KSGU:Volume 7 Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Part 1

“Torrington Base?”

It was a name Alberto had never heard of before, and he could not help but parrot it in his mouth again. “Right, it’s a Federation base located in Australia.” Martha answered while seemingly annoyed by this hassle.

“After that Zeon remnant attack, it seemed that the Central government has forgotten about that place. The base is surrounded by wilderness without people, so it shouldn’t attract a lot of attention even if the “Ra Cailum” heads there. We’re going there to get on a ship to space.”

Martha sank into a sofa that had brand new cushions and sighed. “Looks like our holiday in the Mediterranean is going to be delayed.” She rested her head on the back of the sofa as she gave a glance aside with that bewitching expression on her face. Ever since she brought Mineva Zabi onto the ship, she had been trying to show off her bewitching charms. Alberto gulped, “Aren’t we taking this ship to space?” and asked with a stiff voice.

“We can’t rely on this ship that exchanges information with Ronan if we want to find the “Box”, right? Besides, it seems that Captain Bright is a sly old fox that’s not easy to deal with. We have to find a way to keep the “Ra Cailum” on Earth.”

Martha finished, and closed her mouth, ostensibly annoyed to talk any further. It was ostensibly the sight of a chairwoman who just finished a day’s worth of work and lounging in a suite room, whether it was the 5m long room isolated from the bedroom or the thoroughly carpeted floor, but of course, this place was not a hotel. This VIP room was installed in a corner of the “Ra Cailum”, and was only used when special guests visit the ship. From the small window, the Indian Ocean 1000m below could be seen from the sky. This room was the last arrangement Captain Bright made when Martha demanded to have the commander room. As the commander and captain, Bright was staying inside the captain’s room, and the commander’s room that was often kept empty should be okay for anyone’s use, but this was a serious problem to the military. The disputes between Martha and Bright had been becoming a common scene to the crew, but it could be said that this room was the start of the dispute between the two.

In fact, this was not the reason behind Martha’s fatigue and anxiousness. “Then, how’s it going?” Martha stopped rubbing her eyes and gave a sharp glance as she questioned, causing Alberto’s shoulders to jerk in shock.

“Well…he insists that he won’t provide the correct information if we don’t release Her Highness Mineva.”

“It has been two days, and you haven’t made any progress? How useless.”

She frowned as she reached her hand for the coffee mug on the table. It had been two days since they used Mineva Zabi as a hostage, and 4 days had passed since the day they reclaimed the “Unicorn”. Alberto’s interrogation on Banagher was completely futile, and the former could only lower his eyes, lifting his eyes to peek at Martha’s expression from time to time.

“Maybe he’s just bluffing about the next coordinates pointing to space? I don’t want to be led on a wide goose chase.”

“Hm…but it appears that the appearance of Her Highness Mineva was a great shock to him. I feel that there’s no room for him to bluff his way. He’s still a kid no matter how he forces things—”

“He’s Cardeas’ child after all. Don’t forget that.”

Martha interrupted with a forceful tone as she set aside the coffee mug somewhat violently. The sound of the china clashing reached Alberto’s ears, and he hurriedly lowered his stare to the floor.

“He’s obstinate, stubborn, and gives the look that he’s bearing the weight of the world…you inherited your mother’s characteristics, but that child called Banagher is practically a clone of Cardeas. They were definitely living separate from each other. How inexplicable.”

Martha’s voice softened as she made this conclusion, and got up from the sofa. She walked to the window and looked at the ocean surface that was awaiting dusk. Her slender back profile appeared in the sunset, and her long shadow was dragged till Alberto’s feet.

“But perhaps he was not lying. The chances of the “Laplace Box” being in Founder Syam’s hands are very high, and I don’t think that grandfather’s cryo room would be located on Earth.”

Only a few people, namely, the Foundation leader and the direct associates to the Founder knew the location of Syam Vist’s cryo room—the room installed with cold sleep installation. The Founder’s direct associate organization was a different entity from the Foundation, and the common practice was that the Foundation leader was to take charge and manage both. With the current leader dead, there was no way Martha could make contact. After Cardeas’ death, Martha once tried to investigate the information she received thoroughly, but she did not find even an avenue with the Founder’s direct organization, let alone where the cryo room was located. The extent of this secrecy made Alberto and Martha deduce and believe firmly that the “Box” was hidden in the hidden location of a Founder.

The problem was that without the recognition of the Founder, and without the knowledge of the “Box”, there was no way Martha could be accepted officially as the Foundation’s leader. She managed to get the approval of her family simply by proposing to prevent the “Box” from being opened, and got up to the seat of the substitute leader, but there definitely was not just one executive amongst the Foundation’s management who was repulsed by her forceful actions. The Founder Syam had already known the truth behind Cardeas death, and when adding everything together, there was no guarantee that he was trying to prevent her plan. Alberto timidly looked at the back of the person in front of him, and Martha probably sensed that she was on thin ice as her back, covered by the shadow, looked even more tense than before.

“We still have to carry out the estimates for our course. I want to get the correct coordinates before we leave Earth…well, never mind. He’ll have to accompany us until the end. Let’s try to convince him slowly by bringing Her Highness Mineva along.”

Martha turned her face back, and the temporal moment of feebleness disappeared from her face, replaced with a radiant smile. The shadow reaching Alberto’s feet went away, and once he sensed the usual atmosphere of isolation descend upon them again, “About this.” he said tentatively.

“If we want to bring the “Banshee” together with the specimen into space, I suppose it’s best if she doesn’t take the same ship as Banagher or Her Highness.”

“Why?”

“They knew each other before the adjustments. If there’s a long time interaction, it’ll probably cause a mental burden on the specimen. President Bentner also reported that there seems to be signs of that—”

“Alberto.”

Martha looked like she was mocking a child as she showed a pitiful bitter smile on her face, causing Alberto to be unable to finish what he wanted to say. “From what I hear, you aren’t talking about a ‘specimen’, but showing your concern for a ‘lover’.” The words that followed caused his body to suddenly heat up.

“Your protection for her ends here. The reason you’re chosen as her master is because the data shows that opposite genders are easier to control. As long as the memory in her mind is reset to zero, this relationship will end. You should understand, right?”

Martha walked towards Alberto as her blond hair let out a rasping sound and the strong perfume aroma swarmed him. It’s the smell of night. As he immediately thought, her fingers touched his lower belly, “If you like to play with dolls, it’s fine.” and her whisper entered through his ears.

“But is this good? She can only use her mouth.”

He felt the pressure gathering below his belly for an instant vanish because of this line, and inadvertently withdrew back as he glared back at Martha. “WAKE UP!!” The angry chiding voice suddenly rang like a slap to his face.

“If unit 1 is the Unicorn, the “Banshee” as unit 2 is the lion. It’s just like the symbolism on that tapestry, they’re the complimentary beasts protecting the “Box”. You’re the successor to the Vist Foundation, so you better make them listen to you.”

The heavy presence of the tapestry, “The Lady and the Unicorn” that was moved Vist residence in the “Magallanica”, appeared in Alberto’s mind, dampening his burning head. The rage that suddenly swelled up in him a moment ago became vague because of this, and he could only lower his head quietly.

“If you can’t make them object, you’ll be left to feed on the scraps. Right now, even though the “Unicorn” is chained up, it continues to roam the wilderness. If you don’t want to lose to your little brother, you better not let go of the lion.”

Little brother. This term, which bore no relation and yet felt extremely realistic, seeped into Alberto’s heart, and the last ounce of will to argue back melted. His restrained body and mind were hardened, as he felt himself sinking into floor as he answered with a murmur, “…yes.” . Martha snorted back and turned her face away, obviously having nothing to inform left.

Part 2

Alberto arrived outside the room, and found Marida Cruz waiting at the door. He gasped as he saw the deep blue eyes looking right at him, and averted his gaze as he walked down the corridor with her behind. “…Are you alright?” He asked.

“Yes. I had President Bentner carry out the adjustments.”

Marida followed Alberto on the right side as she answered with a monotonous voice. Two days after her direct meeting with Banagher, her neural waves were once messed up to a point that she nearly could not resonate with the psycommu, and though the symptoms had subsided, the frequency of the headaches she had was obviously increasing. Bentner indicated that Marida took hypnotism with drugs, and that they would need to carry out external operations if they wanted to carry out proper ‘adjustments’. Since they did not have the time to carry out the operations, they could only carry out treatments against the symptoms to ease and eliminate the headaches caused by the reactions.

But could she still remain as herself even after the operation on the brain? No, if everyone’s mind could be rewritten, there would be no need to let her remain as herself. It was just like what Martha said in her mocking, he was just restrained by meaningless thoughts. Alberto thought to himself as looked over his own shoulder at Marida, dressed in Vist Foundation formal clothing. Her original consciousness was sealed by drugs and hypnosis, but she did not seem as helpless as those of sleepwalkers, and her footsteps seem no different from an ordinary person. However, there was no shred of emotion in her eyes that were looking back at Alberto, and they looked like two hollow glass eyes, extremely unnatural.

He thought that those were the eyes of a puppet. The deep blue eyes that once covered him, the eyes of the woman who had both fortitude and gentleness were not present. Once he confirmed this, his chest felt a little gloomy, and he stopped in the middle of the corridor. He looked back at Marida who stopped as well, and averted his sights, “…Don’t endure it if you’re having it tough.” He squeezed out a voice as he said,

“If you feel the slightest bit unwell, tell me.”

“Yes.”

“The “Banshee” is not an ordinary mobile suit. If you can’t perform your best like usual, it’ll affect the machine’s abilities.”

“Yes, I’ll do my best.”

The glass pearl-like eyes did not waver at all as Marida merely answered blankly. Play with dolls, Martha’s voice rang in his mind, and an inevitable rash of anxiety suddenly rushed up his heart, “DO YOU UNDERSTAND OR NOT!?” he yelled clumsily,

“IF YOU FIND IT UNBEARABLE, UST SAY IT. IF YOU SAY THAT YOU CAN’T CONTINUE TO PILOT IT, I’LL GET THEM TO SWITCH YOU OUT!”

