Curious about how Kira's punishment had been handled, I headed toward the briefing room being used for the court-martial—or whatever passed for one on this ship. In the corridor, I found Kira, Sai, and Miriallia talking.
"Sergeant Murdoch really let us have it for helping her escape. We got one week of toilet cleaning duty..."
"Ah, I'll help too."
"Toilet cleaning? How classic."
I offered a wry smile as I interjected into their conversation.
"Axel-san."
"So, what was the verdict?"
"A strict formal reprimand. Um, I'm sorry about before. I know you were only saying those things because you were worried about me..."
"Don't worry about it."
I lightly patted Kira on the shoulder and entered the room. Inside, I found Murrue looking utterly exhausted. Natarle and Mu were nowhere to be seen; they had likely already returned to their duties.
"Good work today."
I placed a container of tea I'd brought from the mess hall onto the desk where Murrue was sitting.
"Axel? ...Thank you."
"So, no charges?"
I asked while sipping my own tea through a straw. Murrue took a sip from the container on the desk and nodded.
"Yes. Kira-kun isn't military personnel to begin with. And besides..."
"You felt guilty?"
"I suppose so."
It was just like Murrue—a woman of deep compassion. Even though he could pilot a mobile suit, the guilt of placing the burden of combat on a civilian student like Kira was clearly weighing on her.
"Still, I'm surprised the straight-laced Natarle agreed to it."
"Lieutenant La Flaga convinced her. He argued that if we handed down a harsh punishment here, we might not be able to count on Kira as a combat asset when it really matters."
...I see. It was a diplomatic way of putting it, but Mu was essentially implying the risk of Kira defecting to ZAFT. True, even if she was the daughter of a Supreme Council member, the optics of an operation involving a civilian hostage were terrible.
That said, I couldn't imagine Kira actually abandoning Sai, Tolle, and the others to defect to ZAFT.
"...You're mentally drained, aren't you?"
The physical fatigue was likely manageable, but I could sense a heavy mental toll radiating from her.
"Yes. I have to admit, I'm a little tired."
I gently patted her shoulder, trying to offer some comfort.
"Axel, that's sexual harassment."
"Eh? Is it?"
"Fufu, I'm joking. Sexual harassment is defined by whether the recipient finds the action unwelcome."
"I see. ...Hm? Does that mean you don't mind me touching you?"
"...Who knows? Alright, recharge complete!"
Perhaps chatting with me had served as a distraction. Murrue, looking somewhat revitalized compared to a moment ago, placed her cap back on her head and stretched her back.
My gaze was momentarily drawn to the sway of her chest, but I will categorically state that I averted my eyes immediately.
"Well, that's good to hear. It would be a disaster if the Captain wasn't in top form during a crisis."
"Exactly, being a Captain is hard work, you know? So please, continue to treat me kindly."
Several days had passed since Kira's punishment was decided. The Archangel had finally arrived near the rendezvous point with the 8th Fleet.
"Thirty minutes to the rendezvous point. ...We somehow managed to make it this far."
Murrue's voice echoed on the bridge, tinged with relief.
It was understandable. She had become captain simply by virtue of having the highest rank on board, despite originally being from a technical division.
"Maintain strict surveillance. A fleet stands out. We must assume ZAFT might approach using them as a target!"
Natarle's orders flew across the bridge, and the correctness of her caution was proven almost immediately.
"Interference on radar waves. N-Jammer response spiking!"
The operator at the communications console shouted the report. Hearing this, Murrue immediately took the captain's chair. Natarle moved to her station in the CIC.
"All hands, Battle Stations Level 1. Axel, prepare for launch."
Murrue turned to me. I nodded once and exited the bridge.
"Laurasia-class detected at Mark 103, Orange, Alpha."
"Mobile suit heat signatures confirmed. It's the Duel, Buster, and CiGue!"
I listened to the reports as I headed for the pilot briefing room. So, it was those three again.
"Axel."
When I entered the room, Mu was already zipped up in his pilot suit. I began changing into mine, following his lead.
"Did you hear the size of the enemy force?"
"Yeah. I caught a glimpse before leaving the bridge. Duel, Buster, and apparently the CiGue."
"Ugh. Those guys again."
"I'm late!"
Just as Mu made a face of utter disgust, Kira rushed into the room.
"Either way, considering the time until rendezvous, this won't be a long battle. Mu, can you handle the CiGue? The Moebius Zero will have a hard time against the Duel or Buster."
"True enough. I'll take you up on that offer."
"Axel-san, what about me?"
"Kira, you take the Buster. The Blitz uses the Mirage Colloid, so an opponent with wide-area weapons like spread beams or shotguns is a bad matchup for me. I'll handle the Duel."
"Understood."
"Still, shouldn't I be the one giving orders here? I am the ranking officer."
I shrugged lightly at Mu's joking tone and headed for the mobile suit hangar.
"Brother, what's the loadout?"
Murdoch called out to me as I approached the Blitz.
"We have ten minutes max until we hit the 8th Fleet. Plus, my target is the Duel. I'm going out with the standard Blitz loadout."
"You got it."
I gave Murdoch the nod and climbed into the cockpit. First, the Moebius Zero was launched from the linear catapult. As the Blitz moved onto the deck, a transmission came in from Miriallia in the CIC.
"Axel-san, enemies confirmed: one Laurasia-class, plus the Duel, Buster, and CiGue."
