Vol 6 Chapter 3 (1/2)

Chapter 3

06:06

The port of Dakar was located at the North-Eastern area of the plateau where the political and economic hub was The port was corey seawall continued to extend to the neighboring Hann Bel-Air industrial zone Including the artificial pier that formed a harbor, the water body stretched on for more than 30k within the harbor The Dakar port was not soe port, but it was a eneration filled with Gas Complexes and metal, chemical plants built on reclai in, it was an integral facility for logistic functions

The average water depth of the harbor was 50 up artificially, most of the water depth was around 25m The block that was 100e trench”, built for the Federation ary to let the marine shi+ps have the same density as spaceshi+ps and sink them to prevent enemy bombardment was acted here In fact, most of the shi+ps that once sank into the sea could not be used, and had no chance to be used in the refuge trench of Dakar’s port However, the chiselled-out stretch re to the port weaved under the sea like a giant snake As for the security level of the capital, these coative effects that caused blind spots They could only let the sea’s radar network, the Sound Surveillance Systeather here

On May 1st, the SOSUS detected a strange source of sound, and Dakar, which was in the Greenwich Meridian, was at 606aed to the Federation navy, subed to the bottom of Dakar’s port located 100e that piled at the bottom of the sea They landed, activated their sensors to maximum output, and started to move to the port in the sea

The machine of the “Aqua GMs” had jet units all over the place, and the shoulders that also functioned as ballast tanks were as high as the head For a GM-type mobile suit that was lean and streamlined, this “Aqua GM” looked rather crude in its silhouette It was built hastily during the War, was hardly improved on, and was not really easy to pilot Thecolors on it, but the Federation had no better amphibious mobile suits The spaceshi+p with the Minovsky Craft installed was flying in the sky above, and s called SFS at this point, so this amphibious mobile suit that could attack the ene time The weakened Zeon remnants would naturally be unable to extend their forces to subed mothershi+ps if it did not factor in the weakness of it not being easily usable The Federation itself had half forgotten about it too

But no matter the kind of machine, there would be people ould put their hearts and efforts in developments One of the “Aqua GMs” that landed on the port of Dakar was piloted by Captain Feido, codenan Harpoon 1 He was a pilot of the amphibious mobile suit ever since the One Year War The Zeon amphibious mobile suits had launched raids on the coastshi+p supplies, and terrorized the seas on Earth At this point, they had disappeared, but the underwater was a world that could not be surveyed easily even by watching, a place filled with natural Minovsky Particles called water Even if the “GM III” rode on the Landing Craft Air Cushi+on (LCAC) to stand guard, so underwater for a response This confidence caused the pilot to give upas he continued to be an amphibious unit pilot To him, this was a rare opportunity for him to prove his point After the Federation navy submarine “Bonefish” met its demise, the tale of an Atlantic Ocean monster “Sea Ghost” suddenly became very realistic Many used to see it as a malfunction of the SOSUS, and they did not even have any antisubmarine measures at that time However, that attack was detected extre of a Zeon submarine

It would take some time before the allied submarines that departed would arrive here If there were really an ene team’s mobile suits would be the only ones that could deal with it Feido stared at the LCAC hovering over his head, let the “Aqua GM” charge right at the port and descend to the seabed 150ht was such that it was impossible to see a hand stretched out in front with the naked eye, and all the all-view monitor CG could deterht-vision camera and sonar to determine the situation in the sea, and activated the optical fiber communication channel once the “Aqua GM” called Harpoon 2 landed behind

The communication was carried out by active sonar that started to spread The sonar from Harpoon 2 started to let out a sharp echo in response to Feido’s unit that was flickering its light from the visor, and the unit then used the jet units on its back and waist to sta a torpedo radually floated like a diver, swinging its arms as it swam over to the other side of the reefs that overlapped the “Water GM” The water surface that looked like an aurora would not even let through the light of a star, and the ed into the veil of thick seawater

