Gundam, Gravity Elegy

"As expected of Lieutenant Claude!"

"Even if I join the army, I'll still be as cool as I was on the basketball court."

However, the person involved did not feel any joy in the face of the praise.

"No matter what, it's all in the past now—"

…………

Marin Clauden was a football player, a 'national player' for Side3 during the Muzo Republic era. When Side3 was still struggling, he almost single-handedly carried the team to the semi-finals and won the title of 'King of Goals'.

Normally, someone like him should be able to live a relatively comfortable life even after retiring from a professional sports career, not to mention that as a coach, the youth training class he built directly became the foundation of Zeon's signature sports team - Team Usagi.

Unfortunately, in the face of war, these so-called honors are utterly worthless.

As a man of marriageable age, even though his body was not exactly healthy and he suffered from occupational diseases from playing football, he was still conscripted by the principality. After undergoing full training together with his wife, he was deployed to Earth to be stationed in the Middle East.

Then, he found himself in a tough fight—at least that's how it seemed to Claude himself.

Because of Ma Kebe's orders, his elite 'resource gathering forces' are only responsible for the security of resource bases under normal circumstances and never take action lightly. Therefore, the number of permanent troops that can be mobilized in the Middle East can only be described as scarce.

Then, even under such circumstances, they still had to detach some troops to attack from different directions.

"If we rely solely on the people here, we don't know when we'll be able to fight this battle."

On the communications channel, there were countless complaints like these; the commando team he was now commanding had accumulated considerable discontent.

"The Federation's tanks are like mosquitoes in those 'tourist satellites,' no matter how hard you try, you can't get rid of them all."

"But it's alright, at least we are more mobile and have a significant advantage over the Federation's tank forces."

After calming down the restless team members, Claude subconsciously went through the basic strategy in his mind.

"Moreover, the headquarters has also said that we 'small fry' are only responsible for harassment operations, while the real main attack will be handled by those 'big shots', so we just need to follow the headquarters' instructions."

Theoretically speaking, that should be correct.

"However, if you think this is a way to be lazy, you're probably going to be disappointed."

Suddenly, the sound echoing from the channel interrupted all my thoughts.

While Clauden was still in a daze, a woman's face appeared on the screen:

"Karen?"

His wife is now working as a communications officer for their squad.

"New instructions have come from headquarters."

"What is it?"

"To avoid danger, the MS squads operating on the east flank should immediately merge and then proceed towards the location of the enemy's main force."

What does it mean?

Suddenly, Claude found himself somewhat unable to understand the meaning of the instruction.

What does it mean to continue moving forward to avoid danger?

"I don't know. Due to the particle concentration, we haven't been able to get further instructions from headquarters... *sizzle*"

Suddenly, the echoing noise startled Clauden.

Immediately afterwards, a chill ran through me.

They had been controlling the concentration of Minovsky particles ever since the battle fully broke out.

But now...

"Boom!"

As the black object fell from the sky, the echoing explosion swallowed up all thought.

Perhaps the answer is right in front of us.

"Completely beyond the range of optical locking, and also causing widespread communication interference."

These things...

"Are they going to indiscriminately bomb their own troops as well?!"

…………

"Lieutenant Colonel Yaji sent a battle report that the bombing force has completely suppressed the vanguard and the eastern flank battlefield."

"Very good. Let him continue his mission and bomb all the surrounding areas with abnormal particle concentrations, with the main force as the center."

“But those places still have our Federation troops, especially the logistics stations, and they may not have a chance to evacuate…”

"It's fine, just blow it up—it's just some old equipment and stockpiles anyway. Zeon's fresh troops are far more valuable than these things. We can just apply for new ones later."

The calm words, delivered from the high bridge, created an almost unbearable sense of suffocation.

At that moment, the lieutenant felt a deep-seated tremor and unease:

“But those are all Federation soldiers, and we…”

"Ugh, you idiot!"

Seeing that the lieutenant was starting to stutter, the Basque major, who was clearly a bit short-tempered, slapped him to the ground.

"You're still so hesitant and timid in the face of the battle, delaying your strategy. How will you compensate me for that!"

"But there are others—"

However, no one on the busy bridge cared about an ordinary junior officer like him.

The Heavy Fork-class Fez—most of the officers and soldiers serving on this so-called core land-based warship seemed to have no objections to this.

Naturally, as the leader, Djamitov wouldn't care about the thoughts of such a low-ranking officer.

"If we don't respond, those troops will be slowly eroded, and their deaths will be even less meaningful."

