Reid was utterly devastated when he received word on the Eternal Peace that Stella was aboard the Archangel.
At that moment, both the Archangel and the Eternal Peace were flying at high altitude over the Arabian Sea, preparing to bypass ZAFT-controlled North Africa en route to the Old Capital Base.
In the current state of the Earth conflict, although the New Misurugi Kingdom and PLANT were not formally allied, the New Misurugi Kingdom military and ZAFT operated under an unspoken understanding.
Both sides, including their transport units, would grant passage as long as they did not approach bases or large-scale troop encampments, merely passing through each other's territories.
For instance, transport ships from ZAFT's Gibraltar Base supporting the Suez campaign often passed right by the Old Capital Base. Under Reid's orders, the Old Capital Base would turn a blind eye as long as their identities were confirmed.
Thus, even if ZAFT did spot the Eternal Peace and the Archangel flying at high altitude (the Archangel had been modified for high-altitude flight), they would likely pretend not to see them.
However, now that they were over the Arabian Sea near North Africa, Reid clearly couldn't risk delaying the war effort by sending Stella back home before heading to the Old Capital Base. He had no choice but to pilot the Joyeuse Gundam to the Archangel to see what was going on.
Before setting off, Reid had tried to calm himself down. After all, he could be as harsh as he wanted with that brat Shinn, but Stella had always been the well-behaved one.
But upon entering the Archangel's hangar, Reid felt his blood pressure skyrocket.
Because parked in the hangar was a Mobile Suit that absolutely should not have been there: the Gundam Gremory Deathbird. This unit, which should have been stored in the surface factory warehouse of Star Palace City, was now sitting in the Archangel's hangar.
Reid disembarked from his Mobile Suit with a completely icy expression. Spotting Matilda Ajan waiting for him in the hangar, he pointed directly at the Gundam Gremory Deathbird and asked coldly,
"Matilda, could you tell me how this Mobile Suit ended up here?"
Matilda looked puzzled by Reid's question but answered promptly,
"This unit was delivered from the Star Palace City Military Factory, along with three Rezels and their related components."
Hearing this, Reid was taken aback. He had configured the Archangel with four Rezels.
Apart from Shinn, the other four pilots on the Archangel were still using High War Crabs. Although the Black Sea Operation and the subsequent campaign against the Atlantic Federation homeland required aquatic Mobile Suits, that might not be the case later on. Since the Archangel's hangar had been expanded and renovated with plenty of empty slots, Reid had ordered the Star Palace City factory to deliver four Rezels, allowing Matilda to assign them to the four pilots as needed.
So, Reid could only ask back with a look of utter disbelief,
"Three? I should have allocated four Rezels for you?"
At this point, both Reid and Matilda had already guessed what had happened. Matilda replied with certainty,
"It was three Rezels. I noticed there was an extra set of Rezel components and thought it was a spare.
But it seems one of them was swapped out by Stella. She must have hidden inside the unit to sneak aboard."
Reid's suspicion aligned perfectly with Matilda's. He temporarily stopped questioning her and, with a stern face, headed to the officers' quarters to hear what Stella had to say.
As for Shinn, he was thrown into the interrogation room. Stella was a civilian in the New Misurugi Kingdom, and she was found together with Shinn.
Abducting a civilian onto a warship—this charge was enough to have Shinn thrown back into the Nameless unit, so of course, he needed to be thoroughly interrogated.
When Reid arrived at the room where Stella was, she didn't rush over to him as usual upon seeing his cold expression. Instead, she cautiously approached him and pitifully apologized,
"Reid, Stella knows she was wrong. Can you please not send me back to the laboratory for electric shocks and injections?"
The mention of electric shocks and injections here wasn't because Reid had mistreated her in the New Misurugi Kingdom. These were the atrocities committed by the Atlantic Federation's Enhanced Human Laboratory. However, in Stella's mind, Reid was still that Neo, so she feared being sent back to the laboratory to continue suffering.
In truth, this was already the Endurance Heart Skill at work. Before, Stella would have crouched in a corner trembling, and as soon as Reid appeared, she would have rushed over crying and begging, making it seem as though Reid wanted her life.
Looking at Stella, Reid thought that although she was a bit older, she was now the warmest little comfort in his life. So, he patted Stella's head and softened his expression as much as possible, saying,
"Alright, sit down first. Tell me, what exactly happened this time? Where did you get the Gundam Gremory Deathbird? How did you sneak in? And why did you sneak in?"
Stella was still very obedient. She immediately recounted all her thoughts and the entire process in detail in response to Reid's questions.
