-Archangel, July 23, C.E. 71, 0650.
Kira secured the neck fastener of his flight suit and pulled on his boots. He sat in the dressing room for the pilots aboard the Archangel. The ship was only about fifty miles away from the mass driver located on the Rio de la Plata Strait, and they would be getting into some pretty heavy fighting fairly soon. Captain Ramius had ordered battle stations about five minutes ago and Kira had proceeded to put his flight suit on and stand by to board his mobile suit. Athrun sat on one of the benchs in the dressing room, lacing up his boots. Kira wore his traditional blue and white flight suit while Athrun's was red and white. Kira opened up his locker and pulled out his helmet, which matched his flight suit in color and fit over his head very comfortably.
The door to the dressing room opened and Frank walked in, dressed in a green and white flight suit, his helmet grasped in his gloved right hand. "You boys ready?"
"You bet Commander," Kira responded. "Where's Mwu?"
"He's already down in the hangar," Frank said, putting his helmet down on the bench and standing in front of the mirror, making sure his flight suit was secured. "With his busted ankle he can't move very fast so he got a head start on the three of us. He's probably sitting in the Skygrasper right now, waiting."
"What power packs are you guys taking out?" Kira asked, slipping on his helmet and raising the visor.
"I'm using the Aile and I think Mwu's got the Launcher. We're gonna need all the heavy firepower we can get to even get close to the damn thing." Frank fastened his neck fastener and added. "John explained to you guys our strategy right?"
"Yes, Commander," Athrun responded, pulling on his gloves. "You two guys launch first and hit 'em quick and hard. When they come to, Kira and I'll keep them away from the Archangel while it's mounted onto the driver."
"How much time to you think Lieutenant Barrington and his guys'll need Commander?" Kira asked.
Frank muscled his helmet over his head and raised the visor. "With Stevy and Niada leading them I'd say about ten, fifteen minutes, though I'm no explosives expert. Just make sure you guys are close when they give the signal that everything's ready."
"What about you guys?" Athrun asked.
"We'll help in anyway we can, and keep you guys covered. We'll have to land on the ship so you'll have to give us some support down there O.K.?"
"Got it Commander," Kira responded, proudly. "You gonna be able to pilot that Skygrasper with your hand the way it is?"
Frank chuckled. "Trust me kid, I've flown in worse shape than this."
"How worse can your condition get?" Athrun asked, slipping on his helmet.
"Watch it Zala, or that helmet's gonna be permanently strapped to your head, and I don't mean for piloting mobile suits."
"I'm just kidding Commander," Athrun chuckled.
The intercom blared, "All pilots to your stations! All pilots to your stations!"
"That's us!" Frank shouted. He closed his visor and ordered, "Let's go boys!" The three pilots sprinted down the corridors towards the hangar.
-Rio de la Plata Strait, Argentina, 0800.
Low, swirling clouds hovered overhead of the mass driver, covering the top of the driver's upswing in gray mist. Because it was an older model driver, it had been built with weaker steel than the newer ones at Kaoshiung and Panama had. The front of the driver sat about a hundred and fifty feet above the ground and the track was about three hundred feet wide to account for larger ships. The track extended for about another five hundred feet, ranging out over the crystal waters for the last hundred before sloping upwards towards the sky, ending pointed straight into the air.
The driver looked like a huge, black monster springing out of the jungles behind it. At least that's how Orga saw it. He sat in the cockpit of the Calamity GUNDAM, looking through a pair of binoculars at the ocean beyond. So far, there had been no sign of the Archangel or any other ship for that matter in the three days he had been there. On the land, Orga could see about seven Strike Daggers patrolling the coast with their weapons drawn. That was less than half of the total force of the mobile suits that was assembled at the driver, since the other ones were either powered down or patrolling further down the coast. Shani and Clotho were on the other side of the driver scouting the giant rock formations that dominated the Strait. It would make the perfect hiding place for a ship the Archangel's size and they weren't taking any chances. Besides the mobile suits, tanks, jeeps, and small water craft were assembled around the driver's premises, about half of Santiago's total forces in total.
I know you bastards are out there... Orga thought to himself, moving his binoculars from side to side in order to see the entire landscape. Just where the hell are you...?
"Calamity from ground units. Come in Calamity."
Orga activated his radio and answered, "Calamity here. What's going on?"
"Looks as if we got fog rolling in from the north, can you see it?" Orga brought his binoculars back up to his eyes and saw that a large band of what appeared to be fog was approaching from the north.
"Copy ground, I see it. Moving pretty fast so you guys better get ready for it..." Orga trailed off when he realized something strange was happening to the fog bank. Instead of expanding outward as many of the visibility depriving smogs did, this one was remaining stationary as it moved. It was then that it hit Orga straight in the head. "Ground! Get your units ready! That's not fog, it's-."
A bright streak of yellow light lanced out from the fog bank straight at the forces gathered around the driver. One Strike Dagger and several ground units were unable to move in time and the beam shattered them all to pieces, their tattered remains falling onto the ground and into the water. "D'you see that?!" Orga heard Clotho yell out.
