Counterattack! A massive counterattack!
Without warning! Utterly unexpected!
Just when the Coordinators believed the situation was overwhelmingly favorable—even ready to celebrate—the East Asian Army, seemingly pushed to the brink of collapse, launched a counterattack no one had anticipated.
And it wasn't just a mere counterattack. They truly suppressed the overwhelming offensive of the ZAFT Forces, pushing the battlefront back to its original position in one decisive move!
"Why is this happening?"
Many Coordinator squadron leaders stationed in the rear couldn't comprehend it.
This was supposed to be just another routine skirmish, a mutual probing. The only difference was the arrival of Captain Creuset, who had managed to pin down their ace pilot.
But in the past, hadn't they relied on their own ace, Wang Hu, to inflict heavy losses on the Coordinators?
Losing one battle—just one battle—what was the big deal?
How many battles had they lost before? Had they ever complained?
Exchanging bewildered glances through the communication feeds on their respective bridges, the squadron leaders saw nothing but confusion in each other's eyes. Turning their gazes back toward the battlefield, they zoomed in on the video feed.
A chill ran down their spines as they watched the East Asian Army's Moebius units charging forward like wolves and tigers.
"Boom."
A phantom explosion echoed in their minds as their eyes locked onto a Moebius ramming straight into a GINN.
A fiery explosion erupted, and two young lives vanished in an instant.
"We can't fight like this! We can't!"
One of the Coordinator squadron leaders, lips trembling and limbs ice-cold, shouted.
"Pull them back! Order a retreat! We can't win this—we can't!"
The other leaders remained silent.
No one reprimanded him for his outburst, nor did anyone stubbornly insist that their forces couldn't possibly retreat in disgrace before Naturals.
Suicidal attacks weren't unheard of on the battlefield. They had occasionally witnessed them when fighting the other two factions of the Allied Forces.
But those were usually desperate acts by fanatics who had already been crushed, with no hope of escape.
And even then—only the most hardline, unwilling to surrender, would choose such an end.
Under normal circumstances, Naturals would surrender en masse long before reaching that point.
Otherwise, where would all those Natural prisoners of war doing hard labor come from?
But what was happening now?
Behind them was the Nova Resource Satellite defense line. Behind them were countless reinforcements ready to join the fight at any moment.
Why? Why choose such absolute desperation?
Before the squadron leaders' eyes, suicide attacks were now commonplace.
Lives burned like fleeting fireworks, seeking only to shine their brightest in the briefest of moments.
With this self-sacrificing ferocity, the East Asian Army shattered the Coordinators' psychological defenses.
Even though their weapons were vastly superior, even though their physical capabilities far outstripped those of Naturals—
Once the East Asian soldiers cast aside their lives, defeat became inevitable.
At this moment, from the frontline ZAFT soldiers to the troops witnessing everything from the rear—
Not a single soul, not one, still believed they could achieve victory in this battle.
"Let's retreat."
With a deep sigh, the most senior captain among the ZAFT fleet spoke.
Sorrowfully removing his officer's cap, the captain, who had been unanimously elected as the commander, said in a low voice,
"I will take full responsibility. The East Asian Army is not an enemy we can afford to provoke lightly."
"They don't rely on the brilliance of a single ace—they are simply incomprehensible madmen."
"An army made up of madmen doesn't care about their own lives, nor do they care about the lives of others."
"The enemy doesn't consider their own soldiers, but we still must!"
By the end, anyone could hear the resentment in his tone.
Glancing at the commander who had struggled to issue the retreat order, the others swallowed hard.
A few individuals wanted to speak up, but their adjutants held them back.
This was for the best. Someone had taken the blame for the defeat, and a reason had been found.
Once they returned to PLANT, all they had to do was lay low. After weathering the storm, they could rebuild their reputation by engaging the other two factions of the Allied Forces.
They would still be the heroes of PLANT, the elite of ZAFT.
It was just a shame...
The captains shook their heads helplessly. They had initially seen their forces riding high on momentum.
If they had waited for the enemy to collapse or for reinforcements to arrive, they could have pressed the advantage and swept forward—
Whether it was the Nova Resource Satellite or the L4 Space Colony Area,
there might have been a chance to seize them. But now?
The morale of the entire army, at its peak, plummeted like spilled mercury.
A chain reaction followed, and even the soldiers in the main formation were intimidated by the enemy.
It was foreseeable that, for a long, long time to come, their own troops would tremble at the mere mention of the East Asian Army.
At this point, there was truly no need to continue this battle.
"Why?"
Disheartened, the captains signaled for their troops to withdraw, each silently asking the same question in their hearts.
"Why?"
Witnessing this scene, Creuset no longer had the will to continue his struggle with Wang Hu.
For him, even if he ultimately killed Wang Hu, failing to understand the East Asian Army's abnormal behavior
would leave him restless and uneasy forever.
After all, his ambitions were built upon ZAFT. If ZAFT suffered repeated defeats,
his dreams, his lifelong aspirations, would become nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
Genesis was still under construction, and ZAFT's military strength was still growing slowly.
At present, ZAFT relied entirely on an aura of invincibility to sustain itself!
If the East Asian Army's sudden rise at this critical moment allowed the other two factions to turn the tide,
and if PLANT found itself under siege, the Clyne faction within might very well raise the white flag and surrender!
"You don't understand."
Seeing that Creuset had lost his fighting spirit, Wang Hu assessed that, given his current strength, he wouldn't be able to defeat the other anytime soon.
Maintaining a safe distance, he explained with a solemn expression,
"This is the consequence of not studying history. We are different from the other two factions."
"The tragedy of a fallen nation and shattered homes has been engraved in our hearts since childhood."
"Between family and country, we don't even need to think before making our choice."
"Our predecessors in history have set the finest example for us. We need only follow the steps laid before us, and we will naturally arrive before the Throne of Heaven."
"The Throne of Heaven?"
Unexpectedly, Wang Hu's words ignited a new flame in Creuset's heart.
Perhaps...
Staring intently at Wang Hu before turning his gaze toward the advancing East Asian Army, countless thoughts raced through his mind.
Without hesitation, Creuset pulled GINN's control stick and turned to flee.
"Just like that, he's gone?"
Watching as Creuset vanished in the blink of an eye, Wang Hu's lips twitched awkwardly.
That was Creuset, after all. Was it really okay for him to retreat so decisively?
"Never mind."
Gazing into the distance as Creuset departed, Wang Hu dismissed the thought of pursuit.
The immediate priority was to rally their own forces for a counterattack. Every loss among those brave soldiers would be a failure on his part.
Just as Wang Hu turned to rejoin the main force, the ZAFT Forces' squad leaders were already shouting orders for their troops to withdraw.
"The time has come." General Zheng witnessed the scene he had longed to see.
As the ancient saying goes: "The first drumbeat rouses courage, the second weakens it, and the third exhausts it."
Their tenacious troops had made the enemy realize their forces were not to be trifled with.
Even without an ace pilot, the remaining soldiers possessed the resolve to crush them.
Thus, it was time to bring this battle to a close.
"All forces, advance!"
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(End of Chapter)