare back up to full power. "Didn't I tell you it takes more than breaking Zeorymer to stop it?" Masato mumbles darkly… well at least the point got across. Now he's TINGLING all over.
A fist flies straight for Doom, the Dimensional Coupler glowing with deadly light! If it hits… he'd be subjected to sheer disintegrating force trying to rip him apart into seperate atoms!
"Complete molecular regeneration in a matter of seconds … even of the pilot. Impressive!" This posed quite a problem, though of course the good Field Marshal wasn't about to admit that. He theorized that Zeorymer was only capable of that stunt to a limited extent, even should it have a renewing energy source the molecules had to suffer an extreme strain in that process. "It seems I will have to aim for the atomic level."
His own armor's restoration systems were not nearly as advanced, the nanobots that constantly kept his armor in prim condition were already working at their maximum capacity. Still, he wouldn't be Doom if he didn't have at least a dozen more tricks up his sleeve. And that he did, as he crossed his arms in front of his chest rather than attempt to evade Zeorymer's straight punch — and then teleported straight behind the enemy unit, quickly pointing one of his gauntlet's at the unit's 'head' and unleashing another blast.
Off-balance through his precarious attack, Zeorymer's helpless to stop Doom from getting his retribution through. The fist hitsempty air, and Doom's blast strikes Zeorymer's crown. This time it doesn't destroy the armor. Much of it's deflected off of the shield harmlessly, diverted into the mountains far off in the distance.
Zeorymer's response… it doesn't teleport. Its thrusters flash for a moment— and it launches up for the skies! "As long as the Dimensional Coupler System's running, the Zeorymer should be unbeatable," Masato mutters, knowing that if the Multiverse logic holds out that cannot be true. It would explain the fluctuations in the system's efficiency that seemed to get worse with every direct hit that caused regeneration.
His only choice was to end this quickly. "You know, Dr. Doom… the man that built this terror called it the crowning achievement of the Hades Project, where the person who had it.. had power over life and death. This is why!"
Zeorymer's twin Coupler Cannons glow dangerously… as it brings them up close to the orb over its chest and holds them out as if afraid of them. For no apparent reason… a crimson symbol appears in midair, probably just for aesthetics, translating to 'Heaven/Sky.' Then the Couplers are brought close together…
A deep, throbbing voice like Cerberus's growling comes from SOMEWHERE inside the machine… its voice echoes through the Great Mountains. *MEEEEEEIIIIIIOOOOOOOOOOUUUUU.*
Instead of the likely-expected straight-out explosion, all of that energy's forced into a vertical blast heading straight towards Doom, expanding bit by bit. An INVISIBLE blast. Even if Doom manages to dodge it…
That mountain down below will be cleanly sliced in half and crumble to bits.
"What?!" Doom cried out as numerous warnings lit all over his vision-screen, switching instantly to a different spectrum in order to make the energy lighting up the sky visible to Doom. The invisible energy build-up was overwhelming and, if not somehow kept in check, could very well tear Doom's armor apart — if it was only the armor itself that his protection. But he, too, had powerful systems inside of his mechanical creation, one of the most powerful being his forcefield! Still, this much power could possible overwhelm even this defense, but Doom had never been one to consider or concede defeat. His forcefield -would- stand up to this power, he was convinced of it.
"Bah!" In defiance, only a split-second before the attack began to wash over him, the spherical barrier surrounded him. Doom narrowed his eyes as the readings that sprung up, rerouting almost all of the energy inside his armor towards his defense. As the readings began to reach critical levels, he actually forced himself to push forward, increasing the strain even further as he spoke against the roar of the attack. "I have come too far …. dared too much!"
And then, his forcefield gave as the shield generator finally surrendered to the energy overload and Doom's armor was fully subjected to Meiou's fury. Still, Doom stood, but what even he was unable to tell at the moment was that his forcefield had indeed saved him — the energy that now crashed against him was but the afterwave of this powerful attack. And then, it was over. And Doom still stood, energy crackling over his armor — seemingly originating from the lower left part of his chestplate — darkened in numerous spots. "I shall fight on! Your attack has failed!" He shouted in triumph as he activated a new system. While it was unlikely to defeat Zeorymer, it might well give him a psychological edge after weathering what he believed to be the most powerful attack Zeorymer was capable of.
