The peaceful sleep was cut short however when the ship's alarm went off early in the morning.
"Oh for crying out loud" Garret groaned as he climbed out of bed. He and Victoria quickly proceeded to the hanger in their pilot suits where Marcel was already boarding the Rebound. As Garret climbed into the Paladin, Captain Phillips appeared on his screen.
"There is a force of fifteen Purity suits attack this PLANT. You three will be the only ones going out since the Saviour and Calamity are currently under modification" he explained.
"Roger that" Garret spoke as he was loaded onto the catapult. "This is Garret Kross in the Paladin Gundam, taking to the skies!" he called as he shot out. Marcel was loaded on next. He watched as the Gundam was equipped. One of the two beam rifles went into his right hand while the suit's massive shield engulfed the whole left arm, hanging over both his hand and shoulder. The second beam rifle was put on the right side of the waist and the pistol on the left.
"Marcel North, Rebound Gundam, let's blow 'em away!" he called as the purple and red suit went out to follow the Paladin. The Perfect Strike was the last to be placed on the catapult.
"Victoria, this Strike is equipped with a nuclear engine so you won't have to worry about running out of power" Richard informed the girl.
"Right" She said as her equipment was loaded. "I guess I should say something new too" she thought to herself. "Victoria Mays in the Perfect Strike Gundam, taking the stage!" she called. The three Gundams left the PLANT and were instantly greeted by a rain of gunfire. Garret went to work with his Moralltachs and Victoria began attacking with her Schwert Gewehr sword.
"Let's test out this Neptunis System" Marcel said. He flicked a switch and the shield opened up, deploying thirty small, square mirrors that hovered around the Gundam. Marcel closed his eyes, took a deep breath and entered his seed mode. He kept three mirrors in front of him and the rest flew off into the battlefield. He lined up the three mirrors he had kept in front of the Rebound and fired into the centre one with his rifle. He quickly targeted another of the mirrors on his monitor and watched the green beam fly out of it into an enemy suit. "Oh I like this already" he said with a grin. He continued firing, slowly getting used to the system and how to fire through multiple mirrors at once.
"Take this!" Victoria called, slicing straight through a Windam. She spun around and the blade of her sword cut through the torso of a GuAIZ. "Garret, move it!" she called out, bringing her Agni up. Garret did as he was told and the thrusters lining the edges of his wings lit up, shooting the Paladin upwards as the large red and white beam tore through a number of Purity suits. Garret quickly descended again and cut through two more with his Moralltachs.
"Three more!" Garret called, heading for three Dagger Ls. He looked up as three mirrors flew past him and then three green beams emerged from them, piercing the cockpits of each suit.
"Well, that was easy" Marcel said as all of the Neptunis mirrors returned to his shield.
"That is one impressive system. Cheap as hell, but impressive" Garret commented, sheathing the Paladin's Moralltachs.
"I think I've got the basics down. It shouldn't be too hard learning to multitask with it" Marcel commented as the three pilots headed back inside the PLANT to the Ceres. Once they returned to the bridge they found Aston and Hilde there too.
"What's going on?" Garret asked as they walked up to the other two pilots. Aston raised a hand to silence him. Garret quickly saw why. Captain Phillips was in a conversation with a brown haired young man in a white ZAFT uniform.
"So that's the situation. I need the Ceres at the head of the ZAFT fleet that will be attacking the Purity fleet" the young man spoke, his purple eyes staring out the main window for the bridge. "Once we break through their defences, I'd like the Ceres and two other ships to lead the assault on the Crucifix" he continued.
"Yes, that seems like a valid plan, I can agree with that. I will have the Paladin and Rebound focus on finding and eliminating the Tyranny first and foremost. That mobile suit is a threat that must be dealt with as quickly as possible" Richard said. The ZAFT soldier nodded in agreement.
"Yes, that is true. I've seen the reports about that suit and I can tell that the Tyranny is definitely superior to the original Freedom" he spoke.
"Well I guess you would know that one personally, Kira Yamato" Richard said, looking into the eyes of the young man. The eyes of Garret, Marcel and Victoria all went wide when they heard the name.
"You're really the hero of the first Bloody Valentine War, Kira Yamato?" Garret asked, stepping forward.
"I don't know if I'd really say hero, but yes I am Kira Yamato. May I ask your name?" Kira asked in return.
"Oh, um, my name is Garret Kross sir. I'm the pilot of the Paladin Gundam" Garret said with a salute.
