KSGU:Volume 5 Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Part 1

(Universal Century. In ordinary terms it means ‘A Century for everyone’. The age of outer space should be written as ‘Universe Century’, but we deliberately used the word ‘Universal’, which means ‘for all’, as the name for the new century.)

Marida’s hearing that was dulled by the anaesthesia picked up this calm but determined voice. She opened her eyes slightly, and saw the ceiling inside the ship connector.

The fluorescent panels that were lined up in intervals continued to glide by Marida’s eyes, and the slow-flowing air struck her face. She moved her slightly numb hand, realized that she was fastened down on the zero-gravity use stretcher, and gathered her sights that were focused on both left and right eyes. The men wearing white normal suits were surrounding the stretchers, moving along the connector to somewhere else. At this point, this group of people looked like they were paramedics sending an injured sportsman, but none of them were focusing on the patient. Those faces were obviously showing strange looks as they looked forward, silently letting the lift grips pull them forward. The pistols grips on the men’s waist holsters showed that they were definitely not related to any medical work in any sense.

Marida originally thought that they were conversing with each other, but that was not the case. The ‘voice’ she heard came from the internal wireless speakers of the helmet. Who’s the one talking? She swallowed her saliva that had some bitterness of the anaesthesia and pricked her eyes to hear this ‘voice’ that sounded like someone’s speech. However, another person’s voice “You’re saying that the message came from the “Unicorn”? caused her face to twitch.

“I’m saying this alright. The machine started to let out this signal once they made contact with the debris of “Laplace”.”

“Did the Laplace Program unseal itself? How’s the NT-D?”

“I don’t sense any activation of the NT-D here…”

Marida turned her eyes to the source of this voice. From the back of the normal suit, she saw a man with a fat face tensing up. They are not crew members of this “Nahel Argama”. If I remember correctly, that man from Anaheim Electronics is called Alberto. She felt her head aching somewhat as she recalled these scenes, and closed her eyes for the time being. She had not recovered completely, and the effects of the anaesthetic did not fade off completely. However, it seemed that the fastening belts on the stretchers were not secured that tightly, and she gradually clenched her fists to awaken her still sleepy body. She then widened her eyes and looked around.

From the area she could see, she saw Alberto and 3 other men who looked like his henchmen. They were probably heading to the shuttle that was linking over, and from what she heard before she fell asleep, it seemed that she would be brought to Earth together with this group of people. If she were detained in a military facility, the chances of her escaping would become even more difficult. Marida did not think that she could survive and make it all the way back to the Neo Zeon camp, but if she were injected with drugs and revealed information she should not say, she would end up putting her master and everyone else in a pinch, and she had to prevent that no matter what. She twitched her body that was in the worker normal suit, checked on her thoroughly hurting body due to her injuries, realized that she was not completely immobile, and started to observe the men’s actions.

The men seemed to have swallowed the opinion of the military doctor who said that Marida would be unable to wake up for half a day, and did not pay attention to her. Can I take down such numbers? As Marida held her breath and asked herself, “What should we do? Do we delay the launch and hear out the outcome of the investigations?” a subordinate asked, and Alberto’s back shuddered as he held onto the lift grip.

“Continue to keep contact with the bridge. Call the captain of the “Klimt” and tell him and we may change our departure time according to how things develop.”

“Yes.” The subordinate answered as he stepped on the floor and moved back Alberto, who muttered, “What kind of joke is this…” without looking at the other person. His voice echoed through the corridor, and Marida saw that he seemed to be terrified from behind as she heard that ‘voice’ from the broadcast inside the ship. She suddenly recalled Banagher’s name and looked up at the ceiling.

It was said that this ‘voice’ came from the “Unicorn”. Is he called to be the pilot again? Marida relaxed her tense body as she let her consciousness float towards that ‘voice’. She closed her eyes and tried to catch the pulsation of the “Unicorn”, but felt an icy feeling suddenly pierce through her chest.

