"What? Repair this GINN?" Murdoch, the head of maintenance, nearly jumped up after hearing Yang Hui's words.
"Yes, can it be fixed?"
"Of course not! The Archangel only has spare parts for the Strike. Although it was developed based on the GINN's framework and basic technology, the results are completely different, and they can't be used together at all. Moreover…"
Murdoch helplessly looked at the mangled GINN beside him. Its head was missing, its right hand was gone, the left hand was only half there, and the right leg was completely hollow. The large reconnaissance backpack on its back was still floating in space, in a state of disassembly, and the long-range sniper rifle, broken in two, was no better.
In this condition, how am I supposed to fix it? Even if I do, the Strike's weaponry can't be used by the GINN. What do you plan to do? Play bumper cars?
There's also a very serious problem…
"Even if it's repaired, there's no one to pilot it. Lieutenant Flaga tried it this morning and couldn't handle this thing at all."
However, Yang Hui remained silent, looking at Murdoch, his eyes conveying the answer.
"...You… don't tell me you plan to pilot this thing."
"Yeah."
"What kind of joke is this!?" Murdoch truly jumped up this time, nearly colliding with a nearby container.
"I'm not joking."
"Isn't that just a joke?" Murdoch scolded, "Don't you have any sense of your own identity? Captain Ramius kept you on the Archangel for your safety; you said that yourself back then. Now you're telling me you want to pilot this MS into battle? What kind of joke is that? No way, absolutely not."
"Better safe than sorry, Uncle Murdoch. Just as a backup force. We have nowhere to hide on the upcoming journey; battles are bound to happen. Relying solely on Kira and Lieutenant Flaga to engage with ZAFT won't guarantee the Archangel's safety…"
"So you think piloting this thing will ensure the Archangel's safety? And didn't you hire mercenaries? Let them protect us! If you're worried about combat power, hire more mercenaries!"
"Where am I supposed to find them at this time? The Serpent Tail only came to help because of our frequent collaborations. I can't find anyone else, and I don't trust other mercenary organizations. The Archangel is a classified matter; what if the people we hire aren't reliable? Isn't that even more dangerous?"
"Well, that's not my problem. I'm not going to help you fix this GINN; I can't do it!"
Seeing Murdoch stubbornly refusing to budge, Yang Hui felt helpless. No matter how he tried to persuade him, it was like talking to a brick wall.
"Fine, I won't press you anymore. I'll go find Captain Ramius."
"Get out of here! Don't disturb my work! Seriously, today's youth just loves to think wildly. Do you think piloting an MS is a game? Don't you know that's a Coordinator's exclusive toy? What kind of joke is this? I'm not ready to die yet…"
Murdoch left, grumbling all the way, leaving Yang Hui both amused and exasperated.
However… it wasn't long before Yang Hui realized that this was just the beginning of a new round of lessons, and they were even harsher.
"I really don't understand what you're thinking. We're about to rendezvous with the allied fleet, and you want to pilot an MS now? What kind of joke is this? Have you lost your mind? If you want to cause trouble, just open a hatch and go swim in space! Oh, and write a waiver and a will in advance! Don't drag us into this!"
Unlike the harsh scolding from Natarle Badgiruel, Murrue was not prepared to agree with Yang Hui's suggestion this time, as it was too reckless!
Yang Hui's identity was too sensitive; any mishap would be catastrophic. Although they were grateful for Yang Hui's help along the way, if given a choice, Murrue would still refuse to let Yang Hui board the Archangel. She truly couldn't bear that responsibility. Not just her, but all the Earth forces on board couldn't bear it either, not even their superior, Brigadier General Duan Halbaton!
"I won't agree, Yang Hui."
"Then there's nothing I can do."
Seeing Yang Hui shrug and turn to leave, Murrue and Natarle felt a sense of dread. Yang Hui was definitely not giving up; he was just looking for another way.
"Stop right there! What do you think you're doing?"
"Yang Hui, don't be impulsive!"
"I'm not being impulsive." Yang Hui turned around, his expression serious as he told Murrue and Natarle, "I never intended to throw my life away. I've seriously considered piloting an MS for the first time. Lieutenant Ramius, you should know that I wrote the OS for the G before…"
"That twisted OS was written by you?" Natarle exclaimed, surprised; this was the first time she had heard of it.
"...That's not important. What matters is that you should know why Brigadier General Halbaton accepted an OS that he knew was difficult to use."
"What's going on?" Natarle turned to Murrue.
"Um… I do know, because… Yang Hui can use this OS perfectly for simulation training…" Murrue said hesitantly. She and Duan Halbaton were among the few, besides Sumeragi and their own people, who knew Yang Hui could pilot an MS.
And… he was very skilled. When the two of them saw the simulation data, they were nearly scared to death.
"What!? How is that possible?" Natarle looked at Yang Hui as if she were seeing a ghost.
