War never changes.
From the the first throw of a spear, to the first deployment of the atomic bomb, the outcome is always the same. Only the methods are different.
The world has changed a lot in the last 100 years. Forests became cities. Nations rose and fell. From the Nuclear Age to the Space Age. Telephones evolved from bulky, static boxes into portable, thin tablets. And soldiers evolved to machines.
The most significant moments in human history in a mere span of a recent century has changed more of man itself than the entire span of 100,000 years of human history combined.
And one of those defying moments, came in the form of the Robotics Age.
-
In 1993, one man with an outlandish vision set out to create a company focused on the field of robotics and engineering. He envisioned a world filled with machineries, all under the control of man. His brilliant mind gave the push his company needed to grow in the next 20 years, until they became widely known by the world as Hammond Robotics, the world's leading house in the field of advanced robotics and mechatronics.
As the years progressed, major advancements in technology and breakthroughs in science had only pushed the foundation laid by Hammond Robotics even further. What was once science fiction had become reality.
By 2013, robots have played a huge part in the world's major industries. Programmed automatons began replacing human workers in factories, fields of agriculture, and various other applications which require physical effort. The creation of MobileRobotic Versatile Entity(MRVN) Automated Assistants, also known simply as "Marvins", gave a huge success to the company as their use eventually became widespread among other major companies.
As with the development of more advanced robotic engineering, the Space Age had become more prevalent than before. Satellites and space rovers are more advanced and became mass-produced, and world governments and even private companies have taken interest in the topic of interplanetary travel and colonization. The demand for highly trained robotics engineers had never been higher.
The success of Hammond Robotics, however, have prompted the world's governments to consider a new reliable, albeit morally questionable, application for Hammond's technology: war economics.
Despite the beneficial progress in human society, technological marvel has made no impact on the ongoing battle of ideologies and politics that continued to plague the less fortunate parts of the world, where terms like peace and human decency are but mere words. At such troubling times, the thought of being able to reduce military casualty and enhancing effectiveness through the use of mechanical soldiers and advanced weaponry were definitely an interesting idea.
Unfortunately, not everything was going well for the company. That same year, a shocking incident caused grief among millions across the globe. William Hammond, the founder of Hammond Robotics, passed away. It was never known, or revealed, what the cause of his death was, though rumors told that it was apparently health-related.
Before his passing, he left a will leaving his legacy, and thus, his control over his entire company, to his 16 year old daughter, Alexandra Hammond. Despite her young age, she went on to take her deceased father's place as the chairman of Hammond Robotics, and continued to lead the company onwards, ensuring the production of Hammond tech went on unhindered.
In that golden age of technology, a young girl blessed with extraordinary intellect dreamt of becoming the next stepping stone in human progress, through her unrivalled intelligence. However, her genius initially went unnoticed by the science committee as her ideas for the use of exoskeletal technology in space exploration was scoffed at. Since Hammond's space rovers have proven to be more than efficient in the field of space exploration, the idea of human-controlled exoskeletons designed for that same reason was deemed unnecessary. They would never thought such a young girl would be capable of changing the world.
And then, the White Knight Incident happened.
2341 missiles launched from various military ships and bases around the globe directed towards the country of Japan, caused by a certain mysterious cyber terrorist who somehow managed to hack the entire world's military networks all at once. All seemed lost, until an unknown aircraft with unidentified technology managed to destroy each missile before they hit their target.
Without haste, the major world powers sent their military force to identify and if possible, capture or destroy the anomaly. Their efforts were for naught, as the aircraft singlehandedly repelled all of their attacks and held its own. Upon closer look, it was revealed the object was not an aircraft, but rather an airborne powered exoskeleton, whose pilot's identity had never been discovered. After the incident, the object disappeared was never seen again.
And thus, the Infinite Stratos was introduced to the world.
