The ZAFT space forces at Boaz Fortress, led by the Reborn Gundam, firmly held the Atlantic Federation's assault troops at the second defensive line outside the fortress.
Even with their elite forces fully deployed, the Atlantic Federation had only managed to break through one defensive line when the Reborn Gundam temporarily withdrew for repairs. Once it returned with replacement parts and engaged several aces alongside its supporting units, the Atlantic Federation's offensive ground to a halt. The Strike Daggers stood no chance against the numerous high-speed GINNs, not to mention the sheer number of standard GINNs present.
Seeing this, Bargiruel immediately issued orders:
"Order frontline forces to retreat to ZAFT's first defensive line! This ship will advance forward! Prepare the Lohengrin and target their large Mobile Suits! Instruct retreating units to clear the firing axis! Notify the mixed Celestial Soldiers from the East Asian Republic and Eurasian Federation to provide suppressing fire against pursuing forces!"
As Bargiruel gave her commands, Muruta Azrael visibly hesitated. He asked in surprise,
"Seriously? This ship is charging to the frontlines?"
Bargiruel turned and fixed him with a sharp glare.
"Director Azrael, you were the one who said that the current battle is a necessary sacrifice for the ultimate goal of a 'Blue and Pure World.' If we want to win, this ship cannot cower in the rear."
Muruta Azrael had no retort and could only grumble inwardly, This Captain Bargiruel really has no sense of social tact.
Still, no matter how unwilling he was, he had no choice but to follow the Archangel to the frontlines. It wasn't like he could abandon ship and drift through the battlefield in a defenseless escape pod.
Fortunately, Bargiruel's strategy wasn't suicidal—she simply wanted to eliminate the Reborn Gundam, the Earth Alliance's greatest obstacle.
As soon as the order was given, Mu, who was currently locked in combat with the Reborn Gundam, immediately guessed Bargiruel's intentions. He couldn't help but complain over the comms:
"Damn, Bargiruel, you don't have to go this hard. A flagship charging ahead? This is like a king's gambit!"
Morgan Chevalier, however, laughed heartily in approval.
"Hah! I think this female captain's got guts. Mu, your old comrade seems tougher than you—and I hear she's quite the beauty."
At this, even Canard Pars couldn't resist chiming in:
"Yeah, right. When she chews you out, she can go for an hour without repeating herself. Trust me, old man, you wouldn't like her. No matter how pretty she is, it's not worth it."
Morgan Chevalier had developed a bit of camaraderie with Canard Pars during the battle, appreciating the young pilot's resilience and firepower. He shot back:
"Kid, you don't know a damn thing! A woman like that—once you win her over, the contrast between her usual strictness and her shy side is even more enticing!"
Though the three bantered, their hands never stopped moving. They fought while retreating, putting on the appearance of abandoning the assault.
The rest of the Atlantic Federation's Mobile Suits naturally withdrew as soon as they received the order.
The Boaz Fortress defenders, however, weren't about to let them leave so easily—especially since the Earth Alliance hadn't signaled a full retreat.
However, the pursuing guard forces first had to face the overwhelming firepower from the Celestial Soldiers of the East Asian Union and the Eurasian Federation.
To cover the retreating troops, the support units of both the East Asian Union and the Eurasian Federation opted for missile barrage tactics as per operational needs. Whether they hit the enemy or not was secondary—what mattered was ensuring a massive explosion screen and dense firepower.
Meanwhile, the other ships of the Atlantic Federation didn't just watch their flagship charge ahead. They too launched simultaneous missile barrages for cover.
Faced with such widespread suppressive fire, ZAFT forces had no choice but to halt their pursuit and deal with the physical projectiles first.
After the explosions, there was smoke but no real damage—most missiles either missed or were detonated prematurely. In space, there wasn't even a sound, making the whole spectacle no different from a fireworks display.
Still, the covering fire achieved its purpose. Once the explosions subsided, ZAFT forces were shocked to find that the Archangel—which should have been lagging at the rear—had already surged ahead of the Mobile Suit units, its Positron Blaster Lohengrin fully charged.
The next second, a crimson positron beam lanced straight toward the Reborn Gundam.
The Reborn Gundam had no chance to dodge—it had been leading the charge, and by the time it spotted the Archangel, the Positron Cannon had already fired.
Ash Gray could only react instinctively, raising the Shield on his backpack to block the positron beam while maxing out his thrusters to evade upward.
But not everyone had Mu's luck. In the original timeline, the positron blast he blocked had been fired at the absolute minimum power threshold, allowing him to barely survive at the cost of his Mobile Suit's complete disintegration—thanks to an Anti-Beam Shield.