"Damn right I did!" Orga shouted back. "Clotho, Shani, be on the look out for more of their forces. The ship's hiding in a smokescreen, so they'll probably launch mobile units in a matter of seconds." No sooner had the words left Orga's mouth than bolts of red and green light shot out from the smoke, followed by two airplanes flying at high speed. As they zoomed overhead, Orga was able to identify them as Skygraspers, with their blue and white paint jobs, though these had other colors on them, green and red to be exact.
Orga saw the Raider running towards him. Clotho jumped into the air and transformed his mobile suit from its mobile suit form into its flight mode, which made it look like a giant bird. The Raider stopped in front of the Calamity and Clotho yelled, "Jump on my back Orga!"
Orga proceeded to do so, securing his mobile suit's legs onto the Raider's back. The Archangel was now plainly in sight, exiting the fog bank with her main guns firing. "Shani, get those two airplanes! Have the ground units assist you. Clotho, you and I'll go after the ship!"
"Roger that," Shani transmitted, bouncing off of the landscape, firing his Armfeuer machine guns, mounted on the Forbidden's forearms.
"Let's go Clotho!" Orga shouted and the two mobile suits raced toward the now rapidly approaching Archangel.
On board the ship, the bridge was a ruckus of activity. "Looks like we got a couple of 'em," Jay commented, reconfiguring his status boards to keep up with the changing firing conditions.
"I have mobile suits approaching ma'am," Tonomura reported.
"Have Ensign Yamato and Ensign Zala launch immediately," Murrue ordered.
"Yes, ma'am," Miriallia responded. "Kira? Are you all ready?"
"Roger that," Kira responded from the Freedom's cockpit. The APU system attached itself to the back of the Freedom, maneuvering it towards the awaiting catapult. Mwu and Frank had launched moments before in the Skygraspers in an effort to stun the Earth Alliance forces. Now it was Kira's turn. The hatch swung open revealing the cloud-filled morning sky. Kira could make out the black form of the driver in the distance, meshing with the green backdrop of the landscape.
"APU activated," Kira heard Miriallia say. "Connected to catapult." The Freedom attached itself to the catapult and Kira activated the mobile suit's phase shift armor. The mobile suit's exterior changed its color to signify the armor's activation. Kira heard the N-Jammer Canceler system hum to life. Instead of having battery packs like the Freedom's predecessor mobile suits had, the N-Jammer Canceler insured that power would be available at all times during flight. "System all green. You may proceed Freedom."
"Athrun you all set?"
"I'll be right behind you Kira!" Athrun called back from the Justice, waiting behind Kira.
Kira took a deep breath and prepped himself. "Kira Yamato! Heading out!" The flight board went all green and the catapult sent Kira soaring out of the hangar and into the sky, the Freedom's fins spreading out so Kira could gain altitude once in the open air. As the Freedom soared into the air, the Justice was mounted onto the catapult. Athrun activated the phase shift armor which turned the mobile suit scarlet red, and he felt the APU system release the Justice's backpack from its grasp.
"System all green. Go ahead Athrun."
"Athrun Zala, launching!" The Justice roared out of the hangar in the wake of the Freedom, its backpack extending itself to allow Athrun to maneuver through the atmosphere and stabilize his mobile suit's form.
Calamity and Raider approached the Archangel from port. Orga fired his chest cannon at point blank range, attempting to do some damage to the ship. Suddenly, his screen lit up with two blips. He saw two mobile suits approaching directly in front of him. "Clotho go to starboard!" The Raider quickly executed a downward starboard turn that brought it away from the approaching Freedom and Justice.
"Who the hell are these guys?" Kira wondered out loud.
"Kira! Go for the thing the mobile suit's riding on! That's the only way they'll be able to fly!" Athrun pulled out one of his beam sabers from the Justice's hip socket roared away from the battle towards the mass driver.
Kira likewise withdrew one of his two beam sabers and charged at the two mobile suits, who now were turning to attack him head on. The Calamity fired its chest cannon again while the Raider shot with its Ahura Mazda energy cannons, located on its claws. Kira was able to dodge all the shots and swung a mighty blow with his beam saber, though the Calamity jumped up into the air before the blow could connect. With amazing accuracy, the Raider positioned itself under the Calamity and caught it without losing any speed whatsoever. Orga pulled one of his Schlag long-range cannons from his backpack and brought it up to fire. Energy beams raced towards Kira, who managed to avoid some and deflect others with his shield. Kira brought his targeting system online and fired both of his Balaena plasma cannons in his wings, sending rays of green light at the two mobile suits who evaded expertly. The Calamity continued to fire its Schlag at the Freedom which was using its quick maneuverability to dodge every shot that came at him.
