Phase-02: Sparks
Shinn roared, charged and slashed. Stella evaded the first strike but was knocked away by the second. She responded with her pair of head-mounted MMI-GAU25A 20mm CIWS guns (only usable in MS mode) and the boy with his rifle. She dodged again and landed. She received Sting's support. Both thieves were very confused. There should have been only three new model gundams! They had no data on that thing! The Gaia turned into a mobile armor and charged. Unfazed, Shinn separated his "Excalibur" swords and lunged too. Shocked, Stella nonetheless evaded and shot his back with the beam assault cannons. However, they only hit the Impulse's shield and Asuka retaliated, throwing one of his swords that twirled and knocked his enemy back. The Gaia landed.
"Shinn! Your orders are to capture them! You do understand that, right?!" Arthur Trine reminded him. "Those belong to us!"
"I know that! I don't know if I can take them though! How did it come to this in the first place?! How could we let the enemy steal them so easily?!" The boy retorted as he clashed beam sabers with the Gaia.
"This isn't the time to be chatting about such things! This isn't practice! Concentrate on the battle!" Captain Gladys scolded him before calling the one in charge of enemy detection outside the colony. "If they're here on a capture mission, there should be a carrier waiting outside. See anything?"
"I don't need Gladys to tell me! I know! Tell her not to interfere with issues under my control!" Said officer in charge barked petulantly in the control room of the spaceport. They hadn't detected anything. It hadn't occurred to anyone yet that the enemy carrier was using the illegal Mirage Colloid system, and that this enemy was actually terrifyingly close. The crew inside the enemy carrier was wearing the Earth Alliance uniforms, and the commander was a Captain dressed in a dark gray uniform. The upper half of his face was concealed by a dark gray helmet with red stripes from which wavy blonde hair was cascading down to his shoulder blades. He looked at the time. Two GAT-01A2R Slaughter Daggers were stealthily approaching the port entrance equipped with a shield and bazooka. The countdown on the wristwatch of the Earth Alliance commander reached zero.
"Okay, let's go! Inconspicuously though." He smiled.
"Aim Gottfrieds one and two! Load missile launchers 1 through 8 with Korinthos!" The CIC officer ordered. The image of the ship appeared on the screen of the one responsible for the weapons. Its front part was very similar to the Archangel. A corner of the screen read: GIRTY LUE O.M.N.I. Enforcer. Another person ordered the Izawa unit and Harada unit to proceed to the catapult.
"Main cannons, target the portside of the Nazca-class. Disengage Mirage Colloid upon firing. Engines to maximum." The blonde leader ordered. "Now, things are finally gonna get more interesting, gentlemen."
"Gottfrieds, fire!" The ship captain Ian Lee yelled. The Girty Lue fired almost at point blank range and the ZAFT vessel exploded, shocking the crew of the nearby ships. The Mirage Colloid was deactivated and the Girty Lue advanced at maximum propulsion, firing away. That stealth space battleship was armed with 6 Gottfrieds, 16 Igelstellung, and 38 missile launchers and was equipped with 4 catapults.
"The Hershel has been hit! Missiles approaching Fourrier! 18 of them! Unidentified vessel located! One vessel, location Orange 25, Mark 8, Bravo! Distance 2300!" A soldier reported in the control room. A few Black Coat officers were stunned. They instantly guessed that Mirage Colloid had been employed. It was the only way an enemy could sneak so close without being detected. They thought about an attack from the Earth Alliance but no match was found in the heat pattern library. The identity of the enemy was completely unknown! They ordered the start of the counterattack, to send out the ships and mobile suits. A second Nazca-class was bombed, a third approached the unknown vessel and was at a distance of 1900.
