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In the grand scheme of the Federation's Operation Star One offensive, the fleet currently sieging Pezun seem like a side show. While larger than any Federal raid on the Pezun asteroid fortress, the EFSF Detachment Fleet Alpha resembles more of a blockade fleet at the "2 Days from Earth" line than an invasion. Still, while the Pezun asteroid fortress is part of Zeon's defense perimeter, it does not have a dedicated fleet like the Solomon Defense Fleet. Pezun is an test facility like Granada and share the advantage of cutting edge technology. But these are in limited qualities and unlike Granada, Pezun does not share the terrain advantage of being located in the Lunar Management Corporation territory. With the mixed batch of advantages and disadvantages at this confrontation, the outcome of this battle will depend on the commanders. Experienced veterans of both the ground and space war lead the Federal Fleet. The Prince of Orange, Captain Nigel Ferdinand, had endured the events that left up to the Battle of Odessa and the immediate Zeon counterattack on Jaburo. The Dutch prince is followed by an elite company of ace mobile suit pilots that form the nucleus of his success. The bulk of the Federal fleet however, is under the command of Blex, a fleet commander who saw the destruction of his fleet by the Zeon Expeditionary Force but survived to seek payback for the humiliation. On the other side is a man as stern as the rock that forms his fortress. The SS Officer known as Killing is a devious man. The reputation of Gihren's loyal service branch is a frightening one and Killing uses it to his advantage. Colonel Killing uses that reputation to its full effect to manage the "Pezun Project". Now he will used that same intimidation to confront his Federal guests. The staredown between the Federal fleet and Pezun ended when a ripple of missiles launched from the Salamis and Magellan warships. They streak towards the asteroid fortress as AA, SAMs, Gattles, and Zaku IIs open fire to shoot down the missiles. Meanwhile, Pezun retaliated with instantly with its own heavy weapons. At first only the MPCs and Cannons boomed their defiance. Then space lit up as a blast from Pezun's large MPC battery and the Laser Array race towards the EFSF Detachment Fleet Alpha. Nigel Ferdinand shielded his eyes as the energy tore into the ranks of the Blex Battlegroup. "Get our mobile suit teams moving!" shouted Nigel to his bridge crew. Down below on the twin catapaults of the Grey Phantom-class Orange Base, the aces of the 42nd Brigade are waiting their turn to be launched into battle. Private Aurem Senaiha stares blankly at his front viewscreen. Absentmindedly, he reaches into his flightsuit and pulls out a folded piece of paper. For the hundredth time in the past half an hour, his thumb rubs against the well creased folds. At this point he can read the inked words without unfloding the later. A heavy sigh, and the pilot of the Heavy Gundam shoves the letter back into its special pocket. On the starboard catapault, a less pessimistic but still solemn look on the war dwells inside Staff Sergeant Kyle Slater's mind. For Kyle, the letter from Nora telling him that she is alright" is enough to steel his nerves for the end of the war that was coming. All he has to do is survive. Perhaps the most optimistic of the 42nd Brigade is the ever vibrant Corporal Thorvald Siggurdson. The Blue Destiny Unit 2 has spent the last week in continuous battle to the point that even now the unit isn't fully repaired. That's fine for Thorvald. He is "readying" a weapon that had helped him in the Battle of Rio de Janeiro and is sure to help him today. Mobile suits of the Federal fleet are not moving past the Grey Phantom-class ship. Both the Heavy Gundam and Ez-8 launched into the swarm of GMs heading for Pezun. Support fire from the ships arc overhead as their journey to the Zeon base continues. Through the hail of fire, the Federal pilots saw their Zeon counterparts and closed with them. They have fought Zakus, Doms, and even a few of the new Gelgoogs before so they weren't too concerned. Old habits are to be proven wrong however. Killing's defense had his older Zaku units form a secondary battleline while his newer Galbady Alphas and Action Zakus marched into battle. The MS are the fruits of the Pezun Project's labor and the edge that Killing is depending on. The sight of so many mobile suits that are very similar if not better than their GMs startled the majority of the Federal attackers. The first wave quickly turn into chaos as the Federal advance is checked. Only seasoned pilots like the 42nd's aces gained ground. The Heavy Gundam cut through an Action Zaku with its Heavy Launcher like a giant chainsaw. Kyle's Ez8 traded beam shots with a Galbady Alpha, with the EFGF pilot winning the day due to his extended experience with the beam weapon. Despite the temporary setback, the Federal mobile suit squadrons slowly began to push back the Pezun defenders. But once again, Zeon is to unveil its technological mastery. Three massive signatures that resembled the Zeon mobile weapon in the video Kyle Slater saw earlier blew past him. The Val Varo dropped its Plasma Leader and a whole squadron of GMs were blown into obilivon. Back onboard the Orange Base, the Prince of Orange is listening to his bridge crew announce the arrival of Zeon mobile armors. "Pull the ships back and get our MS forces up front! Those are ship hunters-." "Sir! Picking up additional units around the inbound! Confirmed mobile suits on subflight models of unknown type!" "Damnit, where's Thorvald? He's supposed to be deployed by now!" Outside the windows of the Orange Base, Blex's battlegroup are already filling the air with flak and tracer rounds. Between the Salamis ships raced the fleet defense GMs to intercept the mobile armors. Wild beam fire shot left and right as the Zeon monsters tried to get a clear shot for their heavy weapons. Kyle and Aurem were busy hacking away at the modern Galbady Alphas and the older Action Zakus when they heard the commotion behind them. "Kyle! The fleet needs us!" shouted Aurem as he punches the monoeye off a Galbady Alpha. The Ez-8 punches a hole into an Action Zaku with its 305mm GM Bazooka before turning towards the Heavy Gundam. "We are busy here as it is!" noted Kyle as he dodges more beam shots," they're not going to let us fallback so easily." A swarm of RB-79 Balls flocked toward in the defense of the fleet but as obslete machines barely held any ground against the new Zeon technology. Nor were the advancing Zeon shipkillers doing so without losses. Under Blex's guidance, the Federal warships had closed ranks. The streams of AA fighter are tighter than they were at the Battle of Lourm, sending more than one Skute-riding MS spinning into a ball of flame. But the Zakrello, Bigro, and Val Varo simply barge through the bullet screen. Their pilots locked onto different ships as their