Gundam, Gravity Elegy

"boom"

Just as the machine began to sway left and right under the constraints of gravity, the Vulcan cannon, which had deflected, pierced through another machine gun.

Under the internal explosion, the defects of the fluid pulse gradually emerged—the damage to the internal dual-shoulder power pipes caused the Zaku's main monitor to become dim and unclear.

Two seconds—normally speaking, two seconds is a very safe time limit in MS combat, especially now that we are at a very safe distance.

Command transmission, machine feedback, and propulsion!

"The reaction time is...very ample?"

However, when the screen was reconnected, the dark figure was already right in front of them.

"!!!"

When the scorching beam of particles shot straight toward the cockpit, Marette had to hold the thermal axe in front of him, using the electrothermal magnetic field as a shield.

'Sizzle'

At the moment of intersection, the fluid pulse system, which is more delicate than the force field motor, takes the lead in providing further feedback.

With one hand, he pressed down, pressing the thermal axe and the saber together, while raising the other hand high.

"That way—"

'boom'

But before the other axe could fall, the Land Shield slapped Zaku like a hand, slamming him directly into the ground.

"what?!"

A strong tremor and gravity reverberated together in the cockpit. In that dizzying, gravity-bound environment, Marette stared intently at the dark figure rushing towards him.

Even though the Zaku's fluid pulses could react faster than the force field motors, and even though the Zeon-type mobile suits should have been able to gain the upper hand, that black guy always managed to destroy all his tactics at just the right moment.

'boom'

"It's like they've seen right through my strategy..."

'boom'

When the beam saber and the thermal axe collided once again, Malet simply gripped the Zaku's control stick tightly.

Behind the intense, repulsive light of the electrothermal magnetic field and the I-force field was a 'scarlet mask' that seemed to be flowing with something.

"Can you predict the enemy's thoughts with perfect accuracy?!"

Contact communication—Malett's roar echoed clearly amidst the successive collisions.

However, the response was not words.

"call……"

"what--"

What exactly is that sound?

As the thermal axes clashed repeatedly, Marette heard a kind of sigh, like the panting of a wild beast or the howl of a predator.

It was as if he wasn't in the cockpit at all, but deep in some mysterious rainforest, surrounded by countless eyes.

The slightest opening would be torn to shreds by those wild beasts—yes, just like vulnerable prey.

"Are you kidding me—"

But as that thought blossomed in his mind, what surfaced in Malet's heart was an overwhelming sense of humiliation.

"I am the hunter, and you are my prey!!"

'Sizzle'

As if responding to Maret's anger, the Zaku's speed increased, and the scarlet power pipe continuously transmitted the power from the fusion furnace, even faintly revealing a kind of lament belonging to steel.

In the Principality of Zeon, which reveres heroism, ace pilots have the right to customize their own mobile suits.

Appearance and color scheme are secondary; more importantly, each person's operating habits, and even the machine's transmission structure and output power, are subtly different.

For example, Char Aznable's furnace output power is higher and has fewer limitations than that of a regular mobile suit.

Take, for example, Malet Sanglin—his machine was unlimited from the start, allowing him to boost its power at any time, giving this mad pilot even greater strength.

"Faster speed, greater power—"

Unbeknownst to them, energy gradually leaked from the broken pressure pipe, and the particles that were spreading outward along the pipe gathered into a kind of thick smoke under high temperature.

"Why does that Zaku look like it's bleeding?"

That may be true from the outside, but more importantly, it seems that it can't withstand any of its swings these days.

"Drip-drip-"

In the dimly lit cockpit, internal alarms from the aircraft's structure appeared on the instruments.

Jim—the weaknesses of this machine are fully exposed in the face of the completely unrestricted ultra-high tensile steel machine.

With the same semi-rigid shell support, the titanium alloy armor had already deformed under the Zaku's repeated attacks, and the force field motors in the forearms and the transmission structure inside the armor seemed to be groaning in despair.

"This can't go on any longer—"

We must find a way to determine the winner...

Just as his mind was racing, Gao Ren suddenly felt something explode in his brain.

"Goo-"

It was like a bomb exploding right next to my ears, followed by a wave of dizziness and blood spreading from my nose, almost reaching my lips.

In his dizziness, he almost lost his grip on the control stick, and when that momentary stagnation was reflected on the machine, it was directly mirrored in those crazed eyes.

