Ch 24 – The Morning Star
Orbital Ship St. Cuthbert, Space Region between Earth and Venus
Down on Earth, the Far East would be seeing the first light of dawn as the Sun's rays shone briefly over the region. Up in space, the light shone in full force. However, the light still did nothing to change the grim atmosphere with the smell of death filling up the space.
Inside the hangar of the ship, the entire crew and Gundam Meisters of Celestial Being had gathered there. Chall Ascutia held the yellow Haro often attributed to Lockon in her hands. The other members were only solemn as to their comrade's death.
"So that was all you could find…" Lelouch said.
"Yes, I had extracted the visual memory from this Haro as you had requested," Chall said, "and I find out that Lockon had killed himself while destroying the Throne Zwei."
"At least he died for a cause…" Jeremiah said, "but at the cost of the Haro who piloted his GN Arms…"
"I should've not left him all alone!" Setsuna cried, slamming his fist against the wall.
"It's not your fault," Jeremiah said, "Lockon made the choice and he knew well what was in for him. Same goes for all of you, you expect this to happen the moment you join this group… as Lord Charles had told me once…"
"Not all of us had the intention to do this at birth," Feldt coldly said, walking away.
"Feldt…" Christina called out, but Lelouch flapped out his cape to block her.
"The ordeal young Feldt Grace experiences, it is not what we had felt ourselves," Lelouch said, "just let her be and she will be alright soon."
"And now is not the time for mourning," Jeremiah reaffirmed, "our enemy, the UN Forces, are still out there ready to pounce on us like a puma when at our darkest hour."
Command Deck, ICS Genghis Khan
On board the Genghis Khan's Control Deck, Li Xingke and Sergei had just returned from their mission and met with Zhou Xianglin. They then turned to the main monitor.
"Okay, we are assembled in full," she said, "you may connect with them for the conference."
Soon, several faces appeared on the screen. In one part, Captain Aker, Cornelia and Tohdoh were on it. In another one, Kati and Bismarck were there. The last screen had Alejandro Corner himself, seated in what that seemed to be a cockpit on its own right and surrounded by golden rays.
"Supreme Commander, with all due respect, I believe that it is only adequate for us to retreat for the Orbital Spires for refuelling…" Sergei suggested.
"And while we do that, you guys sneak your arses to fight the Gundams," Cornelia accused, "this is not just your fight alone."
"However, the Gundams did inflict massive damage to all parties," Bismarck said, "The Gundams are trying to limit our supplies and forces until we cannot continue much more."
"Thus their strategy is the dreaded war of attrition," Kati summarised, "if we continue this on, we may end up in their trap."
"However, we cannot waste too much time on this," Tohdoh insisted, "They may be escaping into deep space as we speak and our technologies are perfected to go beyond Jupiter."
"What makes you think they can go beyond that point?" Xingke pointed out.
"The fact they used that GN technology without the apparent backing of the three blocs is quite the evidence for it," Tohdoh said, "but my point is that this meeting should not exist and we should be hunting them down…"
"I understand the urgency myself," Alejandro said, "and so I shall return myself into the Jianghu again, as the Chinese may say."
"So you implied that you had experience in the military world before," Xingke said.
"I admit to have worked with the Imperium as had my family for over a century since the Yankee-Confederates War," Alejandro professed, "and I announce that shall be on the frontline."
"Are you so certain that your mere presence would turn this battle around?" Bismarck wondered, "I believe that only the GN-Drive powered Mobile Weapons can stand a chance against them."
"And such a Suit and Armour I do possess, with seven lights of the GN Drives empowering it," Alejandro said.
"Seven?!" Graham exclaimed.
"Yes, the UN has passed the GN Drive Mass-Production Bill, calling for these Drives to be mass-produced," Alejandro proclaimed, "I shall lead the world into glory and free her from the oppressions of vigilantes."
On Cornelia's end, Guildford came up to her and whispered to her. She immediately turned away from the screen and walked with Guildford to a corner of the room.
"Are you sure?" she inquired, "Lyle is on Alexander's Column! He still has a job to do…"
"He apparently is deserting out on the most solemn duties of the Empire," Guildford said, "he has not given much explanation of the matter, as if he had something to hide."
"Anyone else knows of this?" Cornelia asked.