main weapons charge to full power. Suddenly the Zakrello snags onto something hard and invisible to sensors. Only the skill of its pilot stopped the mobile armor from crashing into the others. The Bigro and Val Varo are forced off their attack runs as they try to figure out what happen. "OYCH, LOOK AT DER SIZE OF DAT UNZ!" The Blue Destiny Unit 2 stands triumphantly on the deck of a Salamis as Thorvald holds the giant fishing pole he created back on Earth. The last time he used it was at the Battle of Rio de Janeiro to "fight" MSMs. Now he caught the biggest one of them all. "Whelp, call me bloody lucky, I caught me a whole one!" grins Thorvald as he fought the Zakrello on his line. Suddenly, the flash of a blade and the Zakrello cut itself loose. The mobile armor spun and open fire with its scattering mega particle cannon. "Oomph!" grunted Thorvald as the BDU2 leaps off the Salamis. Back on the Orange Base, an officer turns towards Nigel Ferdinand. "Sir! The Blue Destiny Unit 2 has engaged the Zeon mobile armors! They are peeling away from their attack run!" "Thank god," breathed Nigel," looks like that idiot is good for-" "Sir, Corporal Siggurdson appears to be attacking with a fishing rod!" "Oh for the love of-!" Such is the scene as the Blue Destiny Unit 2 held onto its MS-scale fishing pole as Thorvald fires his 100mm GM machinegun. The BDU2 is responding more slowly thanks to its incomplete repairs. If this fight was taking place in open space, things would have gotten very ugly for Thorvald. Fortunately, he is among friends. The first of the Federal attack squads finally returned to the fleet and the Zeon group are forced to disengage. They already did some damage to the EFSF Detachment Fleet Alpha and to linger would spell doom to valuable assets. The Heavy Gundam and Ez-8 clashed with more Galbady Alphas as the three mobile armors race back to Pezun. They are shortly joined by a ever jolly Thorvald as they pursue the Zeon to the edge of the fleet's perimeter. It has been a harsh day for both sides. Zeon defenders manage to blunt the Federal attack and penetrate close enough to fire on the Federal ships. But the Federal squadrons held together and at the last moment forced the Zeon units back into their base. The noose that lies around Pezun is still there but it has yet to strangle the asteroid fortress into submission. Aurem Senaiha - 7 VP Gained, Repairing 3 Kyle Slater - 8 VP Gained, Repairing 3 Nigel Ferdinand - 7 VP Gained, No Damage Thorvald Siggurdson - 7/2 VP Gained, Repairing +2 The city of Baikonour had been evacuated days ago, but there were still some hangers-on in the city, civilians unwilling to leave their homes, despite the battle that raged among them. "Sir! You must leave! This entire block could be annihilated during the next push! A quarter of the city is already in ruins, and the other quarter is burning!" The Zeon soldier's words weren't completely true: The fighting had left the city in remarkable shape, considering its proximity to the Zeon base. It was a credit to the focus and humanity of both sides that the collateral damage had been negligible. Still, the Zeon soldier wasn't about to give up. "Think of your children!" He gestured to where two of them, a boy and a girl, along with their mother, were huddled around a table in the kitchen. They looked worried. "I have! This is where we live, and this is where we'll stay! Lilienthal has always done an excellent job of protecting us before, why should this time be different? Anyway, I don't see any mobile suits or tanks or anything around here, do you?" They were interrupted as the ground began to shake beneath them. The Zeon soldier stared, open-mouthed, as the ground arupted around them. The shelling had begun again. "Get down!" The soldier cried, shuffling the man and his family beneath the heavy oak table, hoping against hope that the shells would find their marks, instead of them. The second push from the Federation forces had begun. Once again, the sky buzzed with the sound of aircraft, and the soldier knew that their remaining air force would be annihilated against the overwhelming Federation planes. He hoped that their ground troops would be able to hold up against the shelling and bombing long enough to beat back the inferior Federation ground forces. He gripped his radio fiercely as the shelling continued, catching several reports from the surrounding area. "This is Gouf squad Whipit!, reporting the destruction of the Feddie Heavy Fork. Damn thing's fired its last! For Zeon!" "We are DOMinating out here. GMs don't got nothin' on us!" Exulted a rather over-eager pilot - a Dom pilot, the soldier suspected. They always were a bit arrogant. "Ragnarok, calling for mobile suit anti-air support! We're getting our asses kicked here! We can't hold up much-" The transmission turned to static as another tremor shook the earth, larger than the others. So many men giving their lives in a war. So many men. The assault lasted a full 2 hours. Two whole hours of reassuring the stubborn man and his family that the Zeon forces had been ordered to stay away from civilian establishments, unless they absolutely had to. Two hours of telling them, over and over, that the Federation wasn't as bad as it was made out to be - that their pilots were decent men and women too. Two hours of huddling beneath an oak table, receiving reports of a battle that he had been excluded from, by assignment. Lilienthal had made sure that his troops continued to scour the city for civilians, evacuating them at all costs. The reports were generally good. Squads of GMs were pushing hard, but their superior Doms, Goufs, and talented Zaku pilots were beating them back. They were taking hell from the air, but the ground was where the base was, and between all the trenches, walls and defensive emplacements, they weren't doing half bad. The Federation was breaking themselves against the fortress of Baikonour again. The soldier wondered how many times they'd be able to mount a decent defense without reinforcements. It didn't matter, as long as it was longer than their opponents could continue to mount decent offensives. And, by the looks of things, that point wasn't too far away. You couldn't take bases with aircraft and bombardment. He hoped the Federation would give up before all that was left of Baikonour was a shelled crater. Then again, maybe they'd taken out enough of the Federation's ground forces to make a counterattack. "We'll come with you," the man said, holding hands with his wife and children. "We'll come away from the city." The Zeon soldier smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. We're all doing our best. You'll see your home again soon." Hopefully in one piece. In the bowels of Solomon, a fortress prepared and waiting for war, one woman stood with her child. The wife of Dozle Zabi was a petite woman, possibly one third the size of her enormous husband. Dozle stood next to her, a giant of a man. Over seven feet