Mobile Suit Gundam Alpha Chapter IX: Garma Strikes, a gundam uc fanfic

"Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid of battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood."
- George S. Patton

Chapter IX: Garma Strikes

Federation Lexington-class fleetcarrier Ark Royal
Deep Space
July 25, GC 379

Bright glowered as he watched the Zeon taskforce revert to realspace, their green hulls easily distinguished against the blackness of space. One after another, the green ships emerged from warp, their numbers growing with each passing second. For a time, Bright wondered if the entirety of Zeon's naval forces would be pursuing them through this end of space. Nothing would have surprised him at this point. "Enemy composition?"

Working from his sensor station, Omar quickly read over the resultant data. "Two Rewloola-class battlecruisers and six Musaka-class cruisers," he reported, trying to keep his voice from trembling as he gave said report. As professional as he was, it was quite difficult to keep one's control when it seemed like all of creation were about to collapse.

Especially when upon reading a certain segment. "Captain," Omar looked up, dread evident within his eyes. "One of them is the Ralmel."

Upon his declaration, the main monitor flashed and focused upon a certain Rewloola at the front of the formation. One that held an all too familiar crimson hull.

Glower deepening even further, Bright's eyes bored toward that particular ship. "Aznable," he let out, as if the very word were a curse. He should have known the Red Comet would be making another appearance; to finish what he had started at Arcturus. "Bridge to Engineering, do we have an estimate on the warp drive yet?"

The muffled voice of Mora Boscht answered. "Approximately one hour Captain!" the chief engineer replied from the other end. "The damage isn't as bad as it could have been, but it will still take time to repair and recalibrate!"

Again Bright glowered while the crew looked on in even greater horror. As Mora had alluded to, one hour wasn't as much as it could have been - in fact, it was much better than more extensive repair or the warp drive being knocked out entirely - but it would still too long with an entire Zeon fleet hounding them. And then there was the all likely possibility that additional damage would amount as the battle progressed, increasing the workload even more.

This could very well be our last stand. Bright thought as he felt a hand of ice embrace his heart. That possibility too seemed all too likely; the Ark Royal, for all of her power, was deep within an isolated part of space - too far out for reinforcements - while the Zeon, who were likely being commanded by flag officer given its numbers and composition, could attack them from virtually any vector. And while Bright knew his ship would last some time, perhaps long enough to get the warp drive working again, the Ark Royal would eventually fall like so many of her elder sisters to the Zeon onslaught.

Bright shook his head. He couldn't think like that; no matter how desperate the situation, he had to focus and find a way to get the ship out, just as he had at Arcturus. And that way was obvious: hold out until the warp drive was brought back online and then, as Sleggar usually put it, haul ass toward the nearest basin. Yes the nearest basin was nowhere close to them, but they at least had to try. And who knows, perhaps they could get close enough to alert any nearby patrols for reinforcements.

Or perhaps Earth has already figured out our situation and is deploying reinforcements as we speak. Bright thought, before shaking his head admonishingly. Right, that's about as likely as Emperor Gihren having a liking toward kittens and rainbows.

"All ahead full!" he commanded to the helm, with Katz immediately working to carry out the order. "Come to new course: one-four-seven, mark five-six-nine!"

"New course one-four-seven, mark five-six-nine aye!" Katz replied as he brought the Ark Royal into a hard turn, which brought her away from the advancing Zeon fleet. If they could keep away just long enough, they may yet survive this.

"Status on weapons systems?" Mirai called out from her seat as well.

"All weapons our online!" Omar called out from his station. "Cannons and phalanx are charged, missile launchers are loaded!"

"Shrike Leader reports his mobile suits are all manned and ready for launch!" Kikka called out as soon as she received the word.

Bright subconsciously nodded, then turned back toward the advancing Zeon armada. He then recalled a certain adage from Earth's distant past; one that had likely been repeated by every military commander facing his situation.

"Fortuna Audaces Iuvat," he muttered under his breath, just loud enough that only he could hear it. "Fortune favors the bold."

With that, he gave the awaited orders. "Launch mobile suits!" he nearly shouted, causing the bridge to nearly double in its activity. "Stand by for anti-ship and anti-mobile suit combat!"

"Garma Zabi, Zaku, launch!" Garma called out with certain zeal. Upon that signal, his personalized Zaku went shooting down the catapult before being flung into space, at which point the young Admiral engaged his thrusters and moved into his proper place within the Zeon formation. Garma couldn't help but smile as he did; it had been a long time since he had gone into battle like this. More so in a mobile suit.

Inhaling slowly and deeply as he accelerated through space, Garma couldn't help but savor the moment. It had been a long time, too long in fact, since he had embarked on a hunt. Among the various unwanted responsibilities it entailed, one of the worst effects his promotion had inflicted was taking him out of the cockpit and placing him behind a desk, forcing him to direct the Second Fleet from relative safety rather than take part in any direct combat. Only on few occasions could he find some excuse to take part in a battle, in which case he was usually forced to remain behind on his flagship Reugen and observe rather than engage in them.

This had chafed against the young Zabi to no end; he was a mobile suit pilot and an ace, not a rear-echelon bureaucrat. His place was in the heat of the battle, leading troops from the front in the manner expected of his breed - as Dozle and Kycilia both exemplified - not within some bunker or command post watching it all play out. Unfortunately however, he was the youngest of his family, he held neither the influence nor force of will of his elder siblings and, worst of all, he was still living in the shadow of Sasro's death. As a result, he could not get away with the "frontline inspections" that the former two usually engaged in without upsetting his handlers. Or, even worse, upsetting his eldest brother, who had all but barred Garma from frontline combat entirely.

Now, however, things were different. Now Zeon was facing an enemy that could not easily be dismissed, an enemy that had even outmaneuvered even the great Admiral Delaz. Thus, Garma had "no choice" but to take part in the battle as well; his forces would need all the skilled pilots they could utilize against this particular enemy. And there were very few more skillful than he.

Moments into his flight, Garma watched as additional Zakus maneuvered around him, joining together in an attack formation, with one in particular moving closer than the others. Its crimson form standing out like a single red star amongst the abundance of green, Char's Zaku maneuvered beside him, causing Garma's smile to grow even further. He couldn't remember the last time he had fought alongside the Red Comet, his presence beside him only invigorating Garma that much further. It really was like old times, before he had been saddled with that damned promotion.

With that in mind, Garma had his monitor zoom upon their distant target, which had altered course away from its pursuers, attempting to make a run for it. Having never before laid eyes upon a Lexington, he saw that the Earth ship really was as big as the stories had claimed it. Nowhere near as big as the Imperial flagship Gwadan, but still pretty damned big. And much more, she had the firepower to match, as Garma watched magenta colored beams launch from her stern turrets toward the ships behind him, who only responded in kind with their own yellow beams.

"This will be quite the challenge Rote One," Garma spoke over a private comm. line to Char, whose Zaku's mono-eye shifted in response. "Even if we dismissed her mobile suit compliment, it will take more than a bit of effort to bring her down."

"Most assuredly Dopp One," Char replied, his masked visage appearing in the corner of Garma's monitor as he did. "It was no fluke that she survived Arcturus. Or Juno."

Garma nodded. "Worth a Zeon Cross indeed," he commented. "And my sister's respect alongside..."

His sensors soon beeped again. The enemy mobile suit force, spearheaded by the three Project V units, had launched and were now closing in. At that, Garma focused on the aforementioned trio, committing their respective forms to his memory. They were indeed as outwardly menacing as the battle footage had shown, their golden eyes seemingly glaring back at the approaching Zeon while their slenderized frames moved through space in a manner Garma had never seen before in a mobile suit. The differing colors and ace marks on their respective left shoulders only emphasized the danger around them.

Garma only smiled at this, his anticipation growing that much further. Indeed, this will be a good fight. he thought, before toggling his fleet's broadband. "All units, this is Admiral Garma," he began in the most 'Admirally' manner he could muster. "Our primary objective remains the Trojan Horse. Once she is taken out, the surviving Feddies will falter before us."

He spared a glance toward the charging Guncannons, who, compared to the ship and Project V units, were ultimately beneath his attention. "The enemy mobile suits are of secondary concern, but remain aware of the frontrunners," he continued, shifting his mono-eye over the three prototypes, taking in as much detail as he could gain. "Do not underestimate them."

Hearing that, the mono-eye of Char's unit shifted forward, narrowing upon its opposite red number. Garma did well to notice this; it seemed the Red Comet's heart really was set on that particular unit, much to the young Zabi's intrigue. What exactly was the score his old friend had to settle with the Valkyrie?

In spite of his curiosity, that question could wait until the battle's end, perhaps during the interrogation session Garma had planned for the soon to be captured Valkyrie. Thus pushing such inquiries aside, Garma focused forward, before calling out in his best 'command' voice. "Advance!"

Mono-eye flaring, Garma put his Zaku into full burn, sending it barreling through space. Char's unit was quick to follow, breaking away and moving at full speed itself, as were the other units. The battle was on at last.

Sleggar grimaced as he watched the incoming Zakus break to full burn. Already he could tell this would be a tough fight; not only did the Zeon outnumber them, but they also had at least one ace in their lineup, and that was assuming that they didn't have any further reinforcements coming in from warp. All the while he only had four squadrons around him, only three mobile suits that could outpace the Zaku among them, and absolutely no hope of reinforcements coming from their side.