"Finally, a flaw has been revealed."

'boom'

Like seizing an opening, the high-mobility Zaku pushed forward at full speed, and its spiked shoulder armor slammed directly into the machine's chest.

'boom'

The back thrusters worked frantically to prevent the machine from tipping over completely, but the Zaku lunged straight at it.

"Tsk—"

Faced with the oncoming battle axe, Gao Ren's reddened eyes also narrowed.

'Boom'

Jim exerted force, and the six thrusters on his back also opened to meet the attack head-on.

"Yes, that's how it should be! Let's see who's stronger!"

'boom'

With a roar, the high-temperature battle axe slammed directly onto the oncoming shield.

'Click click click'

Under the direct confrontation, Marette could even see the land battle shield collapsing rapidly, seemingly about to be severed along with the enemy's machine in the next moment!

"If this continues, it will end—"

'boom'

However, he didn't even have time to give a victory speech; the sudden unexpected event left him wide-eyed.

Under the powerful output of the high-mobility Zaku, the black mobile suit—the 'Gundam's' supposedly incredibly sturdy arm, along with its collapsing shield—was ripped off to the ground with a deafening roar, and even the battle axe that was supposed to cut through it missed its mark.

Was it a deliberate tactic? Or was it—

"ZizzZZZZ"

Once the shield was completely removed, inside the Zaku's cockpit, reflected through its crimson single eye, was a body that could only be described as wretched.

The breastplate and skirt armor were riddled with bullet holes and damage, and the severed arm even had various cables resembling blood vessels exposed, as if the structure had been completely torn apart by some external force.

"It's not Luna Titanium Alloy..."

even……

"You're not a Gundam at all!"

However, this question is no longer relevant.

'biu'

The next moment, the beam saber pierced straight through the cockpit and the back thrusters.

'boom'

"team leader!!!"

Author's message

…………

There are structural errors in the head, chest air intake, shoulders, and even legs, but we can't expect too much from them.

Chapter 111: The Aftermath of Death

'boom'

'boom'

When the expanding explosion of the nuclear fusion reactor echoed across the battlefield, time seemed to freeze completely at that moment.

The great demon, still locked in fierce combat with the Flame God, and the sniper, still poised to regroup in mid-air, were both momentarily stunned.

The bridge of Zanzibar was completely silent, and when Andrei finally came to his senses, all he could see was a huge icon floating on the screen: Lost.

One of the commanders of the Zeon Special Operations Forces, a young officer in the Assault Mobile Force, Marette Sungreen, has completely lost contact.

Of course, as a new type of weapon that the Principality completed from research and development to deployment on the battlefield within a few years, and is still being tested now, Zeon's Zaku series—and indeed all mobile suits—did not conduct research on escape equipment.

Therefore, this can only mean one thing:

"Is he dead—?"

Marlene vaguely sensed something floating in the air and suddenly felt a strange sadness.

Admittedly, she didn't like Marette's overly flamboyant personality, but at least he could lead by example and personally execute the strategies he devised instead of hiding behind everyone else and plotting. This alone was enough for her to express her respect to a certain extent.

But there was no time for mourning now; after the failure of the Maretna's strategy to attack land-based warships, they faced an even more troublesome problem.

"We must retreat."

After clearing his mind of all the chaotic thoughts, Captain Andrei spoke.

"Huh? Now?"

"That's right!"

Facing the astonished gazes of his subordinates, Andrei took a deep breath.

Although he didn't know why the battle situation had suddenly taken such a turn for the worse, he now had one crucial question:

"Major Sangreen failed to deal with the enemy's land-based warship, and that big guy is still around."

He looked at the image of the 'heavy fork' that appeared on the screen.

The thermonuclear engines on both sides were destroyed, and the flames from the internal explosion had not been completely extinguished. With its power system and all the cannons destroyed, it looked no different from scrap metal.

However, in this cosmic century where the tide of war has turned, the significance of land-based warships goes far beyond mere firepower.

"Their command system is probably still operational."

"Enemy tank units are advancing."

As if verifying Andrei's idea, reports from the communications officer continued to come in:

"The ground mobile suit forces are almost surrounded!"

Of course, this isn't the worst-case scenario...

"What's worse is that they probably have reinforcements."