Faced with such an overpowered weapon, the nations of the world enacted the Alaska Treaty, which stated that the IS would never be used for military use and that existing IS technology must be shared and distributed equally among all nations included, to prevent any power shifts among the nations. Only 467 IS cores, the most important component of an IS, were created. The creator of the IS, now known as Tabane Shinonono, after introducing the IS and releasing the IS cores to the world, had suddenly disappeared from the face of the globe. Since then, major world governments have been actively tracking down the mad genius for her priceless intellect regarding her own creation.
The introduction of the IS had a major effect on society, however, as it was eventually revealed that the exoskeletons can only be operated by females for reasons unknown. The power balance between genders were broken, with women beginning to dominate society over men.
Despite the enactment of the Alaska Treaty, nations all around the globe, in fear of the terrifying power of the Infinite Stratos, had begun focusing their resources on researching possible anti-IS weaponry and even developing their own IS force inside their military to combat any possible IS-based attacks. The small number of existing IS cores made the creation of IS units all the more significant and valuable, further cementing the IS' position as a powerhouse in military tech. It was during this time that the governments realized they needed a technological edge to create countermeasures against any possible IS attacks.
This is where the role of a certain major robotics company come into play. Being the leading brand in the field of robotics engineering, Hammond Robotics have made their mark in military influence. Their focus have shifted from being pioneers in robotics engineering, to the production of military hardware. The production of modern infantry exoskeletons, and the BRD-01 Automated Infantry "Spectres", as well as advanced combat vehicles such as the atmospheric combat aircraft Phantoms and the aerial transport dropship Goblins, have become increasingly popular amongst the world's militaries.
Yet, despite their products being significantly better than conventional military products, the IS was still considered a powerful trump card whose technological superiority remain in contrast to the rest of the world. Furthermore, not every country has the funds required to fully replace their conventional military with Hammond's advanced military hardware and products, thus over 70% of the world's military power at that point was still comprised of conventional hardware and regular manpower.
Although, not all nations accepted the distribution of the IS cores. One nation in particular, which also happened to be one of the world's major powers, is the United States. Initially, it was a mystery as to why the US decided to decline the distribution of IS cores, however the involvement of a certain independent company might provide a reasonable excuse for the US' unreasonable decision.
More accurately, their involvement in another certain tragic incident involving rogue IS which cost the lives of hundreds of innocents, around 5 years after the White Knight Incident.
The incident that happened at an integral location in the States, at an especially important time for the nation. An incident that changed the world, more than it already had.
Now referred to as the Washington Incident, the attack was seen as a deliberate terrorist attack on the White House, in an effort to cripple the US by wiping out their political leaders. On July 4th, 2018, the day of the American Independence Day, three rogue experimental unmanned ISes, whose systems were possibly hacked by an unidentified cyber terrorist, wreaked havoc upon the city, and sieged the White House, bombarding it with missiles. Due to the surprise attack, the military weren't fully prepared, and thus their response to the conflict were too late. But despite their blunder, the attack was somehow successfully repelled by another third party.
Uncovered footage of the unexpected attack from a nearby news helicopter which fortunately survived the attack shocked world leaders and people worldwide, not because of the devastating loss caused by the rogue unmanned ISes, but because of what came after.
_
As one of the rogue ISes, a Gen 2 Rafael Revive, began aiming its weapon towards the revolving news helicopter from afar, a loud thunderous sound originated from the sky, and the Rafael Revive was immediately crushed under the immmense weight of a huge metallic object dropping right on top of it.
The sheer force of the drop wasn't enough to destroy the IS, but its artificial life was cut short when the unknown robotic object pulled out a large bulky cannon from its back and pulled the trigger, unleashing dozens of large explosive rounds which effectively depleted the IS' energy shield and continued to destroy the IS itself, reducing it to pieces.
The two remaining rogue ISes took note of their fallen brethren and began assaulting the mysterious robotic entity, which responded by summoning an energy wall which blocked the ISes' projectiles. The entity began its own assault by bombarding both ISes with a salvo of guided missiled which curiously passed through the wall.
