Gundam, Gravity Elegy

"It's relatively normal, to put it simply."

Looking at the Zeon soldiers running around, seemingly at a loss, Gao Ren spoke up.

"The spread of Minovsky particles has disrupted external communications here, and a large part of the population is unaware of what has happened. Therefore, a simple manipulation could make people believe it was just an accident, thus causing chaos in the intelligence field."

"After all, Zeon has become extremely arrogant lately, and they probably don't think the Federation forces would really risk attacking an industrial base."

"Therefore, this operational plan can only be used once."

He tapped the modified communicator in his hand lightly, then glanced at the woman following behind him.

"Now, let's officially begin the MS capture operation."

He carefully navigated around the congested crowd and stepped into the enormous warehouse:

"Operation...begins."

Author's message

…………

That finally brought the transitional plot to a close (sigh).

Chapter 49: Are the Zeon people out of their minds?

"In short, things are peaceful inside Zeon right now. The atmosphere seems fanatical, but the people inside are very relaxed. So our plan is very simple. When the supply trucks from inside Zeon arrive, we can use them as vehicles to first block communications at important locations, including the command post, with Minovsky particles, and then transport the explosives to those two places."

…………

"MS warehouse..."

After glancing at the randomly scattered parts, Lieutenant Barbery pressed the detonation button.

Amidst the smoke and dust of the explosion, the originally intact parts and the relatively intact mobile suits were directly destroyed, with varying degrees of damage to components such as the cockpit and interfaces.

Although it appears to retain a seemingly intact structure, the damaged parts are actually unusable.

"In the end, it's just a rigid shell structure like a tank."

"But is this really enough? Lieutenant, those Zaku seem to be quite intact..."

"fart."

With a powerful kick, Barbery sent the clueless guy flying.

"Simon, you should stop with your crazy ideas. You know these big guys use nuclear fusion. You might not want to live, but I do."

Lieutenant Barbery glanced with lingering fear at the 'Hulks' whose cockpits had been destroyed, and shook his head:

"Anyway, our goal is not to completely destroy them, but just to keep these big guys from moving."

"But it's still so strange."

After being kicked, the soldier couldn't help but scratch the back of his head:

"These Zaku feel a little different."

"Who cares if it's the same or not, what we're going to do next..."

Suddenly, hurried footsteps approached, and Barbery's eyes widened in surprise.

"Quick, hide!"

The soldiers huddled in a corner, only to find a burly Zeon man staring wide-eyed at the doorway:

"Damn it, who blew up my tiger?!"

"Tiger... I knew that didn't look like a Zaku."

Why do you talk so much!

He slapped the talkative soldier right on the head, then simply looked into the distance.

At that very moment, he saw the Cyclops standing inside the base:

"Tsk, now even a Zaku has stood up..."

"That doesn't seem to be a Zaku either..."

"You fucking..."

Barbery was quite annoyed by the talkative kid next to him, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh:

"In any case, we can't go very far in the current situation, so according to our junior commander, we should... prepare our weapons and protect ourselves."

The lieutenant then lit a cigarette for himself.

"Tsk, thinking about it carefully, this plan is quite risky."

At the same time, the boy's voice, which had been used to outline the plan, echoed in his ears:

"Of course, due to some unforeseen circumstances, our plan has two fatal flaws. First, the base was originally a processing plant of the Federal Army, which resulted in their warehouses being not only small but also relatively scattered. This was actually a disadvantage in itself, but it also meant that we, who were outnumbered, simply could not concentrate and destroy the military equipment here in one go."

"So if chaos breaks out, some of Zeon's mobile suits will definitely be activated..."

"And then there's what we rely on—the Minovsky particle. While its effectiveness in disrupting conventional communication is very practical, it is itself an anomaly that is difficult to ignore once detected. And if this blind spot is discovered..."

…………

"Enemy attack!"

"All personnel on high alert! Our base is under attack!"

Suddenly, the echoing sound, clearly amplified by a speaker, made Gao Ren frown. While this situation wasn't entirely unexpected, it still left him somewhat helpless.

"Even though the command post had already been captured, the reaction time was still a bit too fast."

Upon hearing this, Shirley simply shrugged:

"Well, you did say that Zeon isn't united, so it's perfectly normal for the troops stationed here to fight independently."

"That's true, but if that's the case..."

