Chapter 8

High above the Earth mid the orbiting colonies four streaks of light shot out from four different colonies and headed towards the Earth. Each one adjusted their course so that they would land in Northern Europe.



The Royal Britain Gundam and Shining Gundam stood side by side in the Neo England hanger. Tech crews were working on both Gundams repairing the damaged received during the fight with the Gundam Heads. Kyoji was doing a good job of making himself seen; he didn't entirely trust the Neo England techs that were working on the Shining Gundam. Min had been in contact with the colony to inform them of what had happened. It was certainly disturbing news and it had sent shockwaves through the colony.

Paul sat quietly in his room with is head in his hands. He couldn't understand anything. Who was that girl on the white plain? What was her connection with the Ultimate Gundam? Why did she call out to him? These question kept going around and around in his mind. He screamed lashing out knocking the coffee table over.

'Why is this shit happening to me?' he asked himself, 'Elena? What's wrong with me?'

Suddenly there was a knocking at the door. 'Who is it?' he demanded

'Paul? It's me Lisa. Can I come in?' No reply came so Lisa opened the door slowly. 'Are you ok? They told me you haven't had anything to eat.'

'I'm not hungry.' He replied bluntly.

'You should eat something, to keep your strength up.' She said, 'How about if I go get something from the Chippy?'

'I said I'm not hungry!' he yelled. 'Leave me alone!'

'I just…' she started.

'Get out now!' he bellowed as he waved a fist around threateningly.

Sensing possible danger she left. When the door closed behind her she leaned heavily on the wall. Paul had gotten mad at her before, but never like this. There was defiantly something wrong and it defiantly has something to do with the Devil Gundam. She slowly slid down the wall until she rested on the ground and brought up her arms and rapped them around her legs.

'Why won't you let me help you Paul?' she said quietly to herself as a tear rolled down her check.



A few miles out from the base a pair of Neo England Casshing Mk3 mobile suits were performing a patrol of the local woodland. The Casshing Mk3 was a surprisingly powerful mobile suit not only was it armed with a beam cannon but it also carried a beam sabre, which were something of a rarity on non Gundam mobile weapons. Added to that thick Jeganium armour made the Casshing Mk3 a formidable opponent.

In the trees around the pair of mobile suits a series of mono-eyes glowed bright red. The Casshings however didn't notice and went on normally. Suddenly four dull brown mobile suits burst out from among the trees. They instantly began firing their machineguns. After recovering the Casshings fought back their heavy beam cannons blasting through the brown mobile suits armour with ease. However more and more of them were appearing out of nowhere. Before long there were two final explosions before the forest went silent again.



The stark white corridors of the Neo England base carried the light quick footsteps of Lisa as she made her way to the hanger area. She'd decided she needed to work on the Royal Britain Gundam, mainly just to take her mind of Paul. Ever since the Gundam had came in earlier in the day the tech crews had been working feverishly on it. They were essentially 'super charging' it increasing its abilities in every way.

When she entered the hanger she noticed that Kyoji, Min and Hoi was all gathered around the Shining Gundam's feet apparently looking over blue prints. Reaching the Royal Britain Gundam Lisa mounted the lift that took her up to the cockpit.

'Hey Chief, is she ready yet?' she asked the head technician.

'Just about,' he said, 'Good job too, considering what brewing outside.'

'Eh? What do you mean?' asked Lisa

'You haven't heard? Well you'd better go talk to the Colonel.' He said.

With that Lisa left to go to the bases command centre. The command centre was alive with activity the noise of personal calling out reports, the hum of computers and the barked orders of slightly stressed officers all added to the mix. Upon entering Lisa went straight to Colonel Harrison's office.

Lisa was surprised to see the Colonel putting on his pilots suit. She knew he'd been a pilot during the original Devil Gundam crisis, but this must be something really big to have the base commander getting ready for combat.

'Ah Ms Gill.' He said, 'I was just going to have someone contact you. We lost contact with one of our patrols a short while ago and now we've detected a large force of mobile suits heading this way.'

'Whom do they belong too?' she asked.

'We don't entirely know, but from the transmission we received from the patrol we think it's the Death Army.' He paused to let that last thing sink in. 'We're prepping the entire garrison for combat and trying to evacuate the city. But it will take some time so we have to hold them here. Have Captain Snowdon waiting with his Gundam. Our whole defence centres around those two Gundams.'

'I don't know if Paul will fight,' she said cautiously, 'He's in a bad way.'

'Damn, this is no time to have him wimp out on us,' he said scornfully, 'I'll speak with him. I think I have a sure-fire way to get him to fight.'



