]~SIX ~ The Strong Willed Ones
Shine Romanauv made a sudden visit at the Union's military base. This time, everyone was bewildered by her purpose. She came neither as a mere visitor nor a representative of a Romanauv Supracorporation, but as mobile suit pilot.
"Whoa~ she's a hot one on that white spandex!" Billy perversely said.
It was I who would be would be piloting the white mobile suit that the Romanauv SupraCorporation had recently manufactured for today's simulation. Its purpose is to showcase the latest technology we used for the said suit's design. It had been in progress for months and, amazingly, we were able to get the cooperation of Dr. Ralph Eifman, the world renowned technical chief of the Union. The Union had been more eager for such development when one of the mobile suits was toppled down with ease because of the astounding advancement of the Gundams which no one could explicate except for Aeolia Schenberg and his Celestial Being. As I could see it, they were like terrestrial beings in their eyes, sprouting out of nowhere while invoking their dogma in a manner that human beings could not understand. It felt so weird because these two parties were both Earthlings who originated from Earth's dirt.
As I arrived near the new white mobile suit, I approached the nearest technical assistant who handed me out some papers. I scanned a few and fast-read the other important notes.
"Just let us know when you're ready, Ms. Romanauv", the other assistant told me.
Suddenly, Graham barged in. "What's the meaning of this?"
My heart skipped a beat. But without taking any glance at him, I walked towards the white mobile suit making him more irritated. Graham was about to come near me but one of the assistants stopped him. "Captain Aker, please do not make unnecessary actions. The simulation is about to start. May we request that you also proceed to your mobile suit?"
"Are you serious? I will be fighting a girl who even has no experience in fighting?" he exclaimed.
I just continued to walk towards my mobile suit during their argumentation. I stepped on a metal platform that elevated me towards the opened chest of the white mobile suit and went inside. The monitors automatically turned on where I found myself surrounded by the sightings that the mechanical suit could perceive. As a matter of fact, it gave me a view beyond what my peripheral vision could provide me. Then, in one of the left screens, I found Graham as Dr. Eifman approached him.
"Calm down, Graham." the doctor said. "You don't have to worry because Ms. Romanauv had undergone trainings in using mechanical tools such as mobile suits. In fact, she is one of the engineers of this new mobile suit. Hence, more than anyone else here, she is the one who completely knows how to drive it."
"That is not a sufficient reason for me to continue this joke."
"I know where you are coming from, my son. But this simulation setup was personally requested by Ms. Romanauv and personally granted by your Commander. What could be that rationale behind this can only be answered by her or by the Commander."
I held the joysticks and stepped on the treadles which consequently moved the white mobile suit to a standing position.
"Lieutenant," I finally spoke. "We know very well that in a battle, we cannot choose the gender of our opponent neither her identity. So let's not further argue on this matter."
Graham's eyes became narrow. "Piloting a mobile suit is making a stance that you are prepared to die," he said. It was as if I made him angrier or somewhat made him feel more serious. It made me feel uneasy but this is what I wanted.
"It would be an honor to die in your hands, Mr. Ace Pilot." I replied.
The people present at the area clattered. "Way to go, princess! If it was me, it'll me my honor to die in your hands!" one of the soldiers said.
"Seems that she is really persistent to have this fight with you," Dr. Eifman said and made a soft laugh.
He stared at me for a few seconds and turned his back. Thereafter, he began walking towards the mobile suit designated to him.
"So this is the new form of a lover's quarrel, huh? A fight using mobile suits," said Billy who was waiting at the foot of Graham's temporary mobile suit.
But Graham did not pay him any attention. He went straight inside the chest of the suit and positioned it in its standing posture. As a result, both our suits stood up in front of each other.
Dr. Eifman appeared in our monitors and declared, "Pilots, you may now begin."
"Lieutenant, let me thank you with this!" I made the first strike by making my suit leap to the air placing it on the back of Graham and immediately making a horizontal slash unto the neck of Graham's mobile suit. However, his reflex was fast and was able to block the attack by covering itself through its left arm.
"Awesome! That was a quick strike for an amateur!" one of the soldiers watching exclaimed.
"Hell, yeah! If it was me, I should've been headless already!", another one said.
"Tell me, why request this fight?" Graham asked.
"Lieutenant, what is pride?" I asked.
"A question is not meant to be answered by another question."
"My bad…"
I made another attack by releasing the short guns hidden on the sides of my suit and blew them out towards him. He blocked them with his freshly drawn sword and jumped from side to side to evade the other coming bullets.
"We both have our own prides that we want to protect. I came here to show you my pride." I replied. "…how I will stake my own life for the sake of the things I want to achieve."
"Was that why you made this request?" he said in a cold tone.
"Who knows…"
This time, it was Graham who initiated the attack. He made a few kicks until he slashed his sword in front of me and I was hit in the chest. But my suit reacted faster than I anticipated, thus it only gave me shallow scrape.
"You almost got me there, Lieutenant. But I won't lose." I said. But my breathing was no longer normal and even my heartbeat. It felt like my body was imitating the speed of the mobile suit. My muscles started to ache too.
