Gundam, Gravity Elegy

Essentially, it's a trick to artificially increase the furnace's power output; everything else is rather superficial.

PS2: If you can wait, there should still be some available around 12 o'clock.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Ifrit's Surprise Attack (Ninth Update)

Midnight, 0 o'clock.

As the simple alarm clock, a symbol of punctuality, rang out, the soldier atop the watchtower couldn't help but yawn.

"Ah, the shift has changed."

Immediately afterwards, another, younger voice came from below the steps:

"You've worked hard, Fisher. Can your old bones still hold up?"

"I can definitely hold on. I'm not so old that I can't even carry a gun."

After high-fiving the soldiers who came to meet him, a smile involuntarily appeared on the man's somewhat weathered old face.

His name was Fisher Ness, an ordinary Zeon soldier from a humble background.

As a Zeon soldier who had served since the Republic era, he was actually quite unlucky.

Because he served early, the policies of the Republic era prevented him from getting promoted. By the time the internal collective transformation was completed and it was decided to use mobile suits as the main weapon, he had already missed the best time to become an MS pilot.

As an infantryman in the old-style warfare, he received no opportunities to participate while new recruits incorporated mobile suits into their training and the true elites had already distinguished themselves as pilots. It wasn't until the Earth was scrambled for combat and Zeon needed infantry stationed on the ground that he finally arrived on this blue planet.

Based on this, he can only undertake the most basic defensive tasks.

Fortunately, this kind of work isn't as difficult as one might imagine; in Fisher's words:

"It's incredibly easy."

This is by no means a boast.

To facilitate management and save manpower, Zeon imposed a 'curfew' on all Earth cities that had submitted to Zeon. Except for industrial areas and high-end commercial districts that were completely taken over by Zeon, no 'non-essential' travel was allowed in other areas.

Of course, while such rules certainly don't apply to certain important figures, they have indeed been discontinued in places like civilian ports.

For the soldiers guarding this place, the only thing they might have to deal with was the long, dark night.

"There's frozen beer in the fridge, remember to drink it when you get back."

"Okay."

Of course, Fisher is not actually dissatisfied with his current life.

If there's any real shortcoming, it's probably just that one thing.

"Mobile Suit..."

As the man descended from the harbor watchtower, he couldn't help but turn his gaze to the two wide-body mobile suits standing atop the cargo ship.

The Demon Crab—even the older models that are no longer in production and don't even use flexible materials—is a realm that ordinary soldiers like him can hardly touch.

Zeon's arms companies preferred to sell these older models to civilians through various channels rather than let them become an asset to the Principality's army—not even as mere consumables.

In this situation, he could only gaze at the mobile suits that should have belonged to Zeon, which were simply draped in civilian markings and then activated.

"buzz"

Suddenly, when the scarlet light flashed, the soldier, snapping out of his thoughts, was taken aback.

"It's started? But why..."

Reality gave him no more chance to think. The next moment, the 'Demon Crab' kicked all the containers that hadn't been fully moved ashore into the water.

Then, the surging thrusters propelled the fully activated 'Demon Crab' with an incredible explosive leap, directly flying to one side of the harbor watchtower.

Without any fancy moves, the heavy metal arm slammed directly into the watchtower, snapping it in half.

At that moment, the soldiers lost their foothold.

As he fell, all Fisher saw was armor cracked open from the outside.

Was it that machine called the Demon Crab that broke?

of course not.

In his final moments, all he saw was the steel shell gradually peeling away, revealing the grotesque body beneath.

"buzz"

“Eve…Litte?”

Under the moonlight, the scarlet single eye hidden behind the sunglasses was incredibly clear. It turned around, and that seemingly biological 'gaze' awakened the soldier's instincts that had been sealed away by the unexpected and shocking events.

"it hurts……"

The tearing sensation in his lower body made him look at his legs, only to find that they had taken on an irregular shape.

"My legs... my legs!!!"

The soldiers' roars echoed, but went unnoticed by the fully unleashed steel giant.

Amidst the echoing alarm, the one-eyed steel giant casually smashed open the sealed container on the shore and retrieved a cluster of high-energy explosives resembling chains.

"Operation begins."

…………

'boom'

'boom'

The continuous echoes of explosions seemed to hasten the march towards death.