The pinger on the sea surface would let out sounds at regular intervals, creating a perimeter on the sea where the Sea Ghost was Also, one could discover a sonar buoy that was casted down for the anti-subreatly to the left, and it definitely changed course because of the LCAC that was on patrolling requesting it to change its course There were not a lot of shi+ps that were entering and exiting the port, but there was a need to work together with the coast guards and regulate the transport inside the port completely, if the raid would only end after noon Once the enterprises and media express their unhappiness over the economic loss, the first party to be affected would be the navy Feido did not have the tiate towards the open sea

The “Aqua GM” hter as it released the seawater froh pressure ballast tanks Theas it left the seabed The “rescue trench” dug during the war and the seabed that could be seen appeared in his eyes, and he spotted a black shaped objectout from the shadows of a sunken shi+p

It looked like a mobile suit, but it was not a GM-type The machine had arched surfaces all over it, and its head was located in its short and stout fra any weapons, and in fact, given the shape of the hands, it was impossible for it to “wield” any weapons The end of the arms that looked extreether with its head, and the silhouette of that thing which looked like a shelled crustacean was practically—

“…No way”

That silhouette was reminiscent of the Zeon Repulic army’s “Z’Gok” amphibious mobile suit Is it a remnant of the War? Feido could not even confirure It’s ie now I don’t know if there’s really a Sea Ghost at the bottom of the sea or the dead souls of those who should have died off in the War—but everything is planned too perfectly Feido tried to convince hi leaped up fro the cockpit with a tremendous shockwave

“What’s that…?”

The ers reached over fro the main camera The vision of the all-view , and Feido ier to report this eency

The Harpoon 2 will i was amiss once it hears the soundwaves that moves 4 times faster than in air Even if I’m to be sunk here, I should be able to leave it to him That hat Feido planned, but the active sonar of the machine remained silent as the sonar communicator could not take effect That was because the arm of the “Aqua GM” that was suppressed fronal located on the mask

The right arm of the machine was completely restrained too, and he could not fire the torpedo launcher that was equipped to its arm Feido tried his best to move the “Aqua GM”s left hand and pull the beam pike froated in water, and that it would only release the bea contact with the enemy armor, but the beam pike fell to the bottom of the sea before he could er, quickly raised its other arh the cockpit of the “Aqua GM”

The h 3 layers of arht into the cockpit Feido’s body was first sliced in half by the blade, and the blade that had electricity charged through let out an intense heat The cockpit that was burnt together with its pilot let out a small explosion, and the cracks of the ar liquid The frozen body of the machine fell forward, and an arm reached out from behind to support the “Aqua GM” that had become a corpse before it could make any unnecessary noises The mobile suit—the “Zee Zulu” let the ene fluids and lit its head to signal its allied machine

It raised the heat knife it ielding in its hand, and its 3 sharp claws built on the side of its forear a crab-like silhouette on the nal were of the sah they looked similar to the amphibious machines Zeon made in the past, they were just a form the “Zee Zulu” possessed

The basic structure of this machine was not too different from the main line of mobile suits “Geara Zulu” Neo Zeon used However, the “Zee Zulu” looked vastly different once it was equipped with claws for close co equipment The ballast tanks latched around the neck made it difficult to see the actual outline of the head and the body, while the fins on its legson its ends It was humanoid and yet not humanoid, and was an oddly-shaped machine that could be called a deenetics of the amphibious mobile suits Zeon had The “Zee Zulu” moved out from the blind spot created by the sunken shi+p, and used the reefs as cover as it quickly approached the other “Aqua GM” The moment it made contact, it used its sharp claws bent as a hook to rip through the abdomen of the enemy unit

The pilot of Harpoon 2 did noton as the “Zee Zulu” iether with the pilot inside It ignored its allied unit that was planning to take the next action as it let out a signal froe amount of soundwaves with different frequencies from the Federation h several kiloh the SOSUS sonar receptor