Athrun chopped and sliced with his beam sabers, taking out three Strike Daggers on the ground while dodging fire from other ground units and Strike Daggers. He fired the Justice's CIWS on the side of its head and shredded two artillery trucks as they tried to return fire. Athrun checked to make sure that the Archangel was alright but saw that it was under fire from Strike Daggers on the other side of the driver. Athrun hit his thrusters and sped towards the Daggers, but pulled back sharply when a mobile suit with a huge green backpack jumped in front of him, firing guns mounted on its forearms. Athrun ducked and dodged the fire, coming around the Forbidden as it turned its head, firing its CIWS at the Justice. Athrun steadied the Justice and charged, slicing with his beam sabers but coming up empty as the Forbidden soared above him and pelted the Justice with CIWS fire. The phase shift armor held up and Athrun charged again, this time heaving on of his beam boomerangs at the green mobile suit. The Forbidden ducked under the boomerang but lost one of its forearm guns when the boomerang flew back towards Athrun, cutting the weapon in half. Athrun saw the Forbidden's backpack switch positions and come over the top of the mobile suit's head. Two guns located on the front of the backpack blazed to life, firing wildly at the Justice as Athrun executed a series of maneuvers to evade the shots.
Archangel glided over the waters toward the driver which sat only about four kilometers away. The Freedom was locked in combat with two mobile suits off to the ship's port side and other ground units shot at the ship from starboard. "Valient! Wombat's, fire!" Natarle shouted.
The starboard energy cannon blazed yellow rays of energy at the shoreline, raking the forces with deadly accuracy. Missiles raced out of the aft tubes and caught Strike Daggers square in the middle as they tried to evade. The Calamity fired its chest cannon once again and caught the Archangel on the port side. The great ship shook from the blast. "Number three Igelstellung was hit!" Chandra reported. "Sealing off bulkheads seventeen through twenty-one!"
"Aim Helldarts!" Natarle ordered. "Fire!"
"How much farther until we can mount the Archangel?" Murrue asked.
No response came from Joseph who was steering the ship, so Neumann answered, "We'll have to turn the ship around and come in from stern. Those mobile suits'll tear the ship to pieces if we come in straight on."
"Bear port fifteen degrees!" Murrue shouted. "Aim Gottfrieds! Advise the Freedom to get out of the way!"
"Kira, the Archangel's firing its main cannons! Get out of the way!"
Kira groaned as he pulled the Freedom up into the sky and away from the Calamity and Raider. Twin beams of light streaked towards the two mobile suits who evaded with impressive skill and headed back toward the shore. Orga jumped off of Clotho's back and landed on the beach, firing his Schlag into the sky at the Archangel's underside, connecting on at least two shots.
"Blast!" Natarle groaned as the Archangel shook from the impacts. "Where's Commander la Flaga and Commander Barkhesh?!"
"They're on their way back now," Sai answered. "They'll make a return run on the ground forces and get back to the ship."
"Tell them to target the mobile suit that just landed on the shore!"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Begin maneuvers to mount the Archangel onto the driver Mr. Crew!" Murrue shouted, but Joseph still didn't respond. "Can you at least say one word me?" Murrue asked sternly.
"He can't hear you Captain," Neumann replied. "He's got an earpiece on so Colonel Namora can guide us down from where he is."
Joseph finally said something. "Lieutenant Badgiruel, start bringing the starboard weapons to bear. I'm gonna swing her around to port and back her in."
"Aim the Wombats and have them target the units nearest to the driver!" Natarle ordered.
Athrun dodged another shot from the Forbidden and chopped with his beam saber, just barely missing its right leg. "Damn it," Athrun groaned, dodging more fire from the green mobile suit. Then two beams swept at the Forbidden from behind and Athrun saw the two Skygraspers making their return runs.
"Athrun, get back and support the Archangel while she gets ready," Mwu ordered, firing the Agni cannon again. "We'll deal with this guy!"
"Roger that!" Athrun transmitted back, turning the Justice about and heading back towards the ship which had now swung around to its port side. Wombats roared from the aft missile tubes and struck more ground units, disintegrating them. Athrun saw two Igelstellungs on the starboard side go up in flames from Strike Dagger fire. Athrun charged in with both of his beam sabers drawn and cut one of the smaller mobile suits in half before it even had a chance to stop him. Even as the mobile suit exploded, Athrun sliced at another Dagger, first decapitating it and then slicing into the cockpit, kicking it over the ocean before it exploded in a ball of flame.
The Archangel completed its turn as Kira brought the Freedom in close to the Raider, firing his CIWS at the bird shaped mobile suit. Clotho screamed as he fired back with his machine guns in his nose and shoulders.
Joseph began to adjust the ship's velocity to glide her onto the driver. Orga tried to fire his Schlag at the ship which was now a sitting duck, but Frank managed to fire the beam rifle mounted on his Skygrasper and hit the Calamity square in the shoulder, causing the shot to miss. Orga howled angrily and fired his chest cannon at Frank, who barrel rolled to starboard to evade the shots.
Mwu fired the Agni at Shani, but had to shoot to port quickly to avoid being torn apart by CIWS fire. His ankle screamed in pain at the sudden maneuver, but Mwu ignored it as best he could, instead firing the Agni at two Strike Daggers who were trying to stop the Archangel. One of the mobile suits exploded while the other transferred its fire towards Mwu's Skygrasper. Mwu managed to avoid the shots by barrel rolling several times before heading out over the water.
