EPISODE 2: JOLIE
Industria Colony is the 4th Bunch of Side 1. As its name suggests, Industria Colony was once a booming industrial center where raw materials from Earth or the moon were processed into the machinery that enabled space colonies to function. Since the completion of Side 1 decades ago, however, Industria Colony has fallen victim to neglect and disuse as industrial production moved to newer facilities.
Its boom years long behind it, Industria has become a sort of collecting point for material and human refuse. The material refuse includes broken, obsolete MS, spaceships, space colony machinery, etc. The human refuse includes many of the thugs, mercenaries, war criminals, and orphaned children that haven spawned by twenty years of devastating war. It's a sad, mean, and desolate place. Life is marginal and tough at Industria.
2Lt. Athena Ibaz, now acting commander of the Centurion Team, is operating incognito. Instead of her elegant Federal Forces uniform, Athena is dressed in rather soiled-looking civilian clothes. It is crucial that Vincent Ferrario and his people do not become aware of Athena's identity or purpose.
Athena eyes the desolate streets of Industria Town warily. No sign of Ferrario or his mecha mercenaries, but there are plenty of Industria's average citizens: the arms merchants, pimps, hookers, drug dealers, gangsters, etc.
After walking through the streets for a while, Athena encounters something she hasn't sensed in a long time…a powerful pressure against her brain. Athena is a Newtype, and she is sensitive to the presence of other Newtypes. Now, on the lonely, dead end streets of Industria Colony, Athena feels the pressure of a Newtype presence more intense than she has ever sensed before – even greater than Char Aznable, Haman Khan, or Judau Ashta.
Athena follows the pressure to its source – a lamp post against which leans a girl. The girl is a teenager, no more than fifteen years old at most. Athena notices that the girl is of Asian descent, with unruly, long black hair that reaches halfway down her back. Athena notices the girl's scruffy clothing – torn jeans, leather jacket, grimy t-shirt, leather boots, and an old, Gryps Conflict era Earth Federation Forces officer's cap worn backwards on her head.
Athena also notices the smirking irreverence expressed in the girl's body language. Most of all, however, Athena notices how extraordinarily…pretty the girl is despite her battered clothing and disheveled appearance. The girl is not very tall, perhaps five foot one in height. She does, however, have a glamour model's long, graceful legs and petite, trim figure. The skin on the girl's angelic babyface is smooth as creamy silk, with wide, expressive eyes and a delicate-looking mouth.
Athena regards the girl with a mixture of admiration and envy. She's beautiful, Athena reflects. Many a man's daydream, I suppose. Athena herself is an extraordinarily attractive young woman, beautiful as a former royal princess should be, and she had often needed to fend off the attention of young male officer trainees at the academy. This girl, however, makes Athena feel average-looking.
Athena then remembers what drew her to the girl in the first place, What an incredibly powerful Newtype this girl is! Not even Char or Haman emanated this magnitude of power.
Athena forces herself to refocus her attention on the task at hand. Although the Newtype girl is fascinating, Athena cannot afford to be distracted. She had to find Ferrario and the stolen prototype immediately. Athena walks by the girl without looking at her again.
Ten seconds later, Athena has a vague sensation that something is wrong. She feels the back pocket of her trousers. Her wallet is missing! Athena turns around to find the young girl running away into an alley. Athena gives pursuit.
Athena chases the girl down several back alleys. She comes to a startled halt when she sees the girl suddenly standing calmly in front of her.
In the girl's right hand is Athena's wallet.
"All right, Miss," Athena warns, "you'd better give that back to me right now."
The girl simply smiles.
Athena lunges at the girl…but the girl is gone!
Athena hears mocking laughter, and finds the girl squatting on top of a trash can behind her.
How did she get back there?! Athena wonders.
Angry now, Athena aims a punch for the girl's face. The punch connects, but not with the girl's face. An instant before impact, the girl executes a graceful, acrobatic backflip, at the same time lifting the trash can lid she had been squatting on and bringing it up like a medieval knight's shield.
Athena's knuckles collide painfully with the trash can lid, causing her to yelp in pain.
By now, the pretty Asian girl is laughing hysterically. Athena, livid, tries an open handed karate blow, but is flipped over onto her back in one lightning quick move by the girl. From her position on the ground, Athena tries a sweepkick to trip the girl. This too fails, as the girl easily leaps to avoid Athena's sweeping leg.
