Episode #08: “Scoop Chase”
It’s a relatively quiet night, and the Knight Sabers are dealing with a couple of rogue boomers when they realize that someone is taking pictures of them. Priss then takes the camera from the girl and smashes it underfoot.
It is the next morning, and everyone is going about their morning routines. Leon and Daley are coming around after an all-night stakeout, Sylia is taking tea over the morning paper, Linna is out jogging, Priss is sleeping off a late-night concert, and Nene is late for work.
At work, Nene is assigned to keep tabs on the Chief’s niece, Lisa. She wants to be a reporter, and her goal is to reveal the identities of the Knight Sabers. As a means of showing off to her, Nene attempts to pull over a speeder while they are out on patrol. It is Priss, and she protests to Nene issuing her a ticket. Lisa is not impressed.
A Genom scientist is disillusioned with his position in life. He is determined to displace Genom as the leading corporate power in the world.
Nene asks Lisa about her dream, and why she is so determined to go after the Knight Sabers. Nene then fakes a work responsibility in order to get away. There is then a boomer incident and Lisa demands to tag along, much to Daley’s displeasure. At the scene, Lisa doesn’t listen to his instructions and goes off on her own to take pictures. She then witnesses the Knight Sabers’ battle with the boomer at the construction site. Nene’s helmet is broken during combat, and Lisa manages to snag a picture. When she is going over the footage later, she discovers that it’s Nene.
Sylia meets with her contact and makes a comment on their unusual meeting place. She wants more details about the latest boomer incidents.
Nene is almost late for work, and Lisa is snooping around, asking questions about her. Leon’s answers only confirm her suspicions, and she follows Nene around town and ultimately to the garage outside of Knight Sabers headquarters.
Sylia is conducting training simulations, in which Linna excels. Nene is not hopeful about her own results and does spectacularly poorly. Then, Priss proves to Nene that she has put on some weight.
Meanwhile, Lisa is still hanging around outside, and Macky reports as much. Sylia decides to leave her be, even after Nene explains to them about Lisa’s goals. She is still outside waiting for Nene to come out.
Nene has been letting her work responsibilities slide, but then uses them as an excuse to not be able to spend time with Lisa. The girl later intentionally drops the picture from the other night for Nene to find, which only unnerves her. Lisa then goes back to watching her day to day activities, which Leon misinterprets and jumps out at Nene, scaring her.
The scientist is determined to defeat Genom and the Knight Sabers and will go to great lengths to do so.
Nene is working to complete her duties, which bores Lisa. Once Nene is finished, she takes Lisa out to eat like she had promised. However, Nene is summoned in the middle of their meal. Once again, Lisa follows her and waits for her to come out of the building. However, it is Sylia who approaches her while she is waiting for Nene, Lisa making up an excuse for being in that part of town. The two then discuss the Knight Sabers and Lisa’s confusions about them. Sylia reasons that they are preserving the balance of power, to keep Genom from becoming all-powerful. This at least gives Lisa something to think about.
The scientist has too much pride in his handiwork, and he plans a direct attack on the AD Police headquarters. The boomers break into the ADP tower, and the building begins to go into a security lockdown. Nene and Lisa are talking just as this happens, and Nene tells her to stay put while she goes to find out what is going on.
One of the boomers goes to the computer mainframe and begins to merge itself with it. It then proceeds to shut down main-power in the building. Nene forcibly escapes the elevator, confused about what is going on, and Lisa is trapped alone. The AD Police trapped on the outside believe that it may be the work of terrorists.
Daley is one of the officers outside, and he is coordinating their efforts while trying to negotiate with the scientist, attempting to convince him to change his mind. The scientist wants him to get the Knight Sabers.
The other three boomers are out to destroy vital systems within the building. Nene encounters one of the boomers, but standard ammunition does little damage. Just then, Priss and Macky arrive with her hardsuit. Priss takes on the boomer while Nene suits up. She then begins to take command of the situation. Sylia realizes that the fights leading up until right then were connected. Nene and Macky go to interrupt the boomer inside of the computer system. Once there, Nene remembers Lisa and helps the girl to get to safety, the boomer impeding her efforts.
Each Knight Saber has their own boomer opponent and they are tailored to each specific person. However, the recent hardsuit upgrades give them just enough of a boost to defeat the first three boomers.
When Lisa finally makes it to Nene’s position, she learns the truth about Nene’s involvement with the Knight Sabers and is very accepting of the discovery.
The scientist is determined to win and has the last boomer activate the building’s self-destruct. Nene tells the others to get out, to get to safety just in case she can’t stop it. They don’t want to go but do agree to get Lisa to safety. Macky stays behind to help her disrupt the self-destruct.
Outside the building, Leon intercepts the scientist’s helicopter. Meanwhile, Nene and Macky create a power feedback loop, which causes the boomer to explode and release the system.
In the end, Lisa still gets her scoop after all, but instead of the secret identities of the Knight Sabers, it is of Leon and Daley’s arrest of the terrorist scientist. On the day that she’s supposed to leave town, she gives Nene all of the pictures that she has of her and the Knight Sabers.
The Bubblegum Crisis Sanctum 