The driver was now beneath the Archangel as Joseph carefully maneuvered the great ship towards the end of the track where it would be mounted onto it. Inside his earpiece, Joseph could hear Colonel Namora spotting him from the top deck of the ship. "Steady...Steady...Keep it coming, keep it coming...alright, now slow it down..." Joseph cut the ship's thrust and began to take her down. "Just set her down gently now..." Joseph felt the ship drop in the atmosphere and set itself firmly onto the track. "Alright you're down!"
"We're set," Joseph reported.
"Give Lieutenant Barrington the order to go!" Murrue commanded. "Message the pilots that we're on the driver."
"Laser designator," Natarle commanded. "Can you two get clear shots from here?"
"Yes, ma'am," Jay answered.
"Aim Wombats and have them target the mobile suits on the ground. Fire the Gottfrieds at the units in the air!"
The main guns fired twin laces of green light at enemy aircraft that were firing on the Archangel, totally destroying a group of three. Wombats raced out of the aft tubes and struck targets on the ground, detonating in flashes of orange and yellow. The weapons couldn't get them all however, and several ground units got clear shots on the Archangel. Strike Daggers fired their rifles at the ship, striking it repeatedly on both sides. The ship shook violently from multiple hits.
"Igelstellung's four and five were hit!" Chandra shouted.
"Damage sustained to aft missile tubes nineteen through twenty-two!" Tonomura added.
"Mobile suits are approaching from starboard!" Sai reported.
"The working missile tubes can't get clear shots on them!" Pal shouted.
"Damn. Can't use our own weapons..." Natarle cursed. "What are the mobile suits and the Skygraspers doing?!"
"They're too busy fighting the big mobile suits!" Sai answered.
"Kira! Kira!" Miriallia shouted.
Kira heard her cries from the cockpit of the Freedom and turned on his radio. "The enemy's closing in! Get back here!" Kira looked out his viewport and saw multiple flare-ups on the Archangel from hits sustained on her port side. If anymore damage was done, the ship may not be able to break atmosphere. NO! Kira thought angrily. I won't let you! Then a seed exploded before his eyes.
"I gotcha now!" Clotho shouted, zooming in with his guns blazing. Kira grimaced and jumped up just as Clotho came at him. Reversing his thrust, Kira pounced on top of the Raider, smashing it down with the Freedom's legs. Kira jumped off of Clotho's back and sliced with his beam sabers, amputating both of the Raider's claws and its head, sending it spiraling down towards the ocean with one last kick. "No!" Clotho cried, just before the Raider crashed into the water.
Kira pushed the Freedom to its limits as he raced to stop the ground units from destroying the Archangel. His targeting board dotted with red squares around each one of his targets. "This ends now!" Kira shouted, spreading the Freedom's fins and firing all of his gun emplacements. Laser and energy beams streaked towards their targets. Arms and heads popped loose from Strike Daggers that took direct hits and crumpled to the ground, effectively disabled. Soldiers abandoned their artillery trucks as the gun emplacements caught fire and exploded in smoking heaps.
Athrun cut down another Strike Dagger with his beam saber and saw the Freedom obliterate everything that was within striking range of the driver. Suddenly, Athrun's screen lit up with enemy blips. He saw four aircraft racing towards Kira, whose back was turned to them. Athrun shouted as a seed exploded before his eyes. Athrun sprung into the air, releasing a beam boomerang at the approaching aircraft, slicing one in two on the swing back. Athrun cried as he fired his CIWS at point blank range, destroying all three of the remaining aircraft. Athrun brought the Justice's forearm up just in time to catch energy beams before they struck his cockpit. "Damn..." Athrun cursed, bringing his beam sabers into the Justice's hands again. The Strike Dagger that had fired the shots at him was still firing its rifle, sending more rays of destructive power at the Justice. Then, Athrun saw something streak across his front view screen and the next thing he saw was the Strike Dagger falling to the ground, its legs completely severed.
"Got your back," Kira reassured Athrun, bringing the Freedom right next to the Justice, its two beam sabers grasped in the mobile suit's hands.
"There's still more of 'em left. We've got to keep them away from the Archangel," Athrun shouted.
"Right," Kira answered. "Take the left side, I've got the right. Watch those other two mobile suits though," With that, the two mobile suits separated, seeking out new targets.
Murrue breathed a sigh of relief when the ground units exploded in balls of fire before they did any serious damage to the Archangel. "Is Lieutenant Barrington's team out?"
"They just left out of the starboard hatch ma'am," Neumann answered.
Stevy, Niada, Coop, and about six other men raced out onto the driver, their shoes pinging against the steel ground. "Niada, take your guys and get the supports. Coop, you and the rest come with me. We've got the upswing." The groups separated and Niada raced towards the rear of the Archangel. A powerful demolition charge was grasped in his hand, and with the help of some strategically placed magnets, secured the small device to the track just behind the Archangel and pressed the small buttons on the device's top. The numbers, 0-1-0 appeared and Niada knew he'd gotten it right. We've got ten seconds to get out of here before this entire thing goes up.