"Only the both of us so far," Guildford answered, "but it was already announced in public that he would be representing the Imperium here. If word gets out that he's…"
"Never mind about that slacker of an Irishman," Cornelia resolved, "we still have work to do and I won't let some political take over true proper military work."
Medical Sector, Upper Floors, Alexander's Column
Inside the upper floors of Alexander's Column, it was mostly an area limited to the military and high-ranking officials. However, in the medical sector, Lyle was seeing into a ward via a window. His twin brother was in there, and was being tended by the doctors.
After a while, the doctor walked out with his gang of nurses. Lyle then walked towards him.
"Doctor, how is him, my twin?" Lyle asked.
"He's pretty battered up, internal injuries are all over him," the doctor said, "how did he even end up like that anyway?"
"Uh… he's a space engineer… and there was an accident," Lyle said.
"A likely story, but remember this: everyone lies," the doctor said, "Farewell, but I daresay the lad got not much time left on him."
Lyle then went inside the ward, where Neil was in. He was on the bed with machines monitoring his body.
"Just my luck, I got out of this earlier just to fight," Neil admitted, "now because of it, I am only stuck to another bed."
"Guess you should have stayed in bed in the first place," Lyle said.
"And miss the chance for revenge," Neil said, "I never felt so relaxed before…"
"Holding onto old grudges is such a pain indeed," Lyle said, "when I was in Boston, I met an acquaintance in a guy called Cho. He was such a prodigy of the cohort, but he was bullied due to his mixed blood nature. In the end, he just went bananas and shot around the campus… before…"
"He blew his brains out," Neil continued, "I heard of the Boston Military Academy Shootout, but I never you were involved."
"Then again, we never did keep in touch," Lyle admitted, "Do you still visit them in Belfast?"
"Of course, last time was on their death anniversary last year," Neil said, "I saw you there in fact, getting the favourite sunflowers that Anne always loved."
"Speaking of which, that day is coming soon next month," Lyle said, "want to go there together?"
"Maybe you will be giving me the flowers by then, I know what the doctor said of me," Neil laughed it off, "but down to business, is there anyone who knows of who I am?"
"Only you and I," Lyle said, "and I intend to keep you out of sight all the way."
"You don't need to, just end my pitiful existence for good," Neil said, "but you must live on as my legacy, as the Gundam Meister Lockon Stratos."
Bunker Region, EUS Barbarossa, Space Region, Lagrange facing Venus
Soon, the entire UN fleet was flying towards the direction of Alejandro, who somehow figured out where the Celestial Being Mothership was located to. The bunkers were the so-called residential areas for the soldiers to rest between battles.
Currently, a rather large crowd of soldiers had clustered around a fellow soldier of the EU's Spanish Legion, Ali Al-Saachez. He was apparently speaking of his exploits while in the Legion.
"…So there I was, seeking out the Celestial Being pilot like a vulture," Ali described, "and then, the fool was just right before my eyes. It was like one of those cowboy movies, the scene at the showdown."
"And who gave the first shot?" a Dutch soldier asked.
"I was only too merciful and I suffered for it, it nearly destroyed me," Ali said, "but I was smart and pulled the trigger in time and gave him the harder hit. That guy should be lying dead in blank space by now."
"And what is all this commotion here?" someone voiced out.
The crowd turned around and saw the stunning figure of Colonel Bismarck walking towards them. Klaus was only the aide and stepped aside for his liege. The Colonel then stopped just before Ali.
"I had heard of your exploits, and especially how you capture the Gundam from its Meister off coast of Morocco," Bismarck said, "and I must say that was bold too."
"But the ends justifies the means used," Ali said, "hwoever, that attack blew off half the Throne Zwei and rendered it unsuable."
"With your ability, I can see why Schneizal sees so much in you," Bismarck said, "however, we still have work to do. Soon, we shall encounter the Gundams again. They have slaughtered Frederik and Dorothea, and I vow I shall not let them off."
"Sieg Heil der Oberst!" Klaus cried out, and joined in by the dozens of soldiers within the bunkers.
Xingke's Private Bunker, ICS Genghis Khan
As in any ship or military vessel, the higher-ranked soldiers usually were allowed VIP bunkers for their own use. As a Colonel of the Armed Forces, Li Xingke was without a doubt granted one himself. Hong Gu stood outside of Xingke's bunker, and knocked on it. Soon, a slit opened up and a pair of eyes was seen.
"Hong Gu, it's you," he said, "well, come in."