"I see, so you're the pilot of the Paladin. Yzak told me about you, he said that you were quite impressive in the Duel that you used to pilot" Kira said, holding out his hand to Garret. The blonde pilot took his hand and shook it firmly.
"I appreciate Commander Joule's words sir, but I'm really nothing special" Garret said.
"You shouldn't disregard your own skill Garret. If you weren't a good pilot, Orb wouldn't have given you the Paladin" Kira pointed out and Garret nodded.
"Will you be participating in this operation too?" Garret asked.
"No, I'll be remaining in the PLANTs to protect Chairwoman Clyne and to stop any Purity forces that might get here" Kira replied. Garret nodded and stepped back into the group of his fellow pilots. "Operation Lightburst will begin two days from now at 0900, please make sure you are ready" the brown haired young man spoke. As Kira rose, every person on the bridge rose and salute until he disappeared from view.
"So that was Kira Yamato…" Garret said as he watched him leave.
"So what's the plan Captain Phillips?" Marcel asked, looking at the black uniformed man.
"Essentially, we're leading the ZAFT fleet. We'll be at the head of the formation and will charge straight through Purity's defences. Once the other ships engage Purity's mobile suits and ships, we will launch an all-out attack on the Purity dreadnaught, the Crucifix. It is believed the Tyranny will be on board that ship so as soon as it appears, the Paladin and Rebound are to engage and destroy it. We're not entirely sure what it will take to destroy the Crucifix, nor do we know its combat capabilities so we have to be careful" Richard explained. "Orb and the Earth Forces will also be sending forces to assist in the fight but we're not entirely sure when they arrive. If they are not at the battle zone when we arrive, instead of going straight for the Crucifix, we are to assist in attacking the more minor ships" he continued.
"What about my Saviour and Aston's Calamity?" Hilde asked.
"I have been assured by Chief Engineer Farris that our Gundams will have their modifications completed tonight so they will be in perfect working order" Aston replied.
"I want all of you well rested and fully prepared for anything Alastair throws at us during this operation. Dismissed" Richard spoke. The pilots saluted and left the bridge, gathering in the briefing room.
"So in two days, the final battle of this war is going to begin" Marcel said, sitting down in one of the many seats.
"Yeah, seems that way. It seems like forever since we attacked that first Purity transport on our way to Earth" Garret said, remembering the fight himself, Marcel and Lucian had participated in when they had still been on board the Bayonet.
"I always thought I'd be on the other side of this fight. I never pictured myself siding with ZAFT and fighting the man who saved my life" Hilde said. "But I don't regret it, I know I'm on the right side now" she said with a smile.
"I don't think any of us ever thought we'd be doing anything like this when we first got into our mobile suits" Victoria said, toying with her ring. Everyone's attention was drawn to Aston who approached the podium at the front of the room.
"I know I'm not really one for speeches but I think this situation calls for one. Victoria and Marcel, I met the two of you when we all boarded the Bayonet for the first time. Back then Marcel was a timid little boy flying a ZAKU Warrior and Victoria was our always reliable comm. girl on the bridge" Aston said with a smile. "Hilde, the others all encountered you personally on the battlefield but the first time I ever met you was in the medical bay of this ship, wrapped in bandages. Then there's Garret, I first met you just after you graduated from the academy and you were just a beginner pilot constantly getting lectured by me and Cecil" he continued.
"Yeah, and now I could kick your butt six ways to Sunday" Garret remarked.
"Be quiet and let me finish my moving speech" Aston said threateningly. "It took me a while to get to know each of you personally, but now I feel that there is nobody else I would rather have at my side for the final battle we are approaching. You have all grown a lot since I met you all and each one of you have become amazing pilots. I hate to admit it but I know my skills have been outclassed by some of you, but I'd like to think that's because of my guiding hand" he said, gazing mostly at Garret and Marcel. "I know the task before us is a daunting one, but I know that each of you will return safely and with victory in your hands" Aston concluded with a proud smile on his face.
"That was really nice Commander" Victoria said with a smile and a tear in her eye.
"I'm happy I met all of you as well and like Aston, I'm proud to be fighting beside you for this" Hilde said, looking between everyone.
"Whatever happens out there, as long as we stick together, there's nothing those Purity bastards can do to stop us" Marcel said, putting his fist into the air.
"We're one hell of a team, and they won't stop us" Garret said. He held his hand out palm down and each of the others added their own hands too. "In two days time, we'll go out there, kick some Purity ass and put an end to this war" Garret spoke, looking between everyone. They all threw up their hands and cheered. The war was finally coming to a close…