This time, however, the Reborn Gundam faced a full-power positron blast. While it was impossible for both beams to hit the Reborn Gundam (given the wide spacing between the Archangel's twin cannons), even a single positron beam instantly vaporized the Anti-Beam Shield without a trace.
The Reborn Gundam didn't fare any better—its lower half and half its backpack were blown clean off, the explosion hurling the remaining wreckage into space. Ash Gray's fate remained unknown.
But the Archangel's shot didn't just claim the Reborn Gundam. ZAFT's defensive forces saw their morale plummet, while the Atlantic Federation's forces surged with renewed vigor.
ZAFT forces hurriedly retrieved the Reborn Gundam's wreckage and retreated, lest the enemy capture it for research.
Seizing the opportunity, the Atlantic Federation forces swarmed forward. Without the Reborn Gundam tying down the Federation's elite units, the second defensive line was swiftly torn apart and breached by the Hyperion Gundam, the Stolen Gundam, the Calamity Gundam, and two 105 Wired Guided Daggers.
Watching the dire battle situation reverse in an instant from the Archangel's bridge, Muruta Azrael clapped in genuine admiration.
"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. Captain Bargiruel, I must admit—you are truly remarkable, and bold to boot. After this battle, I'd say you'll at least make colonel. Depending on circumstances, even a general's rank isn't out of the question."
Unmoved by Muruta Azrael's promises of promotion, Bargiruel replied coolly,
"Just a minor tactic of 'capture the leader first.' Nothing worth praising."
Muruta Azrael actually wanted to praise her a bit more, after all, Bargiruel was a Natural—and a highly capable one at that.
At this moment, Muruta Azrael even somewhat understood why Reid had such a good relationship with this beautiful captain. Given her abilities, having her under his command was worth enduring a few verbal jabs now and then.
However, just as Muruta Azrael was still contemplating how to win Bargiruel over, the Washington, positioned at the rear, sent a communication. The commander of the Atlantic Federation Forces appeared directly on the projection and immediately praised:
"Lieutenant Colonel Bargiruel, well done."
After the praise, the commander swiftly shifted the topic and issued a stern order:
"Now that the path has been cleared, the Peacemaker Corps will advance immediately. The vanguard units must continue providing cover."
Muruta Azrael had been waiting for this moment. He couldn't wait to see nuclear explosions blooming over the Coordinators' heads. His face twisted with excitement, a mix of ecstasy and something almost perverse, as he exclaimed:
"Hahaha, I've been waiting for this!"
Bargiruel, however, had no desire to use nuclear weapons in war. Though in terms of destructive range and power, nukes were far from the most advanced weapons of this era, their historical significance to humanity was too profound. They were a Pandora's box—once opened, mankind's destructive impulses would be hard to contain.
But with the Earth Alliance Forces commander's direct order, Bargiruel had no choice but to comply.
Soon, the four Agamemnon-class ships trailing the vanguard units launched nearly a hundred Moebius units armed with nuclear warheads.
These Moebius pilots had been carefully selected from the Atlantic Federation Forces—all staunch supporters of Blue Cosmos. Thus, they had no qualms about nuking Coordinators and were utterly fearless in the face of death.
From the moment they were deployed, these hundred Moebius units charged recklessly toward the frontlines, disregarding their own fragile frames. Their goal was singular: to get the Solar Ray System within firing range and press the nuclear launch button. After that, if they were lucky, they'd return to their ships. If not, they'd unload all their ammunition into a ZAFT Mobile Suit before ramming into it.
For ZAFT's defensive forces, who had already been warned that the Earth Alliance might resort to nukes, the sudden appearance of these abnormal Moebius units immediately raised alarms. The moment the unmistakable nuclear signatures were transmitted back to the Boaz Fortress command center, the fortress commander roared in fury:
"Damn Earth Alliance—they actually used nukes! Intercept those Moebius units at the frontlines! And get the Covenant Gundam's systems adjusted immediately! If any nukes break through, we'll have to rely on it for interception!"
With the Boaz Fortress commander's orders issued, Miguel Aiman, who had been fine-tuning the systems inside the fortress, had no choice but to halt his work. He boarded the Covenant Gundam, equipped with a modified prototype of the Meteor System—the [MPFM Multi-Purpose Multi-Use Flight Pack]—and set off without delay.
The Covenant Gundam, designed by ZAFT, had always been intended as a backpack-swapping Mobile Suit, built for maximum versatility. Thus, it was naturally compatible with the Meteor System.