The door then slid horizontally and the aged soldier went inside. Xingke's bunker was very simple; just walls and a simple bed. There was a desk with a desktop, and a cabinet of his clothes. Xingke sat down on the chair by his desk, while Hong Gu stood near him.
"What is it, Colonel?" Gu asked.
"How long…how long is it that you kept it from me?" Xingke asked, "About my father and the disease he had."
"How did you know?" Gu asked, "he bribed the doctors to keep them shut."
"Easy when that doctor is transporting drugs from Burma to Imperium soil," Xingke said, "what he got is a terminal illness and he can die at any moment."
"He knew of your career soaring up high and don't want him to anchor your ambitions," Gu revealed, "He is always against the ideals of the Federation… and thus demotion to a Chairman of a village in Hunan."
"I grew up in that village, and he found a better life among the commoners of Hunan than Beijing," Xingke said.
"If you knew that your father is dying soon, would you even be here today?" Gu said, "you carry his honour now, along with your bloodline of five-generations Party members."
"And I haven't entered politics, and I was only eliminating people like my father who seek reform," Xingke said, "I always thought he would not be proud of me."
"Nonsense, as a father, he would be proud that his flesh and blood would succeed," Gu said.
Suddenly, an alarm rang in the ship.
"We will be approaching Warzone in T minus 5 minutes. All GN-X pilots are to sortie for engagement."
"And that Alejandro was the one who pinpointed the location for us," Xingke remarked, "Battles never fare well when politicians are in charge. Tsar Nicolai II leading the Russian Amy in the First World War only caved in for a complete disaster, and this may be the case again."
"But that led to a revolution, one that you may use to your advantage," Gu mentioned, "but we ought to be focusing on our current job."
Hallway, HMS Julius Caesar
On the call of the GN-X pilots, all of them were on their way towards the hangar for their eventual takeoff and final fight against the Gundams. It was true in all three main vessels of the UN Forces, and with all members going all out.
Suzaku was walking along a hallway on his way to the hangar. There was no one else in that corridor, and he marched on with only his bravery with him.
"If I must bring order to the world, this is the first step…" he thought.
"Hello… Kururugi Suzaku, son of the late Kururugi Genbu…" V2's voice said.
"Who's there?" Suzaku suddenly bolted and flexed out his arms ready for combat.
There was not a soul or shadow other than Suzaku himself in the entirety of the hallway. Suddenly, two emergency seals came down and sealed in a narrow portion, trapping Suzaku in.
"Ah, now that I have your undivided attention…" the voice said again.
"Who the hell are you?" Suzaku demanded, "How you hacked in the system?"
"A visionary my boy, with only a vision for peace," V2 said, "you want peace right; it can only be done through blood and iron…"
"True, but you should let me go so that I may bring it forth with the end of Celestial Being," Suzaku argued.
"Till now you still don't comprehend why that Celestial Being pilot is so grudged towards you…" V2 said, "Let me explain in its entirety…"
Hangar Area, HMS Julius Caesar
In the hangars of the Julius Caesar, the Glaston Knights and Holy Swords were about to sortie for their flight. However, Tohdoh noticed an abnormality of the picture.
"Where is that Kururugi-yarou?" he voiced out, "I thought I taught him to always be punctual, and now this."
"Come to think of it, Dylandy seems to be absent too," Edgar said.
"To be precise, he never returned from the first attack," Claudio said.
"Never mind about those two!" declared Cornelia, "Graham has already sent men looking for Dylandy and as for Kururugi, we can't wait for one man and jeopardise the entire operation."
"Such quick response indeed… a likely story…" Tohdoh thought, "Something weird is going on in these parts…"
Control Deck, Orbital Ship St. Cuthbert
Due to the work of a certain traitor, the UN Combined Fleet was fast approaching where Celestial Being hid out in. Christina and Feldt manned the controls, with Jeremiah as a Captain Regent of the vessel. Lelouch stood before Jeremiah, and put on his mask.
"Jeremiah, I leave things here to you," Zero said, "if needed to, abandon ship. I fear they may pull out all tricks on this operation. Brace yourselves everyone."
He left the room at once for his Gundam. Jeremiah and his aides then looked over the monitors for any abnormalities so far. Suddenly, it was seen – the three ships of Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan and Barbarossa were approaching the region.
"They are here faster than our anticipation; it was as though someone is spying on us…" Jeremiah remarked, "But still our operation does not change."
