The Sun Sets on Pluto; Montana's Surprise Resurrection
"Massive energy readings directly overhead!", Mori exclaimed in fear as the radar displayed a massive alert warning above their ship's location.
Suddenly, a massive rumble and loud noises can be heard as the bridge begins to lean sideways and then upside down.
The purple blast makes impact on top of Montana, creating a massive explosion that sinks the ship stern first. The icy water is displaced as the bow raises 90 degrees upright before it slowly sinks and disappears below the surface.
Leaving nothing but a plume of water in its wake.
16 February 2199
Pluto Frontline Base
Watching from above on the big screen, Shultz and Ganz witness the plume of water freezing as Montana sinks below Pluto's ocean surface.
"Splendid, Commander Shultz! Now, we'll be able to hold our heads high before General Goer.", Ganz praised, but the commander didn't seem to be too excited at that
"If that man hears about this, he'll report to Lord Dessler as if he'd done it himself.", Shultz spoke, his tone serious. Turning his head, he made his decision.
"This is our victory."
Planet Gamilas, Baleras Capital City
Planet Gamilas, alternatively called the Great Garmillas Imperial Planet. The third planet of the Salezar system inside the Large Magellanic Cloud. It has an atmosphere similar to Earth, the surface covered with green foliage and patches of water, giving the planet a green appearance as opposed to Earth's mostly blue color.
The planet is ruled under one nationing government, the Great Gamilas Empire, in the capital city of Beleras. Standing proudly and taller than all other buildings is the grand palace of its leader, Eternal Leader Abelt Dessler.
Inside in his private indoor spring, Dessler has just finished taking his bath and is donning his bathrobe. Walking to the exit, he is greeted by his aid and Minister of Propaganda, Miezela Celestella.
"A message from Colonel Shultz for our lord. He wishes to report to you.", Celestella reports before the exit.
"...Shultz?", Dessler asked, confused and unable to recall the name. Miezella clarified for him.
"You gave him command of the Plat base, in the galactic hinterland's Zol system."
"Oh, yes. I remember now...I left a brigade of second-class Gamilans in charge of planet Terron's conquest, didn't I?"
Palace Throne
Taking his seat and donning his royal uniform after drying off, Dessler sat on his throne before his desk as one of his royal maids poured him a gold glass of red wine. Joining him is Celestella and another individual, second in command and vice president, Redof Hyss.
Moments later, a video feed to Shultz opens up, and he presents himself with a hands-up.
"I am Colonel Valke Shultz, commander of the armies besieging Terron, my lord."
"Shultz, you are contacting us directly without your commanding officer, Goer's approval.", Hyss chastises the Plat commander. "Normally, this act would be grounds for-"
"Now, now. Let him speak, Hyss.", Dessler interrupts his second in command, gesturing for Shultz to continue.
"Y-yes, sir."
"Your report, Shultz?"
Shultz, briefly surprised by being addressed by the leader, gave his report. "Y-yes, sir. This morning, Tam 10:06 Gamilas Standard Time, after a fierce combat, the Plat advance base destroyed the Terron FTL-capable spaceship, Montana."
Swirling his wine and taking a sip, Dessler asked. "What about it?"
"We-well...I wanted to report our victory to you directly."
"You requested my presence merely to report something so trivially obvious?", Dessler said, sounding a little bored.
"I wished to provide some small additional glory for the Great Gamilas Empire' founding celebration.", Shultz explained, embarrassment visible on his face.
"...I shall remember your loyalty.", the eternal Leader replied with a small smile, pleasing Shultz greatly.
"That's enough. Be off, Shultz.", Hyss sternly dismissed the commander.
"Garle Dessler! Hail to our leader!", Shultz hails just before the video call hangs off.
Now with him gone, Dessler drops his act of disinterest and turns to Miezela with a curious face. "Celestella, is it true that a Terron ship crossed the light-speed barrier?"
"This is the first I've heard of it.", Celestella claims, turning to Hyss and asking him, "And you, Vice-President?"
"N-no, neither have I.", Hyss truthfully answered.
