Facing the Epyon Gundam's thirty-meter greatsword swung in a backhand strike, Chang Wufei had no choice but to maneuver the Altron Gundam EW into a full evasion—after all, this was clearly not something that could be blocked head-on.
Xia Yufang, who had long been wary of the crimson Gundam in the sky, dodged effortlessly the moment the Epyon Gundam raised its weapon.
By now, Heero inside the Epyon Gundam had descended into madness. After his attack, he activated external comms and roared:
"Gundams... are all enemies!!"
The sheer absurdity of the declaration left Wufei speechless—he had no idea Heero could go this insane.
But Heero's movements didn't stop. Among the four Mobile Suits on the battlefield that clearly stood out from the MD Virgos, he had already attacked three. Naturally, the fourth couldn't be spared.
Without warning, the Epyon Gundam charged straight toward the Mystic Lightning.
Xia Yulan had already cleared most of the MD Virgos around her. Seeing the Epyon Gundam rushing at her, she decisively combined her heat daggers into a greatsword and, like a baseball swing, launched the upper half of a wrecked MD Virgo straight at the Epyon.
However, the unfortunate half-corpse of the MD Virgo was effortlessly cleaved in two by the Epyon's blade. Immediately after, the Epyon Gundam lashed out with its heat rod toward the Mystic Lightning.
Yulan reacted swiftly, discarding the Yata-no-Kagami Shield and gripping her greatsword with both hands, using it as a makeshift shield to block the strike. The impact sent her skidding backward, and she immediately activated the Mirage Colloid System, vanishing from the Epyon Gundam's sight.
Here, the weakness of the Epyon System compared to Newtype abilities became apparent. The Mirage Colloid System was nearly useless against powerful Newtypes, who could easily pinpoint an opponent's exact location through mental perception.
But the Epyon System indiscriminately absorbed all data, making target positioning vague. For Heero, an invisible enemy could only be sensed in broad directions—left, right—without even precise distance estimation.
The Epyon Gundam also lacked wide-area AoE attacks (even a spinning 40-meter blade didn't count as large-scale in Mobile Suit combat). Faced with this situation, Heero could only swing blindly twice, and upon hitting nothing, he gave up.
Then, the Epyon Gundam turned its attention to the NT-X2 Gundam and the Altron Gundam EW—both unable to cloak.
As for the Hermes Zero in the sky, it was ignored. Heero could still tell that the Hermes Zero would be far harder to cut down than the two below.
Now, Yufang and Wufei had no choice but to focus entirely on the Epyon Gundam, setting aside their own conflict. A moment's distraction could mean instant defeat.
But Reid couldn't allow the Epyon Gundam to keep stirring chaos any longer. In a three-way battle, an unpredictable yet overwhelmingly powerful madman was too dangerous—one misstep, and the Xia sisters could be taken out.
Yufang and Yulan had been with him for a long time, and Reid wasn't about to let them get hurt here.
So he immediately issued orders over the team comms:
"Yufang, Yulan, activate the Mental Link System and take down the Altron Gundam EW completely—but try not to kill the pilot. I still have questions for him.
As for this troublemaker... I'll draw him away."
With that, Reid immediately activated the Lambda Driver and fired an Enhanced Electromagnetic Bullet at the Epyon Gundam.
At the same time, Reid unleashed an overwhelming killing intent toward the Epyon Gundam, luring Heero to attack him.
Heero was easily tempted—Reid's mental strength was formidable, and the Epyon absorbed all consciousness indiscriminately.
Thus, the presence of the Hermes Zero burned brightly in Heero's frenzied mind, as if it were an obstacle he couldn't ignore no matter what he wanted to do.
Even if the last shred of his rationality told him that the Mobile Suit before him was too fast to handle easily and that the other two on the ground would be easier to deal with, the Hermes Zero now served as a taunting unit. Heero's remaining reason was swiftly overridden by the thought, "You must attack the taunting unit first."
So, Heero once again unleashed the Epyon Gundam's Hyper Beam Sword at full power, this time manifesting a forty-meter-long blade that melted the electromagnetic bullet fired by the Hermes Zero in a single slash.
Seeing this, Reid discarded the Yata-no-Kagami Shield and transformed the Hermes Zero into MA mode, immediately darting into the sky. Naturally, under Heero's control, the Epyon Gundam took off in pursuit.
In MA mode and with no obstacles in the high altitude, Reid easily pushed the Mobile Suit's speed beyond Mach 3.