"Turn 20 immediately after launching the mobile suits! Main cannons target Indigo, Nazca-class! Don't get hit by their gunfire." The Captain instructed. Izana and Harada sortied in their Strike Gundam Integrated Weapons Striker Pack. They shot the Nazca-class with their 105mm cannons but were soon attacked by GINNs, GuAIZs, and CGUEs. In the harbor, a Laurassia-class was slowly leaving. Just outside, behind a corner, the Slaughter Daggers nodded at each other, flew inside and shot the bridge, the engines... Deviated by the impacts and explosions, the ship crashed into the control room. The Slaughter Daggers continued their devastation and destroyed all the ships in the port. Everyone in the colony felt the tremor.
"Athrun, that's..." Seren began dreadfully. She had recognized those sounds and sensations for having once felt them two years ago.
"We're being attacked from the outside. The harbor?" He confirmed her fears. At this time, Cagalli had already been shoved in an emergency barge so she didn't see anything. But Athrun, who had caused those explosions at Heliopolis, and Seren who had then fought him... They had seen the collapse of Heliopolis... and partly caused it... And their chests tightened painfully at this memory... but in the same time, it filled them with determination.
"We can't let that happen again!" The brown-haired girl exclaimed with such a strong sense of urgency, like she was being consumed by a fever. Meantime, Shinn had trouble faring with the irregular movements of the Gaia that would bounce off the buildings to attack from many angles. It was completely different from training. DINNs came to help but they were done in by the Abyss.
"Sting! That's our cue!" Auel called. Sting was already aware of that. Those explosions meant their ride had come and they should hurry back. "We're late. The bus will leave without us." He insisted, which annoyed his leader. "And what is that thing? We were told there were only three new models! So what do we do?! It's not in our plans! That Neo... he messed up..." He complained again.
"But we can't exactly ignore it! It'll be a pain if it decides to come after us!" Oakley pointed out and shot a CGUE aiming at him from behind.
"Thinking of bringing its head along as a gift? Isn't that the sort of thing lame people do?" Auel laughed, a bloodthirsty light in his eyes, and charged too despite his words. Stella disengaged at Sting's word. Shinn turned to see the Chaos charging at him but it suddenly jumped up and the Abyss behind it fired its "Callidus" cannon. The Impulse managed to step away just in time but was almost kicked down by the green unit. Asuka jumped back and the ZGMF-X24S fired his rifle at him. He shielded himself but was attacked from behind by the Gaia. He ducked to avoid the first slash but was knocked back by the second strike. It was three on one! Noticing that machine's predicament, the three Orb civilians decided to go to his aid. Seren apologized to Cagalli and held her tighter, keeping her secured. She knew they should be getting away, prioritizing her safety... but to let such things happen right before her eyes... and Athrun, from his actions, was of the same opinion. He told them to hold on. The Impulse fell on his back. Shinn gasped as he saw the ZGMF-X31S Abyss about to finish him with its beam lance, but suddenly, the GINN he had previously saved rammed into the Abyss and threw its beam tomahawk that embedded itself in the Gaia's shield. Furious, Auel fired his "Callidus" multi-phase cannon. The beam ricocheted against the GINN's shield that was knocked away. The impact hurled the already damaged machine into a ruined wall. The violence of the movements and collision tossed the girls in the cockpit. Suddenly Athrun heard Cagalli cry Seren's name, and a second later, his lover fell in his arms, unconscious. Because she had protected Cagalli, she had not been able to protect herself, and her head had violently hit the cockpit.
"Seren! Seren!" He called her anxiously before freezing, his eyes wide, when he felt a warm and thick liquid on his hand. He looked in horror. It was blood. Her head was bleeding! The Chief Representative snapped him back to reality. The Abyss was attacking again. The GINN jumped away. They received reinforcements. DINNs were firing beams and missiles at the stolen units from the sky. Auel cursed and retaliated with the MA-X223E 3-barrel Beam Cannons located on the underside of the binders.
"I won't let you have things your way!" The Impulse charged and slashed but the blue machine leapt away and Shin had to defend against the Gaia's MA-M941 "Vajra" beam saber.
