Chapter 4: International Negotiation
Upon re-entering Earth all Gundams headed for their designated targets.
Assigning his machine on Auto-Pilot, he read through the contents of the mission plan through Veda's network.
"The mission has four phases: First Phase – An attack on all of PMC Trust's mobile suits. This mission is assigned to the Impulse and Buster. PMC Trust's MS Teams are scattered around Moralia, with a concentration of MS forces in the Northern part of the Republic. Second Phase – Attacking the laboratories of PMC Trust responsible for the research and development weapons and mobile suits. This phase will be handled by the Blitz and Duel. Once the first and second phase of the mission is completed, all four Gundams will meet at a designated rendezvous point, to proceed with the third phase of the mission. Third Phase – All Gundams will participate in an attack on the local AEU Military garrison based on Moralia, which is also used as the local Headquarters for the AEU'S military. Phase Four – Depending on the situation. Observe enemy movements on the ground. Should they mobilise more mobile suits to engage, then all Gundams are to destroy what remaining forces the Garrison has. Once that is accomplished, the mission is a success.
Success, huh? In a war, nothing's guaranteed, not even success..."
"Alright, listen up guys. This will be our first mission as Celestial Being's Gundam Meisters. Don't screw up, especially you Yzak. And more importantly, don't die."
~ Republic of Moralia airspace ~
The Impulse and Buster headed for their designated target location, Northern Moralia.
Reaching the target location, both Gundams were greeted by a barrage of attacks, including anti-air missiles, artillery shells and live rounds from Hellion units on the ground.
"Heads up Dearka, looks like the enemy has prepared a warm welcome for us. As expected of a private military company, always ready for a battle. Ninety mobile suits detected, all are AEU's Hellion units. Seems like they've altered the unit. Equipped with a chest plate and knee mounted missile pods. Blast Impulse, commencing with the first phase of the mission."
Both Gundams were able to dodge all the attacks, though most of them are not lethal. The advanced armour plating equipped on the Gundams made them quite tough against standard mobile suit attacks.
"I guess it's time I take things seriously. Buster, neutralising enemy mobile suits."
With that, Dearka pulled out Buster's GN HILR Sniper Rifle. Switching his Gundam to Auto-Pilot, he is able to concentrate on sniping the targets. Aiming properly, Buster engaged the enemy units with amazing perfection. In one shot, several Hellions were being destroyed. By the fifth shot, thirty-five of them were down.
La Flaga was impressed. "You've got talent, kid. But I can't let an amateur like him beat me."
Using all of the available ranged weapons he has, he activated the GN HELR Beam Cannon on Impulse's Blast Silhouette, as well as launching all of the GN Guided Missiles. The combination of both attacks proved to be deadly. In one shot, the Beam Cannon was able to completely destroy twenty mobile suits and several artillery units. The GN Guided Missile hit their targets with perfect accuracy; even units attempting to flee were hit. Multiple units of Hellions and mobile artillery had been destroyed by both Gundams within a matter of two minutes.
Barely a minute passed, and both Gundams stopped their barrage of attacks. Before them lies carnage of immobilised mobile suits, destroyed trucks and mobile artillery units, and retreating soldiers. Some have even abandoned their mobile suits and have resorted to running on foot, escaping the battle zone.
"I'm getting out of here; I'm getting out of here!"
"Someone, get the medical teams, now. We've got many wounded!"
"What the hell just happened?!"
Those were the words that can be heard from above. "This is La Flaga. Phase one of the mission is completed. Buster and Impulse, heading for the rendezvous point."
"That was intense... And I've not even utilised all of the Blast Silhouette's weapons."
Meanwhile, less than a mile away, the other two Gundams were carrying out their mission.
~ Research and Development Laboratory, PMC Trust ~
Both Gundams landed in front of a complex of buildings. Fortunately for them, the target buildings were unguarded as PMC's mobile suit forces had been annihilated by La Flaga and Dearka.
"Duel, Blitz, target building located. Commencing with the second phase of the mission."
