As I approached the main body of GENESIS under the shroud of ASRS, the sheer scale of the weapon became undeniable. It wasn't quite as large as the White Star from my home world, but for this era, it was a leviathan of steel and circuitry.
"Now... how to get everyone to leave?" I muttered.
A structure this size necessitated a small army of technicians, engineers, and security personnel. Clearing it room-by-room by force was a fool's errand.
"The Primary Reflection Mirror was easy. Only two souls to worry about," I mused. But here? There were likely hundreds, if not thousands, still stationed inside. Knocking them all unconscious would take hours I didn't have.
Then, I remembered the conversation I'd overheard at the mirror: seventy percent completion.
If a weapon at seventy percent tried to fire, the margin for error was razor-thin. It wouldn't take much to convince a room full of engineers that the whole thing was about to turn into a localized supernova. If I could trigger a mass panic, they'd do the work for me.
"Let's go with that."
I recalled the Glowsaver into my Spatial Storage and moved toward the GENESIS docking bay on foot. Thanks to the Slime's scouting, I navigated the hangars and maintenance corridors like a ghost. Even in the port area alone, I counted nearly a dozen workers. To ferry this many people back and forth from Jachin Due or the Plants, several large-scale shuttles and launches were docked and primed for departure.
I need the control room, I thought.
I slipped into a vacant storage locker near the port, deploying a filament of Slime through the ventilation shafts. It snaked through the "veins" of the station—ducts, conduits, and sub-floors—searching for the brain of the operation. Ten minutes later, I found it: the central control hub.
Through the Slime's acoustic sensors, I eavesdropped on the conversation inside.
"Hey, we still haven't heard back from the Primary Mirror team. What's going on?"
"Who knows? Probably interference from the brawl at Jachin Due."
"Chairman Zala could give the fire order at any second. If they're still on that mirror when it happens, they're vapor. Get a hold of them!"
"Man... what was the Alliance thinking, jumping straight to our doorstep? I thought they were still stuck at Boaz."
"Word is it's not even the Alliance. It's that 'Miracle Fleet'—and the Eternal is with them."
"Don't call her 'Lady Lacus' around the officers. You'll get us all purged as Clyne Faction sympathizers."
"I'm just saying... she gave the N-Jammer Cancellers to the enemy. She's a traitor. But my son... he still listens to her songs every night. I look at this weapon, and I wonder if we've gone too far."
"Shut it! You want to be liquidated? High Command is on edge."
"I'm just... I believe GENESIS is for the good of all Coordinators. I have to believe that."
There were about ten people in the room. Most were focused on their terminals, but the psychic imprint of one technician was distinct—he was a Clyne Faction sympathizer, or at least someone whose conscience was beginning to fail him. He was the key.
I retracted the Slime and moved. I didn't have the luxury of time.
Accel. Focus.
I triggered the Spirit Commands, feeling my perception of time slow and my muscles coil with unnatural speed. I kicked the door open.
"Hey, you're back early. Did you get through to—?"
The tech nearest the door didn't even see me. I delivered a precise strike to his neck. He went down without a sound. I scanned the room instantly. Two techs were buried in a sub-routine at the far end of the console. The others were scattered.
"Wait, what—?!"
One of the programmers looked up, but with Accel active, I was already there. I buried a fist in his solar plexus. I held back—I didn't want to kill a civilian—but it was enough to drop him. He slumped into his chair, unconscious.
"W-Who are you?! What are you doing?!"
I moved to strike the third man but stopped my hand an inch from his throat. I recognized the voice. This was the one who had spoken of his son and Lacus's songs. He looked to be in his late twenties, though with Coordinators, age was a guess at best.
"There was one more. Where is he?" I demanded, pressing a pistol to his chest.
"I-In there!" he stammered, pointing to a side office.
The office door hissed open. A man stepped out, his eyes widening as he took in the scene of his colleagues slumped over their desks. He reached for a sidearm.
Accel.
Before his finger could touch the trigger, I was on him. I caught his wrist and delivered a sharp blow to his gut. He crumpled, joining the others in the void of unconsciousness.
I turned back to the remaining technician. He was staring at me as if I were a demon.
"Let's talk," I said, my voice cold. "You're Clyne Faction, aren't you?"
He flinched. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a loyal soldier of—"
"Save it. I'm not a ZAFT inquisitor. I'm with the fleet currently tearing Jachin Due apart. Lacus Clyne is our commander. I'm her 'friend'—the one sent to make sure this nightmare weapon never fires."
"Lady Lacus...?" his eyes flickered with hope.
"Exactly. Now, do you want to help her save the world, or do you want to die for a madman's laser?"
He hesitated for only a second. "What do you need me to do?"
"Lacus is terrified that if this weapon fires, it will trigger an extinction event. I need you to broadcast an emergency alert to the entire station. Tell them that Chairman Zala has given an emergency fire order, but because the weapon is incomplete, the Mirage Colloid system has malfunctioned and the Phase Shift armor is failing. Tell them a nuclear self-destruction is imminent. Tell them to evacuate now."
The tech nodded, his fingers flying across the console. "I can do it. I'll trigger the reactor alarms to back it up."
"Good. Once you're done, you leave too. I'll handle the rest."
I used some spare cabling to bind the unconscious technicians, ensuring they wouldn't wake up and cause trouble before the evacuation was complete.
"Attention all personnel! This is GENESIS Control! We have a Class-1 emergency! Repeating, a Class-1 emergency! By order of Chairman Zala, GENESIS was moved to a combat-ready state, but the incomplete systems have suffered a catastrophic failure. Mirage Colloid and Phase Shift systems are offline. We have a confirmed leak in the primary nuclear igniter. Total internal detonation is estimated in fifteen minutes! All personnel must evacuate to the shuttles immediately! This is not a drill! Evacuate! Evacuate!"
The man's voice echoed through the halls. For a few heartbeats, there was a deathly silence. Then, the screaming started. I could hear the thundering of boots in the corridors as panic took hold. The station's emergency sirens began their mournful wail.
I handed the rope holding the bound men to the technician.
"Take them with you," I said. "Get to a shuttle and get out of here. This station is about to disappear."
"I understand," the man said, gripping the rope. He looked at me one last time. "Please... take care of Lady Lacus."
He turned and ran, dragging his colleagues toward the docks. I watched him go, then turned back to the main console. It was time to pull the plug.
Pilot Status: Axel Almar
Level: 37
Kill Count: 361
Spirit Commands: Accel, Effort, Focus, Direct Hit, Awaken, Love.
Tactical Update: GENESIS evacuation in progress. Control room secured.
Objective: Clear the structure of remaining stragglers. Move GENESIS to Spatial Storage. Rejoin the Battle of Jachin Due.
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