Still, Sleggar supposed it wasn't as bad as it could have been. For all the Guncannon's weaknesses, he was sure his pilots, experienced as they were from Juno and prior battles, would hold out well against the Zeon, while the Ark Royal herself had endured far worse at Arcturus. And of course, there was also the fact that he held two Newtypes on his end, both aces themselves and piloting units designed to function with their powers. Overall, as much as the Zeeks were undoubtedly assured of their victory, they would pay dearly for it with their blood no matter the outcome.

This was only emphasized further when the Ark Royal's beams struck one of the enemy Musakas, causing it to erupt in a great fireball. Sleggar smirked against the glare of the explosion; first blood was theirs. He quickly toggled the group wide broadband. "Shrike Leader to all units," he began as he lined his target reticule on one of the Zakus. "You know the drill people: shoot anything that has a mono-eye. We need to keep the Zeeks bogged down for at least an hour; the ship should have her warp drive back up by then."

"Shrike Four to Lead, one of the Zeeks is breaking away from the others," Shiro spoke up over the commlink, looking over his sensor screen as he did. Upon zooming his monitor toward the approaching Zaku, the Commander's blood ran cold. "It's Aznable!"

Eyes narrowing, Sleggar had his own monitor zoom in on the aforementioned Zaku, which was indeed moving out from the rest of the formation. Even in the distance, its blood red armor greatly stood out amongst the field of green, living up to its pilot's epithet all too well as it blazed across space. Sleggar grit his teeth at the image, remembering the Red Comet's performance at Antillia with apprehension.

"Shrike Two, moving to intercept," Sayla interjected, before breaking away with Unit Gamma.

"Wait, Sayla!" Sleggar called out to her, but to no avail. In a near instant, the crimson Gundam went to full burn itself and launched toward its target's vector, moving too far for Sleggar to recall. And even if he did actually try, something inside just knew that the order would be ignored, and that Unit Gamma's communication system would be conveniently malfunctioning.

Damn it. Sleggar thought apprehensively, feeling an all too familiar nagging feeling as memories of his subordinate's own performance at Antillia and her all too direct attempts to engage Aznable at X-145 played out in the back of his mind. There was more there, he just knew it. However, in light of the present circumstances, the Commander chose to put that aside for the time being, focusing back on the battle instead. Besides, personal feelings aside, Sayla really was the best option - outside himself or Amuro - for keeping the Comet occupied.

It wasn't long before his target reticule, which had fallen upon one of the frontline Zakus, turned red. Here we go. "All units engage!" Sleggar commanded as he depressed the trigger, striking and obliterating a Zaku straight on.

Once again the superior range of the Federation suits, as well as the superior marksmanship of their pilots, worked to the defenders' advantage as the two Gundams and the numerous Guncannons let loose their respective weapons. Several Zakus exploded under the opening barrage, while several more took considerable damage before the order to evade was given. At that, the Zeon suits' legendary mobility took over, allowing the bulk of the Zeon formation to move around the magenta fire and close the distance, the two formations interlining and converging upon one another. All while the capital ships converged and exchanged fire of their own.

Now under fire himself, Sleggar gunned Unit Beta's thrusters and shot through the incoming beam fire, all the while returning it with his hyper beam rifle. Already several Zakus were targeting him, raining additional shots at his direction, but Sleggar dodged them with ease. In return, he fired off beam shots of his own, destroying two Zakus up front and beheading another, which he promptly finished with a vulcan burst as he passed. Another Zaku then attempted to swing around and shoot him in the back, but Sleggar easily twisted his Gundam around and fired off a snapshot, scoring a direct hit through the cockpit and obliterating the suit in turn.

His sensors then beep a warning as another Zaku, brandishing its beam axe, charged at him from the side. At that, Sleggar engaged his left beam shield and deflected the blow, then jammed his rifle barrel into the enemy suit's torso and fired point-blank. Then jetting away before the unit exploded, Sleggar twisted around and fired another shot, striking another passing Zaku, one that was attempting to bare down on one of Gauntlet Squadron's Guncannons, in the side and causing it to detonate as well. The ace then jetted away as another team of Zakus came after him, machine guns blazing, giving chase as the Eagle ascended.

Executing a line of banks and evasions, Sleggar maneuvered around the trio's fire, then twisting to snipe one of the Zakus straight on. This only angered its compatriots, who intensified their attacks, complimenting their machine gun fire with their missiles. However, Sleggar remained untouched, moving around the beams still and shooting down the missiles with his vulcans, then firing off another rifle shot that struck the second Zaku in the lineup, instantly destroying it.

That left the team leader, who, obviously in a fit of rage, gunned his thrusters while maintaining his barrage. Taking clear advantage of his enemy's error, Sleggar cut his velocity and reversed, allowing the Zaku to overshoot right under him. Another pinpoint rifle shot finished off the Zeon suit, thereby allowing Sleggar to move onto other targets.

Proceeding cautiously, Sayla watched as the crimson Zaku closed the distance, its mono-eye fixed squarely upon her equally crimson Gundam. Already she could feel the all too familiar presence inside the machine, whose own power blazed within her mind like a true comet, yet retained its own temperance and caution as it approached her, clearly observing her as much as she was observing him. And though the battle wrought around them, with their respective comrades gunning for the opposite side, this barely registered to either ace, who continued closing the distance toward one another. They were all but entirely alone to themselves, with neither their eyes nor their special senses straying away from the other.

All at once, as Sayla kept her gaze on the Zeon war machine, she felt something stir inside of her; something that she hadn't felt in seven years. Emotions that had laid dormant for nearly a decade, ever since she had lost the one being in the universe so close to her heart. For that, whatever lingering doubts she had held before, whatever uncertainty she had felt toward the pilot of that red machine being the man that she had sought for so long, were dispelled. He could be no one else; no other presence in the universe could make her feel as she did now.

Once they gained enough proximity, the two machines then launched upward and into elaborate maneuvers, swaying around space as they continued to regard each other. Knowing that they had an image to maintain however, the Zaku drew its beam axe while Sayla ignited her right beam saber, yet neither mobile suit closed on the other nor yet engaged in their inevitable duel. For a time, Sayla could only watch as the Zaku launched through space, with every maneuver it made being instinctively mirrored one of her own, all cumulating in a grand waltz of twists and turns that could only be executed by two aces. It would have been beautiful for any nearby spectators, akin to twin comets dancing through the void.

And then, in the midst of their dance, Sayla at last heard a voice in her mind. It's been a long time... the voice telepathically called out. Artesia.

At that, the waltz ended as the Zaku's mono-eye flashed in seeming aggression, an act that was mirrored by Unit Gamma's twin yellow eyes. Both mobile suits then charged at the other, bringing their respective blades down upon their opponent, clashing with seeming ferocity. All while, as they had at Antillia, the spiritual images of their pilots crossed the boundaries of space and time, appearing before the other in a multicolored field.

A long time indeed, Casval. Sayla replied with no small amount of bitterness as she glared at the crimson uniformed man before her. All while her Gundam knocked the beam axe away and moved to impale, only for its blade to be deflected by the Zaku's beam shield.

Keeping a steady, sympathetic "gaze" on the grey uniformed woman before him, Char hesitantly continued. I regret that we have to meet under these... he spoke, as his Zaku executed an overhead chop, which the Gundam parried. ...circumstances.

Sayla sneered in response, as Unit Gamma let loose its vulcans, putting the Zaku back on the evasive. So do I. she answered, as her suit brought its saber back around and charged.

As the two suits' blades clashed with the other once more, Sayla felt seven years worth of anger well up inside of her, at last reaching the boiling point. What are you doing back in Zeon, Casval!? she shouted accusingly as the two suits traded blows. Why are you in that Zaku!?

Char remained silent. As such Sayla took the initiative as their suits continued engaging one another in the physical realm. We swore! the younger sister continued to shout. We both swore to avenge our father! To rid the galaxy of that degenerate and his vile family once and for all!

Feeling her fists clench both within that space and within the physical plain, Sayla at last asked the point question. So why!? she demanded, as her Gundam raised its left gauntlet toward its opponent's head, only for the Zaku to jet backward and evade, forcing the Gundam to charge at it. Why are you supporting Gihren!?

Closing his eyes in seeming regret, Char allowed that question to remain for a time, while his Zaku launched a missile spray to dissuade the Gundam's charge. In turn, while the Gundam shot the missile down with its vulcans, the Zaku circled and then launched at the Gundam from the left, its axe ready to strike. Only a timely deflection with its right beam shield kept the Gundam from being stricken, as well as allowed it to perform a counterstrike against the Zaku.

And then Char at last spoke. I have no excuse for my actions in this war, as they do indeed support Gihren and his empire. he admitted, as the Zaku knocked away the saber and slashed at the Gundam's faceplate, barely missing as the Gundam evaded. However, I assure you dear sister...

He then allowed his usual smile, the mischievous, conspiring grin that Sayla remembered all too well, across his lips. I have not forgotten our oath. he replied, as the Zaku lunged for another attack, only to be forced away by a burst of vulcan fire.

From that smile alone, Sayla at last understood. You infiltrated. she said, her Gundam launching after the Zaku, moving to impale again. To get close to the Zabis.