After hearing Stella's full account, Reid had only one thought:
"Great, even this last little comfort is starting to show signs of wear."
The reason for Stella's stowaway was simple: she didn't want to part with Shinn, her playmate, and she wanted to help Reid fight.
Since the war began, Reid was often nowhere to be found, and the other companions were all busy with their own tasks. Even Vivian had been taken by Gekko for separate Dragonkin Education—she needed to learn to control her transformations and flight.
So, the only playmate Stella got along well with was Shinn, who was in Star Palace City at the time.
Thus, upon learning that Reid and Shinn were going out to fight again, Stella decisively decided to follow them.
After all, equipped with Endurance Heart, Stella was no longer as afraid of death as before. Plus, she was the type to do whatever someone she trusted told her to do.
It all started when Shinn bid her farewell. He said,
"Of course, I'd love to keep playing with Stella, but I must fight for a peaceful future, so I have to go out and fight."
There wasn't much wrong with what Shinn said, but Stella only took in the first half of his words, as the latter half was filled with beliefs she couldn't quite grasp.
Stella thought that since Shinn still wanted to play with her but couldn't due to his mission, she could just follow him and they could play together again.
Moreover, she was capable in combat and could help Reid on the battlefield—it was a win-win situation.
So, without anyone instructing her, she managed to swap Mobile Suits and stow away on her own.
And while Stella was missing for a day, the Royal Palace in Star Palace City was in an uproar searching for her. However, no one would disturb Reid, who was off fighting, over this matter. After all, Ange hadn't set out yet, and she could take charge of the palace.
In fact, Reid also bears some responsibility for Stella's perfect execution of stealing a Mobile Suit and stowing away.
When Stella first arrived, she could hardly function without Reid and insisted on following him everywhere, like a kitten afraid of being abandoned.
During that period, Reid had to avoid confidential locations as much as possible and carried his "little tail" with him wherever he went for work.
Even after Stella no longer needed to follow Reid constantly, he never revoked her access to places he frequently visited.
For example, Stella was one of the few people who could reach the entrance of his government office without prior notification.
Naturally, the surface-level Military Factory in Star Palace City was open to Stella. Except for a few hazardous military production workshops she couldn't enter, Stella was free to roam anywhere else, including the warehouses.
Reid wasn't worried about Stella injuring herself while piloting a Mobile Suit and even allowed her to operate one within the compound, as long as she didn't damage anything.
But this time, things took a turn. Stella learned from the factory's native inhabitants that a batch of containers was to be shipped to the Archangel, where Shinn was stationed.
However, after hiding in a container for less than ten minutes, she was discovered by the diligent and responsible native inhabitants during their inspection.
Since Stella had permission to move around the factory, the native inhabitants simply escorted her away from the loading area and left it at that.
Stella had almost given up at this point, but as she wandered around, she stumbled upon the Gundam Gremory Deathbird, which had been left alone deep in the warehouse by Reid after failing its tests.
Although the Gundam Gremory Deathbird primarily relied on the Alaya-Vijnana System for operation, those without the system weren't completely unable to pilot it. At the very least, movements like walking and carrying objects could be performed using the auxiliary control system through traditional operation methods.
Reid didn't install this auxiliary control system to make it easier for others to steal the Mobile Suit.
The system was originally intended for transporting the Mobile Suit. After all, none of the Tekkadan members were in Star Palace City, and once the Mobile Suit was delivered from the Factory Module, moving it couldn't rely solely on Reid piloting it.
Moreover, Reid himself didn't have the Alaya-Vijnana System, so he naturally needed to install an auxiliary system for control.
In any case, it wasn't impossible to install a traditional cockpit control system in a Gundam Frame. Gaelio Bauduin, for example, didn't have the Alaya-Vijnana System either, but he could still pilot and fight in a Mobile Suit without activating the Alaya-Vijnana System Type E.
Besides, Reid designed this auxiliary control system solely for transportation purposes. All weapons were disabled, and thruster power was limited. If someone could steal his Mobile Suit using this system, Reid felt it wouldn't be unjustified.
Unfortunately, guarding against outsiders day and night couldn't prevent a thief from within.
Reid never imagined that the one who would ultimately take the Mobile Suit would be Stella, who was already under contract, and that she did it with the intention of helping him.
What followed was straightforward. After the native inhabitants inspected the containers in the loading area, they were placed in the waiting zone. When the Gundam Gremory Deathbird moved around the factory, the native inhabitants confirmed that Stella was the pilot, so no one thought to notify Reid.