Colonel Harrison hammered on Pauls door. He kept hammering until it opened and a slightly annoyed Paul appeared, but before Paul could say anything Harrison grabbed him and pulled out into the corridor.

'Your coming with me.' Said Harrison, 'The base is about to come under attack.'

'I can't fight,' said Paul dejectedly, 'I'm hopeless. You'd be better off without me.'

'That's crap and you know it.' Said Harrison angrily. 'I'm going to show you something, something very important to both of us.'

Slightly bemused Paul followed the elder man until they came to a secured elevator. The base commander took out a set of keys and unlocked the lift door. Ushering him in Paul entered. They then started a rather lengthy trip downwards.

'Your not the first Gundam Fighter to use this base as their headquarters you know,' said Harrison almost casually.

Oh? Who else then?' asked Paul

'Until FC59 Gentle Chapman worked out of here. But then he moved to London.' Harrison said. 'He was a hero of mine you know, still is sort of. He was the reason I joined the military.'

'He is the reason I am what I am,' said Paul darkly.

Soon the lift ride came to a stop and the pair stepped out into a pitch black modestly sized hanger. Harrison went over to a control panel and activated the lights. What presented itself before Paul was the Britain Gundam.

'Britain Gundam?' said Paul amazed. 'I thought it was in the Imperial War Museum back on the colony?'

'That's just a copy,' said Harrison. 'This is the real thing. He won three championships with this one Gundam. No matter the odds, the situation he always fought on fair and honourably.'

Paul walked up to the Gundam and gently put a hand on its armour. He'd seen it so many times before in the Imperial War Museum, he'd dreamed of becoming a pilot and being able to pilot a machine like this. His own Royal Britain Gundam was based off the original Britain Gundam.

'Why did you come to the Earth Paul?' asked Harrison

'I…I came…to restore our honour,' he said

'Tell me, Will you be able to restore our honour by giving up?'

'No.'

'Did he ever give up?'

'No.'

'Will you?'

'NO!'



Back on the surface the garrison's twenty Casshing Mk3 mobile suits were waiting for the battle to begin. Off in the distance they could all see the Death Army approaching. It seemed like a sea of mobile suits was approaching the numbers appeared limitless. At the centre of the defence the Shining Gundam stood ready. In his cockpit Kyoji was preparing himself mentally for this challenge. He could still remember the stories his father and uncles told him about the Death Army, it was relentless and never tired it would just keep coming and coming.

And then it began. The sky lit up and machine gun fire and beam cannon blasts filled every inch of it. In the centre of it the Shining Gundam with both beam swords drawn cut a bloody path. Hacking and slashing its way through an endless stream of opponents.



Paul stood on the hand of the Royal Britain Gundam as it lifted him up to his cockpit. Once inside the mobile trance system activated his trace suit felt light as a feather. Too his left Colonel Harrison mounted his Casshing Mk2 Custom, old but still powerful.

'Hey Paul, I've got one last thing for you.' He said. Then his Casshing held up a long barrelled beam rifle. 'He brought us honour with it. Now you do the same.'

Paul nodded and then took Gentle Chapmans long beam rifle.



Kyoji had found himself in something of a predicament. He'd charged off so quickly into the enemy ranks that he was now surrounded. The red-eyed Death Army was moving in quickly on him.

'Damn,' he muttered, 'I might have over done it.'

Suddenly a strange extending claw smashed through one of the Death Army mobile suits as a white and green Gundam landed next to the Shining Gundam.

'Hey! Little Kyoji you should learn to play with nicer toys. Big Bro won't be pleased if you get hurt.' Said Sai Sici

'Uncle Sai Sici!' said Kyoji overjoyed. 'How did you get here?'

'When the Shuffle Delegation is called the Club Ace can't ignore the calling,' said Sai Sici. That was when Kyoji noticed the crest glowing on the hand of his uncle's Gundam.



Chapman's beam rifle spat fire and with each shot another enemy fell. Paul let his Gundam drop back slightly so that he could fire his shoulder cannons. The defence was holding up surprisingly well but their enemy was relentless and it was only a matter of time. When a wave of Death Army mobile suits got too close the defenders would rush forward with beam sabres ready and hack down the aggressors.

Back in the bases command centre Lisa, Hoi and Min looked on. There was nothing any of them could do except watch. Suddenly one of the monitors began to flash brightly and set off a warning alarm. Lisa rushed over to check what it was.

'Oh no,' she said before activating the communication link to Paul, Kyoji and Colonel Harrison. 'We're got trouble. We're picking up a power source even stronger then that of a Gundam towards the rear of the enemy formation.'

'What the?' said Paul turning in that direction. To his horror he saw the creature that had been stalking his dreams for months. The Ultimate Gundam.