"Damn it..." Mwu groaned, flying the Skygrasper in a tight port loop, evading fire from the Forbidden which had catapulted into the air to get a better shot at him. Shani laughed menacingly as he fired the Forbidden's forearm guns at the blue and white airplane. "Archangel, I could use some help right about now..." No sooner had the words left Mwu's mouth when he had to jerk the Skygrasper to the right to avoid a barrage of missiles, which sailed on towards the Forbidden, detonating in front of the green mobile suit. Shani cursed as he fired his CIWS at the rest of the missiles, destroying them before they could even get close. "Thanks for the assist," Mwu transmitted to the Archangel.
"Just watching your back, Commander," Miriallia sent back.
Stevy, Coop, and Donnie raced along the driver's track, planting demolition charges every fifty feet or so. After the charges were planted, Mike followed them along, wiring primer cord into the charges to make their destructive power increase. They reached the upswing of the driver, but couldn't go very far because the incline was so steep. "Toss me a dynamite stick, Donnie!" Stevy ordered. Donnie tossed a long red object at Stevy, which he caught with his right hand. "You guys secure yourselves with that rope, in case we get a little turbulence up here!" His three comrades did so and Stevy followed suit, all the while setting the timer on the dynamite stick for 10 seconds, the amount he'd decided on. Securing himself onto the driver, Stevy wired the stick with primer cord and wrapped it around one of the steel girders holding the upswing. He activated the timer and finished wrapping up the rest of the primer cord. Coop and Donnie placed the last two demolition charges onto the track about an eighth of the way up the incline.
"How much longer will it take Lieutenant Barrington?" Murrue asked through Stevy's radio.
Stevy reached into his belt and brought the small device to his face. "You can't rush these things Captain. Unless I get them set perfectly, we'll be turned into a blast furnace before we even get off this thing." Stevy bit off a piece of primer cord with his teeth and wrapped it around a second dynamite stick. "We're almost done though, so I'd give it about another ten to fifteen minutes."
Orga fired his chest cannon at the blue and white Skygrasper with the red gun and shouted angrily, "Why...will you...not die?!"
Frank looped the Skygrasper over the Archangel and came back for another run at the blue mobile suit. "Persistent aren't we..." Frank muttered, firing the Aile's rifle, striking the mobile suit in the chest, effectively disabling its chest cannon, which was enveloped in smoke after the impact.
"You bastard...!" Orga cried. He pulled his shield up to the Calamity's head-length and powered up the ram cannon on the end of the shield. The plane pulled out of its loop around him just as Orga fired the cannon. The shots caught the Aile rifle, which was set aflame.
"Crap..." Frank said quickly, ejecting the Aile parts just before they exploded. "Gotta get out of this guy's sights!"
Orga fired the ram cannon again, but Frank was able to avoid the impact this time by rolling hard to starboard out of the shot's range. However, because of his position at the time the shot was fired, by rolling out of the way of the shot, Frank had put the driver in the direct line of Orga's fire.
The shot connected with the steel just below where Stevy and his group were standing. The driver shook violently from the impact and Stevy, who was standing upright at the time of the impact, stumbled over the side of the driver, falling down towards the ocean.
"Stevy!" Coop shouted, diving for the rope that was holding Stevy onto the driver. The force of the pull was so strong that it dragged Coop across the driver toward the edge himself before Donnie and Mike grabbed onto his form, causing the motion to stop. The sudden stop jolted Stevy to a rough stop about halfway down the driver's height. He groaned heavily as he came to a halt, just barely managing to grab hold of the dynamite stick he was holding before it fell. "Are you alright Stevy?" Coop shouted from above him.
Stevy looked up and tried to smile. "Just had to drop in, didn't I?" he remarked sarcastically.
"We'll pull you up! Just hang on!"
"Wait a minute!" Stevy shouted back. Reaching into his belt, he pulled out the rest of the primer cord he had on him. Tying it around the dynamite stick, Stevy set the timer on the dynamite to ten seconds. Keeping a firm grip on the rope, Stevy kicked off one of the steel girders and swung over to another one, grasping a hold of it, despite the rope's tension trying to pull him back to his original place. Stevy placed the stick on the girder, wrapping the primer cord around it, setting it to detonate with the others. He looked up towards the sky and smiled. The girder he was on was in the middle of the girders that supported the upswing in its entirety, and the dynamite was powerful enough to take not only it out, but also many of the ones around it. "All right! Pull me up you guys!"
"Aaaaghh!" Kira shouted, decapitating a Strike Dagger. More ground units tried to fire upon him, but their munitions did little damage against the Freedom's phase shift armor. Kira fired the CIWS on the mobile suit's head and took care of them with ease. He messaged the Archangel. "Is that all of the mobile suits?"