She could not help but widen her eyes, and her fingers stiffened at this point. A certain presence was rising up from below the fall, passing through the normal suit and the stretcher, and she clearly felt goosebumps that rose from the skin on her back. This presence did not come from the “Unicorn”, and it was not from that ‘voice’. Another thing was approaching. Someone was staring at the “Nahel Argama” with killing intent.

Marida knew that this was not a term she should be saying as a prisoner, but she could not find any other term to describe this sharp ‘presence’. Her body that was lying tense on the stretcher traced the certain person’s presence rising from her back as she gathered her concentration that was wandering around in space, and then chose the words that formed in her heart.

The enemy’s here—

Part 2

(As humans need to reside in outer space, it’s important for all of humanity to unite together. We can’t let this miracle… become a special occasion…)

The noise started to mix in amongst the voices, proving more than anything else that an enemy was approaching. Otto restrained his inner heart that felt horror as he loudly asked the crew, “Minovsky Particles, you say!?”

“The density is rising rapidly. It’s not an interfering wave.”

The sensor operator seated at the left console seat added on as he looked over at Otto. Minovsky Particles were detected inside the ship, and it was not scattered here from a trading ship somewhere as a precaution against pirates. Someone was definitely releasing Minovsky Particles in this area to cover the eyes of the “Nahel Argama”. To think that we’ll end up with an enemy attack at such a time. Otto exchanged glances with Liam and immediately asked the sensor operator, “Where’s the source?”

“Unable to confirm. The spreading pattern is still unstable. It seemed that the Minovsky radar caught interference.”

“What about the motion sensor?”

“There’s no response in the sensor range. No heat signature either.” The enemy launched an electronic battle from outside the detectable range, and the Minovsky radar failed because of the enemy. There was no room for suspicion in this current situation, and Otto used the reflexes he honed during this past week, “PREPARE FOR ANTI-AIR BATTLE!” he yelled, and the voice echoed through the bridge.

“All personnel, put on your normal suits and prepare for battle. Prepare the cannons. The enemy may be hiding amongst the surrounding civilian ships. Carry out tight anti-air surveillance. We should be able to detect the location of all the ships from the radar information.”

But even so, hundreds of ships continued to move around on the Earth’s orbit. The “Nahel Argama” could not easily pick up the enemy’s location, and it could not expect to fight a decent defensive battle while being thoroughly battered. Otto heard the repeated instructions and alarm sounds as he muttered to himself, “What kind of enemy is there…” Liam received the normal suit from the duty soldier as she coolly answered him, “I don’t think there’ll be many of them here.”

“Besides, this is the absolute defense zone of Earth. Even if the enemy’s disguised as a merchant ship, it probably won’t have the fighting strength of a fleet to invade.”

“That’s the problem. Since they’re willing to fight us with few numbers, they probably came up with some plan.”

Liam, who was putting on her normal suit, stopped what she was doing as she gave Otto a stunned reaction. Otto too felt a little troubled that he spoke with the tone of a very experienced commander as he avoided Liam in the eyes, asking, “Where are our allies location?” Liam zippered up the fastener of her normal suit as she answered,

“The patrol fleet is on duty, but they’re retreating towards the geostationary orbit. Even if we immediately ask them for aid, it’s hard to tell whether they can reach in 30 minutes.

“30 minutes… if this were an enemy raid, it’ll be over by the time they arrive.”

Doesn’t matter what the result is now. Otto added on in his heart as he too received the normal suit and turned to Mihiro at the communication operator seat, saying, “Call back the scouting scout.”

“Once they return, call Romeo 010 and 012 to cover the mothership. The ECOAS’ “Loto” probably can be used as cannons, so do tell them as well.”

“Yes… then, what about the “Unicorn”?”

Mihiro put on her helmet, returned to her seat and gave a meek expression at Otto. From an objective viewpoint, the “Unicorn” would clearly be the most powerful fighting force the ship had. Otto felt words that were stuck in his throat, and he pulled up the fastener of the normal suit in one go, “Tell him to remain on standby inside the colony.” He answered while avoiding the other party’s stare.

“That mobile suit is still releasing that ridiculous speech. Hurry up and let it retreat back inside before it becomes a live target for the enemy.”