Alberto inadvertently grabbed Marida by her upper arms and looked into those dull-looking hollow eyes. However, the latter did not back away, and her unwavering eyes merely blinked once.

“If you have that intent, I can take you away from here if you want to. Think more for your own sake, I—”

“Is that an order?”

The thoroughly emotionless stare and voice cornered Alberto, and his arms lost strength. He grabbed Marida by the arms, but he just could not make a proper grip. “This isn’t what I mean…!” Alberto spoke halfway through, “Is that woman the pilot of the “Banshee”?” However, a third person’s voice caused him to jolt with shock.

He looked back, and found Riddhe Marcenas standing at the cross junction of the corridor, “It confounds me to think that this lady here is a Cyber-Newtype.” Riddhe said as he frowned and approached Alberto. Since when has that guy been standing there watching? Alberto resisted the urge to click his tongue and turned to face Riddhe, ostensibly trying to block Marida’s sights.

“She’s most likely a kidnapped orphan, am I right? Does the Vist Foundation deal with human trafficking too?”

“What is it you want, Ensign Riddhe?”

Alberto used his hand to restrain Marida, who had an intent to fight, and gave a refusing look to the man in officer uniform in front of him, telling him not to approach. At about approximately 2m distance, Riddhe stopped in his tracks and, “I hope to meet Mineva Zabi.” He said fiercely.

“Just 5 minutes. I’m the one who brought her to Earth in the first place. There’re some things I want to know.”

“I should have said before that it’s impossible. Currently, Her Highness Mineva is under the protection of the Foundation. Even if it’s the prince of the Marcenas’ family, we can’t allow Her Highness to meet an officer of the Federation.”

“Then let me see Banagher.” Riddhe continued to mutter as his fists showed the restrained anger. “I was ordered directly by the Senate Council, and it’s my duty to report everything that happens on this “Ra Cailum” to the superiors. As a civilian, you have no right to give me instructions.”

“Unfortunately, I can’t allow that each. If we’re talking about authority, I’m acting under the authority of the Senate Council chairman. If you want a request to talk directly, please obtain the permission of the superior.”

Upon seeing the speechless Riddhe, he felt like gloating over it. He moved his legs that were still, walked by the other man, “First, a family issue isn’t something the military should interfere with, right?” and added.

“Banagher Links is the son of the ex-Foundation leader, Cardeas Vist. He’s an illegitmate child, but he does have the Vist family name.”

“Banagher’s a member of the Vist family…?”

Stupefied. Riddhe’s face showed this description as he frowned and turned his widened eyes at Alberto. During the escape two days ago, this man once intended to help Banagher escape. The situation surrounding the “Box” is one thing, but what sort of change will happen to his emotional state after the sense of camaraderie with Banagher as allies? Alberto sneered, “You should understand, right?” and deliberately emphasized in a cocky manner.

“This is simply gossip, nothing to do with the “Box” and the “Unicorn”. His existence itself is a shame to the family. I hope that you as an outsider will ask less next time.”

Upon seeing Riddhe’s legs crumble as he retreated to the wall, Alberto felt that he vented out all his frustrations, and intended to leave the scene. However, a little snicker suddenly rang, causing him to stop in his tracks.

Riddhe was leaning against the wall as his body, arched forward, trembled, and his throat let out a croaking laugh. His voice got louder, “This is really amazing?” he let out a stiff laughter, and his laughing voice entered Alberto’s voice.

“So I’ve been actually fighting against the 100-year-old enemy…even if this is caused by the “Box”, this is really set up too perfectly. It’s really a joke.”

Riddhe’s bitter smile had a tint of gloominess to it, and he slammed his trembling fist at the wall. Alberto felt a chill that could cool his heart, “What do you mean?” and frowned as he asked. “Go ask Syam Vist yourself!” Riddhe answered back furiously as his expression changed, and turned a hideous look at Alberto.

“What did your Founder do 100 years ago, and how did he get the “Box”, build the Foundation? Once you know that, you can only laugh dryly at it.”

The bitterness swelled out from Riddhe’s shoulders as well, and before Alberto could ask, he turned away and left. The unexpected counter was not the only thing that shocked Alberto, and it felt like there was something more basic shaking his inner heart as he stared at that back with the speechless Marida.

Alberto clearly remembered the Foundation’s history, when he married into the Vist Foundation. However, the basic development of the Foundation—how Syam obtained the “Laplace Box”, and the “Box” itself were classified. There were no reasons for any outsiders to know about it, and the family members did not care about it. The Vist Foundation was a huge establishment, the “Box” had become a revered object that would not normally become a conversational topic, and nobody would talk about the Foundation Syam as well. Alberto had not talked to him ever since he retired from his position as the leader of the Foundation. Alberto himself only knew of the other man when he was introduced as the great-grandson during the grand retirement party, but that was just a vague memory from his youth.

Despire this, Riddhe sounded like he knew Syam. He called the Vist Foundation his 100-year-old enemy, and told Alberto to understand how Syam obtained the “Box”. As the descendant of the first prime minister of the Federation government, maybe he’s hiding some secret that’s not to be known? Alberto had this vague understanding as he felt an unknown chill surge up his body, and he looked very tentative as he stared at the back that was leaving.

Does he know what’s inside the “Box”—?

Part 3

The woman summoned onto the monitor in the second communication room was in her twenties, and her beauty could be described as coquettish, a feature one would wonder whether it existed just for her. She had a nice look, but her alluring features could be mistaken as opportune areas as she was especially attractive. Perhaps this was a type men would say that they might like.

(I’m Beltorchika Irma, and I’ll be reporting the results of the investigation you requested in lieu of senior manager Stephanie.)

Even so, the green-filled eyes had an adamant glint that would not allow others to approach easily. Her proper greeting of a refined lady caused Bright to feel that he was overwhelmed in terms of momentum. “Yes, nice to meet you, Beltorchika.” He greeted back and looked around the empty communication room for no meaningful reason.

“I didn’t think that you’ll be the one reporting. Are you working at the Luio Chamber of Commerce?”

(I’m not affiliated as a Luio employee. Please view me as a freelancer.”

Beltorchika used her hand to tidy her blond hair that was cut short and gave a somewhat stiff smile. (Because of my relations with Kayaba, senior manager Stephanie has been taking care of me, and Mr Kai Shiden would often come by too.)

“Oh…it sounds like there’s quite a few people both you and I know of.)

Bright said after giving a stiff smile. The reason why both sides could not show their honest smiles was probably because of the huge hollow they saw in each other, the man called Amuro Ray. After the One Year War, there was an internal conflict which divided the Earth Federation army—the “Gryps Conflict”, and Bright joined the Anti Earth Union Group, while Beltorchika joined the assistance group “Karaba”. “Karaba” had its base located on Earth, and so, Beltorchika hardly had any interaction with Bright, who was in the base. However, Bright once inadvertently heard of Beltorchika from Amuro Ray, who joined “Karaba“ as well.

The Titans were a radicals rightist military organization which came to power in the Federation army by expanding their influence in the namesake of purging the Zeon remnants, and once they were overthrown, the AEUG and “Karaba”, which were rebel organizations, naturally ended their roles. Both organizations were absorbed by the government, and as their groups got destroyed, Bright and the other military men managed to return to their normal squads, but volunteers like Beltorchika, who were civilians, disappeared from the spotlight. Some people felt disappointed that the AEUG got absorbed and went off to join the anti-government forces as guerillas, while Bright heard from his old contacts in the past that quite a few people continued on in the information trading business. He thought that Beltorchika would be the latter case here. When the Gryps Conflict started, The Luio Chamber of Commerce, headquarted in Hong Kong, was the largest sponsor of “Karaba”, and since Beltorchika had a personal relationship with the president’s daughter Stephanie Luio, there was no reason for the former not to get a job.

But, unrelated to this, Bright could imagine that Beltorchika had most likely drifted away from the rigid world once she got involved with a man like Amuro. Amuro Ray was hailed as the ace pilot during the One Year War, but after the War, he was feared as a proponent of Newtype thinking, and was imprisoned in house arrest. When the Titans were growing in influence, Beltorchika, not anyone else, was the one who caused the traumatized Amuro to stand up again, and this was something Bright heard from Amuro himself. “What happened to Lieutenant Amuro was a pity.” Bright gave a probing look at those eyes on the monitor again,

This insensitive line would touch upon a person’s old wounds, but Bright believed if this line would cause Beltorchika to waver, he could be certain that it was best not to trust in her abilities. He realized that he was doing something cruel as he hid his sense of guilt and looked at the other person’s face with a nonchalant look. Beltorchika herself merely gave a probing look, and then chuckled, (It’s Commander Amuro, right?), as she gave an unfettered tone.

“Ah, you’re right. Sorry.”

(You don’t have to think for my sake. We used to be deeply in love with each other, and then we broke up. I heard he died in battle during “Char’s Counterattack”, and I was depressed for a while…but his body wasn’t discovered, right?)

“Yes…”

(Isn’t him being MIA after the battle against his arch-nemesis Char a suitable ending for a romantic like him? Up till now, I sometimes feel that he should be alive, somewhere. Even if we lose the shell of the human called Amuro, I do feel that his heart has merged with space…)

Beltorchika looked like she was staring in the distance as she narrowed her eyes, and Bright felt that these words of her were not forced. The brat who’s always crying about on “White Base” had become a man who made a woman show this expression? Bright was suddenly overcome by grief as he too looked afar, and Beltorchika chuckled, saying, (You’re just like what Amuro said, always worrying.), shocking the man. Bright saw the message shown on the woman’s face, and realized that his thoughts were seen through, “I admit this.” and could only smile wryly as he showed what little he had in his mind.

“That’s why I can talk to you like this now. Since the response is so swift, I suppose the Luio Chamber of Commerce is starting to be wary of the Vist Foundation’s movements?”