Outside the St. Cuthbert, the four remaining Gundams had already exited the ship and ready for the eventual battle. From the UN Combined Fleet, the remaining GN-Xs were dispatched to destroy the armed vigilantes for good. While travelling towards their target, Cornelia spoke via the loudspeakers.
"You of Celestial Being; you whose allies had befallen; you who had forgotten the judicial system," Cornelia declared, "you and your naïve dream of an age never to happen shall fall and rot into the nothingness of space. All units, destroy them!"
Suddenly, all the GN-Xs there aimed their Beam Rifles and attacked the Gundams at once. Celestica and Michael quickly put up their GN Fields, while Exia and Kyrios agilely dodged the incoming attacks. After a while, Exia and Kyrios fired on the GN-Xs and shot off the arms of some of them.
"Alright, GN Cannon charging…" Zero said, while keying in his coordinates, "and now, all particles to be released."
The Celestica maintained in its position and launched out the GN Bazooka blast out. While the GN-Xs were quick enough to dodge it, an ICF ship called the ICS Ulaanbaatar had a hole blasted through and the whole vessel exploded seconds later.
"Vice-Colonel, the Ulaanbaatar has been sunk," the technicians had said, "The debris has damaged our ship significantly."
"Just keep this thing afloat, our forces still need this vessel to stay alive," Xianglin insisted.
"Gundams, you have shamed our forces no more!" Sergei cried out, "Men, follow me now!"
As such, the remaining eight GN-Xs piloted by ICF pilots flew in to engage with Gundam Kyrios and Exia. Xingke quickly drew out its Beam Sabre and squared off against the Exia and its GN Sword.
"This will be your final stand, where you will face your judgment," Xingke said, "surrender now. This is your final chance."
However, Exia simply blocked out his strike and tried to shoot at it with the Vulcan beams. Luckily, Xingke had a GN Field projected from the GN Defence Rod.
"So this is your answer, I presume," Xingke said, "spare no mercy, and so shall I."
While Kyrios was at fighter mode, the GN-Xs continued their usual swarm tactics to corner it off. Most of the ICF units were firing on the Kyrios, while they relied on Soma alone to attack the Gundam directly with its Beam Sabre.
"Gu and Chiba, cover Peries' behind!" Sergei commanded, "Asahina, provide cover for the rest of us. Xingke will be on his own. Everyone else, follow me!"
"This barrage… I can't break through it," Allelujah cried.
"Do not break formation! Winged will be overwhelmed soon," Sergei cried out.
As the Kyrios narrowly dodged the firing range albeit a slight damage to its wings, Soma came up and tried to slash it in half. It dodged again, and swopped into MS Mode to deal with it.
"You measly failure, I will wipe off your imperfection and avenge my comrades!" the voice from that GN-X cried out.
"So you're Marie…" Allelujah responded.
"I know no this so-called Marie. I am Soma Peries, a Super-soldier of the Indian-Chinese Federation," she proclaimed.
Her GN-X charged in again, but Kyrios drew out its own Beam Sabre for an effective counter. It managed to throw Soma back, and the Kyrios escaped its further assault. However, the other ICF units were making it tough by maintaining cover fire for it and even damaged the outer plating of the Kyrios.
The Kyrios tried to charge in, but Soma's GN-X went out to block the strike. The Kyrios retreated again, and shot on the GN-Xs attacking it. Some of the GN-Xs were heavily damaged as a result, and Soma went to the front for a direct attack again.
"This time, you die and stay there!" she declared.
However, the Kyrios blocked it out again and put its Beam Rifle near the chest, shooting through it. Then, another two GN-Xs (piloted by Chiba and Gu) fired on it before it could do too much damage. Then, Soma used the Beam Sabre and slashed off one of Kyrios' legs off.
"Allelujah, you can't go on like this…" Hallelujah said, "They are not holding back the least bit and you are outnumbered…"
"But I can't, I must save Marie," Allelujah insisted, "not like the last time…when I abandoned her…"
He then took a short breath, but he realised the fact that he was still under barrage of the GN-X.
"Just… GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HEAD!!!!" Allelujah yelled out, "You are ruining my concentration!"
"Okay okay…" Hallelujah relented.
