Chapter 1, Part 3 (2/2)

At that time, the base's commander, Bonaparte, is in an airship above the factory, even if his subordinates want to prevent him from doing this.

The commander is a soldier who worked his way up the ranks and he is of course critical of the "Specials" and pretends to be ignorant of the reinforcement troop sent by Treize. Additionally he has chosen the airship as command room. This is a demonstrative act against the Specials and also the Gundams.

"Commander, it's dangerous! We will be shot down!"

Commander Bonaparte, dressed very correctly from the regulation cap to the soldier boots, looks sharply at his subordinate saying this and shuts him up.

"Please go higher at least!"

"There's no idiot who'd attack with such guard!" declares the commander after verifying that a perfect formation is deployed. He has absolute confidence in the defense, that they are able to defeat any enemy who comes attacking.

However, if Zechs, who knows from his own experience that the actions of the Gundams are not predictible, heard this, he would probably reply "the idiots will come".

A few minutes later, one of the factories towards the mountains explodes with a thunder.

The mobile suit troop heads that way.

But the enemy appears on the opposite side, out of the sea. It's more difficult to lure a Gundam into a trap using electronic tools and machines since they don't have the metal reaction of a normal mobile suit.

The group of Leos is destroyed one after the other by missiles raining upon them. The impenetrable defense wall is thrown into chaos within only the blink of an eye.

When the commander sees the enemy annihilating the Alliance's Leos with devastating fire power, he wants to get the defense up again one way or another, but none of the disconcerted soldiers is shooting. Not only this, but when he sees a fire it becomes clear that also the airship, which has taken over the leadership, is targeted.

"Calm down! It has been confirmed that there's only one enemy suit!"

The commander should have directed these words to himself. The words would have been the commander's last ones if the Aries troop of the Specials hadn't made a sortie.

"We'll help you. Commander, retreat!"

At Soldier Walker's message, the commander yells that this is unnecessary.

"Please collect the enemies' combat data. For the soldier of the future!"

At these words the commander finally lowers his head. He has realized that a Specials' beginner has evaluated the situation better than him.

The Aries leave a few suits behind as guards for the retreating airship. With Walker at their head, the rest flies towards the enemy.

The Aries are aiming towards a close combat. Opposing them, the enemy mobile suit keeps them completely at bay with its heavy weapons, namely the Gattling cannons in the left arm and chest, the missiles in the shoulds and legs and additionally the Vulcan cannons in the head. But there's a limit to ammunition.

Finally the two muzzles of the Gattling cannons in the chest are only turning idly, clattering.

That way it can be defeated in one strike.

Driven by youthful ardour, one Aries machine drives towards the enemy.

At that time, shots are being fired from somewhere.

"What!? Are those the rebels?"

On his screen, Walker displays the mobile suit troop which appeared on the mountain side. Some tens of machines are brown, and in their midst only one white suit.

"A second Gundam?!"

The white mobile suit comes hurtling towards Walker. Drawing two shotels from its back, it slashes at the Aries.

Walker also fires back with his chaingun, but the Aries reactions do not follow the enemy movements.

"I wanted to see this weapon's effect with my own eyes..."

These are Walker's last words.

The Aries' body is cut into two pieces and explodes.

It's exactly at this time that Zechs has the cargo plane started. The blue hypersonic transporter ascends into a sky as blue as the Mediterranean.

Zechs sees from the plane the Gundams on the ground. The two suits he watches are neither the two he has seen nor the one captured by the scout satellite. That means that Zechs could verify the existence of five Gundams with his own eyes.

However....

Don't these two suits work together?

The suit with the red head part works alone, just like the other three suits. But the one coming from behind is accompanied by a mobile suit troop behind him. It probably is the group called Maguanac troop. They are the military of all the Middle East countries opposing the Alliance. Besides, the two Gundams oppose each other motionless, as if recognizing each other as enemy.

Is Operation Meteor a strategy which was implemented by each of the 5 colonies independently?

While brooding on such incomprehensible thoughts, Zechs tells Otto in the pilot seat which course to take.