We can’t let the kid help in this battle anymore. “Roger that”, Otto saw Mihiro answer “Roger” as she turned her face back to the console, and he looked back onto the screen in front before remorse rose in him. The debris of “Laplace” was ferrying the “Unicorn” over the Southern Hemisphere of Earth, and for every second passed, it would pull away from the “Nahel Argama” that was located on the equator. The electric noise that was mixed in with the speech seemed to be leaving together with the old Prime Minister residence.

Less than 100 years ago, the voice of the first Prime Minister of the Federation government was released all over the world. Ignoring what kind of relation this speech actually had with the “Laplace Box”, these would definitely be difficult to listen to at this point when times had changed. Unknown world, brand new century, humanity that managed to create a united government called the Earth Federation— Otto continued to digest on those words, and he heard someone say, “How ironic” before it was overwhelmed by the loud sound of the alarms.

“A glorious outcome created when all of humanity is united… we, who’re living under such a result, are still killing each other.”

Liam’s voice sounded ever so vicious, and Otto had no reply for her as he put on the helmet of his normal suit without saying anything. The voice that announced the start of the Universal Century did not stop completely as it continued to remain beneath the noise and rang through the wireless radio.

Part 3

(We must normalize that fact that humanity has united, not rejecting each other, not hating each other, and become one race as we head to a wider universe. The term Universal Century includes our hopes.)

The beating of the heart was responding to the ‘voice’ of the ghost. Was it his own heartbeat, or was it the “Unicorn”? Or was it neither, but the beating from the universe itself as the owner of the ‘voice’ merged into it…?

Banagher could not understand. However, he felt that there was another him deep within that he did not know of, responding to the ‘voice’. He understood that the body that was becoming one with the machine was pulsating, and the thoughts within him were radiating out in all directions. Right, the Universal Century was supposed to be a Century full of possibilities—Banagher’s pulsating thoughts muttered as he started to listen to the voice that was coming out from within him.

That kind of possibility could allow humanity to ascend as a higher form of existence in the next phase. The owner of this ‘voice’ knew how much blood humanity shed for this path, and had to leave his own prayer to the next generation even though they did not know what kind of possibilities awaited them at all.

“It’s because we don’t understand that we draw it out, and then we ponder on it. Humans are the only ones granted with such an ability.”

The large tapestry appeared in space, and the gathering shadows seemed to form the silhouette of Cardeas. It was one of the six tapestries hung in the Vist residence, the piece called the ‘tent’. A lady was in front of the tent that had the words ‘my only wish’ on it and, and put her ornament into the “Box” the servant girl was holding. A lion and a unicorn were on both sides, looking like they were ready to guide the lady into the tent—

“There’s a certain sense the five senses can’t comprehend…and it exceeds the senses we have now…maybe that is the existence they called God, or maybe that is an illusion created by humanity’s wishes. But if we believe in that existence and can do what the world does, there is a chance to turn it into reality.”

A glow was radiating from the tent, and the unicorn that was floating gradually in space surrounded the “Unicorn”. As many people believed in its existence and loved it, this legendary beast was born. Humans could tame this beast, and as for whether it really existed, it already did not matter—this prose of an old poem passed through Banagher’s thoughts.

“Whether it’s right or not isn’t important. To them, this light is important. They needed something to fight despair and live in this world that was cruel and binding. They needed something to believe that this world still has room for change.”

The silhouette then took the form of Marida as she looked up at the man crucified on the Cross, saying that. They put their hopes into the future… as a prayer to make up for their sins in the past, and to comfort themselves at that this point. Perhaps they, the people who were determined to migrate into space, were most probably hurt, and were the ones who were forced to despair. This emotional state caused them to create this arrogant god called the Federation, and they left their directions to this god. That was why these people had to complain that there was no hope that existed, and passed on the possibility to the next generation. It was just like what Cardeas did, and that certain person who got the “Box” 100 years ago.”

