Archangel.
Every crew member seemed to have forgotten their duties, their minds seized by that shocking sight.
It was hard to imagine that a machine like that not only possessed a shield that looked capable of defending against any attack, but could also unleash power on the level of a fortress-mounted superweapon.
"Murrue, what was that?"
Natarle Badgiruel was so stunned that she addressed her partner by name.
One machine possessed that much power.
She could not imagine who could possibly stand against it if it could be mass-produced.
"I don't know."
Murrue could only answer with a bitter smile.
However, she did have a theory about how that attack, which resembled an eruption from a solar flare, had been achieved.
The man named Kain had likely used the defensive shield that protected him to contain the explosive energy of that warhead.
Yes. She believed that warhead had been nuclear.
In reality, the destructive power of a nuclear warhead in space was not as overwhelming as people imagined.
After detonation, its energy spread in every direction, causing its force to diminish more quickly.
But if that defensive shield compressed the explosive energy inside a spherical space, and then opened an outlet in a single designated direction...
Then the energy that should have radiated outward in all directions would instead be concentrated into one directional blast. Its kill zone would shrink, but its power would increase.
And by focusing it in one direction, it could also reach much farther.
That was why ZAFT's Nazca-class ship had been crushed after being engulfed by energy like a solar flare.
With that kind of power, perhaps a single machine could rival an entire fleet.
Suddenly, the fighter on the screen seemed about to start moving again, flying toward the Nazca-class warship to confirm whether the enemy had been completely destroyed, when an abrupt malfunction occurred.
It was like trying to start a car, only for the engine to fail to ignite.
"Captain, this... it looks like a malfunction!"
"This is bad. Losing propulsion in space makes him nothing but a target!"
Natarle's tone was extremely heavy.
If that were the case, the enemy could simply concentrate fire on him while he remained in place.
As for that defensive ability, Natarle did not believe it could last forever. Everything had a limit to what it could endure.
Once that defense was broken, he would be finished.
And because his thruster had malfunctioned, the enemy would likely get the same impression: his machine had reached its limit.
That meant he was no longer invincible. If they launched an all-out attack now, they might be able to take him down.
Under those circumstances, he could not counterattack either.
The energy protecting him also meant his weapons would be difficult to use.
Once he fired, the energy shield would have to open, or his own attack would be blocked as well.
The enemy would certainly not let that opening slip by.
And if he did not fire, there was another possibility. The enemy might not attack him. They might push him away instead, effectively abducting him.
"Lieutenant Commander La Flaga, please support Mr. Kain. His fighter's thruster is disabled!"
Murrue immediately gave the order.
"Understood. I'll get there as fast as I can. You'll have to handle these GINNs yourselves. Uh, looks like they don't plan on letting me through either. What a pain."
"Miss 60, please..."
Murrue was about to ask one of Kain's companions to rescue their commander, because an enemy had drawn a beam saber and was moving in to stab him from a blind spot.
But before she could finish, the new situation on the screen stunned her.
"What is this now, Murrue?"
Natarle stared blankly at the image.
Without propellant, he should have been like an overturned turtle, able only to flail his arms and legs, unable to right himself. He should have been a live target.
The scene before her shattered her common sense. That machine had actually made a jumping motion and avoided the backstab.
For one jump, they might have mistaken it for some kind of small auxiliary thruster. But with the next leap, it seemed to step on an invisible wall as a support point, flashing agilely behind an enemy GINN. The machine's gun muzzle flashed several times, and that GINN melted outright, just like the ones they had seen in the colony.
In the blink of an eye, five GINNs were destroyed. The remaining three avoided the attack because their mobility was superior to the GINNs'.
No, they had not avoided it completely. They were still grazed, and parts of their armor melted like burn scars on human skin.
"Damn it. What the hell is going on?"
"It's stepping and running through space, as if it were really on solid ground!"
Because of that, the enemy could no longer be treated as a target.
"He's probably using that defensive shield as a foothold."
Athrun gave his analysis.
"That's way too ridiculous!"
Dearka could hardly believe that a shield could be used like that. It was absurd.
If this continued, they would have no way to deal with the enemy.
Moreover, if they kept dragging this out, their own machines would likely run out of power.
"We're withdrawing. Go retrieve Captain Le Creuset!"
"That's all we can do."
"Damn it. What kind of weapon did Orb develop? This thing is supposed to be for protecting itself? Like hell it is!"
However, they discovered that the thrusterless machine behind them was gradually accelerating in pursuit.
"Damn it, this bastard can even do that?!"
Dearka's voice sounded somewhat powerless.
Logically, the enemy should not have been able to catch up. Who could have expected that bastard to use the bombs carried by his own machine, detonate them at close range, then shield himself with his defensive field and use the shock waves from the explosions to propel himself forward?
He was accelerating like that and catching up.
"Nicol, what are you doing?"
"Nicol!"
Both of their faces changed, because Nicol had suddenly broken away from the formation.
"Athrun, Dearka, go take Captain Le Creuset and leave. I'll intercept him!"
Leaving those words behind, Nicol accelerated his machine and charged toward the enemy.
"Damn it, Nicol! Who gave you permission to do that?!"
Dearka immediately tried to turn back, but one hand caught his machine.
"Athrun, let go!"
"Dearka!"
Athrun roared at him, and Dearka understood Athrun's decision from that shout. Because of that, rage surged through him.
"You want me to watch him go off and die?"
"Then what else can you do? Go die with him?"
Those words left Dearka with no choice but to slam a fist against his control panel, no longer resisting.
He could only watch as Nicol piloted Blitz to intercept the enemy, the distance between them growing farther and farther.
Until Blitz Gundam suddenly seemed to lose power.
No, it really had lost power. The high-intensity movements required to intercept the enemy had rapidly drained its energy.
And Blitz Gundam without power was nothing but a true target.
(End of Chapter)
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