"All of them are down except for the two big ones. Commander la Flaga and Commander Barkhesh have their hands full with them," Miriallia answered.
"Athrun, I'll take care of it," Kira transmitted, "You guard the ship in case anybody else comes after it."
"I copy," Athrun sent back.
Kira swung the Freedom back towards the shore, firing his CIWS at the Calamity which was firing its Schlag once again. "Oh no, you don't," Orga shouted. Turning his mobile suit to face the incoming Freedom, he fired the Schlag and ripped apart one of Kira's fins.
Kira grimaced angrily. He pulled out one of his beam sabers and charged at the Calamity, dodging fire from its Schlag along the way. "I've got you now!" Kira sliced with his beam saber, cutting the gun in half. He jumped up into the air just as Orga brought his ram cannon to bear and began firing at the airborne Freedom.
"You piece of-!" Orga's cry was interrupted when fierce pain erupted in his head and chest. His hands increased their grip on the controls and his teeth ground together. Not now...why now...?!
Coop, Donnie, and Mike pulled Stevy back onto the driver and raced back towards the Archangel. "Tell Captain Ramius, we're all set down here. We're on our way back."
"Lieutenant Barrington's on his way back, ma'am," Neumann reported. "Mr. Murdoch says the ship's almost ready to go."
"Incoming missiles from ten o'clock!" Sai shouted.
"Activate Igelstellungs!" Natarle ordered. "Ensign Haas, prep the Lohengrin's for fire."
"Why?" Jay asked, straining to keep his targeting bracket on center.
"If we fire the Lohengrin's after we launch, it'll propel us into the atmosphere quicker and we'll stand a better chance of making it off the planet."
"Yes, ma'am," Jay answered.
"Crewman Haw, message Commander la Flaga and Commander Barkhesh to return at once," Murrue ordered, holding onto the arm rests of her chair as the ship shook again.
"Skygrasper one and Skygrasper two. Return to the ship at once!"
"Head on back Frank, I'll deal with this guy," Mwu said, trying to evade fire from the Forbidden as it jumped into the air to try and shoot him down again.
"Not on your life buddy," Frank answered.
"Frank, that's an order!" Mwu transmitted back, rolling the Skygrasper hard to port. "Your plane's already damaged and we've got enough firepower out here to handle what's left. Just be careful when you set down."
"Fine..." Frank sent back, rolling his plane away from the fight and back towards the Archangel.
"Kira," Mwu transmitted.
"Yes, Commander?"
"You and Athrun get back towards the ship and protect her until she's ready to launch. I'll join you in a minute." Mwu turned the Skygrasper to starboard, ignoring the pain in his ankle, and flew straight at the Forbidden, dodging laser fire as he went. Shani grimaced as he tried to shoot down the elusive plane. Mwu fired the Agni cannon just as Shani fired his forearm gun, both shots hitting home. While Mwu ejected the damaged Launcher parts and headed away from the fight, Shani lost the Forbidden's remaining forearm gun and fell on his back on the ground. "Gotcha!" Mwu shouted, turning back towards the safety of the Archangel.
"Deck crew!" Murrue shouted into her phone. "Prepare for landing of the Skygraspers. Take shelter immediately!"
Frank made the hard turn to port just as the Archangel's starboard hatch opened. His left wing was damaged from the explosion of the Aile parts moments before and his stability was wavering throughout the turn. Come on baby, hold together... Frank coaxed. Frank threw a switch and deployed the Skygrasper's landing gears, the wheels extending out from their slots. He pulled back on the stick, raising the nose of the plane slightly as the rear wheels touched down onto the deck, his body wrenching forward against his restraints as the Skygrasper ground to a halt.
"Commander Barkhesh is aboard," Miriallia reported.
"Mr. Murdoch reports that the Archangel is set for launch, Captain," Neumann added.
"Stand by to engage the catapult," Murrue ordered.
"You'll be the one who has to engage it, Joe. We've got the controls wired into the ship's systems," Neumann said to Joseph. "You think you can get us out of here in one piece?" Joseph just nodded quickly.
"Order the Freedom and the Justice to return at once!" Natarle commanded.
"How many Wombats do we have left?" Tonomura asked.
"I think we got one set left," Pal answered. "Why?"
"I have enemy aircraft approaching from six o'clock." Everyone on the bridge felt their heart skip a beat. "At maximum speed the lead ones'll be here in three minutes!"
"Load that last set of Wombats into the missile tubes and stand by to fire!" Natarle ordered.
"Commander la Flaga's approaching," Sai reported. Murrue silently coaxed Mwu's Skygrasper down so that he would make it back in one piece.
Mwu's ankle screamed in pain as he finished his turn. "Everyone get out of my way!" he shouted as he roared towards the open hatch. The wheels touched down roughly and the airplane skimmed to a halt, throwing him against the restraints. He unfastened his restraints and opened the plane's hatch, gingerly getting up from his seat. Frank came wandering over from where his Skygrasper was sitting and carefully helped Mwu off of the plane's wing and down onto the deck. "Come on," Mwu said, "we have to get to a safe place to anchor in."