"But he got a point…" Allelujah thought, "if I hope to save Marie from that other her, I must fight and defeat her…"
Meanwhile, the Michael was dealing with the Romanians' GN-Xs of the EU camp. Both Lilliana and Marika had their GN-Xs surround the Gundam in place. Suddenly, Luciano's GN-X popped up for a direct attack to the front.
"Yes, I will give the chance to glimpse upon he who will end thee and put your little Gundam head up in my den as my trophy to my glory," Luciano declared, while laughing like some maniac.
"No way will I let you, I am a Gundam Meister!" Q-1 cried out, as she flexed out a Beam Sabre from the left arm to defend the strike.
"That voice, it reeks of a woman's tone. Not too much on the feminine side, but I expect that from a fighter in your type of position," Luciano said, "I like a feisty one here. I may spare you the firing squad if you vow your services to me… for life…"
"To hell I would sell my body to a scum like you!" Q-1 cried out.
She swiped the Beam Sabre and managed to repel the GN-X out of her perimeter. The other GN-Xs fired on the Michael itself, but a small GN Field blocked out the attacks. From behind, another GN-X shot on the Gundam's back.
"Marika, you okay?" the voice from that Suit asked.
"Big brother…" Marika replied.
"Okay here, we are in a battle here, so get yourselves to the fighting," Luciano ordered, "keep her at bay, and let me do the coup de grace."
Following the orders, they only used their Beam Rifles and Vulcan guns; nothing more than those. They were only the support fire for the ease of the true combatant, Luciano Bradley – AKA The Vampire of Romania.
"Here I come!!!" Luciano cried, giving out another strike.
However, the Michael blocked out the attack and that put them in close range. Suddenly, the calw-arm grappled on the head of the GN-X.
"Got you now, sucker…" Q-1 said, "GN Radiation Wave, burn him…"
The wave began to start and fried the circuitry inside like a microwave. Soon, the head and neck exploded. Michael slashed at the remnants and cut off its arms. However, the defeat of Bradley only led to a slight change in command.
"Okay, now I am the highest ranked officer engaged with Claw," Kewell declared, "therefore, I will be in charge. Marika and Lilliana, go to formation."
The three GN-Xs then encircled the Gundam, and fired rapidly at it. Those blasts managed to tear through the E-Carbon plating, and blasted off the legs of the Gundams. The Michael, in response, raised out its left arm and fired out a beam blast on them. It managed to shoot off the verniers of Marika's GN-X.
Suddenly, Kewell broke off from his own formation and charged in with his Beam Sabre.
"Big brother, what are you doing?" Marika exclaimed.
"Giving you guys a chance to defeat this devil," Kewell said, "Dad would be proud that his children die for their nation."
Gundam Michael also charged in with its Beam Sabre for its attack. When both units collided with each other, it was the Michael's Beam Sabre that plunged into the GN Drive core of the other unit. The Michael fled and left the GN-X to explode in vacuum.
"I avenge you, Big Brother…" Marika declared, you're mine, Gundam!"
Both GN-Xs went after the Michael as they flew towards the area where the fleet was gathered at, firing on the Gundam. However, it mostly avoided the blast, at the expense of some of the ships.
"Madame, the Freiheit is reporting damages caused by our units," a technician of the Barbarossa claimed.
"Patch one of those units online," Kati ordered.
Soon, the image of Marika was seen on the monitor.
"Ensign Soresi, what are you doing?" Kati demanded.
"We are doing justice, by chasing the Gundam," she replied.
"I call for you to cease now," Kati declared, "your little venture is destroying half our fleet, and spilling into the other ships!"
"Even if we stop now, it won't guarantee that the Gundam would too," Marika said, "and my brother would not have died in vain against this menace…"
Then, the transmission was cut off at once. However, another transmission came in.
"Madame, His Highness the Crown Prince Erik of Denmark and Captain of EUS Nidhogg is requesting permission to fire on the hostile GN-X in the region," another technician reported, "and he's telling other ships to do so."
"Those two disobey my direct orders, just follow through with the Prince's request," Kati said, "mutiny is a crime dealt with heavily and I will reaffirm that point to the entire fleet."
By then, things were getting ugly on the Michael's side. It had already lost its legs, and part of its arms to the blasts. The GN-Xs also suffered, as the Michael tried to fire on it again. While they dodged on it, linear guns popped up from a neighbouring ship and shot off one of its verniers.
"Marika, are you okay?" Liliana asked.
"Okay, but that ship is the Nidhogg right… Why it's attacking us?" she asked.
