Chapter IX: Pitfalls
Ayers City, Moon,
March 24, UC 0088
The battle of Ayers City has gone for a week, but the end is nowhere in sight. After losing the FAZZ squadron, the Eagle Force came back with a vengeance, virtually moping down every corner of the city. They gained control of the outskirt of Ayers City and slowly, but steadily, inched toward the capitol. The Ayers City Militia has been wiped out, and the Neros are now head-to-head against the Xeku Eins. Death tolls reached 50 percent, and if we continue to fight this way, it won't be long until the New Desides is forced to surrender.
Don't sound like a dynamic leader, do I? Not that I quit before the fight is over, nor the GraveWalkers flunk their duty. It's just the Feds deal with casualties better than the New Desides. Losing comrades at an alarming rate drops the morale of the remaining New Desides, while the Feds are at their usual energy. True, the loss of FAZZ squadron delivered a devastating blow to the EFF fleet, but only for a short moment. I can only hope Brave Cod, Tosh Cray, and Josh Offshore can compensate this shortage.
Armus Gray pushed his thruster to maximum, bringing his Z Plus jump over several buildings, overviewing 3 Xeku Eins that engaged 4 Neros at Chiba district. The Xeku Eins fought their hearts out, but the Neros were simply better combatants. One of the Xeku Eins fought with only one arm and one leg, the other two were stripped to their internal structures. All armor was gone, victimized by the swinging beam sabers of the Neros. On the ground lied the remnants of another Xeku Eins, the fallen leader of the doomed unit. The one-armed Xeku Eins tried a desperate attack, but the Neros dodged the attack easily and launched their deadly counter attack. Two beam sabers gutted the Xeku Eins, and the blue mobile suit exploded, ripped apart by the energy burst that surged from the overheated reactor. The other two raised their beam rifles, but without their leader, they couldn't do much. The Neros closed on them from all direction, virtually cutting off their exits.
Armus armed his beam rifle, set it to automatic fire, then rained down his fire upon the Neros. Two Neros quickly burst into flames; another one lost its right hand when Armus' fire clobbered its right shoulder, straight into the power line. Sparks jetted out like a fountain as the entire right torso breached. The remaining Nero roared its gun, but Armus cringed at the right time, missing the beam streaks by mere inches. He lit his vulcan cannons, which stunned the Nero for a while. Regaining balance, Armus took a hard lock on the Nero's mid torso, then fired his beam rifle. A surge of pure energy speared the Nero, turning the armor and internal structure into mist, and burning the pilot in his cockpit. Three successive explosions followed, and the Nero was engulfed in fire.
"Return to base and have your suit repaired. Move, soldiers!!"
Without thinking, the two Xeku Eins followed Armus' order. Armus switched to his long-range radar and scanned the area. Two platoons of Neros, one on his left, the other on his right, were closing in his position. His Z Plus still had 80 of armor, but his e-cap was depleted to 10 only. He punched his communication button and spoke, "Gamma-Two, Gamma-Three, give me sitrep!"
"We're spreading pretty thin on the north, but so far no Feds had gone through," Jack replied.
"My unit c... till make it, but so... re gonna need some reload," Lynn yelled amidst explosions. "Our ...les are run... ng out of juice!"
Armus realized that if we divided the force of Jack's and Lynn's unit, the Feds would breach Chiba district. He had to deal with the 2 platoons by himself. As a desperate attempt, he sent for Josh Offhsore, "Delta-One, I have 2 platoons closing in Chiba district from the south, and I'm running low on ammo. I need back up... repeat... I need back up!"
"dzzt... negative Gamma-One... Feds are coming from..." a long static from Josh's comlink as a series of explosions thundered out in the distance. "I'm sorry, Gamma-One. You're on your own."
Armus closed his eyes, while calculating the odds. He was up against 8 fresh Neros, spread into 2 clusters, while his rifle could barely wipe out one platoon. He had two choices: to use the element of surprise by taking the battle straight onto the Neros' faces before they reacted, or to hide and prey on them on by one. Considering he was merely a mediocre sniper, Armus opted for the first choice, and switched to WaveRider before taking off to the sky.
Bursting out from the building, Armus quickly zipped toward the platoon on his left. The Neros didn't expect such a reckless move, and they trailed their weapons on the WaveRider. But Armus wasted no time and blasted his weapon before the Neros could get a lock on him. Beam javelins lanced the Neros, eviscerating the front two. Tongues of fire burst out as chain explosions rocked the Neros back and forth, tossing Gundarium splinters to every direction. The other two quickly fired their guns, but the poorly-aimed beams missed Armus by several feet apart. Armus pumped up his gun, sending the last bits of energy into the Neros. Two beams fell on a Nero's center torso, cutting through the thick armor like hot knives through butter, and destroyed the generator. The Nero exploded into a fireball. The other Nero lost its head and its right leg, and quickly tumbled to the ground like a log. The pilot chose to quit fighting and exit his mobile suit.
