ESU-S4xC/NU-025 Skybreaker

- Psuedo-Heavygun Visor

- 2x Forearm Actuator Spikes

- Spiked Knuckles

The ESU-S4xC/NU-025 Skybreaker is a Garrisai from the *Harbinger - Last Gamble* Novel. It is piloted by Ian Hunt.

## Technology and Combat Characteristics

Using the four-armed design of the Titan II as a base, the Skybreaker benefits greatly from high-tensile joints and incredible stopping power, even when unarmed. Unlike its general-purpose predecessor, however, the Skybreaker has been fine-tuned for heavy assault alone, placing emphasis on large weapons and bolstered armor to control the state of a battle. With its massive size being its best weapon, the Skybreaker can topple most Garrisai and take even the most powerful of hits, making it extremely hard to defeat. However, as a result of its sheer weight, the machine struggles in maneuverability and can be quickly overwhelmed if it cannot overwhelm its opponents first. Intended to be utilized by Ian Hunt, Mercury Legion leader Jack Kendall made it a priority to equip the machine with both melee and ranged equipment—championing Ian's highly versatile combat style. With Ian often favoring slow yet high-powered weapons, he equipped the Skybreaker with one of the Legion's captured prototype weapons from the DTRO—the Reversible Destroyer Blades. It was also equipped with four 60mm rifles for a ranged advantage. It would then be topped off with an improvised version of the Heavygun System—a system that blended the abilities of the Framebreaker Visor and the Hi-Sensitivity Targeting Sensor—to help operate these weapons in the most efficient way possible.

## Armaments

- Dantalion Warhead Assembly: An incredibly powerful anti-CS weapon that makes use of a three-tube launcher and Megaparticle-charged “warheads” that can pierce even the strongest of armor. Being mounted on a set of movable joints to allow for its setup sequence, it can fold up behind the shoulders when not in use.

- Forearm Actuator Spike: Developed from the Lockdown anchors seen on Cyclops Ground Types, this arm-mounted weapon consists of a large spike propelled by a high-caliber cartridge. It provides devastating close-range damage, capable of penetrating even the toughest of Nanolaminate plating and shattering exposed joints instantly. Backup spikes are stored in the sides of the mechanism, and can be manually loaded through its "muzzle."

- Bull Helm: Being the reason for the Skybreaker's incredibly distinct silhouette, the Bull Helm is more than just a weapon of psychological warfare. Similar to the Armored Crests used by Garrisai such as the Majestic and Ruby Kingship, the Skybreaker's Helm is built from Steelpoint Alloy and sharpened similar to an Anti-Armor Blade. Using the Psuedo-Heavygun Visor, the pilot can target exposed joints and optics and use the Bull Helm to destroy them with an accelerated charge. When in use, the "horns" rotate forward with the P-HV, locking into special slots on the side of the visor.

- Spiked Knuckles: A set of steelpoint alloy knuckles are fitted onto each of the Skybreaker’s hands. They boast moderate penetration ability and serve as a backup melee weapon when the Reversible Destroyers are unavailable.

- Reversible Destroyer Blade: The Skybreaker is armed with a pair of massive swords known as the Reversible Destroyers. Inspired off of the Folding Anti-Armor Blade, these weapons compensate for their sheer presence by being capable of folding down their middles. Due to the weight of these weapons, they must be two handed in order to properly wield; however, the Skybreaker's high-tensile joints allow for simultaneous use of both blades. A unique feature of the Destroyers is their ability to combine along their ridges to form an even larger weapon known as the God Destroyer Blade.

- God Destroyer Blade: A special configuration where both Reversible Destroyer Blades are combined to form a weapon much larger than the Skybreaker itself. Explicitly designed to be capable of taking down CSs on its own, use of the weapon is only possible with all four arms of the Skybreaker. Since it is nearly impossible to use the weapon for quick swinging attacks, it is used as a charging or single “crash down” weapon that relies on single attacks that deal immense damage when placed right.

- Custom 60mm Rifle: The Skybreaker is armed with four modified 60mm rifles as its primary ranged weapons. Compared to the basic 60mm Rifle, these versions have been equipped with a heat shield over their barrels, and a special sensor that connects to the Skybreaker's Psuedo-Heavygun Visor when equipped. While each rifle is especially powerful on its own, the Skybreaker is capable of both wielding and aiming all four rifles at once, using its sub-arms and Psuedo-Heavygun System to use them.