"Both Skygrasper's are in ma'am," Miriallia reported.
"Lieutenant Barrington's team is aboard, Captain," Neumann added.
Kira brought the Freedom in slowly overhead of the Archangel, gently coaxing the huge mobile suit down onto the forward deck. Going down onto one knee, Kira landed the Freedom gently on the ship, making sure there was enough room for Athrun to land the Justice. "Come on Athrun, we gotta go!" Kira shouted.
Shani managed to get the Forbidden upright again, but soon realized he was the only one left on the shore. "Orga? Clotho? Where are you guys?"
"Clotho's in the water..." Orga responded painfully. "My drugs...wore off...I...can't go...on..." Shani looked over and saw the Calamity kneeling on the beach. "Shani...get...the ship..." Orga gasped. Shani hissed in anger and brought his backpack up to close-combat mode, arming his Hresvelgr plasma cannon. He trained the targeting bracket squarely on the bridge of the ship. Prepare to die...
"Wombats now! Fire!" Natarle shouted.
The last set of missiles roared out of the aft tubes, taking out three aircraft before they even knew what hit them, the others scattering to avoid the rest of the barrage.
"The Justice is returning ma'am," Miriallia said.
"Mr. Crew! Start the engines and get us out of here!"
"Captain, we're being locked onto!" Chandra shouted.
Athrun gently pushed the Justice towards the forward deck, preparing to land behind the Freedom when something caught his eye. Off onto the shore, he saw the green mobile suit bring its backpack in front of its face, a faint light glowing in one of its holes. Athrun gasped when he realized what it was, and he bolted from the deck.
"Athrun, what are you doing?!" Kira shouted.
"I can't let him destroy the ship!" Athrun sent back, racing off to stop the Forbidden's shot.
The Archangel's engines roared to life, white exhaust spilling from their ports. "We have main engine start, Captain," Neumann reported.
"Activate the catapult! Everyone hold on!" Murrue shouted.
"The Justice is heading back out ma'am," Miriallia reported.
"What?" Natarle gasped.
"What is he-?"
Shani fired his plasma cannon straight at the bridge, smiling triumphantly, seeing how he couldn't have missed, even if he wanted to. But then, the red mobile suit jumped in front of the shot and blocked it with its forearm, shearing the limb completely off. Behind the mobile suit, Shani could see the legged ship start moving on the driver. Athrun turned the Justice about and flew back towards the Archangel which was now gaining speed as it headed down the track. "No!" Shani shouted angrily. He wouldn't be able to get off another shot with his plasma cannon for a few minutes, and many of his other weapons were already damaged.
The Archangel surged down the mass driver's track. Immediately after the ship had moved, the first of the demolition charges had activated, counting down from ten seconds. Joseph kept a firm grip on the steering controls, keeping the ship pointed straight as it began climbing the upswing. Murrue fastened her restraint belt around her waist and held the chair's arm rests tightly. Everyone else on the bridge did the same, while Jay brought both of the Lohengrin plasma cannons to bear, ready to fire as soon as they left the driver's track. Mwu and Frank secured themselves in chairs next to Mr. Murdoch's hangar crew, bracing for the g-forces that would follow the ship's launch.
Five seconds... Athrun pushed the Justice's engines to their limits attempting to catch back up to the Archangel which was now nearing the end of the track. Kira moved the Freedom to the edge of the forward deck and stared down at his friend's mobile suit which was now only about a meter away from the ship.
Three seconds... The track ended abruptly and the Archangel found itself floating in the atmosphere.
"Lohengrin! Fire!" Natarle shouted.
Two seconds... Jay punched a button on his console and heard the Lohengrin's prepare to unleash their fury.
Kira reached the Freedom's hand out to the Justice, which was now almost close enough to touch. However, as the ship's velocity increased, so did the distance between the two mobile suits. "Gyaaaghh!" Kira shouted, extending the Freedom's arm out as far as it would go, firmly grasping onto the Justice's wrist, hauling it up onto the deck with him.
One second... Both Lohengrin guns fired brilliant streaks of light into the sky and the Archangel surged forward into the clouds, the g-forces steadily increasing, throwing the occupants back into their seats. The Freedom and the Justice braced themselves on the forward deck, Kira and Athrun holding their mobile suits steady as best they could in the vortex.
Shani saw the ship streak into the sky, brilliant white light trailing it as it soared away. Then he saw an even more heart-sinking sight.
An explosion blossomed on the top of the driver, sending pieces of steel showering in every direction. Other explosions followed, blazing a trail from the back to the front of the structure. Steel girders snapped or blew completely apart from the force of dynamite sticks exploding in all their fury. Showers of steel and other parts flew into the air, pelting the Forbidden GUNDAM where it stood about five meters away. Then the upswing of the driver began to come down, its supports destroyed by the blasts. The once mighty steel structure crumpled to the ground with a loud roaring noise and then finally a despicable crash. Clouds of dust covered what had once been a magnificent mass driver, and it also seemed, that the dust had clouded Shani's own ambitions and emotions. He'd failed. He didn't want to have to face Azrael after all this happened.