The other platoon spotted Armus and fired their weapons. Armus banked hard, wincing upon realizing that his rifle was only 2 effective, then prepared to make his last stand. He zigzagged to avoid the attack, then fired once as he heard the locking sound. His beam lanced a Nero squarely on the torso, which quickly erupted into a fireball. Armus fired again, and another Nero blew up. Just then, his console screamed; he had no power left on his e-cap. The two remaining Neros intensified their attack, but Armus crisscrossed his path, switched to Z Plus, and kicked a Nero on its chest. The EFF mobile suit jerked behind and toppled into a building. The building collapsed, burying the Nero.
The last Nero drew its beam saber and swung it hard toward Armus. Armus flinched, but the tip of the saber sliced half of Armus's head. The panoramic monitor blinked, and for a full second, it went completely black. The Nero swung again, but Armus instinctively ducked as hard as he could. When the panoramic monitor went online, Armus saw the Nero was ready for its next attack. Armus launched a one-two punch to the Nero's heart, dazzling it for a moment. He followed up with an elbow to the head that wrecked the camera, rendering the Nero blinded. Then he kicked the Nero's kneecap, and finalized his assault with a stomp to the cockpit. The slow but strong Z Plus raised its leg and sank it into the midst of the Nero's torso. The hatch broke, and the void sucked the oxygen out of the Nero's cockpit. Before the pilot could put on his oxygen tank, the air ran out, and the pilot choked himself to death.
Panting on his seat, Armus quickly called for help. "Central, central, this is Gamma-One... I need an immediate drop off at Chiba district... We're running out of ammo!"
"Sit tight Gamma-One, ammo is on the way."
Armus switched to passive radar and crouched behind a building while scanning the battlefield. Virtually every corner of the city was ravaged by battles. Half of Ayers City was burnt down or flattened by the metal behemoths bashing each other. Suddenly, his passive radar picked up movements on the west. Armus switched to active radar, and he felt his heart stop beating. A Rick Dias, two Jegans, and a GM II march toward Chiba district, followed by a company of Neros.
"All units, this is Gamma-One! The 10th MS Team is moving in to Chiba District! I repeat... 10th MS Team coming from the west! Central, where's my goddamn ammunition?"
"We have a problem, Gamma-One, the Feds... Aargh!! No... AARGGGHH.... dzzzt..."
"Dammit all to hell!" Armus muttered, thinking of any way to stop the 10th MS Team.
"I'll get the sonsofbitches!" Jack stated. "I still have enough shots to fry them!"
"No! Pielhau, hold your position!" Armus started to break into a sprint.
"No can do, Sir! Somebody has to stop the 10th MS Team or we're in deep shit. You can't, and Lynn's too far on the east. It's all on me, el-tee!"
Armus knew Jack's word held the truth. "Watch out for the Rick Dias, Pielhau! It has hidden weapons on its forearms!"
"Gotcha covered!" Jack took 2 wingmen and darted toward the west bank of Chiba District. The Z Plus trio glided through mangled buildings and concrete debris that adorned the once clean streets. Arriving at the district's border, Jack fell into a crouch and raised his gun, waiting for the 10th MS Team to show up. His 2 wingmen sandwiched him from left and right, and aimed their beam rifles at the west, waiting for the 10th MS Team to come out. When the head of the Rick Dias emerged from behind a building, Jack burst his weapon, spitting dozens of beam strands at the custom mobile suit. The Rick Dias recoiled at the right time, but 2 Neros were taken down by Jack's fire. Jack fired again, sweeping the Neros like a madman, bringing down 3 more. Jack's wingmen followed his action, but the Jegans jumped into the sky and fired off. The beams struck the Z Plus in the midst, fatal shots that immediately overloaded the reactors. The 2 GraveWalkers roared in unison, shredded to pieces by the energy burst that bloomed from their own reactors.
"Damn sonsofbitches killed my men!" Jack cursed and aimed his gun at the Jegans. "Now die!!"
Jack's rifle blitzed with fire, but the Rick Dias dashed with its beam saber flashing, and swung at Jack's right arm. Spark burst as Jack's arm flew several feet behind, taking the beam rifle with it. The sudden loss of mass turned Jack's Z Plus swaying, staggering to maintain balance. Jack gritted his teeth and gripped his joystick as hard as he could. When he regained control, the Rick Dias was hoisting its arms over its head, ready to make its final thrust. Jack could only watch in awe as the Rick Dias' arms fell like a guillotine, bringing its beam saber on top of his head. The hot blade split the Z Plus into 2, from head to the crotch, and blue spark emanated from the sliced reactor. The Rick Dias took off to the sky, seconds before Jack's Z Plus blazed into an inferno, taking Jack with it.
"NOOO...!!!"
Armus arrived just as Jack's Z Plus disintegrated in a blinding force. Burning Gundarium rained upon his mobile suit. Armus didn't expect to see everyone in his squadron made it through the battle, but he never thought that he'd lose Jack Pielhau early. Jack had been his warhammer, a brute that would dive into battle and wipe out the enemy without giving much thought or remorse. He was a tough sergeant, a leader and a warrior that were both respected and loved by his subordinate. His death scrapped a piece off Armus' heart, and the rest was set ablaze as he saw the Rick Dias descended with beam rifle in its hand.
