Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny: Greyscale World

by Sgt. NoOb

As the Second Bloody Valentine War rages across all fronts, OMNI begins to fracture from within, over the ideals of its member nations; only the threat of an enemy keeps them working together. As the foundation of the unified Earthfront crumbles, four of its veterans must decide on which side to take; and it may not always be the winning side they should be on...

19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

CE 73, December 3rd, Trecin Base, Drietoma, Slovakia, South-East Europe

Evening 19 46

Esther tapped the screen again. "ZAKUs with anti-air missiles are the least of our concerns." The map opened into an overhead view, red dots marking locations all across the Slovakia border, particularly clustering around where the RF-109 had been shot down. "There are reports of insurgent mobile suits armed similarly spotted by forward teams, as well as stationary SAM sites that have been set up across the area." Esther let her gaze drift over all in the room, especially at the pilots that just arrived from the Czech and Slovakia Air Guard. "They're going to eat our aerial assets alive if we don't deal with this."

"We need land assets to initiate a counterattack on an acceptable scale," one of the pilots replied, "that's big enough to punch through the SAM net. With forest areas everywhere, the armoured companies that we have aren't going to manoeuvre fast enough."

"That is, if you use conventional tactics," Major Wallace cut in. "Even as we speak, we have recon teams working on identifying a control point; there has to be a few key locations where all the data from all the radar units set up is being collected and sent to the coordinating personnel manning the SAM sites' responses." The officer set his hand at a location north-east where his RF-109 had been shot down. "As an example, they would need to have a base close to this SAM cluster, or risk easy jamming and signals disruption by enemy forces. If we have the infantry and mobile suit forces work in conjunction with each other, I believe that we can find these central points and destroy them; that would not only open a path, but cripple the entire SAM defence structure of the enemy. They'll still be able to operate them, but their ranged capabilities will be severely diminished."

"And we can deal with any anti-air mobile suits that we encounter," Aaqil said. "I see."

"That's part of the plan as well," Wallace said. "And with the SAM sites down, it will aid us in ferrying in reinforcements."

Guy cracked his knuckles. "Time for us to pull our weight again."

"This won't be easy," Sheryl remarked. "In-between us and the mission goal, we'll probably have to contend with many an insurgent mobile suit and many anti-MS teams. Even if they insert us as close as possible, Kasavok will not likely let it slide."

"He won't," Wallace said. "And that's where the mission's second phase comes in."

"Second phase?" Ray asked.

"You could say that it's the more interesting phase of the mission," Esther replied with a thin smile. "We use this incursion to lure out as many of Kasavok's elite forces to this forward area that he's established… and eliminate as many of them as possible."

CE 73, December 5th, Terchova, Slovakia, South-East Europe

Morning 04 02

Early as it was, Ray was wide awake as the transport plane ferrying the Manhunters started a slow descent through the air. The whole of yesterday and the day before had been mission planning, and cobbling enough materials and assets to kick-start the mission; they needed to strike fast while Kasavok and NEFA continued to gather their forces.

"This is Hunter Leader to all forces. Last prep check," he said, keying in commands for the Manhunter Command to run its own diagnostic check. "Make sure everything is all green; if there's a fault, I'm pulling you out of the mission immediately."

"Hunter Two here," Sheryl said. "All clear; the Oracle Lance is ready to go... although that mission pullout seems pretty tempting," she chuckled.

"Hunter Three here," Guy replied. "Launcher Dagger L ready for action."

"Hunter Four," Kaguya reported. "Sword Dagger L checks out."

"Hunter Leader here," Ray said on the main channel, allowing a brief grin to break across his face at Sheryl's statement. "Manhunters all ready."

Beside the transport ferrying the Manhunters were two more aircraft of like make; one carried the Blizzard Squadron, and the other, the Howling Spears. "Howl Leader here. Howling Spears all clear."

"Blizzard ready," Esther said on the main channel. "Blizzard Leader to all forces, this is a free-run operation. Once you land, take out any SAM sites and enemy forces you encounter until you reach the crash site, or when we update you with new information... assuming we're able to break though this jamming."

