MuvLuv Comet
is an AU Muv-Luv Fanfic by Alastor Mobius Toth on fanfiction.net.
After the fall of Kyoto, the US Forces abandon their allies rather than stay and help, which gets the Government flack from US politicians at home. Realizing the US needs to change its strategy of fighting BETA and treat it more seriously, Secretary of Defense David Anderson and CIA Director Jack Harper convince the President to change their country's policy on fighting BETA, including having the newly formed United States Space Force help their allies.
The United States Space Force focuses on Drop Podding TSFs from space into enemy lines and hunting down Laser-class BETA to allow their allies an easier time to fight the BETA. Enter Yuuya Bridges. Having been selected to join the USSF after trouble with his old unit, Yuuya goes from rookie to veteran after his first mission in Europe. Assigned to the newly formed Comet Squadron of the 114th Orbital Regiment, Yuuya and his fellow pilots continue fighting BETA around the world. Meanwhile, other forces are secretly ensuring the US will stay active in their fight in the BETA and stop those who threaten it, no matter what.
After a difficult battle in Norway, the Space Force grows as rookies become veterans and veterans become mentors... But things are about to get worse, and the BETA are not the only foes in the wild...
Sadly, the story is now a Dead Fic as the last update was December 2013.
Tropes found in this fanfiction:
- Adaptation Name Change: In canon, "Eishi" is a term for the TSF pilots. Here, non-Japanese pilots are called "Surface Pilot" or "Surfie".
The Author explains because TSF is an American invention, it would be weird for non-Japaneses to use a Japanese word. - Alternate Universe: It's a given, what with the premise, but among other things there are minor variances between canon Alternative and Comet, such as Yuuko negotiating for the XG-70 two years earlier.
- Anyone Can Die: As expected of a Muv-Luv story; in Yuuya's first combat mission, he and his wingman end up being the only survivors of their squadron.
- By the end of Chapter 6, Max Grey, Yuuya's best friend and wingman, is among the dead. The Comets themselves lose 24 out of the 32 pilots they sent into the Maryland Hive.
- Awesome, but Impractical: The general Space Force's opinion of the Black Widow II. While it is an awesome TSF, it lacks combat endurance and the logistics issues make it unappealing as a replacement for the Strike Eagle, especially since costs mean that the Space Force can't afford to do a one-for-one replacement.
- Bad Ass Army: The US Military, once they take the fight against BETA seriously.
- It's kinda zigzagged; at the start of Comet, only the US Navy and Marine Corps have seen recent action against BETA; with a few exceptions the US Army is long on theory and short of experience. The formation of the Space Force is intended to address this in part.
- The entire point of the STAB Initiative is to turn the US' relatively untested pilots into this.
- Badass Teacher: In Chapter 7, Yuuya is revealed to be this, as the Chief Instructor for STAB.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Yui feels Japan doesn't need help from the US unless Heaven fell on that nation. In the next chapter, a BETA Hive from space hits Washington DC.
- Big Damn Heroes: The Comets do this in Chapter 2, arriving to assist a French squadron in danger of being overrun.
- The 108th Orbital Regiment "Flare" and a pair of USMC Force Recon squadrons do this for the Comets during the DC Hive infiltration.
- As in canon, Stella saves Yuuya's bacon just before Tarisa cooks his goose.
- Break Out the Museum Piece: The two mothballed YF-23 prototypes note are restored to combat readiness for the DC Hive raid, piloted by Bishop and Yuuya respectively.
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Hilarious in Hindsight when the TE VN reveals that the Shiranui Niigata Phase 3 is essentially a kitbash of YF-23 parts taken from the mothballed prototypes, mounted onto the Shiranui Niigata Phase 2 frame.
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- Character Development: Yuuya grows from being a talented cocky young punk with a chip on his shoulder into a talented tempered young officer with leadership responsibility.
- Chekhov's Gun: A massed BETA herd disappear during the battle in Chapter 5. They show up later in Chapter 6, carried in a Carrier-class, as reinforcements for the Reactor Hall BETA.
- Colonel Badass: Colonel Wilma Bishop, commanding officer of the 114th Orbital Regiment, who acts as a sort of mentor to Yuuya.
- Combat Breakdown: This happens to the Comets and Infinities during the DC Hive infiltration; almost everyone runs out of ammo and is forced to resort to their knives. Bishop's Melee Halberds actually break.
- Diving Save: Yuuya pulls this in the Prologue to save his wingmen from a Fort-class.
- Dwindling Party: The Space Force and Force Recon Marines who infiltrate the Maryland Hive.
- Enemy Mine: Anderson and Harper share a well-known mutual dislike of each other. That they actually agree on the proposed new anti-BETA strategy is one of the things that convinces President Ashford to support their proposal.
- Fictional Document: Chapter 7 is prefaced by several in-universe news articles and op/ed pieces discussing the Space Force's new TSF acquisition plans.
- For Want Of A Nail: The entire fanfic focuses on What If? the US took the BETA threat more seriously instead of scheming around for their own interests.
- As result of Yuuya's mother standing up to her father, Yuuya (while still disliking it) has less issues about his Japanese heritage.
- Due to Yuuya joining the Space Force, he is not involved with the Raptor's EMD Phase, thus Sven's accident never happens. Sven himself is a squadron CO in the Space Force. This results in his acrimony with Leon being of a more personal nature.
- Fun with Acronyms: After Operation Crucible, the Space Force becomes a key player in establishing the Special Tactics Anti-BETA Initiative, or STAB.