"No others?"
"Yes. That is all currently confirmed."
"Roger. Blitz, Axel Almar, launching!"
The Blitz was shot out from the linear catapult. I immediately activated Phase Shift armor, the hull changing from gray to its operational black-and-red scheme.
The first thing I saw was the three enemy mobile suits heading toward us. They were rotating in a back-to-back formation... Wait!? This is—!
"Mu, evade!"
I shouted the warning while blasting the Blitz's thrusters to clear the area. Simultaneously, a high-output beam fired from the Laurasia-class tore through the space between the three mobile suits, which scattered just before impact.
They had been screening the ship's line of fire. Fortunately, the beam only grazed the Archangel's left wing, but it must have caused some damage.
"Masking the line of fire with their own machines? Aren't they clever."
Mu's bitter voice came over the comms.
"Mu, the CiGue is yours!"
"On it."
Four wired Gunbarrels detached from Mu's Moebius Zero, launching an all-range attack on the group. The Duel, Buster, and CiGue scattered to avoid the crossfire. The Moebius Zero engaged the CiGue, while the Aile Strike, which had launched last, charged the Buster. Keeping an eye on the chaos, I fired the beam rifle mounted on the Tri-keros at the Duel to draw its attention.
Blocking the shot with its shield, the Duel returned fire and charged toward me.
"Mirage Colloid, generation start."
I activated the stealth system. The Blitz vanished from sight. I evaded the Duel's incoming fire and circled around to flank it. As I lined up my beam rifle against its exposed side...
—!?
I instinctively dropped the Mirage Colloid and switched power back to the Phase Shift armor.
CLANG-G-G-G-G!
A rapid series of impacts hammered against the PS armor.
"Sorry, Axel!"
Mu's voice. It seemed I had caught a stray burst from the CiGue's vulcan-shield system, which the Moebius Zero had just dodged.
And having deactivated the Mirage Colloid, the Blitz was now fully visible to the Duel.
"Tch!"
The Duel brought its beam saber crashing down. I blocked it with the Tri-keros.
"You said your name was Blitz! Hiding in the shadows... you coward!"
He must have realized he was seconds away from being shot down by an invisible enemy. Yzak, hiding his fear with rage, swung his saber repeatedly. I blocked or evaded every strike while observing the rest of the battlefield.
The battle between the Moebius Zero and the CiGue was roughly even. The CiGue had the superior machine specs, but the Moebius Zero compensated with the all-range attacks of the Gunbarrels.
The Archangel was struggling against the Laurasia-class. They must have analyzed the evasion algorithms like in the original story; the ship had taken several hits. Fortunately, the laminated armor was holding, diffusing the beam energy for now. But that wouldn't last forever. Once the heat capacity was reached, the damage would be catastrophic.
And the Strike versus the Buster... The Strike was in a bad spot. The Buster's overwhelming firepower was keeping the Strike at bay, preventing Kira from closing the distance. If he had equipped the Launcher Striker, he could have fought a shooting war, but the Aile Striker was built for mobility, not a firefight against heavy artillery.
"Looking away?! Don't mock me!"
Noticing the Blitz's head tracking other targets while dodging, the Duel's fury spiked. He spun around and delivered a massive overhead slash. I rolled with the blow, using the momentum to spin and counter with the Tri-keros's own beam saber.
My horizontal slash cut shallowly into the Duel's flank, sending up a thin plume of smoke.
"Take this, too!"
In the same motion, I fired the Gleipnir anchor from my left hand. The rocket-propelled claw slammed into the gash my saber had just opened on the Duel's side, digging deep into the armor.
"Uwaaaaaaaahhhh!!"
The scream must have been broadcast on an open channel. The CiGue, hearing its wingman's distress, immediately broke off its engagement with the Moebius Zero. It spun around, firing its shield vulcans to keep us at bay, and rushed toward us. I expected it to attack me to save the Duel, but instead, it grabbed the Duel without slowing down and dragged it out of the combat zone.
Simultaneously, the Buster—which had been pinning Kira down—was suddenly on the defensive and retreating as well.
I thought they were retreating because of the damage to the Duel, but that theory was quickly disproven.
"It's the 8th Fleet! The 8th Fleet is here!"
A transmission from the Archangel, thick with joy, explained everything.
We managed to rendezvous. Somehow.
Still... for the Strike to turn the tables on the Buster from such a disadvantageous position... Did Kira awaken his SEED?
Name: Axel Almar
LV: 35
PP: 510
Stats:
Melee: 246
Shooting: 264
Skill: 256
Defense: 253
Evasion: 281
Accuracy: 303
SP: 422
Ace Bonus: SP Boost (Consuming SP increases unit performance)
Growth Type: Versatile / Special
Terrain Ratings:
Air: S
Land: S
Sea: B
Space: S
Spirit Commands:
Accelerate (SP 4)
Gain (SP 8)
Focus (SP 16)
Direct Attack (SP 30)
Zeal (SP 32)
Love (SP 48)
Skills:
EXP Up
SP Boost (SP Up L9 + SP Recover + Focus)
Telekinesis L10
Attacker
Gunfight L9
In-fight L9
Limit Break (Morale)
Geass (Gray)
???
???
???
???
???
Shot Down Count: 259
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded over 30 chapters of this story on Patreon.
If you're enjoying it and want to read ahead, feel free to check them out here:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thanks a lot for your support, it really helps me keep going.