Duel simply used its 5-Barrel GN Missile Pod, and launched GN Missiles on its targets. Blitz used its GN Lancer Darts which penetrated the building walls, and detonated upon impact. Less than thirty seconds and the second phase of the mission had been completed.
"Blitz, Duel, target building destroyed. Moving to rendezvous point to continue with the third phase of the mission."
Yzak wasn't satisfied with these types of missions. It made him feel under-used, his skills not utilised fully.
"Veda should've given me a better mission than this..."
~ Rendezvous Point, Local AEU Military Garrison ~
The Main Headquarters building is in chaos. None had expected Celestial Being to intervene this early on. In a secured strategic-planning facility underground, AEU military strategists are trying to come up with a plan to deal with the Gundams.
One man remarked confidently, "How about we concentrate all our forces on protecting this Headquarters? Surely Celestial Being's four Gundams are not able to launch a successful assault against over a hundred mobile suits. It would simply be a suicidal mission."
Another disagreed. "Wrong, sir. They've got multiple mobile suit capabilities. From the raw video data that PMC Trust sent us, one of the Gundams are equipped for long-ranged missions, another two has an arsenal of weapons imitating a battleship. It would be wrong for us to assume that we can overwhelm them with our technologically inferior mobile suits, even if they are superior in numbers."
One of his colleagues supported his statement, "Plus, the Gundams have abilities that surpass all mass-produced mobile suits. They have amazing agility, higher firepower and a limitless source of energy thanks to that unknown Gundam technology."
"We should call for reinforcements from other bases. Although the Gundams have a limitless source of energy, I am sure the pilots don't. We can easily keep them at bay while at the same time tiring the pilots, till it reaches a point where the Gundam pilots are unable to continue with their 'crusade'. And when that happens, it is our chance to counter-attack and capture at least one of those wretched mobile suits."
Before they could continue with their discussions, they were interrupted by loud alarms being sounded from the mobile suit hangars. A soldier reported, "Three mobile suits approaching! Based on the features, all of them are Gundams!"
"Scramble the mobile suit teams, all of them!"
Multiple mobile suit squadrons were being mobilised. However, before they could launch a counter-attack, three of their suits were destroyed in one shot, from a distance.
Buster stayed behind apparently, sniping the mobile suits from afar. "Commencing last phase of the mission."
However, this did not deter the rest of them. More mobile suits came out. But they were proven no match for the Gundams.
The remaining three Gundams engaged the rest of the enemy mobile suits, with covering fire from Buster. "Blast Impulse, La Flaga, destroying enemy mobile suits." Switching to close-combat, Blast Impulse took out two of its Defiant Beam Javelin and threw it towards a row of mobile suits, penetrating three units for each Javelin. Switching back to its ranged combat weapons system, Blast Impulse launched its remaining GN Guided Missiles and delivered a large beam blast from its Beam Cannon, both attacks rendered a quarter of the enemy's mobile suits immobilised.
The other two did a fine job in eliminating the remaining units. Having used its GN Lancer Darts earlier, the Blitz switched to its GN Beam Saber. Dodging enemy shots, it moved swiftly towards enemy lines and sliced each mobile suit in its way. Head, hands, legs, upper torso, lower torso, whatever parts it may be, the Beam Saber hit each mobile suit with a deadly impact. A Hellion attempted a surprise attack on the Blitz from behind, but it was a foolish attempt. Evading the shot from behind, the Blitz retaliated with three direct, accurate shots from its GN Beam Rifle, destroying the enemy mobile suit.
Yzak used every single weapon equipped on the Duel. He launched all remaining GN Missiles, while firing multiple shots from its GN Beam Rifle, Shiva railgun and CIWS, at the same time, throwing its Beam Saber at an incoming enemy unit, slicing it in half. Much of the enemy mobile suits were not spared of Yzak's attacks. A mobile suit attempting to flee had half of its body destroyed by two of the many GN Missiles launched. Enemy units attempting to even get near the Duel were obliterated.
Nicol and La Flaga were impressed by the Duel's performance.
"This kid..."