Char nodded, just as his Zaku evaded the lunge. As well as to potentially sabotage their war effort. he confirmed, all the while his machine deflected the Gundam's follow up strike with its axe blade. Though I was tempted to join the Federal Forces, as you no doubt originally thought, I found this to be a more direct approach.

Sayla felt her anger recede, but only by a fraction. And not a very large one. That was our original plan! she admonished as Unit Gamma executed a full spin, the Zaku barely jetting away from its beam saber blade. We both were going to join the Earth forces and use them to avenge Father! Together!

Though he didn't miss the emphasis on the last word, Char merely shook his head. What can I say Artesia? I had my own ideas. he smoothly retorted as his Zaku deflected the following strike. And as beneficial as the Federation might have been to our plight, I believed this to be the more efficient method. he stated, just as he moved to cut the Gundam's shoulder.

Again, Sayla was quick to parry, their conversation continuing without hindrance. And yet, between the two of us. she pointed out, her Gundam glaring straight into its opponent's mono-eye. I seem to be the only one to have killed a Zabi.

Ignoring his own feelings on that, Char merely waved a hand as his Zaku returned the glare. For the moment. he replied all too darkly, before turning his gaze toward his distant target. And not a very long moment at that...

Feeling no small amount of irritation toward his present circumstances, Amuro surged over the Zakus, shooting them down one after another as he went. It seemed his reputation from Juno preceded him; more than a fair portion of the enemy mobile suits were targeting him specifically, their pilots eager to strike him down either to make a name for themselves or to avenge those lost at Juno. This in turn brought Sleggar's earlier words to mind on why he had Unit Alpha painted white in the beginning, which only served to aggravate Amuro even further. Thus, ducking under a flurry of machine gun blasts, Amuro returned fire with his beam rifle, striking down three Zakus while the rest scattered, two of which firing missiles as they went.

Glowering, Amuro launched back and swatted the missiles out of space with his vulcans, then maintaining his fire as the Zakus continued after him. One of them, apparently believing Amuro would be weaker at close-range, drew its beam axe and charged at his right. Knowing better than to try drawing his beam saber, Amuro twisted Unit Alpha around and fell back from the axe swing, then bringing up his left gauntlet to sever the Zaku's axe arm. Now weaponless, Amuro promptly fired a vulcan barrage into the Zaku's exposed cockpit and kicked the stricken suit away, allowing to explode in the distance. He then arced around and fired another beam rifle shot, taking out the Zaku's wingman as it came bearing down on him with its machine gun.

Two more Zakus came charging in after that, circling in their flight while filling the void with their machine gun fire. Raising his beam shield to deflect the initial shots, Amuro banked to the right and returned their fire, managing to strike one of the Zakus through the left shoulder but otherwise doing little damage. This only emboldened the Zaku pilots, who actually believed they had the "White Devil" cornered, causing them to put their suits to additional velocity. That was all the opportunity Amuro needed however, from which he cut his own velocity and banked left, allowing the Zakus to shoot past him. A responding snapshot blasted into the hip of the first Zaku, causing it to explode into free flying remnants, but the second was a little quicker, evading the following shot while arcing around to charge Unit Alpha again.

Snarling, Amuro drew his left beam saber and charged back, banking around the responding machine gun fire as he did. Realizing that he was not going to hit his target, the enemy pilot threw away his machine gun and moved to draw his unit's beam axe, but the Gundam was much faster than his unit. One pass later, Amuro cleaved the Zaku through the torso, both halves floating away aimlessly as the white mobile suit continued on. At that, the reluctant ace replaced the beam saber and twisted back, firing more beam shots as the remaining Zakus attempted to close in on him again. And this time he had much greater success in his attack, damaging or destroying several of their number and dissuading the others from further assault.

Or so Amuro thought for that moment, right before he felt a surge of lightning erupt in his psyche. Above!? Amuro barely managed to think before acting, launching Unit Alpha away as another burst of machine gun fire launched from above. Instinctively he brought his rifle around again and fired several countershots, but none of them struck. With an ease of motion that he had seldom seen to this point, the enemy Zaku rolled around his rifle shots while maintaining its vector, eventually coming straight over Unit Alpha. Reacting, Amuro raised his beam shield to deflect the expected axe strike or point-blank machine gun burst, but instead of any of those occurring, the Zaku reoriented itself so that its feet landed right on the shield. Then using the shield as a springboard, it jumped off and flew a fair distance before turning around to face the Gundam directly.

"So you're the infamous 'White Devil' I've heard so much about," Amuro's comlink went off, the speaker holding the metallic accent he had physically heard from Aznable before. However, as he recognized from both the voice and the Zaku itself, the speaker was nothing like the Red Comet. "Forgive me for not cowering in fear."

Command fin extending from the Zaku's head while its red mono-eye fixed squarely on the Gundam, it was obvious to Amuro that his new opponent was a commander of some sort. Alongside that, the Zaku was painted in the custom colors of an ace, in this case a deep violet tone that was discernible even within the surrounding darkness. And as if to emphasize that factor even further, a curious emblem had been placed on the Zaku's left torso: a white and purple lined escutcheon that displayed a medieval knight's helm at its center.

A purple Zaku? Amuro thought as he analyzed the unit, finding himself taken back over its image. Indeed there was something different about this Zaku and its pilot, and not just because of the outlandish color scheme that, in Amuro's opinion, no right minded individual would ever smatter a mobile suit with.

However, he didn't have time to think about it, as the enemy pilot spoke up again. "Well then, let's see if you really are a challenge." the pilot stated, red mono-eye flashing as he did. "En garde Feddie!"

With that, the Zaku launched forward, firing its machine gun as it went. Reacting quickly, Amuro raised his beam shield and returned fire, but the Zaku evaded his shots as efficiently as it had before. Sneering, Amuro disengaged his beam shield and put his thrusters to full power, maneuvering around the Zaku's attacks as well while maintaining his fire, attempting to get at least one beam in. As a result, the apparent duel turned into a full firefight, with both mobile suits launching through space as they shot at one another, trying to make at least one strike on the other while dodging or deflecting the incoming fire.

Command fin and custom colors and emblem aside, Amuro could tell that his current adversary was no average Zeek. Even as he kept firing shot after shot, the Zaku continued to execute maneuvers, neatly evading his beam fire as if the Earth pilot were firing in slow motion. In turn, the enemy took every opportunity he could to counterattack, forcing Amuro to maintain his defense as well, alternating between evading the machine gun bursts himself or deflecting them with his beam shields. It was such that, in spite of the technological gap between their two units, Amuro found himself just managing to keep up with the enemy pilot. Instead of the other way around.

"Not bad," the enemy pilot complimented as he closed in on Unit Alpha, machine gun blazing as Amuro was forced to reengage his left shield, then veering away as the Federation pilot fired back. Amuro attempted to close in turn, but the Zaku launched a spray of missiles, forced him back on the defensive. "Not bad at all."

Gritting his teeth at the "praise", Amuro triggered his vulcans, shooting down the missiles before they could close in. Unfortunately, this allowed the Zaku pilot to slip through and, in a manner not unlike Aznable at Antillia, smash its spiked shoulder pauldron against the Gundam's torso. It then followed up with another machine gun burst, one that was aimed squarely toward Unit Alpha's cockpit, but Amuro was quicker, gunning thrusters to evade while firing back with his beam rifle, forcing the Zaku to distance itself.

Amuro charged after it, using the Gundam's superior speed to overtake the Zeon suit before reaching out with his left gauntlet. However, the Zaku pilot saw it coming and brought about its own beam shield, deflecting Unit Alpha's hand, then gunning his own thrusters so that he could shield tackle the Federation suit. Momentarily dazed, Amuro just barely saw the Zaku press its feet over his suit's torso and kick off as it had with his own shield before, from which it, without altering its speed or vector, flipped around so that it could fire its machine gun again. Only Amuro's quick reflexes in bringing up both shields kept any of the shots from hitting, from which he countered with his vulcans, causing the Zaku back into evasion.

"A little unrefined, but nonetheless as skilled as he claimed," the enemy pilot went on as both suits returned to the running firefight, firing beam shot after beam shot at the other while maneuvering. The Zaku fired a machine gun burst, to which Amuro banked around and fired three shots back, with the Zaku moving around each one at great speed. "It's no wonder Delaz had so much trouble with you."

Who the hell is this guy!? Amuro thought as he kept up his fire, then going back into maneuvers as the Zaku fired another machine gun burst. He then fired a snapshot that would have taken the head off of any other Zaku, but this one easily evaded it, such that it looked the beam barely grazed its "helmet". Mono-eye flaring again in seeming response, the Zaku ignited its thrusters and closed in again, dodging Amuro's follow up shot in the process. Then, in a rather human-like motion, it flew straight up to the Gundam and smashed its head into the Federation suit's faceplate, using its free hand to hold its head in place as its mono-eye stared straight into the Gundam's twin yellow eyes.

"Indeed I haven't had this much fun in a long time," the enemy pilot spoke as he fixed his mono-eye directly into Amuro's monitor. "You alone are worth that Zeon Cross!"