Lunamaria was standing on her fallen red ZAKU Warrior and ordering the mechanics to clean the debris covering the cockpit and open it just enough so that she could get in. Others were doing the same on Rey's white ZAKU Phantom. A moment later, one of the staff called him. The boy hurried on his unit and jumped inside. The machinist warned him that they didn't know what damage it could have sustained inside so he shouldn't expect it to operate normally. If there was a problem, he must retreat immediately. Rey nodded and activated his unit that sat up. He told Lunamaria to move over. The humans jumped down and he freed the red machine. Happy, the girl ran back to it.
Surrounded by officers in purple coats, the extremely irritated Chairman was walking through a hastily made camp. Who was in charge of things here?! What about those three machines?! Nobody could explain anything to him. They heard a little girl in tears calling her daddy. A man was complaining to soldiers demanding to know why they couldn't go to the harbor. There was another explosion close by. The guards protected their leader. Another officer came and enjoined the Chairman to hurry to the shelter. This area was still dangerous. Poisonous gases had been released. But of course Durandal refused. How could he do that when he still didn't have a good grasp of the situation?! However, his subordinates insisted that he be in a safe place... at least the Minerva... He glanced back at the ship and reluctantly agreed.
Outside, the Girty Lue and its Daggers destroyed another Nazca-class before targeting the next one. The blonde Captain looked at the time. Those three were late. In the colony, the battle had moved to the sky and the Impulse was facing the Chaos when the Gaia tried to slash him from behind. Shinn avoided it and flew away. Stella and Sting cursed that new model. Why wasn't he falling?!
"How could something like this be allowed to happen?!" Asuka hurled one of his beam saber like a boomerang that knocked the Gaia away. Neider fired his 3-barrel beam cannons. Shinn blocked one beam but the five others went on and hit the troops on the ground, destroying three allied units. That weapon of the Abyss was truly very effective against multiple targets. The elite ZAFT soldier gaped as he looked back at those he couldn't save before turning to glare at the ZGMF-X31S. Before the blue unit could shoot again, it was hit by the attacks of two ZAKUs, Lunamaria's and Rey's.
"How dare you do that to us!" Hawke raged.
"Sting! There's no end to this! And my machine's running out of power!" Auel yelled.
"We'll retreat!" Oakley ordered, defending against the ZAKU Phantom's fire. "Stella! Can you shake him off?!"
"I'll destroy him in no time!" Stella fired the MA-81A Beam Assault cannons of her backpack. "This can't be. I... I..." She charged the Impulse. Their beam sabers clashed. Sting insisted they had to retreat but she no longer cared. The frustration was making her disregard all reason. "I can't give in to this guy!"
"Then you just die here!" The pilot of the Abyss said harshly, making her freeze. Sting angrily yelled his name. "I'll give Neo a message on your behalf... that you said 'goodbye'!" The blue-haired boy continued cruelly. Stella, gasping for breath, overcome by fear, had totally stopped moving. When she heard words like 'die' or 'death', her already fragile and unstable mind would always experience a block. Shinn had no clue what had happened to the Gaia but attacked nonetheless. The Chaos parried the projectile and shot at him. Sting got angry at Auel for speaking that word now. Loussier had started trembling, stammering and holding herself. "She wouldn't stop! I had no choice!" Neider justified himself, although he didn't seem to care much.
"Shut up you fool! That was uncalled for!" Sting rebuked him. She would have listened if he had just insisted a bit more! Now was not the time to have a mental breakdown! They needed her to keep her presence of mind! She screamed and fled to the sky. The boys followed.
"See? We got the result we wanted, right?" Auel smirked, covering their retreat by firing the M68 dual cannons mounted on the binders. The three ZAFT soldiers went after them but Lunamaria was forced to abandon when a small explosion occurred in her ZAKU's propulsion system.
Athrun landed his ZAKU next to a camp where a number of soldiers were carrying the wounded while others were taking measures to prevent the fire from spreading to the ammunition supplies. The movement caused Seren to regain consciousness in Athrun's arms. They had moved her here as to not burden Cagalli. They heard her groan and anxiously asked how she was feeling. Seren held her head and reassured them, keeping quiet about the throbbing pain, like her skull was threatening to explode under the pressure. In that case it was probably good she was still bleeding a bit.