Athena stands up, thoroughly embarrassed and frustrated now. She launches a number of kung-fu strikes at the girl. The girl effortlessly dodges or blocks all of Athena's blows, and retaliates with a series of blindingly fast blows of her own, the likes of which Athena has never seen before.
The girl finishes it with a powerful kick to Athena's midsection, knocking the breath out of the new Centurion Team leader.
Athena lies on floor – dazed, stunned, and humiliated. She has had three years of combat training in the Federal Military Academy. She has mastered a half dozen different martial arts to expert level. She is a certified Special Operations Forces officer, the deadliest class of soldier to be found anywhere. But this dainty-looking Asian girl had made Athena look like rank amateur!
As Athena marvels at the girl's unbelievable agility and combat prowess, the girl speaks for the first time, "You actually fight really good, Red. But I'm Jolie Minh, and I'm the best there ever was!"
The girl who called herself Jolie smiles at Athena, pockets the wallet, and turns to leave.
Athena reaches out for something to grab onto for support. She grasps something that feels like a net. Athena looks up and grins wickedly; she gives the net a terrific tug.
Nets are suspended between the dilapidated high-rise structures of Industria Colony to catch any debris that might be unscrupulously dropped from the upper levels. It is one of these that Athena pulls down on Jolie.
The net descends on Jolie. In spite of her cat-quick reflexes, her gymnastic agility, and her amazing fighting skills, Jolie can't fight her way out of the huge net descending around her.
Athena takes advantage of Jolie's momentary immobilization to grab onto the girl, "Give me my wallet back!"
As Athena struggles with Jolie, she suddenly hears the sound of approaching footsteps. Athena looks up and finds herself staring at the sinister, sunglass-wearing visage of Vincent Ferrario, the infamous arms dealer. Ferrario points a thin, but potent pistol at the two young women.
Almost instinctively, Athena shoves Jolie (who is still snared in the net) down a utility chute built into the outside wall of the nearby building. Athena immediately dives down the chute herself after shoving Jolie in.
Ferrario fires a few rounds down into the chute, wondering if he had stricken his quarry.
Down in the cellar that the chute leads into, Athena helps Jolie out of the net. Every few seconds, bullets rain down around them.
Jolie glares at Athena, "What the hell have you gotten us into, Red?" Jolie demands, referring to Athena's reddish hair.
Athena pulls Jolie aside as a few more shots rain down, "Listen, Jolie, isn't it? My name's Athena Ibaz. I know I don't look like it right now, but I'm an officer with the Earth Federation Forces. That man trying to kill us up there is a mercenary working for the I.S.R.L.A., and he's got a piece of our military property. I've got to force him to turn it over, but I need your help."
Jolie is a little overwhelmed by what Athena has told her, "Well…"
"Well, what?!" Athena demands urgently as the bullets explode around them again.
Jolie nods, and kicks open a wooden board against a wall of the cellar, revealing the entrance to another utility passage, wide enough to accommodate a slim young woman if she were to crawl in on her hands and knees.
Jolie tells Athena, "This leads to the basement of the building across the alley. I can crawl over, climb up, and sneak up on our boogeyman from behind, OK?"
Athena smiles, "Go for it!"
Jolie disappears into the chute. When she reaches the basement of the other building, she climbs up yet another utility chute back into the alley.
Jolie grins as she spots Ferrario, his back turned to her, angrily firing his gun into the chute that Jolie and Athena had first disappeared into.
Ferrario feels a sudden light tapping on his shoulder, and turns around to confront the interloper. He is only half turned around when he feels his head snap back and his pistol flying from his hand. He never saw the terrific kick that caught him in the jaw, knocking out several teeth. Nor did Ferrario see Jolie catch his pistol as it fell.
In two seconds, Jolie has Ferrario on the ground, and puts the man's pistol to his head.
At that very same moment, Athena emerges from the delivery chute. Dusting herself off, Athena grins at Jolie, "That was very good."
Jolie shrugs with self-satisfaction.
Athena turns to Ferrario, pulling on the man's jacket lapels, "Now, Ferrario. Where is the G-100 prototype?"
Jolie cocks the pistol and presses it harder against the arms dealer's head.
"A-all right, don't shoot me! I'll lead you to it!" the man replies, naked terror in his eyes.