"I would imagine not.", Dessler comments, prompting a small giggle from his courtesans nearby as he gazes through the skylights, looking at a nearby blue planet.
Pluto Frontline Base
"Commander, what did Lord Dessler say?", Ganz asked Shultz, having finished his call with his Eternal Leader.
"He said he would remember our loyalty.", Shultz repeats back the Eternal Leader's words, crossing his arms on his desk. Ganz smiles at their Leader's acknowledgment.
"Terron fools.", the base commander comments. "Had they simply surrendered, they could have lived on as we have."
Pluto airspace
Kodai and Yamamoto, having broken off from the Falcons, are now arriving at their designated operation zone. Both Arwings are flying a few hundred feet above the surface, its wings extended for atmosphere flight.
Inside, Yamamoto is in a good mood and humming the UNCF anthem, The Galactic Pilot. In the other, Kodai is asking the Arwing's computer to help with finding potent targets.
"ROB, overlay our zone of operations to our HUDs."
"Affirmative.", ROB's robotic voice says as a map of their surrounding area loads up on Kodai's HUD. "Geographic data with heat sources of possible Gamilas base location linked."
'We'll find that base for sure.', Kodai thought in determination, his eyes narrowed.
Montana, underwater
Below the frozen waters, Montana is revealed to be still in relatively one piece and resting on the ocean floor. Two depth charges are released from the ship and explode near the surface, giving the impression that it has exploded underwater.
Inside, various compartments are being flooded due to damage sustained from the last enemy blast. Alarm bells ring and emergency lights illuminate as the crew do their best to pump water out of the ship while bulkhead doors isolate the flooding.
At the flooded Hanger 3, a spare Seagul and a Type 100 Recon plane are being soaked in water as crewmen are drenched in freezing water up to knee height.
"Everyone, keep the water levels down! Who the hell wants to down in a damn spaceship?! Not me!", Enomoto yelled out to the crew, some operating drainage equipment while others tended to those injured. "How are the extractor pumps?"
"Operating at max capacity, sir! Water is mostly contained here but other compartments might not be so lucky.", one crew yelled back.
"Run! We're closing the bulkheads here!", a man yelled to a group of people running in a hallway in his direction. "Get to higher levels!"
When the last crew passed him, his head snapped back when he saw water approaching him rapidly. Slamming the emergency red button, the bulkhead doors snap shut from above preventing water from drowning him and flooding elsewhere.
"We stopped the fire here!", a fireman yelled to his colleague, both wearing fire suits and discharging extinguishing foam.
"Good.", the other fireman then spoke to his wrist communicator. "All teams, report!"
"Sector 8 has been contained!"
"We're putting out the fire here at Sector 12."
"Everything is under control at the crew quarters."
Medical Ward
Dr Sado is busy treating a group of injured crewmen, their injuries ranging from minor bruises to objects impaled. Surprisingly (or maybe unsurprisingly), he's completely sober and is treating his patients with the utmost professionalism as that of any well-qualified doctor.
"It's just a flesh wound. A couple of antibiotics will get you feeling better in no time.", the bald doctor spoke as he wrapped a bandage on a man with a wound in his arm.
"Hiss. Thanks doc. I owe you.", the man spoke.
"Makoto! I need some sterile wipes here!"
Instead of Harada, another nurse spoke. "Nurse Harada is seeing patients elsewhere."
Said elsewhere in a hallway, a small crowd of people are resting in makeshift blood-soaked beds using mats as they rest away their injuries. Some have bandages on their heads and limbs (one is even wearing an eye patch) while others are being treated by Harada and volunteers of crew willing to help, both already treated and those not yet.
"Are you okay?", Harada asked a man who was bleeding from the head with one eye shut in pain. He gave a weak nod and then hissed from his teeth. "Stay strong! I'll patch you right up!"
"First aid complete here!", Misaki yelled from nearby, already wiped and bandaged another crew on a mat.
"Okay, come here!"
"Right!"
Running over to Harada, both women began tending to the injured man.
"You'll be okay.", Misaki reassured the man, taking out a needle gun and injecting him with some painkillers. "But how did the enemy attack us."
