GP02 was a special attack-type Mobile Suit secretly developed by the conservative faction of the East Asian Army.
Its internal project name was Physalis, with the nickname "Agile Fatty."
Originally designed before the East Asian Army obtained weapons like the Goddess of Love, this model was specifically created to carry the Light of Peace.
It was precisely because of this requirement that they ultimately produced such a thick, fatty-looking machine.
"So, when we say conservative faction here, does it mean the radicals aren't radical enough?"
Returning to the Zhu Long, Wang Hu didn't even have time to change into a specialized MS combat suit.
He dashed like the wind into the cockpit of this heavy and somewhat menacing machine.
Of course, no one was there to answer Wang Hu's rhetorical question as he marveled inside the cockpit.
"Ready?"
Seeing the launch gesture from the maintenance crew on the cockpit screen, Wang Hu stopped dwelling on this unanswerable question.
"Wait, is it because we're understaffed?"
Just before departure, Wang Hu couldn't resist leaving behind a teasing remark.
"GP02 Physalis, Wang Hu of the Uprising Army, launching!"
With an appropriately dramatic shout, Wang Hu gently pressed the pedal.
It was crucial to remember that the three 'TFB' thrusters mounted on this model's back—each single one alone could provide all the power of a universal Gundam.
And now, there were three of them!
If Wang Hu were to habitually stomp the accelerator as if trying to push it through the fuel tank, he'd be asking for a flight accident.
"Whoosh!"
With just that light press, blue flames erupted from Physalis' thrusters.
The immense power released outward instantly pressed Wang Hu against the cockpit seat.
"Whoa, this is quite a wild stallion."
Feeling the power of the machine beneath him, Wang Hu, who had piloted the Zeta Gundam, knew exactly what he was experiencing.
Could it be that this machine's impact surpassed even the Zeta Gundam?
Staring at the rapidly receding blur on the screen, Wang Hu's view suddenly cleared.
The cosmic stage, dotted with shimmering starlight, was about to welcome a new king!
"What is that?"
Nicol used his Dragoons to execute a perfect combo with Athrun.
In their 2v1 skirmish, although they once again failed to secure a decisive victory,
the two experienced pilots noticed something suspicious: the Freedom Gundam before them wasn't as agile as it had been at the start of the battle.
Then again, the battle had been going on for a while now.
That Kira had been fighting outnumbered the entire time. If it were any of them, being able to hold out this long without being shot down
would be simply unbelievable. If he could still maintain his initial combat state,
then the pilot inside the Freedom Gundam, Kira—was his stamina even human?
Just as Nicol was thinking about pushing harder to at least take down the Freedom Gundam before the new reinforcements arrived,
a new light emerging from the Zhu Long caught his attention.
Instinctively, Nicol's heart skipped a beat.
It seemed to foretell that something bad was about to happen!
"A Gundam?"
Hearing Nicol's question, Athrun, who had just clashed beam sabers with the Freedom Gundam, quickly turned to look.
Noticing the change in Athrun's pupils, the highly intelligent Justice Gundam thoughtfully magnified the image of the distant ground cherry berries on the screen.
So that its pilot could see more clearly.
"A heavy Mobile Suit? Looking like this?"
When Athrun got a clear view of the newly appeared machine, his already serious expression grew even more stern.
Though young, Athrun had considerable battlefield experience and wasn't fooled by the GP02's appearance.
From the image, the machine did appear cumbersome, and no weapons were visible.
But!
"Incredible speed!"
After glancing at the flight speed estimated by the computer on the display,
Athrun clicked his tongue repeatedly. For such a massive machine to achieve speeds rivaling the Justice Gundam—
This newcomer meant business!
Putting his guard up completely, Athrun decisively increased the distance between himself and Kira.
Flying over to Nicol's side, Athrun warned his comrade:
"Be careful of that Gundam opposite us. I think it's quite unusual. Fortunately, that Wang Hu is still inside the satellite."
"As long as we hold them off until reinforcements arrive, victory will still be ours."
Athrun maintained a cautious attitude about securing victory in this battle before reinforcements arrived.
"Alright, but is there a possibility?"
While verbally agreeing with Athrun's suggestion, Nicol tentatively proposed a new idea:
"Look, Athrun, this Gundam of theirs didn't appear earlier or later."
"It only showed up at the most critical moment, just when the Freedom Gundam seemed about to fall."
"It rushed out in such a hurry, so could it be that its pilot isn't actually skilled, or that this machine isn't powerful?"
"This—"
Hearing this, Athrun watched as the Freedom Gundam flew toward the newly arrived, unknown heavy Gundam. He felt his comrade's words made some sense.
"Let's test them first."
After some thought, Athrun instructed Nicol to deploy the Dragoons to gauge their opponent's capabilities.
It would also give both of them a chance to recover their stamina.
"Alright."
Nodding in agreement, Nicol dispatched 11 fully recharged Dragoons from his back,
Launching the first wave of probing attacks toward the rapidly approaching GP02.
If the opponent proved formidable, they would follow Athrun's suggestion and adopt a stalling tactic.
