After several days of travel, the Archangel and Kusanagi safely arrived at Ame No Minashira. The scale of Ame No Minashira and its garrison forces left Murrue and the others utterly astonished.
"Is this... a fortress?"
"Orb has a space fortress like this?"
"Hey now, this is a bit excessive..."
...
They had assumed that what they saw on the homeland represented the full extent of Orb's capabilities. Yet, they never imagined Orb possessed a space fortress like Ame No Minashira—let alone one equipped with three unfamiliar warships and a substantial number of MS units.
Upon entering Ame No Minashira, Mina came to greet them.
"Long time no see, Mina."
"Heh, you really stirred things up," Mina retorted with a sarcastic jab the moment they met. Though she knew Orb's fall was part of the plan, it was still her nation, and its occupation left her deeply displeased.
"Not bad. Anything noteworthy happening on Earth these past few days?"
"Quite a few things, actually."
After instructing her subordinates to handle matters concerning the Archangel and Kusanagi, Mina led the group further into Ame No Minashira.
If the exterior had already amazed them, the interior left them even more awestruck. While Ame No Minashira might not match the scale of fortresses like Artemis or Jachin Due, it was fully equipped with all the essentials of a military stronghold—even including dedicated production facilities capable of manufacturing warships.
Mina gave them a brief tour along the way before finally leading them to a conference room. Once everyone was seated, Yang Hui introduced Mina to the group.
"Mina Sahaku, heir to the Sahaku family—one of Orb's Five Great Noble Houses—and our ally..."
"Just a collaborator. We're not that close."
"Mina, tsundere is a disease. You should get it treated."
"Shut up. Keep talking nonsense, and I'll toss you into space!"
"Alright, alright, let's get down to business."
"Pfft—"
The atmosphere in the conference room had initially been somewhat tense due to Mina's stern and imposing demeanor, which made everyone uneasy. But after Yang Hui's playful interruption, they realized she was just a tsundere, and the mood lightened considerably.
Yang Hui then introduced Murrue and the others to Mina, allowing everyone to get acquainted before moving on to the main topic.
"A lot has happened on Earth. For instance, that fool Azrael—after Orb's surrender, he actually tried to massacre prisoners and civilians out of sheer spite. Utterly idiotic."
Mina sneered. A leader who couldn't maintain rationality, who let rage consume them at the slightest setback, and who contemplated such self-destructive stupidity was practically begging for death.
Still, when she first received the intelligence, Mina had broken out in a cold sweat. While she could mock Muruta Azrael's foolishness, she also cared deeply for Orb's soldiers and civilians. She shuddered to imagine the hell Orb would have become if Yang Hui and Sumeragi hadn't planned everything in advance, leaving Muruta Azrael no opportunity to act.
Mina knew the full story, but Murrue and the others did not. They all stood up in horror.
"How could they?!"
"How could they do something like that?!"
"Don't worry, everything's fine." Yang Hui waved his hand to signal they shouldn't be too nervous, while also shooting Mina a glare for leaving her statement half-finished. "We evacuated all our citizens before the war even started. Our military forces also withdrew from Orb in batches during the fighting. By the time we left, the remaining frontline troops were all unmanned drones. What we left behind was just an empty shell of Orb."
"Uh... you could've said that earlier!"
"You did this on purpose, didn't you? Wanted to see us panic?"
Seeing everyone suddenly turn their accusations toward him, Yang Hui covered his face in frustration before pointing at Mina. "She's the one who built up the suspense—why blame me? Besides, none of you gave me a chance to explain further."
"Uh... haha." Realizing this was true, the others awkwardly sat back down.
Watching Yang Hui take the fall, Mina—who had been keeping a cold expression—allowed the faintest hint of a smile to curl her lips before quickly suppressing it, unnoticed by anyone.
"As for Papua New Guinea, the Atlantic Federation did initially pressure them. But according to our plan, Guelt led all remaining forces in declaring independence from Orb and joined Papua New Guinea's provisional government. The other allied nations also took notice of them after the battle on our homeland. With ZAFT Forces watching closely from the sidelines, the power balance kept the Atlantic Federation from acting against them."
"What about the Mass Driver?"
"It's been hidden outside satellite surveillance range. Undetected."
"That's good." In the entire operation, aside from their own safety, Papua New Guinea and the Mass Driver were Yang Hui's biggest concerns—they were the embers of Orb's rebirth. If the Atlantic Federation had recklessly attacked them, it would have been disastrous.