From afar, the Buster simply provided covering fire which wasn't even done seriously. Dearka knew the three of them could handle things on their own. Complaining in his cockpit, he was annoyed at Yzak, "Come on now Yzak, if you take out half of the enemy's mobile suits, what am I supposed to do?"
But Dearka saw an opening, when one mobile suit was fleeing the scene, heading straight towards the Buster's location. "This will be easy." Aiming carefully, taking a deep breath, as if preparing to fire from an actual Sniper rifle. Two shots were fired from the Buster's GN HILR Sniper Rifle. One penetrated the enemy's upper torso, and the other hit its left leg, causing the unit to blow up.
Fifteen minutes passed. All enemy mobile suits had been neutralised. Now, the Meisters simply waited for the enemy's response.
Within the underground planning facility, AEU military personnel were stunned, shocked. Every single one of their mobile suits was destroyed, and just within fifteen minutes.
"Within fifteen minutes...?"
"This is impossible."
"This isn't war, this is a one-sided massacre!"
"Our entire mobile suit force..."
The AEU strategists could barely comprehend what had just happened. There was utter silence among them. None dared to speak. They were defeated. And they knew it. One man shattered the silence, speaking out, regrettably, "We will have to surrender."
Shooting a white flare, that was confirmation for the Meisters of the enemy's surrender.
"La Flaga, Blast Impulse, mission accomplished."
With that, the Gundams all left the area for Celestial Being's secret hide out.
Three hours later...
~ Briefing Room, Ptolemaois ~
The four Meisters along with much of the crew were observing the video recording of Archangel's Gundam Meisters. Their first mission impressed most of them.
Lockon was the first to voice out his thoughts, "Really? Our engineers created another Gundam with accurate sniping capabilities? Buster... Huh, guess I have a competitor now, right Haro?"
The Orange Haro simply bounced around, "Competitor! Competitor!"
Sumeragi was the second to comment, "As expected of Archangel's Murrue Ramius, the strategy employed was a total annihilation of enemy forces, sending warnings to both the HRL and the Union with regards to actively participating in wars. With this, the world now knows that Celestial Being has ten units of Gundams. Something which I'm sure the world powers will think of before launching itself unnecessarily into a conflict."
The rest were quiet, some were in awe of how the other Meisters performed, some others doubtful.
A day later...
The world's response to Celestial Being's third intervention was mixed. The media and tabloids seek to profit financially from Celestial Being's intervention, by actively discussing and promoting these armed interventions, creating much hype among the civilian population of most countries.
Some considered Celestial Being's actions as absurd, borderline crazy in fact. Most leaders and politicians have condemned Celestial being for representing the biggest hypocrisy mankind has seen; seeking to eradicate war, through war. They have managed to rouse anti-Celestial Being sentiments, using it as a political tool to win power. However, Celestial Being shall not let itself be used and taken advantage of. Unbeknownst to many in power as well as their military counterparts, Celestial Being has powerful backers, financial contributors and supporters. It has a large network of intelligence gathering, more organised and better informed compared to the national intelligence of the three power blocs. And Celestial Being shall use these tools, if necessary, as part of its aim to eradicate war.
~ HRL Military HQ, Moscow, Russia, Human Reform League ~
Lt. General Smirnov, sitting comfortably in his office, was analysing the battle plans employed by Celestial Being in its latest armed intervention, AEU's Republic of Moralia as well as its economy which is highly dependent on PMC Trust, a private military contractor.
Smirnov pondered to himself, "With this latest intervention, the number of Gundams employed by Celestial Being is now ten, and still, it is unknown whether they have more units. Two appeared during the AEU's presentation of its new Enact mobile suit, another two appeared at Pillar of Heaven, thwarting a major terrorist attack. When the declaration by Aeolia Schenberg was made, the world thought Celestial Being possessed only four of those machines. Apparently not. Two new Gundams appeared in Azadistan and Kurdistan, intervening in the local conflict which has ravaged the region for nearly a hundred years. And finally, to add it all up, four newer units have appeared.
