: Parthian Shot

-Warning: Do not read if you have not watched episode 13+.

-Side note: The Ophir predates the Scandia as this story was started before the episode that it appears in was aired, so no one can say they did it first, although they are both centaurs they are very different :)

-19 months later.

"Parthian squad prepare to engage hostile, repeat prepare to engage hostile". The strongpoints siren whirred.

Inaho stood outside his KG-6 Sleipnir, it was winter now and the stark orange of it's hull contrasted against the bleak sky and grey tarmac.

"Unknown Martian kataphrakt inbound, three klicks and gaining fast".

Inaho calmly walked over to the elevator and hit the switch, he was clad in combat overalls and his ocular implant buzzed and focused on the controls.

"Inaho?" Yuki called after him.

"Yes?" He replied in his usual stone cold tone.

"Try to tell us before you do something stupid"

The lift clanked shut and he buckled into the cockpit.

"Preliminary system diagnostics: servo's check, optics functional, stabilizers functional. All systems ready."

The more modern KG-7 Areion platoon stomped out of the armor depot with Inaho close behind. The kataphrakts made their way to the highway entrance just outside the base. They set up a gun line to block any access from the road. The blip was getting closer by the second, it was moving fast and looked like it would take them head on.

Inaho stared blankly at the heads up display. "Assault method abnormal, risk factors not calculated or..."

They could hear it now, the stomping of a kataphrakt approaching. It was fast paced and with a constant drumming, 'Dubadadum Dubadadum Dubadadum'. Whatever it was, it had more than two legs.

"Optics and audio appear faulty, target not within visual range in contrast to audial" Inaho said. "Hold steady men, fire on my order!" The lieutenant ordered. Yuki and Inko stood beside him in their kataphrakts, rifles ready and aimed down the road.

"Target should be in view, perhaps..."

The drumming stopped suddenly and a high pitched whine followed.

A deafening crashing sound like a demo team demolishing a skyscraper blasted out as a truly colossal Martian kataphrakt smashed through the armor depot to the rear of the platoon. Dust and debris was flung out and the drumming came almost like a buzz as a multi-legged terror rode out to meet them. A pointed spike impaled the kataphrakt to the rear and an explosion ripped through it's chest, the behemoth trampled through the one in front and it too exploded In flame as the great cloven hooves of this new adversary smashed it apart.

"All units engage!" The lieutenant yelled down his mic. Inaho was flung to the side, the beast clipping his left arm. It circled around to the front of them as the bullets hammered down on it but to no avail, a large slab like shield rejected the shells and they ricochet back taking out the optics of the lieutenant.

The monster of metal and might stood still and observed the remaining five kataphrakts. The team had stopped their onslaught of lead and took defensive positions.

"A decoy, the real enemy was hidden from our sensors and hit from behind!" Inko explained in frustration.

Inaho got his first look at this new foe. A towering crimson and bone kataphrakt, at least twenty meters tall it dwarfed their own. In it's right hand it held an equally lengthy lance that glowed and hummed and in the left a huge shield that followed suite but what was the most remarkable was its equestrian body and cloven hooves.

"Centaur" Inaho murmured.

"This is a new one!" Yuki said in adrenaline fueled excitement.

A booming voice took over from the clanking of machinery and metal: "I am Duke Statian!" It declared in triumph. "Look upon my might and take heed Terrans, the might of Ophir shall trample your kind!" It's steel clad hooves stomped and it reared on it's back legs brandishing it's colossal lance.

"Ophir..." Inaho was barely paying attention, he was studying the new enemy intently.

"Shield: Kinetic defense, rejects kinetic energy and reflects it, Lance: Also kinetic, suspicion that locomotion of limbs builds energy in shaft, Speed: Covered three klicks in three minutes, 60-70 kph".

The kataphrakt stamped down on the road and shattered it. "Steady team, on my command" The lieutenant's back-up optics were functional.

The centaur stamped again and charged forward. Inho and Inko jumped to the left and Yuki took the right, the lieutenant was speared on the glowing lance and erupted in flame. The team opened fire, the centaur raised it's shield and the bullets rained down on their owners. The shield only covered it's left side and the remaining kataphrakt crouched low to the right to get a good shot. Statian whipped the lance across and decapitated the mech, it fell back with a crash. Yuki opened fire and her bullets penetrated its shoulder guard but to little avail. "Team Parthian requesting back up, one injured and three casualties, repeat team Parthian requesting back up" Yuki screamed down her mic as she dodged another swipe.

Statian barged past Inaho and Inko, his shield bashing their kataphrakts to the side. He advanced on the approaching squad. His priorities were to take out the armored depot's kataphrakt reserve.

He charged them head on, he raised his shield and couched his lance and he tore them asunder. Inaho, Inko and Yuki turned back and opened fire. The centaur's torso rotated back to face them, it was separate from its horse like body. He raised his shield and they ducked their returning bullets.

"AP rounds prove ineffective and dangerous, switch to HE rounds, the blast will not be reflected far" Inaho analyzed the situation. "Inko, Yuki, grab its front legs as it charges". They had learned to trust Inaho's words to the letter, his ingenuity was far beyond either of them.

Duke Statian's Ophir charged them, his lance glowed as he moved and he raised his shield. The HE rounds exploded harmlessly off it. Shooting his legs would prove ineffective due to the accuracy of HE rounds being a mitigating factor.

He closed the gap in seconds and leapt through the air at them, Inko and Yuki jumped up and grabbed on to the font legs and brought it down. It kicked its legs but they held on tight. "Unhand me Terrans!" Statian roared in anger. They were too low down to be struck by the kinetic lance. The behemoth smashed Yuki with his shield just as Inaho leapt from the side and grabbed it, he kicked the front left leg and it gave way. Statian was forced lower and Inaho ripped the shield off of his arm.