It was two days ago since the moment when he first established contact with the Luio Chamber of Commerce and requested them to investigate everything involving this incident—right after Mineva Vist visited the “Ra Cailum” as an unexpected guest and the “Unicorn” pilot escaped, creating a commotion. It was impossible to think that the other party would be so quick with their response if they had not been investigating all this while. As Bright probed in, (Yeah, the Luio Chamber of Commerce and the Vist Foundation are two large organizations competing against each other, at least on Earth.) Beltorchika simply gave a direct answer.

(On the surface, the situation is that ‘the rich are lazy to spend the effort fighting each other’, but there are a lot of strings being pulled underneath… regarding the “Laplace Box”, it seemed that the Luio family had already known of its existence. The Vist Foundation had the “ Box”, so the Luio family could only try to avoid a direct confrontation—this seemed to be an unwritten rule bordering superstition in their family. Miss Stephanie has not explained this to be me clearly, but the Chamber of Commerce once had a scuffle with the Foundation in the past and took a severe defeat. This incident started because the ex-leader of the Foundation, Cardeas Vist, made his own decision to release the “Box”.)

Beltorchika started to explain to Bright how everything happened, the negative rumors surrounding Cardeas’ death, the current substitute leader Martha planning to reclaim the “Box”, the Settlement Issues Council represented by Ronan intending to use this chance to get the “Box” and establish the Federation’s authority once the Zeon Republic got dissolved, and how Neo Zeon, called the “Sleeves”, had the shadow of the old Republic of Zeon behind it…

(With regards to the relation of the “Sleeves” leader, Full Frontal and the Zeon Republic, we couldn’t investigate it clearly. There were rumors that the people working under the ex-prime minister Darcia were moving, but the information control here is too strict…)

“I read in a report that the era after the Wars had been starting to rise within the Republic, and the Nationalism was gradually reviving. There also appears to be movements of people supporting Neo Zeon fleets in Side 6. This is getting tough.”

(Even so, the Federation is in the power struggle for the “Box”, and can’t seem to have a common goal.)

“Yeah. Martha of the Vist Foundation and Ronan of the Settlement Issues Council want to use the army as their personal property, and that “Second Coming of Char” who intends to topple the establishment…I really can’t help but feel that times are changing.”

Beltorchika made a frown with her primp and proper eyebrows, perhaps because she just heard these unexpected words from Bright. The excessive information cause Bright to feel the heaviness of his head as he leaned on the back of the chair, “Am I wrong?” and he sighed as he said.

“Leaving aside the One Year War, it has been the same for the Titans and the Zeon remnants. Whether others agreed or not, it’s true that they had their own thoughts too. The wars that were started in the past was because people had opposition against the establishment called the Federation, and where humanity stood at this point; However, there’s no such ideals now. I’m not sure what this “Box” that can topple the world is, but I can see the greed of those who want to monopolize it, that whoever gets the “Box” can gain authority. In other words, the season for politics is over, and the era of a cold world that can only be moved by self-profit and authority has come before us. That’s why this individual rule was disorderly, causing the tragedy at Dakar.”

(I do understand what you mean, but I can’t accept this way of thinking. Your words seem to imply that it’s alright to start wars as long as we have our own ideals.)

On hearing this direct refute, he felt that someone just poked him in the head. (I’m sorry. I’m someone who speaks too much. Amuro used to remind me of this habit I have.) Beltorchika said, but the glance she shot through the monitor showed that she had no intent of retracting her words. Bright was shocked that he was unabashed in beautifying the past and criticizing the present, and that perhaps was the proof that he was advanced in age. “No, I was insensitive in my choice of words. My wife often reproves me regarding this too.” He tried to calm himself down as he was a little shocked by how outdated his personal ideals were.

“Anyway, thank you for telling me this. I can more or less plan for the future now. Please also send my regards to senior manager Stephanie too. However, it seems that it’s not going to be easy repaying this favour…”

(The Luio Chamber of Commerce won’t simply watch the Federation’s internal strife from the sidelines, so I suppose you shouldn’t be too concerned by it…but what do you intend to do?)

“This isn’t easy. I want to end the fight over the “Box” as soon as possible to prevent incidents like Dakar from happening again…but it’s really pointless to choose sides between the Foundation and the Settlement Issues Council. Actually, if the Vist Foundation people enter space, the “Ra Cailum” will lose its opportunity to intervene.”

Once the higher-ups ordered for the people from the Foundation to be ferried to Torrington Base, the “Ra Cailum” would have to stay on Earth and defend against terrorist attacks. Most likely, this was the instruction given by Martha to the Senate Council. The only one who could overturn the current situation was Ronan Marcenas himself, but there was still no news from him. Even the unbelievably potent card, Mineva Zabi, seemed to be sent over from Ronan himself. From the current situation, it seemed that the Foundation had the Settlement Issue Council’s number, and the fragile look of Ensign Riddhe proved that this was not a decoy strategy.

With the Vist Foundation sealing them all completely, Ronan’s son had lost his goal in his adamant eyes. Perhaps Riddhe was the one who was bearing the most pressure when things were going in an unexpected direction. Logically, if he could relax his tense shoulders, he should be able to find a way out with his inherent intellect…

(So even the “White Base” captain that managed to break through Zeon forces with one ship has to surrender with both hands up now?)

“The situation’s perilous now. It’s not as simple as back then; once I got promoted to the position of a commander, Londo Bell became a hostage. To break through with a single ship is really—”

The moment he answered with a wry smile on his face, Bright felt an electric flow surge through his mind. Break through with a single ship…Bright repeated in his heart, and let his thoughts work as he did not want to let go of this moment of inspiration. (Captain Bright) He was not paying attention to Beltorchika, who gave him a serious look and called him.

(What I’m going to say now has nothing to do with the Luio Foundation. Please treat it as my own rambling…last morning, there was a tramp ship on the South Pacific that broke off from its anticipated routes and broke off contact.)

Upon seeing the tense face, Bright understood that this was no trivial affair at all. He set aside his thoughts that had this flash of inspiration, “What’s on it?” he asked, and Beltorchika answered, “It’s a Zeon remnant mobile suit.” He was already mentally prepared, but her voice caused his heart to race.

(To avoid the backlash from the Dakar incident, there was a squad that escaped to New Guinea. The ship was originally planned to head to Africa, but now it’s heading south to Australia.)

Australia—the continent where Torrington Base was located. If it were yesterday morning, it would be the same moment as when this ship was ordered to change its course. (Of course, there’s no real proof to be sure that this has anything to do with the movements of the “Ra Cailum”.) Beltorchika said and gave a meaningful look from the monitor.

(But I’m concerned with how both sides are moving at the same time. Please be careful.)

“I understand. Does the Luio Chamber of Commerce have any business dealings with the remnants to let them escape?”

(There’s no direct relation, but we can’t clear this relationship.)

“Is that so…sorry for making you lose your sense of morality.”

(Please don’t mind. I merely muttered to myself as I don’t want to see the ship Amuro once rode on get damaged.)

Beltorchika professed as she hid the tightrope-like tension under her smile. There was a sense of extremely complicated feelings swelling in Bright, ostensibly graciousness or apologetic, as he sight his sights on this new hope that appeared in front of him. He then tried to piece it with the inspiration he had before.

Beltorchika didn’t mention about Mineva Zabi at all. If she and the Luio Chamber of Commerce don’t know about this, it will be hard to imagine that the Zeon remnants are aiming to get Mineva back. They’re targeting the “Unicorn”. I will have to factor in the “Garencieres” that went missing after we lost sight of it in Dakar. If they have any intent to take the “Unicorn” back, if they were waiting to ambush the “Ra Cailum” without such fighting strength, perhaps—

“…Maybe we’ll get hurt.”

Bright inadvertently blurted out and looked over at the console in front of the monitor. Beltorchika however tilted her head without knowing what was going on.

“No, I won’t let this “Ra Cailum” sink. We won’t sink here, but…”

This will be a risky move, but if we’re successful, I may be able to take the initiative over the Foundation and the Settlement Issues Council. Bright got up as he relied on the ray of light that shone into his thoughts. On the other side of the monitor, Beltorchika blinked, and her expression was like a young girl.

Part 4

“…Audrey Burne. Even if it’s a pseudonym, it certainly sounds delightful. I do watch those movies too.”

Martha said as she eased herself into the seat opposite. Mineva could tell from this woman’s mannerism that she knew etiquette was a weapon to protect herself. During the past 2 days, Martha had already shed off, 1, 2 layers off her mask and started to show her arrogant nature, but that refined etiquette of hers still demanded equal respect from the other party. Mineva clenched the fists on her knees and turned her silent stare at the other woman. Her sense of danger were telling herself that if she did not exert strength on herself like this, she would be devoured by Martha’s pace.

The officer room crewmen dressed in white attendant clothes were serving soup according to where both women were seated. As the flagship of Londo Bell, the “Ra Cailum” had a commander room with top-notch furniture inside. The 8-seater table was made of authentic oak, and the cutlery were all of top-grade branded goods. The reason why a commander room, which would occasionally act as a social stage for special guests, existed, was because it was an important ‘armament’. Whether it was the well-trained attendants or the carpet with nary a speck of dust, they certainly showed the merit of the commander or the captain. However, the commander was not in that room.

The ones in the room were only Martha, the black-clothed Foundation subordinates escorting her, and no crew member of the “Ra Cailum” other than the two attendants. The basic greetings, which were a form of etiquette, were simply formal interactions, and the atmosphere in this room was equivalent to that of an interrogation room. The fragrance of the soup served in front of Mineva had an invisible malice, torturing her. This was probably made from a retort pouch used by a high-class hotel, but her body would not be able to take it as she went on a hunger strike for 2 days. As long as she relaxed, she felt that she would fall anytime—

“Please enjoy.”

Martha said, showing a smile indicating that she saw through the other party. Mineva held her breath as she excluded the nutritious looking soup from her sights.

“You’ve been drinking only water ever since you arrived here, haven’t you? Your body won’t last at this rate. Besides, your body isn’t just your—”

“I have no intention of accepting anything from the enemy.”