"Sorry... I just..." Athrun began, contrite.
"It's fine. I would have done the same. But we should apologize to Cagalli. Even though your safety should be our first and foremost priority, we..." The brown-haired girl apologized yet again, but the Orb leader assured them it was okay and she understood. They looked around. There were mobile suits standing guard. The boy zoomed on a jeep. It was taking the president away... towards that new model battleship.
"We'll find a safe place to disembark right away." The young man told them and made the ZAKU walk towards the ship. On the way they looked at the damage. There was nothing but ruins.
Outside the colony, the Girty Lue destroyed one more Nazca-class but three GuAIZs were approaching them from portside rear.
"Fire anti-beam depth charges! And in the same time, accelerate by 20% for ten seconds! Load Sledgehammers into tubes 1 through 4! Call back our mobile suits!" The captain ordered. The blonde, dark-clothed officer asked if those three had returned and received a negative answer. The captain wondered whether those three had failed. The harbor might have crushed but this whole colony was still a weapons factory. The longer they remained, the greater the disadvantage.
"I know that. But if they were likely to fail, I wouldn't have allowed them to take part in this mission." The superior spoke confidently as he stood up and another Dagger blew up. "I'll go out and buy us some time. Take command of the ship."
"Yes! Hangar deck, the Exus is launching! Get ready!"
The Chaos detached its weapon pods. The Abyss stepped before him and fired his "Callidus" multi-phase beam cannon and "Balanea Kai" beam cannons at the Impulse and ZAKU Phantom. They both avoided but then the weapon pod shot them from behind. Shinn was in the same time impressed and annoyed. Those guys were incredible, operating so well machines they had just stolen!
"If they escape that's it! We've gotta stop them from getting away!" Rei firmly reminded his friend.
"I know that! But..." It was easier said than done!
On the bridge of the Minerva a communication operator confirmed the impossibility to contact the control room. The one on the other side, a young 16-year old girl with red hair in pig tails and indigo eyes reported that gasses had been released from within the factory and a level 4 evacuation warning had been issued for all districts from Espace to Ronal. The vice-captain standing next to her started panicking. This wasn't good... if those stolen mobile suits ended up getting away...
"We won't allow that to happen!" Gladys-kanchou asserted strongly as one of the ship's hatch opened and Lunamaria's damaged ZAKU approached, smoke billowing out of its back, and landed inside. Chairman Durandal, flanked by two officers, walked up the gangway to the Minerva. "In any case, I wonder what unit they belong to... to have executed such a daring plan..."
The mobile armor TS-MA4F Exus, customized into a magenta color, left the Girty Lue. Based on the TS-MA2mod.00 Moebius Zero, its vastly improved weaponry and performance allowed it to fight on par with ZAFT's new ZAKU series, although it was still only usable in space. The body of the unit was equipped with a small rapid-firing GAU-M2S 38.5mm Machine Gun, a M54 "Archer" Quadruple Missile Launcher, and the MAU-M3 twin Linear Gun. Those linear guns were much like railguns, they could swivel up and down, and even rotate left or right since they were mounted on a movable turret. And then the Exus had four M16M-D4 Gunbarrels that were remotely controlled via wiring. Each pod featured a pair of GAU-868L2 Twin Beam Gun that could easily damage phase-shift armored units, as well as a DE-RXM91C Field Edge "Horned Moon" beam blade for close combat. Although they could only be employed by pilots with high spatial awareness, those gunbarrels were highly effective when battling many enemies at once, or provide barrages or multi-directional flanking. The EA commander proved exceedingly skilled at operating those weapons, showing the reflexes and experience of a seasoned pilot, and was able to dispatch the enemies with disconcerting ease. As he approached the wall of the colony, Rey sensed a presence, wondering what it was.