The 3rd “Zee Zulu” used its heat knife to club the cable of the sonar receptor as a response, and let its fin feet leave the floor The machine moved to the port, and soon after, the reefs behind it started to rue ae blackshell, and the artificial object showed the glow of itsits true identity as it followed the “Zee Zulu” and approached Dakar

The Sea Ghost—the “Sha as their cables got cut, and showed its actual body and started to move forward The sonar receptors on the sea would not detect the sound of the MHD propeller unitsforward, and the ers The pingers were set beyond the range of the SOSUS so that the sonar receptors would not be overly burdened

Of course, the controllers of the SOSUS would immediately realize that the cables were snapped, but it would be too late by the time the navy understood the situation and arrived Dakar was right in front of the “Shae of the “Refuge Trench” on the main monitor It was so easy for an eneanization in history, the Earth Federation government

“It’s about time”

Madhi said some unnecessary words He looked down and saw his 3 children that earing pilot suits, Abbas, Walid and Loni He earing a helo of Garvey Enterprises on it The 17 opened leaves of the palned off the bird-eye’s view blueprint of Palm Island, an artificial island that was built on the sea off Dubai The consoles and seats of the cockpit had the same picture on them as well The construction of the “Shao of Zeon on the surface This little logo however showed the real heart of the “Descendant of Dubai” quietly

The “Shamblo” followed the 3 “Zee Zulu” and transformed into cruise mode as it approached Dakar The pot of Dakar basked under thetheunderwater

06:20

The 3 main thrusters installed at the tail of the shi+p took the ines and let out a ru sound The hot air that hipped up caused the sand and dust to rise, covering the body of the 112m shi+p that stood vertically, and the “Garencieres” finally started to move

The shi+p wasslowly at first, and after several seconds, the unique triangular prism broke free from the exhaust and the dust storms and rose into the skies The shi+p entered the blue sky vertically like a rocket that was launched a long tihtly tilted pillar of cloud in the Sahara Desert

The “Garencieres” was not equipped with a Minovsky Craft, and could not ravity and rise in the air Like an ordinary spacecraft, it could only lift itself through its strea its speed The “Garencieres” blew by the clouds and drew a long arch as it entered the stratosphere, tilting horizontally in a gradual ht The G-force that struck the shi+p gradually lost its momentum, and the bodies that were pressed down on the chairs were finally regaining their sense of up and down Zih and relaxed his hands as he moved the at the navigation seat and steering seat were Flaste and Alec, and they too relaxed their shoulders as they turned back to their respective consoles

“Current altitude is 9,800ood condition”

“All hands, re horizontally Estimated time of arrival in Dakar is 0800 Mobile suits related crew, standby Deck crew, start inspecting the shi+p and check all parts and tools under gravity conditions carefully”

Alec continued off froh the shi+p in a stiff tone Thisskills were the real deal, but he continued to show a tense expression, probably because he could not accept the fact that he was taking over for Gilboa Don’t be nervous Zimmerman wanted to speak up, but he i that hiswater, and ht to tell other people off here If I’ into the capital of the Earth Federation—

“A little more than an hour before we reach Dakar…it’ll be easy if we’re just going there”

Flaste probably sensed Zis as he let out these words It had been two days since they got back from Dakar, and as the shi+p was busy with the preparations and resupply, he did not have tiarding this operation “Looks like you have solanced behind fro to argue about this”

“But it’s a big thing to attack Dakar Once the coht have a 3rd Neo Zeon war if it’s not dealt with properly Instead of saying that it doesn’t feel realistic, I really can’t guess what Frontal’s thinking as I look at this situation …” “The lead in this operation is Madhi Garvey We just have to drop the “Unicorn” above Dakar and let it land safely on the parliament hall What we can do after that is to wait for the Laplace Program to unravel its seal”

Of course, we can’t just remained relaxed like this Flaste avoided the sharp stare from Zimmerman, “I understand here” and continued