Based on the intelligence report we have received from our agents in Moralia, Celestial Being wanted to sever a source of conflict, private military contractors. Moralia's economy is highly dependent on military transactions, and most of its civilian corporations are in fact owned by the most influential and powerful military contractor in Moralia, PMC Trust. By doing so, they are effectively warning other countries that active participation, directly or indirectly, in wars shall not be tolerated and those who do so shall be the target of armed intervention. Be it individuals, corporations, or governments, whomever participates in activities of war shall be a target of Celestial Being.
During its intervention in Moralia, Celestial Being utilised four new Gundams. Although our intelligence report with regards to these new units is unclear and unverified, it is our only source of information. Neither the Union nor the AEU are that friendly in sharing intelligence with us. Now, based on that report, these four new Gundams are of different types..."
A beep from the intercom interrupted his thoughts. "Sir, it's the representatives from the Unitary Assembly. They would like to have a word with you."
"Send them in."
Three individuals entered the rather large and decorated office. The Lt. General gave a salute.
"Lt. General Smirnov, I am Aleksandr Andropov, Unitary Representative for Russia."
His colleagues introduced themselves as well, starting with the only female in the group, "Liu Li Hua, Member of the Unitary Assembly for China. Pleased to meet you."
Another man simply nodded in acknowledgement, "Dae Kim-Hyu, Unitary Representative for Korea."
"Please, have a seat Representatives."
The Russian was first to speak, "Lt. General, we're here to question you on your understanding of Celestial Being. Members of the Assembly are very anxious as to how our military is able to counter the threat of Celestial Being's armed interventions. We're here to ask for your opinion, veteran of the 4th Solar Wars, Wild Bear of Russia."
"From what I have observed, no country on Earth, be it us, or the Union, or the AEU, are able to counter Celestial Being, technologically that is. Celestial Being possesses mobile suit technology which is far superior compared to any of the mobile suits possessed by countries on Earth. Our Tieren units are no match for the Gundam's superior performance. And it's been proven that even the AEU's latest solar-powered mobile suit, the Enact, could not match the Gundams. However, there is a way of countering Celestial Being..."
The room was filled with silence as the representatives waited for Smirnov to continue.
"Capturing one of those machines."
"In doing so, we are able to analyse the various technology employed by Celestial Being in designing the Gundams. And furthermore, this can then be used to upgrade and enhance our fleet of mobile suits with Gundam technology."
One of the representatives questioned him further, "Lt. General, fighting them and surviving is already near impossible. But attempting to capture such a machine? That's a suicidal mission!"
Smirnov smiled, and answered confidently, "With the right tactics, we can."
They were speechless. Smirnov was, and still is a capable strategist. And as a veteran of the 4th Solar Wars, he knows very well the various tactics and strategies employed in battle.
~ Mobile Suit Warehouse and Development (MSWAD), Tokyo, Special Economic Jurisdiction, Japan ~
The Special Economic Jurisdiction of Japan is the only Union member state within proximity of the Human Reform League. The status given to Japan, as a Special Economic Jurisdiction, allows itself to conduct trade and business with member states from the HRL, the AEU or any other state without compromising its own position as a Union member state. As a result, Japan is capable of signing trade agreements as well as holding business negotiations which other Union member states are otherwise unable to.
Within the small but well-equipped Union military base in Tokyo, lies one of the most important components of the Union military, Tokyo's branch of MSWAD, responsible for the research and development of mobile suit technology for the Union military. A base filled with at least a hundred military personnel, mostly scientists and engineers, it is the most guarded Union base in Japan. With a constant military patrol, the Union military's standardised Flag mobile suit can be seen moving around the base.
In one of the warehouse, ten men were being rounded up for a briefing. A blonde man came up to address them. With a salute, silence filled the air. The blonde spoke up, "I am Graham Aker, your captain. You have all been chosen from various parts of the military to be part of the Anti-Gundam Investigative Squad, or more officially known as the United States of America 8th Independent Tactical Fighter Squadron. Our duty, as stated in our name, would be to conduct operations against Celestial Being. Everyone here will be assigned to a Customised version of our military's Flag mobile suit, known as Over Flag. For those who do not know, its official mobile suit designation is SVMS-01O Over Flag. Those who have questions with regards to mobile suits should see my colleagues, Professor Katagiri and Professor Ralph Eifman. Both of them will be in charge of mobile suit technology for the 8th Independent. You are dismissed."