"After wrecking half the EU Fleet and insubordination to our General in command, you still have the nerve to wonder," Liliana said.
"Never mind, if we capture that Gundam in one piece, we will be heroes… and that can void the military court," Marika said, let's go!"
Soon, the two GN-Xs began to chase Michael around the ships. However, the gunfire from all the EU ships was universally heard after the orders of Prince Erik and General Mannequin were understood.
Moving on, Gundam Exia was continuing its bout against Xingke and was fairly successful at that. It managed to slice off his GN-X's arm and left him with the Beam Sabre. As it made its next move, it was suddenly bombarded by dozens of fire from the Imperium forces.
"Xingke, this one belongs to the Imperium," Cornelia cried out, "go back to your Red Hordes now and let true warriors handle this swordfighter."
As a proud nationalistic member of the Indian-Chinese Armed Forces, Xingke would not seem pleased at the mention of the demeaning term 'Red Hordes'. However, he still flew back with the rest of his ICF comrades as they continued their dogfight against the Kyrios.
Left alone with 8 enemy units, Setsuna was at a fix himself. Suddenly, David and Edgar flew in from the sides for an attack with their Beam Sabres. But the Exia blocked both strikes with its GN Sword and repelled them. However, Claudio and Guildford attacked in from behind and slashed at Exia.
"No!" Setsuna exclaimed.
More was even on the way; Tohdoh, Seba and Urabe were charging in as well. However, Exia fired out a volley of Vulcan blasts to divert them away. However, the Glaston Knights in full and led by Cornelia were on its tail.
"Gundam, you are all ours today…" Cornelia said, "David and Edgar, fall back and provide artillery cover. Holy Swords, take him from behind. Rest of you, follow me to the front."
In split second, all units were put into motion of the plan. David and Edgar positioned theirs away from the action, but held tight to their Beam Rifles for any possible event. Cornelia with Guildford and Claudio jumped up in front, while the Holy Swords continued to chase the Gundam into space.
"They are cornering me off…" Setsuna exclaimed.
Exia tried to flee from the incoming attackers, but the two GN-Xs in the background stopped its further progress. Suddenly, Guildford and Claudio swooped in from the front. Acting quickly, Exia only dodged that move. From behind, both Senba and Urabe came in for their attack, led by Tohdoh in the front.
"I must admit that you too had a hand in the rebirth of the Nipponese nation-state, and for that I am thankful," Tohdoh said, "however, the will of the world must still be obeyed!"
Tohdoh's unit charged in head-on for an attack, and so did Cornelia on the other end. Exia fled upwards, leaving the two GN-Xs to clash with each other. But there was where Senba and Urabe had waited for it, and they attacked it immediately.
Exia saw them both, and activated its two Beam Sabres to fend off both fighters on the sides. Soon, Exia managed to hack off each of their arms. The rest of the GN-Xs came in for their attack, but a beam blast blocked them out completely. However, David still blindly charged in and was consumed by the light.
"No!" Claudio cried out.
That blast apparently came all the way from the Celestica, who was coming closer towards the fleet. Another part of the EU forces decided to intercept it.
"I see Giant coming in, and I'm going to reel him in for my Colonel," Patrick said.
"Colonel?" wondered a technician onboard the Barbarossa, "there's only one Colonel in our corps. Is he… together with Oberst Waldstein?"
"Nonsense!" said another one, "Madame Mannequin was previously a Colonel herself, and Patrick had a relationship with her since then."
"That idiot Patrick really should know how to turn off the communications someday," Kati thought, "it's people like him foil our operations…"
Patrick's GN-X made a bold move moving in towards the Celestica alone, and fired its Beam Rifle at it. It put up the GN Field as a barrier, and made it past Colasour with ease. Upon close range, it fired out a spherical blast and blew off the top half of his unit.
"Honestly, where are all the valiant men of the EU?" Zero voiced out.
Suddenly, two GN-Xs flew out of their barrier and stopped right in front of the Celestica's huge form.
"You mock our Union and our Armies by ruling our skies and igniting your distorted judgment upon," Bismarck said, "we will remedy that. Klaus, let us avenge the pride of the Luftwaffe and our Union's Armed Forces!"
At that, both GN-Xs were poised to handle the Celestica. They firstly fired out beam blasts at the Gundam, but the same response came in as last time with the GN Field while charging towards them. .
