Shin Kidou Senki Gundam W: Frozen Teardrop – Shokuzai no Rinbu Chapter 3.1

Treize File 3

Heero Yuy had no intention of looking at me whatsoever, instead he got out of the frozen capsule and stood up [beside it]. Normally, it would take a whole day before you could stand up after being brought out of stasis. He had an unbelievably strong body. In the freezing air, he wiped the frost from his eyelashes and his breath came out in white puffs as he spoke.

“(Tell me) what’s the status of the situation……”

“Before I do that, there’s something I need to confirm [with you],” said Master Chang as he stood before Heero. He slowly punctuated his words; it sounded like he was confirming (his) will. “You had once said-“

“……”

“’I won’t kill anymore.’”

“…I remember.”

“And that feeling has not changed, has it?”

Heero was quiet for a long time.

…Not kill anymore? I find it hard to believe that those words were spoken by a Gundam pilot. That’s my candid impression. If that’s the case, how can we carry out Operation Mythos? Honestly, I was starting to wonder if we ought to have [bothered] waking him. I think there’s simply no pace on the battlefield for a soldier who will not kill. Duo couldn’t stand the long silence and interrupted with an ‘Oy, oy!’

“Hey, Fat Max, this ain’t what we talked about.”

“Cut it out, Duo,” Father Maxwell reproved without losing his smile.

“Hey, Duo……” Heero said as he turned to face the two Duo Maxwells. However, he only addressed the priestly one. “Who’s that noisy waste of s.p.a.ce?”

“What!”

Before the young Duo could explode with anger, the priest grabbed the boy by the braid and said, “He’s my son.” It looked to me like the priest’s smile was [now] embarra.s.sed.

“Your son…. then there’s no help for it.”

“Ha ha ha, I guess not.”

The priest was laughing but he immediately seemed to pick up on a deeper meaning to Heero’s words.

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?”

You didn’t need hear it twice to realize he probably meant the “good for nothing” part was hereditary. It seemed like the father and son pair weren’t the only ones possessing caustic irony. Heero jerked his head in my direction and spoke.

“And she’s a mini-Sally?”

“I beg your pardon!” I would not tolerate being referred to as ‘mini.’ IT seemed as though this boy Heero Yuy was planning on making every one present into an enemy. Just as I was about to [bive him a piece of my mind,] Master Chang [stopped my retort] and put a hand on my shoulder and gave me a look that read ‘calm down.’

“…… Master.”

“There’s something you [still] have to do…… until you finish that, whatever he says isn’t wrong.”

That might be right. (And) when you thought of how he checked all the data in the files in the same amount of time I’(d had [and had yet to finish] it was clear that Hero was far much more better than I. (To the extent that I wanted to express my dissatisfaction). I still hadn’t read [all about] their pasts and only has a vague understanding of the history. As I wondered how Heero would answer Wufei’s question ‘Will you not kill anyone?’ I put on the virtual visors. The past came flooding through my consciousness. The Hero Yuy there was still just six years old. As for me, I could tell you it was much (better) for my metal health to be where I was.

AC 186 SUMMER

At the L-1 colony cl.u.s.ter s.p.a.ce port, Treize Khushreanada was grasping for strategies and tactic for the moon. The difference between a victory or defeat was most likely mobile power. It would be down to the ability of the commanders leading each corps to gain control of that mobility.

Gravity one sixth of that on Earth.

The overly thin atmosphere.

The vast and boundless lunar oceans.

If this was the battlefield, then a suit with even more mobility than the nearly perfect Leo III (Chimera) would be necessary. The new (type) mobile s.p.a.ce fighter ‘Greif’ (Leo IV). The OZ Specials were astonished at the near perfection of the suit. Overlooking the production costs, they far exceeded the ma.s.s production (level), certainly it was not an exaggeration to say that it was a compilation of [all the previous] Leos’ special specifications. When Seis Clark, the head engineer in charge of the (manufacture design/plans) saw the ‘Greif’ he flew into a burning rage.

“Isn’t this just the Tall Geese?” What had been the point of lowering production costs he surely wondered. “No, I absolutely cannot let this fly.” He was so resentful that he resigned as OZ’s head engineer in charge of the mobile suit print production. [He didn’t quit] because they where painted white, the characteristic color of the OZ Specials. In addition to having the Leo’s heavy artillery and the Aries’ high flight speeds, there were two beam sabers stores on the shoulders for use in close-quarters combat and. like the Aries, it was equipped with high output burners. Also, there was a canon equal to the Tragos’ mid-range one set in the right shoulder and a disc shaped s.h.i.+eld as standard equipment. By installing mid-range canons in both shoulders, the suits offence could be stronger; rifle, beam rifle, and more could be interchanged and it would be possible to stand out prominently on the front line. This [kind of] efficiency allowed the Greif to keep up in any kind of battle situation.

“If you were going to do all that, you’d have been better off just ma.s.s producing Tall Geeses from the start!” Seis Clark took pride in having successfully ma.s.s producing the Leo. Having the very foundation of that pride overthrow was the equivalent of negate his entire existence. If he was angry, it was for his jealousy.