Glancing at Captain Mitas's incredulous expression, Jamitov simply closed his eyes.

"Now, at least we can force those flies that are buzzing around everywhere to gather together, and then..."

Suddenly, a loud alarm blared inside the bridge.

"A large heat source is approaching from the right side of the formation. Based on data comparison, it is a Zeon land battleship formation—the Gallup-class!"

"The MS force has arrived. Then let our troops prepare..."

But before the command was fully given, the clouds that were shaking in the sky were suddenly lifted up.

"Directly above, a missile is approaching... a Zeon bomber!"

"!"

Finally, a look of astonishment appeared on Djamitov's old, chiseled face.

Above the clouds, two D.D. bombers, serving as flight ramps, roared past.

Like a curtain being lifted, the powerful, brick-like motor cruiser descended from the clouds.

From top to bottom, one can clearly see the exposed launch ports on both sides of the ship gleaming with an eerie glow—like a giant face with fierce eyes:

"Zanzibar."

Chapter 104: Zeon's Beam

"Ellen, how is she?"

Inside the central control room of the Migratory Bird, Ellen Roshoffelt felt her tongue trembling.

As a well-trained communications sergeant, his small sense of pride, based on his personal abilities, was desperately trying to deny the data fed back from various sensors, but...

"The current situation is completely unpredictable."

"what?"

"I'm very sorry, Lieutenant Shirley, but the particle concentration in this area is at an unbelievable level, along with an inexplicably high temperature. It's impossible to tell which part of the battlefield is on the battlefield."

"Is it possible to contact the African Army?"

"This is also impossible; communication seems to be blocked by Minovsky particles as well."

"...So, we can use the most basic search methods now?"

The most primitive, and also the most rudimentary, method involves analyzing the ground or surrounding environment using various sensors, and then having the communications controller in the team draw conclusions.

"So...so I will try my best—"

Hearing the slightly stuttering voice on the other end of the line, Shirley couldn't help but smile.

This 'little girl' who looks to be the same age as her is like an insecure little squirrel, but she has already proven her ability with reliable support.

"Then we'll leave it to you. We're counting on you now."

"Please don't say things like 'rely on' or 'depend on'—"

Upon hearing this, Eileen couldn't help but shrink back.

To be honest, because of her personality, she is actually capable of dealing with people like Shirley.

But now, she finds herself forced to speak alone with this beautiful and passionate Eastern European woman.

As for the reasons...

"How is the lieutenant doing now?"

"Ok?"

"That means the lieutenant hasn't had a proper rest since he set off at dawn, and the Gundam is damaged to that extent. His condition isn't very good either. Does he really have enough energy?"

The timid voice echoed in her ears, causing Shirley to squint her beautiful blue eyes.

"I can only say that if we try our best, there's always a chance."

"Ok?"

"Tsk, I mean, if you think this is wrong, why don't you just go and try to persuade him?"

"...I dare not."

The stumbling little sounds made Shirley chuckle, but her upturned lips quickly fell silent again.

"I wouldn't dare."

She gazed silently at the black aircraft in front of her.

It has a signature V-shaped antenna, but that's really just decoration. Both its internal structure and its iconic sunglasses, which can almost be called a mask, prove its true nature—Jim.

Right in the center—or more precisely, in the cockpit—a low-pressure system was circulating.

"The operating system has been corrected to suit your habits. In addition, considering that this is an infiltration operation, additional one-time weapons have been added to the preset weapon design."

"Missiles?"

"That's right, the legs have been equipped with triple missile pods that can be jettisoned after launch, but the only problem might be a delay in command."

"This is not a big problem. In a high-concentration particle environment and high-intensity combat, missiles are merely a deterrent weapon."

"Another issue is that the GM's shell is not strong enough. Under gravity, it's impossible to mount weapons directly on the shoulders like a Gundam or Guncannon. So, if you want to use weapons like electromagnetic cannons..."

"It still has to be used handheld, right?"

Gao Ren yawned, and his increasingly tired face made the woman frown.

"Would you like Dr. Snow to give you a physical examination?"

"I didn't have time for that, so I asked her to prescribe some medicine for me—"

"medicine?"

Ms. Lutz was startled, and then a sound came from directly below.

'dang bang'

A black bag made a soft clinking sound, and Ash Snow, the chief physician of the Lion Dance Squad, looked up.

Although she didn't say anything, a certain coldness emerged behind her glasses, which should have exuded an intellectual air.