tall and weighing some three hundred pounds, he may have ended up a circus act if his father had been any other man. But Dozles appearance simply accentuated the fact that he was the commander here. Not only was he the tallest and the strongest, but he was also the bravest, and everyone present wanted to accompany him into battle. Everyone save his wife. "Are you sure you're going to be okay?" She asked, shaking with fear. War was not unknown to her, indeed she had stayed on Solomon with her daughter despite repeated Federal raids in the area. However, this battle was something wholly different. She was a civilian, and had not been told anything even close to the truth, but she could see it in the eyes of the soldiers here. She could even see it in the eyes of her husband. Dozle belittled her worries with a hearty laugh, one that would make the most grizzled of viking chieftains blush. Mineva Zabi, his daughter, began to cry. "Oh hush, you woke her." Dozles beloved frowned, and rocked her child. "I'm sorry dear. This attack is nothing, and I will come see you on Side 3 as soon as it is finished. When we stop the Federation here, the war will be over." Dozle said, smiling. He poked his daughters nose. There was no time for any more discussion, so they did not drag their goodbyes any longer. The two were dispatched in a shuttle, escorted by a single Zaku. Dozle would normally send three with such important cargo, but he felt he could not even spare one for this assault. The escort was simply to make her feel better. Watching his wife leave, the giant commander turned around, briskly walking into the fortresses command center. "The ZEF reports it is in position sir. Particle density is so thick we can barely reach them." Racock said as soon as Dozle entered the room. Racock was an ugly man, short and balding, with a round face and a slightly fattened body. However, his strategic expertise was sound. He deserved to be Dozles right hand man. "Excellent. Hopefully they will be able to deal with the Federations rumored superweapon." Dozle grumbled. He pressed a button on his console, opening a channel to everyone in the fortress. The pilots would soon launch. "Men, this is the admiral. I don't want you to worry about winning this battle today, for our victory was assured in January." Dozle began, clearing his throat before his second statement. "Rather, I want you to focus on your enemy in this battle. For months this space fortress has been the front line of defense for Zeon, but has never seen a major attack. We have trained long and hard for this day, and are finally able to make our voices heard. I want you to strike back at your enemy. I want you to instill the fear of god into them." "In ten years, I want this region of space to be thought of as so terrifying, that people will not settle here. People will not travel here. I want the Solomon Sea to be synonomous with war and with death. For here we create the image of Zeons defense. Here is where we will prevent the Federation from starting a second war." Dozles voice had slowly grown stronger and stronger, echoing throughout the command center like a dragon. "Here is where the war ends." He took his hand off the button. Pilots began to congregate to their machines, preparing for the battle to come. The storm was almost here, and they were ready. The Solomon Sea was a region of space cluttered around the asteroid fortress, that was nearly as thick of debris as the ruins of Side 5. Dozle had expressly forbid any cleanup operations, feeling the cluttered masses of dead mobile suits and warships would literally scare the Federation away from the area. Because of this, there were numerous places to hide. Half broken colonies, Magellan battleships with gaping wounds big enough to fit an entire Jicco, the sheer amount of cover was ludicrous. Navigating a fleet through the region was hellacious, though the Federations solution would undoubtedly be to vaporize the entire region. They had the firepower to do so. But they had not done it yet, and the debris remained, nestled throughout the shadows of the Zeon Expeditionary Force. The ZEF had grown by leaps and bounds, now finally stronger than the Delaz Fleet both in size and in experience. It was the single most powerful battlegroup available to Zeon, the gem in Kycillias arsenal. To her, the ZEF served a number of purposes, and served them well. They had held Texas Colony for some time, and caused repeated harassment amongst Federal supply and blockade efforts. They had served as a testing ground for her newtype soldiers, and had brought invaluable data back to Granada. They had of course also lost her a Gwazine, but that was long ago, and had all but been forgotten by command. It was Jinyuans failure after all, and she loathed that man. But now Veronica was in command. Good old Veronica. The general sat aboard her Chivvay, head rested on a clenched fist. She did not really know what this new Federation superweapon was. She knew they would kill it, however. Zeon had the clear advantage in the superweapon department after all. It was kind of their thing. Veronica had already given her orders, and merely sat, waiting for the battle to occur. Their ships were dead in the water, reactors on silent, floating like debris amidst an ocean of similar flotsam. Minovsky particles could shield you from radar, but they could not shield you from the eyes of an intelligent ensign looking out a window. However, running silent helped with that quite a bit. Veronica liked to be in command of a situation, and didn't like the idea of being forced to play reactionary. However, it was the plan, and it was a good plan, so she waited. In the halls of the Bangkok, one ZEF member who was normally the best of the bunch at waiting could not do so. Florian had changed over his stay at the Expeditionary Force. He had gone through two handlers, three Wu's, and an enormous amount of combat, definitely enough to change the boy. He still wasn't talking much, preferring hand signals above anything else, but really, that was just the eggshell that the boy hid himself in. The rooster was finally cracking through. And by the looks of things, he was going to be loud. The boy shook, unable to keep still as he paced around the hall in his flight suit, literally back and forth along the same corridoor. While radar could not see the body of ships that was approaching, Florian could feel it, like a heavy weight of hatred striking down on his skull. It unnerved him, but not nearly as much as current events had. Lilja was gone, and for a few days now, Florian had no handler to speak of. He was, in effect, his own man. He wasn't sure if he liked it, and less sure if it would last. As he paced, one Richard Banks came floating down the hall. Banks knew Florian reasonably well, although he'd never really been good at helping the boy with his troubles. Banks was a military man, and he understood gears and whistles very well, but hearts and minds