However…

The Greif was, in Treize’s mind, both a throwback to the Tall Geese and their chance to win this war. It was down to a question of pilots. The moon’s surrounds were quite nearly a vacuum. Compared to fighting on earth, the senses were different. Treize taught [his cadets the importance of] the different kinds of ‘intuition: sensing the subtle distances between oneself and the enemy; understand unique ‘air’ of the battlefield; having the strength of mind to heighted one’s concentration even while under extreme stress. In order to obtain that, it was crucial to eradicate all hesitation in battle. That had been accomplished on Earth, but in s.p.a.ce, the story was somewhat different. As a matter of course, depth perception, the sense of touch, and concentration all dropped. The difference in gravity and atmospheric density changed the senses into something wholly different. Where as the enemy – the Anti-Alliance- by dint of having lived for an extended period of time on the moon surely had developed s.p.a.ce senses. Of course the Greif was loaded with the latest enemy-searching equipment but the battlefield wasn’t quite slack enough to mean that alone would be enough to fight [well in s.p.a.ce:. The most pressing issue for the Specials was to rid themselves of their sense of Earth’s gravity as soon as possible and acclimate to the change in gravity.

General Million’s causing the Marius Plant to vanish was an enormous strategic gaffe, yet tactically, it was greatly helpful. He had eliminated the worry over the enemy’s [ability to use the plant to create more mobile suites and thereby the] ability to increase their power. At that juncture, they had the leisure of choosing their options: attack or defend. (You could say) they received a grace period in which they could consider which option to pursue. For the young soldiers of the Specials, who had been pus.h.i.+ng themselves on this expedition [to the moon], they recovered from two days worth of pains caused by s.p.a.ce travel and could rest up @for the coming battle].

Treize set the date for their lunar landing to be three days away.

“For the next three days, [I want] every one of you to develop your s.p.a.ce senses,” Treize ordered.

“What will we do if the rebel army attacks the lunar base in the next three days?” asked cadet Izumi.

“Then [I suppose] you should be prepared to scramble.” In typical Treize fas.h.i.+on, his views were a foreshadowing of the tides of war [to come].

“We land on the moon in three days, that has not changes……” Treize looked at the doubtful faces of his cadets and supplements, “Men, with the Marius Plant blown up, this war has already been lost…… and our goal is not to control the rebels, nor should you worry about rescuing the lunar base.” No one had any questions. What, then, were they supposed to do? Why, then, were they going to fight? They had already learned the answer to those questions.

“Take action as you deem appropriate.”

“For the future soldiers!”

This was their absolute consciousness.

Treize added, “I pray for your successful training (lit: discipline). Dismissed.”

At this point, the full forces of the Cosmo Arma at the lunar base consisted of the following: 50 main force mobile suit, Chimera (Leo II); 5 Tragos (model II for lunar battle); 5 s.p.a.ce fighters. Against this, the Anti-Alliance had the giant lunar battles.h.i.+p Sagittarius and to this, their fire power included no less than 80 new Chimera (Leo III). Even with Treize and the Specials joining in with 25 Greifs (Leo IV), empirically, the ratio (of military power) stood at 50 against 80. If the Anti-Alliance’s Sagittarius [was counted as being] 50 mobile suits, the Cosmo Arma was at an overwhelming disadvantage of 50:30.

Suppose the Anti-Alliance army did attack the lunar base before Treize's arrival, they most surely would have won. Anyone would think it was an honor to be the one who conquered the moon. The soldiers in the resistance movement were particularly strong in promoting doing just that kind of thinking. The laborers, on the other hand, were skeptical and were weak-kneed.

That was a topic of much daily discussion, in the briefing room aboard the Sagittarius, which was anch.o.r.ed in the Ocean of Storms, the debate continued between the soldiers and the laborers.

“We ought to negotiate for peace.”

“We ought to nit the Silent Sea!”

“No objections!”

“There’s no doubt we would win!”

Said the soldiers in strong tones.

“And then?” Commander Artemis, who normally did not partake in the discussion, asked. “After winning, what do you plan to do?”

“Obviously, we’re going to…” For a moment, the soldiers couldn’t finish the statement. Actually, nothing had been decided. “Our determination—we’ll make the Alliance acknowledge s.p.a.ce’s independence!”

“With just a Sagittarius and some Chimera (lit: with marksmen and boys)?”

“That’s plenty!” The young soldiers took to their feet. Now, they were just retorting.

“This is plenty of fighting power to drive the Alliance out of every colony.”

“If you bluff,” said Artemis with a deep sigh.

“Bluff?”

“You are familiar with poker? The card game?”

“We’re not talking about cards! We’re talking about war!”

“Yes, this is war, so……”

“Miss Artemis, please finish what you were saying. Tell us what we should do from here on out.” The laborers wished from the bottom of their hearts that the front line commander would be their guide. Artemis, however, spread her hands wide as she shrugged and all she said was “Well…..”

Someone from the resistance spoke up, “According to information from an ally, it looks like the OZ Specials have already arrived in the area of the L-1 colony……” The briefing room [exploded] in an uproar. They couldn’t maintain their isolation on the moon. The Specials had arrived for reinforcements and that meant there was the distinct possibility the Alliance would send more reinforcements from Earth. They needed the first ticket out of there. If they couldn’t decide, the Chimera ammunition, the soldiers’ rations, even purifying the very air they were breathing would become endangered. The Sagittarius was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with people being controlled by their impatience.