Though he had no idea what the Zeon was talking about, Amuro glared back all the same. "And you're even more reckless than Aznable!" he shouted as he again triggered his vulcans, only for his shots miss wide as the Zaku abandoned its grip to lean away and shoot back into the distance. He then fired after it with his beam rifle, but the Zeon suit again banked around his shots, eventually moving upward.

"I take that as a compliment Feddie," the enemy pilot replied as he traded his machine gun for his beam axe, whose edge ignited in a bright golden hue. "Now, let's make it even more interesting!"

With that, the Zeon charged again, dodging Amuro's beam rifle fire until he got close enough to slash the hyper beam rifle in half. Glowering in response, Amuro deflected his adversary's follow up strike with his beam shield and jetted away, allowing him to dispense with the now ruined rifle and draw his right beam saber. He then brought it around as the Zaku moved over him once more, smashing it against the Zeon's axe blade...

Federation Lexington-class fleetcarrier Ark Royal
Deep Space

Bright grimaced as he saw another pair of yellow beams pass dangerously close to the bridge tower, the force of which caused a slight rumble to erupt through the edifice. Things were growing grimmer by the minute; the Zeon fleet was still behind them and growing progressively closer with each moment, while their Zakus were swarming around them, Sleggar's suits just managing to hold them back and away. The only upside, it seemed, was that the Red Comet was being sufficiently driven off by Lieutenant Mass.

Then another rumble erupted through the ship, this one a lot larger, indicating that one or more of the enemy beams had hit the mark. Bright stifled a curse as he gripped the arms of his chair, holding himself in place as the ship tremored around him. "Warp drive status?" he called out as the rumbling died down.

"Warp drive remains offline!" Katz called out from the helm, struggling to keep the ship on course with visible effort.

"Incoming missiles!" Omar called out in warning as his sensors beeped, depicting the Zeon ships launching a barrage. "Impact in thirty seconds!"

"Fire interceptors!" Mirai commanded, her own hands grasping onto the chair arms.

At that, Bright watched as the Ark Royal's missile launchers erupted, sending forty or so projectiles streaking into the void, from which they arced back and flew directly behind the ship. From there, as he watched on the main monitor, the missiles slammed into the Zeon weapons, causing a multitude of explosions across the backdrop of space. Unfortunately however, not all of the missiles were shot down, more than a handful breaking through and continuing on their flight toward the Ark Royal.

Even so, Omar remained on the ball, redirecting the Ark Royal's stern turrets and phalanx to intercept. A hailstorm of beam fire instantly filled the space behind the ship, with several more missiles ending up shot down. However, much to Bright's horror, at least two or three managed to break through the barrage and continue on to the ship. A moment later, just as he was about to shout a warning, the missiles impacted, causing the ship to tremor once again as alarm klaxons sounded from overhead.

Bright glowered disparagingly as he again road out the tremors. "Damage report!"

"Hits to stern quarter!" Ryu replied as he read over his monitor. "Armor in that section down to eighty-one percent strength!"

Mirai gritted her teeth at this. "We can't keep this up forever," she murmured to Bright, just loud enough that only he could hear her. As if to emphasize her point, the ship rocked again as another enemy shot struck home. "Especially if there are more Zeeks out there."

"I know," Bright agreed in the same voice level. "But there's only so much we can do out here in open space; we have no cover or obstruction of any kind to utilize."

"So that's it then?" Mirai asked pointedly in turn. "We just keep leading the Zeeks on this merry little chase until Mora gets the warp drive back online?"

Again the ship rumbled from another struck blow, emphasizing her the direness of her words even further. "It's our only choice," Bright replied, in a tone that showed he didn't like it any more than Mirai. "Other than turning around and going on the full offensive..."

Omar's sensors again beeped in warning. "Enemy Zaku team approaching!" he called out, just as the monitor flashed to show the incoming Zeon mobile suits. The bridge crew were quick to note that one of them was armed with a bazooka.

Bright again stifled a curse. "Redirect all fire!" he commanded. "Don't let them close in!"

At that, the Ark Royal's stern batteries turned upon the enemy mobile suit team, filling the void with beam fire as they had before. The Zakus naturally moved into evasion, dancing around the beams with the ease one expected of their suit type. At least initially; before long, one of the Ark Royal's shots struck one of the Zakus, obliterating it instantly, while its wingman ended up getting clipped on the side, losing its right arm in the process. This left it open for the follow up shot, which destroyed the Zeon suit as quickly as the first.

The last unit however, the one with the bazooka, continued its evasion as it closed in on the fleetcarrier, its pilot having been the team commander. Eventually reaching a clearing, it leveled its main weapon at the bridge tower, only for a random burst to strike the bazooka, forcing the Zaku to abandon it before it exploded. However, the pilot remained undeterred, instead drawing its beam axe and continuing on toward the tower.

You have got to be kidding! Mirai thought with astonishment as the Zaku closed in, its melee weapon ignited. "Shoot it down Omar!"

"I'm trying!" Omar replied as he worked, having switched over to manual control on the Ark Royal's weapons. By now the Zaku was over the ship, thereby allowing the midship phalanx to add their own fire to the vicinity, but the Zeon suit continued to move around it as it leveled toward its target. Even a spray of missiles did nothing more than keeping it away for a bit longer.

And then the Zeon suit descended directly in front of the bridge, its mono-eye flashing as it raised its axe for the kill. For a time, it seemed that the blade would connect, much to the bridge crew's horror. However, before it could execute its attack, a single phalanx beam launched from the side, blowing off its right leg and causing the Zaku to tumble and slam into the bridge itself, then peeling off and flailing overhead as the ship accelerated. From there, another timely beam shot obliterated it.

Better late than never. Omar thought to himself with no small amount of satisfaction, returning the guns to automatic. Just as the ship quaked yet again.

"Reload missile tubes!" Bright shouted amidst the rumbling, returning his attention to the pursuing Zeon ships. At the very least the Zeeks weren't having it easy, evidenced by one of the Musakas erupting in flame from the return fire. "Set for barrage on my mark!"

Engaging its beam shield, the Zaku was just able to angle it right as his opponent brought its beam sword down, deflecting the blow as if its life really did depend on it. At that, the Zeon suit pushed against the shield to nudge the beam blade aside, allowing it to bring its axe around for a strike, only to be intercepted by the Gundam's blade. The enemy unit then open fired with its vulcans, but the Zaku managed to bank away, from which it slashed its axe around and attempted to cut into the Federation suit's head, only for the Gundam to intercept the attack yet again. Both then exchanged attacks, with each attempting to capitalize on the other while retaining their defense, before the Gundam's last forced the Zaku to leap back and engage its thrusters, ascending away. The Gundam quickly followed in hot pursuit.

Sweat poured from Char's physical forehead and over his eyes, threatening to blur his vision as well as his mask's eyeholes. Though his soul remained in the outer realm, where it continued to communicate with his sister's, he could still the strain of his physical body as their duel went on. Artesia had truly developed into a formidable warrior; even though he had known beforehand that their fight would not be easy, he had still been caught off guard by his opponent's skill and tenacity. Not only was she keeping pace with him, but she was holding her own quite effectively, making no mistakes nor wasted movements as she brought all of her power against him, forcing him to fight with all of his in return. Char couldn't remember the last time an Earth pilot, even an ace, had challenged him this greatly, which only caused him to fill with unexpected pride. She truly was his sister. The Valkyrie of Riah.

Of course, as the Gundam at last overtook its target, its superiorities coming into play yet again, the Red Comet felt a similar level of regret as his suit twisted around, deflecting the intended sword blow with his axe. You should not have entered this war Artesia. he communicated with her as the Zaku counterattacked, forcing the Gundam back on the defensive, his words filled with remorse. You were meant for far more than this.

This only served to anger Sayla further. I am a Princess of Zeon! she "shouted" back as the Gundam stepped up its offensive, executing several slashes that kept the Zaku on edge and with little room to maneuver. A rightful heir to the House of Daikun!

Of that there is no question. Char replied as the Zeon suit parried each and every one of the attacks, then countered once more with a slash to the Gundam's torso, which forced it to leap back to evade. The Zaku then put more power into his thrusters, propelling it forward and slamming his axe blade against the opposite mobile suit's beam saber. But that doesn't mean you have to cast your life aside as well. Not when you have so much more to live for than vengeance.

Sayla was keen enough to pick on the present tenses of Char's words, causing her further ire. That life ended with our father's. she shot back, as the Gundam threw off the axe blade, slashing in return. Vengeance is all I have left!

The Gundam then triggered its vulcans again, causing the Zaku to fall back and evade. Now with some distance between them, the Federation suit circled and moved against the Zaku's left, to which Char it managed to intercept her intended attack. Char could only sigh as his suit deflected. You were going to be a doctor, remember? he continued. One who saves life instead of taking it?

The Zaku forced its axe forward, attempting to overpower the Gundam's saber. There was no reason for you to fight! Char shot back as his suit continued to struggle.

Sayla glared back in response. As I said, that life ended with our father's! she snarled, just as the Gundam threw back the axe and moved to behead the Zeon suit. And so, I am resigned to this battle!

Char could only grit his teeth in response as he felt Sayla's rage in full force. All while the Zaku ducked under the saber swipe, the blasted away as the Gundam followed up with a second attack. The Gundam pursued with impunity.

And what about you Casval? Sayla directed back as the two mobile suits flew through space, clashing their respective melee weapons against one another at different intervals. Why haven't you taken your own advice?

