The Blitz launched from the Archangel, touching down upon the deck just as it had in the previous battle.
Moments later, the Strike—likewise equipped with the Sword Striker pack—was catapulted out. It didn't stop at the deck, instead plunging immediately into the ocean depths.
"Kira, can I trust you to handle the underwater combat? I'll handle torpedo interception and any enemies that surface from up here."
"Understood! Please take care of the Archangel!"
I assessed my loadout. The only weapons the Blitz could effectively use against submerged targets were the Gleipnir piercer and the Lancer Darts. I briefly regretted not dragging out the heavy anti-ship sword lying in the hangar corner to use as a makeshift club, but I quickly shook the thought away. The Archangel needed a bodyguard regardless; I didn't have to do everything myself.
"Axel, I'm leaving this side to you."
The transmission came from Mu, launching in a Skygrasper from the linear catapult right after the Strike. Immediately trailing him, however, was a second Skygrasper.
"…Is that allowed?"
Mu seemed to understand exactly what I was implying. On the comms screen, he gave a light shrug.
"She looked like she was going to launch on her own even if we ignored her. Better to keep her under my supervision than let her run wild… Besides, we're hunting a submarine. More firepower is always welcome."
"Right. If you're okay with it, I have no complaints."
So, it's following the original script after all.
Well, considering Athrun and the Justice will eventually become part of the Three Ships Alliance's fighting force, I have no objections. It's still a vague outline, but if my current plan proceeds as intended, the Alliance should end up with even more firepower than in the original story. And in war, you can never have too much firepower.
"Whoa—no time to think!"
A Goohn erupted from the ocean. In the brief moment its torso was exposed to the air, it fired a volley of torpedoes from both arms. The Archangel's Igelstellung CIWS network roared to life, shooting down the majority of the projectiles, but a few slipped through the barrage, heading straight for us.
"Focus."
I triggered the Spirit Command.
With my concentration supernaturally sharpened, I tracked the incoming torpedoes with absolute clarity. I raised the Trikeros shield system and fired the integrated beam rifle. The beams pierced the torpedoes in mid-air, detonating them safely away from the ship. The Archangel weathered the first wave unscathed.
"…Shooting torpedoes out of the air. Now that's something."
Call it a preconceived notion, but I've always believed torpedoes are meant to travel underwater. The Sea Lion—an underwater combat machine I'm familiar with—suffered a catastrophic drop in accuracy if its torpedoes were used outside the water. The memory was so ingrained that seeing an enemy like the Goohn fire them into the air felt wrong.
Then again, if I just think of them as missiles, it's not a problem.
"There!"
Another Goohn surfaced behind the Archangel, firing. I shot the projectile down with the beam rifle.
The interception was successful, but a split second later, another Goohn popped up at the ship's bow, fired, and vanished back into the depths.
If only two Goohns were harassing the Archangel, that meant the Strike was likely keeping the Zno occupied. Still, with two enemies splitting their attacks, we were constantly on the back foot. If this were a ground battle, I could take the offensive, but here, it was a game of Whac-A-Mole against targets hiding in the ocean.
And then—
"Whoa!"
The Archangel lurched violently beneath my feet, causing the Blitz to stumble. Fortunately, the ship stabilized quickly, but these tremors were becoming a problem.
The Goohns were attacking from directly below. While the ship was managing to evade or intercept the torpedoes with its ventral CIWS, the constant maneuvering was fraying my nerves. The attacks were so frequent I didn't even have time to call the bridge to complain. Worse, if the ship lurched while I was firing, I risked putting a beam rifle shot into the Archangel's hull. The laminated armor would likely prevent major damage, but I had no desire to get an earful from Murrue, Natarle, or Murdoch and his mechanics later.
Thankfully, a transmission from the bridge signaled the end of this precarious stalemate.
"Axel, the Archangel is going to execute a barrel roll to bring the Gottfrieds to bear on the Goohns! Please be careful not to get thrown off!"
"Copy that. I'm ready when you are."
I gave Miriallia a short reply. The moment I saw the Archangel begin its rotation, I fired my thrusters and leaped skyward. I touched down briefly on the edge of the starboard wing as it rolled, then fired the thrusters again to stay airborne.
Simultaneously, the Archangel, now completely inverted, fired its Gottfried energy cannons into the water, obliterating one of the Goohns the moment it broke the surface.
And then...
"Got you!"
Whether it was shocked by its comrade's destruction or simply surprised by the battleship's acrobatics, the remaining Goohn lingered on the surface a fraction of a second too long.
I capitalized on the delay. The Blitz dropped from the sky, landing squarely on the Goohn's exposed upper hull. At point-blank range—essentially zero distance—I fired the Trikeros beam rifle.
Using the recoil and the enemy machine as a springboard, I leaped back toward the Archangel, landing on the deck just as the ship righted itself. Behind me, a massive pillar of water erupted as the Goohn detonated beneath the waves.
"That takes care of the Goohns. Now it's up to Kira and Mu."
Scanning the sea from the deck, I could occasionally spot faint shadows moving beneath the waves. It was impossible to tell if it was the Strike or the Zno, however.
Wait.
"Bridge, do you copy?"
"Yes, go ahead."
"Can your radar pinpoint the Strike's location?"
"Um, just a moment."