And, within mere moments, Dr. Doom suddenly grew to the same size as the enemy before him, standing tall at a proud hundred feet. Of course, that made the problem of range a lot less of a problem and he suddenly launched a punch straight at Zeorymer! While his strength normally was only enough to lift about ten tons, increased in size as he was his strength had also risen proportionally!
The one thing that lets Doom's strategy work is Masato's surprise. So startled is he that he doesn't get the shields back up in time. The fist decks Zeorymer clear across its torso and scrapes off a good deal of armor.. that sure doesn't seem to be all that good of armor now does it?
"No way!" Kihara Masaki would have just grinned at the challenge, but MAsato is NOT Masaki… he's just plain startled., not only at that but that Doom SURVIVED! "As tough as everyone said..! Miku-chan, are you alright?" Miku's voice echoes with a tinny reverb over the comm, "I'm okay, Masato-kun! Don't give up now."
Masato wrenches at ZEorymer's controls, and the machine executes a quick thruster-burst to regain aerial balance again. It's not Lanstar of the Wind, after all! A quick glance at the sensors… "He's got to have done something… changed his density, AND gained mass…?! If he'd just grown that attack would be..!" Confound it, where did he gain all the extra MASS?
Masato grunts. Well there was a good side. He was now a much bigger and probably proportionally SLOWER target. Both Coupler Cannons raise to point at Doom…. simultaneously screeching out massive torrents of energy that streak towards the sky, both together adding up to a single beam about 50 meters across!
A smirk formed underneath Doom's faceplate as his fist struck the Zeorymer. Size manipulation was as child's play to him, ever since he had been shrunk down to near-nothingness and been forced to live in a world of tiny humanoids, sub-atomic in size, until he had been able to reverse it safely using his own growth ray. The mass increase had been problematic, less so in theory than in execution, as it was supported by the surroundings. Hard to detect as the molecules that were absorbed were precisely those that were filled in by the increased body mass unless one knew precisely what one was looking for.
Proving that he himself was an accomplished fighter, though, he made a sudden move just as Zeorymer's energy was peaking again. His speed had hardly decreased — of course the scale was a little different, but in a swift motion Doom suddenly launched his green mantle directly at Zeorymer, using it to block sight just as he moved into Zeorymer's close-combat range again, effectively sidestepping around his opponent as his cloak was torn apart by the attack.
Doom grunted as he, of course, still felt the shockwave of the attack from behind and opted for a new mode attack. In a swift motion he abandoned the tattered remnants of his green cloth and tried to grab hold of Zeorymer, activated his second-most powerful defense system. The massive electric shock he could build up on command designed to deal with those who would dare touch Doom. Time to see how Zeorymer liked a jolt to its systems!
Surprisingly it deals with it fairly well. Electricity surges across Zeorymer's Zeorymer's systems, even penetrating the cockpit and giving Masato a nasty ZAP… but the singes it cause vanish quite quickly. Beat him, bruise him, shock him, slay him… so long as Zeorymer's holding out, nothing can happen to Masato. Still, THAT HURTS, and Zeorymer's optics were still.. well. Cloaked. ^_^
"Aaaah!" Masato makes his mech wrench the garb off… whirls Zeorymer about… then locks eyes on Doom's image on his monitor. "I can't keep kidding around…!! He's good!"
Just like it had before.. Zeorymer raises one fist for the heavens, the Dimensional Coupler glowing. Before this had triggered enough compression to start NUclear fusion… but this time Masato has something else in mind. The machine groans.. and light strobes from the weapon!
Explosions, if not somehow dealt with, would ring out all across Doom's armor at his gauntlets, at every major joint, right in front of the face.. then a hanful more randomly placed for good measure!
A counterattack was, of course, to be expected. Doom hadn't thought for a moment that the electric charge would finish Zeorymer though the likelihood of it slowing the mechanoid a little had been worth trying that stunt. Still, he had no intention of continuing this close combat, nor of remaining such a bit target. While the increase in strength and bulk may have some advantage it also had numerous disadvantages — after all, he still had numerous weapons of greater power than straight physical attacks in this giant form.