The Chairman and his two aides entered the bridge of the Minerva, surprising the ship captain, and everyone. He demanded to know about the situation. Stella screamed in fright and shot the colony wall with all her weapons, to no effect. Shinn and, dodging the beams of the Chaos' gunbarrels, hurled his "Flash Edge" beam boomerangs at the Gaia but they were destroyed when the Abyss shot his two 3-barrel beam cannons.
"Minerva! Send the Force Silhouette!" Asuka 'requested'.
"I approve. Send it out." The captain granted. She turned to the chairman. "There's no longer any reason to keep it a secret, is there?"
"No." He replied resignedly. Three machines had already been stolen, the other secret X56S Impulse had already made a grand entrance and revealed its feature as a combinable unit... With so little left to unveil, might as well use it now and increase the chances to reclaim those three. The X24S Chaos launched missiles at the Impulse that shot them down with to its chest-mounted CIWS guns while Rey fired at the Abyss with the beam assault rifle.
"Commencing launch sequence for Force Silhouette. All systems go." Female communication operator Meyrin Hawke, younger sister of pilot Lunamaria Hawke, supervisor of the Minerva's mobile suits, responsible for the tactical coordination and the complex launching procedures began. "Setting Silhouette Flyer on platform. Central catapult, online. Emergency crew, please standby." She continued with a clear voice. The hatch opened, the engines of the flyer started, and the remotely guided unit took off.
The white ZAKU Phantom's beam tomahawk was blocked by the Abyss' beam lance. The blue machine kicked the ZAFT MS away and fired at it. Rey gritted his teeth. While her comrades covered her, Stella kept shooting her beam weapons at the same spot of the colony wall, trying to open a hole and escape. She lacked the firepower but given enough time, there was no doubt she could do it. Shinn cursed and tried to interfere but Sting got in his way again and the gunbarrels aimed at him from multiple angles. The Chaos in MA mode charged and the MA-XM434 Beam Claws cut the "Excalibur" anti-ship laser sword, the impact even knocked it off the Impulse's hand. Asuka shielded himself from the enemy beams. Rey came to his help. The Force Silhouette arrived. The ZAKU dodged the X31S' attack. Shinn detached his current backpack. The Silhouette Flyer disconnected from the Force Silhouette that fixed itself onto the back of the Impulse.
Seren, whose attention was all on the fight that she was watching through the ZAKU's zoom felt her heart tighten painfully when she saw that gundam's new appearance... that blue and red cockpit, those black and red wings, that shield... wasn't that gundam the spitting image of the Aile Strike?! When she recalled what had happened to Heliopolis because of the Strike... and the Blast... she couldn't help but be filled with dread. Was this colony going to suffer the same fate? Were those stolen machines going to escape? What about the pursuit? Was another war going to start?
Auel and Sting were shocked too. That guy could change his equipment in midair?! Oakley shot at him with his rifle but the Force Impulse avoided and slashed, though the Chaos dodged. Shinn was targeted by the Abyss' fire but instead of evading, he charged straight at the blue machine, shield in front, and rammed into it before going to the Gaia. The blonde pilot gasped in fright and kept flying backwards. While Asuka was busy, it was the X31S - after dodging the ZAKU Phantom - that next tried opening a hole with all its beam weapons... and failed.
"Stop it! Go away!" Stella cried in fear and despair, shaking her head, shutting her tear-filled eyes, blindly shooting towards the X56S.
"Fall!" Shinn roared. However, he was stopped in his tracks when the Chaos fired all its weapons in his direction from behind. However, they didn't hit him but the wall of the colony... and successfully managed to blast a hole to the outside. The two ZAFT pilots gasped as the air gushed out into the emptiness of space. The three stolen mobile suits rushed through it. Shinn and Rey resisted the pull of the vacuum effect but soon the operator of the Impulse cursed and decided to go out after the thieves, against his comrade's advice. And as he couldn't leave his reckless friend alone, Rey followed too... to Arthur Trine's damn.
