Archangel, Hangar.
"Docking complete, Roz. This high-mobility backpack has a larger battery capacity than the Jegan's high-mobility backpack, but under Earth's gravity, I'm not exactly sure how long it can operate."
Christina, standing next to the cockpit, spoke while checking the tablet in her hands after the Jesta finished docking with the high-mobility backpack.
"Understood, I'll keep that in mind."
Roz put on the pilot suit and sat in the cockpit, using the touch panel to fine-tune some of the mobile suit's parameters.
"Christina, load two shields for me. The missile bays in the shields should be filled with fragment rockets."
Roz checked the mechanical arm status on the backpack, adjusted a suitable parameter, and confirmed the upcoming armament.
"Prepare the electromagnetic rocket launcher, two anti-ship missiles, and fill the rest with fragment rockets."
Even though Roz's beam rifle accuracy was decent and the Jesta's beam rifle performed excellently, Roz preferred using the electromagnetic rocket launcher.
"Ready for combat…"
Seeing that all the weapons had been loaded, Roz exhaled slightly and looked at the maintenance crew walking around the hangar.
"This was inevitable. Yesterday we completed the handover with that guerrilla team, and everything they were supposed to deliver to the Archangel is already here."
The large Haro on the support frame wagged the wings on its head, its eyes flashing.
"There's no such thing as taking money and not doing the job."
Roz wanted to mention that he had once taken money from Blue Cosmos and even used it to build a Jegan A type to blow up a research facility.
But after thinking it over, he decided not to say it aloud.
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Several massive transport planes landed, their noses opening as several mobile suits disembarked into the desert.
"All ZuOOT units… it won't be easy to take these on with MS."
Andrew, wearing short sleeves, stood in the desert, looking at the "supplies" from the Gibraltar base, a troubled expression on his face.
"But there are also two MS, right?"
His aide, DaCosta, pointed to another transport plane that had just been opened.
Not far away, inside the transport, two iron-gray mobile suits stood quietly, waiting to be activated.
Their pilots had already descended from the transport, clearly unaccustomed to the desert's dryness and wind.
"…I don't think they can match up to the Strike Gundam or the pilot of that Cub. After all, you saw the report too, didn't you, DaCosta?"
Andrew sighed.
"Still, even if you don't like Rau Le Creuset, you should at least give a small smile."
"After all, this is rare support."
In the strong wind that whipped sand around, Yzak and Dearka, wearing pilot suits, didn't hear Andrew's words.
"Welcome… welcome to Lesseps."
Andrew casually approached Yzak and Dearka. "I am the North African Theater commander, Andrew Waltfeld. You two, friends from Rau Le Creuset's team, must be tired after coming down from space."
"Hello, Captain Andrew Waltfeld. I am from the Creuset team, Yzak Joule." Yzak, whose facial scar had recently healed, suddenly saluted, speaking in a spirited voice.
"Uh… Dearka Elsman, we're from same squad."
Dearka, startled by Yzak, raised his hand in response.
Andrew looked at Yzak's scarred face but said nothing, only returning the salute.
"The scar on your face… is it to remember something?"
Andrew spoke in a relaxed tone, trying to ease the tension.
"Or is it a witness to a vow?"
"…Rather than that, how is Long Leg doing?"
Yzak touched his scar, gritted his teeth, and his eyes showed a flicker of anger that quickly faded.
"…About 180 kilometers southeast from here, at a guerrilla base."
Andrew squinted and looked up at the two mobile suits just unloaded from the transport.
"There are drones observing that area."
"…Are these MS using the same system and frame?"
After a brief observation, Andrew smiled and paused. "Just they look very similar to that Strike Gundam."
"I heard Captain Waltfeld has already faced Long Leg and its MS?"
Dearka asked suddenly, clearly curious.
"Yes… so I can't mock the Creuset team now."
Andrew turned to Yzak and Dearka, smiling.
"That day was brutal. Held back by the Strike Gundam and Earth Federation fighters, and then driven off by the new Cub…"
"…Cub?"
Yzak's eyes became fierce.
"Wait, Yzak, according to intelligence, the Cub was already destroyed in the atmosphere. Athrun's battle footage proves it."
Dearka stopped Yzak, who seemed ready to rage, and asked, Anndrew, "How could there be a new Cub?"
"I don't know… that night, the Cub descended from the sky and drove us all off."
Andrew saw the anger in Yzak's eyes and laughed.
"Although its shape and color changed a bit, those eyes, like wearing sunglasses, still match the data."
"So… a new Cub?"
Dearka thought for a moment, voicing his guess. "Could it be a new pilot? The previous one burned up in the atmosphere?"
"Hard to say…"
Andrew smiled and looked at the face of the Buster Gundam.
Although its head sensor had been severely damaged, emergency repairs were completed. The repair parts were colored differently from the original, making the patchwork obvious.
"Perhaps it's the same pilot, who knows?"
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The Archangel's hangar doors closed, and the engines began to warm up.