much less so. There was a reason he left the overall strategy to Veronica. He handled the paperwork and the logistics, something that the whole fleet was thankful for. "Florian." He said, acknowledging the boy as he floated past. Cuyler looked at him, mouthing a hello. "We're going to be launching soon. Are you ready?" Richard asked. He could see Florian was worried, and he knew there had been a lot of drama recently. However, this was the best sort of emotional support he could give. Florian nodded. Banks nodded in return, and continued floating down the hall. They were all ready. Caleb, Kenshiro, Felix, Yoritomo, Olivia, Anya, Ray, Junichi, even Emil. For once Emil was actually ready and on time. They were all ready to do their part, and fight alongside the brunt of Zeons forces. For months now they had been acting on their own, and were not used to this much support. Together, Solomon had a powerful force defending it. However, the Federal fleet was large, and it was almost here. "So we've finally been paired together in the operation." Creed said, chuckling and sipping a glass of wine. The Richmond, despite a good amount of battle damage, floated at the front of BOLLOCKS's many Salamis Kai class ships. Evander was in the middle of a converence call with both Jamitov Heiman and Bosque Ohm, and the three were as thick as a schoolyard gang. "Indeed. Perhaps Revil is keeping all his detractors in one convenient spot?" Bosque said, his red glasses tiny amidst his large and fat face. Jamitov snerked. "Or maybe he just wants the most talented of his men defending the Solar System. Who cares what that man thinks." Heiman laughed. It was no secret that Jamitov resented Revil, and resented his impeccable combat record even more. The only thing more infuriating than Revil being higher up in the chain of command than Jamitov was the undeniable fact that he so obviously deserved his position. Revil made the tacticians around him look like children, on a regular basis. "Well, if we're lucky, the battle will be over before us reinforcements are even called in." Evander laughed. "Are we sure the Solar System won't completely destroy the fortress? I mean, we haven't had a chance to test it yet." It was Jamitovs turn to chuckle now. "No, we're not. This entire battle may be ended with the press of one button. Don't we wish we had Bosques job." Heiman leaned back in his chair, almost brooding. "Indeed! Whatever did you do to be in charge of the most powerful weapon in the history of mankind, Ohm?" Evander smiled. These three were inseperable. Their bridge crews didn't dare to say a single word, knowing how evil each of their commanders could become if startled. It was Ray Tatsuma who finally cut the cheese, his comm-signal cutting in on the conversation. Everybody liked Ray Tatsuma, except for his superiors. This was positively the worst thing about him. "You know, the admiral is giving a speech right now. I hear they're repositioning all three of you to the front." Tatsuma said. Soft snickering followed behind him, unveiling his ruse. Tatsuma was a handsome man, in his twenties. Every girl on the Ruby wanted to be with him, or that's what he thought. He'd given them all nicknames, which were suspiciously the same nicknames he'd given to dozens of ex-girlfriends from his youth. Any charms he had were quickly washed away by this, but even though his crew didn't want to sleep with him outright, he was well respected as a thoughtful and caring commander. He would rather lose a battle than see a soldier die. While the officers banter continued, the enlisted scurried about their duties. In the mobile suit pilots locker room, a half naked Breakfister Turbulance donned his flight suit. Half naked, because he was at least wearing your mask. "You should cover your dick with that mask, BT, we won't know how little of a man you are then." Alex said over his shoulder. Vaan and Lutz chuckled in the background. "At least I pilot a mobile suit that the female techs get wet over. What's it like in the basic model Sentara. I can't remember what being outrun by Doms feels like." Breakfister threw the insult back. It was a lovely group. Unfortunately for them, BOLLOCKs was the rear line of the engagement. The Creed, Jamitov and Ohm groups had been stationed as a reserve, protecting the Solar System and attacking anyone who tried to flank the primary forces. Reed, Tianem, Wakkein and Revil groups would man the front line, and it had been decided that this was more than enough to deal with the Solomon defense forces. Also at the front of the line was White Base. Amuro was still a little unsettled over his previous encounters with Char and Lalah. He felt a new power in him, and still wasn't really coming to terms with it. Sleggar saw his unease as the two moved to their weaponry, and gave Amuro a pat on the back. He didn't really understand the boys troubles, but he thought he did. "There there Amuro, chin up. We're heroes, and we're about to go be heroic! What more could a young man want." Sleggar said, smiling. As if on cue, Mirai appeared from the end of the hallway. "Maybe a cheeseburger?" She said, handing one to each of the pilots. "Brights orders, no starting a battle on an empty stomach." Sleggar all but swallowed the sandwich whole, Mirai laughing and smiling. "Oh and, Sleggar..." She pulled him aside for a moment. Amuro blinked, but went on about his business. "Cameron and I were talking and... Well..." She blushed. "I called the wedding off." "Mirai.." Sleggar was startled. He had been hitting on her, but he wasn't expecting it to strike this deep. He hoped he wasn't in trouble. "Here, I want you to have this." She said. She took her engagement ring off her neck, where she wore it on a chain, and put it around Sleggar. "Mirai... You don't need to be so emotional. It's just a small battle, don't worry!" He could see the scared expression in her face. Mirai chuckled. "That's what I like about you Sleggar, you're never afraid of anything." She smiled, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and hurried back to the bridge. At the bridge of the Ananke III, General Revil was in front of the extremely massive Federal assault force. The Birmingham strode ahead of the line, a massive white beacon surrounded by mobile suits, destroyers, and missile frigates of all kinds. The fleets Publics, an enormous sum of the small ships, had moved ahead of the main fleet, in a loose formation surrounded by Saberfish and Balls and all manner of GMs. "The debris is getting thicker." The helmsman said, looking back at Revil. He almost couldn't see the man, the Birminghams bridge was simply that large. "The fleet may have to split up soon." "There won't be much debris after we're done with it. Are we inside missile range?" Revil asked, looking at his weapons officer. "Yes sir, I can visually target the fortress from here." Missile range was something of a misnomer, you could technically shoot a missile from Earth Orbit