"Go towards the Lake Victoria base!"

Once the Tallgeese is restored, he will beat the Gundams.

This will fullfill the last will of Walker.

Zechs sends a salute through the window towards the ground which becomes more and more distant.

The mobile suit troop from the Middle East does a detour from the east side of the Corsica island, through the Ankudin mountains, and approaches the Alliance factory on the west side.

"Sir Quatre, that is...!?"

Immediately after invading the premises, the commander of the Maguanac troop, Rashid, notices that something is strange and contacts their leader.

Flames are already shooting up from the factory and mobile suits are destroyed here and there. From the outer microphones they can hear continuously gun shots and the sound of explosions.

"Somebody has attacked before us."

The leader, a boy in the cockpit of the white Gundam, rises his voice.

"Hurry up!"

Reacting to the voice, the forty suits of the Maguanac troop march forward through the smoke of the explosions, and efficiently shoot down the mixed troop of Leos and Aries which counterattack.

"The destruction of the factory has priority! It's fine if the mobile suits just can't move anymore!" shouts Quatre while felling an Aries with his heat shotels.

More than half of the base's mobile suits have been destroyed. The Alliance army and OZ don't know what to do against the fresh forces of 41 suits and switch to retreating. After verifying this, Quarte inwardly emits a heavy sigh.

In that instant, a message from his comrades comes in.

"Sir Quatre, that mobile suit...!?" calls Auda, while lifting his right eyebrow. He's reflected on the right side submonitor.

Putting on his round sunglasses again, also Abdul reacts. "Isn't it the same as Sir Quatre's Sandrock?"

Quatre sets Sandrock's camera eye into motion and display that mobile suit on his monitor.

"That is the mobile suit which attacked the base before..."

The resemblance is certainly striking.

That's what Quatre thinks at first sight.

But how about the capacity and the abilities of the pilot?

"Please don't interfere."

After asking the Maguanac troop for this, Quatre puts his own suit's heat shotels back to the back and approaches that mobile suit.

"Please be careful, Sir Quatre!"

Rashid's message comes in. But there's nobody who wants to stop or help him. They probably trust Quatre's abilities as a mobile suit pilot.

Quatre stands opposite the enemy with ten meters between them.

Without any warning, the enemy suddenly extends a huge army-knife-like blade, which his right arm is equipped with, and slashes upwards. He seems to have run short of ammunition.

Quatre suddenly slams in the pedals and blocks the attack with his left hip and arm, stopping the movement. Then he strikes with his right arm. The enemy intercepts this with his left hand.

With the arms seized on both sides, they kick each other with their knees.

Also this move is arrested by their respective power. It seems that not only the appearances are similar; the mobile suits' power and the pilots' abilities are also very close.

The two Gundam have arrived at a stalemate. Only the creaking sound of metall and the howling of the propulsion engines can be heard from them.

This mobile suit is the same as my Sandrock.

Quatre verifies this.

So it's not only the appearance. The basic layout is exactly the same. Even if the armament is different, the way of thinking is the same. It's a mobile suit whose main way of fighting is by attacking alone.

Coincidence?!

Suddenly an idea forms in Quatre's brain. He releases the pedals by reflex and pulls at the control lever. As if the time to release the seat belt were too precious, Quatre connects the microphone to the outer speakers and shouts "We shouldn't be fighting!"

Quatre's shouts resounds through the battle place which is covered with flames and the smoke of powder.

Quatre unlocks the hatch. After pushing up the front screen, he steps outside. Standing up on the hatch which has become a gangway, he lifts his goggles, baring his face.

As if reacting, the enemy mobile suit's hatch in the chest opens.

A boy steps out of the cockpit. He has long and slender arms and legs. His bangs, which have grown long into his long and oval face, are impressive.

There's at least another one like me.

Quatre smiles while he watches the enemy boy.

So that's how it is after all.

Quatre nods vigorously to himself and makes a step towards the opponent.

"Please stop. I was the first to emerge."

Facing the opponent who has raised both hands, Quatre says this with a voice not matching a battle place and stretches out his hand.