Ferrario leads them farther down the alley. After a five-minute walk, they are in a warehouse district. Ferrario uses a secret code number to gain entry into one of the many, anonymous and nondescript warehouse buildings that are common to Industria City. The I.S.R.L.A. confederate guides the two young women to an enormous service elevator, in which they descend some one hundred meters into the colony's bowels.
When the elevator doors open, Athena and Jolie both gasp in surprise as they realize that they have arrived in a well-maintained MS maintenance dock. Nobody would have suspected that such a facility could have existed in rundown and forgotten Industria Colony!
Out of a corner of her eye, Athena at last spots it: a massive structure, about twenty meters tall, covered by an enormous canvas. The structure's shape is vaguely humanoid, making it obvious that it is a mobile suit.
The prototype! Athena realizes.
Naturally, it's not going to be that easy, Athena also acknowledges as she sees six men armed with carbines approaching them.
Jolie shoots at one of the men, not striking him, but destroying his weapon. The remaining five take aim to shoot the girl and her Federal Forces ally.
"Wait!" Athena says, "you've got the prototype, but it won't be useful to you unless you have the authentication code to activate its combat systems."
Ferrario, his menacing demeanor having returned now that he has Athena and Jolie under his men's guns, says, "You have this code, I presume?"
Athena nods, "I'll activate the prototype for you…it requires a bioscan by the prototype's security AI. But you have to let the girl go. She's just a civilian. She isn't involved in this. There's no reason for you to harm her."
Jolie turns to Athena with a look of profound gratitude…so long has it been since she's known anybody who has cared about her in such a manner. There is something about the young, beautiful Earth Federation Forces officer that Jolie cannot help believing in.
Ferrario replies sinisterly, "That depends on whether or not you produce the desired results, Lieutenant. Go!"
Ferrario's men usher Athena and Jolie to a crane mechanism that brings them to the cockpit hatch, which the ISRLA men have been trying for days, to no avail, to breach.
Athena opens a side panel on the cockpit gate, typing in a code. The Gundam-100's synthesized, "masculine" voice interface says, "Gundam-100 Security System Online. Identify yourself."
"Second Lieutenant Athena Ibaz," Athena says, "Serial Number G1179587888."
The AI scans Athena's physiology, confirming positive ID as Earth Federation Forces G1179587888
"Positive identification," the AI says, "Gundam-100 systems on combat standby mode. Ready for your orders, Lieutenant Ibaz."
"Code R319," Athena says.
BOOOOOOM!!
Code R319, test firing of left auxiliary thrust nozzle…not enough to really move a mobile suit on its own, but enough to create one hell of a fire and noise show.
Just the momentary distraction Athena and Jolie need.
The ISRLA guardsmen, caught off guard by the sudden noise and light, are thrown off balance.
Jolie reacts with catlike swiftness. She punches out the guard standing nearest her with a solid jab that breaks the man's jaw. She catches the man's falling carbine, which she uses to butt a second man off the crane. Jolie goes down on one knee, firing the carbine in the direction of Ferrario and the remaining ISRLA guardsmen, who flee from the teenager's rapid fire.
Meanwhile, Athena has boarded the Gundam-100, taking the shotgun seat from which she brings the combat systems online.
Jolie quickly joins her in the cockpit, sealing the hatch and taking the pilot's seat.
"What are you doing?" Athena demands, pulling on one of the two normalization helmets provided in the cockpit and lowering its visor.
"I can pilot this machine of yours," Jolie says, pulling on the other helmet, also lowering its visor, "You just push the buttons to keep the weapons coming back there."
Athena opens her mouth to protest, but thinks better of it as she sees two mobile suits entering the chamber on the forward view screen.
Just my luck to be caught in here with an Amuro Ray wannabe, Athena thinks to herself.
The deck of the MS hangar begins to vibrate with the distinctively cacophonous clodding of metallic MS feet. A pair of twenty-meter tall AMS-119 Geara Doga mobile suits suddenly appear from an enormous service corridor.
The RX-780 Gundam 100 comes to life for the first time. It is an awesome-looking mecha: a worthy descendent of the RX-78 line of Gundam mobile suits – the culmination of nearly twenty years of development and refinement. The cutting edge of the Earth Federation Forces' mobile suit research.
Jolie presses forward on the control stick. The Gundam-100 lurches forward slowly, unsteadily.
"Why's it losing power?!" Jolie complains.
