Soon, the fully prepared Eternal and another Nazca-class ship set off.
Meanwhile, at the Library base in L4, the familiar young Commander was looking grimly at the various reports before him.
"So it's confirmed they've made a move?"
"Yes. It appears they've received the message we deliberately sent."
The deputy stood beside the young man, equally serious.
"It looks like they've already fallen into our trap."
"I don't need 'it looks like' or 'appears'—vague wording like that."
"Confirm their route as soon as possible. Also, when will the Dominion's preparations be complete?"
"Tomorrow—before they arrive."
The deputy answered tensely.
"Good. Get everything ready as quickly as possible. The new Mobile Suits as well."
At those words, the young man's expression softened slightly, though it remained rather gloomy, and he continued, "If I'm not mistaken, these people are ZAFT's most elite unit. We must make sure they don't escape!"
"Yes, sir!"
At the young man's words, the deputy's boots slammed hard against the metal floor.
Watching his deputy leave, the coldness and hatred intertwined in the young man's eyes did not change in the slightest.
For their future, those people had to die—though of course, capturing them alive would always be best.
But in his view, the chances of taking them alive were slim.
If they valued their lives and surrendered willingly, fine. If not, then they would simply have to be killed.
Their commander was very likely that ruthless one—he had known for a long time.
This time, they had spent a great deal of money to turn a Moderate Faction member, and after layers of disguise, had set this trap.
Such an unconventional tactic works once, but the next time, it would no longer be unconventional.
So they had to make sure it was a one-strike kill.
Thus, with their respective schemes in mind, the two sides rapidly closed the distance across the vast emptiness of space.
...
Half a day later, Fred, having eaten and drunk his fill, arrived at his Freedom.
This time, however, he did not launch only when the battle began; instead, he first came outside the Eternal. In the silent void of space, he and Athrun quickly docked with the Meteors mounted on either side of the Eternal.
The other Mobile Suits also came out.
"The plan this time is a siege battle. First, we wipe out all the Mobile Suits at the bases near the Atlantic Federation."
"However, given that their Mobile Suits' capabilities may have improved, each unit should judge its own formation according to its situation."
These people were all Aces; there was no need for Fred to teach them every little detail.
As long as the general direction was right, that was enough.
"Understood."
Everyone answered in unison, just as tacitly as before.
Though no one said another word, gazing toward the base in the distance where nothing had yet appeared, the silent atmosphere took on an even more chilling, deadly air.
"High heat source approaching! We're being targeted!"
Suddenly, the Captain aboard the Eternal let out a great cry.
The moment the Captain's words fell, a massive Beam shot straight toward the Eternal.
"An Antimatter Cannon? The Dominion—we've walked into a trap."
Watching the situation before him, Fred took a deep breath, his mind racing. Ahead of the Eternal, a Strike equipped with what looked like a crab-like backpack flew forward.
A brilliant light expanded from the crab-like backpack, covering the Mobile Suit's surroundings.
In the silent void of space, that bright beam soon collided with the glowing Light Shield.
Light scattered everywhere, but no explosion followed.
"Kira, you okay?"
Seeing this, even though he knew things were most likely fine, Fred still breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm fine. It's just that the heat dissipation and power output can't keep up—I can't block a second shot for now."
Kira, seated in the Strike, spoke slowly. Seeing that the Eternal behind him was unharmed, he felt a bit more at ease as well.
Although this Strike had been heavily modified for nuclear power, the energy consumption had been so great that it had barely managed to block the shot.
"Mm. There won't be a second chance."
Thankfully, Eurasia had given them this technology, and thankfully, he learned new things incredibly fast.
There hadn't been enough time to complete the Mobile Suit itself, but building a backpack had been doable.
That said, if not for this trump card, he wouldn't have made this trip over mere intelligence.
And now, his concerns had proven correct—this was indeed a trap.
"Initiate Plan B. Begin the assault."
Since it was a trap, there was no point in staying hidden anymore.
Besides, the Atlantic Federation had only limited troops it could deploy in space.
Even if it was a trap, he was still confident he could break through by force.
After all, the ambush just now had failed to take out their mothership—the Atlantic Federation's first-strike advantage was already gone.
Moreover, retreating now would only put them at a disadvantage.
"Yes, sir!"
At Fred's words, none of them showed any panic from the ambush; their expressions were instead quite energized.
"They're not running?"
On the Bridge of the Dominion, the young man murmured to himself.
Though he had known it wouldn't be that easy, once he formally confirmed the situation before him, he couldn't help feeling a surge of anxiety.
After all, the ambush just now had failed to destroy that new-type Battleship, and with that, their first-strike opportunity was gone.
A mothership was of obvious importance to this MS Squad, which had traveled such a long way.
And yet, they actually had a new Mobile Suit—one capable of defending against the Positron Cannon, no less.
However he thought about it, it had all exceeded their expectations.
If he could, the young man would even have preferred to withdraw first and plan things out more carefully.
But here, unless they abandoned the Library, there was nowhere for them to retreat to.
Moreover, if they truly retreated now, then without the Library—that organization of Clones—their chances of victory would grow even slimmer.
So, whether for honor or for PLANT, at this moment he had no intention whatsoever of yielding.
"The enemy Commander—that's the same person from before, isn't it?"
As the young man ordered his subordinates to launch, his gaze turned to the large screen, toward that bizarrely shaped MS.
Most of them weren't even standard-issue MS, but things resembling Experimental Units.
Still, being an Experimental Unit didn't mean it lacked combat power—the young man, having just taken a hit, knew this all too well.
His heart was equally filled with utmost vigilance.
Just as the young man's and Fred's thoughts collided and sparked, both sides' Mobile Suits swiftly entered targeting range.
No one on the Atlantic Federation side spoke, and neither did anyone on the ZAFT side.
Both were well-trained soldiers, and naturally they would not be shaken by such things.
"Let's test the Meteor's power."
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