Gundam: A Gundam Enthusiast's Journey with a Mecha Girl

Raven persisted in asking.

"No one in this world truly likes war. Everyone uses war as a means to gain status, wealth, fame, or other things, except for those who are used as tools without even realizing it."

Halbarton's knuckles tapped a series of sounds on the desk.

"So, Dr. Ray, what exactly do you want me to do?"

“I want you to become a banner. I know you have been ostracized by the Allied Forces’ high command, but you are not the only one ostracized in the military. If you want to change the current Allied Forces, which are controlled by Blue Cosmos, you should take action and recruit soldiers like yourself under your banner.”

Halbarton merely chuckled and shook his head at Raven's suggestion.

“Dr. Lei, I admire your talent and integrity, but this kind of thing is different from doing research; it's not that simple…”

"Sir, what if I told you I have the leverage to make you do all this?"

Raven took a portable hard drive out of his pocket.

"It contains a natural human operating system developed based on combat data from the Dagger and the Assault, as well as an MS design scheme suitable for mass production."

Raven turned on the computer on his desk and showed Halbarton the data on the external hard drive.

"I named this mass production solution 'Short Sword L'. This solution further simplifies the design of the short sword and greatly reduces the time required for production. Although the performance will inevitably be reduced, the Short Sword L retains the ability to equip the assault backpack. The assault backpack can be switched according to the battle situation to make up for the lost performance. Combined with this highly automated Natural Man OS, even a novice pilot can at least fight on equal footing with ZAFT."

Raven stood by the desk and caught a glimpse of Halbarton's grave expression.

"This is an incredible gift!"

Halbarton, known as a "wise general," could certainly see the significance behind these data. If the short sword L equipped with Natural Man OS could be mass-produced, the Allied Forces would be able to reverse their current predicament. The space fleet would no longer need to be huddled in various strongholds and could take the initiative to attack and compete with ZAFT for control of space. If they could gain control of Earth's orbit, they could also trap a large number of ZAFT forces on the surface and change the course of the entire war.

But if we look at this data from a perspective other than military...

Not only could Halbarton use this data as a stepping stone to a higher position, but if he could go even further and take over the task of organizing the mass production of MS, he could also use this opportunity to organize a new faction that would exclude those capitalists on Earth who were associated with Blue Cosmos, and connect the military, political, and business worlds, thereby seeking to reform the Atlantic Federation, which had been poisoned by Blue Cosmosism for many years.

Halbarton sank back into the sofa chair, stroking his beard with one hand, his eyes flashing with the unique brilliance of a "strategist".

“Dr. Ray, you’ve really given me a tough challenge, but…” Halbarton took a deep breath, “it seems I can’t just give up like this.”

Seeing Halbarton's attitude, Raven knew he had achieved his goal.

"It's great to see you cheer up."

Raven relaxed, and following the example of Maru and the others, saluted Halbarton before leaving the cabin.

-----------------

Kira wandered aimlessly inside the Archangel.

He saw the refugees registering with great joy; they would later board the shuttle provided by the Eighth Fleet and return to their home planet Orb on Earth.

I also saw soldiers with relaxed faces. After fighting all the way from Heliopolis, these soldiers finally felt a long-lost sense of security.

But Kira also saw Captain Murrue and her group, who were in a hurry and looked very serious. Even though they had successfully rejoined the main force, they didn't seem happy at all.

'Did the captain and the others discover something bad? But those things are probably no longer my concern.'

Kira felt a sense of loss as he thought about leaving the Archangel soon.

Is it really okay to leave like this?

If I were to leave the Archangel now, I could certainly return to the peaceful and stable days I had before, but what difference would that make from burying my head in the sand?

The collapse of Heliopolis, the tragedy of Junius VII, the pink-haired girl affected by the war, and the best friend who had to draw his gun against her.

These memories are deeply etched into Kira's mind and can never be forgotten.

Before he knew it, Kira had returned to the hangar of the Archangel and to the familiar Strike Gundam.

'If I had the power to change those tragedies…'

Kira raised a hand and reached out towards the steel giant in front of him, as if trying to grab something.

"Kira? What are you doing here? Go find Basiluru and get your discharge certificate, then you can leave."

Hearing someone calling him, Kira looked in the direction of the voice, and Raven's figure grew larger and larger in his field of vision until he finally stood in front of him.