Archangel shook violently as she surged through the atmosphere towards space. Turbulence rocked the ship from one side to the next throwing its inhabitants from side to side as they struggled to stay in their seats. Joseph pressed his lips together firmly as he gripped the steering controls, jerking it from side to side in order to keep the ship going straight. Murrue held on tightly to her chair and watched as the sky slowly got darker the higher they went up. Sirens wailed from the CIC and Natarle did her best to ignore them as she stared into nothing at all.
John watched silently from the ship's observation room as the sky disappeared and the shaking stopped. He felt his feet being released by the deck and found himself floating in the gravity deprived air. This was the first time in his illustrious career that John had ever been in space, away from the planet he so deeply loved. Seeing Earth from such a distance brought a tear to John's eye, which he casually wiped away. With that, he left the observation room and headed to his next destination.
Murrue breathed a sigh of relief as the Archangel stopped shaking. "It looks like we made it," she commented quietly. She unfastened her restraint and allowed herself to float in the air for a moment, thinking how good it felt to be unrestrained by gravity. "Well crew, it looks like we did it," she said with a smile. Cheers of applause sounded from the bridge crew as they got up from their chairs and slapped each other on the back. Sai and Miriallia slapped hands and shared a quick laugh as they floated in the air. Even Joseph shared a cheer with the other crew members in the joyous moment.
Natarle floated up towards Murrue and said, "Well Captain, it seems we've yet again escaped destruction thanks to you." She saluted with a smile, "It's been a pleasure ma'am."
"Do you always have to be serious?" Murrue chuckled. "Lighten up for a little while Natarle and have some fun."
"I'll try Captain," Natarle smiled, "I'll try."
Down in the hangar, the Freedom and the Justice were lowered into the hangar from the forward deck. Kira sat back in his chair, breathing heavily, and waited until he felt the Freedom come to a halt against the starboard wall of the facility. He pulled off his helmet and wiped his brow with the back of his gloved hand. He then removed his gloves and opened the cockpit shield. He sprung from the chair and floated out into the hangar and tossed his helmet and gloves into the cockpit, shutting the shield in the process.
"Kira!" Kira turned his head to see Athrun floating towards him, his own helmet slung under his arm.
"Are you crazy Athrun?" Kira commented. "You could've died back there!"
"It was worth it if we all got out Kira. Though I did kinda tear up the Justice." Both of them chuckled when they saw the one-armed mobile suit propped up against the wall. "Shall we go find the others then?" Athrun asked.
The two friends floated down towards the deck together and found Mwu, Frank, John, and Murdoch crowded around the Moebieus Zero in a corner of the hangar.
"So you think you'll be able to handle this thing Frank?" John asked as Kira and Athrun landed behind the group.
"As long as Mwu proves that he can be as good a teacher a you John. Though I highly doubt that that's possible..."
"Watch it, Frank," Mwu responded sternly, then laughing himself.
"What's going on guys?" Kira asked.
"Oh, we're just giving out new assignments to these two since the Skygraspers can't fly in space," John answered. Gesturing to the mobile armor behind him, John continued, "Frank's gonna be flying the Zero from now on up here. He's just gotta learn how to operate the barrels."
"Yeah, he's taking my ship, as usual," Mwu complained. "So what do I get then John? You're not gonna make me stay back here and work on the bridge are you?"
"Are you crazy?" John shot back, "Your skills are too valuable to pass up Mwu. Besides, you're gonna be flying the one that's sitting behind you."
Kira smiled when Mwu turned his head to look behind him, only to have his eyes widen and his jaw drop. "Ha!" Frank shouted, "Only one take. Pay up, Murdoch!"
"I'll pay you later," Murdoch replied, folding his arms. "Yeah, I know Mwu, we finally fixed her."
Mwu couldn't believe it. He was staring at the Strike GUNDAM, now fully repaired and ready for flight. "But how can I fly it? With the O.S. that it's running on..."
"What'd you think I had Kira do this entire week?" John responded.
Kira came up to stand next to Mwu who still looked positively shocked. "I did the same things with her that I did with the Orb mobile suits a while back. It'll respond to the reflexes of the average Natural and fly just as well as it did when I flew it. Don't worry Commander. I'll tutor you on how to work her controls and soon you'll be flying her like a Coordinator."
Mwu shook his head slowly. "I am gonna owe you guys a lot of rounds for this?"
"No charge Mwu," John responded with a smile. He and the other moved to stand next to Kira and Mwu. "We're still not out of the woods yet, guys. From now on, the fight's gonna be more intense and there's a good chance not all of us are gonna make it back. But if we keep fighting like we did today, there's no chance that anyone's gonna stop us now."
"You know who I feel sorry for," Athrun commented. He smiled, "The sorry bitches that think they can stop us."
"I'll drink to that, kid," Mwu responded. Everyone else did the same.