"Die!! Die, you bastard!" Armus howled, picked up Jack's rifle and hurled a series of beam streaks toward the Rick Dias. The Rick Dias balked away, missing the streaks by an inch, then drew its beam pistols and returned fire. Armus jumped to evade the fire, then strafed the EFF ranks. Two Neros burst into flames, another one fell down as its legs were blown off. The Jegans and the GM II somersaulted and let loose a barrage of fire. Two blasts ripped the WaveRider structures at the back of the Z Plus, throwing the smoking mobile suit forward. But Armus quickly regained his footing and fired off, pumping the last bits of energy on Jack's rifle. Three more Neros turned into towering infernos, and one shot peppered the waist of one of the Jegans. The 10th MS Team mobile suit spun in the air, then careened to the ground, blasting off several abandoned cars on the street. It struggled to get up, but its locomotion was severely hindered by the loss of pressure from its waist.
Just then, Jack's rifle died.
"Central, central, this is Gamma-One," Armus spoke through broadcast frequency. "10th MS Team is breaching Chiba District. I need immediate support..."
"Negative, Gamma-One," Josh Offshore replied, his voice crisp as a needle stabbing Armus' heart. "We're getting crushed from every direction, and we're losing men fast. We don't have enough power to support you. Give Chiba District to them and regroup at the capitol."
"If they get Chiba District, they'll gain easy access to capitol."
"I know, but it's better to lose Chiba District than to lose you. Give it up, Gamma-One. You'll fight them another day."
Armus exhaled. Jack died for nothing. But he didn't have a choice. His rifle dead, his Z Plus couldn't transform to WaveRider, he was nothing but a sitting duck to the 10th MS Team. So Armus trained his reactor to maximum and blasted his jets, bringing his Z Plus soar high above the city. The 10th MS Team, with the Nero squadron behind them, gave him a burst of fire before letting him go. The Rick Dias quickly orchestrated the Neros to take control of vital points in Chiba District, while the GM II helped the fallen Jegan back to the EFF defense line.
"GraveWalkers, the Feds got Pielhau, and we're not gonna get ammo or reinforcement," Armus informed his squadron. "Retreat and regroup at the capitol before the Feds swarm you. I'm not gonna tell you twice. Now move out!"
Armus could imagine the faces and desperation of his troops. The GraveWalkers had been hogging Chiba District for more than a week, butchering many Neros that tried to take it from them. Giving up Chiba District would drop their fighting spirit to the lowest level, but better had apathetic soldiers than no soldiers at all. As the GraveWalkers soared into the sky, Armus took one last look at Jack's last stand, then sped his Z Plus toward the capitol.
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Next, on "I, Feddie" Chapter X:
"I'm not a religious man, but I'd say only Joshua could break the EFF wall, like he did in Jericho."
"You're not giving up, are you?"
"Like your commander Aeno? How did you end up with him?"
"My unit was assigned to his fleet to reinforce Task Force Alpha, but instead he threw in his lot to you. I thought he was an honorable man with an honorable cause. Turned out I was wrong."
"Do you regret fighting for the New Desides?"
"No. I believe in the cause. I believe that EFF is corrupt, and somebody has to stand up against it. I just don't understand why we're acting like terrorists, using civilians as shield to win the war. It'll wash up our noble deed. Years and years from now people will only see us as a terrorist band, no matter how valiant we fight or how gallant our message is."
In a heartbeat, both sides started trading fire. Blinding forces dashed back and forth, taking out the front ranks of both forces. Three Neros exploded afloat, victimized by the accurate shots of the GraveWalkers. The Neros replied, and two Xeku Eins on Armus' left blasted off, raining sizzling molten Gundarium on his Z Plus. Armus fired once, twice, three times, torching Neros every time his rifle barked. But the Neros were much too many. For every Nero Armus killed, a Xeku Ein or two exploded. And three unfortunate shots from the Neros stabbed one of Armus' wingmen on the solar plexus. The Z Plus keeled over, sparks gushed out of the wound, then roared into a fireball.
Brave Cod quickly retracted his beam saber and took off to the sky, but S Gundam followed him. Their beam sabers danced in an apocalyptic pattern, so fast it looked like ribbons made of light. The movements became faster and faster, until their entire bodies engulfed in light, then finally a huge explosion roared, illuminating one-third of Ayers City. Out of the raging fire came out a shadow of a mobile suit. Its segmented armor platting were ripped apart, its gas intakes were blowing off smoke, but nonetheless, it was the living victor of the duel.
"All units, this is Alpha-One. Disengage and take off immediately. We have permission to dock with Gwaley, Neo Zeon's flagship under Admiral Twanning!"
"Neo Zeon? Twanning? What is going on?"
"You don't have time, Lieutenant! Just do what I say and get your ass out of there before the EFF realize what's going on!"
"GraveWalkers! Switch to WaveRider and punch out! We have a ship to catch!"