Chapter 29 Kira's Resolve

After saying goodbye to Halbarton, Raven headed straight for the hangar without a second thought.

The reason is self-evident: Raven, as the designer who personally drew up the blueprints for the IWSP backpack and the Lightning backpack, had to play with... cough, test these two new pieces of equipment.

[Raven, don't forget my humanoid form.]

El, who had been resting on Raven's shoulder without making a sound for a long time, was also filled with anticipation in his voice.

Elben wanted a human-shaped body and even designed his own appearance for it, but due to the scarcity of resources on the Archangel, Raven could only use readily available parts to create a soldier ant.

But this time it was different. The Eighth Fleet supplied the Archangel with a lot of supplies, and now the humanoid body that El wanted finally had a solution.

However, when Raven stepped into the hangar, he was surprised to see Kira standing alone in front of the Strike Gundam, his face shrouded in an unyielding melancholy.

"Kira? What are you doing here? Go find Basiluru and get your discharge certificate, then you can leave."

"Teacher? I..."

Kira opened his mouth, but swallowed his thoughts for the time being and asked instead.

"Teacher, you're not a soldier, are you? Aren't you getting off the ship?"

Upon hearing this, Raven sighed affectedly, crossed his arms, turned around, and looked at the Strike Force with Kira.

"I seem to have been promoted to captain by the military high command, and I probably won't have a chance to leave this ship before the war ends."

"How could this be... Is the Allied Forces such an unreasonable army?"

Kira was genuinely angry for Raven, but Raven himself didn't seem too bothered.

“The army is inherently an instrument of violence. An army in a state of war simply doesn’t have the luxury of sitting down and reasoning with you. Besides…” Raven paused, his tone becoming more relaxed, “I’m not really opposed to this arrangement.”

Kira paused slightly, a look of confusion appearing on his face.

"Why? Teacher, do you like war?"

Raven chuckled softly.

"How could that be? I just think that if we want to truly end this war and find real peace, we must see the true nature of this war. We can't do that by just staying in the laboratory and watching from the sidelines, at least I can't."

"True peace..."

Kira looked thoughtfully at the assault in front of him, and the horrific scenes of Heliopolis and Junius 7 flashed before his eyes once again.

'To prevent that from happening again...'

Kira's expression changed, as if he had made up his mind.

"Teacher, I don't want to leave the Archangel like this."

Raven turned his head, frowned, and looked at Kira with a scrutinizing gaze.

"Have you thought this through? The Archangel will be landing on Earth soon, and it will have to continue fighting alone all the way. This is no joke. If your reason for staying here to keep me company is such a thoughtless one, I won't agree."

Kira did not avoid his gaze and answered with a firm expression.

"Although I haven't figured out what to do yet, teacher, I also want to find a way to peace."

"you……"

Raven looked at Kira, who was staring at him with straightforward eyes, with some surprise, realizing that the boy had grown a lot without him even noticing.

After a brief silence, a faint smile appeared on Raven's lips.

“Then we are comrades on the same path, Kira.”

"Yes, teacher, I hope you will continue to guide me in the future."

Kira's melancholy vanished, replaced by an endless determination deep in his eyes.

-----------------

"What? Kira, are you sure you want to stay on the Archangel?"

Maru stared wide-eyed at the torn-up discharge certificate.

Kira wasn't the only one surprised; Tohru and Miriam, who had met Kira along the way, were also surprised.

"I heard from the teacher that the Archangel is going to be involved in a very dangerous operation, right? Then I definitely can't leave at this time."

"Teacher? Mr. Raven really is..."

Maru suddenly felt a headache coming on, and in her heart she complained that Raven's mouth was too loose.

"Kira, calm down and listen to me..."

But before Maru could finish persuading Kira, the colonel who served as Halbarton's adjutant interrupted without any politeness.

"Captain Murrue, isn't this a good thing? Now that this young man has volunteered to join the army, you don't have to worry about the Archangel's lack of pilots."

Maru immediately wanted to loudly refute the colonel, but she swallowed it back. Although she was Halbarton's student, she was ultimately just a minor major, so she had no choice but to accept Kira's request.

But Maru's guilt about forcing young people to go to war deepened even further.

"In that case, I'll stay on the Archangel!"

"Me...me too!"

Thor and Miria looked at each other, finding the same courage in each other's eyes, and together with Kira, they tore up their discharge permits.

"Wait a minute, this is no joke!"