"Captain! They're heading out on their own! The enemy vessel is still outside!" He complained. And to make matters worst, Meyrin informed them that the Impulse's power was getting critically low, 300 left at most. The deputy officer couldn't believe it.
"We can't afford to lose the Impulse as well. Launch the Minerva!" Talia Gladys stood up. Her subordinates stared at her incredulously at such an extreme measure.
"I'm counting on you, Talia." The Chairman averted his eyes in guilt and gave his approval, knowing the stakes better than anyone. But calling her by her first name and without title or honorifics... they seemed to be quite close... Athrun's damaged ZAKU landed in the hangar of the Minerva. Lunamaria had come down and was speaking with Yolan. Everyone stared at it. Why had they come all the way here? It hadn't been planned. And they were even more surprised when those three civilians came down.
Standing again and walking had made Seren light-headed due to the blood rush. Her lover and sister were at her sides, one hand on her back and another on her arms. But then they heard a girl telling them not to move and raised their eyes to see her aiming a gun at them. She had short red-violet hair and a red coat. Seren's face grew hard as she put Cagalli behind her. Injured or not, it was her duty and heartfelt will to guard her younger sibling who was also the leader of their nation. Athrun stood protectively in front of the two women.
"Commencing Minerva launch sequence. This ship is now switching over to combat status." Trine declared.
"Gunnery crew, prepare for FCS contact. Set projectile configuration to grade one." Meyrin ordered.
"Mr. Chairman, please prepare to disembark!" Gladys requested.
"Talia, under these circumstances, I can't exactly stay behind and wait for a report. I have the authority, but also the duty. I will go with you. Please permit it." Durandal insisted and she reluctantly agreed.
"This ship is about to take off. All hands, please proceed to your stations. I repeat. This ship is about to take off."
"Don't move. Who are you people? You're not soldiers, are you? Why were you in that machine?" Lunamaria interrogated them while holding them at gunpoint. She and the other soldiers were glaring at them with eyes full of suspicion. Cagalli stuttered so Seren stood before her, strong and steadfast. All the cables and props were removed and reeled back, freeing the vessel.
"Lower your rifles. This is Miss Cagalli Yula Athha, Chief Representative of the Orb Union." Seren commanded.
"And this is Miss Seren Elvira Ledford, Ambassadress of the Orb Union and Representative Athha's attendant." Athrun introduced them. "I am her escort, Alex Dino. We got caught up in the commotion while in a meeting with him and were separated. Unable to escape, we had no choice but to borrow the machine to defend ourselves."
"We wish to speak to Chairman Durandal. We saw him board this ship. That is why we came here." Ledford solicited.
"Orb's Athha... and Ledford..." Lunamaria repeated their names in disbelief.
"The ambassadress has been injured and needs medical attention. I would like you to contact the Chairman." 'Alex' insisted.
Shinn was looking around for the three who had escaped, but didn't find the slightest trace. He swore in frustration. He received a communication from Rey who ordered him to retreat for now as he was being too reckless. They were completely in the dark. Searching blindly was pointless. They flew away. They had not noticed the Exus clinging to the colony like a cicada to a tree. But the EA commander piloting it had seen them. Now he understood why those three had been so late. Having failed to uncover any information about that thing and its existence was a mistake on his part. The Gaia, Chaos, and Abyss boarded the Girty Lue.
"I'm not dead... I'm alright..." Stella stammering, trembling and holding herself, as if to confirm she was indeed alive, here, in this world. "I'm alright... Stella is alright... right...?"
"We have a message from Captain Roanoke. The message says to advance the Girty Lue to Blue 18, Mark 3, Alpha." A man on the bridge of the Earth Alliance ship reported. And the Exus started moving. Again, Rey sensed something.