"We don't know how.", was Harada's unhelpful reply as she took a couple of clean wipes from her bag and began cleaning away the man's blood.
Across the corner, Security Chief Shinya Ito and Toru Hoshina watch the bloody scene before them, the former leaning on a wall with indifference while the latter quickly rushes in to help.
"Nurse, do you need any help?"
"Hoshina! Thanks for your assistance. I need you to run to the Medical Ward and grab anything you can!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
With that, Hoshina rushes off as Ito stays behind, not helping in the slightest.
Engine room
"Team 3 to Deck 4 damage control."
Engineer Susumu Yamazaki and two other engineers look at the engine console as they spot any sign of faults with the Wave Motion Engines. Approaching them, Yabu reports having inspected said Engine earlier.
"Wave Motion Engines check complete. No problems."
"That's good to hear.", Yamazaki said, his arms crossed.
"Yamazaki, how much longer will we have to sit at the bottom of this ocean? Even though we still haven't left the Solar System, we will make it to Iscandar, right?"
Yabu's hopeful tone to his question surprised Yamazaki, having known that the young engineer is normally pessimistic in nature.
"…I will never allow another ship to sink, not on my watch.", Yamazaki began. "Since the moment I left our blue Earth, my life's been in old man Okita's hands. And now, he entrusted his grandsons to ours."
"We'll do what we can. That's all.", the senior engineer finished, resolute in his eyes.
Taking in Yamazaki's words, Yabu returned the notion. "Just like Chief said to believe in Admiral Okita, I'll put my belief in our captain."
Bridge 2
"Is that true?"
"Yes. A beam weapon that uses Satellites."
On the CIC bridge, Sanada explains to everyone how Montana was hit by the enemy, despite having no enemy ships present and hidden from a direct line of fire.
"The large amount of debris made me curious, so I had the intelligence officer take a deeper look."
In front of the big screen, a map of Pluto is shown and covered with unknown labeled dots.
"What we're seeing here isn't debris, but a large number of enemy satellites.", Niimi explains to the crew, the planet zooming in to show these unidentified satellites in the hundreds. "I believe they have been using the satellites as beam weapon relays. In other words,..."
"They can target the entirety of Pluto from one location.", Shima concluded, putting the puzzle together. Niimi smiles at him, impressed that the man figured it out.
"Then, if we surface, they'll just hit us again!", Nambu exclaimed in alarm.
"Can we find the timing they use to attack?", Abraham asked.
"I can try.", the bluenette answered.
"I hope that that explosive trick has deceived them.", Sanada said, hoping that his plan worked.
"It's only a matter of time before they notice.", Abraham answered.
Flashback
"May I make a suggestion?"
"What is it, Sanada?"
"Since the Shields won't take another blast, I suggest we "give" our enemy their victory through deception."
"How do we do that?"
"We concentrate all the remaining strength of the Shield on top of the ship, as it's the only part that is exposed. Once the beam strikes, the upper CIWS missiles fire at that blast and detonate prematurely close to the ship."
"That would give the impression we've been fatally hit. But I assume that alone isn't going to fool them."
"That's correct. Once the missiles detonate, we deliberately flood the rear compartments of the ship with the seawater, causing an imbalance at the stern and sinking the ship."
"That would maximize the chances that we've been defeated. Although we are risking the well-being of our crew, the benefits outweigh the costs if we pull this off. Alright, we'll go with your plan."
"But for now, we wait and put our belief in Kodai and the other pilots. And when the time is right, we strike back.", Abraham spoke with resolute.
Pluto airspace.
Two Cosmo Falcons, piloted by Shinohara and his wingman fly by to their target.
"Hey, Nemoto. That Yamamoto rookie is a real babe, isn't she?", Shinohara spoke to his wingman. But instead of a human, a male robotic voice spoke.
"EM restrictions in effect. Communication not sent.", the computer voice of ROB answered.
"I know that, Navi-bro."
"I feel like you don't, but I won't judge."
"Loosen up a little, would you?"
Elsewhere, Kato and his wingmen are heading towards their designated target, with the lead pilot performing his Bhuddest chant.