Thus, he suddenly began to shrink down to his proper size before the explosions began to hit — standing right where his chest had previously been as the explosions began all around him. Shrinking down had obviously been the correct choice, as rather than to evade once again he decided to once again try a magic spell against the machine. A sequence of gestures followed as he invoked the essence of the mystic entity Raggadorr, calling forth a number of magical energy-rings that would, if the spell was neither disrupted nor otherwise hindered, encircle the Zeorymer and tighten, tighten until it was cut apart.
More magic. Masato hadn't expected Doom to stay so huge, but watching him Shrink was still fascinating to that subdued scientist part of him. The rings on the other hand… those he couldn't judge too well, other than know they were nothing good. "Zeorymer's.. at this rate the Dimensional Coupler'll lose power!" What WAS going on with it?! That glitch in the systems was getting extremely annoying… it was the only reason Zeorymer may have to actually RETREAT in the future. "No, no more holding back! Zeorymer, hold through this… Miku-cha?" "Ready, Masato-kun!"
As the rings fly in, Zeorymer promptly glows and then… *BLIP!* It's gone.
It reappears right. Behind. Dr. Doom. Both arms raise towards the heavens then arc back down so the hands near the chest… and they near that central Orb set there. As before, that crimson emblem depicting a character for 'Heavens/Sky' appears… "That earlier attack didn't fail… it just wasn't serious!" Masato rasps!
The orbs nearly meet, and there's a sudden clankWHINE… something has kicked into overdrive. As before, the voice of cerberus growls through the Great Mountains with its great booming call of, "MEEEEEIIIIIIOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUU."
Dr. Doom's sensors would hit a critical peak, as the energy readings from Zeorymer go from 'ludicrous' to 'INFINITY.' A tiny flash between the Dimensional Couplers quickly grows, spreading out like a supernova that engulfs all of Zeorymer and if he's not quick enough, Dr. Doom too. The rings are plain vaporized as the expanding dome swallows them up and the heavens screem and swirl , cloud patterns being entirely ripped apart as the Great Mountains are engulfed in a cataclysmic explosion… more than a hundred gigatons of pure heat, pressure, and BOOM. The mountains beneath the fighters crack, crumble, then are torn asunder, rock turned to vapor then wrenched apart into its basic compoment atoms before it even has a chance to properly melt.
"Impossible …!" Doom cursed as he suddenly received energy readings even higher than when Zeorymer first employed that attack mode, his eyes wide as his thoughts raced towards a solution for this new predicament. Difficult to say the least as the first application had already blown his often-boasted 'impenetrable' forcefield's generator — what were his options? Teleport outside of the attack perimeter? No, impossible with all that interference. Phasing into his intangible mode would help little. Magical defenses would not do any better than his forcefield and he couldn't conjure any shield more powerful than his technological barrier, anyway. That left him with either taking the full brunt of the attack, something he'd prefer to avoid … and his last option. He would have prefered not to reveal this particular function of his armor until the time that he would be forced to face an entity of what he called cosmic proportions, but the survival of Doom was paramount to any such desire.
Thus, he activated the power absorption device hidden inside his chest plate — in its original form it had enabled him to absord the entirety of the Beyonder's omnipotence, a design whose effectiveness he sadly had yet to replicate within the Multiverse. Still, it was his best option against the great Zeorymer of the Heavens, the Hades-Machine.
As the energy washed over him he felt the incredible pressure build up around and inside his armor, every single system in it close to overheating at any moment as the chestplate absorbed more and more power, keeping his form from utter devastation as he, himself, began to glow with power of his own. The last remnants of clothing were now utterly disintegrated as steam began to rise from his armor, metal screaming in protest at the abuse it was suffering. He was still taking damage at an incredible rate and the nanites infused into the metal could barely keep up, their replication not fast enough to compensate for the destruction they faced at every single angle.
Still, Doom remained silent. His iron will kept him going even as his entire body was wrecked with pain, his skin burning as the cooling systems began to fail. He had wanted this challenge, a fight to test his entire mettle — something he had not found in this Multiverse until this moment. He had certainly fought powerful enemies. Solid Snake inside the armor made for him by the Union was a powerful opponent, but the man's intellect was so inferior to his own that there wasn't even any comparison, nor was Snake using weapons of his own creation. Of course he didn't know that about Zeorymer and its pilot but it was almost as if he could sense that his opponent was extremely intelligent. For how could anyone else challenge him so?