The entity sprang forward with shocking speed for its size, continuously firing explosive rounds and launching guided rockets towards one of the ISes, quickly depleting its shield, rendering it vulnerable and causing it to land on the ground. It never got the chance to fly again, as with a sudden dash in speed, the entity delivered a powerful fatal punch which destroyed the IS' chassis, shutting it down permanently.
The last remaining IS tried flying away in desperation to keep distance away, but its efforts were fruitless as the entity switched its weapon into a long cannon while deploying a couple of mines towards the location of the IS, which launched tethers that prevent the IS from flying above 10 feet off the ground. As the IS was pinned, its only advantage having been wiped away, it was too late to respond to a charged shot from the entity's railgun, chipping away a third of its shield. Two more rapid shots in succession followed by a hail of cluster missiles proved too much for the IS, and it was eventually turned into a pile of smoldering metal.
_
The final scene of the footage revealed the appearance of the entity more clearly. It was clearly a mechanized exoskeleton, but unlike the Infinite Stratos, had a closed chassis where its pilot would've been, if it had one, and a much bulkier design compared to the IS' sleeker structure. It was also seemingly heavier and nearly twice as tall as a regular IS.
Despite how the object looked, none who had seen the clip could deny its effectiveness and ferocity, and the fact that it bore a familiar symbol on the side plate of its chassis shocked the world furthermore.
Hammond Robotics have finally revealed their trump card to the world, proving and cementing themselves as the prime example of technological marvel once again. They thought this, was the United States' response to the Infinite Stratos. A weapon which could rival one of the most powerful superweapons in human history.
The Titans.
And thus began the unexpected arms race between two of the deadliest weapons known to man.
Titans, while initially incapable of flight as well as lacking fast mobility, eventually went through major upgrades over the years to make them comparable to their rival, the IS. Another major advantage the Titans have against the IS, is the nonexistent "women-only" factor. Both men and women are capable of operating a Titan. This came as a shock to the general public, particularly the fact that women may no longer have as much of an influence in society as before.
During their introduction to the world, the Alaska Treaty did not include Titans as well, and such the existence of another superweapon rivalling the IS spread a sense of fear and panic among world leaders, especially considering that Hammond Robotics, though claiming to be an independent organization, had close ties with the US government. Not surprising considering the founder of the company himself was an American, and most of their production facilities are situated somewhere in the West.
The Washington Incident sparked some controversy, as some believed the attack was staged, deliberately planned just to have an excuse to reveal the capabilities of the Titans to the world in a theatrical manner, similar to another certain incident from 5 years before. Others began putting distrust towards IS companies and their products, particularly the Dunois Corporation, the company responsible for the production of the Rafael Revive model, due to their seemingly lackluster digital security concerning their line of IS models were the ones responsible in the incident.
Eventually Hammond Robotics came to terms with the rest of the global nations, and the Alaska Treaty was reworked on to include Titans as well. Though several changes in the laws have been made regarding the Titans, such as:
1. As a neutral party, Hammond Robotics are independent of the political influence of other nations. All existing Titans are sole property of Hammond Robotics and thus do not belong to any one particular nation regardless of current relationship between Hammond Robotics and said nation.
2. Hammond Robotics must offer sufficient assistance to any nation in need; Titans, as well as other Hammond military assets are to be employed in response to any IS or Titan-based aggressions that threaten the national security of any nation included in the Treaty as an act of national defense.
3. All development projects regarding Titans with the purpose of further advancing Titan technology may be kept confidential by Hammond Robotics should they wish as long as they remain adhered to the first two terms stated above.
Despite the terms written by the Treaty, some nations still grew wary of the US' trustworthiness and their relations with Hammond Robotics, considering the latter was primarily based on the States itself, even comprised mostly of American background. Not to mention the uncanny decision of the former to decline the IS cores. Some speculated that both sides were secretly cooperating with one another while maintaining a fake facade to the rest of the world, with the US government supplying Hammond with funds, and Hammond, in return, producing top-secret military technology to give the US an edge over other major powers.
