Why would I join the army if I can’t drive a Gundam!

Chapter 94 Ifeshi Island
"Quick, carry the wounded to the infirmary!"

"I need an ammunition pack here. Bring me back a basic 100-gun ammunition pack!"

"Mobile suits that have finished resupplying, please make way immediately and don't block the way outside the catapult!"

While the front fleet was fighting in full swing, the rear fleet, consisting of the Nelson-class and Columbus-class ships, was also busy because they were overloaded with a large number of fighter planes and mobile suits. At this moment, a large number of maintenance personnel were carrying out maintenance, repair and supply work without caring about the risks.

When Macharius flew back to the Nelson in the prototype Gundam, he happened to see a GM that had lost half of its body and was relying on the last bit of thrust from its damaged backpack to maintain its power.

"Thanks for your hard work!"

Macharius immediately flew over to help the other party.

"It's not hard. Oh, Krini, you look pretty badly beaten too!"

This Jim, which can almost be declared scrapped, is driven by Captain Junger. In other words, there are not many federal pilots who can fly back after suffering such damage to the aircraft.

"They were beaten worse by me. How many did you kill?"

"Five, and then I worked with others to kill three! What about you?"

"I can't count. Not counting the nuclear bombs, there are probably more than twenty!"

"Just pretend I didn't ask!"

Jung immediately shut his mouth. If he had known, he would not have answered!

After returning to the Nelson, Macharius originally planned to continue the attack after replenishing his ammunition. He still had some propellant left and could come back for a second time to replenish it, but Chief Engineer Kiyoshi Sakaki still forced open the hatch of the aircraft and had Macharius pulled out.

"Rest for five minutes. I'll reinforce your body and replace your shield!"

"All right!"

Macharius could only nod, then grabbed a bag of supplements and gulped it down, heading towards the bridge elevator.

To put it bluntly, the Nelson-class is also an old ship. It does not have a convenient passage that can directly enter the bridge from space like later ships, and can only be reached from inside the ship.

"Captain Mackenzie, what's the situation?"

"It's not optimistic. Our attack failed to break through the Zeon defenses. Although the nuclear bomb caused damage to the front of the satellite, the effect was not good!"

The captain of the Nelson was a middle-aged man who looked gloomy, with a hooked nose, squinty eyes, gray hair, and a collar that was raised up to cover his face. He would definitely be a villain in a TV series, but in fact, he was a ship officer with a sharp eye and strong skills.

At this moment, because he was unable to command the warship to engage in the front line battle, he could only coordinate the preparation work on the bridge while thinking about how to destroy the satellite.

"I have an idea!"

Macharius pointed to the holomap.

"The Zeon people installed a circle of engines at the rear end, so I want to make a gap from the front, then rush in, pass through the interior of the satellite, and then come out from here. If I can destroy a few engines, then the Zeon people will naturally be unable to move forward!"

"This is extremely risky, it's like going through the entire Zeon fleet!"

"At this moment of life and death for the Earth, risk is no longer a consideration!"

"I will report to Fleet Command immediately!"

Soon, Tianm's round head appeared on the communication screen next to the captain.

"Captain, how confident are you in carrying out this operation?"

"Four percent!"

"enough!"

Tianm pondered for a moment, then patted the board in front of him.

"Order our remaining mobile suits to disengage immediately, resupply and regroup, and transfer the Eighth Squadron to me!"

Tianm has currently lost nearly one-third of its Magellans. As the only firepower capable of causing serious damage to satellites at a long distance, these heavily armored warships are naturally the focus of the Zeon army.

But in order to eat these big guys, Zeon also broke a few teeth, and Tianm still had a squadron reserve, a total of ten Magellans and fifteen Salamis that were not used. They were carrying out long-range attacks from a far distance behind the fleet line.

But now, in order to support Macharius' plan, this reserve force was also mobilized.

"So, where does the breakthrough begin?"

"From the left side of Zeon, here, near Melfield!"

Macharius directly pointed out the location of Dozle's flagship.

"Dozle is a warrior. He won't retreat just because we're approaching!"

"But his men will. The Melfield still has to command the entire fleet to fight against the Zeon mobile suits. So, for the sake of the overall situation, he won't take any risks. Therefore, he must retreat, and then use the ship's guns to open a large hole in the satellite's armor, so we can enter!"

"Then, how about having Jim bring a few more nuclear bombs, using a mechanical timer to detonate them, and place them on these three inner walls, waiting for Macharius to withdraw before detonating them?"

"Then we also need professional engineering troops. The pilots don't know where to place the nuclear bomb to cause the greatest damage to the connecting structure!"

"Engineering troops?"

Tianm then turned to look at his fleet chief of staff.

"Recruit volunteers immediately, and tell them that the chances of returning alive from this mission are slim!"

The Zeon Army will certainly not sit idly by and watch the Federation Army destroy the satellite. Once the operation begins, the commandos will inevitably be surrounded from all sides. Pilots like Macharius may be able to escape by relying on the performance of their aircraft and the cover of the satellite, but the engineering troops operating on gunboats will only get a one-way ticket to hell.