After a moment's thought, he raised the communicator:

"This is 'Elegy.' The enemy has detected our movements. The plan is now officially entering its second phase. Divers, please execute the orders according to the pre-arranged plan."

"Yes, yes, the diver received it."

Perhaps because they were inside a warship, the sound was actually clearer.

And after that languid female voice, another voice came:

"Um, the Hump has started up and will proceed to each unit in sequence to retrieve the detachments. Please be careful."

Upon hearing this, Gao Ren looked at his guardian:

"Now there's only one thing left."

Suppression—and by using Zeon's own mobile suits to confuse people with enemy-or-foe identification signals, completing the battle before the chaos ends!

and so……

"Sister Shirley, I'm entrusting that white mecha to you."

"So, would you consider this a gift from me?"

Meeting those teasing gazes, Gao Ren simply gave a strange look:

"That machine will definitely have to be handed over later, so... I don't think it counts?"

"It's not very romantic, but I'll take this opportunity to try out the feel of Zeon's new machine. I hope it's not as bulky as the Guncannon."

It seems that for her, saying a few words about cannon is a perfectly normal thing.

So after enduring so much, Gao Ren could only shrug helplessly:

"I'll go drive a Zaku."

"However, the identification signal doesn't work at this time, so you'll have to find a way to make some other markings."

“No problem, Io just happened to give me a Walkman and some jazz tapes, so I can just play the music out loud.”

Although Gao Ren's aesthetic has never changed—he doesn't like jazz.

But in this situation, there was no other choice. And the MS, which was used as the main force in area suppression operations, had always had complete loudspeaker equipment for timely communication and persuasion to surrender.

"I can only say that if I had a choice, I really wouldn't want to give this up."

He easily crawled into the Zaku cockpit, which was left open for easy preparation, and casually taped his Walkman inside the cockpit.

Just insert the tape and press the button...

"buzz"

As the ground-based Zaku lit up its single, scarlet eye, a drumbeat that seemed to stir the soul echoed through the warehouse.

As if dancing to the rhythm of music, Zaku took a step forward and then picked up the weapons that were already placed to the side.

"Considering that the main objective is suppression, we will choose ordinary machine guns and thermal axes as melee weapons."

"Um, I think I've run into a bit of a problem."

Just as the communication was connected, a somewhat conflicted voice came from the other end of the white, new-style phone.

Upon hearing this, Gao Ren couldn't help but show a puzzled expression:

"So, what's wrong?"

"I don't think I know how to drive this."

"why?"

"Because its operating system is completely different from that of the Zaku."

Upon hearing this, Gao Ren's mind went blank.

It was clearly just ordinary text, but it somehow turned his head into mush, requiring someone to explain the principles from beginning to end:

"In other words, this thing... YMS-08A, whether it's the internal interface or the joystick, is completely new, with nothing in common."

When Gao Ren finally understood what Shirley was saying, he felt as if a steel wire had gotten stuck in the gears of his thinking; he could almost hear the agonizing sound of being crushed and pulverized.

"No, are the Zeon people out of their minds?"

Author's message

…………

The thought that pilots of the Zaku and Warrior, both produced by the same company, need to undergo at least three months of model conversion training is unsettling, as their operating systems are said to be completely different.

Chapter 50: Zaku Stands on the Earth

What do you mean by completely different operating systems?!

Although it was already known that there was indeed a struggle between the two major mobile suit companies within Zeon, and that parts between the two sides were not interchangeable due to patent disputes and other conflicts.

However, that's just a matter of 'components', but the internals are a completely different matter.

MS, after all, was developed as a combat weapon based on a high-concentration Minovsky particle environment. In reality, because there is currently no good shielding method designed to counter the effects of particles, its characteristic of easily affecting electronic equipment means that MS can only appear with a relatively simple structure.

In other words, since a super tractor is still a tractor, the operating method should be similar.

And if you encounter a situation where you can't get started immediately...

"Not to mention the additional rocket engines, even the buttons on the control stick correspond to slightly different actions, and..."

"What else?"

Hearing Shirley fall silent, Gao Ren couldn't help but ask a question.

then……

"The weapon interfaces also seem to be different."

What does it mean?

"It seems that this mobile suit cannot use the weapons used by Zeonic's Zaku."

So, does that mean the Zeon people really have some kind of mental problem?