“In the past, Zeon Deikun once said that only those people who came to space could head for innovation. This meant that humanity got used to its environment and evolved…Newtypes. To the bureaucrats who sending the leftover population to space and remained on Earth, this thinking itself basically toppled their standpoint. That’s why they suppressed Zeonism and Side 3 that was promoting it.”

The silhouette swayed again, becoming Full Frontal’s mask in space. The cold voice that described reality echoed in Banagher’s thoughts.

“The Zeon Republic had such a crime, and after a year’s war, it fell defeated. However, this helped the Federation’s call, causing the Earth Central Administration to expand every day. To break the shackle of the Federation, to fulfill self-autonomy for Spacenoids, we should—“

Banagher could understand these words, and he too felt that this was correct. But is there a certain something that is lacking? he felt a sense of anxiety, and he felt that the more someone insisted on it, the more likely it would be to be distant from possibilities. But what was this feeling, the feeling of the head smashing itself against the wall? Why was it that this voice that deemed prayers as merely prayers, and possibilities as possibilities forever, felt so cold?

Whether it actually existed, that’s not the issue here. There are cases of trust being nurtured and affecting reality. The Unicorn, the beast of possibilities; me, and us, we’re all waiting for something in the future. I want to see the future the owner of this ‘voice’ says as we carry the possibilities of humanity heading into the future—

THUMP. THBUMP. THUMP. The scattered memories and the excerpts of words let out a pulsating feeling, gradually connecting the nerves that were not connected. A certain something sleeping in the “Unicorn” sensed this connection, and the glow of the Psycoframe was emitted out from the gaps between the armor. THUMP, THUMP…a forceful and rhythmic beating felt like blood flowing through the human body. It felt like the body temperature that was granted knowledge and blood increased, and the heat felt like it was expanding to the endless time and space…

At that moment.

There was an icy co0ld and sharp ‘presence’ growing inside this time and space, and the pulsating sound dissipated. Banagher widened his eyes and saw the all-view monitor visuals in his sights of reality.

There was a ‘presence’ pressurizing the body and mind, gathering gradually on the other end of the dilapidated debris, on the horizontal contour on the Earth. It was a ‘presence’ approaching from the darkness, a ‘presence’ that appeared to hurt others. Banagher’s body detected this as it moved on its own, and he held onto the control stick again. The originally still “Unicorn” lifted its head at this moment, and the bladed antenna suddenly rose up. The glow from the Psycoframe that was rising between the gaps scattered, and the white machine moved around amidst the debris.

(I don’t belong to any religion, but I’m not an atheist. I believe that a healthy representation of the human spirit would be to ascend to a higher plane, to give laws to ourselves, as we set higher bars for ourselves.)

With lightning-quick reflexes, Banagher moved his limbs and immediately held onto the control stick while stepping on the pedal. The main thrusters on the back and legs let out flares together, and the “Unicorn” that suddenly started to advance dashed out of the debris of “Laplace”. The G-force that came right from the front caused Daguza to lower his head, and he was pressed down on the assistance seat without having the time to ready himself.

“Banagher…!?”

“Something’s coming over. It’s targeting the “Nahel Argama”.”

Banagher left these words behind and turned his face forward without hesitation. Daguza inspected the display board and quickly scanned through all the meters. The “Unicorn” let out thruster flares in the opposite direction of where “Laplace” was headed, and immediately negated the orbital speed. It then accelerated at a height near the atmosphere as it gradually pushed itself such that it would return back to the equatorial orbit. This was a reckless action that completely relied on the great power of the thrusters, but in another sense, this was a clever action done with ample knowledge of the machine’s capaibilities.

There were no alert signs on the screen, and all systems were normal. Until this point, the speech of the First Prime Minister had not stopped, and the signal from the wireless communicator continued to persist on. However, there was nothing to suspect whether the pilot was conscious or not.

“…Are you alright?” Daguza looked over at Banagher’s face. There was no response of any machine on the radar, and the space on the all-view monitor was dead silent. “I don’t know. We might not make it in time.” Banagher answered as he continued to stare at the space where the “Nahel Argama” should be at.