"They couldn't be attacking me blindly knowing that I can easily block their attacks out," Zero pointed out.
As the Celestica got close enough to its adversaries, it lifted away its GN Field for its attack on Klaus' GN-X. Suddenly, Bismarck's GN-X took the chance slashed at the Gundam while it was undefended.
"So that was your intentions, I am amazed," Zero admitted, "however, you are also on close range… for me to attack you directly."
Suddenly, the Celestica combined its two hand-held guns, and grappled on Klaus' GN-X's head. With its brute strength, it ripped off the head itself. Then, it retreated and fired on the GN-X, blasting off one of its arms and legs in the process.
"Those blasts… if I can't see…" Klaus proclaimed, "at least I may listen…"
The GN-X turned to the direction of the blast and formed a GN Field to protect it from further damage. Bismarck's GN-X took this chance and appeared from behind Klaus' unit for his attack. Celestica drew out its own Beam Sabre to block out the attack.
"Klaus, I dismiss you from the battle," Bismarck said, "you're incapable of going on any further on this, but I thank you for your services to me."
"Oberst…" Klaus said in kind, "I bid you luck…"
"This man, he is really strong as I can feel by his strokes," Zero said, "however, I shall fight till every last one of…"
Suddenly, a voice rang in Zero's mind… as if he could hear in on another's thoughts.
"How you have fallen from Heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations."
"Something is about to happen!" Zero exclaimed, "You should flee."
"What manner of trickery is this?" Bismarck demanded, "Have you not have honour in your heart?"
The warning came all too true, as a golden light shone from the distance towards Venus – a shining golden beam of light firing a blast towards them. Bismarck saw it coming thanks to the forewarning and turned back for the defenceless Klaus, guiding his GN-X to safety from the gunfire.
That blast disrupted the attacks for the ICF Division against Kyrios. In fact, the GN-X closest to Kyrios (piloted by Indira) at the time was consumed by the blast and destroyed. Kyrios itself tried to flee, but the beam was too fast. Eventually, it hid behind a large scrap of debris from a destroyed ship and was equally consumed by the light.
On the Exia's side, Senba and Urabe also charged in as well. Exia saw the attack coming in and avoided it at once, leaving both Nipponese pilots caught unawares. Thus, Urabe pushed away his comrade's unit and took the attack for himself.
"Senba-san… Tohdoh-dono, I sacrifice myself… please fulfil our task… for both your and my…" Urabe spoke out his last words, before the blast erased all traces of him.
Even those safely onboard the various ships left among the Fleet were shaken by the sheer power of the Suit.
The source of that attack soon came clear to all. It was a vessel, with a form apparently based off either a horseshoe crab or stingray. It was plated throughout with golden armour and seemed heavily fortified. There was a clear visible trail of GN Tau Particles flowing from its back, so clear that it was likened to the rapids instead of the droplets left by most GN Drive-powered machines. From inside that vessel, was where Zero/Lelouch did hear those voices ringing.
"I will ascend to Heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."
"That voice and that God-complex talk, only one man I know could be responsible…" Zero said, "Alejandro Corner!"
"Ha!" cried the voice from within the Mobile Armour, "how accurate of you!"
It was indeed Alejandro inside there; he was inside a private cockpit with golden armaments surrounding him.
"Celestial Being, for the coming of the New World Order, I shall offer you as the sacrificial lamb," Alejandro proclaimed, "My chariot, the Mobile Armour Alvatore, shall see to this sacrifice I offer to Lord V2!"
The front of the Alvatore opened up by four flaps, exposing blackness inside. Within moments, the same golden light as before shone within and shot out in one burst.
"What?!" thought Zero, "not even my Celestica can fire out another blast of such proportions in such short period of rest."
This was heading straight for the Celestica and it countered it with a Trans-Am powered GN Sextuple Cannon blast on it. However, it was clearly evident that the Alvatore was the victor of this as it overcame the GN Cannon and overwhelmed the Celestica.
However, its backpack managed to eject in time and was separated from the destroyed Suit. It then reformed into the Seraphim Gundam.
"So this is the secondary form…" Bismarck remarked.
However, the beam still continued towards its actual target – the St. Cuthbert itself. In fact, that blast managed to hit the rear end of the said ship and destroyed practically half the ship.
Control Deck, Orbital Ship St. Cuthbert
Inside, its crew could feel the impact of the blast. Among them, only Feldt was missing from the Control Deck.
