CHAPTER THREE: INTO THE DEBRIS BELT
Sven shoved Sige into a cell, causing him to stumble and land against the hard steel wall. Sige picked himself up and slumped against the wall. This was what he got for wrecking the prototype. Captain Roanoke ran a strict chip, and Sige knew he was getting what he deserved. He gave Sven, one of his buddies, a quick smile. "See you in a week, man."
Sven nodded and said, "You're lucky. Roanoke was pretty pissed off. I gotta go; the guards are coming to make sure you're secure." Sven turned and walked back towards the entrance to the brig.
As Sige sat in the darkness, he remembered the feeling he had when he was flying that mobile suit. Even though he was getting his ass handed to him by ZAFT soldiers, Sige had felt like he was invincible in that mobile suit. He had to pilot one again.
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Sven walked into the hangar, eager to see how Murdoch and his crew had repaired the stolen ZAFT prototype. There it stood in the center of the hangar, still covered with mechanics working on the finishing touches. The differences were surprising. The original had been blue and white, with yellow details. This one was red, black, white, and gray. The original had had boxy arms and legs that jutted out were the armor plates ended, with the head having a beak-like sensor with a V-fin. This modified version had thinner arms and legs, a more traditional Gundam-style head.
Murdoch and Neo walked over to Sven, and the Chief Mechanic explained things to Sven. "We had to do a lot of work to get this thing ship-shape again. First, most of the armor was removed and replaced with more thrusters, meaning that it's more maneuverable than the original. We also had to remove the forearm beam sabers and pistols and replace them with beam shields. For all the things we had to remove, we did manage to add on some things. It now shares the backpack of the Daggers, so it'll be more versatile than the original model."
Neo dismissed Murdoch and said to Sven, "I'll be piloting this machine. It's been far too long since I was last in the cockpit of a mobile suit. However, that's not what I need to talk to you about. We've been running from Solomon for three days now, and we can't hide from ZAFT in open space. This Taskforce Jaeger will already be in pursuit. Therefore, we need a place to hide. Any suggestions?"
Sven thought for a moment, before coming to a conclusion. "What if we were to head into the debris belt, and then descend to Orb? We'd be sure to escape from ZAFT in there."
Neo thought about it for a moment before he replied, "True, we would escape ZAFT, but no one has ever successfully navigated the debris belt at the speed we'll be going. We'll need to be on Earth in four days to escape from that fleet ZAFT had sent after us. Of course, there is a first time for everything." Neo turned and walked away towards the elevator to the bridge, leaving a baffled Sven behind.
Sven kicked off the floor and went looking for Selene. She had to be around here somewhere.
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Amos Shrike waited patiently outside the door of Cmdr. Burrell's quarters. He had been ordered to be there everyday at 6:00 AM to report for duty. The hydraulic door slide open and Amos saluted quickly. Rey nodded and Amos stood at attention. "Lt. Amos Shrike reporting for duty, sir."
Rey looked Amos over. The young Lt. was tall with the build of an athlete. Thick blonde hair that fell to his eyebrows was neatly brushed and parted. He had deep, murky green eyes that somehow reminded Rey of Shinn. The Cmdr. waved his hand, and Amos fell into line behind him as they traveled to the simulator room.
"I assume that you have no prior experience piloting the Sparrow?" Amos shook his head. "I thought so. Well then, you'll drill four five hours straight everyday until you master the suit."
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Sven alighted outside an office in the hangar. He poked his head in and saw Selene working at her computer. He sneaked behind her and cupped his hands over her eyes. "Peeka-Boo, Guess Who," he said in a loving voice.
Selene removed his hands and kissed them gently. "I heard about Sige," she says as stands to embrace her boyfriend. "Neo would never have done that before the raid. He's acting weird. Do you think that being so close to Earth has got something to do with it?"
Sven shrugged his shoulders. "Neo has been acting strangely lately. He seems to be in constant pain. Its almost like being this close to ZAFT hurts him."