- Gatling Good: One of the first units on-scene at the DC Hive landing is a battalion of thirty six A-10s, each carrying a pair of seven-barreled GAU-8 Avenger cannons. They stop the initial breakout cold.
- Genre Savvy: General O'Neil realizes the DC Hive landing was allowed to happen after noticing how conveniently the local forces were nearby hours before the landing including all the necessary equipment needed to help them.
- Male Gaze: The first thing Yuuya notices about Tarisa is that she's got nice legs.
- Nuclear Option: Washington DC is destroyed by a G-bomb dropped onto a descending BETA hive.
- The UN plans to drop a nuke on the Maryland Hive before the BETA deploy Laser-class. They're eventually talked out of it by the US, which mounts a Hive assault, though the Comets note that if the assault fails, the United States will probably nuke the hive.
- Operation: [Blank]: Operation Crucible, the largest deployment of US forces since WW2, aimed at destroying the Maryland Hive.
- Also, Operation Cerberus, which was a plan by shadowy figures to manipulate the CIA and it's Cerberus operatives to eliminate the US leadership and bring the US out of its isolationist stance.
- Ramming Always Works: Yuuya does this twice in dogfights, first against Kuze in Chapter 1, and again to Tarisa in Chapter 8. The second time around, it isn't quite as effective as the first.
- Rank Up: Yuuya starts as a 2nd Lt., before being promoted to 1st Lt. in the prologue. Later, after the Battle of Maryland and Operation Crucible, he's promoted to Captain. And then it's inverted when he hits Alaska, as he's a 2nd Lt in the UN Army (though his USSF commission remains active and he'll still draw his American pay).
- Reassigned to Alaska: Inverted; this time around, Yuuya is being explicitly requested for by the XFJ Plan. Unlike in Total Eclipse, where the assignment was treated as a punishment, it's instead explicitly portrayed as a necessary evil. It helps that they're asking for a decorated war hero instead of a cocky punk.
- Shout-Out: Quite a few:
- A lot of characters from Mass Effect appear. David Anderson is the Secretary of Defense, while Jack Harper is Director of the CIA. Also, Commander Mark Shepard testified before Congress on the idiocy of the Army and Pentagon's plans, and was Yuuya's instructor in the Space Force. Like his original counterpart Jack Harper, aka The Illusive Man, is head of the secretive Cerberus organization.
- An Admiral Harlaown is Director of the Pentagon's J5 Plans & Policy Directorate.
- NCIS Agents David and DiNozzo were part of the team that neutralised the missile site protecting DC.
- A General O'Neil appears. He commands the Battle of Maryland, and the attempts to contain the BETA from breakout.
- A TSF Battalion Commander, sporting a beard, eyepatch, and cigar, with the callsign "Old Snake".
- The 9482nd TSF squadron appears to escort Air Force One. Just like their original incarnation, the 8492nd, they betray the President.
- Anderson quotes The Godfather to Yuuko: "Try the veal, it's the best in the city."
- The Comets assist a French squadron, callsign Lion, in North Africa.
- In the Fictional Documents that preface Chapter 7, a Space Forces pilot paraphrases a movie about Naval Aviators: "We shouldn't write checks our bodies can't cash."
- The Stations of the Canon: Toyed with in Chapter 8. For the most part, it follows canon, though there are some twists here and there - for instance, Ibrahim and Yuuya have both heard of each other, and are mutual admirers. The initial dogfight with Argos has some small changes - as an example, Yuuya hangs on to the Active Eagle, forcing Tarisa to use the Strike, which changes some of the dogfight events, though it still ends with Yuuya baiting Tarisa into a position where Stella can snipe her.
- Super Prototype: The YF-23 is considered to be this in universe, hence Yuuya is thrilled he gets to pilot one. However, later in-universe sources deconstruct this.
- Taking You with Me: Max Grey stays behind to detonate the C7MD charges, killing the Maryland Hive BETA and himself.
- Tank Goodness: Zig-Zagged. American Abrams tanks give a good accounting of themselves at the Battle of Maryland, though this is thanks to US combined arms doctrine, with TSFs, helicopter gunships, bombers, artillery, IFVs and tanks working in concert. When on their own against BETA, they're... less effective.
- Timeskip: There's a gap of about a year plus between Chapter 6 and Chapter 7.
- Wham Episode: Chapter 3 Cerberus Plot. Cerberus allowed a BETA Hive to crash into Washington DC, killing millions and allowing BETA to invade the East Coast. Furthermore, they launch a series of covert assassination at a Missile Silo Base to prevent any retaliatory missiles to stop the Hive from landing and kill President Ashford and his senior staff to ensure David Anderson becomes the new President.
- By the end of Operation Crucible, it is revealed the Cerberus operatives are UnwittingPawns of a mysterious organization that has bigger plans, and one of that organisation's agents, who has been manipulating events of the last few chapters, is Cryska's older brother. Also, the Master is implied to be one of their higher ups.
- You Are in Command Now: After President Ashford and his senior staff are killed by Cerberus agents, and with much of the Cabinet dead in the DC Hive landing, SecDef David Anderson becomes the new President and attempts to lead the nation and the DC Hive counterattack from Cheyenne Mountain.
- Heavy casualties among the Comets' senior officers force Yuuya into the role of acting CO, towards the end of the Hive infiltration.
- Also happens to General O'Neill, when the dust clears from Operation Crucible, given that most of the US military leadership was killed in the DC hive landing.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: With the US now active in the fight against the BETA thanks to President Ashford, Cerberus agents kill the President and his staff on Air Force One during the Washington DC evacuation.