to side 3 and it would be in 'range', but actually hitting what you aimed at was another matter entirely. Extreme range warfare was prohibited, due to the likelihood of accidentally harming civilian craft. "Alright. Lets see how much damage we can cause before the main event. Tell all ships to open fire." Revil said, scratching his shaggy white beard. Seconds later, a barrage of warheads that would make even Solomon blush came streaking through the sky, contrails and exhaust filling the black void with a loosened atmosphere. Pieces of discarded colonies and battleships were swept away, crumbling under the weight of the EFSF Grand Fleets assault. As the missiles flew, the Publics moved ahead, setting up positions to guard against the counter attack. "Enemy has begun surface bombardment sir, damage to the fortress is negligable." Racock said. Dozle nodded, his chair slightly shaking. The Federal bombardment was giving him a massage, but doing little else. "Return fire, Solomons MPCs should be able to outrange theirs a great deal." He said. Solomon was shaped like a star, and one gigantic mega particle cannon turret was present at each of its six points. The five turrets facing the EFSF returned fire, streaks of pink sliding towards the Federation, only to be blocked by glistening coats of chaffe. The Publics had done their work. "Anti-beam barrier established. We can hold it for approximately sixty seconds sir." Revil nodded, musing at the timing of the operation. The EFSF began to pick up speed, a corridoor of debris-free space opened up to them. "Sir, enemy has erected a chaff barrier, we won't be able to target them at range." Racock said, Dozle grumbling. "Alright, attack with our mobile suits. If we can attack their GMs inside the barrier, we'll have the advantage." He answered. The orders were sent out, and Zakus and Rick Doms of all kinds left the cover of the fortress, charging forwards. "Fire the asteroid mines, we'll see what Revil has planned for that." Dozle added. A coded laser-signal was sent to dozens of booster equipped asteroids, already surrounding the EFSF. The warheads hurtled forwards, large enough that the Federal AA fire could not effectively dislodge them. Some were destroyed by short range MPC fire, but many others struck their targets. "General, the SAF has armed the asteroids around us. Incredible and Cisco are sunk, Saffran dead in the water. Your orders?" Revil nodded. He had faced Dozle before, and he was expecting these sorts of devious tactics. "Ignore it. We can afford to lose a few ships. We need to pull their main forces into the Solar Systems firing arc. All ahead, flank speed. Fire at will!" Revil shouted. The EFSF trudged forwards, Burning, Amuro and their teams assaulting the defenders of Solomon. It would be a vicious battle, and many pilots would lose their lives amidst the Solomon Sea this day. Junichi Ghettid had a special job, the Veiled Intent deployed some distance away froom the rest of the ZEF. If the ZEFs job was to attack the enemies rear line, the Veiled Intents job was to attack its flank. It didn't matter how much damage they caused, as long as they served as enough of a distraction to keep the ZEFs presence hidden amidst the debris. Junichi himself had seen a lot of things in his day. A special investigator for the SS, and one known for his impulsiveness and his barbarism, he was not unaccustomed to the horrors of war. But he hadn't seen anything quite like this battle in a while. Watching the uplink from the Intents main viewer, Junichi whistled aloud, taken aback at the sheer number of explosions that were lighting up Side 2. Some of the space colonies here were still operational, and it was a definite that stray ordnance would cause civilian casualties in so large a battle. But it couldn't be helped, not that Ghettid particularly cared. The Kampfer rumbled as the Zanzibar II lurched to life, thrusters slowly propelling it towards the mass of opponents it would face. Ghettid and his team would serve as a distraction, while the ZEF took the prize. "Pity that blasted photographer isn't around to take pictures of this." Junichi said, thinking of his old 'partner.' The launch doors of the Zanzibar opened, and Junichi shot into the void, Zakus providing backup for the blue Kampfer. MPCs from the Zanzibar lurched ahead, striking one of the Salamis class ships in the flank. A pair of GMs and a group of Balls were in position to defend, but it took more than two GMs to stop the SS's finest. Ghettid danced around the two targets, bazooka shells cleaving the GMs asunder. The Kampfer was so incredibly fast, it simply sped past the Balls, which were gobbled up by the Zakus providing fire support. Closer to the head of the line, the Zeon forces were holding, Zakus and Rick Doms en masse defending from within the beam barrier. Without being able to use their beam spray guns, the GM force was having difficulty pushing them back, and the two lines had formed a standstill. Burning, Monsha and Bates were ahead of the line, their GMs cleaving through opponents at melee range, when Burning noticed the outline of the Veiled Intent behind them. "Looks like we're going to be flanked, I'd better head back." He said, firing a flare announcing his intentions. The rest of the 3rd kept the line, slowly pushing forwards while the Lieutenants GM Sniper II flew back, coming face to face with the Kampfer as it moved towards the Federal ships. The two ace pilots zipped around each other, firing shots that dove harmlessly into the void. While the Kampfer held an impressive arsenal of weaponry, its fuel supplies were limited, and Junichi knew he couldn't afford a protracted battle. His Zakus tried to give him support, but Burning easily shot one in two, AA fire from the fleet forcing the others back. Diving into close range, Junichi threw a bazooka aside, donning a beam saber and attacking the Federal ace. Burning answered with his own saber, the two units spinning around and trading blows. Junichi had a slight advantage in tech, but he was unable to match Burnings skill, and every thrust he made with his saber was deftly blocked. Burning finally kicked the Kampfer away, vulcan fire shredding the top portion of the Kampfer. The blue mobile suit was fast, but lightly armored. The Veiled Intent dove forwards, firing MPCs into the Federal fleet, and damaging several ships, the tightly packed craft unable to avoid. However, it wouldn't be long before the masses of Magellans and Salamis got wind and moved their starboard guns to intercept. The Zanzibar would not last long. "I want a status report from the control ship, how much longer do I have to wait?" Bosque said, angrily. While the Solar System was an impressive weapon, it took quite a while to adjust the mirrors for an optimal firing arc. "About four more minutes sir." Said the comm officer. The fat and bespectacled rear admiral grumbled. "Sir, I'm getting a distress signal from CTC 104, they report serious battle