Treize had expected that situation. That was why he would land on the moon in three days [and not immediately]. It was a mere two days until their arrival, yet the battles.h.i.+p Sagittarius did not move. That alone was a basis [for planning as Treize had], but it became more than sufficient proof. The enemy was not united. That was how Treize interpreted it. Even if he were somehow wrong in that interpretation, and the Anti-Alliance opened hostiles first, Treize had relayed that they would immediately surrender to the Cosmo Arma base at the Silent Sea. If the base was taken over by the Anti-Alliance, then Treize could use the Anti-Alliance people at the base as a way to make a starting point to being cooperation between the s.p.a.ce colonies. There was also the possibility they could declare their independence from the Alliance. [As he thought about his second option] and the increased difficulties became readily apparent. The colonies close to the moon, L-1 and L-2, would first get armed then compete a protective/defensive line to the lunar base and the war of independence against the earth-based Alliance would unfold and there was no doubt that ultimately, they would be forced into a besieged war at the lunar base. It was a big gamble. It couldn’t be said for sure if Treize had foreseen events to that extent, but he thought of almost the same thing. If that weren’t Treize’s predictions, if there wasn’t any meaning to controlling the lunar base, even an average commander could make that decision. In fact, Artemis objected to controlling the base and the laborers also, who had spent much time on the moon, had no proof that taking over the base would put freedom in their hands. If it was possible, the laborers should have been trying to get off the moon. And all the more so with the OZ Specials en route. They could only imagine what kind of abilities the new Grifs the Specials were piloting had, but as far as mobile suit development went, due to their similar experiences, the laborers knew better than most what tremendous innovations could occur in a matter of months.

There was a large lounge at the L-1 colony cl.u.s.ter s.p.a.ceport; there was a restaurant where one could enjoy a light meal while gazing at the beauty of s.p.a.ce from the windows. Luretia and Zechs were seated by the window and drinking coffee.

“s.p.a.ce is beautifu, isn’t it Zechs…..” Even from there, one could see the summer constellations.

“In that galaxy, there’s the Milk Dipper, it’s [part of the constellation] Sagittarius…… you can see it more clearly [here] than you can from Earth.” It made the innocent girl’s face glow.

“There’s believed to be a black hose in the center of a star in Sagittarius…… Everything – even light- gets swallowed by the darkness…… but, there isn’t really anything there, right?”

“……”
Zechs didn’t know what Lucretia was trying to say.

“In a world without light, there is nothing…… or [at least] I should say nothing can be seen.”

Lucretia didn’t reply to that, she just sighed, elbows on the table and looking to the side [out the window]. “You can’t see what’s really important with your eyes,” she kept looking out the window. Zechs took up hos stone cold coffee and said, “Lucretia…… you know a lot about the stars.” So saying, he swallowed the last of his cold coffee. Putting down the cup, he turned to face her head on.

“Yes… I want to know all about the stars. Like you, Zechs, The Star Prince [Little Prince]. I want to know all about you, too,” she said looking at his eyes.

“The Star Prince, hmm.”

A m.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.tic smile played on Zechs’ slips. On a very small planet, there lived a lonely prince and a single rose bloom. Zechs’ knew of Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s novel.

“Tell me about it.”

“Really, *you* can’t see wah’t really important with your eyes, Zechs Merquise.”

“You’re a strange one, Lucretia Noin.”

Many suppose it was around this time that Lucretia Noin fell in love with Zechs Merquise. However, there were doubts as to whether she knew his real ident.i.ty. It was also estimated that their deeply nuanced conversation was [due to] Lucretia’s unique intuition in action.

Away from those seats, at the bar, was another couple [talking] over a dry martini and a gin tonic. The man was Odin Lowe and the woman was Aoi Clark, mother of the six-year old boy code-named Heero Yuy.

“Head Engineer Seis is looking well.”

“He’s left OZ also, seems like he’s going to be the Alliance’s advising engineer…… seems like he wasn’t very keen on the Greif’s development.”

“So that’s why he’s doing surveillance on the mission?”

“Well, that’s……”

“You only ever looked like an average mom and son.”

Now, she was Seis’ wife, but in reality, that was not certain. That was because she was a secret agent working for OZ.

“I remember colony hopping with you …… those were the days.”

“Isn’t it about time for you to retire?”

“And the kid is already six, to.”

“He’s looking well, that’s what’s important.”

“You feel a little responsible, don’t you.”

“I was against it,” Odin finished his gin tonic.

“I wanted to have your child that is,” muttered Aoi as she shook her gla.s.s and make the olive roll around.

“But if you’re always doing OZ, what about the boy?”

“I know, but it’s hard……” she sighed deeply. “Anyway, you were the one to leak Alliance information to Artemis, right?”

“Wasn’t it your husband who was ignoring the laborers?”

“That was Tsubarov…… he [Seis?] was off that project nearly from the start.”

“Oh, really.”

Tsubarov who would later go on to develop a most abominable pilot-les weapon, was licking the would of demotion and fell victim to a deep mistrust of his fellow man. Since the demotion, he had probably spent the ensuing ten years using the feelings of jealousy and revenge he harbored to design the mobile dolls. It could even be described as a terrible obsession. The bartender stood before them and asked if they wanted another drink.

“Another one of these,” Aoi ordered before turning back to Odin. “Why did you become a free agent?” Or haven’t you gotten over *that* yet?”

“Don’t.”

“That’s it, isn’t it.”

“That happened more than a decade ago.”

“Breaking up with me, it was because of that.”