The Epyon Gundam in MS mode couldn't even hope to keep up—it had to transform into MA mode just to barely trail behind. (Given enough time to accelerate, the Epyon Gundam's MA mode could even break through the atmosphere.)
However, in MA mode, both sides had severely limited attack options.
Reid couldn't control the Mach 3 speed well enough to perform any complex maneuvers. He could only rely on cloud cover to make wide turns and fire a couple of shots.
But his accuracy was abysmal—he didn't dare get too close, as the Epyon Gundam in MA mode could still use its Heat Rod. (In the TV series, MA mode couldn't use any weapons, but in the G Generation games, it could—though the tail whip was abstract, it still counted as an attack method.)
Thus, the two began circling in the air—one with weapons too short-ranged to hit and unable to catch up, the other unable to control his high speed, resulting in pitifully low accuracy. Even if he occasionally landed a hit or two, it only scratched the opponent's armor. After all, Reid couldn't even control his Mobile Suit properly, let alone amplify his attacks with the Lambda Driver.
After five minutes of this uneventful aerial dance, Reid decided he couldn't drag this out any longer.
Maintaining Mach 3 speed was taxing on his energy, while Heero—five minutes in—showed no signs of weakening under the Epyon System's forced mental amplification.
Though the longer Heero stayed in this state, the worse the backlash would be afterward, Reid couldn't guarantee he'd outlast Heero before the latter's mind collapsed under the Epyon System's brutal strain.
In the original story, Heero only snapped out of it because he had already destroyed all enemy Mobile Suits on the battlefield, leaving no opponents around—and a fleeting thought of Relena Peacecraft brought him back to his senses.
But now, Heero was completely immersed in battle—there was no way he'd spare a thought for a woman.
Not everyone could pull off a "down bad" move like Athrun, after all. Besides, Heero had never been in a relationship or experienced intimacy—he was a certified virgin.
So, Reid decided to take a risky move.
As he charged forward, transforming his Mobile Suit back into MS Mode, Reid holstered the Electromagnetic Rifle on his back, drew the Beam Saber, and activated the Beam Shield, clearly preparing for close combat.
With the Hermes Zero having reverted to MS Mode, Heero naturally had the Epyon Gundam do the same, then swung its twenty-meter-long sword toward Reid.
Even in his berserk state, Heero's combat instincts remained sharp. As the Epyon Gundam swung its sword with its right hand, the Heat Rod in its left hand also activated, clearly setting up for a combo attack.
Heero's intentions were crystal clear in Reid's perception—his mind was entirely focused on the left-right combo, leaving no need to guess his attack pattern.
Thus, Reid activated a skill he had sealed away for a long time: Red Comet.
This skill could briefly overload the engine to unleash three times the Mobile Suit's maximum speed.
The Hermes Zero's MS Mode speed limit was far from the engine's actual limit, so pushing it to three times the speed wouldn't risk an engine explosion.
However, maintaining Mach 3 speed in MS Mode within the atmosphere would inevitably strain the limb structures—a foreseeable issue during the Mobile Suit's design phase.
Performing combat maneuvers in this state would only exacerbate the damage to the Mobile Suit.
But to deal with the Epyon Gundam, Reid had no choice but to take the risk.
The Hermes Zero and the Epyon Gundam instantly charged toward each other.
Both sides could read minds, fully aware of each other's attack targets.
Heero aimed to bisect the Hermes Zero at the waist, while Reid only intended to sever the Epyon Gundam's arms to disable it.
Thus, Reid's attack was aimed at the arms, while Heero paid it no mind.
Because Heero judged that, at their current speed, his superior attack range would allow him to strike first before the Hermes Zero could reach his arms.
And this was exactly the judgment Reid wanted. Mind-reading could only reveal attack targets and strong intentions—hiding skills was simple for Reid, especially since he had engaged in mental battles with top-tier Newtypes like Kamille and Paptimus Scirocco.
As for controlling the attack, Reid only needed to aim for the Epyon Gundam's raised right arm and charge at triple speed.
So, Reid calculated the distance, activated the Red Comet skill, and the Hermes Zero instantly burst into three times its speed, flashing past the Epyon Gundam.
This completely caught Heero off guard. Before the Epyon Gundam could even swing its sword, the Hermes Zero had already brushed past it.
In the next moment, the Epyon Gundam's right arm exploded, the entire hand holding the Hyper Beam Sword flying off, while a large chunk of its right wing was sheared away.