"Roger," Ray said. "Manhunters out."

"Acknowledged," Aaqil replied. "Howling Spears out."

The massive bay doors at the back of the transport aircraft opened, and the viewscreen of the Manhunter Command filled with the undulating, forested terrain of the Terchova region, the dark silhouettes of the trees barely visible from the light of the setting half-moon. Gears whined as automated locks released the mobile suit from an iron grip in the transport's main bay, and the mobile suit, guided by rail clamps, moved to the back of the transport, the aircraft's interior lights playing across its armoured surfaces one last time… and out into the turbulent night air.

The Manhunter Command fell out first, slowing going into a headfirst dive until Ray used the mobile suit's thrusters to readjust the machine. Behind him, the Oracle Lance, Launcher Dagger L and Sword Dagger L dropped through the air, followed by the infantry carriers that were assigned to them for the mission.

Only with the Manhunter Command's onboard visual enhancements could he spot the Wild Daggers of the Howling Spears and the mobile suits of Blizzard Team eject out of their transports as well, together with their combat support vehicles; the mobile suit's IFF system had conveniently tagged and outlined their physical shapes on the viewscreen. The transports banked, turning to avoid flying any further into enemy territory, as they left the mobile suits and armoured vehicles to whatever fate had in store for them.

"It's too quiet," Sheryl remarked. "Almost like NEFA never existed here."

Ray adjusted the controls on his mobile suit as the automated parachute packs activated, slowing down the MS with a bone-jarring series of jerks. "I don't think they would have expanded their battle lines that far with just a day, Hunter Two."

"Well, won't hurt to be careful," Guy said. "Long-range strikes against an opponent are best carried out when one party is in the air… it's either maximum exposure, or maximum range."

"That would make us maximum exposure…" Sheryl remarked.

With nothing to harass them this time, the Manhunter's touchdown was much smoother. "Line formation, hundred meter spread." Ray said. "Support group, stay behind, but when it comes to combat I'll leave that to your discretion."

"Blue Leader to Hunter Leader," Kim replied. "Got it."

The mobile suits of the Manhunters spread out, each moving through the thick forest area, the towering trees completely encompassing their mobile suits. Ray's Manhunter Command immediately begin to initiate a data-link with all the units in the area, and soon the Manhunters had both front and rear radar coverage, as well as the expanded detection range of each mobile suit's sensors.

Communications with the Blizzard and Howling Spears teams were impossible, however. The teams' mobile suits weren't powerful enough to cut through the myriad of enemy radar and communication signals that encompassed the region, including the mysterious jamming that still persisted. Time at Trecin Base had let the officers made sure that it was likely the work of a buried N-jammer, if not more, and the OMNI EUROCOM forces had no choice but to get on with their work.

"First SAM site should be about six kilometres from where we are," Ray said. "Just stay frosty and quiet."

Three green acknowledgement lights blinked in Ray's HUD as the four mobile suits moved forward, taking care to disturb as little of the surroundings as a group of four 70+ ton machines could.

CE 73, December 5th, Terchova, Slovakia, South-East Europe

Morning 05 11

Esther's approach to things was a bit less subtle. With five mobile suits on her side, backed by nearly three hundred troopers and even four missile vehicles, Blizzard Team could afford to be a bit noisier in their approach, the mobile suits running and smashing through trees all over the place in an attempt to penetrate as deep as they could into enemy territory before being contacted by the defenders.

And that was exactly what Esther had planned; draw the attention of most of NEFA's over-confident and ideal-drunk insurgents to her, while the Manhunters and Howling Spears decimated SAM site after SAM site.

Rolan's Hyperion G held fast as a round slammed against its beam shield, the force causing the energy of the shield to ripple across its surface. Arming the Mk. 39 cannon that it carried, Rolan fired the first round in the weapon's clip into the sky, the flare round lighting up the area where the enemy had been firing from.