The voice that interrupted caused the attendant’s hand to tremble as the grape wine was being poured. The men from the Foundation, who were standing at the door, gave nervous looks into the room, but Martha’s expression did not change at all, “How unexpected.” Martha did not stop smiling as she said these words and took a sip from the wine.

“I should have explained to you regarding how we plan to deal with the “Box”. We believe that you’re on the same side as us, Your Highness.”

“Then, why did you detain Banagher Links?”

“He did take the “Unicorn”, and is suspected to be involved in a terrorist attack. And now, he intended to escape from the ship. It’s to be expected that we detain him.”

“Then what about Marida? She’s my subordinate. If you say that you’re on the same side as me, I hope that you return her to me.”

Martha put the wine glass back on the table as she glanced to the door. The black Foundation subordinates nodded and opened the door. The two attendants, who were prompted to leave, went through the door, and once the subordinates closed the door, Martha raised the glass again. This room became a place where only the two of them were in, and Martha swirled the liquid that was as red as lipstick, “Even if you wish for this, Your Highness, she probably wouldn’t listen.” She slowly spoke up.

“Lieutenant Marida…Ple Twelve is currently working under us. This is her own will.”

“Will? You forcefully made adjustments to her and dare to brazenly—”

“That’s right, we made adjustments to her. Just like what Neo Zeon did in the past.”

Martha removed her smile as her icy cold and sharp stare pierced into Mineva’s heart together with her voice, causing the latter to be silent. She recalled the pair of blue eyes that once easily subdued the escaped Banagher and did not respond upon seeing her. That hollow expression was just like the moment when Marida was first detained on the “Garencieres”. She was like a puppet with its strings snapped—“Princess Mineva, please don’t act innocent here.” Martha turn her lips into a smile as she said,

“We’re not the ones who create that pitiful creature, but you. I just want to release her inner thoughts and give her a chance of revenge.”

“Revenge…?”

“Yes, I want her to take revenge on the world that created her, the world dominated by the logic of men.”

Martha raised the empty glass, and then got around the table as she walked towards Mineva. The latter resisted the urge to leave her seat as she continued to look in front.

“Princess Mineva, you’re one of the victims too. The logic of men set up the conflict between the Federation and Zeon, and this logic set you upon a throne that doesn’t exist. Even so, nobody’s willing to listen to you. Those men just see the “Laplace Box” dangling in front of them and lose themselves like crazy dogs.”

Martha brought her face to Mineva’s ears, and whispered, “Don’t you find this ugly?” her voice had the fresh stench of grape wine, and the latter felt like she was ensnared by snakes as goosebumps rose on her.

“In this sense, you have the natural flair for it. Do you want to ally with me, Princess Mineva? I won’t put you in a spot, and I can assure the safety of the Zeon remnants following you.”

“Ally, with you…?”

Mineva inadvertently turned her head around and looked at the face sticking close to her shoulder. Martha looked back at the face doubting her intellect as she withdrew, “If men continue to direct, humanity will reach its doom sooner or later.” She left these words behind as she got behind Mineva.

“This planet is already in tatters…we need the sense of women to rule the world to prevent the same mistakes from happening again. There was a movement of female rights a long time ago, but that was a battle of authority using the logic of men. What I seek, however, is different. If we follow the logic and rational of nature, the ones dominating society are naturally women.”

Martha toyed with the empty glass as she put her other hand around Mineva’s shoulder. The latter felt goosebumps from the chill of the hand, and she looked down at the soup that was about to go cold.

“To put it simply, the biological model of humans is chained within the bag called the womb. Men are simply in charge of inserting their seeds, and beside that role, it can be said that they’re aliens without value biology. That’s why men like to boast about themselves. They boast about the causes of righteousness, their ideals, and they want to find value in this world itself, starting wars in the end. Up till now, humanity has been becoming arrogant as they found their sense of self-worth against nature, and allowed men to continue their wanton belly. It’s about time to return things to how they were. In order to move the shackle of the womb into space, 10,000 lightyears away…”

“Miss Martha, do you have children?”

The interrupting voice caused Martha’s fingers, resting on Mineva’s shoulder, to tremble. “Two of them. why?” Upon hearing the stiff tone, Mineva felt the reason by the chill in her heart, “Are they the children you bore?” she started to ask with a personal tone.

“…What do you mean?”

“I don’t understand what kind of person my mother is, and that’s because she dead before I could remember. However, there’s no reason for me to remember that she’s still my mother. A female as a mother, someone with a motherly nature, anyone will give off that sort of gentle presence. I can’t sense that maternal presence from you.”

Martha’s expression immediately changed as she stumbled backwards. Mineva saw the suit that showed the other woman’s bodyline, realized that she obviously put in her utmost effort to maintain her skin so as to prevent people from realizing her age, as expected and secretly muttered to herself.

This woman, while acting as a clever tactician, had an immature flair on her. Her girlish ideals and grudges had corrupted her right from the base, and it felt like she lost something as she increased in age. She talked of her knowledge of humans, but she never understood people, and did not intend to understand them. Martha was a hypocrite of a reformer. Mineva stood up and looked in front, feeling that there was no need for her to be afraid. Martha wanted to maintain his footing, but could not do so, and stumbled backwards again as Mineva glared at her with her clearly hostile eyes.

“You denied the logic of men, and yet used that to conquer Marida. It’s possible if you explained that it was the ruthlessness of women at work, but you’re acting just like a man when you’re using that excuse to rationalize your knowledge. You’re not the kind of woman you say. Of course, you’re not a man. You’re just using the tone of a man to exercise the cruelty of a woman, a conman who uses whatever indecent weapons—”

Something grazed past Mineva’s face before she could finish, and a sharp sound glided past the sky as it entered her ears. The shrill sound of the glass breaking rang from behind, and the Foundation subordinates in black charged into the room, perhaps because they realized that there was something amiss in the situation. Mineva stared at Martha, not moving at all, and the latter’s hand, which threw the glass at Mineva, continued to look over.

“There’s nothing at all. Move out.”

Martha chastised them without moving her head, and clasped her hands that were still trembling a little. The men looked a little tentative as they looked around the room, and then retreated from it. Once the door was closed, Martha regained some of her cool, and she flicked her hair and gave a wry look as she muttered, “You got me there.”Mineva however merely heaved a slight sift of relief.

“I was careless and thought that you’re just a little pipsqueak. It seems that I underestimated you, and that you are really capable to talking down the pilot of the “Unicorn”.”

“I underestimated you too. You do have feminine points.”

With her back facing the wine glass that was shattered on the wall, Mineva expressed her true thoughts. Martha hid her wry look as she showed anger in her eyes again and snorted, “Same goes for you. I should respect that arrogant self-esteem of yours.” She sighed as she said this, and tied the strands of hair covering her forehead between her fingers.

“But that self-esteem will kill. You understand? You just robbed the future off the Zeon remnants who admired you. Their only future is to coexist with the Vist Foundation. Women are supposed to play the role of protector. I suppose you aren’t?”

Mineva was already prepared, but the poison arrow in the form of words still caused quite the shock. Martha probably noticed Mineva clenching her fists as her lips, coated with a thick layer of lipstick, twisted as she sneered. “Excuse me. I’ll have to make a correction here”. She said as she took a step forward.

“It’s also a woman’s ability to use their self-esteem to kill men. Be a fine woman, and it’s best if you can turn that Banagher Links into your own fertilizer.”

Martha left these words sidelong as she walked towards the door. Mineva resisted the urge to look back and retort as she stood where she was. The door opened, and closed, and the poisonous air surrounding Martha, which filled the room, immediately vanished. What replaced it and struck Mineva was a heavy sense of fatigue.

Mineva could not exhale immediately as she looked down at the bowl of soup that turned cold. Her stomach that was growling had stopped doing so, and she, who felt only thirst, reached for the cup of water with condensed water on it. Her trembling fingers could not listen to her command, and some of the water that was poured in sputtered out. The water that drenched the tablecloth flowed down the edges of the table as it dripped.

I won’t regret it, and that’s how it is. Mineva looked at the water droplets that was dripping and convinced herself in her heart. There was a familiar voice ringing in her heart, the voice of a voice calling for her. That glimpse of the face two days ago was more mature than it was the last time she saw him. That tanned and reliable face was only looking at her as it called. He too was imprisoned somewhere on this ship, struggling alone as he bore this heavy secret. He did not rely on anyone else, and there was no hope for him to be saved. He would continue to fight on until a certain someone he could trust tell him that ‘it was enough’.

However, that would be equivalent to defeat. Even if the opponent merely wanted to revert the situation back to normal after reclaiming the “Box”, Mineva would definitely not succumb to those people who took away Marida’s soul. She did not want a woman like Martha to let things develop as she please. I hope that you’ll continue to hang on, she cheered on Banagher in her heart as she recalled the words Martha said, shocked by this as a result. It’s also a woman’s ability to use their self-esteem to kill men—she was prompted by the urge not to associate herself with Martha’s ego. I was intending to watch Banagher and my Zeon people die.

Then, what should I do? Mineva could not even make a sound as she, out of strength, put her hand on the table to support herself. She grabbed the wet tablecloth to suppress the emotion surging up her throat. The water oozed from between her fingers, and the dripping sound echoed through the commander room.

Part 5

The sound of water dripping was itching Banagher’s eardrums in a regular rhythm. He looked away from the arm slightly and stared over at where the sound came from. There was the sound of new water droplets dripping from the tap at the basin, located in a corner of the officer room that was transformed into a detention room, and there was a unique echo that rang through this dim room.

“Audrey Burne…just view her as this for now. Mineva Zabi isn’t here. What you see is a woman with hidden depths, so everything depends on how you want to deal with her.”

The sound of the water droplets dripping resonated with Alberto’s voice. Banagher lost the strength and will to close off the tap as he put his arm on his face as he laid down to rest.

“It’s the same for the woman you call Marida. We can grant her the freedom, provided if ou play along or not. I won’t force you any longer. You better think for yourself regarding what is the best thing to do.”