“……”

“But it wasn’t an OZ order, it was Septum from the Cosmo Arma—“

“Same difference,” Odin said, cutting her off. “I was a big f.u.c.king idiot and it was still me that changed the course of history for the worse.” Their fresh gin and tonic and martini arrived then.

“Enjoy,” said the bartender before he retreated to the rear of the bar.

“The client this time is someone from the colonies, right?”

“b.u.t.t out, that’s business between me and them.”

“Isn’t that a little strange?” Aoi slammed down her entire martini. “The Marius Plant revolt and sending Artemis, the timing is too good.” Aoi was drunk. But the drink served to sharpen her [already] keen senses. “Of course, the whole point was to destroy Marius Hills Hall.” The revelation made her martini-eyes eyes flash. “Everybody knew Million would use that canon.”

“The colony technicians have succeeded in smelting that new alloy,” Odin uttered as he looked at the foam dissipating in his gin tonic. “I couldn’t let that fall into OZ or the Alliance’s hands.”

Aoi smiled, fascinated. “You aren’t saying that they are planning to make a gundanium mobile suit, are you?”

Their conversation didn’t progress past that point. Aoi had spoken half joking but [in truth] the colony scientists really were attempting to construct a mobile suit—a Gundam—from the gundanium alloy. And it was ironic that it would be their son who would pilot one of them.

These three days

The Anti0Alliance soldiers had devoted themselves to maneuver drills. They had the Specials beat when it came to experience in lunar battle as well as with their formidable numbers: eighty Chimera and the Sagittarius. These, in Commander Artemis’ head thought up her battle formation for certain victory. Experience on the battle field was valuable, but it was not strictly necessary. The enemy was not (limited to) attacking with identical battle tactics. The enemy was not expected to fight with the same weapons. The Anti Alliance soldiers, however, a.s.sumed an air of superiority that bordered on blind faith.

“Whatever they attack us with, it will be their pilots’ first time [in those suits] and they won’t be familiar with the battlefield! By comparison, we’re all experienced Chimera pilots! There’s no doubt we have the advantage!”

It seemed both the soldiers and the laborers shared this opinion. In the previous battle, they had gone from 100 down to 80 Chimera but in making the battle formation, a change from an eight-point to a six-point star was of negligible difference. Though they had unwavering faith in their twenty search and destroy Chimera piloted by ace pilots, the six commanders at the head of six units that contained ten mobile suits a piece were a little uneasy. Artemis believed that as long as they couldn’t wipe out that small measure of worry, it wouldn’t be possible to win. As their opponent was Treize Khushreanada leading the Specials, there was no mistaking that leaders.h.i.+p was the most important point [for the Anti Alliance to consider]. Also, she a.s.sumed Treize would open hostilities with a surprise attack that played up the characteristic of the highly mobile Greif and that would lead to a breakdown in the command system whereby they would [have to ] move according to their own judgment which would then destroy their star formation. The danger of complete decimation grew higher. The Anti-Alliance, however, was a medley of soldiers and laborers and so their (consciousness) and purpose were dissimilar. It would be almost impossible to lead [them]. Artemis chose sic of the twenty search and destroy ace pilots and entrusted them with the command of six units. They, the search and destroy team, were primarily good at taking solitary action: so to lead a corps of nine others was no small burden they were expected to bear. Nonetheless, Artemis was adamant in her volition [to have them lead the corps]. At the very least, if they failed to gain a victory in the lunar battle, it was self evident that any further strategies wouldn’t [stand a chance].

Three days later, the OZ Specials arrived at the Silent Sea Cosmos Arma base where they joined with the Alliance but did not make any immediate moves.

There was no surprise attack. Artemis was relieved. If Treize was considering doing as General Million had and approaching the lunar battle as a full scale war, then she could counter with the same formation as before. To fight on the moon, being comfortable with the one-sixth gravity was a prerequisite. Thinking (backward) from that, it was quite understandable to choose full on war over a surprise attack. In that case, the six selected ace pilots would return to their original search and destroy corps and they could take on the enemy with the protective double star formation. Artemis believed that selection was the most strategic means.

She was rather conscious of Treize. Simply put, she was *too* conscious of him. That made her feel close to [being in a] command potion from which victory could be gained merely at the effective employment soldiers who were practically laymen. At some point, it evolved into a rivalry. However, that was not truly the case. As she had done with General Million Artemis studied her opponent’s character and defensive tendencies before the battle as per usual.

Familiarity with one’s enemy saves you one hundred battles.

That was a saying she kept close to her heart. Meanwhile Treize shoed no interest in the opposing commander and likely didn’t even know Artemis’ name. And the difference between these two worthy of mention was [their confidence in the face of this query]: Do I trust my troops? Artemis was dead set in thinking of soldiers as pieces on a chess board or shogi board where as Treize respected each soldier as a person and had come to believe in entrusting everything to their volition to fight. At the time, Van Khushrenada was paying a visit to the medical facilities in the L-1 colony cl.u.s.ter. The official reason was to make a plan of action concerning the continuing spread of a new virus on the L-2 colony which was situated between L-1 and the moon. With the death rate over 40% and the infection rate similarly high, it was a very dangerous virus. Civilians called it the “colony cold.” If a vaccine wasn’t made and distributed immediately, it would become a crisis. Brilliant medical staff from the former Cinq kingdom had defected to the health care facilities on the L-1 colony.

“Now, we can only depend upon them.” Van promised to provide funds and implored them to put a priority upon [making] the life-saving vaccine.