damage and are off course, they want to dock with the control ship. for repairs." "Already? Bah, must be one of Reeds boys." Bosque was simply not in a good mood, he so dearly want to fire his new toy. "Ignore them! If they got themselves that badly hurt this early, it's their own fault! Ohm group deals with Ohm group." He said. "Sir, I figured you'd say that, but they're moving towards the Solar System group anyway. They may not be able to hear us, the particle density is to-" The officer was cut off. "If they come within one click of my new toy shoot them out of the sky! That's an order!" Bosque yelled, grumbling. One might wonder if his red goggles were the color of his mood. As the battle went on, the Prince of Aargau slowly slinked into position, disguised as one of the Federations own vessels. Dozle watched from his chair, the giant wondering when the chaffe field would subside. Publics only had a limited ammo capacity after all. He had been denied the early barrage, but a line of Chivvays and Musais were protecting the fortress, along with close to a hundred mobile suits. If things went well, the Federation would pull back before he even had to sortie in the Byg Zam. "Sir, the enemies anti-beam field is subsiding." Racock said. Immediately afterwords, a huge swath of pink shot directly out of the Birmingham, almost entirely enveloping one of Dozles Musai class cruisers. The fortress was hit behind it, causing Dozles chair to rumble again. "Sir.. The Georgianus has been sunk." Racock said, a slight rasp in his voice. "An entire cruiser destroyed with one volley? Return fire! And lets hope that blasted general Wu is having better luck." Dozle growled. MPCs from the fortress and defense fleet returned fire, the Gwamels guns downing another Salamis class ship. Now that the particle field had dispersed, the battlefield instantly became much brighter, MPC fire darting in all directions. The Federal fleet was indeed much larger than Zeons, but with the fortress to protect them, and the Solomon Defense Fleet providing rear line defense, the battle line was standing strong. Indeed, it looked as if the EFSF had already started to retreat. Their cruisers were suspiciously slowing down... "Alright, looks like the main fleet has finally passed us. Start 'er up." Veronica said, closing a pocket watch and looking at the fleet ahead. They could see the mirrors, nearly in alignment. Thousands upon thousands of them glinting in the darkness. At the moment they were set off their reflective properties, much like the glass in space colony windows they could be set to reflect light or let it pass through them at will. However, the glint of their frames was unmistakable, they had to be destroyed. "Anything from the Prince of Aargau?" Veronica asked. There was a dull rumble as the Chivvay began to slowly trudge forwards. "Negative general, it may have been destroyed." Came the response. "Damn, and here I thought it was such a good ploy. No matter. Launch our teams, we have enough firepower to destroy a few Columbus class ships." Veronica chuckled. Aboard the Richmond, the crew was suddenly brought to life as MPC fire started sailing towards them from the debris field. "Captain, I'm reading enemy signatures inside the debris field. It's the ZEF!" The sensor officer said. Evander grimaced. "So they're after us again. Inform Bosque and Jamitov, and tell them to back us up this time. That blasted Wu can't handle all three of us at once." Evander answered. Mobile suits and mobile armors from both sides raced towards each other, GMs of all shapes and sizes from the Ohm and Heiman groups joining the fray. The ZEF was largely outgunned, both in mobile suit technology and in numbers, the sheer quantity of better skilled GM pilots having an edge over even the new Zaku II F models. However, what the ZEF lacked in its grunts, it more than made up for with the cream of the crop. Florian, Kenshiro and Felix dashed through the enemy line, mere GMs unable to match the tenacity of the Zeong, Bigro and Val Varo. The defensive line was chopped asunder as the three ace pilots dashed towards the Columbus class transports organizing the Solar System into focus. MPC fire from Jamitovs wing forced Kenshiro to double back a bit, GM Commands dashing forwards to stop them. Felix met the enemy head on, slicing one command model in two with a well placed beam lance. Florian was undeterred, and was about to make it to the Columbus control ship when, out of nowhere, the Perfect Zeongs left leg exploded underneath him. It was strange, he hadn't sensed any combat intent from an enemy unit, almost chiefly using the presence of his enemies to watch the battle. He turned around, and a mobile suit was there all the same, carrying a huge beam gatling gun and protected by a pair of shields connected to its shoulders. But something seemed off. The Zeong blasted more than a dozen MPCs at the Zephyr Phantom, but it quickly moved out of the way, twisting and turning and evading Florians fire. Cuyler could not read this pilot, and it made him angry, angry enough to stop moving towards the control ship. He was his own master now, after all. Cuyler pursued the Phantom, the Zeongs arms lashing out and firing from all directions, but without knowing where the enemy model was going to turn, Florian simply could not hit the target. Richard Banks, Emil Myberg and Caleb DeGrau were having slightly better luck, after dealing with a few forward placed GMs, they came face to face with the Federations ace wing. Breakfister Turbulance, Alex Sentara, Vaan Kashky and Lutz Leon were directly in there way. The three Zeon aces had fought Gundams and high powered GMs before, but now they were in new units, Gelgoogs of all kinds giving them much more power than their old Dom models. The seven pilots engaged in an impressive dance, flitting around each other and firing in kind. Caleb was the clear leader of this seven person ballet, his beam machinegun forcing Vaan and Lutz back almost instantly. The two test pilots were by no means poor shots, but they simply did not stand up to DeGrau and his Gelgoog Cannon. Breakfister slammed into Emil, the two twisting around and locked on to each other, before a slash from Banks beam saber tore Turbulance away. The masked newtype laid down suppressive fire, trying to get at Myberg but unable to do so. Unrestricted, Emil blasted out a hail of machinegun fire, seriously damaging Turbulances GM Command. Alex Sentara was probably the best pilot of them all, but he was not used to his GM, having undergone very little training since his reassignment. Further, the GM was simply not a match for the Gelgoogs placed before him, and it seemed luck would not be on his side. While DeGrau and Myberg forced the three more powerful mobile suits away, Richard Banks descended on Sentaras mobile suit, beam rifle blazing. Alex dodged expertly several times, but his unit was not able to keep up with the Gelgoog Marine Commanders speed. "God