Banagher thought about it before. Also, he told them that the new coordinates were pointing to space. However, the details would have to wait until Audrey was released. If they want to know the exact coordinates, they would have to return Audrey to Neo Zeon—he knew very well that this was a lopsided deal against his favor. It had been two days since Alberto said these words, and though Banagher had been threatened a few times afterwards, they had not contacted him for the last 12 hours or so. He was wondering if they were preparing to enter space, but in fact, the ship was already moving. The sunset-lit ocean surface could be seen moving from right to left on the communication panel, which captured the video feed from the external camera.

Banagher once saw something resembling a desert landscape through the gaps between the clouds the previous day. That was possibly the African continent. On that African land, he once went near the border of left and death with Zinnerman, and met Loni. What’s Loni doing now? Banagher thought blankly. He felt that he heard Loni’s voice when he was facing against the mobile armor. Her last thoughts entered his heart, telling him to fire at the source of the grudge—

The chilling sweat permeated out, causing his body that was resting on the bed to go cold. He did not want to think about it any further. Even if he spent his effort thinking about it, he would be unable to do anything at all. No matter where this ship was going, he would be brought to space sooner or later. With Audrey being held as a hostage, he would be forced to lead the way for those searching for the “Box”. He did not believe that he could remain silent forever, and he had a premonition that if he were to meet Audrey the next time, he would probably reveal everything—even if she did not wish for it, despite this being a betrayal to the wills of the many people residing in him and the thought demanding him ‘to do what he felt he had to do’.

Amongst the thought processes within him, the one that he could not differentiate as either himself or others…was the outsider called Marida Cruz. Her poker face appeared in his mind together with the black “Unicorn”, causing him to exert more strength on the arm resting on his eyes. Her cold eyes when she blocked his path looked like a completely different person’s. He could not sense the feeling of loss within her, only a thorough hollow feeling. Cyber-Newtype? Readjustments? He did not understand. He did not want to admit that humans could be reformed like this. Humans do change, but that was different; that way of changing humans was different; that was definitely something that was not to be done to someone else.

Perhaps the human’s will is to this extent. In the future, where I know that people I get involved with can betray me and abandon everything, will I being reformed gradually? How do I determine the differences between change and reform? Is there a point in differentiating them? Humans’ wills are just something that can be transplanted or shed off by other people’s hands. What is the meaning of using this kind of thing to differentiate between good and evil…?

The sound of the door being unlocked rang, and his thoughts that were going nowhere were interrupted. Is it an interrogation again? Banagher moved his slow moving head as he got up from the bed. Upon seeing the face of the man standing at the door, he made a small gasp.

Standing over there was a man in Federation officer uniform. He was probably around 40 years old…or maybe a tad younger. His black eyes, similar to his hair color had a glint in them, making him look relatively young. He had a mature look, but his clear eyes had the determination of a youth.

“I want to talk with you. May I?”

His back was straightened like a soldier, but there was a tinge of gentleness that could be heard from his voice. Banagher hardly had a proper talk with the crew on the ship after he was detained here, and he nodded as he got off the bed immediately without looking away. The man glanced outside to chase off the Foundation’s guards, walked into the room, closed the door, and spoke.

“I’m Bright Noa, the captain of this ship.”

The man reached his hand out as he looked around the room that was lit only with the spotlight for nighttime use. Banagher understood that the other man was worrying if there were any surveillance cameras, and gave a look with his eyes, telling the other man not to worry as he too reached his hand out. The man who called himself Bright showed a smile as his sturdy hands clasped Banagher’s hand firmly.

“I’ll be ashamed to admit that I still have to worry about being eavesdropped on in my own ship.”

Bright sat down on the bed as he glanced at the communication panel. The light grey clouds filled the 10-inch monitor, probably because the ship had just risen in height. “I increased the speed of the ship slightly. We’ll reach Sydney Bay in the afternoon tomorrow.” Bright explained, but Banagher did not know what to make of these words as he merely looked at the side of the other man’s face.

“We’ll stop at a place called Torrington Base, and the role of the “Ra Cailum” will end there. You’ll most probably end up going to space with those Foundation people.”

“I’m not going to space on this ship?”

“Our relationship with the Foundaiton isn’t good. They won’t let us search for the treasure with them.”

Bright shrugged as he said simply. His relaxed attitude would make one suspect if this was a trap to lower Banagher’s guard, but the latter did not feel this deliberate action from the other man’s bitter smile. Also, there certainly was a relaxing atmosphere inside the room. Banagher exhaled a little and sat on the chair.

“Before this, there’s something I want to ask you. You’ve been working with Neo Zeon after arriving on Earth, and yet you came out on your own during the Dakar incident and fought that mobile armor with Ensign Riddhe. Why is that?”

“Why…because I felt I had to stop it.”

“Did you escape from that disguised trading ship “Garencieres”?”

“It’s not right to say that I actually escaped from it. I felt that they deliberately sent me out. Even the captain of the “Garencieres” can’t accept that kind of operation.”

Banagher expressed his doubts in the form of words simply as he probed his face that still had the bruise from the punch. He heard that there was no news of the “Garencieres” after Dakar. If he knows that Audrey and Marida are here, Zinnerman will— Banagher suddenly had this thought and felt that it was useless to think deeper into this as he shook off that fierce-looking bearded face from his mouth. Bright gave an observing look silently, breathed out from his nose, “That’s right. It certainly seems that the “Garencieres” actions point to this.” he said as he clasped his hands.

“That means that you weren’t treated like a prisoner there, and you had the freedom to act on whatever you thought, right?”

“That’s…right. I didn’t feel that they were enemies like what the Federation said.”

“Why’s that?”

“I’m not a soldier…so I’m not used to determining who’s my friend or enemy. The atmosphere on that ship gave me the feeling that there’s no need for that. I didn’t feel the atmosphere of the “Sleeves” I felt in “Palau”, at least…I could feel enemy intent back instantly. I think it’s because of this that I could stay on the “Garencieres”.”

“In other words, they made you feel that you could talk with them?”

“Yes.” Banahger answered as he felt that Bright was trying to get information on something as he turned his surprised look on the other man. After a short pause, Bright looked like he made some sort of decision as he got up. “I understand. Thank you.” He said as he gave an unfettered smile.

“You’re so young, but your observation and expressive skills are rather impressive. I suppose your parents taught you very well.”

Banagher knew that this was merely a social formality, but these words still felt heavy to him, who was once described as ‘a Cyber-Newtype created by Cardeas. Once he saw Banagher lower his head, Bright seemed to realize that he touched on something he should not have mentioned, “Sorry for talking too much here”, he quipped, and walked past the boy. Banagher watched the other man head straight for the door, “Please wait!”, and hurriedly got up from the chair.

“If you’re the captain, can you let me meet Audrey…Princess Mineva?”

“Unfortunately, my power alone can’t help you. In reality, I had to put in quite the effort just to get to talk to you.”

The face of the man who answered apologetically without asking for the reason caused Banagher’s heart to ache. “Is that so…” the boy slumped back onto the bed again.

Those pair of emerald eyes suddenly appeared in his eyes in “Industrial 7”. Once he tried to sort out his past experiences, Banagher felt an inexplicable sense of unfamiliarity with her again. He wanted to meet her; he wanted to see those eyes looking at him again in a place where he hoped no one could disturb them. The origin that sent him to this moment, those eyes may probably allow him to swallow the change and reform within him, and revert him to his initial emotional state—Banagher clasped his hands together and looked over at the dim floor. “Don’t give up.” However, Bright said.

“Your eyes have strength, a look of determination that can turn difficulty into nutrients, just like the generation of pilots who used to pilot “Gundams”. As long as you don’t give up, the opportunity will definitely come.”

This was not a reasoning based on perspective alone as Bright’s voice sounded like he had experience with this. Banagher looked back at the contemplating face, immediately looked down, “No…I don’t have that power.” he eked out this voice as he murmured.

“Everything was just out of coincidence. I got onto the “Unicorn”, I ended up waiting here…all because of coincidence. If it were someone with the power, he’ll definitely handle it better. He’ll be active enough to lose himself and help others, while I…”

I can’t even save myself, let alone Audrey or Marida. If you’re trying to say that I’m a Cyber-Newtype, this would be too much of a joke. Banagher bit his lips hard as he resisted the urge to let his emotions explode and closed his eyes. After a short moment of silence, Bright’s hand was placed upon his shoulder lightly, “The “Gundam” pilots in the past were all like this too.” This calm and steady voice caused Banagher’s eardrums to resonate.

“It was already difficult for them to live as the situations continued to change drastically…whether or not they exist, the overall situation would not change. Ultimately, an individual being does not have the power to save the world.”

The self-loathing expression could be seen in Bright’s eyes as he narrowed them unhappily. He did not look at Banagher, who lifted his face to look back, and suppressed some sort of emotion as he turned towards the door.

“However, some people were saved because of their existence. Even if their names aren’t widely famous, there are some incidents that will remain in the world, and this is the truth. Individually, we are helpless, but individual wills united together can also drag the world from the dark abyss. I suppose the symbolism of the “Gundam” is definitely about that kind of power. When the world’s conflicts reach its climax, they will appear from somewhere and link people together, whether they are ally or foe…the basis of that will always be the power of humanity. This is the power of the will, to face the still world while still trying to use their hearts to interact with people. Don’t be crushed by the situation. If you’re a “Gundam” pilot too…a Newtype, you should summon your courage and force back the thoughts of despair.”

Bright looked back and showed an earnest look for a fleeting moment, and before Banagher could ask back, he immediately walked off and opened the door. Banagher watched the back disappear through the door without looking back and vanished on the other side of the door; and looked down at his hands lit by the reflected light of the monitor.

Those were weak hands that could not do anything. No matter what kind of people the past generations of “Gundam” pilots were, they were definitely no different. They definitely faced these kinds of situations when they used their powerless hands to touch others, to support others, to kill others occasionally, and kept the one and only thing that could make the decisions for them—the heart. No matter what kind of cruel reality they witnessed, they could continue on by saying, “Even so”.