One doctor commented, “On the one hand, you Romefeller people are turning a profit on making murder weapons and on the other, you sued that money to save lives.” That certainly was a contradiction.

“[Spare me the irony.] We want to help the people in s.p.a.ce. Please help.” The medical staff accepted from a humanitarian point of view. They completed the vaccine and immediately distributed it to the L-2 colony cl.u.s.ter.

Incidentally, around this time a six-year old Duo Maxwell appeared on V08744 in the L-2 colony cl.u.s.ter and met a boy named Solo. Solo had contracted this new virus and Duo had stolen the vaccination from a medical facility. He gave it to Solo, but apparently he had been too late and Solo died not long after. Duo should have also been exposed to the virus, but he did not fall ill. After Solo’s death, Duo a.s.sumed the name ‘Duo’ with the intent that he and Solo would always be remembered.

Van went to visit Angelina. This was the primary reason he had gone into s.p.a.ce. He had wanted to see his beloved other’s face.

“You’re looking well.”

“Thanks to Cinq……” Angelina was now thirty four years old. Her (former) beauty had not faded but her voice was withered and it was as weak as it was sad to hear. “The air here seems to agree with me.” Further, with the lengthy hospitalization had robbed her legs of their strength and her ability to walk on her own or even to stand up.

“Is that right?”

“Lately, you haven’t been dropping in on your way home from school.”

“Pardon?”

If you weren’t paying close attention, everything seemed normal; however, it seemed that Angelina was convinced that she was still at the Cinq National hospital.

“Excuse me……”

“The stars are so pretty……” Her eyes were vacant. Directly across from the window as another wing of the hospital and s.p.a.ce stretched out beyond the transparent roof (there).

“But night is so long……” Van wiped the corners of his eyes covertly so as not to draw Angelina’s attention. Van couldn’t help but shed a few tears at seeing his beloved mother like that.

“How is Treize?”

“Yes, now he is heading to the moon.”

“Is that so……”

Van thought of his brother. Treize would never cry at times like these. He had a strong will and determination.

“He’s the hero who will unite Earth and s.p.a.ce.”

“That’s right.”

“And that time will be as (elegant) as an (ice floe).”

“Ha ha ha, no need to state the obvious.”

Two days had pa.s.sed since Treize had joined the Cosmo Arma; they made their first sortie from the Silent Sea base. The Specials soldiers had not yet gotten accustomed to the moon’s gravity. Nevertheless, Treize ordered them to attack.

“We’ve acquired more than sufficient senses…… believe in our victory.”

“Yes, sir!”

The soldiers believe in their victory, or rather, they believed in Treize. They advanced calmly. For certain they weren’t in anything remotely resembling a formation. Treize’s why Greif stood at the head and the remaining troops followed behind. Being the flags.h.i.+p, Treize’s Greif had a blue crest affixed to its head. There after, white and blue would become his (symbolic) colors—they were somehow reminiscent of the color of ice floes. The next line of suits was the five Tragos II which were followed by three Chimera each. Behind the Chimera were five companies of five Greifs each all marching in file. They advanced exactly as an infantry of tanks form last century would and as slowly as if they possessed only as much mobility.

When she saw that sight, Artemis’ first impression was Could our opponent be freighted of us? The real question was whether or not to destroy all forty five machines instantly using the Sagittarius’ giant beam canon. The one difficulty lie in the distance. [A shot from] the beam canon would travel in a straight line. [If the target was too far away] it would be difficult to hit even on level ground and near impossible on the moon with the acute [curvature (lit: slope)] of the ground. Unlike battle on Earth, [the moon] should be thought of as spherical rather than level. [The moon had] the surface area [equivalent to that of] Africa and Australia combined. Its diameter was one quarter that of Earth’s. That was how small the moon was.

“Aha……” said Artemis as she understood Treize’s intent. She predicted his plan (of attack) was to use a slow advance to make her fire the canon then attack while she waited the lengthy requisite amount of time needed for the canon to recharge. “But I’m not going to bite.”

Treize made the forward-most line of Tragos halt. They were still in a position from which they could not see their opponents.

“Well, it’s almost time to open hostilities,” he said comfortably. He had an elegant nuance that seemed on par with a man about to enjoy a cup of afternoon tea. Characteristically, at that time, not a single soldier among the Specials was nervous. Zechs spoke to the four men under his command about the Greif’s high performance. Lucretia admired the beauty of Earth as seen from the moon. Izumi expounded upon the brilliance of the attack plan Treize had drafted. Solac cheerily told [everyone] how to survive the battlefield. Elv was in a unit of four suits [note: he only got four suits to command because Treize's at the head] and under direct control of Treize. Elv ordered his three subordinates to consider it their job to protect Treize at all costs. Everyone was calm. They had already been defeated. With all the soldiers [operating under that a.s.sumption], they were freed from nerves and understood precisely what they ought to do. They showed not even the lead indication of hesitancy even as they stood before the heavy fire power of the enemy’s Chimeras and a Sagittarius.

Both camps stood unmoving, facing each other over the long distance. Both sides’ formations were complete but neither showed any inclination to move.

Suddenly, five s.p.a.ce fighters came flying in. The last of the Cosmo Arma’s forces were putting in an appearance, too. However, those fighters cut low across the area stretching between the two camps and flew off without making any attack. It all occurred in a moment. The Anti Alliance Chimeras just stood at the ready and neatiehr intercepted for fired [at the enemy]. It was exactly as if their flight had drawn a centerline down a sports field.