"I see them bright and clear," Caleria said, carefully taking aim with her 105 Dagger, which was wielding a 94mm high-output beam rifle. The weapon, originally part of the First Bloody Valentine War's Buster Gundam's armament load, had been brought over by the Czech Guards when they had arrived at Trecin Base; apparently, while the Gundams never made it into production, some of their weapons did, and Caleria now used it to her advantage as the 105 Dagger let loose a highly-precise shot that sent an insurgent Strike Dagger crashing back, a smoking hole where its cockpit used to be.

The explosion from the dying mobile suit only served to illuminate its comrades, and both Benjamin's and Caleria's mobile suits fired upon the enemy, cutting down their opponents where they were. "Blizzard Five here," Caleria said. "My assault vector is clear."

A series of explosions a hundred and fifty metres away confirmed Esther's reply before she even said it; her Hyperion G, specially outfitted with a backpack unit used in the original Hyperion GUNDAM development program, strode out of a smoke cloud, beam sabre in one hand and beam submachinegun in the other, leaving the corpses of two BuCUEs in its wake. Twin beam shields flickered as Esther deactivated her unit's automatic defence function; even with the Hyperion G's improved power efficiency, she would need to conserve energy with this powerful, but unrefined equipment that allowed her Hyperion G to enact an all-range, all-direction beam shield. There was a reason why the Hyperion G was limited to a single shield, and it was not just because of cost issues. "Blizzard Leader to all forces, continue to maintain battle-line distance and advance."

Rolan's Hyperion G took up position a distance away from Caleria and Benjamin, and began to advance, snapping tree branches in its wake. "Blizzard Two is on the job," he said, as the Hyperion G's beam blast forced two insurgent mobile suits to scramble away from what meagre cover and concealment the forest afforded, the two mobile suits boost-jumping in an attempt to quickly get away. One of them, a GINN, tumbled out of the sky as Caleria fired, the 105 Dagger's 94mm beam rifle cutting through the GINN's waist. Its partner, a Dagger L, landed, only for Benjamin's Dagger L to strike it down with a beam carbine shot.

"Target destroyed," Benjamin said. "Blizzard Three moving forw-"

The ground in front of Blizzard Squadron exploded as high-explosive shells landed, blasting dirt and debris sky-high in a chain of concussive blasts. Benjamin's Dagger L, which had been closest, boosted out of the gigantic dust-cloud that had formed, landing nearly eighty meters behind his original position; the armour of his mobile suit was scorched and flecked with mud spray. Even Esther's Hyperion G was forced back, beam shields held up front as the mobile suit stopped its advance. "Blizzard Four to all, did anyone get a visual on that?!"

"Negative," Caleria said. "Shots came from over the horizon."

"That puts it at a minimum distance of twenty-five kilometres up front, give or take five more kilometres," Rolan said, his Hyperion G maintaining its position. "Definitely not something that a mobile-suit sized opponent can output."

"Linear artillery shots don't make huge explosions like those," Benjamin said. "A land battleship?"

"Powerful as Kasavok is I doubt even he would have enough influence to sneak a Hannibal-class this far south, considering there're only a handful of those available to OMNI." Esther said. "No, if anything, I believe that ZAFT has a hand in this, if we are to assume that the possibility of land battleship support is true."

"A Lesseps or Compton?" Karl said. His Dagger L hid behind its shield as the fire from enemy mobile suits surged back, stray shots impacting around the squadron. "Those would be able to support an entire ZAFT squadron in the area!"

"No, something smaller. A Petrie-class, maybe," Esther said, as both Rolan and her Hyperion Gs closed ranks, shielding the other mobile suits of Blizzard Squadron from any direct impacts. "Either way, we won't be able to proceed like this."

The commander of the missile rovers and infantry company activated his radio unit. "Red Leader to Blizzard Leader," the officer said. "There're mobile suits gathering around the battle area… they seem intent to box us in."

