"Damn it!"
Ribbons' face turned quite ugly when he saw the first salvo of the T.N.T. Cannon being blocked by some kind of barrier. Besides the 100,000-strong Clone Suicide Force, Ribbons' greatest reliance against the massive opposing fleet was the four hidden T.N.T. Cannons. If all four T.N.T. Cannons fired simultaneously, what would it matter how large the enemy fleet was? Wouldn't they still lose more than half their numbers?
Instead, the attack had yielded nothing.
Subsequently, clinging to a glimmer of hope, Ribbons ordered the T.N.T. Cannons to fire continuously. He pushed them to the point where the barrels themselves were at risk of overheating and exploding, yet they still failed to break through the unknown barrier. The barrage had even inadvertently helped Yang Hui and the others, who were surrounded by a sea of death, by opening a path of survival for them. This realization made his blood boil with rage.
"All units, sortie! Wipe them all out!" Ribbons commanded in an icy tone.
His original plan was to use the T.N.T. Cannons to eliminate the majority of the enemy fleet, then use the Clone Suicide Force to further wear them down, and finally send out the Innovators to harvest the remains when the enemy was at their wit's end.
But the first step had been thwarted by the enemy. That unknown barrier seemed as if it were specifically prepared for the T.N.T. Cannon. He began to suspect whether Regene Regetta had long ago leaked the complete intelligence of the Celestial Being ship to the organization Celestial Being.
Now that the grand fleet was no longer being intercepted by the T.N.T. Cannons, they began to advance at full speed. Under the fleet's overwhelming firepower, the 100,000 Gags of the Clone Suicide Force might have looked numerous, but they couldn't stir up any significant trouble.
Meanwhile, the vanguard led by Yang Hui was also advancing rapidly and had already nearly reached the Celestial Being. Ribbons had no choice but to fully activate the Celestial Being's weapon systems and order the Innovator forces to sortie. He needed them to intercept Yang Hui and the others to buy himself some final moments.
"Just a little more... just a little more, and I can..."
...
"Old man, is it still not ready?" After destroying dozens more Gags with the Dawn Gundam, Yang Hui asked Aeolia Schenberg in a heavy voice. A hundred thousand units was simply too many. Even with his extreme combat efficiency, it didn't seem to make much of a dent; the enemy machines in his sight showed no signs of thinning out.
Moreover, not everyone was Yang Hui. Super aces like Kira could still hold their ground, but ordinary aces a level below were already grit their teeth to endure, and the elite forces had already begun to suffer casualties. Yang Hui knew they couldn't afford to delay any longer. They had to retake VEDA and paralyze all the Gags.
"Not enough yet." As Aeolia Schenberg answered, he marked out the feasible range on the display. It was still a considerable distance from the Dawn Gundam's current position.
"Yurin! Graham! Help me open a path!"
"Understood!" x2
The Flag Gundam wove back from nearby, transforming into MS mode and stopping directly in front of the Dawn Gundam, firing all its weapons at once. The Luna Gundam also moved to the front of the Dawn Gundam; its Funnels returned one by one, docking onto the high-output beam sniper rifle. GN Particles were compressed to their limit and then released. A thick torrent of destruction surged forward, swallowing the sea of Gags directly ahead and leaving behind a clean, straight path.
"Now!"
"Underst—"
Beep, beep, beep...
The moment the Dawn Gundam was about to charge, a beam no less powerful than the Luna Gundam's MEGA Photon Destroyer Cannon swept across the front of the Dawn Gundam.
Looking up, three familiar yet strange Gundams stood in the Dawn Gundam's way.
"Go! Fangs!"
The moment the bombardment ended, a large number of GN Fangs swarmed from all directions—some lunging with beam blades, others firing rapid beams—pinning the Dawn Gundam in place.
"The Thrones! It's them..." Although their appearances had changed significantly, Yang Hui and Graham recognized the three Gundams as the Throne Gundams at a glance.
"Tch, what a pain," Yang Hui cursed. It wasn't difficult to destroy three Throne Gundams, but right now, every second counted. Yang Hui had no time to waste on them. "Graham, Yurin, hold them off!"
"Understood." x2
The Flag Gundam and Luna Gundam immediately switched targets and advanced toward the three Throne Gundams, simultaneously intending to eliminate the surrounding GN Fangs. For Graham and Yurin, who were long accustomed to such weapons, the GN Fangs posed little threat.
However, the GN Fangs weren't just floating out in the open; they were mixed within the swarming Gag groups, making it difficult to lock onto them for a moment.
"Have they gotten smarter? But it's not enough!"
The Flag Gundam accelerated instantly. Seizing an opportunity, it sliced through a GN Fang and the Gag blocking its path simultaneously. Then, it raised its rifle and fired a burst, destroying two GN Fangs to its side.
At that moment, several GN Fangs revealed themselves with the help of the Gags' suicide charges. They locked onto the Flag Gundam while it was occupied with the Gags, but...
Zap, zap... Several beams pierced through the GN Fangs. It was the Luna Gundam firing. Yurin was capable of ultra-precise sniping from over 1,000 kilometers away; even with the concealment and obstruction of the Gags, it was impossible for her shots to miss.
