PHASE 05
Shere closed his eyes and tried to think up some heroic last thought as he braced himself. The bullet's impact threw Shere backwards, and he slammed into the prototype's chest.
Shere opened his eyes. Everything seemed black. Then, he realised that his flashlight had been damaged when he hit the Mobile Suit. He also noticed that his body was strangely void of lethal wounds or at least horrible pain.
The earphone was silent. His long-range communication device had been shot...
"You may say I'm a bloody traitor now." Nigel said, still pointing the gun at Shere. Nigel had also activated his helmet's flashlights, and was aiming them at Shere, too.
"I...you're working for ZAFT, right? Why the hell were you..."
"You were developing a Natural-use OS!" Nigel shouted. "We, ZAFT that is, thought it would be bad if EA got their hands on such a thing! And that's why we're here to stop you. And...don't move!". Nigel held the gun with both hands as he yelled the last words.
Shere was trying to slowly move his right hand towards his belt, where his firearm was stored. He held still when Nigel noticed that.
"Don't even try anything funny." Nigel sneered. "Remember, I can shoot you any time I want."
"You're one of them fanatical Zala-supporters, aren't you?"
"I am not. Personally, I do not hold any grudge against the pathetic creatures called Naturals – no, don't try to reach for your gun, put your hands where I can see them – but I am a ZAFT soldier, and this Natural OS could sway the war's tide. That's why the OS, and it's designers, are to be eliminated."
"Then why didn't you shoot me, one of the designers, already?" Shere asked, trying to keep Nigel talking while thinking up a way to get out of this mess.
"Good question. Let ne think about that one for a second..."
"It's not working." Rick said, watching the radar. "They haven't changed their course. Firing those signal flared was...wait...damn! New heat sources detected! They're launching Mobile Suits!"
Mia, pressing keyboard buttons like crazy, said "Try contacting Nigel and Shere once more!" before she started to enter the Rocket Anchor's emergency eject code.
While Rick yelled to no one in particulair, Mia activated the ship's hull thrusters and cut the Rocket Anchor cable.
"It's no use, he's out of range or something!" Rick said after numerous attempts to open a line. He looked at the ship's status screen. "Ejecting the Rocket Anchor! But you just said we-"
"I know what I said, but the situation's changed. If they're launching GINNs..."
"Judging from the thruster heat trail, they might be High Mobility Type GINNs. Five of them."
"Great. They'll find us in no time, even if we hog onto the colony's surface. So that's why we're leaving."
Right then, the Rocket Anchor was disconnected, and the Silverwind vessel started to move.
"Set coordinates to-"
"But what about Shere?"
"You're not concerned about Nigel?" Mia asked as she activated the Main Thrusters.
"Not really. He owns me money, ya know."
"Right. We will pull around the colony and try to contact them once more when we are on the opposite side. If that doesn't work, we'll hide in the asteroid belt and wait."
"Roger. Main thrusters running." Rick said as he took control of the ship's movement controls.
"Thruster output 60! Try to avoid debris floating around! Launch!"
Nigel was still holding Shere at gunpoint.
"...it seems they've arrived." Nigel grinned. He was holding his right hand against his helmet, maintaining a secure line with someone.
"You wouldn't mind to tell me who exactly arived?"
"Just some...friends. They'll be here any second. Be a good boy and stay put."
Shere glanced at the Mobile Suit behind him. The distance between him and the cockpit's door was less then three metres. But to open the door, he had to enter a six digit code...hmm...
"Two of them are entering the Space Port!" Mia exclaimed as she saw two GINNs barge through the colony's surface on a screen.
"Do you think they can see us?" Rick asked, occupied with maneuvering the ship through colony remains.
"No, we're out of visual range, and the junk around here'll conceal us from their their heat sensors."
Mia looked at Rick with a frightened look. "But it seems that of the three GINNs stationed at the entrance, one is heading our way!"
"Ah, sh-"
"Estimated time before arrival: two minutes! Main Thrusters full output!"
"Here they are!" Nigel yelled as a ZGMF-1017 High Maneuver Type GINN sliced through the storage hall's wall with his MA-M3 Heavy Sword. After that, it fired his thrusters and broke through the wall with it's shoulder.
Shere grinned.
As pieces of the wall flew around, the GINN flew straight forward and crashed into another wall, causing even more damage.
As the ZAFT Mobile Suit's leg temporarily blocked off Nigel's view, Shere kicked away a floating gear box and then moved towards the prototype Astray's chest.
"He's closing in on us! Just 30 seconds till...if we don't..."
"Hold on tight!" Rick yelled as he turned the steering wheel almost upside-down.
The Silverwind made a strange 6-like turn, circkeling around a large asteroid once – "Cut all the thrusters!" – and then holding still behind it.
"If we're lucky, he will pass right by us." Rick said, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"What if we aren't lucky?" Mia asked.
Rick grinned. "Then we're screwed, senorita."
"You fool, what are you doing!" Nigel yelled at the GINN pilot who tried to stabilize himself amids all the rubble. "Don't move a muscle untill I tell you to do so!"
Nigel then ventured forward into the dark hall.
"Shere! Don't you dare to get away, boy! Stay still if you want to live little while longer! I'll..."
He then saw something move towards the door through which Shere and he had just entered the room. "There you are!"
Nigel aimed...
Both of them held their breath for some reason when the Mobile Suit passed by.
Rick: "He hasn't seen us!"
Right then, the GINN stopped and turned around.
"You bastard! Don't run away!"
While firing his gun, Nigel sped towards the door. He pulled his knife out, jumped, and barged right into...
"A gear box!"
Except for the GINN's one eye and Nigel's flashlight, the hall was completely dark.
Nothing but the so-called ex-ZAFT soldier and the Mono-Eyed Mobile Suit, who had his back turned towards the prototype Astray, lighted the area.
Then, suddenly, two emerald eyes flashed. If there hadn't been a vacuum in the hall, everyone would've heard metal being ripped apart, followed by mechanic movement and plugs being disconnected.
A ruby-coloured Beam Saber illuminated the hall.
"Ooh yeah." Shere whispered.
Nigel: "Ah, cra-"
Shere pulled a trigger backwards.
"TAKE THAT!"
Seconds later, the Astray's Beam Saber cut through the High Maneuver GINN.
- in the ZAFT Nazca class carrier -
"Sir, we've lost contact with Colemann's unit!"
Captain: "What!"
"Also, his last transmission showed a Mobile Suit-type heat source in the colony!"
Vice-captain: "Which means..."
Captain: "Those return signal flares had some meaning to them, I guess. Well then, tell everyone to be on their guard. No, send them all to the Space Port. And wait untill he comes out. Unit 1 is to return immediatly."
"Yes, Sir!"
Mia: "He's...turning around?"
Rick exclaimed a loud "YEAH!", followed by a "WHOOHOO!" and some strange choking noises.