She continued as the Gundam smashed its saber against the Zaku's axe once more. Why have you chosen to fight, if avenging father is so meaningless?

Despite his sister's ire, Char let off a cool smirk at this. I never said avenging father was meaningless. he replied as the Zaku slashed at the Gundam, which narrowly dodged the attack. I just did not believe it required both of us.

The Zaku let off another missile spray, which the Gundam deftly evaded, even going so far as to swat one of the missiles out of the air with its saber. As opposed to one. Char went on as the Zaku closed the distance again and smashed its axe against the Gundam's beam shield.

Sayla's gaze narrowed. Is that why you left me behind? she redirected pointedly, just as the Gundam threw the axe blade aside and slashed with its saber, forcing the Zaku to raise its own beam shield. Because you thought you could take the Zabis by yourself?

Char fixed his sister a hardened yet regretful gaze. I left you behind because I wanted you to have a good life for yourself, just as our father would have wished in my place. he admonished as their mobile suits continued to trade blows. You deserve much better than this Artesia. And if I am required to sacrifice in order to ensure that life for you...

Sayla was only further angered by this. Do not play the martyr to me Casval! she countered, both verbally and in the physical realm as her Gundam nearly slashed out its opponent's mono-eye. The Zaku flew back in response, causing the two mobile suits to face each other vehemently. All I wanted, aside from seeing the Zabis dead, was to stay by your side! I believed that, whatever laid before us, we would overcome it as long as we were together!

The Gundam's eyes intensified, seemingly reflecting the fury of its pilot, as Sayla went on. It was only when you left I felt I truly lost everything! she raged on. I spent years looking for you before I ended up on Earth!

Artesia... Char tried to speak up, but Sayla wouldn't allow him.

Why Casval!? she demanded, years of anguish flowing through her soul as tears welled from her eyes. Why did you push me away!?

Sighing, Char could only close his eyes in resignation. Because... he spoke evenly, biting back the temptation to give the true answer. He then replied with all the coldness he could muster. You were not meant to be a warrior.

Reacting as though she were viciously stung, Sayla let out a bellow, her fury only intensifying. Such was its outpour that a series of energy lines to ripple across Unit Gamma's armor, while its camera eyes burned with golden light. Upon that, the Gundam again charged, forcing the Zaku to bring up its shield.

With rising ire, Amuro brought his left gauntlet down, only for his adversary to bank away before it could grasp. He was then forced to bring his saber back about to deflect the Zaku's axe attacks, which were executed in rapid succession. Initially it was all Amuro could do to parry and evade the strikes, as his opponent left him little room to maneuver, much less counterattack. However, he soon found an opening as he brought about his left beam shield for the final strike, thereby freeing him to thrust his saber at the Zaku's cockpit. Unfortunately, the enemy pilot predicted the attack and, with a thruster burst, ascended over the thrust, and then proceeded to kick the Gundam in the faceplate. From there, the Zeon suit jetted back, its pilot laughing all the way.

"What, is that it?" the enemy pilot chimed as six missiles surged from the Zaku's hip launchers, forcing the Amuro to go back into evasion as well. "Come now, I know you can do better!"

"Shut up!" Amuro roared back as he triggered his vulcans again, swatting the missiles out of space in a single burst. Through the resultant fire, the Zaku charged again, the light glittering across its armor as it closed the distance and brought down its axe. Again Amuro parried, even managing to fire his vulcans in response, but the Zaku contemptuously banked around the fire and proceeded in the offensive, executing two follow on strikes that the Federation pilot was barely able to deflect. The two machines then exchanged several more attacks and deflections, with Amuro mustering up enough power to counter the Zaku's movements, before Amuro attempted to bifurcate the Zeon suit at the waste. The Zaku evaded this as well, moving away yet again and forcing the Gundam to give chase.

Spiraling through space, the two mobile suits rushed at each other, slashing and attacking with their respective melee weapons as they moved through the void. Though he was attacking with his fullest, Amuro had yet to score even a graze against the Zaku, which continued to parry and evade his strikes with certain elegance. And though the Zaku had yet to do any damage to him in turn - outside of destroying his rifle - Amuro could see that its pilot was quite adept, on a similar level to Aznable even. This in itself was amazing as the Zaku pilot was emitting any kind of pressure into Amuro's mind, which meant he wasn't a Newtype. And yet all the same, as the Zaku kept brushing aside his sword strokes and counterattacking with its axe, Amuro thought he could detect a different kind of power from the pilot. A kind of spiritual power, for lack of better description, that made him a more dangerous opponent than those Amuro had faced up to this point. A power that was different even from Aznable's or Sayla's.

Just who the hell is this guy!? Amuro's mind again called out as he slashed at the Zaku once more, only for the purple mobile suit to engage its beam shield and deflect the attack. It then knocked the saber blade away and countered with its axe, forcing Amuro to engage his own beam shield in defense. Amuro then attempted to lash out with his left gauntlet, but the Zaku spun away from the attack and gunned its thrusters once more.

"Yes, yes, that's it!" the Zaku pilot spoke out excitedly as Amuro pursued. "Keep up the momentum! Don't give your opponent any ground!"

"I said shut up!" Amuro bellowed as he let loose his vulcans. At that, the Zaku again went into evasion, dodging each and every burst as narrowly as it could, twisting and weaving around the beam shots like an ancient aerospace fighter. This pattern remained even after Amuro gunned Unit Alpha's main drive and overtook the Zaku, which barrel rolled away just as the Gundam brought down its saber. The Zaku then twisted around and performed another left shoulder barge, striking Unit Alpha against the right side and sending it hurtling away.

Flailing against the restraints and resisting the urge to vomit, Amuro let out snarl and twisted around, firing another vulcan burst at the incipient Zeon. Again, the Zaku simply banked out of the way, practically zig-zagging around Amuro's shots as it drew closer. This time however, instead of parrying the incoming axe blow, Amuro shifted Unit Alpha to his left, effectively sidestepping the Zaku's axe swing. He then continued the maneuver until he was directly behind the Zeon suit, where he was poised to slash it across the waist. However, before he could do so, the Zaku reached its left arm around and elbowed the Gundam's head, disorienting Amuro long enough for it twist around and slash its axe at the Gundam's chest. Only then did Amuro deflect the incoming strike with his saber.

"You're proving to be more fun than I anticipated!" the pilot chimed jubilantly as his suit's mono-eye again fixed into the Gundam's twin eyes, the glare of their respective beam weapons illuminating their visages. "It will almost be a shame when I do finally kill you!"

"You're not the first Zaku pilot to try!" Amuro bellowed as he threw back the Zaku's axe and slashed at its faceplate, only for the Zaku to jet back once more. He then followed up with another vulcan burst, but the Zaku maneuvered around this as well.

Amused laughter was the initial response. "You mean Char?" the Zaku pilot questioned as he weaved around the beam shots as efficiently as he had before, even slashing a few of the shots out of space with great flourish. "Or perhaps you're referring to Delaz's hounds?"

Then, all of a sudden cutting his velocity, the Zaku brought its shield about and charged, deflecting the beam fire as it closed in on Unit Alpha. Seeing his vulcans useless, Amuro cut their fire and raised his beam saber to strike, but the Zaku moved faster, shield tackling Unit Alpha and sending both suits careening through space. All while Amuro found himself directly facing the Zaku's mono-eye through the shield's translucency.

"Either way," the Zaku pilot said, nudging the shield and its mark against the Gundam's faceplate. "I'm nothing like what you've faced before!"

Amuro sneered at the knight helm's image. "You're right..." he seethed as he readied his left gauntlet. "You're even more annoying!"

With that, he moved to strike at the Zaku's right shoulder, but again the enemy pilot saw it coming and evaded before the Gundam's open hand could connect. The Zeon suit then retaliated by slamming its axe pummel against the right side of the Gundam's head, effectively knocking it far enough for it to jet away. Amuro slashed at it again as it moved, but the Zaku managed to out-distance the beam saber blade's reach.

"You should consider yourself honored," the Zaku pilot chided as he launched himself forward again, striking at the Gundam's saber with its axe. "Only the most worthy of adversaries may exchange words with me in a fight!"

This only aggravated Amuro that much further. "For the love of god, shut up!" he roared, bringing his sword around to cleave the Zaku's head in two. However, the enemy pilot easily deflected the attack, and the two ended up in another vicious exchange between axe and sword. All throughout, Amuro could still only fathom at just who he was facing.

With a concentrated effort, Sleggar maneuvered through space, evading his targets' collective machine gun burst before returning fire with his beam rifle. One of the Zakus went down with a shot through the cockpit, but the other two remained resolute, charging at Unit Beta with their machine guns blazing. In response Sleggar reversed his velocity while firing his vulcans, but the Zeeks were focusing their attack to such a degree that he wasn't able to aim properly, allowing them to draw closer in. Fortunately that was all the opening he needed, in which he fired off two rifle shots, scoring direct hits on both Zakus and obliterating them near simultaneously.