But by providing fire support for the Flag Gundam, Yurin had exposed her own rear. Throne Gundam Unit 02 seized the opportunity and lunged toward the Luna Gundam, its serrated greatsword raised high.
"Got you!"
"Don't even think about it!"
The Dawn Gundam pulled back, crossing its twin swords to parry the serrated greatsword. Simultaneously, the wings on its back unfurled, scattering Golden Bits that cleared out the surrounding Gags in one go before swarming toward Throne Gundam Unit 02.
Throne Gundam Unit 01 and Throne Gundam Unit 03 weren't about to stand by as idle spectators. Their supporting fire continuously struck the Bits, preventing them from getting close to Unit 02.
"If Bits aren't enough, then..."
The Voiture Lumiere activated. Fine lines of light danced out, coiling around the limbs of Throne Gundam Unit 02, intending to shred it to pieces.
To his surprise, two Gadessas suddenly lunged out. Their fingers merged into beam claws, which they used to sever the light lines before aiming their Beam Vulcans at the Dawn Gundam.
"Tch."
As the Beam Vulcans opened fire, the Bits were quickly retracted. A thin curtain of light formed between the Beam Vulcans and the Dawn Gundam. The dense barrage struck the light curtain, breaking through its defenses in short order.
"What?"
The pilots thought they had landed a killing blow, only to find that behind the light curtain, several Funnels had merged together, their surfaces glowing with a GN Field. They blocked all the Beam Vulcan rounds.
The Gadessas stopped firing and once again merged their fingers into blades, intending to hack the Funnels into scrap. But the moment the beam blades were about to touch the Funnels, the Funnels split apart, causing the beam blades to hit nothing but empty space. In that same instant, the dark muzzles that had been hidden were revealed.
"How is this possible..."
These were the final thoughts of the two Innovator pilots in the Gadessas. The Luna Gundam's beam sniper rifle and the Dawn Gundam's beam rifle fired simultaneously from the left and right. The cockpits of the two Gadessas were pierced by the beams. Without even a chance to eject and escape, they were reduced to nothingness.
The Dawn Gundam used its remaining single sword to carve a circle, using a parrying technique to throw Throne Gundam Unit 02 off balance. It followed up with a swift kick to the machine's abdomen. While sending the enemy flying, the Dawn Gundam used the recoil to retreat alongside the Luna Gundam.
"This is getting a bit tricky."
Yang Hui, Graham, and Yurin realized they were surrounded. Aside from the Gags and the three Throne Gundams, no fewer than ten Gadessas, Galezos, and Gadises had hemmed them in.
"Setsuna and the others are pinned down too," Yurin reported to Yang Hui after checking the Radar Detection System.
It wasn't just the three of them; Setsuna, Neil, Lyle, Allelujah, Tieria, Kira, Athrun, Creuset, and the others were all being held back by the suddenly appearing Innovators.
The Artificial Innovators were no match for them individually, but what held them back wasn't just the Artificial Innovators—it was the countless Gags. That was the real threat.
"What do we do?" Graham asked. He knew now was not the time to lose their heads. Retaking VEDA was urgent; every elite lost was a permanent reduction in their strength, and every loss was painful.
"Remove the limiters. We break through the center," Yang Hui decided after thinking for a few seconds. The only reason the Artificial Innovators could hold back a group of aces was VEDA's assistance. Without VEDA's support, these Artificial Innovators would be useless and no match for the aces.
"Hi, Darling. We meet again." Just then, Throne Gundam Unit 03 suddenly connected to the Dawn Gundam's communication line. Nena Trinity's face appeared before Yang Hui.
"Heh, it seems you haven't improved at all, little girl."
"...Darling, even though you betrayed me and caused me to suffer through painful torture, I'm still willing to give you a chance. As long as you kill everyone around you, I'll forgive you. We'll wipe the slate clean..."
Before Nena Trinity could finish, the Luna Gundam raised its rifle and fired. The shot was precise and lethal. If Johann Trinity hadn't been keeping a close eye on the three Gundams and raised his shield in front of Unit 03 the moment the Luna Gundam moved, that shot would have been enough to kill Nena.
"Brother Johann! What the hell are you doing!?" Nena Trinity screamed.
"I won't let you get near Yang Hui."
When Nena Trinity heard a woman's voice, her expression instantly turned cold. Then, she let out a cruel, sadistic smile. "I see. So it's you? The thieving cat who bewitched my Darling. You deserve to die... you deserve to die!"
"Don't get it twisted, little girl," Yang Hui interrupted, his tone cold and indifferent. "Yurin is my wife. And you... you have never been anyone to me. If I had to define you, you're nothing but an enemy."
"..." Upon hearing Yang Hui's answer, Nena Trinity fell silent for a few seconds before laughing maniacally. "Heh... haha... hahahaha... That's the right answer, Darling. Yes, exactly. Only like this... only like this can I kill you! Hahahaha!"
"Heh, what a coincidence." Yang Hui also gave a cold smile. "I have no intention of letting you... or any of you go, either. Graham, Yurin!"
"Trans-Am!" x3
(End of chapter)