“We can understand that they deliberately chose to take action during Congress recess so that the Senators supporting Zeon would not be affected However, didn’t Lord Madhi say that he wanted to destroy all the power on Dakar? Even if that guy’s titled the “Descendant of Dubai”, he’s a big shot who hasn’t tasted military food before Who knohether we can believe in what he plans to do…”

“That’s e need to assign escorts for the “Unicorn” and give it weapons to launch If things go bad, we can drop the machine and retreat immediately—”

“Nope, if Madhi’s daring to say that, it ht end up being controlled if we let an outsider handle that”

Just like how the “Unicorn” ended up controlling Banagher Flaste threw these unexpected words, causing Zi hihed before turning back to the console, “And Frontal never ht?”

“We also have to consider the intentions of those hiding behind the back of the Republic, right? To what extent are those guys willing to help Neo Zeon? I don’t think that the Republic has the power to withstand the Federation’s counterattack before it gets broken up…is the value of the “Laplace Box” really worth using the entire Neo Zeon for exchange?”

He expressed his doubts too directly, and even Alec beside him turned an uneasy stare over At this point—no, it was because it was at this point that they had to check whether they were on stable footing or not, and everyone had this kind of thought Up till this point, both sides had been detouring around to avoid a certain predica would end if they ht in front of their eyes Zi its indecisiveness and bit his lips tights to prevent hiht He then answered with the callousness of a commander, “I can say that what happened before already showed the value of the “Box””

“The Federation and the Vist Foundation are having bloodshot eyes while chasing after it Nofor one or two capitals However, e have to take note of is—”

“Banagher’s side, right?”

Flaste answered first, showing his unhappiness over this superficial answer in his eyes “…That’s right” Zimmerman answered as he looked aardly

“He’s willing to listen to the instructions now, but it’s going to be hard to tell ill happen when he witnesses Dakar being attacked If he’s really intending to fight, our forces alone won’t be enough to stop him”

Zi He brought Banagher along to the desert and treated him like a crew member just to prevent this aforementioned situation; Flaste knew about this, and the main crewas unpaid kindness in this world The “Unicorn” wouldto the heart, the pilot’s mental state and open a way to the “Box” Thus, it was all the more reasonable to try and pull hi all that for this?

He could not tell Zimmerman never had pure intentions in the first place, and he admitted his own hypocrisy as he darted his stare out of theto look at the dull-looking blue sky He would be in for a long time if he expressed his own doubts about this operation, but he did not have the thought of objecting to this in his heart Banagher was not the only one being fooled; all the crew rudging flesh and souls, and even though it had nothing to do with the revival of Zeon, the first person he fooled when he chose to enter the battlefield and run aas himself, not anyone else

Whether it was Zimmer to break due to the series of incidents surrounding the “Box”, and that hy everyone was starting to panic It did not matter whether the “Box” truly existed or not, they just needed to create an opportunity It was just like what Madhi said, they waited too long We’re tired of waiting, we have to take action before we forget, even if ill have to , even if that path of blood repaid upon blood will only lead to destruction—

“Well, I don’t think we have to worry about that guy”

Flaste suddenly raised a relaxed voice Zihts and looked up

“That guy has completely believed in you, captain”

Flaste’s eyes had a hidden honest light that reached the soul, completely different from his casual tone We believe in you too, captain Zi this as he looked away The white sun that just rose looked overly dazzling to his eyes that were deprived of sleep

06:35

Anyone would look larger when lying dohether they’re hurees inside the “Garencieres” that was flying horizontally, and the machines that were docked inside naturally fell onto the floor, held down by the restrains The “Unicorn” that was lying horizontally on the hangar looked iant

“I put two bea rack It uses a special connecting fraether Of course, the operating of the shi+eld won’t be affected”

The ned to maintain the “Unicorn” ever since it was taken back, said this It see to as long as it was about n of any aardness on his face His 30+-looking face was lightly sprinkled with e of Takuya on him as he stared at the “Unicorn” that was equipped with the Beainally meant as an additional armament for the “Kshatriya”, and at this moment, they were mounted and attached to the forearether caused the unan intiine the devastation they would have when they were used