But Reid wasn't done. As the Epyon Gundam turned, he unleashed another Mach 3 burst, streaking past its left side and taking the left arm and half of the left wing with him.
Both of Reid's attacks were straightforward—the Beam Saber wasn't swung but held horizontally to slice through.
Even so, after these two passes, the Hermes Zero's right arm flashed red with structural damage warnings, while the other three limbs turned yellow, indicating partial internal system failures.
Fortunately, by then, the Epyon Gundam had completely lost combat capability—the explosions from both arms directly affected the Epyon System.
Originally an emergency sortie, the Epyon Gundam, with its systems not fully debugged, decisively crashed. Without the support of the Epyon System, Heero instantly lost consciousness, and the Epyon Gundam plummeted from the sky.
However, to prevent the Epyon Gundam from crashing to the ground and sustaining less than 70% integrity, Reid maneuvered the Hermes Zero to dive down and catch the Mobile Suit. Relying on the additional towing force provided by the Lambda Driver, he used the already malfunctioning left arm to carry the Epyon Gundam back to the battlefield where the Xia sisters and the Altron Gundam EW were engaged.
By then, the battle here had already concluded—with the Xia sisters achieving a complete victory.
Neither the Mystic Lightning nor the NT-X2 Gundam showed significant damage, while the Altron Gundam EW had been completely reduced to a Limbless Suit, lying defeated on the ground.
This outcome was something Reid had anticipated. This Chang Wufei had been recruited by Codename: Amelia S early in the plot, and his piloting skills and mentality were clearly still immature.
Thus, the Altron Gundam EW (Full Equipment) piloted by this Chang Wufei couldn't fully utilize the Mobile Suit's capabilities, barely managing a fifty-fifty fight against an NT-X2 Gundam in its standard state.
Once the Xia sisters activated their Psycho-Link, their combat power instantly multiplied several times over. Even if this Chang Wufei had held back during his earlier fight with Xia Yufang, there was no way he could win against two opponents simultaneously.
Facing the Mystic Lightning and NT-X2 Gundam with Psycho-Link active, Chang Wufei's only options were being defeated in one move or ten—there was no real difference.
The two Mobile Suits attacked in perfect sync, as if they were one. The Altron Gundam EW would've needed to become a "Double-Headed, Four-Armed Gundam," and Chang Wufei would've had to master the art of dual-wielding just to last a little longer.
So after landing the Hermes Zero, Reid didn't rush to interrogate Chang Wufei.
Instead, he followed protocol and used the Lambda Driver to open the Epyon Gundam's cockpit, dumping Heero out before having the system retrieve the Mobile Suit.
Only after finishing this did Reid maneuver his suit to the Altron Gundam EW's cockpit and activate the external speakers to say:
"Chang Wufei, you've lost. Do you have anything to say now?"
Deep down, Chang Wufei was still resentful. Though it was a three-on-three battle, the other side had won through sheer Mobile Suit superiority and ganging up on him.
But since he'd already made bold claims before the fight, Chang Wufei could only reply:
"A bet is a bet. I lost in a three-on-three battle. Take my life if you want it."
Hearing this, Reid found the kid adorably naive (Chang Wufei was 16 during the TV series, so calling him a kid wasn't unreasonable) and asked:
"Codename: Amelia S must have given you a way to teleport out of this world, right? Why haven't you used it even after losing so badly?"
Chang Wufei immediately snapped:
"Rau Le Creuset! Do you think I'm as despicable as you? I said I'd stake my life if I lost, so I won't run. Even without me, others will fulfill my mission. Countless worlds will still be saved."
Reid could only sigh inwardly—this kid had truly been thoroughly fooled by Codename: Amelia S.
So he asked again:
"Chang Wufei, didn't Teletha tell you after she returned? I warned her that Codename: Amelia S's ability is betrayal. She will never fulfill your wishes in the end. Or perhaps she'll fulfill them through dictatorship - enslaving all worlds. That way, wars and conflicts across all worlds would naturally disappear, because humanity would lose the power to make their own choices."
Reid was making this reasonable deduction based on his understanding of Codename: Amelia S, but Wufei clearly took it as an attempt to sow discord and immediately retorted:
"Empty words without proof. From what I've seen so far, Amelia S hasn't caused any harm to the world. On the contrary, she's given me the power to save it."
"And you, Rau Le Creuset, keep jumping between worlds, treating them as your personal playground, wreaking havoc everywhere while collecting Mobile Suits like they're action figures."
(End of Chapter)