From the bridge of the Sagittarius, Artemis couldn’t understand the fighters’ incomprehensible crossing.

“What was that for?”

“Was that supposed to denote the opening of the battle?” an aide muttered that unlikelihood.

“It couldn’t be that.”

But Treize then ordered the Tragos to attack as if he had been waiting [for the fighters]. From that distance, they couldn’t possibly reach the enemy Chimera.

“Finally!” Artemis gave an easy smile. Before, during the capture of Mogadishu, Treize’s battle plan was to first send Aries suits to start the confusion, then let the Tragos attack from mid-distance support. Now, there was nothing in the way of military gains but his actions seemed far too similar.

“Even if it’s not effective, [his] actions have a touch of jinx and that has the benefit of elevating [their] fighting spirit.” Considering Treize’s n.o.ble birth, [his actions] could easily be taken as a chivalrous courtesy prior to the start of battle. The act of the fighters drawing a centerline could also be interpreted as [being like] the rules for a sport or duel. The Tragos second round of fire also failed completely to reach [their targets].

“Generic [?!] pointless firing,” the aide sneered. “Shall we return fire?”

“Yes……” Treize should have already been aware of Artemis’ formation. “They know what we’re doing.” If they fired, [Treize] could read their moves. “That’s interesting,” she smiled with fascination. In chess, the p.a.w.ns were the first to move. He was aiming to make a gamti (this is a standard move in chess. It’s a ove where in sacrificing a p.a.w.n, a profitable opening is gained.)

“Forward Chimera units 01, 02, 03 move forward! Flyin squadrons Alpha and Bravo, fall in behind the third unit!”

The front half of the formation, forty chimera, moved out. The front line of five Tragos they were facing retreaded as one.

“#Enemy front line retreating!” Announced an operator.

“Ha! They’re afraid of us!” As the aide’s laugh filled her ears, Artemis could not conceal a touch of unease.

Something’s off.

With that thought, the Sagittarius and remaining troops moved out in the usual way and their formation returned to its original shape.

“What about firing the beam canon?”

“We’re not at 20% destruction rate.” The enemy continued to retreat further and further. Aremis thought it was suspicious that the man known as Treize Khushrenada would be this pa.s.sive in battle,

“]Beam] projected effectiveness has dropped to 15%.” The Anti Alliance’s vanguard of Chimera until 01 and the following Alpha and Bravo units continued to advance. The Sagittarius (desperately) worked to get into the lead.

“Enemy movement?”

“The five Tragos are still retreating.”

Artemis [let out a surprised puff of air,] “Did you say five Tragos?” They had overlooked something very big. “Where did Treize’s white suit go?”

“…… we cannot confirm,” the aide said with a faint smile. “[He is n.o.bility afterall] wouldn’t he have fled to the rear, behind all the troops.”

“I don’t speak ‘stupid’.” Treize was not that much of a coward. “It’s a trap!”

Thirty of the advancing Chimera had already reached the centerline. “All troops halt! All troops halt!” The explosion occurred just as the command was given. Artemis couldn’t immediately understand what happened. The explosives had occurred when the Chimera had stepped on landmines.

“Land mines?”

“When in the world did they…?”STARTED USING PINK/ORANGE HERE Under the circ.u.mstances, anyone would be restless.

It was then. Artemis realized. When the five fighters had cut between both camps, anti-MS land mines had been set. They were spray style or maybe s.p.a.ce mines ((magnetically or sonically activated, [and both] of them were suitable for use on the moon)). Thick billows of smoke impeded their vision.

We [literally] walked right into this. Artemis bit her lip in vexation. However--

"All units, return to the Sagittarius! Spread out 30 degrees to the right! Their main fire power ought to come from the side."

Nevertheless, reading the only way next to calmness was only to be expected. As long as there was a mine field between them, the enemy could not attack them from the front. However, with the growing smoke screen, the danger increased. The wind-less moon ensured it would not quickly be blown away.

"Get the beam canon ready to fire on my order!"

If er chance the Greifs flew past the mine field and came in from the front, then she could use the beam canon to annihilate them in one fell swoop. "Flying squadron, maintain the inner formation!" And then she carefully gave orders to the bridge operator on the Sagittarius in no uncertain terms: "Take plenty of precaution with the enemy's movements! As soon as you notice a change on the radar or heat detectors, notify me immediately!" Artemis had until then been standing as she directed the troops when she heard this: "Damage report."

"20 Chimera unable to fight." There was no time to regroups. The six-point star using sixty Chimeras could only turn into a five-point star with fifty Chimeras. Despite the loss, they still had twice the firepower the enemy had.

"The problem is will they come from the right or from the left?" [That was] the direction from which their main fire power the Greifs would come attacking. In that situation, it was difficult to predict if the twenty five suits would divide into two arms. If the enemy attacked from both sides with some ten-odd suits [to each arm], each of them would be attacked.

"Left," she first predicted. As their revious battle had proven, the left side was easier to attack depending on the formation. "It might be the right." She didn't want to be outwitted. That was Artemis' sense. As a front line commander, it was difficult to decide on one of the choices presented. This was exactly one of those times. "Several heat readings in the front!" It seemed unthinkable. "Fire the beam canon!" Artemis ordered reflexively. The Sagittarius fired the huge bean canon. However, [the target turned out to be] sh.e.l.ls the five Tragos had fired. THey had aimed at far off heaps of sc.r.a.p and played their trump card far too early. The tiny hesitation lead to a huge mistake. While she was vacillating between left and right there had been a change from the front-- a direction from which she a.s.sumed nothing would happen-- and reacted with her gut instinct.