Selene thought for a moment, then said, "I bet it's because he still misses Murrue. He seemed to be over her, but I guess coming back has dug up old feelings."
Sven grunted. He wasn't any good at reading people. "I guess. But, he could just be constipated."
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Neo sat behind his desk, watching as lines of text scrolled down his computer screen. The other commanders wanted him to get back to Mars. Those impatient old crones, thought Neo, they're so used to getting what they want that they won't listen to reason.
The command structure of the Adepts, or they're real name, the Adeptus Astartes, was based around the five Girty Lues that made up the fleet. Each of the captains of those ships reported to a singular commander back on Mars, Joseph Aquiline. The captains of the ships were after him, and then it descended into rank and file. It was complicated, but if the majority of captains wanted something to happen, it happened.
And now, Neo was in a pickle. The other commanders were outraged that he'd allowed the ZAFT prototype to be so severely damaged. He had only one other ally, and that was Captain Wolf Ritter, commander of the Girty-Lue class Mohawk, the ship that had accompanied the Croatian on its raid.
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The door to the bridge of the Mohawk slid open with a hiss. A black uniformed figure strode out and took his position in the captain's chair. Captain Wolf Ritter settled into his chair with his characteristic slouch. He nonchalantly brushed his long hair out of his face and tried to remember why he was here.
Wolf was a young man of about twenty-four, with dark emerald eyes and black hair streaked with royal blue. His right arm and both legs were cyborg prosthetics, given to him when his mobile suit was destroyed during the last war. That same incident had covered him with brutal scars, most noticeably the one that went from his mouth to ear.
"Ensign Uzuki, where are we exactly?" asked Wolf as he pointed to the young navigational officer. Ensign Mayu Uzuki turned and gave him the coordinates. "Sir, we're about seven hours from the debris belt. It appears that that is where the Croatian is heading."
Wolf smiled. So, Neo was going to lose ZAFT in the orbital debris belt that surrounded Earth, was he? That was a tactic worthy of Wolf himself. Turning to the communications officer, Wolf ordered, "Get me a line through to Captain Roanoke."
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Chairman Durandal strapped himself into his personal shuttle. In a few moments, it launched from the hangar of the Neo-Nazca class Jotunheim and headed for the PLANTS. As the shuttle powered away from the much larger warships, Durandal opened up a word-processor and began typing on his computer. After the fiasco at Solomon, he'd have to make a damn good apology for the so-call "Lion of Orb."
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Sige leaned against the wall of his small cell and tore a bite from the biscuit that the guards had given him. He had to admit, being in the brig wasn't that bad. He got fairly good meals and the cot in the corner was more comfortable than it appeared.
Sige had been in this cell for the past two days, meaning he was seriously bored. He'd heard something about how they were in the debris belt from the guards, but nothing substantial.
All the young man could think about was piloting another mobile suit. So, he kept the little piece of metal with him at all times.
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Rey smirked as the Taskforce caught up with the two fleeing rebel ships. The ZAKU IIs and Amos had already launched, and where closing rapidly. He would've gone himself, but why waste his time on weaklings?
The rebels had launched their own pathetic mobile suit forces and were moving to engage. Those rebel mobile suits were bothersome, but nothing the ZAFT units couldn't handle.
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Sven hurtled out into space in his Strike Noir. He was geared and ready for battle, his orders being to hold off the ZAFT units until the ships were safely into the debris belt. He readied his beam pistols and got ready for a showdown.
He quickly counted the number of ZAFT forces. Ten of those upgraded ZAKU types, and what looked like a second Gundam-type. Beside him, Mu was in the modified Sparrow. He'd equipped it with an old Gunbarrel striker, so Sven was eager to see how well he preformed.
So, he thought, eleven ZAFT suits to seven Daggers and our Gundams? If only Gomez didn't have a broken leg, we could get that last Dagger out.
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Author's Note: And so ends the third chapter of Sorrow in the Shadows. I can't do anything about these erratic updates, as I can't sit down and write a chapter that often. Deal with it. In the meantime, leave a review and visit my new forums. Peace out.