"Message for all hands at system control. As of this moment, LHM-BB01 Minerva's classification code has been validated. The Minerva is currently going through its emergency launch sequence. A55M6 warning alarm activated. All dock damage control teams, remain on standby. Teams two and five, stay alert for any unanticipated damage to the ship's frame. Gate control, online. Minerva, connecting to descent lift. Monitor B team, observe depressurization phase." A male voice announced as the ship slowly sank down a shaft. As Lunamaria was leading the civilians down a hallway (with soldiers ready to shoot them from behind if they made any suspicious move) Cagalli asked if this vessel was evacuating the colony and if the damage to the PLANT was that horrendous.
"At the very least, I don't think it'll be destroyed. I guess those thieves made a hole in order to escape. That must be the biggest damage. But measures should be taken for the protection of the people. It won't be like Heliopolis. This is part of the PLANTs homeland, and an armory, not some civilian asteroid far from the main land. Now that they have accomplished their objective, staying too long would be dangerous. I believe we can safely assume the fighting has completely left the colony and been taken outside." Seren replied reassuringly. "However, what worries me was that they were clearly on a capture mission, and must have a carrier waiting outside, and obviously, that carrier was NOT detected despite its closeness... the only explanation I can think of is Mirage Colloid... What more... they so easily operated ZAFT-manufactured units, new models at that... are they space pirates? Or Coordinators from an extremist faction dissatisfied with the current government? Or children altered by Blue Cosmos in order to have abilities on par with Coordinators? This is no joke! What could they be thinking?! What do they want?! We can't have another war-owowow!" The girl ranted, clearly lost in her own thoughts, not even realizing that she was voicing them aloud... and growing more enraged until she held her head in pain and hunched her back.
"Calm down, don't let the blood rush to your head." Alex chided her and wrapped an arm around his lover's shoulders to support her... even though he was thinking no less. Seren gritted her teeth. About those people's identity or aim... she had no idea. And if they managed to escape, what about the pursuit? Was this ship going to do it? She couldn't do anything... and if she thought about it... that was not her place either. That was no longer her role. That was entirely up to ZAFT. All she could, and should do, was trust them. But she was simply scared, terrified... Given her current position, she was painfully aware that the world was on a tightrope, and it was impossible to tell what could tip the balance and trigger another war.
"Launch gate depressurization complete. We're ready to go anytime." The deputy captain informed.
"Start engines. The Minerva is taking off. Condition red." Talia instructed.
"Condition Red announced. Condition Red announced. Pilots are to gather at the briefing room at once." Meyrin's voice echoed through the vessel.
"Is this ship going into battle?!" Alex was shocked.
"Seren, Athrun!" Athha exclaimed.
"Cagalli!" Seren admonished her in a low voice when Athrun gasped and the female Red Coat turned to them and repeated the name... 'Athrun'... The blonde girl gasped when she realized her blunder. Strangely, Chacha chose this moment to come out of Ledford's clothes and innocently climb onto her head. Sometimes you wondered whether that cute robotic flying squirrel was actually able to read moods. Seren sighed and stood between the troubled Athrun and that elite pilot's inquisitive gaze.
Roanoke-taisa detached the gunbarrels and shot at the Impulse from multiple angles in a surprise attack, though Asuka managed to avoid it.
"Now, I think I'll have that machine as well." The EA officer claimed as he veered to strike again. Rey screamed his friend's name as he rushed to help, but then he noticed that unknown vessel behind him... the enemy vessel!
A hatch opened at the base of the PLANT. Durandal closed his eyes and smiled as the Minerva was dropped into space and sailed on.
The past speaks to us even now. Violence draws infinitely close and makes us wonder... Is it peace or war that people truly wish for? Why won't this unwanted struggle end? We seem to hear the familiar and sinister rumbling of the unseen wheel, and 'unrest' stirs up our anxiety. How long will this last? Can the peace we fought so hard to establish still be protected? Just where are we headed to?
Author's note: hmm... looks like a few regulars have returned. Welcome back aboard. And welcome to the first flyers. Thank you very much for having chosen this fanfiction. However, as this is a battleship, and not a luxury cruise ship, I'll have to ask you to bear with future inconveniences because writing... is a battle. And as your unreliable captain, I'll be counting on your support and be grateful for even a single gesture.