## Special Equipment and Features

- Advanced Sub-Arms II: Being the same Sub-Arms of the Titan II, they have been modified using the data from the UNI's stolen Arcandy Compact Garrisai. Using a high-tensile joint system similar to that of the Arcandy Compact Breaker, the Skybreaker is capable of lifting weapons and objects far outside of its weight class. These joints are attached to a telescopic shoulder joint, allowing for a greater range of motion beyond the base of the backpack. They have also been armored nearly identically to the main arms, save for the Actuator Spike assemblies under the forearms.

- Lockdown Anchors: The Skybreaker has been equipped with four lockdown anchors similar to the ones found on the Cyclops Ground Type. When deployed, the anchors use large spikes that drive themselves deep into the ground, locking the Garrisai in place. While active, the Skybreaker is capable of not only stabilized firing using the H-STS and 60mm Custom Rifles, but also enhanced control of the God Destroyer Blade when assembled.

- Psuedo-Heavygun Visor: Inspired from the Heavygun Visor utilized by the captured Urban Dreadnought, the Psuedo-Heavygun Visor retains most of the properties of the original, albeit to a slightly lesser degree. Located on the forehead of the Skybreaker, the unit gives the pilot the ability to operate both the Framebreaker Visor and Hi-Sensitivity Targeting Sensor at a whim, allowing for easy adaptability in a variety of combat situations. When in use, the visor slides down over the Garrisai's main optic, in which the visor's six micro eye cameras will activate.

## History

Initially captured by the Mercury Legion during the Fall of the NDRC, the Titan II—soon to be the Skybreaker—was overhauled under the Legion's "Project Nova," intended to keep leader Jack Kendall's closest allies in check. While initially designed to fit the preferences and fighting styles of his subordinate Ian Hunt, it was slightly modified for Anti-Celestial Strider combat. After a handful of test runs under its intended pilot, its first and last deployments were set against the Lacerta Celestial Strider, in which it was damaged beyond repair.

### Skybreaker and Valtheræ Article

The last two units of Project Resurga were developed primarily as means of testing the effectiveness of remote weaponry used on Garrisai, but were eventually taken by The Mercury Legion during the Fall of the NDRC. These two machines would undergo an extensive overhaul, as the Legion was unable to reproduce the highly unique technology found in these units. Over the course of the PURITY story arc, the Titan II and Unity II (now Skybreaker and Valtheræ respectively) were deployed in response to the reactivation of the Celestial Stride Lacerta. This was the Mercury Legion's attempt in containing this new threat after realizing their asset, Magdalena Cassidy, could not handle the situation (even when backed by Marie Winhart and Veronica Angelos).

Both units were equipped with a special weapon developed to use against CSs known as Dantalion Warheads. It consists of a three-tube booster assembly, which can hold up to three “Warheads” for firing. Each warhead is loaded with a small Megaparticle cannon behind a conical front. In order to use this weapon, the assembly would be pressed up against the armor of a CS, aiming for its core. It would then fire out one of its warheads into the armor, where after penetrating it the Megaparticle cannon will fire. This would allow the Skybreaker and Valtheræ to finish off an IMS after damaging it with their melee weapons. The Dantalions are usually mounted on movable joints over the shoulders, and would be operated via the NU METACOM System.

During the battle in stopping the Lacerta, the Skybreaker and Valtheræ were piloted by Ian Hunt and Chelsea Ferguson, respectively. Chelsea had not yet underwent testing with the LESLIE, and was as only using the NU METACOM System for the time being. At some point Ian and the Skybreaker are put out of commission, leaving Lena and Chelsea as the only two left on the Mercury Legion team. This is homage to two things: the Valtheræ and Blacklight fighting the Lacerta being references to Cyclops and Whisper fighting the large mecha, Operator, in the comic short “Back From the Dead,” as well as Chelsea and Lena taking inspiration from Ragdoll and Pixiebob from MHA.

Ian and Chelsea would have had only used Revolta GTs up until now, as Daniel Sherman was still in the process of dealing with the UNI and hadn’t found the Arcandy Compact Breaker yet. Thus, they were given temporary use of the Skybreaker and Valtheræ to deal with the CS.

## Trivia

- The Skybreaker takes inspiration from several MS from *Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans,* those being the Gundam Gusion Rebake Full City, Helmwige Reincar, and Graze Ein.

- Both the Valtheræ's and Skybreaker's head designs are based off of the helmets of ancient civilizations, with the former being based off of a Roman Gladiator helmet, and the latter of a horned Viking helmet.