A few insurgent mobile suits exposed themselves, weapons firing, but keeping their position; Esther noticed a few of them wielding bombardment weaponry and even a GINN with a sniper rifle. Esther bit her lower lip, glancing around at the treetops; at least, with the unwieldy artillery, she could expect a lack of infantry presence. That, thankfully, meant that there were no anti-armor surprises hidden underneath the trees. "Roger Red Leader. Pull back your forces to maximum engagement range. Unless we manage to close in to melee, we won't be able to shield ourselves from the barrage anyways. All forces, fall back to the second checkpoint."

"What 'bout the others?" Rolan asked.

"We'll prod them hard from time to time, just enough to make them think that we're serious in pushing through this place," Esther said, "And if possible, I hope to borrow some forces from Trecin to make that illusion seem like reality."

And we can only hope that they pull through, Esther thought at the back of her head.

CE 73, December 5th, Underground Network, Czech Republic-Slovakia Border, South-East Europe

Morning 06 27

"It's a feint," Kasavok said, as he looked at the tactical map display system mounted on the wall of the control room. "That OMNI strike force is going to keep their distance just enough to convince the ZAFT task force to keep at it, but they'll strike back occasionally to keep them there as a security measure. They're just there to make noise; there are at least two other teams within the forest running around."

"You think?" one of the men present said; Kasavok recognized him as Latakna, one of the earliest insurgent leaders of NEFA, well before Kasavok had caught wind of the organization and decided to boost their efforts. "Those Atlantic rats are just scared stiff at fighting on unfamiliar land."

"Bet they don't even know what they're facing," another man replied, his crooked smile growing wider at the visual of the Petrie-class land cruiser firing another salvo of rounds. Kasavok dimly remembered him as a newer addition to NEFA; his name was Orsron, with a ragtag group of car bomb-making insurgents and an old, nearly-rusted ZuOOT. His contribution would be minute if not for the impressive amount of funds that he brought with him, courtesy of his previous "job" as a money-launderer.

"No," Kasavok said. "They most likely do, which is why we should-"

"You givin' ideas again, Kasavok?" A man with dark rings around his eyes said, letting the people in the room know by his tone that he was spitting each word out. "Last time you said you had an idea, you tried to fight them over the air first." The man crossed his arms over his shoulder. "You trying to order us veterans around again?"

If you were a proper veteran instead of some half-fucked drug-addicted terrorist, I'd be the Leader-General of OMNI EUROCOM, Kasavok thought, but he caught himself at the last moment. "Not at all, Jasse," the former Phantom Pain colonel replied. "Just thought I should share some experience about the pilots that are currently on the field of battle."

A grizzled man turned to look at Kasavok, one eye closed with an ugly burn scar running down from forehead to chin; the leader of NEFA, Joachim Rhus, former OMNI Poland Guard Colonel, fixed his one good eye on Kasavok. "Oh? And what makes these so special?"

Kasavok cleared his throat. "I recognized some of the names that were in the intelligence reports. It's a high chance that the majority of these people are trained in small-scale anti-insurgency warfare, and I can assure you they've all had experience in the Bloody Valentine War in one way or another."

"And you think a handful of them make a difference?"

"That alone makes a world of difference. You saw the condition in which one of my mobile suits returned in," Kasavok replied, referring to the Sword Calamity that had returned nearly unusable and irreparable. "We're not dealing with fresh-faced recruits who just made second lieutenant this month, commissioned to fill in the casualty gaps in the OMNI military. These people are well-trained, experienced, and war-hardened."

"You're not going to seriously let the OMNI scum sit just out of reach, are you?" Jasse said to Joachim. "This is a good chance to show them who's boss!"

Kasavok decided to cut in before he lost his chance. "You're right, it is a good chance. Which is why I'll send the Castle Crushers over to augment our forces. Meanwhile though, I'd advise you send some of your best out to hunt for the other OMNI MS that are undoubtedly sniffing around for our SAM network's control base."

"How the hell do you know for sure that there're other MS running around?" Orsron asked.

"It would be stupid to assume otherwise," Kasavok said in as curt a tone as he could muster before he began to consider that that would be a bad diplomatic choice.

"Very well," Joachim said, cutting off Orsron's impending retort. "Orsron, Jasse, find some people and take them with you to boost our main force."