"High concentrations of Minovsky particle reactions have been discovered in the Fatih region."

"An urgent report has come from the military factory in the Afhilar region: a high-intensity explosion has occurred, and the factory's parts and warehouses have been completely destroyed!"

"The outer base in the Bashak region is under attack, suspected to be a mobile suit!"

All sorts of urgent intelligence echoed through the central command room of the Al-Naut base like a torrent.

These devastating news came crashing down all at once, causing brief chaos in the command center and leaving even Major Rolf, the person in charge, in disbelief.

How could they be attacked at this critical juncture?

"Major, what should we do?"

"Calm down!"

Just as his subordinates were somewhat at a loss, Rolf, having regained his senses, shouted out:

"An attack of this magnitude couldn't possibly leave no trace. Have all the outposts investigate thoroughly... No, have the MS units report back immediately!"

"Can't find it!"

"what?"

"I'm very sorry, Major, we have absolutely no way of locating them."

Just as they were stunned, the same astonished voices of the local garrison came through the communication.

Of course, there are still doubts!

"It seems the other side had already retreated by the time we arrived?"

"Impossible! The other side isn't some ant crawling on the ground. Can't you see a mobile suit that's nearly twenty meters tall?!"

"But we really..."

'boom'

Suddenly, a loud bang echoed out.

Before any response could be given, a chilling red light completely engulfed the other end of the communication.

After a brief flash of light from the explosion, all that remained on the screen was darkness.

'Zzzzzzz'

Beneath the noisy speckles, Major Rolf's expression could only be described as blank and astonished:

"No, that's a mobile suit."

When exactly did it appear?

And why can they come and go freely?

The Principality of Zeon, which has forgotten its history and looks down on Earth from space, will probably never understand how much has accumulated on Earth.

Just as they subconsciously overlook the importance of railways, the technological achievements that humanity accumulates as it explores the land beneath its feet are similarly ignored.

For example... sonar!

At the very beginning of the Earth Federation, in the old century when oil was still the primary energy source, the Federation possessed unparalleled exploration technology.

Even in the Universal Century, those probes continue to shine on another level.

"Sound source confirmed, direction 15, distance 20, old-style Zaku 3-machine gun."

"Bearing 80, range 30, 3 self-propelled artillery pieces."

'Boom'

Above the sky, the rising flames were as dazzling as fireworks, but they did not symbolize prosperity; the continuous burning flames represented the most primal destruction.

"Such incredible speed, this is the ability of an ace pilot... no, it's not just that."

Gradually, Lieutenant Tanya's gaze shifted to the woman whose back was to her.

“Eileen Roshfield…”

The headphones and communication shut everything down, and she seemed completely immersed in her own world.

"No wonder General Gao Yun chose you..."

"45, 10, tank... no, this friction sound is a combination of a Zaku and a tank!"

'boom'

Author's message

…………

Fisher, I forgot to mention before, this character is from Thunderbolt.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Unstoppable Momentum (Tenth Update!)

'Zzzzzzz'

Under the cover of night, the thermal saber was slowly pulled out of the driver's compartment of the 'Zaku Tank', the scorching hot blade heated to the extreme by the electromagnetic field seemed to distort the air itself.

Watching this scene unfold, even the worldly-wise Shirley couldn't help but sigh:

"Pretty impressive."

As a frontline combatant, she had a more direct understanding of the accurate broadcasts than anyone else.

As she navigated the city, she faced not only enemies from Zeon, but also had to avoid other unnecessary harm.

Although Earth in the Universal Century is no longer the main living area for humans, cities are still densely populated areas, and factories and facilities must be preserved as much as possible.

Therefore, in urban areas with relatively narrow visibility, advance broadcasting is especially important!

"Anyway, as long as we know the model in advance, we can find a way to avoid the location of the fusion furnace."

The boy's voice echoed through the communication:

"We cannot allow these 'miniature nuclear bombs' to explode in the city."

"That's what they say, but I'm the one in charge of carrying out the disruption operations right now."

"But you can do it, right?"

"Of course, who do you think I am?"

Upon hearing this, the woman's lips curled into a smile:

"I am, after all, the 'strongest woman on Earth,' how could I let these guys run rampant in my territory?"

Pulling at the control lever, Shirley's gaze finally settled on the diagram displayed in the cockpit:

"So, what should I do next?"