Additionally, the Military Factory in Star Palace City was entirely staffed by native inhabitants, making it strict on the outside but lax on the inside. There weren't even surveillance cameras inside because the ever-present native inhabitants served as the best monitors.
Reid was more concerned about the possibility of a spy infiltrating the factory. Even if they couldn't steal the Mobile Suit, obtaining surveillance data could expose many of the factory's secrets.
So, Stella walked right into the unmanned cargo warehouse, moved a Rezel out and hid it in an empty reserved container, then piloted the Gundam Gremory Deathbird to lie inside.
The next day, the Gundam Gremory Deathbird was delivered to the Archangel.
Finally, while the Archangel's ordinary ground crew was unloading, Stella seized the opportunity to leave the cockpit and thus blended into the Archangel.
It must be said that the various espionage skills Stella had trained in at the Enhanced Human Laboratory were quite solid, so it wasn't until she was starving and went to the kitchen to steal food that she was discovered by Shinn, who happened to pass by as if by telepathy.
This time, Shinn seemed genuinely wronged, because the moment he discovered Stella, he intended to report it immediately, with no plans to hide anything.
However, Stella got a bit too excited upon seeing Shinn and insisted on dragging him along to eat something good first, which led to them being discovered by others who later arrived at the cafeteria.
At that time, Shinn and Stella were still tugging at each other, so it was only natural for misunderstandings to arise.
Anyway, after hearing Stella's account, Reid didn't even know how to react.
Indeed, overindulging children isn't good.
And his own behavior was just like parents in the 20th century who, unable to keep their children quiet while eating out, would hand them a phone.
The child's subsequent addiction to the phone is the parents' fault for seeking convenience in the first place.
Here, Reid was the same—because he had no time to accompany her, he allowed Stella to play with Mobile Suits in the Star Palace City Military Factory, which led to her easily swapping out the cargo Mobile Suit.
Now that the child had made a mistake, what was Reid to do? He could only say that scolding was necessary.
So Reid gave Stella a thorough verbal education and punished her by making her write a self-criticism report.
However, Stella's academic level was such that she hadn't even completed the nine-year compulsory education. After all, you couldn't expect the Atlantic Federation's Enhanced Human Laboratory to teach those they regarded as "tools" too many courses unrelated to combat.
To this day, the Royal Palace has hired professional teachers to tutor Stella daily in academic subjects.
So, this self-criticism report was enough to keep Stella scratching her head for two whole days.
After disciplining Stella, Reid told Shinn not to bother with an investigation and just threw him into the brig until the Archangel reached the Old Capital Base.
You say Shinn was completely innocent in this matter?
Reid said, so what if he was innocent? His last little "cotton-padded jacket" had sprung a leak, and that leak was caused by Shinn. As the old father, what was wrong with venting by confining him?
Besides, a higher rank can crush anyone, and Reid outranked Shinn by who knows how many levels.
However, after receiving the punishment order, Shinn breathed a sigh of relief. This time, Reid had given a clear release time, which meant that once he served his confinement, the matter would be over.
Shinn was very grateful to Reid for showing him leniency once again.
Because Shinn seemed to think that the charge of abduction was already a fact, since Stella had boarded the ship because of him.
Although there were misunderstandings, the cause and effect were not wrong.
So, being confined for just a few days for the crime of abducting a civilian onto a warship was as light a punishment as could be.
Of course, after the other members of the Archangel roughly understood the cause and effect of the incident (it had to be explained to the other crew members, or there would be endless trouble), they all expressed envy for Shinn and widely spread his story as a joke.
You know, when a story passes through five or six people in succession, the information can become completely distorted.
Thus, this story transformed into Shinn's little girlfriend, worried that Shinn might be fooling around outside, chasing him all the way onto the warship, insisting she would only feel at ease if she kept an eye on him the entire time.
At the same time, this little girlfriend was also Chairman Reid's adopted daughter, which is why Shinn enjoyed such trust from Chairman Reid—even after committing a grave mistake, he wasn't executed.
Gaelio Bauduin did not undergo Alaya-Vijnana System modification. The cables on his back were a type of mind connection device, allowing the brain of Ein, transformed into the Alaya-Vijnana E System, to take over the body and control the Mobile Suit. (Some say it was merely assisted control, but Gaelio Bauduin shouted the line about handing over his body in the anime.)
It sounds far-fetched, but that's exactly how it was. His combat prowess was incredibly strong, even overpowering Mikazuki's Barbatos in Emperor Form.
(End of Chapter)