Athena explains as she continues to bring the mobile suit's various combat operation systems online, "I initiated the energy buildup sequence for startup, but the main fusion engine needs an additional twenty seconds to attain the level required for combat mode. Energy level is at sixty-five percent. Now initiating secondary drive engine...energy level accelerating."
"How long is it gonna take?! Jolie demands wildly, "They're almost on us!"
Athena says serenely, "Just stay calm. Energy level at eighty-five percent and rising."
Jolie can feel the throb of the Gundam's accelerating engine underneath her cockpit seat. Such power!
The Geara Dogas advance menacingly towards the still unsteady Gundam-100.
Jolie's voice booms through the Gundam 100's external amplifiers, "Get your asses out of those stinking mechs now, or I'll turn you into scrap!"
One of the Geara Dogas levels its rifle cannon at the Gundam 100, only to have its weapon kicked away by the Gundam's armored right leg. The Gundam 100 catches the Geara Doga's falling weapon in its own metalshod hand.
The second Doga attempts to join the fray, but is clobbered by the butt of the Gundam 100's appropriated beam rifle.
While the two ISRLA mobile suits are still reeling from the blows they sustained, Jolie turns to Athena and says, "I'm kinda new at this, so walk me through it, 'K?"
Athena replies with a phrase that to Jolie, sounds more mellifluous than a Viennese waltz, "Weapons systems to combat mode."
"Sword! Sword!" Jolie exclaims, as she eyes the two enemy mobile suits bearing down on the Gundam 100 with their beam sabers drawn, "Gimme the fucking sword, Red!"
Athena says calmly, "Beam saber engaged."
Jolie pulls out the Gundam 100's beam saber and defly decapitates both enemy mecha with a singular, slashing motion that suggests some ancient swordfighting technique.
The two enemy mobile suits fall to the metal deck of the warehouse with a reverberating klong, helpless to do any more harm.
Athena looks at the view screen, "More targets outside the colony…four more mobile suits. Zakus, according to the target database."
"Rockets ready to go on this thing?" Jolie asks.
Athena has just switched the main engines on, "Primary and secondary thrusters engaged."
"Go!" Jolie replies, pressing the control stick forward.
The Gundam-100 bursts forth from the warehouse, through the colony's external wall, into space.
"Guns!" Jolie demands, "I need guns, Red!"
"The name is 'Athena,'" the new leader of the Centurion Team replies, "Beam rifle engaged."
Jolie locks onto the first target, a Zaku, and triggers a single shot from the Gundam 100's beam rifle that swiftly and completely annihilates the target.
"Missile pods engaged," Athena calls from her shotgun seat engineering station, "Targets acquired. You've got a lock-on."
Jolie triggers the fire button on the control stick, a torrent of missile fire, enough to destroy three dozen Zakus, rips forth from launch tubes mounted on the Gundam 100's shoulders, hips, and legs, creating a hellacious series of powerful explosions that violently rock the entire nearby space colony of Industria.
"My God," Athena whispers breathlessly, awed by the Gundam-100's incredible power, so much more impressive than it seemed even in the test runs.
"Yeah," is all Jolie can manage, just as breathlessly, shaken by the carnage she has unleashed.
Jolie directs the Gundam-100 back into the Industria Colony, back to the warehouse where the mobile suit had been hidden.
Vincent Ferrario and his men attempt to flee the scene aboard a land rover armed with a machine gun. Seeing the Gundam-100 looming over them, one of Ferrario's men opens fire on the massive mechanical form with the land vehicle's machine gun.
The bullets rain ineffectively against the Gundam-100's armored shell, leaving not so much as a nick.
"Acquiring new target," Athena announces, focusing the targeting computer at the fleeing land rover, "Vulcan cannon engaged."
Jolie makes a slashing gesture in front of her throat, "Gimme manual control."
Athena looks doubtfully at Jolie for an instant, then disengages the targeting computer, "Manual targeting engaged."
Jolie squeezes the trigger mechanism on the control joystick. The twin Vulcan cannon mounted on the Gundam 100's head spew forth thousands of rounds of gunfire, which spark all around the fleeing land rover, destroying the roadway in all directions around the vehicle, cutting off any possible avenue of egress.
"Stop! Stop!" Ferrario pleads, covering his head with his hands.
Jolie breathes, "So much for you, bogieman. I think the feddies are going to want to talk to you."