"Buddhism, also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. It is the world's 6th largest religion in 2191, with just under 500 million followers known as Buddhists, comprising nearly 3 percent of the global population.", ROB spoke over Kato who continues to chant over the robot assistant.
"Approaching designated target."
"EM restrictions lifted. Sugiyama, follow me!", Kato told his wingmen.
"Roger!"
Just then, ROB lets out a warning.
"Warning, craft targeted by enemy AA."
"What?!"
Just as Kato lets out a cry of surprise, they're under incoming enemy laser fire with red lasers coming their way. Sugiyama's fighter was then struck near the engine and trailing smoke from behind.
"Argh, I'm hit!"
"Sugiyama, break off!"
Sugiwama's Falcon pulls away from Kato with a smoking engine.
"Bravo 3 returning to base.", ROB reports as Kato weaves around enemy fire. Diving in to attack, his eyes narrow as he faces the AA batteries head-on.
"Alright, you bastard. Guess I hit the jackpot."
Pluto Base
"Terron fighters?", Shultz questioned, having been reported that enemy fighters had been spotted. "Where are they?"
"Above the 137th Unmanned Environmental Modification Plant.", Jarletora said, tracking an unknown target on radar.
"The Environmental Plant?", spoke up Ganz, confused as to why they were attacking a relatively low-value target.
"The AA system is engaging them."
"It appears several others are hiding as well.", Jarletora told Shultz.
"Probably survivors from the Montana. Launch interceptors!"
"Yes, sir!"
Outside, several DDG-110 Zedora II fighters scramble and rise to the runway surface. Their engines roar to life as they accelerate and take off, heading to shoot down their enemy.
Pluto Airspace
Kodai and Yamamoto's Arwings are still flying, both pilots continuing their search for the enemy base. While looking around, Yamamoto spots some nearby auroras to her right.
"Beautiful..", she comments. She is then confused when she spots unusual glowing dots forming on it.
"This is Bravo 1. EM restrictions lifted. I've found the Gamilas base!", Kato radios his findings to both Arwings.
"Arwing 1, copy. Let's go, Yamamoto!", Kodai called out but was interrupted.
"Kodai, wait!"
"What is it?"
"Unknown objects at 2 o'clock."
"2 o'clock?"
Sure enough, Yamamoto's suspicions were confirmed when Kodai spotted a squadron of fighters emerging from the aurora to his right.
'That must be it!', he thought.
Montana, Ocean floor, Bridge 2
"Message from Bravo 1, Kato. He has targeted Object 5.", Aihara replays Kato's message to Abraham on the CIC.
"So that's their base?", Shina wondered.
"Coordinates received.", Ota inputs the numbers to his map.
"But we can't be sure it's the enemy base.", Sanada says, worried that the info they got wasn't right.
"As my grandpa would say, "Even if it is uncertain, you can't win something without placing a bet."", Abraham told Sanada.
Trusting in his captain, Sanada began their counterassault. "Weapons Officer, load missiles. Prepare for launch."
"Preparing to launch missiles.", Nambu repeated.
"Chief Engineer?"
"Engines online. We can reach max speed if needed."
Abraham grabbed his PA radio and spoke into it. "Boatswain, how are the Wave Motion Shields?"
"Shields up and ready to deploy. Inertial systems are also up. We can now fight with our feet upright.", Enomoto's voice spoke back.
Abraham then makes a shipwide announcement.
"Attention, all crew. This is the Captain."
"We will now move to undersea operations, to counterattack the Gamilans."
Abraham's announcement is enough to bolster the spirits of the treated crew back up, some smiling as they lie on beds. Dr. Sado has a grin on his face as he wipes away the sweat formed during extensive treatments.
Elsewhere, the same can be said for Harada and Misaki's group as men let out smiles and some even pump their fists.
"All crew to Combat Station 3!"
"Alright, you heard the Captain! Get the engine running!", Yamaza barked out to everyone, smacking Yabu's shoulders.
"Alright, let's go!", Yabu shouted, pumping himself up as he ran off.
"Spin the trim. Blow the main ballast tanks. Raise the bow 35 degrees.", Abraham ordered, then his eyes narrowed.
