Chapter 106: A Glimpse of War
Eli had no idea that Char's mindset had already changed.
Right now, he was idly staying beside his EZ-SR.
The White Base was advancing at a slow pace while undergoing a final full-ship inspection.
To wait for the later departure of the central Federal forces, the other fleets had slowed their march.
During this process, Gihren delivered a speech, rallying Zeon's morale with rhetoric about the Federation's taxation, oppression, and the cause of the space-dwelling citizens.
However, General Revil immediately countered, appearing to remind the Federation forces of Zeon's massacres of colony inhabitants, the act of dropping colonies onto Earth, and the atrocities committed in occupied territories.
After both leaders finished their speeches, their propaganda departments continued their heated verbal battle over the communication channels.
But, in reality, almost no one paid attention.
At this point, was there any other choice but to fight for one's own side?
Unless Gihren suddenly ordered the Zeon forces to disarm and surrender.
As the First Combined Fleet led by General Revil closed in, the suffocating atmosphere grew increasingly thick.
Onboard the Salamis-class ships, both the naval personnel and MS pilots fell into a deep silence.
For this operation, the Federation had deployed:
140 Salamis-class cruisers
23 Magellan-class battleships
120 Columbus-class transport ships
Over 5,000 mobile suits
More than 1,000 assault boats and space fighters
An uncountable number of Ball units
In contrast, Zeon's defending forces consisted of:
41 various cruisers
3 Gwazine-class battleships
2 Dolos-class carriers, each capable of carrying 180 MS and equipped with six MEGA particle cannons
Over 3,600 mobile suits
An unknown number of mobile armors
Purely in terms of numbers, the Federation's forces should have had a decisive advantage.
However, Zeon was relying on the asteroid fortress of A Baoa Qu, a long-standing stronghold, whose firepower made it a formidable defensive position.
Under such circumstances, it was natural for MS pilots to worry about their futures.
The current Federation warships were not designed for MS operations, and Pegasus-class ships were too costly to produce in large numbers.
To compensate, the Federation adopted a no-recovery deployment strategy.
In other words, Federation MS units were strapped to the decks of Salamis-class ships, transported to the battlefield, and launched with no means of return.
This was essentially a solution that completely disregarded the pilots' survival.
Fortunately, a last-minute decision was made to use Columbus-class transport ships for front-line resupply. Otherwise, these MS units wouldn't even have a place to reload ammunition or refuel their thrusters.
Given that the Federation's high command treated human lives as an "endless resource," it was inevitable that front-line pilots would sink into silence.
Even so, Revil's speech had, at the very least, stirred their emotions.
Because everyone who had come to this battlefield harbored some level of hatred toward Zeon.
The war began without a clear signal.
The sudden surge in Minovsky particle density was enough for both sides to realize that full-scale combat had commenced!
The Second and Third Combined Fleets, positioned on the left and right flanks, were launching a full-scale frontal assault on A Baoa Qu's N-Zone, using overwhelming numerical superiority to draw Zeon's attention.
Meanwhile, General Revil's First Combined Fleet ascended in altitude, maneuvering toward the rear of A Baoa Qu, preparing for an attack on the S-Zone—toward Zeon's home territory.
White Base's forces, under Colonel Wakkein's command, were closing in on the First Combined Fleet, preparing to join the assault from behind.
"The stars are moving..."
Sitting inside his cockpit, Eli muttered softly.
His cockpit was sealed, his screen remained off, leaving him in complete darkness.
Moreover, his EZ-SR was still inside the hangar—how could he possibly see the outside world?
The "stars" he spoke of were not physical starlight but rather the presence of others sensed through the heightened perception of Newtypes.
Although the First Combined Fleet had not yet entered combat, the Second and Third Combined Fleets were already locked in fierce battle.
From the very first exchange, the fighting was already at its peak.
At 8:10 AM, December 31, UC 0079, the first beams of light flashed across the front lines of A Baoa Qu!
Despite the Federation's superior number of warships, the fortress's beam cannons balanced the scales.
Thus, the Federation once again resorted to its signature strategy.
Republic-class assault boats maneuvered across the battlefield, deploying beam interference membranes to create a buffer zone between the two forces. Then, they launched waves of missiles toward the fortress.
Zeon, of course, responded with missile barrages of their own.
For half an hour, both sides pounded each other with heavy artillery fire.
And now, it had entered the domain of mobile suit combat.
From the fortress, Zeon defenders could see an endless wave of luminous dots charging toward them!
Faced with this overwhelming numerical disparity, some pilots momentarily froze in shock.
But soon, the voices of commanding officers shouting over communications snapped them back to reality, forcing them to drive their mobile suits forward to meet the incoming Federation forces.
Explosions erupted instantly!
Beam spray guns, machine guns, rocket launchers, missile pods—every weapon available was unleashed upon Zeon's mobile suits.
A GM fired off all its shoulder-mounted missiles before charging at a Rick Dom.
Before the pilot could even confirm his hits, a beam pierced straight through his MS.
Gundam-type G-Line Assault Armor—powerful enough to rival the Gundam itself—had already been mass-produced and deployed to Zeon's final defensive line.
But in an instant, this unit was surrounded by four GMs, and concentrated beam fire destroyed it on the spot.
"Good job! Next target—"
Before the squad leader could finish issuing new orders, a Zaku II fired a rocket straight into his GM's chest, instantly annihilating him.
The remaining three squad members immediately turned their suits to target the attacker.
But the Zaku pilot had already charged forward, thermal axe raised high, cutting deep into a GM's cockpit.
Without hesitation, he abandoned the axe, leaving it embedded in the GM's chest.
Beams rained down on his previous position.
"Heh, damn Feddie dogs—"
Before he could finish his sentence, four beams from different directions pierced straight through him.
The Zaku's reactor exploded, adding yet another fiery burst to the battlefield.
Scenes like these were occurring everywhere across the war zone.
Both sides roared in fury, throwing everything they had into the battlefield.
"…Should I call this exhilarating?"
At the heart of the battlefield, standing between the two warring sides, was Death herself.
Her ghostly robes fluttered in the void of space.
Stray rounds and debris passed through her ethereal form, leaving her completely unaffected.
But as this entity—this so-called Death—watched the relentless slaughter unfold, the sorrow in her eyes only grew deeper.