Inko held on and Inaho dodged the next swipe of his lance. Statian bellowed through his comms system in frustration.

"Armor is too thick for kataphrakt arms, Yuki to the highway" Yuki backed up and turned away. Inaho placed the medieval like shield on his back. "I'll be keeping this".

The centaur swiped at Inaho as he raised his rifle and smashed it in two, he drew his sidearm and knife. Statian shook Inko off and kicked Inaho with both front legs which forced him to drop his weapons. He stamped down on Inko's kataphrakt and crushed its legs disabling her.

"Foolish Terran, only the light of Aldnoah can activate my kinetic shield!"

Statian ignored Inko and started after Inaho. Inaho turned and activated his jump jets to make a speedy getaway with the centaur in pursuit. "Turn and face me Terran, have you no honor?"

"Servos at max RPM, dropping backpack" Inaho took the shield off his back to drop his backpack then replaced it. "Maximum speed 35 kph, not enough".

Statian was hot on his heels and gaining faster than Inaho had anticipated. "Activate flight deck and thrusters". His sudden bout of speed let him outpace a swift jab from the lance that followed close behind.

"Enemy kataphrakt's lance gaining electrical power through kinetic energy, sensors indicate a charge of 112 megawatts".

Inaho had matched Statian's speed and could now keep even. He turned onto the highway bridge that lead on from the road. The centaur crushed abandoned cars like they were nothing. Inaho ducked low to avoid an overhead sign while Statian crashed straight through it.

"Ophir: Fastest terrestrial martian kataphrakt to date, resembles a centaur, pilot acts like he's from the 1300s. Inko note that down for me"

Inko clambered out of her now useless Areion.

Yuki had travelled ahead and was hiding behind one of the large concrete pillars. "Enemy kataphrakt at maximum of 200 megawatts". Inaho muttered. "Yuki, cycle your suits power grid when we pass to emit an EMP at 400 Hz".

Statian stabbed out at Inaho but his rear sensors let him dodge to the left. He approached Yuki's position. "An EMP will cause the lance to discharge the energy back into his kataphrakts power supply, the surplus should breach his Aldnoah drive and start to discharge it by conducting through his armor".

"How do you know that?" Yuki asked in bewilderment as they passed by. She cycled her power grid to the right frequency and it emitted an EMP, Statian's lance stopped glowing suddenly.

"The Ophir is EMP resistant clever Terrans!" The Duke exclaimed with pride.

"Perhaps but your lance can't be, otherwise it couldn't hold energy in a power field outside the shaft without it flowing back to your body through conduction as an internal faraday cage would do".

The lance glowed into power again.

"What?" The Duke asked in confusion, he jabbed again and stuck Inaho's shoulder and it left a deep melted scar but he got away in time before he sustained more damage.

"The power your lance held has been discharged through your tactical suit".

"Don't play me the fool, my lance is at full charge!"

"It is now since we crossed the last half mile, you never checked"

"Do not insult me Terran!" He roared.

Inaho's thrusters were beginning to run out of fuel.

"Cycling power supply, ejecting EMP at 400 Hz".

"Couch Lance" The Duke commanded.

The EMP blasted out and Statian's lance faded again but rapidly glowed back to full brightness since the sheer speed of the pursuit provided more than enough kinetic energy.

The Duke snarled in frustration "Your tricks are futile and useless". The new surplus energy conducted along the behemoths armored shell. Electricity whipped off in bolts and struck nearby objects.

"Enemy kataphrakts lance at full power, body starting to discharge surplus, total energy at 513 megawatts, maximum speed of 110 kph. I calculate that it has an impact power of around 200 gigajoules or the equivalent of 49 tons of TNT"

"Damn you Terran, face me with honor"

"Gladly" Inaho spun around on his flight deck to face the centaur and retracted it. "Locking locomotive servos, stabilizers at maximum, Aldnoah drive activate". Inaho had slowed then stopped suddenly.

The Duke's eyes widened.

Inaho took the shield off of his back as he knelt on one knee and rooted himself to the spot using his stabilizers, the shield glowed into life.

The lance of the Duke's Ophir kataphract struck the shield dead on, the total energy of the lance, the surplus conducting around his body and the sheer speed of the machine was reflected in a colossal explosion and a sonic boom caused by the debris being ejected at the speed of sound. The Ophir erupted in dazzling light and flame that briefly outshone the sun. The energy charred and blackened the surrounding bridge and the body of the kataphract was split apart into large fragments that were cast across the bridge.

Yuki looked over at the rapidly expanding orb of light in the distance. She smiled for she knew her brother was victorious once again.

As the dust settled around the explosion Inaho walked back to his kataphrakt, he had ejected before impact since he was unaware of the shields protective qualities. To his surprise the shield and his tactical suit had survived but the Ophir was strewn as wreckage.

He surveyed the area. Part of the Ophir had survived however, he heard the depressurization of a cockpit.

"You invested a lot into your suit" Inaho exclaimed. "Your cockpit is designed to survive much worse, isn't it?".

Duke Statian walked up to him, his sidearm still holstered. He was much younger than expected, around nineteen and of average height but strong build.

"I must admit Terran, it was a true honor to test my skills against you, something that the other knights do not appreciate" He took his sidearm from his hip. Inaho instinctively drew his own but instead the Duke cast it aside.

"Well fought Terran, there is no shame in conceding to the better knight, so long as you acknowledge him first". He stepped forward to shake his hand, of which Inaho did little shaking.

A heavy clunking sound came from behind the Duke, Yuki had caught up in her kataphrakt and had her rifle aimed at him. He placed his hands behind his head.

"I'll admit" Inaho said in his usual icy tone "You're the first reasonable knight I've met"

"That makes two of us" he replied.