As he forced himself to bear the attack he desparately kept an eye on the energy readings from his own chestplate, building up higher and higher. And then, finally, when they reached their peak, he struck! He forced both of his arms to point towards Zeorymer, channeling all of the energy he had absorbed towards the weapon systems in his gauntlets even as their shape began to warp from the heat and energy around and inside of him. And then, with an incredible spike of energy from inside, a cone-shaped blast of the very-same energy Masato had used to such devastating effect sprung forth from the Confederate Field Marshal, ready to give the Dimensional Coupler-powered monster a taste of its own Meiou!!
Meiou. An attack of such intensity, such enormous destructive potential that used imporerly without a limiter set on the output… could potentially destroy all of Earth. How Dr. Doom had managed to survive Masato could barely comprehend, let alone EXPECT… but turning Zeorymer's own energy against it was probably the most brilliant move the 'good' Doctor had made in this entire battle.
"He absorbed it?! GAAAH!!" Zeorymer's slammed by the impact. Its shields crumble beneath that assault, forced far past their limits. ON the good side, Doom's blast wasn't QUITE the same as Masato's power source… it was a fraction of the original blast, but it was still enough to spear through the defenses and vaporize an entire arm and a large chunk of the torso, leaving only sizzling scraps crackling in its wake…
Wyhen all the dust finally settles, Zeorymer's still there, floating. Its pilot pants loudly over the radio… "What… what a monster!" Hadn't that same label been applied to his own self some time in the past…? It had been. Even if it wasn't really him.
Though missing an arm, Zeorymer doesn't seem to be doing too well in restoring it. Energy siwlrs about the scorched shoulder, sealing off certain sections and regrowing armor, but the process.. it's greatly slowed from what it had been before. It doesn't seem like the arm will be usable for another minute or two.
"The Dimensional Coupler's failing this quickly…?!" Bad. Very, very bad… "Miku-chan! Please tell me you're okay!" "I 'm fine… but I can't keep this up much longer… we have to hurry and finish him or get out of here…"
Masato grks over the radio. Their chance didn't seem to be much of a chance at all.
Doom was doing all he could to keep the immense energy discharge pointed at the Zeorymer — luckily the push of his own attack created a small pocket inside of the swirling energy that gave him a moment of respite, now he only had to release the energy fast enough to keep his armor from exploding. The Power Cosmic as well as the Power Multiversial weren't nearly as volatile as the power of the Meiou that was coursing through him. Still, he wasn't one of the greatest minds in the Multiverse for nothing … his armor held. Barely.
Smoke rising from his form as the immense energies finally died down around him he took a moment to catch his breath, employing his gravity field generator in order to slowly descend towards the ground, though he stopped a good distance away from it again as he looked down at what now was, essentially, an inverse glass dome of red-hot glass. The attack had not only torn the red stone underneath to little more than powder but also had then melted it into a perfect shape. This remnant of their battle may attract quite a few spectators in the future, he thought for a moment, before his hidden expression turned grim once again as his eyes darted towards the King of the Heavens.
The condition of his armor, was, incidentally, quickly getting better. His forcefield was not functional any longer so he diverted all of the energy that was usually used to keep it ready towards the miniature nanite factories within his armor and they did their work well. While it helped little with the burns he himself had suffered inside and the fact that most likely his left hand had multiple broken bones — he couldn't feel it right now — his armor looked as fearsome as ever.
"You test my patience," Doom bluffed as he rapidly began to ascend to a higher level in the air once again, his voice ringing out over the Zeorymer's radio systems, "I already told you that attack is a failure — your first attempt gave me plenty of time to analyze the energy, the result of which you have witnessed now. This battle has satisfied me for now, your Zeorymer has proven an adequate challenge — I would offer you a chance to retreat now before I unleash a weapon that, while not originally designed as such, should well prove the ultimate bane to your design."
He indeed had such a weapon. The only problem was … even he wasn't certain that it would be sufficient. While it was plain to see that the regeneration was slowly failing Masato the extent to which it still worked was unclear. The Meiou had helped little to understand its regenerative properties, though Doom was convinced that there was some sort of power source at work here that wasn't inside the Zeorymer itself. Perhaps it could take energy from its surroundings, similar to a martial technique he had once witnessed from a Union-affiliated warrior … or he could receive charges from a satellite, similar to one of the newer Iron Man models.