Then, when the order to recruit volunteers was issued, the flagship received hundreds of applications in just a few minutes.

Tianm selected the personnel from the warships that were not close to the front, and directly sent them to the Columbus-class warships in the rear using the warships' own shuttles.

At this moment, more than 20 of the best-preserved Jims have also completed their maintenance. Of the more than 120 Jims when the fleet set out, only less than 70 are left. And these are the only intact ones. Most of the remaining Jims are injured or unable to escape in the fierce battle.

The Red Dragon Team was also unable to retreat. At this moment, the bodies of Red Dragon No. 4 and Red Dragon No. 7 had been scrapped, and the pilots could only return to the spacecraft and wait, while the others were still fighting with the Zeon people in the front. However, the rigorous training that Macharius gave to the team played a significant role. Relying on close teamwork, the Red Dragon Team relied on group tactics and killed enemies that were twice their number.

By the time the Eighth Squadron moved to the center of the fleet, the federal fleet had completed all preparations.

Then, under the command of Colonel Meade, commander of the 8th Detachment, the 8th Detachment began to accelerate and maneuver towards the left wing of the battlefield.

In order to save propellant, all the mobile suits did not fly with the battleship, but squatted on the hull of the Magellan and were fixed with a row of temporary steel cables.

In order to cover the movements of the Eighth Division, the Federation Army launched a fierce counterattack on the right side of the fleet. The iron fist led by several Magellans suddenly exerted force and launched an assault on the Zeon fleet despite the attack of the Zaku cluster.

"All fronts advance at full speed, all batteries fire freely. Listen up! Even if I die here today, I will drag the Zeon people to hell with me!"

The captain of the Magellan simply took off his hard space suit, so that if the bridge armor was penetrated, he would have no chance of survival.

Under the captain's encouragement, the powerful firepower unleashed by the attacking Magellan-class instantly made the Zeon battleship in front feel heavy pressure.

A team of Musai-class ships advancing in a battle line were the first to be hit by distant naval gunfire. The 356mm mega particle bombardment from Magellan easily tore through the armor of the Musai-class. The light beams penetrating the hull detonated the ammunition and energy behind the armor, directly turning it into a huge firework.

Then, a dense rain of missiles launched from the Magellan covered the Musai-class behind the battle line, and coupled with the bombardment of particle cannons, the battle line was instantly torn into pieces.

"Sir, the federal army launched a strong attack on our right flank, and the first squadron was defeated!"

"Let the Seventh Squadron take over, and dispatch another Chibei-class ship!"

The advancing Federation warships were already insufficient in number, and after Zeon strengthened its countermeasures, the warships' advance was quickly stopped.

The leading Magellan class was in a terrible state. There was hardly a single intact spot on the entire ship, and the armored hull was covered with bullet holes and cracks. At this moment, the ship was like a dying old man.

Its bridge was also severely damaged. The remaining deputy captain had moved to the backup bridge where thick smoke was billowing, but there was nothing he could command on this ship. The turret was torn apart, the missile bay's ammunition feeder was damaged, the ammunition depot was on fire, and the damage control team was trying to delay time as much as possible. The only thing left was the relatively intact main engine.

"Helmsman, set a collision course for me and concentrate all energy on the engines!"

The seriously injured deputy captain shouted this, but found that no one responded. He turned around and saw that the helmsman had lost all signs of life. There was a huge wound on his abdomen torn by shrapnel, and blood was flowing like a waterfall, but his hands were still tightly holding the console.

"Thanks for your hard work!"

The deputy captain, who felt he could no longer stand up, simply fastened himself to the control console with a belt and took over the helmsman's job. When the computer went offline, he calculated the data visually.

But the second-in-command ultimately failed to achieve his goal. The next salvo from the Zeon fleet destroyed the Magellan, turning it into a large piece of space wreckage. "Everyone, don't let the sacrifice of our allies go to waste!"

When the Zeon army focused its attention on the attack on the right, the Eighth Squadron once again rushed out of the Federation battle line with an indomitable momentum. A full ten Magellans in good combat power instantly broke through the left line of defense of the Zeon fleet.

A Chibe-class ship that served as a support point for the defense line only lasted five minutes before being sent flying by Magellan's artillery fire.

Then, the Eighth Team broke in through the gap in the defense line.

"Pincer attack, the target is me?"

Dozle took a look at the momentum of the Eighth Squadron's advance and saw the opponent's intention. After all, his Melfior was too conspicuous. Although its appearance was similar to the Musai class, the Melfior was 30% larger than the Musai class. In terms of combat power alone, this specialized flagship was comparable to the Magellan.

"You know you're no match for me, so you plan to behead me?"

"Sir, the enemy fleet has breached our inner defenses and released their mobile suits!"

"An enemy mobile suit is advancing towards our ship at triple speed!"

"It's a red dragon!"

"Don't panic, let the frigates take over!"

Then, the dazzling light of the nuclear explosion illuminated Melfield's porthole.

"The escorting Kasan was hit and lost its combat capability!"