Maru's expression changed, but it was too late to stop them.

"The Archangel doesn't have any replacements. If we leave too, the bridge will be overwhelmed. Besides, if something happens to the Archangel after we disembark, we'll feel really bad about it."

Looking at Thor's smiling face, Maru couldn't help but feel a deep sense of powerlessness.

To throw oneself into war for such a reckless reason is suicidal.

Maru immediately tried to persuade them to think twice, but the colonel interrupted her once again.

"What a touching friendship! Captain Murrue, I think we should let them stay. It would perfectly solve the Archangel's manpower shortage problem, wouldn't it? It's killing two birds with one stone, a win-win situation!"

Maru used all her strength to barely suppress the urge to smear the documents in her hand on the colonel's face. She could only grit her teeth, turn around without saying a word, and re-process the enlistment procedures for the boys.

Soon, the last shuttle departed from the Archangel, and the once bustling warship suddenly became empty. Frey and Sey did not stay behind; they seemed to have been half-dragged, half-pulled onto the shuttle by Vice Minister George. Kaz was unaware of this, and by the time he realized it, the shuttle had already left the Archangel and entered the dark universe.

"I never expected it to turn out like this..."

Maru muttered to herself from the captain's seat on the bridge.

"There's nothing we can do; it's the children's choice. As adults, all we can do is try our best to protect them."

Since there were no other mechs available to operate at the moment, Mu returned to the bridge to serve as a gunner.

"Moreover, the Archangel is about to begin its reentry into the atmosphere, and ZAFT certainly won't just let us pass by. Captain, you'd better be on your guard."

Maru looked up at the man beside her, who was usually carefree but always made people feel at ease in crucial moments.

“You’re right, Major Flagg, I need to pull myself together.”

Maru's expression turned serious as she looked into the deep void in the distance.

Chapter 30 Low Earth Orbit Battle (Part 1)

Just as Mu had predicted, as preparations for the Archangel's entry into the atmosphere were nearing completion, the ZAFT fleet launched an attack on the Combine.

With the coalition fleet now on the defensive, the Eighth Fleet, having been removed from fortress protection and whose combat strength is inferior to other forces, has become a piece of easy prey in the eyes of the ZAFT forces.

The current Eighth Fleet consists of seven Drake-class frigates, five Nelson-class cruisers, and the Agamemnon-class carrier USS Menelaus, which serves as its flagship, for a total of 13 ships. This figure includes the partially damaged USS Montgomery.

The ZAFT forces consisted of four Nazca-class and two Lauracia-class ships. At first glance, the ZAFT forces seemed far smaller than the Eighth Fleet, but these six warships carried a total of 36 mobile suits, including three Gundams from the Kreuzer team.

The Möbius missiles that the Eighth Fleet could use to intercept them were no match for the ZAFT mobile suits.

Halbarton was well aware of this, so the moment the battle began, the Eighth Fleet quickly followed his tactical plan, forming a dense formation to meet the enemy, attempting to resist the ZAFT MS attack through coordinated anti-aircraft fire between ships and the cover of MA forces.

But no matter how ingenious the tactics are, they still need people to execute them. The tactics that Halbarton adopted at this time were the optimal solution under the existing conditions, but the Eighth Fleet, from the ship operators to the MA pilots, was full of new recruits who had just joined the army.

Whether it's the coordination of anti-aircraft fire between warships or the joint operations between MA units and warships, both require highly skilled personnel to execute. Given the current quality of personnel in the Eighth Fleet, let alone achieving exquisite coordination, it would be considered lucky if the warships' anti-aircraft fire didn't shoot down their own MA units.

"Seleucus, heavily damaged! Withdrawing from the battlefield!"

"Cassandro, lost contact!"

"Antigone and Ptolemy, sink!"

As the communications officer shouted out one piece of bad news after another, Halbarton sat in the commander's seat on the bridge of the USS Menelaus, his brow furrowed and his fingers constantly rubbing the armrest of the seat.

Although Halbarton had anticipated that his side would be at a disadvantage, only five minutes after the start of the battle, the situation had already become one-sided. The fleet, which was fighting in a dense formation, was unable to stop the ZAFT forces' offensive. The three captured Gundams demonstrated excellent combat capabilities, tearing a gap in the Eighth Fleet's air defense network with their superior performance. Then, King, who was advancing with them, annihilated the Möbius forces that came to meet them at a terrifying speed.