Banagher clenched his hands, warmed by a heat sensation, and looked at the monitor of the communication panel. He saw the white patch of clouds that expanded beyond the horizon, and nothing more. The white cloud vapors covered everywhere, and he could not tell where they were…but that would not continue forever. If he kept on running, he would be able to escape sooner or later. I can’t give up, I have to look at the situation clearly—Banagher made this decision. That’s because, the chance to break through will definitely fall onto me.

Even if it’s merely an amicable feeling, even if it’s knowledge others tell me that cause me to feel this way, the heat sensation from these hands is definitely from within me. Banagher felt that it was okay to leave it like this for now as he stared at the white space outside. The mist that flashed by and disappeared paused, and he saw the orange sunlight overlap upon the clouds.

Part 6

For a short fleeting moment, the sun shone in on the white bright window in a burning manner, but immediately disappeared after the clouds covered it again.

The clouds were thicker than expected. If the weather report was correct, the clouds here would flow into Sydney Bay the next time. The skies above Torrington Base would likely be overcast. Is this good or bad for the operation—Zinnerman thought carelessly, concluded that they would know tomorrow, “How’s the situation?” and then asked the Flaste on the navigation seat. “No deviation in course.” The answer rang through the cramped bridge of the “Garencieres”.

The “Ra Cailum” is definitely headed for Torrington Base. Local time of the estimated arrival time is 1330, no change at all.”

The Minovsky Radar caught sight of the “Ra Cailum” light spot, and the reaction ring showed it heading from above the Indian Ocean to the Sunda Islands. The vague ring had a radius of 1000km, but there was definitely a ship indicated by the source of the Minovsky Particles in the circle, and it was not exceptionally difficult to deduce where the ship was headed. They had been eavesdropping on the satellite feeds from the “Ra Cailum” and the Federation Senate Council for 4 days, and Zinnerman again felt that the time was ripe as he turned to look beside the captain’s seat. Two men dressed in old Republic army fatigues were leaning at the wall not far behind.

They were Lieutenant Commander Yohem Kirks and Lieutenant Kandle, two men discovered in the forests of the New Guinea region. They were brought up onto the ship together with their beloved machines, and though it had been two days, both men still seemed to be unused to the change in situation as they showed inexplicable looks at the bridge like they were kidnapped by aliens. Kirks himself should be around 50 years old, but Kandle was probably in his 30s. Both men were dropped down from the Zeon Republic to Earth 17 years ago, and managed to live on after defeat after defeat in battle. It’s like pus surging out after the war. What’s their view of us here? Zinnerman did not think too deeply into this and handed the wireless communicator microphone to Kirks.

“This can call in your comrades by processing information into codes. Do you want to try calling them out, commander?”

Upon hearing that sarcastic greeting, Kirks rolled his eyes and glared over at Zinnerman, “Are you really going to attack?” he growled, but Zinnerman merely shrugged in response.

“We have 8 outdated mobile suits here. Combining that with the machines you have, there’s still less than a dozen. The machines on that Federation ship are all brand new, right?”

“That seems to be the case.”

“And there are guards at the base.”

“Most likely.”

“Even if I’m being courteous here, this really isn’t smart. It’ll be wiser to sell you off to the Federation and ask them to spare us.”

Kirks’ stiff voice caused Kandle, standing beside him, to turn his nervous stare around the bridge. Zinnerman spotted Flaste and Alec turning their heads slightly too as he answered, “You’ll make the call, commander.”

“You can return back if you want to. We’ll send you over if there’s a place willing to keep you. I don’t hate the view of preserving ourselves since I take care of my subordinates this way, but…”

Zinnerman glanced aside at Kirks’ wavering stare, and looked right back at him, saying, “In that case, why are we still playing the Zeon card? If we want to be smart about this, there are still many ways to go about doing this, and yet we willing let ourselves become terrorists for hire…I really don’t know. This is really hard to understand.”

Zinnerman turned around and kept back the microphone dangling in the air, but before he could put it back onto the console, Kirks acted faster as he snatched it away and gave a cursing look at the other man. That’s good. In terms of not knowing how to live smartly, I’m no different from Kirks. Zinnerman did not need to affirm the thoughts they had as he heard Kirks’ voice through the microphone.

“This is the commander informing all Shinbu base members. With regards to the 1248 command issued yesterday, we’ll take the planned action. The planned objectives are as follows. 1, capture the Federation mobile suit called the “Unicorn”, 2, ensure the safety of the “Unicorn” pilot, and 3, once 1 and 2 are complete, ensure that we have an escape route…”

Part 7

(As we all know, our forces aren’t sufficient. Also, this operation isn’t permitted by the Neo Zeon fleet itself. This action is initiated by Captain Zinnerman and all the volunteers on the “Garencieres” forces. Thus, everyone has the right to refuse to take part in this operation. We originally planned to abandon our base and scatter our remaining forces to different places. I dare say that up till now, even if the “Sleeves” requested us, we do not have the duty to follow.)

This voice was not codified within the “Garencieres”, and what reached the crew’s ears was the instant moment the voice entered the speakers. The men working at the mobile suit deck paused the work they had for the time being and listened to this broadcast attentively.

On the lower deck of the aft, the 2 “Geara Zulus” that originally belonged to the “Garencieres” and the only “Zee Zulu” recovered from the Dakar operation located within. To all the crew members, who had been involved in every single incident ever since the “Industrial 7” incident, they were already mentally prepared with regards to the operation they were about to initiate next. They pricked their ears to listen to the broadcast as they continued to maintain the machines that were worn out due to the continuous battles. However, there was a different situation in the upper deck of the ship’s bow.

The upper deck that had the “Unicorn” up till a few days ago now had Kirks’ “Zaku I sniper-type” and Kandle’s “Zaku Cannon”, fastened in the hangar, facing back to back. The ones in charge of maintaining them were the 10 soldiers from the Shinbu base, and they stopped all that they were doing as they earnestly listened in on what their base commander had to say.

They were planning to abandon the base and start what was deemed a new life, but the chances of revival suddenly descended upon time before the moment they embarked on the future full of uncertainties—no matter the outcome, they believed that this would be Zeon’s last battle on Earth. They wanted to forget everything and bury their heads, but they had spent far too long of a time living on Earth. Some were looking at the photos of their wives left on their homelands, some recalled the faces of the family members they gained on Earth, and the solemn time rained upon the deck as they determined where they should go.

(However, the new enemy mobile suit in the operative is said to have the secret information regarding a “Laplace Box”. It has the information that can topple the Federation, and not only the Federation, but all forces, are tracking down its location. These words may seem impossible to believe, but I want to make a bet on it. I believe that this operation can allow us to go off with a bang, and also give a final offering from us to Zeon.)

2,000km away from the “Garencieres”, the trading ship “Evergreen” was moving down the Southeast Australian coast as it heard this announcement. This ship that was 200m in length and had a capacity of 5000 tons, was a company on paper, set up by the Luio Chamber of Commerce, a normal trading ship used for transporting industrial goods. However, the one steering it at this point were the people that escaped from the Shinbu base. The captain converted the received codes through a translator and broadcasted Kirks’ voice through the speakers on the ship. The pilots and mechanics of the Shinbu squad were on the cargo deck below the open-air deck, listening in. Two Dom-types were lying in a corner of this dim cargo deck, and there were a lot of goods piled up over these machines, covering their massive frames. One of the Dom-types was a mass production suit in the later era, the “Dwadge”, while the other was a “Dom Tropen” modified for hot terrain use. The “Dwadge” was upgraded to with 3rd generation specifications, but the “Dom Tropen” was a single unit built without an all-view monitor. Thus, the pilot could only listen in on Kirks’ voice in that narrow cocpit.

It was the same for the “Zaku Mariner” right below the “Evergreen” as it moved at a depth of 30m. This machine was modified for amphibious use, and had an all-view monitor installed within the cockpit, but the sight of the large engine propulsion moving the water still looked rather crude. The “Zaku Mariner” pilot too heard Kirks’ voice from the cable extended from the bottom of the “Evergreen”. Two “Capules” amphibious units were right behind, connected by cables as they moved under the sea with lights on their heads.

The limbs of the “Capules” were all kept within its round body when diving, looking no different from a ball. Overall, it really did not look like a mobile suit. The “Capules” pilots were considered youngsters amongst the Shinbu’s regiment that was primarily comprised of old soldiers from the One Year War, who ended up left on Earth after the first Neo Zeon war. Even so, it had been 8 years since they were deemed as defeated soldiers. They once managed to escape from the space base “Axis” successfully and join the rising Neo Zeon, but ended up with the ironic fate as the remnant forces from the One Year War—they went through 8 years, and even the term turbulent would be an empty way of describing them. Their expressions were similarly tense as they listened in on the commander’s voice. What kind of result would happen from this visit? The heavy time continued in this pitch black darkness, as even their fates were still undetermined.

(I hope that everyone can put their hands on their chests and ask this question. Why is it that we never gave up on being Zeon soldiers? We missed out on chances to start something many times, and on one hand, we’re even despised as mercenary terrorists. Even so, we continued to be Zeon soldiers. What is the meaning in this? What others view about us isn’t the problem; the answer lies within our own hearts. We choose to deny or affirm our future lives. Now, what do we want to do? I hope everyone understands that this choice can decide our past and future.)

There was a twin-engine transport craft flying above Australia, 1000km west of the “Evergreen”, on the way from Tanzania in Africa as it ferried processed fish. However, half the storage space were not frozen food, as they were several supplies they exchanged in New Guinea—the 20m humanoid machine—this large body nearly exceeded the payload as it laid down in a frustrated-like manner.

The installed missile pods were protruding out on the shoulder, and the mono-eyed flat head of the “Galluss-K” looked to be embedded into the body itself. During the first Neo Zeon War, The “Galluss K” was once used as an elite troop for the invasion on Earth, and was sent onto the land from the space asteroid “Axis”. Its arms had a mechanism to allow it to punch, and had many fixed armaments, and most notably, the K-type left shoulder had an additional beam cannon with a long barrel. The J-type’s finger launcher machine guns were removed, but the recoilless cannon nicknamed the Giant Bass still had quite the firepower. The machine was designed to be able to deal with all sorts of situations, and it could handle close-ranged combat to long-ranged combat.