As a bad-tempered Orsron left with Jasse to gather their fighters, Kasavok turned to Joachim. "Thanks," he said.

"No need," Joachim replied. "We're all in this together. I'm sorry about the aerial forces that you brought though."

"That was underestimation of the enemy's tenacity on my part," Kasavok replied. "This time, though, I'm sure that the Castle Crushers will carry out my will flawlessly."

"How about our ZAFT allies?" Joachim asked. "If this is all they have to offer…"

"Hardly," Kasavok said. "The Petrie-class they have here is just an advance force; any time soon, ZAFT's 3rd Expeditionary Land Force will reinforce us. And their own mobile suit forces will be hunting for the other OMNI task teams as well."

Kasavok turned to the viewscreen, which showed an overeager insurgent GINN getting destroyed by a blast from a Hyperion G's beam cannon. "And loathe I am to admit it, if we are to win, we should probably assume that the enemy has at least guessed this much about our plans. All that remains… is how fast we can execute our moves."

CE 73, December 5th, Petrie-class land cruiser Roksova, Zaskov, Slovakia, South-East Europe

Morning 06 22

Alan Reidr sat in the cockpit of his Blaze ZAKU Phantom, arms crossed and silent as the early morning sun, rising from the horizon, glinted off his mobile suit's command horn. A series of heavy beats sounded out again, as the Roksova's 400mm cannons blew blast after blast at distant targets over and beyond the mountain range that blocked their sight of the enemy, the shockwaves of the shots rolling over the terrain along with the roaring of cannon fire. Even with the external sound feed switched off, Alan could feel the impacts right in his bone; a heart-gripping pulse that travelled through the earth and echoed into the ground for kilometres.

"Are we going to stay here all day, sir?" Grace asked. Her Slash ZAKU Warrior stood a distance behind, polearm held and balanced against the floor in a knight's stance. "If we attack now…"

"We wouldn't stand a chance," Alan replied matter-of-factly. "You saw the black box records of the insurgent mobile suits that were salvaged. This isn't just a problem of technology; the Eurasian Federation has on their hands two genuine next-generation mobile suit, and they seem to have little trouble making more than one of it if they're willing to send it into the heat of combat. And if reports from the 2nd Expeditionary Force in Asia is to be believed, ZAFT has also encountered two of those new Eurasian Federation mobile suit there… which means that it's close to mass-production. "

"Power at range, medium and speed at up close, and in a balance that OMNI's Dagger L couldn't even hope to match." Fredric said. "I'd recommend taking this "Hyperion G" mobile suit on with at least two or more units."

"But it's not stronger than ZAKUs, right?" Suzuki Amano said, a bit of panic creeping into her voice. "I mean, in terms of mobile suit technology-"

"You're placing too much faith in aspects that can't be quantified during battle in the first place, Raider Four," Larry Falke replied. "Just calm down."

"W-with all due respect sir, I-I think I can afford to be a bit more panicked!" Suzuki said, the nervousness in her voice mixing with indignation. "This GuAIZ R is nothing compared to the ZAKU!"

"You're placed in a bombardment role in the Reidr Team, I don't know what you're so worried about. Have a bit more faith in your skills," Larry said. "You're just going to embarrass yourself if you keep up that newbie attitude."

Suzuki frowned, but stayed silent.

Alan opened a channel as Fernandz Kodor, the acting commander of their current mission, who was on the bridge of the Roksova, contacted him. "Nice view, isn't it? You don't get the same feeling watching it from the PLANTs."

"The beauty of that 'sunrise over Earth' myth is already outdated for us space people, Captain," Alan replied. "That said, surely you must have more mission orders than just to have us sightsee."

"Negative. Just kick back and relax," Fernandz said. "I wouldn't risk a battleship asset until I have the 3rd Expeditionary Land Force's express permission. Besides, I have a feeling that you're going to be tossed into the fray a lot sooner than you'd expect..."