He wasn't afraid … no, fear was not for Doom. But the battle had indeed tested his mettle and he would regret to crush such an artist over a mere challenge for, basically, the sport of it. And it wouldn't do to destroy the Zeorymer without studying it more closely. Rather than risk another exchange of power that could well destroy one of them — though his own mindset prevented him from considering that he himself could be the one — the offer was given.
Masato grunts. All his sensors were telling him the same thing. There was no way that Doom could possibly be as well off as he sounds, even if he was as dense as a neutron star. Which he obviously wasn't.Still… he had to wonder. Would Zeorymer be able to handle ANOTHER blast of Meiou in its weakened state, to call Dr. Doom's bluff as blaringly loudly as possible…?
"So that's the power Dr. Doom really has! There's no way you're as good off as you're saying… but pressing on like this won't get either of us anywhere."
Zeorymer's frame glows yet again, converting to a solid yellow FLASH that reforms a good several hundred feet further away, matter swirling and shaping itself into the destroyed arm into pristine shape…and yet again it raises both arms up near its chest, the Dimensional Couplers glowing brilliantly! "Nanite reconstruction, an unknown material laced along with titanium in the armor, raw power manipulation, magic, gravity manipulation… but your armor's smoking and sizzling. It has to have a limit!"
Is he REALLY going to fire off another Meiou? Or is that just an idle threat? It might be worth a moment's pause. At least he doesn't seem to be doing it right this second.
Inside the cockpit, Masato's fingers fly frantically over the keypad, preparing… something. Who knows what.
"Indeed it does!" the monarch proclaimed. "However, you face not just my armor but Doom himself! Had you an inkling of my true capacities you would scream in terror, for nothing in this Multiverse rivals the power of my supreme intellect!" Still, Masato underestimated Doom's determination, for even in the greatest peril it was never for Doom to show weakness or to relent. Indeed, his greatest feat so far he had accomplished while being vivisected in the coldness of space, with the left half of his body only bones. The power of the Beyonder he had thus gained had been glorious and he longed to find a power that could compare in this Multiverse, but … that would have to wait for the future. He had yet to find a being wielding omnipotence in this realm.
"Unleash your great weapon! I had not aimed any of my attacks so far with the specific intention to kill you, but now I shall — if you can regenerate at the molecular level all that is required is to tear your Zeorymer apart atom by atom! I shall turn your own infinite energy against you — the last attack was but a pale taste in comparison!"
And indeed, the power readings of Doom's armor fluctuated for a moment as he apparently rerouted it to whatever weapon system he was referring to.
Masato was twitching in Zeorymer's cockpit… but he doesn't cease inputting coordinates. A long range jump was needed here, and also a few seconds of prep time. That he had earned by provoking Doom… or so he thought. Maybe it had made little difference in the long run. Masato toggles the comm to full, so Doom would be, if he can receive it, getting a view of Masato and Miku's faces in full video, side-by-side.. though SOMETHING looks a little weird about Miku's… hard to say what, but to the highly trained eye something on a glance just seems off about how its animated.
Masato speaks up first. "It looks like that chance won't pull through today! Zeorymer needs some upgrades to take on the Multiverse." He sighs. He hadn't intended to ever try upgrading Zeorymer… the idea was ludicrous.
Miku shakes her head, then scowls in Dr. Doom's direction. "Field Marshal, I can't believe your arrogance… a lot must have happened to make you who you are today, but you're not the only person in this world capable of great things. If you looked at everything… really looked at everything… you'd know better than to consider yourself so grand."
And with that, Zeorymer morphs into golden light… and vanishes in a streak for the sky. It's gone.
For a full minute, Doom continued to look at where the Zeorymer had been. His thoughts were running faster than any supercomputer at the moment as he reviewed the energy readings he had gotten off of Masato's unit. "Interdimensional …" he said to himself for a moment before his eyes narrowed in satisfaction. He proceeded to look down at himself, running a few diagnostics. He had suffered some … minor injuries. The armor was in the process of restoring itself to full functionality, though the shield generator would need his personal attention once he had returned. It may even prove necessary to replace it … little more than an annoyance considering his resources, of course, but it would take some time. After all, none but Doom were privy to how his armor truly worked.
And then, Doom pushed a simple button on the side of his arm and vanished, employing his own teleportation device to get himself to the closest base and, from there, to Castle Doom itself.