“That’s not what I’m saying here. I’m asking about your body condition. Did you just…”

Just lose your consciousness? No, did you consciousness fly out there once? Daguza could not find any term that could describe this as he turned his speechless face away from Banagher. Soon after the speech started to play, Banagher looked like his soul was taken, and he did not respond at all. Also, the glow from the psycoframe started to fill the cockpit, and the machine that activated the NT-D still showed signs of ‘transforming’ despite there not being any enemies on the radar. It felt like it sensed the anomaly on Banagher and created a resonance.

Did the psycoframe on the machine react to the pilot? Or did the psycowaves of the pilot activate the system? Either way, the NT-D was silent at this point, and the “Unicorn” continued to glide under low orbit in its unicorn form. Daguza bit his lips and looked back at the debris of Laplace, (bridge to all mobile squad), Mihiro’s voice could be heard.

(Abandon the current mission immediately and return to the mothership. We have detected Minovsky particles now. There’s a very likely chance that its scattered to disrupt the enemy. I repeat…)

Daguza turned his face forward in surprise. The radar screen that was linked to the navigation control satellite had noise all over it, indicating the fact that the electronic waves caught interference. The noise from the wireless radio got worse and worse, and the voices of Conroy and the rest yelling something seemed so distant. The laser communication from the “Nahel Argama” still remained, but the reception from the other channels decreased. The effective radius of all the sensors were limited by the interference of the Minovsky Particles.

Everything was still normal several seconds ago. Did this guy detect the enemy’s presence before the Minovsky Particles were scattered? Daguza felt a shiver as he looked at the side of Banagher’s face. His heart then jumped hard the moment he heard the shout, “THEY’RE HERE…!”

Banagher continued to look in front without looking aside as he narrowed his eyes and gave a killing intent. At the distance out of the sensor radius range, the “Nahel Argama” can determine where the enemy was from the laser signals, but this guy seems like he can detect the enemies further than that. “How many can you sense?” Daguza asked in a half-believing manner, and Banagher answered him without looking back, “There’s one…no, that’s not it. There’s another independent squad hiding behind it.”

“Behind…?”

At this point, Daguza was really stunned. He knew that it was useless, but he still looked over at where Banagher was staring at. He stared at the dark blue space that was CG drawn, and he again felt an ominous feeling before looking back at the side of that face seated beside him.

It was said that Newtypes could detect an enemy’s presence through the mobile suit armor and fight while predicting each other’s movements. Daguza had no intention of doubting if a sixth sense really existed, and he had personally experienced the threat of psycommu weapons, but he had no idea whether such monstrous-like humans really existed. He wanted to cast proof to deny it, but he could not do it. He turned around and saw a pink beam flying through the darkness.

A beam came flying in from the space behind the “Nahel Argama” that was moving around the equatorial orbit, and it grazed past the “Unicorn” before being sucked in by Earth that was showing its night appearance. It was the glow of the mega-particle cannon…but it was not sniping at the “Nahel Argama”. The enemy sublight shots came flying one after another as they aimed for the debris of “Laplace” moving on the axis orbit. To be accurately, the enemy was sniping from long distance, outside the range of the sensor, at the “Nahel Argama” mobile suit squad stopped there.

Even if the enemy did not know where the mobile suits were, it was possible to predict the location of the “Laplace” debris that was maintaining a steady speed. Thus, it was not difficult to shoot at the debris. It was merely 10 seconds since the moment the retreat order was given, so Conroy and the rest should still be hovering in the debris, planning how to change their trajectory. “They’re aiming for the mobile suit squad…do they intend to isolate the “Nahel Argama?” Daguza mused as he looked at Banagher’s face. He, who sensed the enemy’s location first, looked right in front this time as he did not move. Even the beams that glided past him did not cause him to show signs of fears.

If he was a step slower in changing the course, the “Unicorn” will be affected by this long-range snipe and end up tangled amongst the debris of “Laplace”. As I guessed, this guy can see something I can’t see. There was no room for doubt anymore as Daguza looked over at where the beams came flying in from. He could not detect the enemy’s presence, and he felt his own anxiousness as he even thought of cursing out at this speech that continued to play.