In the background, Alan heard a beeping tone. For a brief instance, Fernandz left the line open to speak to another person; Alan heard a few familiar voices in the mix. One of them was the captain of the Roksova. The other, he was sure he had heard before, but could not place a proper face too.

"... appreciate the chance. Stormcrow out," Fernandz said, using the callsign that their task force had been assigned. "Well, Raider Leader, you're in luck. Our NEFA allies seem to be in a bit of a pinched pickle, so it's up to you to go keep them company."

"A pinch or a pickle, but I've never heard of both... " Grace said on the squadron line.

"What's our engagement status?" Alan asked.

"Capture, of course, they need to be all alive." Fernandz replied. On the link, Alan could hear Suzuki cough; before she could protest, however, Fernandz laughed, a short, sharp bark that made Alan wonder if the man was the standard of unhinged by which ZAFT External Intelligence recruited their agents. "No, naturally not. Search and destroy, Raider Leader, S & D. All weapons free, of course. I'm sending over the files that our NEFA allies have provided us with."

As Alan watched the data files display themselves on his viewscreen, Fernandz quipped again. "All, but one of them."

"Familiar faces. I wouldn't have guessed." Alan said, quashing what little surprise he felt, as his gaze stopped at an image of a grey-red Dagger L with two head antenna. "So we have a special target?"

"Yes, you need to lure him to the point stipulated onto the map in that data. Or disable him, if you think that things are a little too dicey to be kind and nice, NEFA was kind enough to elaborate on that option." Fernandz replied. "Try not to kill him too dead. NEFA wants to see if they can put him to use."

CE 73, December 5th, Terchova, Slovakia, South-East Europe

Afternoon 13 21

Ray chewed at the oat bar that he had retrieved from his ration pack, washing the sweet food down with a sip of water. So far, the team had advanced southwards, with only light resistance blocking their advance; Guy and Sheryl each had destroyed two MSes that had attempted to snipe them, and Kaguya had taken out an anti-MS infantry section whose teamwork was so bad Ray actually felt sorry to watch them die under the Sword Dagger L's hail of CIWS fire.

As for their mission, the Manhunters had found and destroyed four SAM sites; long-range missiles mounted on well-camouflaged field-assembly racks, but their positions were either poorly-defended or devoid of defenders at all. Nothing that was a permanent structure, which could provide twice the range and missile count of a transportable SAM unit. All this time, the Manhunters had not made contact with Blizzard or the Howling Spears.

And, Ray noted dryly, no sign of Kasavok's main forces-

"No sign of our ZAFT rivals here too," Sheryl said on a private channel.

"If we encounter them, we'll deal with them," Ray said. "Right now, our mission is striking as deep into enemy lines as possible, and finding the core of this area."

"Blue Echo to Hunter Leader", the radar vehicle's commander's voice appeared over the team channel. "The radar has picked up contacts. We've got ghost signals at fifty kilometres out... hold on. New contacts coming in."

Ray set down whatever he was doing and jammed his helmet back on. The ghost contacts could range from far-off enemy reinforcements to birds flying amongst the treetops, and if the dedicated radar unit, which outranged Sheryl's unit by a fair margin, couldn't identify them, then there was no point focusing on them. "Give me a confirmation of the contacts. Closest ones first."

A moment of pause, then a reply. "You won't like this, sir. One GuAIZ R, four ZAKUs. IFF identified; it's a positive on ZAFT."

"That was impressively fast, considering how wide the operation area is." Guy remarked, as his Launcher Dagger L set up for an Agni cannon blast. "You think this is the same team as the one we've been fighting?"

Beside him, Kaguya's Sword Dagger L drew its anti-ship sword. "Good," she said. "About time we met."

"Hunter Leader to Blue Leader, take your forces and go to the next possible location for a SAM site. Blue Echo, keep a search plan up, but don't approach the battle area at all costs. Don't approach if you detect enemy mobile suits either. Just keep an eye out for things."

"Roger," Kim said, as the APCs and radar vehicle moved off, vanishing under the encompassing cover of forest trees.