Well, all things considered, this could be worse. the Commander thought as he ignited his thrusters again, momentarily gazing over the battlefield as he flew. As he had expected, his pilots were holding back the enemy mobile suits well enough, their skill and experience more than making up for their suits' inferiorities. Unfortunately holding back the enemy suits was nearly all they could do; there were so many Zakus still active that none of the Guncannons could break off and attack the Zeek ships, which only allowed them to pursue the Ark Royal without hindrance. Fortunately the mighty Lexington seemed to be defending herself well enough, even managing to damage the green Rewloola at that very moment, though Sleggar wasn't sure how long she would remain so vigilant.

And that was not even the worst of it. Though he tried his best to ignore it, Sleggar slowly felt a nagging feeling come over him from the back of his mind. A feeling that not everything was as it should have been...

However, before he could think any more, another burst of machine gun fire blasted from his left side, causing him to snap into evasion once again. There, another Zaku came charging in, this one choosing to forgo its machine gun for its beam axe. Knowing he didn't have time to draw his saber, Sleggar instead reached out with Unit Beta's left hand and, with the gauntlet active, grasped onto the axe blade. Then applying pressure, Sleggar actually managed to force the Gundam's hand through the beam edge and onto the emitter, where he grasped its fingers around and constricted, crushing the weapon. The Zaku pilot must have been completely shocked by this, as Sleggar was then able to drag the Zaku toward it and plant his hyper beam rifle against the cockpit, where he fired at point blank range. The Zeon mobile suit exploded no sooner than when Unit Beta jetted away.

"Commander!" Sleggar heard a voice over his comm. line, followed by a surge of beam fire from overhead, which worked to strike down or dissuade any approaching Zakus. At that, Sleggar looked up to see Sanders' Guncannon Buster, as well as Hayato and Kai's Troopers, move in from overhead, firing their beam rifles and respective shoulder guns as they went. "Mind us tagging along with you?"

"Not at all Ten!" Sleggar called back as he fired his beam rifle, striking down or damaging several more enemy suits alongside. Unfortunately several Zakus made it through and began firing upon him again, forcing the group to alternate between maneuvering and their beam shields. "Always nice to have friends nearby!"

"Would you bastards kindly die already!" Kai shouted as he charged in, triggering his beam rifle and striking a Zaku on the arm. Unfortunately, while it removed the beam shield, the enemy mobile suit continued on while drawing its beam axe, clearly intent on taking its target with it. Only a timely burst from the twin beam cannons on Hayato's unit took it down entirely, allowing Kai to move on and select another Zaku to strike at.

Switching to a new target of his own, Sleggar switched out his rifle for his beam saber, then charging at the singled out Zaku. He may not have been as good at swordplay as Sayla - a fact that was emphasized over their last few sims together - but he was damn sure better than any Zeek grunt used to fighting Guncannons and Guntanks. Such was the case when his target turned and attempted to aim its machine gun, only for Sleggar to chop the weapon in two. The Zaku then barely managed to draw its beam axe, thereby parrying Sleggar's first attack, but not the second, which beheaded the Zeon suit. From there, Sleggar impaled the torso and moved away, allowing the Zeon suit detonate.

At that, Sleggar was just able to catch the glare of the Guncannon Buster's mega beam cannon, which completely overpowered and vaporized all that laid in its path. Sanders then twisted around and fired his rifle into the cockpit of another unit, one that was attempting to strike him across the back with its axe. Rather than detonate, that particular Zaku simply floated away in a deadened state, its mono-eye fading out of existence.

"Got to admit," Sanders reflected as he looked over the dead Zaku, taking no small measure of satisfaction in his work before turning back for more. "We're not doing half-bad right now."

No we're not. Sleggar replied as he engaged another Zaku in a melee, beam saber to axe. Sporting a command fin, this Zaku was proving to be more adept than those he had fought, managing to defend against the Eagle of Arcturus' attacks well. However, Sleggar could see that he as pushing him back. Eventually he made a mistake that allowed Sleggar to slash him down the middle, splitting the suit into sheared halves. And that's what worries me.

Indeed, even as he drew upon another finless Zaku, something about the Zeek's strategy remained off to him. Were they really intent on chasing them across space like this? Not that they weren't being difficult enough doing that, but Sleggar would have credited his enemy with a more elaborate strategy, especially when their target was one of the "Trojan Horses" they feared so much.

There should be more than this... Sleggar thought as he slashed at his newest prey, only for the Zaku to raise its beam shield in defense. He then moved around to cut it in the back, but much to his surprise the Zaku evaded his slash by jetting into the distance, then twisting around to fire its machine gun. This in turn forced Sleggar to engage his own beam shield. There has to be more than this...

Before he could go after the enemy suit however, Hayato was over it, raining down beam cannon fire and forcing the Zaku to turn around duck back behind its shield. It was then that, again much to Sleggar's surprise, Kai returned the favor to his wingman and launched in, tackling the Zaku from the back. Once that was accomplished, the Shrike pilot leveled his beam cannons and fired point-blank, blowing out the Zaku's cockpit and the Apollo Reactor simultaneously. He then leaped off as the Zeon suit exploded.

Momentarily shielding himself from the glare, it was all Sleggar could do to turn around and look for additional targets. Like it or not, he had enough enemies in front of him to contend with, and they were a big enough threat to his ship and his pilots to keep him occupied. Thus, putting aside his misgivings, he ignited his thrusters and dove at another incoming Zaku team, bringing his beam saber down upon the center unit.

And yet, even as he cut down the Zeon mobile suit and moved after the other two, the feelings of doubt still remained with him.

Federation Lexington-class fleetcarrier Ark Royal
Deep Space

Something's wrong. Bright thought as another Zaku exploded from the Ark Royal's phalanx, casting a glare over the bridge monitor. As soon as the glare faded, he looked over to Omar. "Have any new ships come in since the fight started?"

Looking over his monitor, Omar shook his head. "Negative. Enemy ship number remains consistent," the sensor operator reported, just as the Ark Royal took another hit and shook violently. "Minus those that we sunk of course."

Mirai looked toward Bright with a raised an eyebrow. "Captain," she began. "You think...?"

"Yes," Bright replied, confirming Mirai's unspoken question. There had to be more ships out there; though the ones that already pursuing them were making a valiant effort in their offensive, they weren't even a fraction of what the Zeon had sent against Lexingtons in the past. It helped even less that the enemy had been aware of her presence for some time, enough to dispatch a recon ship after her; more than enough time to assemble a proper assault force.

So where are they? Bright's mind rambled as he felt himself begin to sweat. Are they still coming in from warp? Or...?

Suddenly, Omar's sensors beeped in alert. "New contacts!" he shouted in equal alarm. "Directly ahead!"

Damn it. Bright inwardly cursed, knowing exactly what had just happened. And what was about to happen. "Evade!"

At that, the Ark Royal lurched to her starboard, just as the newly decloaked Zeon ships opened fire with their weapons. In a matter of moments, a complete array of Musaka-class cruisers and Rewloola-class battlecruisers materialized into space, their beam weapons firing in bursts as missiles launched out of their tubes, all streaking toward the Ark Royal as a swarm of comets. And though the carrier brought up the entirety of her bow arsenal against the new threat, more than a few beams and projectiles made it through and struck her hull.

I hate it when I'm right. Bright thought as the ship rocked around him, the main monitor now filled with incoming Zeon ships. As he had suspected, the enemy had split their forces, having one group actively pursue the Ark Royal while the other advanced ahead and set up an ambush point, utilizing their cloaks to slip through their target's sensors and into an effective formation. It wasn't the most daring strategy Bright had seen the Zeon utilize, but nonetheless it did exactly what it was supposed do: trap and ensnare the Ark Royal. "How many!?"

"Two Rewloolas and four Musakas!" Omar gaped, not wanting to believe what his sensors were telling him. "They're launching mobile suits!"

Sure enough, telltale thruster flares were emanating from the newcomers, each indicating the deployment of a fresh new Zaku to the field. Bright frowned at this; there was only course for them now. Even if the Ark Royal did continue to run, there would be more enemy ships chasing her now, and the Ark Royal, for all of her strengths, wouldn't last long with that much firepower against her stern while her mobile suits would be even more hard pressed to defend her. Alongside, there was always the possibility that there were more Zeon ships out there, cloaked and waiting for the Ark Royal's approach.

If we can't keep running. Bright thought, feeling the ship quake around him as another collection of beams struck. Then we can only fight straight on, and hope Mora can still get the warp drive back up.

"Bring us about, all weapons free!" he ordered to Katz, who immediately brought the ship to starboard, all the while Omar fired her bow cannons. "We're going to break through yet!"

Right on the mark. Garma thought as he read over his sensors, which indicated the entry of his taskforce's second group into the battle and the Ark Royal moving to face them head on. This is almost too easy...

That was as far as he was able to think before he was forced to turn, bringing his axe up to deflect the White Devil's intended blow. With visible effort, the enemy pilot forced his beam sword against Garma's axe, threatening to overpower the Zaku with sheer force alone. However, Garma knew better than to challenge the Federation suit in that area, and so threw aside the sword blade and then proceeded to slash at the white mobile suit's chest, only for it to raise its opposite beam shield to deflect. It then fired its vulcans, attempting to blow off the Zaku's head, but Garma backed off and threw up his own beam shield to defend, then firing a spray of missiles that forced the enemy suit to jet away. Garma ignited his thrusters in pursuit.