This was the latest second generation mobile suit in the Shinbu squad, but it had been a while since the resupplies were done, and after one use, it would be hard to assure that it would be fine during the next sortie. The pilot and the mechanics assigned to it were focused on the final inspections. To them, the option of starting over in a place willing to accept them had already disappeared from their hearts.

(It’s good to abandon the past and leave in a new future. I feel that it’s something that can only be done with courage. However, I don’t want to deny my past. If the past was meaningless, I want to end this meaningless life. This is my own thinking, and you don’t have to accompany me. I hope that you can make the best choice for yourself. This incompetent commander can only send you these final words. No matter what path you take, I still want to earnestly thank everyone who had been following me. Sieg Zeon…that’s all.)

Part 8

The ship descended in height, and after the final cloud became mist and floated above them, the surface of the Sydney Bay suddenly appeared in their eyes.

They descended from 800m in height and continued to descend. As the ship had already slowed down to its original speed, one would be fine even if they were to appear on the open deck. Riddhe waited for the immigration surveillance to deploy as he came to the open deck together with the inspector on standby. The bridge back made it possible to shelter him from the wind, but the winds blowing upon his face was still very cold. The Tri-Stars zipped up their flight jumpers from their chests as they too accompanied him, and like tourists who were visiting without thinking, felt suspicious about this unexpected cold as they looked down at the Sydney Bay below them. In fact, it seemed that they did not think about how the seasons would be different in the South as compared to the North, and thought that it was merely a difference between the climates. The day was May 6, and it was in mid-autumn.

Basically, the reason why they felt cold was not simply because of the temperatures. Riddhe looked past the nozzles of the main thrusters protruding right below his eyes as he stared down at the land that was on the distance horizon. The tea-brown color that appeared faintly in the cloudy day looked like the shadow of an island when looking from the ocean. However, what was surprising was that there was a curve expanded to both left and right side, creating a thing veil on both left and right sides of the horizon as well. “Hey, there’s really a round hole there.” Watts leaned his body out from the handrails as he said this with a rather pale expression, in stark contrast from the usual teasing tone.

“Is this the place where the colony dropped?”

“800km diameter, said to be one-sixteenth the size of the entire Australian continent; well, an entire area of land was blown up from the old Sydney to the inland…”

Daryl answered beside them as he tensed up his slightly tanned Latin face. Riddhe felt the cold air remain in his chest as he turned his sights to the shadows of the land. Right, this place was not the ocean in the place. As the landscape around the place had seemingly indicated the place, the “Ra Cailum” had approached the skies above the Australian continent. 17 years ago, the “Island Iffish” space colony was dropped upon this place, causing Sydney to be dug up from the continent together with the state of New South Wales, and formed a huge crater in the southwestern side of the Australian continent. A part of the circumference overlapped with the coast in the past, and though it was directly connected to the Southern Pacific, the circle that was blown up inland looked more like a lake than a port. It was impossible to imagine that there was originally land on this place, the largest lake in the world ever since the world was born—and people stupefied over this scar of devastation instead of seeing it as a spectacular scene. But either way, this was too concealed to be considered a sea, and too open to be considered a lake; a certainty to confuse an observer’s sense of geography. It was a natural scene, but it could not fit in with nature, and could be considered a distorted space.

“But what happened to the land that was originally here? Is it blown up into space or something?”

It seemed that there were changes on the crust, and some parts were buried in the sea, while the majority was blown up into the atmosphere and still remains as dust in the skies. That’s why the horizon looks so blurry. It was said that the horizon could be seen very clearly when the weather was fine before that colony dropped onto Earth.”

“Such a large mass of land got blown up as dust floating in the air…” Watts retracted his upper body poking out from the handrail and cringed his shoulders. “I really don’t understand . those guys on Earth really don’t want to let go of this world.”

This line indicated the thoughts of Spacenoids, and Riddhe felt that it was a little unexpected as he turned his head around. Watts continued to look down at the sea surface at his feet without moving, and Nigel, who was standing not too far away, glanced over. His usual unconcerned expression was still hiding an intent to observe in the eyes. Riddhe found himself uneasy as per usual and started looking for a place he could rest his eyes on at a place closer in. he found several objects protruding from the brown wasteland devoid of greenery.

That was most likely the debris of the colony. In the past, the coast of Sydney was blown off with a range reaching hundreds of kilometers, and the burnt black debris of the colony was still scattered upon the landscape like a tombstone. Riddhe once heard that the reason why this place was never replaced was because the crust had not stopped changing, and there was difficulty removing the debris scattered around. Some of the colony debris were several hundred meters in height, and such exceptionally large rubbish was something no large construct on Earth could compare to. If there was a need to talk about its one worth, it would be that this field of rubbish could be used as a modern obstacle course for mobile suit piloting training. One could certainly praise the Federation army for having quite the foresight to keep Torrington Base after the war, whether it was for the sake of obscurity, or that the land it was on could not be used for any other purposes. Perhaps it was because it set up as an Achilles heel, as its geography meant that it was isolated, that it was once attacked by Zeon remnant forces soon after the war, and was once used as a nuclear weapon storage site, something that was forbidden in the Antarctica Treaty. However, the media attention on it had become a thing of the past, and this base, which was treated as a nearly forgotten shanty until recently, could only be described as a remote place.

The base should be set up at less than 20km away from the coast, but they could not see any signs of it from the ship. There was nothing moving on the land that was shrouded under the clouds, and one would certainly mistake it for a barren land on Mars as it extended beyond the horizon in front of everyone. “There’s nothing here.” Watts said, and Riddhe had no disagreement about that as he merely stared at the continent that expanded beyond unwittingly. The clouds that were roaming down low, right above his head, were thick and heavy, seemingly lighting up a fire in his gloomy emotion.

“I suppose we’ve arrived on land now, and we can only think wildly in the base’s rest room at most. What do the people in Torrington normally do everyday?”

“Most likely, I think they’ll just chill out and enjoy nature. I head that the sunset at Sydney Bay is quite the unforgettable sight.”

“How boring…we’re going to continue hunting Zeon remnants after we let those Foundation people off at the base? I’ll really bore to death if I can’t find a place to spend the time. Besides, even if we don’t talk about it, the air in the ship has been really stale.”

Watts said as he gave a reproaching look at Riddhe, who had been getting used to this for the past few years. The latter decided to ignore the former’s stare, “What I’m concerned is why they chose this place.” And looked over at Nigel who raised the question.

“It seems that those people from the Foundation are intending to switch over to a space shuttle, but Torrington Base doesn’t have any Mass Driver launch facilities. How do they intend to launch into space?”

Nigel did not respond to Riddhe’s stare as he said that with an unconcerned look. “Maybe they’ll probably use an equipped booster to launch into space?” Daryl answered with a bored tone.

“Torrington is really a backwater region, so even if the “Ra Cailum” is docked there, it won’t be too conspicuous. It sure seems like an idea those people with ulterior motives will have.”

“Maybe, but they’re going to head into space with 2 “Unicorns” on it too. I don’t think the Torrington Base had that kind of large space shuttle, and it’s not easy to get one either. Maybe there’s another way.”

“Another way?” Watts asked, and Nigel pointed his chin silently into the sky. Riddhe followed Daryl and Watts’ stare as he looked up and spotted two machines flying between the clouds.

The soft sound of the engines became louder, and the silhouettes of the two disc-shaped machines were gradually closing in. The lifting bodies of the two machines glided past, leaving beside a rotor sound right above the “Ra Cailum” as it disappeared into the clouds. “What’s that? Some Base Jabber?” Watts reached out his short neck hard as he watched the machines leave and muttered, while Nigel answered, “No.” as he stopped looking for the machines in the sky.

“That’s a transformable mobile suit. I think it’s a new elite machine of the Federation army, called the “Anksha”. Read through the data before.”

“Ah, the next generation machines following the Asshimar-type? I heard that it could transport mobile suits in its transformed form.”

Daryl said. Riddhe himself recognized the “Asshimar”; it was a transformable mobile suit type with a unique shape, and was assigned to important points on Earth 10 years ago. Once its round head and arms were retracted in, the upper body of that mobile suit would show a disc shape, like an illusion. He recalled how shocked he was when he saw it on the news for the first time. To the Federation after the war, the “Asshimar” was a machine that hardly had the chance to operate effectively under gravitational conditions, but that was still not the driving force behind Riddhe’s willing to join the air force. To a plane hobbyist, this round-disc flying mode was complete unorthodox and simply ridiculous.

The “Anksha” seemed to be the successor, and the legs below the disc were made to be more aerodynamic in shape, and the sides of the lifting body seemed to have two long barrels of beam launchers. Riddhe was not very certain, but he could see a platform used to ferry a mobile suit on top of it. “Torrington Base has that kind of thing?” Watts asked, and he and Riddhe looked over at Nigel. If this were the case, he would have to change his view on Torrington Base. “Who knows?” Nigel answered as he looked up at the sky shrouded in grey clouds.

“Most possibly…”

The wind blew by as it swayed his hair, and his eyes were hinting at other possibilities as he looked into the sky. Riddhe frowned and looked over at Nigel’s face that seemed to be hiding something.

Part 9

In terms of outcome, there was no need for Riddhe to correct his opinion on the Torrington Base. The local time was 1330, and the base took in the “Ra Cailum” that was expected to dock in. it was a place of paved concrete in a corner of the wilderness.

A desolate mountain range—naturally, these mountains did not originally exist. They were the rocks left behind from the impact—the base 2km wide was fenced up with the mountains at the backdrop, and the headquarters, barracks and hangars, these impersonal buildings were everywhere within this place. The garrison mobile suits in the hangar comprised of the old machines from the initial 3rd generation machines, but there was no sight of the latest “Anks”a" mobile suits. There was a little war memorial in the base, filled with the mobile suits’ debris that were exploded and burnt, but this was most probably the result of haggling over the expenses for the asphalt. The base did not look like it came to life, even with the flagship of the Londo Bell docked in here out of a sudden, but even when looking from afar, the operatives that were obviously demoted looked emotionally drained. It seemed that the barren sight at the end of the world was overlapped with the gloomy day as even the music from the welcoming band seemed melancholic.