"Raise the Montana!"
Underwater, Montana begins to upright itself as it gradually lifts from the ocean floor. As it rises, the ship slowly lists 180 degrees with the kneel on top and the upper bridges on the bottom.
Pluto Airspace
The Arwings are now heading in the direction of the aurora from where the enemy fighters came out. Below it and jutting from the surface is a large crater wall.
"The enemy came from inside the auroras. Meaning...", Kodai pointed out, piloting his Arwing towards a large crack in the crater.
Entering the crack, both fighters turn left and right as they navigate between the narrow walls. Suddenly, ROB alerts out to the pilots.
"Warning, unknown energy readings up ahead! Brace yourselves!"
Not given a second of surprise, Kodai and Yamamoto fly directly into a wall of white light. Their instruments scramble as they are shaken in their seats, doing their best to stabilize their fighters.
Emerging from the other side, both pilots blink their eyes to clear off some black spots in their vision. Once their sights are clear, they gasp as they see some massive buildings and a runway.
Circling, Yamamoto confirms Kodai's thoughts.
"Lieutenant Kodai! That's..."
This is it. This is the enemy base! Switch to All Range mode!"
Pluto Base
"Signal on radar. Enemy fighters above the base."
"Impossible. What happened to the concealment field!?", Shultz asked an officer, baffled at how the enemy could have bypassed their camouflage.
"It's functioning properly."
"C-commander…", Ganz warily said.
"Remain calm, Ganz, Shipborne planes are nothing to fear.", the base commander confidently reassured.
Above the base, batteries of anti-air guns are opening fire at the two Arwings. With the fighter's wings fully out, both planes are rolling hard left and right as they dodge the incoming fire, before rapidly turning to target the AA guns themselves before they can even traverse. With a long burst of hyper-firing lasers, they are swiftly destroyed and the Arwings are now free to initiate their assault.
Inside Yamamoto's fighter, ROB analyses and reveals the targets they need to destroy.
"Energy emitted from those towers. Destroying them should expose the base."
"Thank you, ROB.", Yamamoto thanked the computer, as her HUD revealed their targets of several towers with purple energy emitting from the top.
"Here it comes! Take this!"
Targets locked on and pulling the trigger, two green energy missiles fire from the nose and home into two towers. They are blown up in flames.
As the Arwing flies by the collapsing structures, Yamamoto launches two more missiles and they strike true at two more towers up ahead.
Kodai's HUD lights up to show his targets, the reticule locked on and turning red. Four missiles fire from his Arwing and they all hit the towers, destroying them in a single pass.
"Direct hit on the concealment system. Field dissipating.", an officer says, his screen showing the concealment towers are crippled.
Shultz and Ganz watch in horror as they witness the artificial aurora used for their camouflage dissipate into the air.
And as if Murphy decided to give them a hard kick to their asses, Shultz barely has enough time to react before the officer reveals more bad news.
"Something is surfacing at the location where Montana sank!"
"What?!"
Montana
The ice rumbles and cracks before Montana suddenly breaks through, bottom first. The ice slides off the lower third bridge and its three guns as the ship's red keel floats on top of the water's surface.
Pluto Base
"What is that submarine?", Ganz asked, confused but Shultz quickly recognized what it was.
"You can't tell? That's the Montana!"
Panic in his voice, Shultz grits his teeth and angrily snarls, "What should we do? We have already given our report to Lord Dessler."
"Damn you, Montana!", he curses, then reverts to the only tactic he came up with. "Prepare to fire Reflecting Satellite Cannon!"
At his command, the base staff hurriedly prepares to fire the cannon once again.
"Preparing to fire Reflecting Satellite Cannon."
"Selecting relay satellites...6, 27, 33, 56..."
"It's irrelevant. We'll simply sink it again.", Shultz told to himself, confident they destroy the enemy ship for good. "Our report was merely a bit early, nothing more."
Montana
Floating on the ocean surface, two of Montana's ten VLS launchers open their ports each revealing a missile inside their silos.
"We will now begin our assault.", Aihara said in the CIC. "Bravo 1, withdraw from the area."