"Sir, the rear has been destroyed," Christina said, "we must abandon ship now."
"Very well then, but Ian must be the first to leave," Jeremiah insisted, "Should we be captured or killed, you must not. For you carry on the secret to construct GN Drives, something that even Veda has no access to."
"But Feldt… I must find her…" Christina voiced out.
"No…" Jeremiah said, "I will not risk two operators. I will go out there instead. If things get ugly and I am not present yet, abandon ship nonetheless."
Jeremiah quickly leapt from his seat and dashed into the hallways of the failing ship, followed by the others. Due to the blast impact, the hallways were in an emergency status and the lights were dimmed.
Feldt's Chamber, Orbital Ship St. Cuthbert
Inside Feldt's room, Feldt was in confusion over the chaos happening. A window was outside and she saw only the UN Fleet in the distance. However, the dimmed lights could only indicate an emergency status placed over due to damage to the St. Cuthbert itself.
Thus, Feldt got out of her depression state and tried to leave the room. However, the door didn't open and was bolted shut despite trying to move the door with all her might. Suddenly, the narrow edge of a sword pierced through the thin gap of the door.
Feldt retreated a little, and the sword turned like a key. This led to a wider opening and a pair of hands further widened the gap. It was Jeremiah himself behind the door.
"Jeremiah, what is going on?" Feldt asked.
"The enemy has attacked St. Cuthbert," he explained briefly, "we must leave for the escape vessel."
"Okay…" Feldt agreed and both left the room together.
However, on their way to the escape vessel near them, the path was fraught with dangers. As they were walking, the region behind them suddenly collapsed.
"Never mind the dangers, just keep moving forward…" he said.
Suddenly, another explosion occurred near the twosome. Jeremiah quickly tried to cover her up with himself as a body shield against the blast, and took the blunt of it. As Feldt could see, the white suit that Jeremiah wore was ripped apart to expose the insides. Underneath the clothes, there was a cybernetic arm with a retractable blade within. His back was plated with some manner of armour, blending in with his skin tone.
"Jeremiah, you…" Feldt exclaimed.
"Only Sir Lelouch knows of this affliction of mine," Jeremiah said, "I was once of the Imperium Army. One violent border skirmish in the Drakensberg almost killed me; it made me lose half my body. If not for Lady Marianne's support, I would be in a grave by now."
"That's why you are so extremely loyal to them, they saved you," Feldt said.
"Now let us move on quickly," Jeremiah said, "Knowing those blokes, they will never leave us alone no matter what."
Meanwhile, the Gundams were not faring so well out in space. Senba and Tohdoh were quite taken aback by their comrade's death and so did it to Chiba. Senba stared into Gundam Exia with tears flowing down him.
"Urabe, I will carry on your task…" he said, "Gundam, you're all mine!"
His GN-X charged in right in front of the Exia, but it raised its two Beam Sabres and sliced off the right arm from the GN-X. Tohdoh's GN-X also went to intercept the Gundam.
"No, I will be your opponent today!" Tohdoh cried.
At that, Exia crossed its two Beam Sabres and blocked out the attack. It then repelled off the attack and flew off. However, a GN-X fired on it to block its path. However, it was not of the Imperium. It was actually Chiba's and Asahina followed her behind.
"Both of you, where are you going?" cried Sergei.
"We may be on different camps, but we are still the Holy Swords," Chiba said, "to defend the honour and integrity of Nippon is our sworn duty and so is to look out for one another."
"Chiba, you will regret this decision of yours," Asahina tried to convince her so.
"We are all patriots, so I know how you feel," Sergei said, "go then. We are still in the same mission against the common enemy. Mere ideological differences are meaningless now."
"Roger…" Chiba said.
She then charged in towards the Exia for the attack, as Asahina had also joined in. They were joined in by Tohdoh from the other side. Sena also attacked Exia with its Beam Rifle on its only other arm.
"Despite your betrayals, I am only glad that you two have come back to fight alongside us," Tohdoh said.
Away in a distance, the Darlton siblings were also ready to attack the Exia too. However, Cornelia's Suit simply overshot them and blocked them.
"Captain-Major, this is our chance…" Claudio insisted, "We will defeat the Gundam."
"Yes, you will," Cornelia said, "let them wear out the Gundams first. Once the Gundam is done with the others, we will take them in unopposed."