"Perhaps you should consider surrendering," he called out to the white suit as it evaded his missiles and returned fire with its vulcans once more, to which Garma evaded as well. Though his Zaku was clearly inferior to the Federation prototype, Garma was remained able to capitalize on its strengths, and he was more than adept at outmaneuvering vulcan shots. "After all, it will not be long now before you lose your mothership. And therefore your only means to warp."

"Not a chance in hell!" the Federation pilot shouted back as he twisted his suit around and moved to intercept, beam sword raised to strike. Again Garma threw up his beam shield and deflected the initial blow, then moving to counterattack with his axe, from which the Earth suit parried the strike. It then slashed at the Zaku's torso, only for Garma to parry the stroke as well as his opponent had, thereby initiating another exchange of blades. Thus the two moved through space, all the while slashing and parrying at one another. "The Ark Royal will still be there when I'm done here!" he continued as both suits locked their blades. "You however...!"

"Heh," Garma let out as he threw off the saber blade, allowing him to slash at the enemy mobile suit's head and nearly cut off a piece of its v-shaped antennae. "If nothing else, I applaud your spirit," he stated as the two blades interlocked again, causing a surge of energy to erupt between them. "Unfortunately however, your luck will not last for much longer."

"We'll see about that!" the enemy pilot spat as he broke the lock, then bringing his sword around to strike at the Zaku's unshielded side. Garma, of course, was fast enough to deflect it, switching his axe over to his mobile suit's left hand with the fluidity of a human gesture, then arcing the axe over the spiked pauldron so that its now inverted blade would catch the sword's. From there, he forced his Zaku to press its body mass against the axe blade, effectively nudging the sword away, thereby freeing up to slash at the enemy mobile suit's faceplate, causing it to move back to evade. As he did, he let out another burst of vulcan fire, in turn forcing Garma to ignite his thrusters and go into evasive, firing two missiles to gain additional distance. The Federation suit responded to this by engaging its beam shield to deflect, then charging through the resulting explosions after its opponent, thereby resuming the running duel.

As he again exchanged attacks and parries with the white Federation suit, Garma once more found himself impressed with enemy pilot. Though as inexperienced as Char had alluded to, the Feddie was doing remarkable job fighting him, using every possible resource and advantage he could gain without wasting movement nor making mistakes. As a result, Garma had yet to even scratch the paint of the enemy unit - which was also true for the Feddie in regard to his Zaku - despite their prolonged duel. Very few Earth pilots in Garma's experience could have attested to the same after fighting him for this long.

It's a true pity you're not a Highborn. Garma thought as he gazed into the enemy suit's neon yellow eyes, trying to imagine the pilot behind that terrifying visage as they converged yet again, striking their respective blades against each other. But such is the nature of war.

As he continued to fight his opponent, he opened a vidwindow at the side of his monitor, displaying the enemy mothership as it also continued to fight. Though effectively encompassed by Garma's taskforce, the Ark Royal remained defiant, maneuvering about as beams and missile fire erupted from its various weapons. Several of the Zeon ships took damage as a result, while the Zakus continued to be held up by her Guncannon forces, as well as the Eagle of Arcturus' unit. Yet all the same, Garma could tell it was exactly as he said; the enemy ship would not last long at this rate, no matter how much of a fight she put up. The prey was cornered while the predators closed in. The only variable that remained was how long could the kill be forestalled.

Such is the nature of war. Garma mentally repeated, sighing. Despite the obvious success of his mission, he found himself rather disappointed. After all, this was one of the few times he had managed to directly involve himself in combat, and now his battle was coming to its close. Once the Ark Royal was destroyed, her remaining mobile suits, now deprived of warp transportation and with no hope of relief or rescue, would either surrender or would attempt to make a last stand. Either way, the hunt would not last for much longer.

Ultimately however, as Garma looked back at the white mobile suit before him, he knew deep down that it really was for the best. That ship had done far too much damage to Zeon to allow its existence. As was the case with the White Devil that it had spawned.

Thus, as he evaded under another sword slash, he brought his axe around again, moving to bifurcate the enemy suit's head, but a timely beam shield deflection kept his blade from reaching. With his blade held in place, the enemy suit then lunged its sword wielding arm to impale, but Garma was quick enough to bank his Zaku to the side, the blade extending just meters away from his cockpit. He then withdrew his axe and ignited his thrusters, attempting to circle his opponent and strike its cockpit from behind, only for the White Devil to keep up with his movements yet again, bringing up his sword to parry Garma's axe, thereby instigating another exchange.

All the while his forces continued to close in on their target.

Son of a bitch! Sleggar inwardly roared as he fired a shot through one of the newly incoming Zakus, blowing through the cockpit in yet one more single shot. As he had expected, the Zeeks had had more ships and mobile suits to send out, ensuring that things would go from bad to worse. The Ark Royal was still existent, but very much fighting for her life against the newly arrived Zeon, while the Zakus they had launched were now coming in droves. In fact, the enemy nearly encompassed the Ark Royal and her mobile suits by this point. All but cutting off their escape.

This was personally evident as another Zaku came from behind the one he had just destroyed, firing its machine gun as it went. Sleggar was forced to raise his beam shield to deflect, from which he fired two more quick shots, but due to his quick and imprecise aim the enemy suit managed to evade. From there, two more Zakus came in to aid their comrade, adding their own machine guns and missiles to the mix, forcing Sleggar to abandon his shield and focus on full evasion, firing off whatever shots he could as he went.

It wasn't long before he gained a hit however, striking the head off one of the incoming Zakus, allowing him to follow up with a finishing shot to the torso. One of its comrades charged through the explosion, beam axe raised to strike and moving too fast for Sleggar to draw a proper bead. As such, he evaded the initial slash and brought up his left gauntlet, smashing it into the Zaku's chest and firing a single beam straight through. Though effectively dead, the Zaku had not exploded, allowing Sleggar to use its corpse as a shield for the fourth Zaku, which was armed with a bazooka. One beam shot later reduced the stricken Zeon suit to scattering remnants, from which Sleggar banked to his left and fired back with his rifle, again scoring a cockpit shot. This time however, his target exploded brilliantly.

And then his sensors soon beeped in renewed warning: two of the Musakas, having apparently broken off from engaging the Ark Royal, were targeting him with their cannons. Without thinking, Sleggar kicked his thrusters on full, just as a shower of yellow beam fire launched at his direction, accompanied by a swarm of missiles. Musakas weren't exactly the ideal anti-MS platforms, but the range of their cannons combined with the fact there two converging their fire made it all the more difficult for him to evade. Fortunately he was far too adept a pilot to be taken out by a ship, and so he maneuvered around the beam and missile fire, all the while closing distance toward the enemy ships.

A few more Zakus attempted to intercept him upon his approach, but Sleggar was quick to dispatch them, planting a beam rifle shot in each, all the weaving through the Musakas' beam cannon and missile fire with certain effort. Eventually he got close enough for them to unleash their phalanx, spraying the immediate space with beam fire and forcing Sleggar to evade even more. He returned fire with his beam rifle, striking several phalanx placements on the first ship, as well as one of the bow cannons, before he managed to slip through the barrage and come over the cruiser's bridge. There, he fired a single beam through the front viewport as he passed, destroying tower and obliterating the command crew in one go. After that, he slipped toward the cruiser's stern and fired several more shots into her engines, eventually causing the whole ship to detonate.

With that enemy dealt with, Sleggar turned toward the second Musaka, which had already turned away in an attempt to flee, firing a swarm of missiles at him for cover. As if that wasn't enough, an additional number of Zakus, apparently having witnessed the first ships destruction, appeared, moving to box in Sleggar's Gundam. Sneering at all of it, the ace charged through them, firing off beam shot after beam shot as he went, managing to strike down a few of the interloper Zakus as launched after the Musaka, outrunning the other Zeon suits in the process. Upon his approach, the cruiser's stern beam cannon turret angled at him and fired, but Sleggar easily banked away from the dual beams, in turn firing a more precise rifle shot into the turret, destroying it instantly. From there the cruiser switched back to its phalanx, but again Sleggar weaved through, such that he eventually came over the Zeon ship.

From there, he fired a beam shot straight down into the bridge, destroying it as he had the last Musaka and causing the ship to lurch from the loss of its helm. He then fired three more shots, two into the engine modules and one midships, causing a string of secondary explosions that eventually overtook the entire hull, causing it to detonate as brilliantly as the previous. Not that Sleggar could watch over it, as he the Zakus that had been chasing him before at last caught up to him, forcing him to turn around and return their fire as best as he could.

"Come on Bright," Sleggar muttered under his breath as he switched his rifle out for a beam saber, then moving against one of the closer Zakus and cutting it at the then twisted around to parry an axe strike from another Zaku, forcing the enemy's weapon aside and allowing him to impale the cockpit. "We can't afford to get bogged down like this!"

Unfortunately that very well seemed to be the case, as the Ark Royal remained locked in combat with her Zeon foes, destroying one of the Rewloolas in a concentrated barrage from her bow cannons. Though triumphant, there were only more enemy ships to attack in its victim's place, as well as many more Zakus willing to support. All while the Ark Royal's warp drive remained offline, and was likely no closer to being brought back.

And though Sleggar and his pilots continued to do well against the Zeeks to that point, as he beheaded another Zaku and then proceeded to stab it through the back, the fact remained that they could only hold out for so much longer...