And with that, Graham Aker left the briefing.
~ Wang Estate, Beijing, China, Human Reform League ~
A large compound consisting of a mansion, a large field as well as an underground facility, that is the Wang Estate. Headed by the young and beautiful Wang Liu Mei, who is also an Agent of Celestial Being, it is often visited by other agents of Celestial Being. A young wealthy socialite, she is able to move around and gather information without attracting much suspicion from the authorities, making her an invaluable asset to Celestial Being.
Within the large mansion, decorations of grandeur showed the extent of her wealth. Paintings worth millions were on display, various statues of deceased members of the family were erected in memory of their contributions made during their lifetime.
Behind closed doors however, meetings were held, with agents, backers and observers of Celestial Being. Currently, the young heiress was in discussions with two other people, a blonde female and long, red-haired man.
The red-haired man curiously asked, "So, Wang Liu Mei, why have you convened this meeting?"
Nodding towards both individuals, she explained the reasons, "Alejandro Corner, Cagalli Yula Athha, I'm sure both of you are aware of our recent intervention in Moralia. We have received multiple reports from our agents placed within the AEU government that they are planning on orchestrating a military exercise. This exercise will involve the AEU member states of Ireland, Britain and France. However, the real purpose of this military exercise is in fact to capture one of the Gundams. We have received similar reports from our agents in Union and HRL territories. All three power blocs are planning on capturing at least one of the Gundams. They have started preliminary talks with regards to holding a co-ordinated military exercise with all three blocs participating."
Sipping a cup of coffee, she continued, "Although Veda has not given out mission plans to any of the Meisters or the three ships, Veda has given missions to individual agents on Earth. Various agents of Celestial Being, including the three of us, are to infiltrate the military of all thee blocs and launch a campaign of misinformation."
Alejandro was smiling by now, "A campaign of misinformation?"
"Yes, a campaign of misinformation. We shall interact with high ranking officials of the three militaries and spread false information with regards to Celestial Being."
"With all due respect, Wang Liu Mei, I am simply an Observer of Celestial Being, not an Agent."
"Well, Mr. Corner, you should rejoice. Veda has decided to change your designation to an Agent."
"Very well, what are the specifics of this mission?"
Before Liu Mei could answer, the other agent, Cagalli, interrupted, "Hold on. Veda is giving us a mission? As far as I'm concerned, missions are carried out by the Meisters and their respective ships. Why are we involved?"
With a serious tone, Liu Mei answered her question, "We are in a position to conduct missions without attracting much suspicion. Alejandro is an Ambassador for the United Nations. You, Cagalli, are part of the Union Trade Delegation. And I'm a wealthy socialite, interacting with various men in power here in the HRL. Our positions allow us to conduct these missions perfectly. Surveillance, information gathering, counter-intelligence, that is what we do. We, Agents of Celestial Being."
"Well then. Have the information sent to my assistant, Ribbons Almark."
Looking at his watch briefly, he gave a smile to the two women and excused himself, "I need to get moving. After all, a UN Ambassador has a tight schedule."
With that, he exited the room and headed out of the mansion.
The two young women were still there however. "Cagalli, your mission is simple. All three power blocs are still trying to find out who is financing Celestial Being's activities. Your mission is to spread false information with regards to this. As a diplomat with the Union Trade Delegation, you are able to interact with many high level Union officials. Your mission will require you to convince Union officials that certain individuals, corporations and smaller countries are in fact backers of Celestial Being. Naturally, this is false. In doing so, this will avert their attention from investigating people with true links to Celestial Being, thus securing our widespread networks."
Cagalli seemed to gaze off into the distance once Liu Mei had finished her sentence, "For the eradication of war..."
This the fourth chapter. Hopefully you guys like it. Reviews are welcomed. If you like it, please keep on following the story and favourite it. Constructive criticism is much welcomed. Thanks for reading! Any questions, please don't hesitate to send me a message ^^