"Don't worry. Azrael can't touch them." Mina, as if reading Yang Hui's thoughts, spoke calmly. "During the homeland battle, you nearly wiped out the MS units of the Third and Fourth Fleets. That loss might not mean much to the Atlantic Federation, but for Azrael ? He volunteered for this mission, failed to achieve his objectives, and suffered heavy casualties. Right now, he's barely keeping his own position secure."
The Orb Defense War had humiliated Muruta Azrael. After the battle, he faced impeachment and condemnation from representatives of allied nations, and even within Blue Cosmos, voices calling for his removal grew louder. With his leadership position unstable, he no longer had the luxury of throwing his weight around elsewhere.
"So the Atlantic Federation is in turmoil? That's excellent news." Yang Hui grinned. Though their main battlefield had shifted to space, they hadn't abandoned Earth entirely. And on Earth, the Atlantic Federation—along with Blue Cosmos—remained the greatest threat. They were fanatics; once provoked, negotiation was impossible, leaving only force as an option.
With the Atlantic Federation in disarray, Earth's threats had drastically diminished, allowing him to focus fully on their objectives in space.
"Right. Aside from that, another major event occurred on Earth—the Earth Forces have retaken Victoria Harbor."
"What?" Murrue and the others stood up in shock once more. The Earth Forces had just suffered heavy losses at Orb—how could they launch an attack on Victoria Port so soon? That place was heavily guarded by ZAFT Forces, and yet they managed to take it?
"The main forces were from the Eurasian Federation and the East Asian Republic."
"I see." Hearing this, the group relaxed slightly. After all, the Earth Alliance was vast, and powerful member states weren't limited to just the Atlantic Federation.
Facing the Earth Forces' fierce assault, the ZAFT Forces, knowing they couldn't hold the position, had set up self-destruct mechanisms to prevent the Earth Forces from reclaiming the spaceport. However, a special forces unit breached the defenses at the last moment and disabled the explosives, allowing Victoria Port to safely return to Earth Alliance control.
Tap… tap… tap… Yang Hui's fingers lightly drummed against the table as he analyzed the current situation. The fall of Victoria Port was a signal—marking the Earth Forces' shift from defense to offense.
"ZAFT's forces on Earth are in for a rough time now. Their forces at Carpentaria suffered heavy losses after the Alaska battle, and we've further restricted them. The Gibraltar base also took significant damage during the Panama campaign. The Earth Forces' next target will definitely be one of these two bases," Yang Hui analyzed.
"Exactly. The ZAFT Forces have already begun consolidating their troops recently. After losing Victoria Port, ZAFT has three major strongholds left on Earth—Carpentaria, Gibraltar, and Kaohsiung Port. Now that the Earth Forces have retaken Victoria Port, Kaohsiung Port's strategic importance has diminished. Meanwhile, Carpentaria covers the entire Oceania region, while Gibraltar controls vast territories of the Eurasian Federation. I believe the Earth Forces are more likely to target Gibraltar next," Sumeragi added her thoughts.
Both key bases occupied territories belonging to Earth Alliance member states—something the Earth Forces couldn't ignore.
Between the two, Gibraltar held far greater strategic significance. The Oceania Federation was already a shell of its former self, while the Eurasian Federation, despite losing large swathes of land, remained one of the Earth Alliance's strongest members. Whether for morale or strategic reinforcement, reclaiming Eurasian territory would be the top priority.
Yang Hui noticed Athrun, Nicol, and Dearka's conflicted expressions—hesitant to speak yet clearly troubled. He found it amusing.
He hadn't bothered hiding these discussions from them, nor did he mind if they relayed the information to ZAFT. It wouldn't make a difference.
Even if their intel was believed, what could ZAFT do? Their forces in space were barely enough to defend their homeland, with no spare troops to deploy to Earth. Even with advance warning, ZAFT's only option would be an early retreat.
But… would they accept that?
Of course not. ZAFT's control over Earth relied on Gibraltar and Carpentaria. Losing these two strongholds would mean losing their grip on Earth entirely, leaving Kaohsiung Port as nothing more than a fish on the chopping block.
"Alright, we don't need to worry about these matters for now. The conflict between the Earth Forces and ZAFT Forces is beyond our involvement at this stage. Completing our space adaptation training is the top priority, and we also need to familiarize ourselves with the new battleship," Yang Hui said, clapping his hands to get everyone's attention.
"A new battleship?"
"That's right. It will be Orb's future flagship. The Kusanagi will be phased out and repurposed as an armed transport vessel. Come on, let's go see the finished product."
The group arrived at another dock, where they saw a pale green warship moored inside. It became immediately clear why the Kusanagi was being retired.
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