Even though Titans were considered as easier to manufacture compared to the Infinite Stratos whose production line is limited due to the limited amount of IS cores in existence, Hammond Robotics admitted that only less than a couple dozen Titans have ever been produced in existence, compared to the hundreds of available IS units produced by other nations.
In the year 2023, nearly 10 years since the first introduction of the IS, and 5 years since the revelation of the Titans, Hammond Robotics have become an independent powerhouse among global superpowers, being the largest corporate entity without political influence in the world, and also the producer of the only thing rivaling the Infinite Stratos, the Titans. In an effort to achieve a more mutual relation among nations involved with the Alaska Treaty, Hammond Robotics struck an important contract to send two of their best Pilots and their Titans to enroll in the Infinite Stratos Academy located in the nation of Japan, to participate in the international Mondo Grosso tournament, as representatives of Hammond Robotics.
The contract was merely an excuse to measure the capabilities of a Titan in a real fight against the well-known Infinite Stratos. The data recorded would then be used to further enhance both the Titans and IS' technology and improve on aspects based on one's performance against the other. Considering that only one representative is allowed per country, or in Hammond's case, company, it was decided that one of the two enrolled Pilots would be chosen to become their representative, based on their overall skills against one another.
In the eyes of the entire world, this contract would spark an unprecedented battle of man and machine. A battle that would be a shame to miss. After all, a clash of superiority between two deadliest weapons known to mankind, was a sight to behold indeed.
And thus, another significant chapter in history began to be written.
-
In the past 30 years, the world has certainly changed. Technology have pushed humanity beyond the limits of what was once thought impossible. Human civilization had never been more triumphant in its eternal quest to rise higher than before, challenging itself as the sky was no longer the limit.
Yet, one thing remained constant. Perhaps it was simply human nature to seek out violence among their own kind, that no matter how far humanity has progressed, their primal instincts could never be ridden. History tend to repeat itself, regardless of how much humanity tried to learn from it.
As the old saying goes, one must always anticipate war during the time of peace, else all that stand will fall.
The world continues to live under an illusion cast by the light, as the cold reality continues to grow in the dark. Such is the reality of war.
Our methods may have changed, but the result is always the same.
Because war...war never changes.
--
--
Author's Note
So, this is an idea that just popped into my head one day, and since then, it just wouldn't get out of my mind. So I finally decided to write about it just to satisfy myself. So here it is, a crossover of Titanfall and Infinite Stratos, of all things.
I wanted to make a much more serious and darker look at the world of IS, with focus on several main protagonists(some of them OCs) rather than just one, and decided to add Titanfall as well, because I loved Titanfall 2, and I loved the campaign, the gameplay, the lore, the universe, and I was really bored and there was nothing better for me to do when I began writing this.
In case you have noticed, yes I changed some of the lore of Titanfall in this story so that it could fit better with the IS-verse, like the IMC not existing yet since humanity hasn't left the solar system in this timeline, and the introduction of some of my own OCs, including a minor(or major, depends on how you look at it) rewrite of existing Titanfall characters to better serve the storyline. Some characters from IS-verse may also get a bit of a character rewrite(for example, Ichika in this story may not be so dense like a black hole unlike his canon counterpart). Jack Cooper and BT-7274 may also be in this story, or maybe not, I don't know I haven't decided yet.
I also have an idea involving the Titans themselves also getting some original buffs compared to their canon counterparts, such as all Titans having flight abilities and maybe even capable of evolving into multiple forms. These are all just ideas though, so if you're reading this, feel free to comment and tell me whether or not I should use this idea.
If you like this story so far(using the broadest definition of a "story", since this chapter is really just a major Star Wars-esque exposition dump), feel free to favourite, follow, and comment. If you don't like it...well too bad, I'm not rewriting this whole story. If you're actually hoping for the next chapter...well I hope you could be patient, coz I'm not sure when exactly I am going to update this again. Writer's block can be a real pain in the ass sometimes.
Anyway, thanks for reading this far. Sayonara, or whatever.