However, after Lacus had taken the Eternal, PLANT no longer had any readily available Meteor System backpacks on hand.
Moreover, the Meteor System backpacks were designed specifically for the Freedom and Justice Gundams. With both Gundams stolen, PLANT naturally ceased production of new Meteor backpacks.
After the nuclear missile intel was relayed back, ZAFT urgently needed equipment capable of high-speed movement, multi-lock targeting, and deploying massive interception firepower for short-term saturation attacks.
Thus, the hastily repurposed [MPFM Multi-Purpose Multi-Use Flight Pack], originally a test prototype modified from the Meteor System, was pressed into service.
Of course, PLANT's military factories had further upgraded this backpack. The two massive storage bays on either side were converted into large-scale hive interception systems, capable of launching fifty interceptor missiles in a single salvo, with an astonishing ammunition capacity.
Additionally, two large beam cannons were mounted on the unit's head as secondary interception weapons to eliminate any missiles that slipped through the initial barrage.
However, directly equipping the Covenant Gundam with the Meteor System was still too rushed, leaving the system's compatibility incomplete.
But with the situation critical—the Peacemaker Corps, shielded by Atlantic Federation Mobile Suits, breached the third defensive line and launched a desperate nuclear strike toward the Solar Ray System and the final fleet blockade—the Covenant Gundam charged in from the flank. Due to the imperfect targeting system, Miguel Aiman had no choice but to unleash three consecutive waves of interceptor missiles, relying on sheer volume to compensate.
Fortunately, the Peacemaker Corps had already lost some units while breaking through the third line, leaving fewer than a hundred remaining. Though the nuclear missiles only needed to reach a certain proximity to inflict devastating damage—enough to annihilate ZAFT's defensive fleet—not a single warhead made it that far. Under the Covenant Gundam's saturation interception, every missile detonated immediately after launch. Even Moebius units still carrying warheads were mistaken for missiles and destroyed. The Peacemaker Corps was virtually wiped out in an instant, while ZAFT's ships remained unscathed.
The Peacemaker Corps' failure rendered the Atlantic Federation's breakthrough meaningless.
With the Boaz Fortress still intact, further advances would only bring the vanguard forces into range of its defensive cannons—a firepower gap no Atlantic Federation spearhead could survive.
Recognizing the mission's failure, Bargiruel decisively ordered an immediate retreat. Continuing the assault would only incur pointless casualties.
Muruta Azrael, though furious, had no choice but to concede. The vanguard had only brought this small nuclear strike force—what else could they do now? He resolved that the next offensive would deploy the full nuclear arsenal to avoid such humiliation.
As the Atlantic Federation forces withdrew, ZAFT—despite earlier setbacks—launched a pursuit. Half their fleet gave chase, ensuring that if the Archangel attempted another solo charge, ZAFT's ships would be ready to retaliate.
Bargiruel knew ZAFT wouldn't fall for the same trick twice. This time, she prudently ordered the Archangel to retreat into the vanguard's central formation, calmly directing the withdrawal.
Yet no one expected what happened next. As ZAFT's forces pursued, the Solar Ray Systems flanking the Boaz Fortress suddenly exploded—from the inside.
The Boaz Fortress quickly dispatched personnel to investigate, only to find fifteen Azure Dragon Gundams from the East Asian Republic wreaking havoc on each flank.
In truth, after receiving the Atlantic Federation's request for assistance, the East Asian Republic's commander immediately saw an opportunity to turn the situation to their advantage.
If the Atlantic Federation wanted to launch a full-frontal assault, they would infiltrate from the front instead.
All fifty Azure Dragon Gundams deployed this time were equipped with the Mirage Colloid System. With the Atlantic Federation drawing the attention of Boaz Fortress's defensive forces, they could leisurely drift in from the front.
The fortress commander had been overly confident that the Earth Alliance would never attack head-on while both Sunshade systems remained intact, so the frontal defenses were ironically the weakest.
Thirty Azure Dragon Gundams smoothly drifted in from the front, gradually reaching the Sunshade systems on both sides.
The timing coincided perfectly with the moment Boaz Fortress's garrison forces began pursuing the Atlantic Federation's troops, so the East Asian Republic pilots naturally had no qualms about deactivating their stealth and scattering to shatter the mirrors.
By the time the Boaz Fortress realized what was happening, the destruction of the Sunshade systems was already unstoppable—after all, the system was inherently fragile. This was precisely why Reid had only planned to use it once and was now quietly constructing a Colony Laser near the Star Palace Colony Satellite.
(End of Chapter)