The “Ra Cailum” turned the cooling plate at the bottom of the ship 90 degrees inwards and landed on the temporary dock located at the western end of the base. There were countless landing pads on the docking ground, bearing the weight of the 500m long ship equally. However, though it was called a temporary dock, there was not a single wall around. The “Ra Cailum” was sitting in a corner of the base undefended, but there was no need to worry about it being spotted by anyone in this empty wasteland. Once the landing was done, Riddhe, Nigel and company got down to the mobile suit deck. The entire ship was to be on guard until the “Unicorn” and the “Banshee” were moved. Riddhe, who was still excluded from the squad, had to check the heavy repairs done to the “Delta Plus”.

This stop had to remain low profile, so all ceremonies of having soldiers lineup or the base commander invite them were omitted, but the inside of the ship was still in a frantic mess as the two mobile suits were moved out. The deck crewmen were all running around without rest, either packaging the spare parts of the “Banshee” or coordinating the large trailer moving the “Unicorn”. The shutter leading to the deck at the back were all opened, and even as the air outside was flowing into the mobile suit deck, Riddhe continued his own work. “We came all the way here, and they still want us to remain on standby? There has to be a limit to how cautious we can be.” Watts once complained, but his view would definitely change if he had known that Mineva Zabi was on this ship. Either way, it was a good thing for Riddhe now that he had a job he could focus on. He would not have to worry about any other thing during this time, and he would not have to curse himself for being unable to do anything or feel out of place for being unable to vent his frustrations.

Even till this point, he had not established contact with his father, and though he had looked for Captain Bright, the situation had not improve, and Mineva would definitely be taken to space with the people of the Vist Foundation. He spotted the large Medea-type transport carriers on the runway outside, and wondered, how are they intending to head into space? The white frame of the “Unicorn” was lifted by the two “Jestas” and laid down horizontally on the trailer, and as he glanced aside at this, Riddhe blankly let his mind thing. Unlike the “Banshee” that was moving into the “Medea” on its own, the “Unicorn” was dragged over by the trailer, and the reason for this was due to the only pilot, Banagher, refusing to work with the Vist Foundation.

That’s his style alright…he thought, but felt Alberto’s words appear in his mind again, and bit his lips in the cockpit alone. His rational side was telling himself that there was no reason for him to feel angry, but he could not understand why he felt cheated, and this goosebump he could not leave alone continued to swirl in his heart.

That guy gave that ordinary look like he simply got involved in this—no, there was already an abnormal feel about him right from the beginning. If he really has the Vist bloodline, I can only describe my two battles alongside him as ironic. He’s supposed to belong to the other side, but I got fooled by him saying ‘you’re a man of your word’, and ended up knowing the fate of my cursed family. I’m like a clown performing here.

Is this the curse of the “Box” at work too? Riddhe ended up thinking back about the “Box” again, and just when he wanted to shake off this thought from his mind and gather his focus on the inspection, a familiar chestnut-colored hair appeared in the corner of his sights and he felt his heart, which had been beating loudly up till this point, suddenly went silent.

She, with that natural chestnut-colored hair on her, was flanked by the surrounding Vist subordinates in black suits, and was about to get onto the electric car parked at the deck. She appeared on a window of the all-view monitor that was fully switched on during this system check, and her back was clearly shown on it, and Riddhe’s heart, which stopped once, started to beat wildly. He snuggled out of the cockpit like he was trying to leap out from it, and jumped onto the gondola parked beside the hatch. “AUDREY!” he immediately pressed the button to move the gondola down. “What now!?” Sergeant Hanna’s voice rang from before, but Riddhe got down to the deck and yelled, “IT’S ME, AUDREY!” as he leapt off the gondola.

Mineva’s eyes widened as she looked back, and she wanted to break away from the ranks, only to be restrained by the subordinates in black suits. Riddhe however did not care about Martha’s piercing stare as she walked in front as he continued to dash down the mobile suit deck. Mineva could be seen occasionally through the gaps between the subordinates as they waited for the car to pass by, and just when RIddhe was about to see her face, “How troublesome”, Alberto said as he got in front of them.

“I should have told you that you’re not to see her, Ensign Riddhe.”

Alberto’s round face looked hideous, and the pilot of the “Banshee” appeared behind him. Her face under the black helmet looked like a watchdog that would leap at all criminals on her master’s command. Riddhe stopped in his tracks, watched Mineva get accosted away from beyond Alberto’s shoulders, and let out a restrained voice as he said,

“Just let me talk to her for a moment.”

“This is my issue with her. You don’t have the right to stop—”

“We DO have the right to stop you. I should have said before that we have to protect Her Highness Mineva.”

“You dare to say protect when you’re using her as a hostage!? Handle your family inheritance issues in the family! She shouldn’t be involved in such vulgar stuff!”

“If that’s the case, I do feel that it’s more vulgar of a Federation soldier to have a crush on her.”

Upon seeing the fat face sneer, an enraged Riddhe unwittingly walked forward. “Ensign Riddhe…!” Mineva, who was behind the “Banshee” pilot blocking him, was about to be carried up the electric car. You’re the only one I’ll definitely protect. That’s what I promise. I suppressed my inner heart and came here just to protect you, but I can’t do anything. We won’t be able to meet again—this premonition caused his gut to sink, “AUDREY!” and he yelled out without a care for anything else in the world as he merely thought of pushing aside this pilot in front of him and charge right at the electric car. The pilot quickly dodged, reached her arm to grab his arm from the side, and pulled him towards her by using the momentum of the charge. Surprisingly, Riddhe’s legs left the floor easily, and he spun half a round in the air as he landed on the ground.

The tall ceiling of the mobile suit deck appeared in front of Riddhe’s eyes, and the face of the black-suited pilot did not twitch as it appeared in front of him. The electric car door was slammed shut, and the sound of the engine grazed by as the car drove off. Riddhe did not have the time to feel pain, and his sense of rationality was immediately broken as he got up and grabbed the pilot.

“You puppet…!”

I won’t show mercy even if you’re a woman, Riddhe decided as he immediately reached his arm out at the pilot’s chest, but the pilot was faster as she grabbed Riddhe forcefully on the throat. Riddhe grabbed that springy hand and intended to pull it away, but he spotted some emotion flash by the bottom of the pilot’s eyes.

There was a dull light deep within that eyes that were reminiscent of hollows, and the azure blue eyes widened before she stopped moving. The strength of the hand grabbing onto the throat suddenly weakened, and Riddhe forcefully shook it off intently. The pilot backtracked due to the force of the release, and she showed a pained expression as she put her hands on the helmet covering her head. A certain emotion flashed through the bottom of her void eyes, and her eyes which were then filled with life immediately closed up.

“What is it? Is your head starting to hurt again!?”

Alberto turned pale as he pushed aside the flabbergasted Riddhe and went to the pilot. The pilot pushed the hands away and reached her hands for the handrail of the trailer, only to collapse onto the floor. Her hand, pressing onto her head, was tensed up, and her trembling fingers were pressing into her helmet as she ostensibly tried to rip it out—no, she looked like she was trying to squash the skullcap together with it and rip out the brains inside.

“Call Bentner in, quick.”

On hearing Alberto’s restrained voice, the subordinates hurriedly turned around and left. Riddhe did not understand what was going on, and originally intended to look at the pilot’s face as she knelt down. “DON’T APPROACH HER!” Alberto yelled with spite and furor, shocking Riddhe enough to stop him in his tracks.

“It’s because you did too many excessive things that things ended up like this. That’s why I said not to let her take the same ship…!”

Alberto ignored the expressions on the subordinates’ faces as he showed his true emotions and glared defiantly at Riddhe. He then knelt down and got behind the pilot. “Excessive things, you say…?” Riddhe answered, but Alberto did not care about this response as he was only concerned with the pilot, and spoke, “Oi, hang in there. I’ll tell someone to move the “Banshee” there. Head there to rest.” Riddhe took a step back from the place, and looked over at the shutter leading to the aft of the ship. The electric car ferrying Mineva would head through the mobile suit deck in the ship, exit the landing deck on the aft, and head down onto ground. He wondered if there was any way he could catch up, and looked around the mobile suit deck, only to hear a vague cough-like hoarse voice enter his ears.

“The enemy’s, coming…”

He could barely hear these words, and Alberto inadvertently turned to look at the pilot, who shook off the arm on her shoulder as she got on her trembling legs and turned her unsteady eyes at a certain spot.

“This feeling, master…?”

She muttered, and her eyes showed anxiety as there was a certain will rising up from the dark hollow to the surface of her eyes gradually—those were the eyes of a human. Riddhe followed the eyes that were suddenly full of life and stared at the pilot’s face. “Wrong, I’m your master.” Alberto immediately said as he got up, his pudgy back blocking Riddhe’s sight.

“I’m your guardian, I’m the only one who can protect and support you. Repeat this with me, the “Gundam” is the enemy—”

Alberto grabbed the pilot’s shoulders and looked right into her eyes. She turned her eyes, perplexed, and was attracted to his eyes as she repeated, “The “Gundam”…is the enemy”. Her eyes lost all glow, and Riddhe, who did not understand the situation, suddenly felt that this situation simply felt weird as he backed away. At this moment, the alarm rang without warning, causing him to tense up.

The red alarm set on the wall flashed, and everyone working on the mobile suit deck immediately stopped. Riddhe exchanged looks with Alberto, felt a sense of discomfort within him, and was driven by it to respond as he dashed without waiting for the bright to broadcast the report.

He darted past the work vehicles transporting the materials and sprinted towards the “Delta Plus” on the hangar. He was not sure why this was happening, but after witnessing the abnormality of the “Banshee” pilot, he understood that something abnormal was about to begin.