Just as Reid successfully ambushed and captured three GINN units along with their pilots inside the Star Palace Colony Satellite, Angie—who had been waiting in the large asteroid belt near the colony with her Union Flag—spotted the attack signal from the mothership through the designated colony window.
Without hesitation, Angie activated her Union Flag. The V-shaped luminous sensors on the mobile suit's head instantly lit up.
Meanwhile, aboard the Laurasia-class battleship outside the Star Palace Colony Satellite, Stefano Greco was questioning the communications officer:
"CIC, has there been any feedback from the frontline MS Squad yet?"
The officer could only report truthfully:
"Captain, communication interference inside the colony is severe. We've received no response from the frontline MS pilots."
After the officer finished speaking, the tactical commander—one of the five "diplomats" who had attended the Misurugi Empire's food procurement meeting—chimed in:
"Captain, rest assured. While Stefano may act impulsively in daily life, he's exceptionally cautious in actual combat. That's precisely why he's survived on the battlefield this long. Those Armed Balls the Misurugi Empire cobbled together from colony construction pods wouldn't stand a chance against GINN units, even with a sneak attack.
"Moreover, we haven't detected any significant explosive fluctuations inside the colony, which means Stefano's operation is proceeding smoothly with minimal resistance."
The tactical commander's reasoning was sound, and Stefano Greco shared the same view. Still, he muttered while staring at the eerily quiet colony:
"I think so too. But seeing it this quiet gives me an uneasy feeling. Hopefully, I'm just overthinking it."
Stefano's words were spoken offhand—he genuinely hadn't detected any danger, merely acting on a soldier's instinct.
Yet the moment he finished speaking, the CIC's observation team suddenly announced:
"Heat signature detected in the asteroid belt! Pattern mismatch... No match found! Incredible speed—three times faster than standard GINN units! Visual confirmation: It's an MA!!"
As soon as the observer finished, the screen above the captain's station displayed the Union Flag in its MA form streaking through space.
Visibly, the approaching machine resembled an Earth-style fighter jet, but with clearly discernible limbs—as if a person had awkwardly contorted themselves to mimic an aircraft.
Yet its speed was undeniable. The Hydrogen Ion Acceleration Engine, combined with Angie's personal blue-and-white color scheme and the Factory Module's space adaptation upgrades, made the Union Flag look like a blue meteor as it tore through the void.
The observer wasn't mistaken about its triple-GINN speed—Angie was pushing the engine to its limits, determined to reach the mothership at maximum velocity.
Stefano reacted instantly. Whatever this thing was, its hostile intent was obvious. He barked orders:
"Second Squad, scramble immediately! Intercept that machine at all costs! Main cannons, lock on and fire to force evasive maneuvers—slow its advance! Activate point-defense guns and prepare defensive barrage!"
Stefano Greco clearly hadn't let his guard down despite the weakness of the new Misurugi Empire. Aside from Stefano's squad that had penetrated the colony, the mothership retained a three-person squad as backup, already prepared for deployment at a moment's notice.
Upon receiving orders, the MS unit immediately prepared for launch.
However, Angie wasn't one to be trifled with. Seeing the Laurasia-class battleship deploy its MS catapult deck, she didn't hesitate to open fire with her forward-mounted 120MM Electromagnetic Linear Rifle while maintaining her high-speed charge.
This rifle featured two firing modes: a low-rate-of-fire, high-power charged shot and a high-rate-of-fire, low-power rapid-fire mode.
Given the environment and distance, Angie naturally opted for the high-power charged shot, which effectively increased her range. Simultaneously, the missile pods on her legs deployed and launched four anti-ship missiles.
With Angie's marksmanship, even though the Laurasia-class battleship was beyond the effective range of the 120MM rifle's charged mode, the electromagnetic round still found its way into the wide MS catapult channel.
The first unfortunate soul being catapulted out took the electromagnetic round head-on.
The only silver lining was that the shot only struck the GINN's legs, reducing its lower half to scrap while the cockpit-containing upper half was still launched outward by momentum. However, this GINN had completely lost balance—its upper half spun wildly through space. If the pilot wasn't already dead, their brains would certainly be scrambled, rendering them completely combat-ineffective.
To make matters worse, the catapult deck was damaged by the explosion of the GINN's lower half. The channel was now littered with metal debris, and two critical cables had been severed by flying shrapnel. Repairs would take time, and the two remaining GINNs were now entangled in the severed cables, stuck in place.
As for the Laurasia-class's counterfire, Angie effortlessly dodged it with a graceful Z-shaped maneuver in space, never once slowing down.
Of course, Angie's four anti-ship missiles were also intercepted and detonated early by the battleship's defensive machine guns, failing to deal any substantial damage.
But this exchange was still a complete victory for Angie, who had now successfully closed in on the Laurasia-class battleship. Her 120MM electromagnetic rifle could now be used to its full potential.
With a sudden halt, Angie manipulated the Union Flag, transforming it from MA to MS mode through inertia, leaving everyone aboard the Laurasia-class battleship stunned.
Their shock didn't last long, as several explosions snapped them back to reality.
The rapid-fire mode of the 120MM electromagnetic rifle had a significantly longer effective range than the battleship's defensive machine gun barrage—a unique advantage of electromagnetic weaponry. This allowed Angie to disarm the Laurasia-class battleship from a safe distance.
The explosions just now were Angie taking out the battleship's left and right main guns with two precise shots. Before Stefano Greco could issue further orders, she followed up with two more shots, disabling the secondary guns on the ship's top and the small beam cannon beneath its bow.
By now, Angie had taken out all the beam weapons on the Laurasia-class Battleship. After circling around it once more, she systematically destroyed every defensive machine gun emplacement.
The Laurasia-class Battleship now resembled a defenseless young girl stripped of all cover, completely at Angie's mercy.
Finally, Angie positioned herself directly in front of the ship's bridge. Raising her electromagnetic rifle toward the bridge, she transmitted via laser communication:
"Checkmate. Captain of ZAFT, I hereby order you to abandon ship and surrender immediately."
(End of Chapter)