"It's a fact." Yang Hui shrugged, a proud expression on his face that seemed to say, "I'm this good, but it's also quite unfortunate."
"But this… how is that possible… you… you're a Natural, right?" Natarle asked suspiciously.
"I am a Natural."
"Then…"
"Who told you that Naturals are necessarily worse than Coordinators? Coordinators just have a higher starting point; it doesn't mean they have a better endpoint. Don't forget, Coordinators… were also invented by Naturals."
"...So what?"
Looking into Natarle's eyes, Yang Hui really wanted to laugh. After all that he had said, Natarle didn't seem to care; she just wanted to organize herself to do what she wanted: "I already said I'm not being impulsive. I'm just looking for an available machine…"
"No way!"
"I'm telling you…"
"No way!"Yang Hui: (＿＿)ノ｜
Natarle, are you sure your character hasn't collapsed?" You should be the first to agree to increase our combat power!
Yang Hui deeply suspected that he had been too forceful, causing Natarle's character to collapse, but her stubbornness was still there, just misplaced…
"Yang Hui, I also don't agree with you piloting an MS into battle, no matter how good your piloting skills are. On the battlefield, no one can guarantee their own safety."
"But…" Yang Hui wanted to tell them that if the Archangel sank, he would be done for too, but he was interrupted by Natarle.
"There's no 'but'! You can cause trouble if you want, but don't drag others into it! Once you leave the Archangel, you can do whatever you want." Natarle admonished.
"…"
To be honest, Murrue and Natarle were right, especially considering that if something happened to him, it would affect everyone on the ship. This made Yang Hui's originally firm resolve begin to waver.
But it was only a wavering.
"Alright, I won't pilot that broken GINN into battle." Yang Hui conceded.
"Phew~"
Upon hearing this, the two of them sighed in relief, thinking that Yang Hui had given up on his reckless plan. But…
Yang Hui was not done yet. If Lacus were present, she would definitely catch the double meaning in Yang Hui's words: not piloting that GINN into battle meant he would pilot another machine into battle. It was a simple wordplay, but it was Yang Hui's favorite tactic.
It wasn't Natarle and Murrue's fault; in their view, aside from that broken GINN, there were no other machines available for Yang Hui to pilot. The Archangel only had the Strike and Moebius Zero, both of which had their own pilots.
But… how could they have imagined that Yang Hui would obtain a machine to pilot from elsewhere?
Calculating the time, Yang Hui applied to Murrue for temporary leave from the ship.
"Now? Where are you going?"
"Isn't it that we don't have enough combat power? Just in case, I've found a team of helpers."
"Huh!?"
...
The transport ship, moving at full speed, was approaching the wreckage area, with Setsuna and Lyle serving as temporary helmsmen and on duty in the CIC.
"Arrived at the designated coordinates, entering silent mode." Setsuna looked at the navigation chart.
"Seriously, Yang Hui really loves to boss people around. Just when I was about to take a break, there's a new mission." Lyle complained.
"It's been over a decade since we've executed a mission." Setsuna replied flatly.
"How could there not be? Transporting classified materials, collecting data, training rookie pilots…"
"That doesn't count."
"Uh… well, it really doesn't count."
Lyle's examples were just jokes; those tasks didn't even compare to the simplest missions they had executed in the Gundam OO world. They were Gundam Meisters, their primary role was combat, yet since arriving in this world, they hadn't encountered a single formal battle.
So, it truly couldn't be called a mission.
Lyle was just joking, trying to lighten the lonely atmosphere of the cockpit, but he realized he was wrong. The word "joke" didn't exist in Setsuna's dictionary.
"Have we arrived at the scheduled coordinates?" At that moment, Sumeragi, Wang Liu Mei, and Tieria entered the cockpit together.
"We've arrived, Ms. Huang. Should we contact Yang Hui now?"
"Let's wait a bit. He'll contact us. According to my predictions, it should be soon."
"Good. This place is not a good choice for tourism."
Looking out the window, the scattered fragments of various sizes, the wreckage of MS and warships, and the large ruins in the center—it wasn't a junkyard, but a graveyard surrounded by countless vengeful spirits.
"Indeed, other worlds aren't peaceful either." Lyle remarked. Although he had anticipated it before coming, witnessing it firsthand brought about a different perspective. Moreover… this world was even crazier than the one they originally came from.
"The world is distorting, distorting… it's up to me to sever it!" Setsuna's gaze flickered, his resolve growing stronger.
"No matter where we are, we are Celestial Being. The conflicts… will be eradicated by us!" Tieria agreed.
"Hahaha, as expected of the Gundam Meisters of Celestial Being." Wang Liu Mei chuckled, covering her mouth. This wasn't mockery but recognition, as she was also a member of this group. Changing the world was something she had always wanted to do.
"Alright, everyone, let's be patient. Since Yang Hui has sent us out, it means our plan is about to begin." Sumeragi said to the group.
"Understood." X4
Just then, the transport ship's communication system rang.
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