I failed.

Artemis who had both depth of preparation and astuteness, deemed herself a failure. This could not be called incompetence; however, a mistake is a mistake.

What's done is done.

She thought but took immediate action. This served as proof that she was no mediocre commander.

"Widen the perimeter of the heat detectors!" It was clear as day that the enemy would attack now that they had fired their canon. The problem was where would they come from. The right? The left? If the enemy mobile suits were standing on the ground, it would be difficult to detect them with radar. There was interference from the jagged craters. (However,) they would use the heat field detectors. Temperatures at the lunar surface exceeded 100 degrees celsius but were fairly uniform. Unlike the Earth, mobile suits were identified by the points of low temperature emitted from the cooled c.o.c.kpits and places where there were several cl.u.s.ters of points of high fusion thermal energy. Artemis shuddered when she confirmed those [2] responses on the central monitor.

"How stupid..."

The enemy's reading showed just twenty machines at the opposing front line. There were probably five Tragos and fifteen Chimera. The smoke started clearing and the field of vision widened.

"Where are the Greifs?"

Thinking of all the mobility the Greif had and she could predict they would make a big detour. Yet however superior the Greif's mobility might be, it was inconceivable that they should leave the moon let alone the Sea of Storms.

"Above?!"

Overhead, the Greif would be outside the range of the [Artemis'] enemy detection [devices]. They could be air-born in s.p.a.ce at speeds of greater than 2.4 Km/second. That was the maximum speed that could be attained on the moon. If they continued at that speed, they would be pulled into Earth's gravitational field. For all that the Greif was the newest, best mobile suit, once it was s.p.a.ce-born, it was difficult to believe it possessed the (surprising) propulsion to return again to solid ground.

"The craters' shadows......"

That was conceivable. There was an infinite number of craters on the moon. That 外緑部 could be called a wall tens of meters high and there was no reason it couldn't also be at the Sea of Storms. However, it was not possible to check each and every one for enemies. What's more, the battle would be over by the time the Sagittarius' huge canon recharged. It was time for Treize to come attack. This was the time that Treize and twenty five Greifs would come attacking-- it felt like an endless instant. Artemis' sixth sense kicked in.

"They're coming!" And her intuition did not miss the mark. Even so, she didn't simply give orders. "But where are they coming from?"

"[Enemy suits] have been detected, they are approaching at high speed from the rear."

"Behind us?!" She turned around without conscious thought. [Treize's move] had far and away exceeded Artemis' prediction. The Specials' Greif troops, as lead by Treize, had made a circuit of the moon, starting at their front lines and going all the way around to attack from right behind them. The concept of the battlefield had until [that moment] always been thought of [exclusively] in two dimensions. Air force strategies or submarine strategies thought in three dimensions, but the moon was a globe and it's area was fine and in the history of war tactics and strategies there had been not one example of the moon being treated as a three dimensional battlefield (lit: object).

"No......" Artemis was struck dumb by that daring [move]. However, she wasn't just any commander. Even as she was. .h.i.t by her unpreparedness, she didn't stop moving.

"All troops, a.s.semble with the zero-six unit," and at the same time, "Turn the canon 180 degrees!" Order after order came. The energy charge [for the canon] however was not done. "Timing this will decide (lit: separate) the fight......" A bad feeling ran through the back of Artemis' mind.

We might loose this one.

"All units, attack! Target: enemy Sagittarius!"

Treize issued the command. Twenty five Greifs concentrated their fire on the 06 Chimera unit that stood with their backs to them. The limit of firepower at that battlefield was at a ration of 25:10. In an instant, the 06 unit received an annihilating blow.

"Main battery, change angle to 120 degrees."

"Unit 06 is taking a beating!"

"130 seconds until the canon is recharged."

Artemis took in the operators' reports one after the other and in hear heart lamented.

More than two minutes to go......

She wanted time.

"Get the Sagittarius away from the front! Prepare to fire the canon as soon as it is fully charged!"

"Firing wile moving will cost us accuracy!"

"Forget about accuracy! Just fire it!" Under these (dumpling) conditions, that beam would hit the enemy regardless of its aim and cause ma.s.sive damage. Then they would break through to return to the front, turn, and recoup their losses in the counter attack; that was the only counter attack she could think of.

"Just hold on [a little longer], boys." On Artemis' orders, twenty Chimera of the 04 and 05 units covering the Sagittarius back only stood at a ratio of 20:25 against the Specials' firepower. However, the Greifs were spewing fire with their midrange guns and before the units arrived, they sustained damage. Seconds later, the flying squadrons with the ace pilots-- [units] Charlie and Delta-- arrived. The twenty five Greifs were relatively unharmed but the ace pilots in the Chimeras were not easy to shoot down. The valiant Chimeras forced the Greifs to retreat little by little. However, Zechs' unit and Solak's unit took the lead (and supported them from there). Both units' Greifs were equipped with beam sabers for use in close-quarters combat. Characteristically, the Greif could respond in close-quarter or mobile battle but it lacked the (decision power to knock out the enemy). Against the Chimera which, despite its characteristic armor ideal for protection and the destructive power of its arms, had poor aim and was ill suited for battle at close range. Zechs decided the fight was here. He threw away his rifle which had run out of ammo, grabbed hold of the saber with both hands and holding it above his head, began to attack.