Roz put on his helmet and lowered the visor.
"…Do your best, Roz."
Christina looked at Roz, already ready, and opened her mouth, but in the end only said that.
"Yeah, don't worry."
Roz gave a thumbs-up toward Christina outside the cockpit.
"I won't leave you behind."
Christina nodded, unplugged the data cable, and stepped aside.
The hangar's mobile walkway carried Christina away from Jesta's cockpit. The cockpit doors slowly closed and locked before her eyes.
"Everyone, we are about to move toward the Talbadiya Factory ruins to draw off the Lesseps."
Murrue's voice came over the broadcast.
"It's a dangerous operation, but I think it's worth the risk."
Roz found a comfortable posture and calmly watched the various parameters displayed on the full-cockpit screens.
After an unknown amount of time, Tolle on the bridge looked at the radar images and suddenly exclaimed: "Large number of enemy signals detected. Interference too strong for accurate detection. One o'clock direction: two large heat sources, suspected enemy warships."
"Entering combat zone. Prepare for anti-air, anti-ship, and MS combat."
Murrue gripped the armrest tightly, her eyes serious.
"Begin interception!"
"Jesta, Strike Gundam prepare for sortie. Skygrasper ready for launch!"
Below, Natarle gave the command.
With the hangar's transport mechanisms moving, Jesta stepped onto the launch platform.
"Hoo… Roz Links, High-Mobility Jesta, sortie!"
Roz took a deep breath, grasped the controls, and pushed the throttle forward.
The shields mounted on the mechanical arms on both sides moved in front of Jesta, a pair of custom shields mirrored perfectly. The high-mobility backpack's thrusters adjusted angles and finished preheating.
With the electromagnetic catapult activated, Jesta was rapidly launched outside.
After leaving the catapult deck, Roz immediately felt the machine's rapid descent. He pressed a pedal, activating the high-mobility backpack and the thrusters on Jesta, propelling the unit toward the ZAFT helicopter formation.
"Cub?!"
Looking at the mobile suit before him, seemingly different but retaining familiar traits and weapon configurations, Yzak wanted nothing more than to jump into his cockpit and engage immediately.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Yzak. Duel Gundam hasn't entered Earth Mode's combat radius yet."
Andrew stopped Yzak from rushing Duel Gundam into action.
"If you sortie now, you'll fall right into their trap."
"DaCosta, you take command of the Lesseps. I'll pilot BuCUE for the sortie."
Andrew walked toward the bridge doors.
"As for Yzak and Dearka, you engage only after the MS enter the combat radius."
Roz, in Jesta, wasn't entirely sure about Duel Gundam and Buster Gundam's presence here; he just sensed four familiar brainwaves aboard the Lesseps, one of which seemed particularly agitated.
The leading guerrilla unit fired rockets at the helicopters and BuCUE from their positions.
Jesta raised its electromagnetic rocket launcher and pulled the trigger.
The fragment rockets shot out, creating a deadly barrage in the sky, shredding the swept-up helicopters into pieces.
"No mistake, fragment rockets. The Cub's signature weapon."
Yzak, already in Duel Gundam, gripped the controls tightly.
"Cub… then let's go meet him."
Andrew climbed into his ride: a LaGOWE painted in orange and pale yellow.
Seated in the front was his partner, Aisha.
"To make such bold claims, one must show proof. Right, Aisha?"
"Exactly, Andy."
Aisha sat in the front seat.
"I'm curious how high his dream, his wings, can fly."
"To see how high he flies, he first has to get past us."
Andrew smiled, and Aisha smiled along. Both were prepared to risk their lives.
"Andrew Waltfeld, LaGOWE, sortie!"
With the machine leaping from the deck, its treads accelerated instantly, heading toward Archangel and Jesta.
"Hm?"
Roz sensed two familiar brainwaves approaching. Immediately, a jolt surged through his head, and he instinctively dodged to the side.
"I see… it's Tiger."
Roz fired the last fragment rocket from his launcher. The dense shrapnel struck a GINN, which then exploded upon contact with the ZAFT warship.
On the high-mobility backpack, one mechanical arm smoothly replaced Jesta's rocket launcher magazine with a new fragment rocket magazine.
"Yo, Cub, let's see what you're made of."
Andrew's voice came through LaGOWE's speakers.
Roz didn't respond verbally. Instead, he stared at the full-cockpit UI, momentarily stunned.
Then, using the left mechanical arm to maneuver the shield, he blocked a helicopter's sweep fire, and only after that did Roz pilot Jesta toward LaGOWE's direction.
"…I thought I was overthinking it back then."
Roz glanced at the closed communicator, didn't activate the external channel, and gripped the control stick tighter.
"Andrew Waltfeld… you're a Newtype, just like me…"
Jesta lifted its rocket launcher and fired a fragment rocket toward LaGOWE.
Inside the cockpit, the prototype NTD system had already detected Andrew and automatically activated.
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