damn, where's my support..." Alex grumbled, turning and firing machinegun rounds at will. Banks swerved in behind the GM, one well placed beam rifle round slicing straight through Sentaras reactor. The GM exploded triumphantly, ending Alex's long and illustrious career. "Fifteen seconds till adjustments are complete." Bosques aide said. It was time to press the big red button. "Revil, we're ready on our end, how's yours." Bosque asked, the transmission between the front and back of the line barely stable. "We're ready here." Revil responded. The Earth Federation had gradually pulled back all its forces, staying a set distance between the Solar System and the enemy fleet. Suppressive fire had been laid down in droves, from Balls, Saberfish, GMs and the Federal fleet, and it looked to everyone present as if it was a tactical withdrawl. Indeed, if it weren't for what was about to happen, the Federation may have actually needed to withdraw. Anya, Olivia and Ray Walker had just gotten to the mirrors, and were cutting them up by the dozen, using all of their weaponry to smash the thin glass of the Solar System arrays. However, a number of GMs, Balls and even capital ships were guarding the control craft in the center, making even approaching it nigh useless. The corpse of the Prince of Aargau floated by in testament to of this. But even still, the cowboy and his two wranglers were causing quite a bit of damage, the defense force too busy with the ZEFs impressive mobile suit division to stop everything. Some six or seven percent of the Solar Systems 150,000 mirrors had already been destroyed. "Attacking our flank was a good plan but, you're a little too late." Bosque smiled, pressing a fattened finger on the big red button. In an instant, the solar system turned from simple glass, to a several space colony sized microscope, the heat of the sun reflected and amplified by the rays and firing like the thunderbolt of Zeus into Solomons side. The EFSF Grand Fleet lay in an area in which the majority of the beams had not yet focused, but the Zeon forces in front of it were not so lucky. Capital ships melted away in a few seconds, to say nothing of their mobile suits and crew. The flash of light all but blinded everyone present, and the ZEF and system defenders completely stopped their battle with amazement. "Dear god..." Veronica said, dropping her coffee. The entire solomon sea was a dazzling white. When the light subsided, the Zeon fleet defending Solomon simply was not there any more. Musais, Chivvays, even the Gwamel had all been annihilated, and the entire face of the fortress closest to the enemy was red hot, literally turned into liquid metal as the heat of the Earth Federation Superweapon carved away. "What the HELL was that?" Dozle yelled. "I want a damage report!" "Sir..." Racock gulped. "It's too early to say but, I believe we've lost at least sixty percent of our forces." "SIXTY PERCENT?!" Dozle yelled at the top of his voice. "That's IMPOSSIBLE." But the reality was plain as day before them. What mobile suits had survived were already pulling back, terrified by the new Federation weapon. The Birmingham, and the Federation Grand Fleet was no longer withdrawing, but now in full swing towards the fortress. There would be no stopping them now. "Ugh... The battle is lost. Send a message to general Wu, tell her forces to retreat to A Baoa Qu." Dozle said, standing up and walking to the back of the room. "But sir, we don't have enough forces to even hold them off now, how will they retreat?" Racock asked, his balding head sweating with terror. "I'll hold them off." Dozle answered. "In the Byg Zam." While Dozle prepared for his personal counterattack, the Earth Federations fleet was busy mopping up survivors of the blast. Zeon mobile suit teams were in complete disarray, fleeing wildly through the debris fields of the Solomon Sea, chased by in many instances faster Federation models. Amuro and the crew of White Base pushed to the front line, cutting up Rick Doms in droves, able to quickly massacre what was left of the stations defenses. Solomons fixed gun emplacements had been completely melted away by the blast, the entire front of the fortress still a molten red. Towards the rear line, the ZEF continued to push, and was slowly but surely breaking through the enemies defenses. Anya, Ray and Olivia were still hacking up mirrors, close to ten percent of the Solar Systems capacity already destroyed. However, reinforcements from BOLLOCKS were fresh on the scene, Arleana, her GM Command Kai and several GMs moving in to fight the aggressors off. Arleana wasn't an ace on line with Breakfister Turbulance or Caleb DeGrau, but her GM Command Kai was the best of the best, combining the GM Commands versatility with the GM Sniper IIs incredible high performance. Firing several rounds from her beam rifle, she forced Olivia and Anyas Gelgoogs away, Ray Walker already fleeing the scene. The cowboy had depleted his missiles, and he knew when to move on to the next rodeo. Anya and Olivia spun in tight circles, their incredibly speedy mobile suits evading Kerrigans expertly placed shots. Returning fire with their own beam rifles, a pair of GMs went down, Arleanas GM Command losing its left leg in addition. The suits onboard learning computer automatically adjusted its AMBAC appropriately, keeping her in the fight longer than would have normally been able. Florian was locked in combat with the Zephyr Phantom, the Perfect Zeong too large and bulky to deliver a finishing blow to the AI controlled mobile suit. Florian still could not understand his opponent, or why he couldn't feel its presence. This gave the Phantom an enormous advantage over the newtype, and mistakes in the AIs programming were made up for with speed and the element of surprise. Florian was surely the better pilot, but simply could not drive his shots home. Beam after beam from the Phantoms gatling struck the Zeong, Florians head beginning to hurt as he spun the huge and ungainly mobile suit around, trying to stay on top of his target. He was not used to operating by visual stimuli like a normal pilot. Felix and Kenshiro were having much more success, the two mobile armors almost unhindered tearing through BOLLOCKS lines. One Salamis Kai and one Columbus had already fallen under their assault, the red and green monsters unstoppable by mere GM and AA fire. There were simply not enough highly skilled pilots to deal with everything. Felix swerved his Val Varo around, AA beam guns cutting through a pair of GMs and making a scene while Kenshiro lined up yet another kill on a Columbus class ship. They would be low on fuel soon and have to pull back, but for now they were destroying everything in their path. Emil, Caleb and Richard Banks were pushing the aces of BOLLOCKS back, slowly advancing on the Salamis class ship Ruby. Ray Tatsuma had ordered his ship to the front, using AA, missiles and even MPC fire to assist the mobile suit pilots of BOLLOCKS as