"Nicely done, Jolie," Athena says, offering her hand to the pretty teenager.
"Thanks," Jolie says, grasping Athena's hand, "Would have been different without you backing me. We make a good team, huh?"
Yes, we do, Athena thinks to herself, as a new vision comes into her head.
Three hours later, Ferrario and his accomplices are in the custody of the Federal Forces. Col. Cairlay has personally come to Industria to congratulate Athena on a job well done.
As he shakes Athena's hand, Cairlay says, "That was excellent work, Lt. Ibaz. I am, however, saddened to hear about Capt. Tinne."
Athena, back in her Federal Forces uniform, nods, "The captain died bravely in the line of duty, sir." Quickly changing the subject, Athena adds, "Having seen the Gundam 100 in action, sir, I can understand its importance to our security."
Cairly nods in agreement, then adds, "Lieutenant, you are hereby officially assigned the position of acting commander of the Centurion Team. Provide me a full report by 0700 tomorrow morning."
"Yes, sir," Athena exchanges salutes with the colonel. The senior officer departs to see to other urgent business.
Athena looks around for Jolie, but the teenaged girl of stunning looks and even more stunning fighting skills is nowhere to be seen.
Athena is highly impressed by Jolie's abilities. Jolie is the most amazingly talented fighter that Athena has ever seen, and perhaps more importantly, Jolie's reverberating Newtype powers were beyond anything Athena had ever sensed.
She could be very useful, Athena reasoned to herself, having such a resource under my control could give me a great advantage. If I don't exploit this advantage, others surely will.
Athena drives a Federal Forces jeep from the spaceport of Industria back into the city, searching for the girl named Jolie Minh.
Athena once again steps into the alleyway where she had first encountered Jolie earlier that day. Industria's computer-operated day/night regulator is now on "nighttime" mode, and the colony is dark. The alley is empty except for a few cats scouring the trash for meager scraps of food.
"Jolie!" Athena calls out. "Jolie Minh, are you here? It's Lt. Athena Ibaz. I want to talk to you!"
Suddenly, a large debris net falls onto Athena, ensnaring her. Athena struggles to free herself.
A lithe form leaps off a nearby ledge, executing a neat double somersault before landing gracefully in front of Athena.
"Now we're even, Lieutenant," Jolie smirks at Athena, "What is it you want to talk to me about?"
Athena replies with a smile, "Well, help me out of this net and I'll be happy to tell you about it."
Jolie and Athena remove the net together, and then Jolie leads Athena into one of Industria colony's many mecha salvage yards. Amid all the piles of techno-junk is a tiny, dilapidated sheet metal shack. This is Jolie's "home."
Athena takes a look around and finds much of what she had expected: packing crates for crude chairs and tables, a sheet of old canvas as a makeshift bed. Various cans of outdated military rations, discarded junk food wrappers, half-smoked packs of cigarettes, etc.
There are also a few items that Athena had not expected to see: operating manuals for mobile suits dating back to the One Year War, various small firearms, a few ammo clips, various makeshift daggers, a broken glass bottle or two, and assorted loot in the form of pocketwatches, wallets, fake jewelery, etc.
Athena turns to Jolie, "How old are you, Jolie?"
Jolie shrugs, "Fourteen, maybe fifteen. Who cares?"
Athena puts forth another question, "How long have you been living like this?"
Jolie shrugs again, "Couple of years, I don't know. What's with all these questions, anyway? Do you feddie army officers moonlight as social workers now or something?"
Athena smiles, "I'd like to make you an offer. I'd like to invite you to join the Earth Federation Forces."
Jolie's eyes widen, then she laughs, "Do I look like soldier material to you, Lieutenant? Thanks, but no thanks! I don't wanna peel potatoes or clean out latrines or stuff like that!"
Athena nods, "It's up to you, but the Federal Forces do offer free food, free shelter, and an average annual income of…"
Athena notices that Jolie is no longer paying the attention. The girl's expression is a mixture of sadness, loneliness, and anger.
Athena, seeing that she is not reaching Jolie, sighs, "I guess I'll be going, then."
Before Athena can get out the door, Jolie rises from the makeshift canvas on which she had been lying down, "Hey, 'Thena! Wait!"
Three hours later, Athena leads young Jolie to the spacedock, and the two board a shuttle for Green Noah Colony in Side 7. A legendary friendship and partnership is born.