The factory gates were sealed shut, and the password for the master gate control system had already been changed.
Aboard the Eternal, Andrew Waltfeld was not at all surprised by this development. He chuckled softly. "They certainly reacted quickly. It would've been so much easier if they'd just left the code alone."
"As if that were possible. They aren't idiots," Aisha replied, rolling her eyes even as a smile played on her lips.
Andrew laughed as well, then turned his head to look at Lacus Clyne, who was seated in the captain's chair. "Things are about to get a bit rough. Please, brace yourself."
Lacus wore an expression of calm understanding. "It can't be helped. We must depart... after all, Mikazuki is still waiting for me."
The image of that unforgettable young man flashed through Andrew's mind. "Right. Aisha, full speed ahead!"
"Understood!"
"Captain Waltfeld! Please respond!"
Inside the factory command tower, the controller desperately hailed the Eternal while simultaneously reporting the situation to headquarters. It looked like PLANT was about to suffer a massive loss today...
"Oh no! The Eternal's main cannon seems to have locked onto the master gate!"
"Do they intend to force their way out? Quick, notify the patrolling MS units!"
The Eternal's main batteries were primed and ready. Lacus gave the command.
"Eternal, launch!"
The ship's primary and secondary thrusters roared to life. At the same time, Aisha, acting as the gunnery officer, aimed at the master gate and slammed the button on the control stick.
BOOM!
The Eternal's port-side main cannon fired, blowing the gates wide open. The entire vessel surged forward, successfully breaking out of the satellite's inner docking bay.
"Where is DaCosta? Hasn't he come out yet?"
Aisha stood up and moved toward the radar screen. "There! It's the small fighter jet DaCosta was supposed to be in."
A small craft darted out from the satellite wall. Without a second of hesitation, Andrew shouted, "Open the hatch! Once we recover DaCosta, we leave this factory zone at maximum combat speed!"
Inside the jet, DaCosta saw the Eternal's rear hatch slide open. He banked the craft, quickly losing altitude to fly straight into the ship's hangar.
With the craft safely recovered, the Eternal's thrust increased exponentially. It erupted into a sprint, reaching speeds that far outstripped even the Nazca-class high-speed destroyers of the ZAFT military as it pulled away from the satellite.
Creuset, who had just returned to the homeland, received the message from headquarters. "The Eternal has been activated? Who did it?"
The intelligence officer replied, "It appears to be Athrun Zala. The small craft he used to flee entered the Eternal."
"Athrun?"
Hidden behind his mask, Creuset's eyes widened for a moment before a smirkunnoticed by anyone elsespread across his face. When the controller asked if they should initiate a pursuit, he answered with a solemn tone.
"A pursuit order? Don't be ridiculous. How could the Vesalius possibly catch up to the Eternal at full burn? Leave it to the Jachin Due defensive line."
"Yes, sir!"
After the officer left, Creuset's smile returned.
This truly is a masterpiece, Chairman Zala...
Though they had put distance between themselves and the PLANT satellite, the Eternal was not yet out of danger. They still had to face ZAFT's most formidable barrier: Jachin Due.
Even if they didn't charge the line head-on and instead chose to bypass the fortress, the garrison at Jachin Due wouldn't just sit idly by and watch them leave. They deployed a MS unit to intercept. If the Eternal wanted to escape, it would have to punch through the encirclement.
"MS units detected ahead. Count... fifty."
Athrun Zala, his wounds freshly bandaged, stepped onto the bridge alongside DaCosta just in time to hear the report.
"The forces from Jachin Due, then? Aisha! All weapon limiters released! Prepare to engage!" Andrew barked. "DaCosta, get to your station. It's time to get to work."
"Understood!" the two replied in unison.
Lacus looked at Athrun and smiled. "Athrun, are you all right?"
"Lacus..." Athrun was still in a bit of a daze.
Andrew, sitting below him, glanced back. "Hello there."
"Hello..." Athrun hesitated, then quickly remembered the soldier his father had once personally honoredthe man known as the Desert Tiger, Andrew Waltfeld. "Are you... Captain Andrew Waltfeld?"
Andrew shrugged nonchalantly. "The one and only. This is our first time meeting, though I've met two of your former teammates from the Creuset Team. Oh, that reminds methere's another old acquaintance of yours here."
"An acquaintance?"
"Athrun."
A soldier sitting at the communications station turned around. When Athrun saw the man's face, his mouth hung open in shock.
"...Nicol?"
The ZAFT soldier was indeed Nicol Amalfi, his former brother-in-arms from the Creuset Team.
"How are you...? Why are you...?"
"Save the reunions for later! Intercepting now!" Aisha interrupted his questions. In that same heartbeat, the Eternal unleashed its full firepower.
Without another word, Nicol returned to his duties.
Possessing the same elite military discipline as Nicol, Athrun stopped his questioning. He turned to Lacus. "Are there no other units on this ship?"
Andrew answered the question for her. "Unfortunately, not a single one. This battleship is a dedicated support vessel for the Freedom and the Justice. Aside from the equipment Miss Lacus prepared for that young man, the hangar only contains spare parts and gear for Freedom and Justice."
BOOM! BOOM!
The Eternal shuddered violently as explosions rocked the space nearby. Lacus's gaze grew firm.
"Open all of the Eternal's communication channels."
"Understood."
Suddenly, the comms of every MS in the vicinity were forcibly overridden. The pilots heard a voicegentle, yet resonant.
"This is Lacus Clyne..."
"It's really her... It's Lacus."
In the vacuum of space behind the Eternal, a machine manifested out of the empty void. The machine's eyes erupted with a blinding, brilliant radiance...
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