best he could. Evander had ordered the Richmond to the rear, trying to save his own skin. The juxtiposition of the two captains was readily apparent. Breakfister, Lutz and Vaan couldn't hold out much longer, the Gundam and Powered GMs superior technology unable to make up for the much higher piloting skill possessed by the ZEF aces. They backed closer and closer to the Ruby, Caleb eyeing the Salamis like an after-dinner treat. It just wouldn't be a real engagement to him unless he was given a chance to turn a Salamis into a pincushion, after all. But it was not to be. Before they could overwhelm the defenses, reinforcements arrived from the front line. One mobile suit in particular flew ahead of the others, a GM Sniper II at the edge of what its thrusters could allow. Yazan flew between the three ZEF aces, dual wielding machineguns and spinning in wild circles. In an instant Richard Banks Gelgoog had sustained an incredible amount of damage. "Crap, we've taken too long." Banks said, launching a retreat flare. More of them would be there soon. On cue, GMs by the dozen started flying in in droves, and threatened to quickly overtake the ZEF. "I think I agree." Veronica said to herself, watching the flare in the distance. At the moment the ZEF had only lost two ships, and had caused quite a bit of damage to the Federal forces. There was still time for them to retreat in the debris. They would just have to strike faster in the next engagement. "Call a retreat." Wu said, letting out a sigh as she allowed victory to slip through her fingers. "General, there's too many enemy units, we can't get everybody out in time." The comm officer said. They couldn't communicate directly anymore, and several pilots wouldn't see the flares, but it was the best they could do. Richard and Caleb turned tail and ran, firing the rest of their ammunition before heading for the relative safety of the Bangkoks antiaircraft screen. Emil Myberg however, was cut off by the enemy. GMs circled the ex-patriot from all sides, Emils Gelgoog Jeager able to outpace them for a time. However, it wasn't long before the gun-toting GM Sniper II and Breakfisters GM Command descended upon him. "Crap.." Emil gulped, firing off rounds from his forearm mounted beam guns. The beam machinegun was already spent. Yazan swerved to the side, responding with machinegun fire that destroyed Emils primary thrusters. The young boy did his best to dodge, but Turbulances beam saber was faster, cutting the Jeager in two. Emil had but a few seconds to reflect on his life, wondering where he had gone wrong. He was but a young boy, tossed into the tornado of war and unable to escape. The ZEF launched a salvo of anti-beam warheads, their ships slowly turniing and retreating into the debris. Federal commanders discussed the possibility of pursuit, but a new enemy had gotten their attention. Bigger than a Salamis class ship, the Byg Zam had entered the arena, the gargantuan mobile armor slowly inching towards Revil and the Birmingham. Dozens of MPCs fired out, destroying another two capital ships instantaneously. "The hell is that.. Return fire!" Revil said, refusing to miss a beat. The Birminghams huge Musai-destroying primary cannon fired, dead set on the target, but the blast bounced harmlessly off the I-field barrier surrounding the Byg Zam. Magellans and Salamis responded in kind, but an entire fleets worth of ordnance was unable to pierce the monster. "Admiral, it seems to be protected by some kind of force field!" The gunnery staff yelled. The Byg Zam fired again, a spherical cocoon of beams showing the EFSF that they were still behind technologically. Amuro watched the carnage, wondering what he should do. There was an aura of hatred about the Byg Zam, something bigger than that of a normal man. He could almost see it, a demon with clenched teeth floating behind the mobile armor. Sleggars Core Booster flew next to the Gundam, latching onto it so the pilots could communicate despite minovsky interference. "We have to do something!" Sleggar yelled. "But.." Amuro responded. The aura had him scared stiff. "No time for buts Amuro, it's time to be a hero!" Sleggar responded. The Core Booster dashed towards the Byg Zam, Amuro following suit, not really knowing what he was doing. They had to destroy it quickly, or Dozle would be able to decimate the Federal fleet. "Hmm, two units coming from below. I'll teach you that this Byg Zam has no blind spots!" Dozle shouted, firing the missiles housed in the Byg Zams feet at Sleggars Core Booster. The warheads impacted the fighter craft, obliterating it and the sideburned fighter pilot in one volley. However, because of Sleggars distraction, Amuro was able to move into melee range with the massive mobile armor, twin beam sabers slicing into and disabling the huge machine. Explosions spattered throughout the cockpit, Dozle getting up out of his chair and grabbing a rifle as he tried to escape. He would not be beaten. Amuro floated away from the exploding Byg Zam, only to see its pilot leap onto the top of the armor and fire a rifle at the Gundam, the 9mm shells pinging harmlessly off the luna titanium armor. The aura was still there, a seething mass of hatred emanating from the man. Dozle refused to give in, refused to stop fighting, not until his last breath had left his body. As he fired his rifle on the Gundam, the Byg Zam exploded, tearing him and his honorable last stand asunder. One by one, the survivng Zeon vessels fled the region, congregating at the edge of Side 2. Veronica Wu would lead the re-organization, now the de-facto highest ranked officer outside Granada or A Bao A Qu. Zeon had dealt the Federation a heavy blow, but would it be enough? The EFSF Grand Fleet remained, and even as the final defenders of Side 3 gathered at A Bao A Qu, the Federation would rename Solomon, removing its aura of fear and death that it had gained. The EFSFs new forward base in this war would be known as Konpei Island. Junichi Ghettid - 9VP Gained, Repairing 3-1 Fatigued 1 Caleb DeGrau - 9VP Gained, Repairing 3-1 Fatigued 1 Emil Myberg - 9VP Gained, Killed in Action Kenshiro Imawono - 11VP Gained, Repairing 4-1 Fatigued 1 Olivia Baklitskaia - 11VP Gained, Repairing 3-1 Fatigued 1 Ray Walker - 9VP Gained, Repairing 2-1 Fatigued 1 Richard Banks - 9VP Gained, Repairing 4-1 Fatigued 1 Anya Wilds - 10VP Gained, Repairing 4-1 Fatigued 1 Felix Mendalshon - 9VP Gained, Repairing 4-1 Injured 2-1 Fatigued 1 Florian Cuyler - 9VP Gained, Repairing 5-1 Injured 3-1 Fatigued 1 Yoritomo Naizen - 10VP Gained, Repairing 3-1 Fatigued 1 Veronica Wu - 10VP Gained, Fatigued 1 Alex Sentara - 12VP Gained, Killed in Action Breakfister Turbulance - 13VP Gained, Repairing 4 Fatigued 1 Arleana Kerrigan - 13VP Gained, Repairing 3 Fatigued 1 Lutz Leon - 14VP Gained, Repairing 4 Fatigued 1 Vaan Kashky - 14VP Gained, Repairing 4 Fatigued 1 Ray Tatsuma - 14VP Gained, Fatigued 1 Evander Creed - 13VP Gained, Fatigued 1, Expert Crew specialization gained |