Dozle's expression turned ferocious again. It was obvious that the other party was coming to nuke his warship. He should have tactically avoided it, but at this moment, there were more than ten warships and hundreds of mobile suits in front of the flagship. If he retreated, what would happen!
"Commander, we can't take any risks. Don't forget, we still have a follow-up battle plan!"

Dozle's adjutant hurried forward and whispered dissuadingly.

"asshole………"

Dozle, whose hair stood on end with rage, whose face was flushed red, and whose scar from the assassination was about to break, finally just cursed with gritted teeth and said helplessly.

"Perform tactical maneuvers!"

Immediately, Melfield stopped advancing and began a major turn in front of the enemy.

"What's the flagship doing?"

When the officers and soldiers of the Zeon fleet saw Melfield's movements, they immediately felt an inexplicable shame. The enemy had not yet entered the last line of defense, but the flagship had already turned to evade. This was like a loud slap in the face of the captains.

"Melfield asks us to take cover!"

"Understood, turn around and cover Melfior!"

"Dozlu, you rat from Koto!"

Macharius saw the enemy's movements and then fired a flare to the rear.

"Confirmed Melfield retreat!"

"Target the colony satellite, fire!"

Then, Magellan's main gun tore two huge gaps in the outer wall of the satellite, and the broken metal fragments sprayed across most of the universe like flowers scattered by fairies.

"The route is open, good luck!"

"Roger that!"

Afterwards, with the prototype Gundam as the vanguard, more than 20 GMs, covering a dozen gunboats full of pigs equipped with explosive devices, rushed towards the gap in the satellite.

The actions of the Federation Army were quickly noticed by the Zeon Army and reported to Dozle.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

After hearing the report and seeing the image, Dozle was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed.

"Is this your plan? You're worthy of being called the Red Dragon. This is the second time I've been tricked by him!"

Looking at the federal army that had already entered the interior of the satellite, Dozle suddenly remembered the afternoon when he first met Macharius. At that time, he just felt that the other party would definitely achieve great things in the future, but he did not expect that the other party's great achievements would be achieved by using him as a stepping stone.

"Sir, Squad 3 is requesting an attack on the colony!"

"Idiot, we're attacking the colony satellite directly, are we afraid that this thing won't break?"

"Send in the Mobile Suits! The enemy is planning to destroy the satellite. Send in the Mobile Suits and Engineers to disrupt their plans!"

"Also, have the escort fleet advance and work with the Third Division to encircle and annihilate this Federation fleet!"

"Damn Zeon bastards!"

After rushing into the colonial satellite, the Federation Army was mentally prepared for the scene inside, but when they really saw countless cold corpses with tragic deaths floating in the vacuum, and even being knocked away by their own mobile suits, the shock still made everyone feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Captain Jung, have the men turn on all the video equipment!"

"understand!"

Captain Jung, whose eyes were already red, replied through gritted teeth.

In the pig-filled gunboat, Lieutenant Shiro Amada, who was wearing a hard space suit, was already in tears. He was born in Side 2, although not on Ifesi Island, but it was actually not much different.

On the one hand, he participated in this desperate action because of a strong sense of mission, and on the other hand, he wanted to know what would become of his hometown.

And now, he saw it!

Because it stopped rotating, the colony satellite's gravity system stopped functioning. As a result, everything on the ground floated to the satellite's central axis, forming a mist of ice crystals, vehicles flashing their lights from time to time, and countless corpses sleeping quietly in the darkness.

"Are there any survivors here?"

A pilot whispered to himself.

"I'm not sure, there might be, but we may not be able to save them!"

The interior of the colony satellite is so vast, and the gunboats that enter have their own missions. It is impossible to conduct a blanket search and rescue operation. We can only try our luck and walk around to see if there will be any lucky ones.

But until the gunboat approached the target area, they did not see any signs of survivors, and there was only rustling sound in the communication channel.

The Zeon pilots who reacted and broke into the satellite under the Federation's intercepting fire were also frightened by the miserable scene inside.

"Did we do all this?"

A Zaku pushed away the truck floating in front of it, and then a hideous corpse suddenly attached itself to his one-eyed monitor. The pilot was so frightened that he raised his hand and swung an axe, smashing the corpse into pieces.

"This is not our fault. They insisted on following the Federation's camp. If we don't kill them, they will come and kill us!"

One engineer defended himself like this.

"Do you still have any conscience? These are millions, even tens of millions of people!"

"They're dead now, and we have to kill those Federation troops. Otherwise, everything we do to those satellites will be returned to us. Do you understand? Idiot, there's no turning back in this war!"

"Why, aren't we fighting for the liberation of the inhabitants of space?"

"Damn coward, get out of my team! Don't force me to enforce battlefield discipline!"

"Ah ah ah ah..."

The pilot who refused to accept reality finally broke down.

"Damn bastard! I shouldn't have accepted this piece of trash from Mahal!"

A Zaku suddenly turned around, pulled out its thermal axe, and slashed at the Zaku where the collapsed pilot was.

When the axe blade fell, the latter suddenly pounced in front of the Zaku that was about to kill him, and then detonated the grenade carried by the body.

The two Zakus instantly exploded into a bright ball of fireworks.

(End of this chapter)