Federation Lexington-class fleetcarrier Ark Royal
Deep Space

As he watched the Rewloola's dying throes, through which a Musaka moved past while firing its bow cannons, Bright could only watch as Omar responded with the Ark Royal's own bow weapons, gaining a direct hit on the enemy ship. And yet in spite of that success, another Musaka was quick to move in and support her stricken comrade, forcing Katz to turn the ship away and evade their fire, which ended up striking the lower hull and causing the whole ship to shake again. By now it was almost constant.

"Bridge to Engineering." Bright called out as the ship rumbled even further, the Zeon ships having launched a full barrage of missile fire that the phalanx were unable to completely destroy. "How much longer?"

"At least a half hour Captain!" Mora responded from the other side, her voice drawn and weary even through the comlink. "We've repaired the damage to the drive itself, but the power conduits are still disrupted..."

The explanation was interrupted as additional weapons fire struck the ship, causing her to nearly list to port. Bright grit his teeth as he steadied himself, taking notice of how the main monitor was now flickering. Through it, he was just able to see the silhouette of a Zaku fly by, firing its machine gun across the hull and causing the ship to rumble that much further.

"You have ten minutes Commander," Bright replied sternly and unquestioningly, projecting as much clear finality as he could through his voice. "Otherwise we're all dead." He closed the comm. line after that.

"Ralmel off of our stern quarter!" Omar called out, just as the monitor flickered to display the crimson battlecruiser as it moved in. "She's firing!"

This time the ship pitched to starboard, nearly throwing Bright out of his chair. The captain glowered back at the red Rewloola's image. "Hard to port! Setup for broadside!"

Upon that command, Katz swung the Ark Royal as hard as he could, allowing Omar to track the battlecruiser with the appropriate weapon placements. However, upon seeing the fleetcarrier turn, the Ralmel went to full acceleration, just managing to evade the initial beam cannon shots while moving to pass the larger ship from overhead. As such, the two ships exchanged cannon and phalanx fire upon her pass, with the Ark Royal managing to gain hits along the Rewloola's ventral hull while the latter struck across the Lexington's topside.

One of those cannon hits managed to strike close to the bridge, causing lights and monitors to flicker while sparks and explosions flew from assorted areas. Fires broke out from various instruments, with nearby crew members reaching for the closest extinguishers and spraying dense fog across the flames. All while Bright felt his ears ring with a terrible pitch, his vision nearly hazing as he forced himself to remain alert.

Perhaps ten minutes was too optimistic. Bright thought disparagingly as he tapped his chair's comlink again. "Medical and damage control teams to the bridge," he ordered, just as the ship rumbled once more.

Readjusting himself to his post, Omar gazed over his sensor screen. Somehow it had managed to escape the recent attack, and through its flickering display, Omar saw a new set of signals. Ones that made his blood run cold. "Captain," he called out, his voice turning hollow. "We have new signals incoming from warp."

Hearing that, Bright closed his eyes in resignation as a newfound and terrible silence reigned throughout the bridge. They were dead now, and they all knew it. There was no way they could take on another wave of Zeon. "How many?"

"At least four ships," Omar reported, his voice trembling as he gave out the reply. And then the signals came into range, allowing their IFFs to be picked up on. "Wait!" Omar let out, his voice holding clear shock. "They're...!"

Before the sensor operator could say another word, the ships in question emerged from warp some distance away from the battlefield. All sporting gunmetal grey and blue tinted hulls, the trio of Chicago-class cruisers open fired, launching magenta beams into several of the unguarded Zeon ships while the single Plattsburgh-class transport trailed behind them. Guncannons launched down the cruisers'' catapults and into the field as their motherships maintained their fire.

"What...?" Mirai gaped in astonishment as she watched the newly arrived Federation ships begin to spread out, continuing their barrage along the Zeek ships' unprotected flanks. "Where did they come from?"

Bright could only wonder at the same, as did the rest of the bridge crew. They were still too far out from any Federation bases. So how...?

Then Kikka spoke up at last. "We're being hailed by the lead ship!" she sounded off.

Nodding, Bright readjusted his cap and ordered. "Onscreen."

A second later, the main monitor flickered as a young red-haired woman, dressed in the greatcoat and commissar cap normally associated to ship commanders, appeared on the screen. "This is Commander Matilda Ajan of the supply ship Medea," the woman announced. "I apologize for our late entry, but we've come a long way to get here."

Bright blinked at Commander Ajan's explanation; clearly she hadn't simply been passing by and taken notice of the Ark Royal's plight. However, he decided to save those questions for after the battle. "All the same, we appreciate your assistance," Bright acknowledged. "Are there any more behind you?"

Ajan shook her head. "I'm afraid not," she answered, then flashed a reassuring smile. "But all the same, I believe the situation is well in hand regardless..."

"Where...where did they come from...?" Garma could only gape as he watched the newly arrived Federation force strike against his fleet, raining beam cannon and missile fire upon his ships while their Guncannons entered the melee. It was impossible; there shouldn't have been any Earth units close enough to render aid to the Ark Royal. And yet somehow that's exactly what had happened, the evidence as clear to Garma's eyes as daylight.

And much worse, the newcomers had dropped out of warp well outside the battlefield, allowing them to attack his forces from the flank. With all of his ships having been focused on the Ark Royal, Garma had not accounted for outward defense, and the Federation ships were all too eager to exploit that flaw. In a matter of seconds, several of his ships were struck down in a combined flurry of beam fire, while those that managed to evade their assault were easily struck down by the Ark Royal's own attacks. A virtual sea of flame erupted over the immediate space as a result.

And that was not even the worst of it, Garma realized. With the newly arrived taskforce only accounted for five ships, it was all too likely that it was merely the vanguard of a much larger fleet. Something that Garma could not risk engaging at this point, not when his own reinforcements were too far out to respond.

And then, Garma's sensors beeped in warning, returning him to his own battle. However, he responded too late in directing his shield, and the result was apparent. The white mobile suit to bypassed his defenses and slashed his Zaku's right arm from the shoulder, depriving him of his axe in the process. Garma grit his teeth in response, feeling as though he had lost his actual arm.

"Finally!" the enemy pilot yelled out in triumph, right before redirecting his sword toward the Zaku's cockpit. This time however, Garma managed to intercept the blow, grasping the enemy suit's sword arm and moving it aside, from which he brought his Zaku up close and actually headbutted the enemy suit in the faceplate. It was not the most elegant of attacks, but it dazed the enemy pilot long enough for Garma to ignite his thrusters and jet away.

From there, he opened a comline to his fleet. "Dopp One to all units!" he called out, feeling himself nearly gag on the words he was about to say. "Abandon operation and withdraw! Repeat, all units withdraw!"

"Like I'm going to let you get away!" the White Devil shouted as he charged after the wounded Zaku, beam saber raised to strike.

Sneering back, Garma twisted around and fired his last set of missiles at the incoming suit, managing to force it back and away. As the enemy suit was forced into evasion, he turned back toward his now ravaged fleet, directing his suit toward the now badly damaged Reugen. In turn detecting his approach, the still active battlecruiser fired a series of beam cannon and missile shots at the white mobile suit, keeping it further distracted as Garma closed in.

"All ships standby for warp speed," he ordered through gritted teeth as he continued on toward his flagship, resisting to urge to curse as he did.

Both panting heavily, Sayla and Char gazed back at one another's mobile suit, which were now facing each other over a fair distance. After what felt like hours into their duel, the strain had at last reached both of them; though both of their suits remained undamaged, their physical bodies were firmly exhausted while their spiritual forms felt drawn. As such, both had remained as they were for several minutes now, their suits holding still with their respective melee weapons raised. Yet neither one of them would break their stance and close the distance, instead simply staring each other down while their bodies attempted to recuperate, if only momentarily.

And then, that inactivity was broken as Char picked up a sudden comm. line. "Dopp One to all units! Abandon operation and withdraw! Repeat, all units withdraw!"

It was only then that Char and Sayla looked up and registered what had just happened. So concentrated on their duel/exchange that neither of them had paid attention to the battle their respective forces were waging. As such, both were taken back as they picked up the Zeon fleet's withdrawal in the face of the newly arrived Federation force.

At this, Char could only smile flatly. It appears we've run out of time. he telepathically called out to his sister, who was still gazing at him warily. Best that we return to our respective ships now.

Letting out a breath she had not realized she had been holding, Sayla, feeling as though her body were about to give out from under her, could only nod in resignation. Yes.

With that, Sayla replaced her saber and turned Unit Gamma around. However, before she could ignite her thrusters, Char called out to her once more. Artesia. he said, causing Sayla to pause. Please, listen to me...

Taking a breath, Char went on. Leave this war behind and live the life I had hoped for you. he pleaded, almost desperately. There is no need for you take further part in any of this.

A moment of calm intervened as Sayla took in another breath. And then, with no small measure of ire, she replied. I will live that "good" life, brother... she said, vehemence ringing from her words. ...when that traitor has breathed his last. Not before.

With that, Sayla ignited her thrusters and jetted back toward the Ark Royal, which was in the process of withdrawing its own suits as well. A twinge of sadness entering his masked visage, Char could only take a few moments to watch her depart, before at last turning back toward the Ralmel.