No response was given from Kato, however. "Bravo 1, come in!"
"Bravo 1, withdraw from the area."
Kato, hearing the transmission, can only weave and roll his fighter and is being relentlessly pursued by Gamilan fighters. The enemies are taking potshots at the Falcon, trying and failing to land a hit.
"Tch, if only it were this easy.", Kato gritted, pulling another hard right roll as he expertly dodged another burst of enemy fire.
Just then, another transmission patches through.
"This is Arwing 1, Kodai. Requesting backup from Montana. Arwing 1 has discovered the camouflaged enemy base. Right now, our current armaments will prove difficult to destroy the base."
"So that's the real base?", Nambu said.
"Well done, Kodai.", Abraham praised, stunning Kodai.
"Captain…"
"Do you see anything that resembles a beam cannon?"
Up above, Kodai circles the base as various structures are now wrecked and set ablaze. His eyes narrow and his pupils dart around, trying to find what he was looking for.
"No, I don't see anything."
"It's probably hidden below the surface or the sea.", Sanada hazarded a guess.
"Mhm, that's the biggest threat right now to the ship.", Abraham said. "Kodai, Yamamoto. You are to stay in the area to confirm the cannon's location."
"Confirm it? How?", Kodai asked.
"With your eyes."
"My eyes?"
"Yes. Trust them. But more importantly, trust your instincts."
"Shit, this wasn't the right base?!", Kato yelled in dismay, having just received new information from Kodai and the Montana. He has been performing evasive maneuvers for a good while now, his breath visibly condensing on the inside of his helmet. Still, his fighter remains undamaged, demonstrating his talents as a fighter pilot.
"Aye aye aye, stop complaining."
Kato's relief is very visible when he hears his fellow pilot's carefree voice and turns his head to see one of his pursuers being blown to bits by cannon fire. Another's wing is shot off, rolling uncontrollably and blowing up afterward by another friendly.
"The cavalry's here!"
"Shinohara! Nemoto!"
"And that's not all…"
Kato turns to see his remaining squadmates all diving in, guns blazing and decimating the Gamilan planes with their lethal forward cannons and whooping about.
"Let's get them!"
"Woohoo! Yeah!"
"Shoot 'em down, boys!"
"Leeeeroooy!"
Pulling up beside Kato, Shinohara laughs at their fellow pilots' enthusiastic battle cries.
"Hehe, they're like a bunch of thugs."
"Yeah. Alright, let's go!"
"Roger!"
With that, Kato and his squad proceed to rake up kills after kills, quickly turning the tide against the Gamilans.
Montana
"I got it! I have the satellite signals.", Niimi exclaimed, to keep a lookout for the reflector satellite's activities. Her screen showed a blip above the Montana.
"Monty! Begin decryption!", Sanada ordered
"Satellites located. Beginning to hack into the mainframe…", Monty responded, his fingers typing rapidly as a progress bar loads in his eyes. "Access granted! Relay satellites identified!"
A group of satellites flashes in sequence as it figures out which one is targeting Montana on the big screen. It then stops on the one directly above their position.
"Target locked. AA interceptor missiles ready for launch.", Nambu declared as Abraham stood up and grabbed a periscope lowered from the ceiling.
Looking through the viewport, he spots the satellite up above.
"Target confirmed. Anti-air missiles, fire!"
Two missiles are launched from Montana's two VLS cells, smoke trailing behind as they clime rapidly and race toward the satellite.
Pluto Base
"Last time, you survived.", Shultz said, raising the trigger button. "But you won't survive this!"
"Energy charge complete."
"Reflecting Satellite Cannon, FIRE!"
*click*
The purple beam fires once more, breaking the ice and spotted by Yamamoto up above. The beam bounces off the satellites multiple times before heading off the last one above Montana.
But before it can connect to the last satellite, two missiles fired from Montana make it to the satellite and blow it up just in time. The beam then simply continues harmlessly into space.
Montana
"Target destroyed.", Abraham declared, stowing away the periscope after seeing the remains of the satellite plummeting down. Just then, Yamamoto radios in.