But if the opponent wasn't strong—Nicol smirked beneath his mask—he still wanted to achieve victory before reinforcements arrived.
"Who's coming? Is it Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi?"
Seeing reinforcements arrive and Athrun's pair retreat to the rear, Kira seized the moment to catch his breath.
He didn't forget to ask who was piloting the new Gundam, recalling that the originally scheduled pilot, Brother Wang Hu, was currently inside the satellite.
Therefore, the most likely person piloting the GP02 was Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi. And if it really was him...
Gripping the control stick tighter, Kira resolved to do everything possible to assist him later.
Even at the cost of his own life, since the man was Brother Wang Hu's sworn sibling.
When no one answered him, Kira grew extremely puzzled.
The GP02 swept past him at breakneck speed, the entire process making it seem as if he hadn't been noticed at all.
"Hey, Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi?"
Kira blankly manipulated his Mobile Suit to extend a hand, unable to comprehend why Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi was ignoring him.
It didn't make sense—his massive machine was right there in plain sight. There was no way Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi could miss it.
"Oh no!"
Before the bewildered Kira could figure out why this was happening, he saw the eleven Dragoons launched from the enemy's Destiny Gundam closing in on GP02.
During their earlier confrontation, Kira had deeply experienced how troublesome the Destiny Gundam's Dragoons could be.
"Be careful, Lieutenant Colonel Li Chengzhi! Those are enemy Dragoons—not only are they small and highly maneuverable, but their Beam Fire Net is also extremely dangerous!"
Fearing that Li Chengzhi, piloting the GP02, might be at a disadvantage, Kira hurriedly warned him over the internal comms.
Perhaps worried that Li Chengzhi didn't fully grasp the threat, he added:
"They're just like the Beam Pods on Brother Wang Hu's Aegis!"
"Tch, is this guy an idiot?"
Watching the GP02 charge forward without evading, Nicol inside the Destiny Gundam breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing his Dragoons had reached optimal firing positions, he double-checked the enemy's heavily armored machine.
"Die now."
Pressing the firing button, Nicol delightedly admired the Beam Fire Net he'd created.
In his mind, the GP02's reckless charge left it no chance to evade his web of beams.
The faster an object moves in a straight line, the greater the turning radius required—even Mobile Suits covered in attitude thrusters have a center of gravity and face G-forces during maneuvers.
The machine might withstand it, but the pilot inside couldn't!
"Come on, crash right into it."
Nicol watched eagerly, waiting for the GP02 to collide with the layered Beam Fire Net he'd deployed ahead of it.
Sometimes, waiting for the prey to walk into the trap felt wonderful!
"What? Impossible!"
But the sweeter the anticipation, the harsher reality's slap.
Instead of the expected impact, both Nicol and Athrun witnessed the GP02—just before hitting the Dragoons' attack zone—execute a backflip beyond normal comprehension.
It cleanly avoided Nicol's carefully laid trap, then immediately accelerated sharply.
Before Nicol could react, the GP02 closed in on one of the small Dragoons.
Sword raised, downward slash—sparks erupted.
Simple, without any flourish, one of Nicol's Dragoons was destroyed.
"Bastard!"
Vaguely realizing his opponent had been playing dumb, Nicol felt thoroughly fooled.
Frantically controlling the remaining Dragoons, Nicol went all-out.
Swarms of Dragoons rapidly repositioned—attacking Wang Hu in the GP02 from every direction imaginable and unimaginable.
The Dragoons launched wave after wave of assaults against Wang Hu.
Beams from the small Dragoons fell like dense rain, while the large Dragoons' three Beam Cannons fired incessantly.
Surrounding Wang Hu's GP02, the Dragoons attacked en masse, determined to make this "fatso" pay a bloody price.
Watching this scene, Kira actually felt it was even more intense than when the enemy had attacked him earlier.
The enemy's attacks were now even more ferocious.
Had the enemy been going a bit easy on him earlier, aside from maintaining sufficient distance, which allowed him to hold out for so long?
"Kira, are you still thinking about that now?"
He shook his head vigorously, trying to fling all the wild thoughts out of his mind.
Fearing that their ally's GP02 might not be able to handle it, Kira maneuvered the Freedom Gundam forward to assist.
"Maybe it's not needed?"
Halfway through his flight, Kira muttered to himself in stunned disbelief.
Right before his eyes, the chubby GP02 unit in the distance was moving with unbelievable agility.
Left flips, right flips, upward flips, downward flips, sideways flips, inverted flips.
In short, it was all sorts of flashy maneuvers and flips, no matter how dense the enemy's beam attacks became.
At most, the beams only grazed the edges of the GP02 Mobile Suit, never managing to score a direct hit.
Come to think of it, the oversized shield in GP02's hand hadn't been used even once so far to block beam rifle attacks!
"Damn it!"
Nicol was nearly driven mad with frustration. No matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't figure it out.
Why was this chubby unit in front of him so agile? What kind of fatso could move like this machine?
It was practically spinning like a top!
(End of Chapter)