"Don't worry about your back! Just keep moving forward and attack!"

"Yes, sir!" Solak was excited by what he saw, "Hey, Zechs! Wait for us!"

"Come on!"

Hearing his men's (reliable) answer, he [Solak, who you will recall is one of the cadets leading a unit of MS] also threw aside his midrange gun ((never mind he still had ammunition left)) and took up both of his sabers to join in the battle. Considering the abilities of the Greif and Chimera, it would have been enormously effective to fight one-on-one. In that war of attrition, however, not one person on the field considered it. The situation was tense. Both sides were putting out everything they had.

"Go! Keep pus.h.i.+ng them!"

"Don't retreat! This is the line between life and death!"

The effect of close-quarters battle with Zechs' unit was that the Charlie and Delta units were retreating. Here, a path opened up that lead straight to the Sagittarius.

"Come!"

It was Treize's suit that came flying in.

"Professor Treize!" Elv's unit of four (desperately came in) to fortify [their teacher's] flanks. Elv's suit became as a s.h.i.+eld for Treize and served to protect him from fire from the Sagittarius. The other three followed suit and, likewise, served as defense [for Treize].

"Be on guard! We will protect Professor Treize!"

Elv's unit's earnestness was probably also loyalty to the man himself. Essentially, however, the Specials did not act with such emotion.

Move as you see fit!
For the future soldiers!

Elv's unit understood what they had to do. What Treize was going to do; that their protection and support were integral in this mission.

"We the Specials shall endure!"

"Main canon (has been) charged!" The operator yelled. "(We ill) fire the canon!"

"If you could just hang on for ten more seconds," muttered Artemis.

In the face of the giant oncoming beam, Treize's Greif leveled its gun in a flash and opened fire without hesitation. It was an excellent shot; a direct hit on the giant beam canon.

"This is Treize Khushrenada. I am confirming the destruction of the enemy's main firepower." He heard the soldiers'' cheers. In a cool voice, Treize said, "My good students have done me a kindness."

With that single hit, the Sagittarius was silenced. The explosion of the beam canon [caused] the stored energy to connect with the main engine and shut it down. It would take [well over ten] minutes for the Sagittarius to get back online and retreat using [back up generator] power. The blackout from the power outage caused a panic on the bridge. Yet Artemis had a smile playing about her lips.

"Hmm, looks like we got a little carried away......" That embarra.s.sed smile was true to her old self.

Treize's suit and Elv's unit backed away from the Sagittarius immediately. They had taken too much enemy fire and had to cool off their armor. As soon as they had vacated the spot, Lucretia and Izumi's units went up to the Sagittarius and took out one (main battery) after another.

"We are protecting Earth's light."

"Lucretia, this fight-- we won, right?"

"Yes, but we must not be careless, Izumi." In no time, the battle turned into a melee where one could not tell friend from foe. Into the battlefield, with all its confusion, rushed the Alpha and Bravo flying squadrons. Following them were the 02 and 03 Chimera units. And that brought together the entire forces from both camps. The (confused battle) was even further purred on.

As the ALpha and Bravo units made to attack Treize and Elv's unit, they were confronted by Zechs's and Solak's units. Wen units 02 and 03 attacked Lucretia's and Izumi's units, Treize and Elv's units came to their aid, firing even as they maintained their distance [presumably to continue to allow their suits to cool off]. As the remains of units 04 and 05 went round to help, Zechs's and Solak's units spearheaded them with bullet fire. It was at that stage of the game that both Zechs and Solak alone skillfully wielded their beam sabers against the Alpha and Bravo units and overwhelmed them with difficult close-quarters combat. Supple defense strategies and the attack spreading out like waves. The Specials managed both at the same time. Or more precisely, they changed offense and defense (at the same time). That was just how fast they could deal with [battle]. Under those circ.u.mstances, despite the number of fighters being roughly the same, the Specials in their Greifs operated like a well-oiled machine and were [all the more] superior for it. The Anti Alliance Chimera units, from an organizational point of view, had the two abilities of the flying squadron skilled at trench warfare and the mobile units specializing in mid-range [operations], but those advantages were all locked up and in a state of being able to move nary a hand. They could neither take the winning hit nor give it. (Before they realized it) fatigue and (sighs of defeat) were making the Chimera units' movements sluggish. Elsewhere, the Sagittarius connected to a reserve power source; the (submotor) started and once again managed to start its retreat.

There came a moment when her [probably Artemis, but not 100% sure ] concentration was broken. To promptly rush in attacking was battlefield theory. Naturally, it had been Treize's side that had done just that. The silent pressure of the twenty five Greifs made the remaining thirty Chimeras retreat.

The point when the ever retreating Sagittarius reached the field of land mines was when the Anti Alliance was decidedly defeated. With a big explosion, the land mines blew up and an (approach?) was made. Before them were the Cosmo Arma's five Tragos and fifteen Chimera standing at attention and behind them were the twenty five Greifs; they were sandwiched between the enemy.

"Well done..... a complete defeat." And with self-depreciations, she accepted Treize Khushreanada's advice to surrender.

The war was over.

[End of part 1]