"Arwing 2, Yamamoto, to Montana. I've identified the enemy cannon. Location is a frozen bay. Sending coordinates now."
"Roger. Coordinates received.", Aihara said.
"Prepare to fire. We'll destroy the enemy cannon.", Abraham spoke up.
Pluto Base
"57 is lost. It's been shot down from the surface."
"So, Montana noticed the satellite cannon.", Shultz said, seeing a red dot where the last satellite should have been.
"Prepare to fire again! This time, we'll change angles and fire from outside their effective range."
Montana
"Level the ship upright!", Abraham ordered.
"Inertial controls fully functional.", Ota stated.
"Gyroscopes reversed. Emptying starboard ballast! Level!", Shima shouted.
The starboard side is now more buoyant, Montana rolls right and flips from upside down to right side up, water flowing off the surface of the upper bridges and guns.
The time has come for Montana to fight back.
"Ship level. All inspections reported no problems.", Ota said.
"Type-3 HE rounds set with timed fuses.", Nambu added.
"Our target is the enemy beam cannon. Load Gun 1 with HE shells!", Abraham ordered.
The forwardmost turret turns to starboard, barrels raised as three HE shells are loaded into the breech.
"Range finding complete!"
"Gun 1, fire!"
"Fire!"
The turret opens fire, belching out smoke as it sends its salvo high up into the air.
The lower gravity and thinner atmosphere means the shells face much lower resistance and travel higher, faster, and further than they would normally have done under Earth's atmosphere.
"Shells fired. ETA to impact, ten seconds."
Nambu begins the countdown.
"Ju. Kyu. Hachi."
The three shells travel high and fast, arching across the sky before descending straight down to a frozen crater bay.
"Nana. Roku. Go. Yon."
Pluto Base
"Energy charge complete."
"Reflecting Satellite Cannon, FIRE!"
*click*
The Satelite Cannon fires again, unleashing purple energy just as the three shells from Montana pierce through the ice and land on its base. The time-fused shells click away the final seconds as the crew inside watch in fear.
"San. Ni. Ichi."
*BOOOM!*
Above, Kodai sees a tremendous explosion and a rising mushroom cloud of smoke as he witnesses the destruction of the Gamilas' cannon.
"This is Arwing 1. Enemy beam cannon has been destroyed!"
Montana
Kodai's transmission brings joy to the crew, smiling at the sights of the explosion transmitted from Kodai's Arwing on the big screen.
"We did it!", Nambu elated out.
"We will now move to destroy the enemy base. Raise the bow twenty degrees. Launch Montana!", Abraham barked out.
The rear thrusters come to life, billowing flames and melting the ice and water from behind. Accelerating forward, the bow thrusters fire and pitch the battleship up into the air. Just in time for the purple beam narrowly missing them from behind.
Pluto Base
"No signal from the Reflection Satellite Cannon."
Shultz and Ganz can only watch in absolute horror and disbelief, seeing the flames and smoke rise from where the Reflecting Cannon once stood on the big screen.
"This..this can't be happening!", Shultz can only mutter, watching as his trump card is snatched away by Murphy's metaphorical hands.
The room shakes about as the now melted and broken ice slams into the base. However, that wasn't even the bad news.
"Montana is rapidly approaching!"
Ganz, realizing the dire situation, suggests the only reasonable option. "Commander, it's too dangerous here. Please evacuate the base!"
"Evacuate?"
"As long as you survive, you have a chance to restore our honor!"
"…Dammit! All personnel, evacuate the base!", Shultz ordered in dismay, having accepted that he was out of options.
Montana
Out in the distance, Montana's forward deck turrets, as well as the kneel turret, turn to starboard and elevate up to the crater where the main base stood.
"Ranging and targeting complete. Air to surface missiles ready to fire.", Nambu declared.
Abraham begins the command to fire.
"Uchikata HAJIME!"
The forward guns open fire with a loud bang, sending shells toward the pluto base in the crater. The guns are quickly reloaded before opening fire once again, sending even more payload to the enemy.
Behind, Montana's two chimney VLS launchers open their ports to reveal a total of sixteen missiles, all launching and raining death from above.