"Is this the pride you're talking about? That you won't stop even though you can clearly see a large gap between our piloting skills?"
"However, Lieutenant, do not forget that our mobile suits also have a difference. You are using a suit which is one generation lower than that you recently used. In short, we both have disabilities."
"Do you think your mobile suit can compensate your disability?"
"That is what I am proving right now."
"You know that it doesn't always work that way."
"But I'll fight for what I believe. Even if it's a mistake for others, I will not falter because from the moment I set my mind on something, I already prepared myself for all kinds of consequences that naturally flow with it."
Graham was silent. But I continued by asking, "So what will you do if you believe it's a mistake? Can you tolerate a mistake?"
He paused for a while but then he answered, "I will not tolerate any mistake."
"Now, show us, Soldier. Show me that you would do everything to protect the things you believe in. Prove to me that you do not waver from that which you believe despite anyone who opposes you… No matter who that person would be even if it would be the most important person in your life."
The real heat of our battle began. We continued exchanging blows as if we were in an actual battlefield until I found myself out of bullets. I had been fighting in a long-range because of my lack of experience. It was practically a suicide for me. Graham, on the other hand, had a sword on the right hand and a gun on the left hand.
"Wow… I can't imagine that Mr. Romanauv can last this long.", one of the men at the audience said.
"Nah… I think Lieutenant is only making it easy for her.", the other one replied.
"No, I don't think so." It was Billy who suddenly intercepted in the soldiers' conversation. "Graham has been having a hard time from the beginning of this battle. You just couldn't see it because he was able to counterbalance his piloting abilities with his mobile suit while Ms. Romanauv's mobile suit counterbalances her lack of skills."
The soldiers only reacted with a fixated expression. But Billy continued, "Now, what do you think will happen if a demonic pilot will drive a monstrous mobile suit?"
The two soldiers looked at each other and unanimously said, "We're gonna die?"
Billy cracked with a laugh. "Just watch closely now, soldiers. This won't take long anymore," he added.
I was already catching my breath. And I also had a feeling that Graham was feeling the same because he was exerting double efforts just to control his mobile suit.
"You really are a worthy opponent and it is worth dying in your hands," I said.
"Why? Do you want to die in my hands?", he replied.
"Try it if you can!", I shouted.
Graham counter-attacked with his sword wielding it against the sword of my white suit. However, due to the sudden impact, Graham's sword suddenly broke leaving his shoulder open for a slash of my sword. In an instant, we froze our mobile suits leaving my sword pierced into the left shoulder of Graham's suit while the latter's left hand pointed a gun unto my suit's chest.
The whole surrounding was silenced. I could only hear myself catching my own breaths in the compressed area of the mobile suit's cockpit. I slowly let go of the handles controlling the suit in order to rest my arms. I raised my head high and closed my eyes while saying, "So, Graham, whose pride do you think will win?" Then I finally fainted.
I slowly opened my eyes and found myself in an unfamiliar room, lying in bed. There, I found Graham sitting in a chair on the left side of my bed, staring at me while holding a laptop on his left hand. I softly laughed and said, "What's this? A deja vu?"
"This ain't that funny," Graham said with his serious face.
"I know."
"Now then…" Graham stood up. He gazed at me and said, "Care to explain yourself of your actions for the past few days?"
I tried to move my body to a sitting position but I was really having a hard time so Graham helped me. He held me on my shoulders while supporting my back until I felt that we were already too close to each other. Then I said in a soft voice, "It'd be better that you know none of them."
"Ahem!"
The moment was interrupted by Billy Katagiri. "I'm sorry to interrupt the lovey-dovey moment but, Graham, the Commander needs your report now."
Graham looked at him like an eagle because of his great timing.
"Hey, hold your horses… I also need Ms. Romanauv's report so I'll be lending her a hand here."
Graham straightened up while telling me, "What's better for me is for me determine." He walked at the door, "We'll talk later whether you like it or not," then he closed it.
"Wow… So the lovers' quarrel is not yet done, huh?"
Billy sat on the chair where Graham had previously seated and flipped the pages of a folder he had been holding since he got inside the room.
"Apparently, the simulation was successful. We were able to measure the new mobile suit's potentials. We were actually thinking that it performed well than what we expected despite the fact that an amateur was driving it." He fixed his glasses. "You're just an amateur, am I right?" He fixed his eyes unto mine and continued emphasizing, "Ms. Shine Romanauv?"
I felt a little uncomfortable with the way he emphasized my name. "Well, I usually drive mobile suits in computer simulations but it was my first time fighting a real mobile suit. I guess, that is still being an amateur…"
"Ooh… I wonder if the answer would still be the same if I ask the other person." Billy's smile started giving me creeps.
"What 'other person'"?
"So let me revise my question." He said while giving me a merciless gaze. "You aren't an amateur. Right, Ms. STELLA ALISTAR?"
My eyes unconsciously grew widened due to shock. My whole body felt like it was electrocuted by chills. But I won't be caught, I told myself.
"Sutella Alistaire? Who's that?"
"Oh… Gotcha." Billy was smiling as if he caught something he was expecting.