"Hunter Leader to all Hunters," Ray addressed his team. "Kaguya, Guy, pick your targets and take them. Sheryl, go after the GuAIZ R first; I'll back you up as far as possible to get you a clear shot to the target."

"The GuAIZ R first? Wouldn't the ZAKUs be more of a threat?" Sheryl asked.

"In a team full of ZAKUs? That GuAIZ R is unlikely to match specifications with a standard loadout." Ray pushed the Manhunter Command to its max speed, and five contacts abruptly appeared on the mobile suit's radar. "And judging from what we know of that team, it's just out-of-place for an elite force to get a low-performance, factory-production unit. At the very least, that GuAIZ R is probably outfitted for ranged combat."

From the opposite end, Alan Reidr watched as the Launcher Dagger L and Sword Dagger L split up. "Raider Two, Raider Three, you know the drill," Alan aligned his Blaze ZAKU Phantom's approach path with that of the customized Dagger Ls that were headed his way. "Raider Four, Raider Five, soften them."

The GuAIZ R stopped and steadied its sniper rifle, just as Larry's Blaze ZAKU Gunner deployed its plasma cannon. "Raider Four! Engaging!" Suzuki said, as a blast erupted from the barrel of the sniper rifle.

Ray's Manhunter Command jumped, the round missing at the last moment; the shot was wide, but it would still have grazed his mobile suit had he not changed his direction. "Hunter Two!"

"Roger that," Sheryl said, sending a three-shot burst back with her Oracle Lance's beam rifle. "Let's see if I can hit this beer bottle…"

The return shots slashed through air and hit close enough that Suzuki was forced to block with the GuAIZ R's shield. "The enemy's this accurate at range and moving?!"

"Doesn't matter; we'll alternate our fire to press them," Larry said, as his Gunner ZAKU loosed a powerful plasma shot over the distance. "Raider Four, prepare for continuous barrage pattern!"

"Hunter Two, strike now!" Ray activated the Manhunter Command's thrusters, quickly closing the distance between him and the Blaze ZAKU Phantom. "Neutralize their ranged support!"

Alan saw from the corner of his eyes the shots shoot over the area; the Dagger L that was customized for ranged combat sidestepped at the last moment, its left foot kicking up a spray of dirt as it dodged the powerful plasma blast. A moment later, his attention was wrenched back to his front as a two-finned, dark-grey Dagger L filled his ZAKU's displace screen; lightning danced across the frames of both units as the Manhunter Command's beam sabre met the Blaze ZAKU Phantom's beam tomahawk.

Textbook moves, Alan thought, and sent the Manhunter Command tumbling to the side as its left shoulder shield swivelled and smashed into the OMNI mobile suit. Drawing a second beam tomahawk from the left shield, Alan charged the fallen Dagger L, bringing one tomahawk down from above and a second in a side-sweeping stroke. Checkmate!

Ray hit the thrusters, and the Manhunter Command charged forward, smashing its left shoulder armour into the ZAKU's midsection before Alan could pull back. Gritting his teeth, Alan slashed at the Manhunter Command, but Ray had cut the thrusters as quickly as they were activated and the mobile suit fell back; the beam tomahawks traced a red-hot "X" path over the OMNI MS's shield, but otherwise did little.

Ray landed, but the Manhunter Command stepped back as the impact of a beam tomahawk smashing into its shield pushed the still-unsteady MS backwards. Alan followed up on the throw with a boost-jump; the beam tomahawk barely missed the Manhunter Command as it rolled away from the top-to-ground vertical blow, coming up to face the Blaze ZAKU Phantom.

Despite the explosions, dust clouds and beam blasts that now crisscrossed the area as the Manhunters and Reidr Team clashed, the surroundings were all second to Ray; all he saw now was an enemy in front of him. "Let's dance, you bastard," he said, as the Manhunter Command began its charge anew. "We'll settle this today!"

Afterword:

The Atlantic Federation turning on the Eurasian Federation was always something that I thought could have used a lot more exposure than it did in the series. Hopefully, this will make it a better transition for later chapters to come.