The barrage of shells and missiles tear through the now exposed and vulnerable base, blowing up structures and setting anything they touch ablaze. Rising from the charred surface, a Garmillin battleship takes off alongside its escorts.
But below, things are even worse as several fleeing ships are struck down by Montana's raining shells.
One ship is pierced from above and explodes, another has its engines crippled and spirals out of control onto a buttload of awaiting Interplanetary Missiles. Those massive missiles explode and blow up nearby missiles and ships, causing a fatal chain reaction that sends the whole base down under, flames spewing from the silo doors above.
Montana
"Four enemy ships are leaving the base.", Mori called, her radar tracking the fleeing vessels."
"We will pursue. All guns, switch to Shock Cannon mode.", Abraham ordered.
Following the fleeing ships up ahead and above, the enemy ships turn their guns and open fire, desperately trying to shoot their peruser down.
Montana turned its forward guns and opened fire, blue energy penetrating a Kripitera destroyer and another one dispatching the other.
The last escort, a Destoria-class cruiser, breaks off the lead battleship and turns to charge directly at Montana.
Le Chevalier
"Jarletora is breaking formation."
Inside the bridge, Shultz and Ganz watch in surprise as Jarletora's face is shown on screen.
"We'll cover you. Please, be safe..."
"Prepare to switch to Geschtam Navigation. Hurry!", Ganz urgently orders the crew.
"Enemy cruiser heading towards us!"
"I won't let you get them!"
Charging forth to Montana kamikaze style, Jarletora's cruiser fires its side turrets at the Earth battleship. Unfortunately for him, his direct hits are only repelled by Montana's Wave Motion Shields. In response, Montana trains its secondary guns and fires back.
Peppering the cruiser with hits, one lucky shot strikes the engine and the cruiser falls out of the sky, passing Montana and careening down to Pluto's surface.
Le Chevalier
"The Destoria is down!"
Shultz and Ganz look down solemnly at the loss of their friend and comrade, before Shultz orders their retreat.
"Geschtam Jump!"
The Gamilan flagship begins to accelerate away, its thrusters burning purple before entering a red wormhole and warping away.
Montana
"Enemy has warped away.", Mori said, everyone on the bridge watching the last Gamilan ship retreating.
"The Gamilas base on Pluto is finished.", Abraham contemplates their victory and leans back on his chair, relieved everything is finished. "No more planet bombs will fall to Earth."
"This is Kodai. Returning to Montana."
Kodai's radio elicits a small smile form Mori, happy to see him safely return.
"This is Bravo leader. Our job here is done. No casualties. Returning to base."
Kato's declaration prompts a small cheer from the bridge crew, delighted at their complete win with no loss of their men.
Planet Gamilas, Dessler's Palace
In his personal wardrobe, Vice President Hyss relays his report on the recent events back on Plat to Dessler, who's being tended to with a new cape by his staff.
"Plat has fallen?", Dessler said, confused. Didn't Shultz say he sank the Terron vessel?
"Hyss, was I dreaming? Did the Terron ship not sink?"
Hyss straightens his back. "Yes, sir. I was given the same information."
"Shultz abandoned his base to retreat from the front lines, correct?"
"Y-yes."
"…" Retreat" is not a word in the Gamilan dictionary. Victory...If not victory, death."
"Yes, sir!"
Hyss performs the salute and leaves the wardrobe. Now alone, Dessler ponders at his mirror with a curious smile.
"...Terrons, huh?"
Montana, Pluto orbit
"Montana has left Pluto's orbit.", Shima reported, everyone had taken their positions on the Main Bridge. Kodai walks in, taking his seat with a satisfied smile.
"You did it, Kodai.", Shima congratulates his friend. "You got payback for your brother."
"No, Shima. We did."
Kodai's thoughts go out to his brother Mamoru back home. 'We did it, Brother.'
Abraham then orders the ship back to course. "We will return to our original course. Set thrusters to cruising speed."
"Adjusting course. Thrusters to cruising speed.", Shima affirmed, pushing the throttle forward and the ship sped forth, heading out of the Solar System.