"Axel Almar, what is it?" Natarle's voice replaced Miriallia's.
"From my vantage point, I can see faint shadows of mobile suits clashing beneath the surface, but I can't distinguish friend from foe. If you can identify them, I can provide support fire for the Strike."
"…I see. Understood. We will identify the target. You are cleared to engage."
With Natarle's authorization, I focused my gaze on the water. About a minute later, the shadows returned. Two of them. One chasing, one fleeing.
"Bridge, I see two shadows. One pursuing, one being pursued. Which one is the Strike?"
"The one in front—the one being chased is Kira!"
Hearing Miriallia's report, I raised my left arm, aiming the Gleipnir. I waited. Waited. Waited...
"Right there!"
The rocket-propelled anchor launched, using its sheer velocity to punch through the water's surface. The resistance slowed it drastically, but the enemy Zno was moving at a shallow depth. The claw slammed home, digging deep into the enemy's back.
"Guh—!"
I had caught it, but the Gleipnir hadn't killed the Zno's momentum. The result was simple physics: the Blitz was yanked violently across the Archangel's deck, dragged by the submerged enemy.
"Kira!"
"I'm coming!"
I signaled Kira, who should have been ahead of the Zno, but the Strike had retreated too far to double back in time. It wasn't an underwater machine, so I couldn't blame him, but my machine wouldn't hold out at this rate.
"Damn it!"
With the Gleipnir still embedded in the enemy, I engaged the Blitz's thrusters and leaped off the deck. I landed directly on the back of the Zno, which had been pulled near the surface by the tension on the cable.
"What?! On my back?!"
I could hear the bewildered voice of the enemy pilot over the contact frequency, but the machine was already trying to dive again. I didn't have time for a chat.
"Love."
I invoked the Spirit Command.
A mysterious power surged through my body and my machine. I felt the energy peak... and fired all three Lancer Darts from the Trikeros shield.
"What the—?!"
I kicked off the Zno's back, vaulting back onto the Archangel's deck just as the enemy machine exploded underwater.
"…Phew."
"I'm sorry I was late." The Strike surfaced and approached, Kira sending an apologetic transmission.
"Don't worry about it. You drew their attention, which made them sloppy about watching the surface. More importantly..."
"More importantly?"
"Bridge, any word from Mu?"
"..."
"Bridge?"
"Ah, s-sorry. Major La Flaga reported that the enemy submarine has been destroyed. But, um..."
Miriallia hesitated. This... this was playing out exactly like the anime.
"Did enemy reinforcements arrive?"
"No. Cagalli, who launched in the second Skygrasper, is missing in action. The Captain wants the Blitz and Strike to begin a search and rescue operation as soon as basic maintenance and resupply are complete."
"Cagalli is!?"
"…And the Blitz, too? That leaves the ship's defenses dangerously thin."
"Axel! How can you be so calm?!" Kira snapped at me. "Cagalli is missing!"
I sighed at his outburst.
"Calm down, Kira. If we both leave to search and the Archangel gets sunk by ZAFT in the meantime, what happens then? We won't have a home to return to."
"That's..."
"Even so, I'm asking you, Axel."
Murrue cut into the comms. She looked at me with a sorrowful expression, clearly weighed down by Cagalli's disappearance.
"Major La Flaga will be returning shortly. If anything happens, the Skygrasper will handle defense."
"…Understood. Once resupply and maintenance are done, I'll head out."
"Thank you."
"I am sorry to ask this of you."
Kisaka appeared behind Murrue, bowing his head deeply. As her guardian, losing her was a grievous failure.
Still, doing a favor for Orb wasn't a bad move. If the vague plan forming in my head was actually feasible, this incident would serve as a massive bargaining chip later.
"Don't worry about it."
Leaving it at that, I moved the Blitz toward the hangar.
In the end, events followed the original story to the letter.
We spent the night without finding Cagalli. The next day, we picked up a distress signal, and the Strike retrieved her. Cagalli, having launched on what was essentially a rogue sortie, was subjected to a lecture lasting several hours from Murdoch and the mechanics. As punishment, she spent the next week running errands as their gofer.
Name: Axel Almar
LV: 36
PP: 115
Stats:
Melee: 254
Shooting: 274
Skill: 264
Defense: 264
Evasion: 294
Accuracy: 314
SP: 446
Ace Bonus: SP Boost (Consumes SP to increase slime performance) [Note: "Slime" likely refers to a specific mecha/unit quirk or translation of a specific kanji from the raw data, kept literal here, but contextually usually refers to unit performance].
Growth Type: Versatile / Special
Terrain Adaptation:
Air: S
Land: S
Sea: S
Space: S
Spirit Commands:
Accelerate (SP 4)
Gain (SP 8) [Note: Often translated as "Cheer" or "Effort" for EXP gain]
Focus (SP 16)
Direct Attack (SP 30) [Note: Ignores defensive abilities/size diff]
Awaken (SP 32) [Note: Extra Turn]
Love (SP 48) [Note: Full buff suite]
Skills:
EXP Up
SP Boost (SP Up Lv.9 & SP Recover & Focus [Skill])
Telekinesis Lv.10
Attacker
Gunfight Lv.9
In-fight Lv.9
Limit Break (Morale)
Geass (Gray)
???
???
???
???
???
Kill Count: 278
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