In the end, he was still forced to take part in the battle due to the circu at the Central parliaram It would be Madhi Garvey’s job to suppress Dakar, and the chances of the “Unicorn” being involved in the battle were not high, but it was iher adjusted the collar of the pilot suit and covered up the suffocating feeling rising up in him, “Won’t this make it heavier?” he raised his primary concern

“Logically, you should be able to adjust through the AMBAC settings If you don’t want to use a weapon that’s too heavy, do you want the rifle—beanum? It has only 1 shot left, and you can just leave it here However, it ht help the balance of the machine Well, the power output of the “Unicorn” does s easy”

Banagher looked at the personal bea on the equipar, and felt his heart sink soy of 4 norh the poould ated under the atmosphere, one would wonder what consequences would there be if it was used in the city As he gulped, Toave a bitter s”

“Bringing it along is just a precaution here Your guards Ivan and Kwani are both veterans, and there’s nothing to worry if you listen to their instructions Besides, the battle should be over once you reach Dakar”

The nonchalant voice caused Banagher to remember the face of another veteran mobile suit pilot, Gilboa Tomura and the other crewover the absence of Gilboa, at least in front of Banagher, and he did not knohether they were being considerate about hiradually “I’m not really concerned” He si to the cockpit He reached the platform that was extended out of the cockpit and turned his stare that was saddled with heavy emotions he could not leave aside at the “Unicorn”

“It’s weird I didn’t think Neo Zeon weapons fit so ith Federation mobile suits”

“That’s because both sides are of universal specifications The eable too”

“Both sides can find a co?”

“During the course of a war, this is the only aspect of technology people become familiar with The manufacturer’s the same anyway, so it’s more efficient to unify the specifications”

“So this is for Anaheim Corporation’s convenience?”

“And for on-site convenience too It’s helping now, isn’t it?”

Tomura answered fro Banagher that it was pointless to think too much into it If there were an economy that could live only by ould it not be obvious to ested on this bitter understanding as he climbed down to the cockpit at his feet He ducked his head into the seat that was facing up, and attached the back of the pilot suit with the attache of the “Unicorn” equipping itself with the Beanum appeared on the condition

He knew that it was stupid of him to ride a Neo Zeon shi+p and wait for the launch, but he had to do this in order to reveal the true identity of the “Box” He let his finger slide onto the touch panel of the display board, checked the position of the cockpit he had not rode on for a long tiuza’s scent

The assistance seat beside the linear seat was still inside the all-view uza was once here If the battle hasn’t ended, ill happen if I end up having to fight the Federation? No uza hoped to do, isn’t it? No her could not find an answer, and he clenched his fists tight The at sound that breezed by his ears It was telling hi in on Dakar—

06:40

At this point, petroleu tih the tankers that travelled across oceans had virtually disappeared, but this did not as were as depleted as oil fields theas hydrate veins even after a long tias that was extracted from these parts continued to be used as raw as industries Thepipes to transport it directly, and also the as by shi+p had continued on since the old age, and this kind of as handed by the cost the shi+ps that wereto and from Dakar, a shi+p approxiest-class of “guests”, and such large shi+ps that were easily mistaken for space mothershi+ps when viewed from afar would often move around the industrial area

The “Zeus IX” was affected by the ation controls the Federation navy ie detour as a result It was one of the LNG shi+ps The flat hull that was common for a tanker had a thin low-temperature heat sink that cae tank that was like a huge container exposed a little part on this open-aired deck It was 350 the captain, was less than 15 due to the grace of auto would be sent to a LNG chain located in Bel-Air industrial area, and this was one of the necessary procedures required in the autoas is to be transported fro as they dock the shi+p onto a sea berth, the port’s facilities would take the necessary measures

It was 640am The “Zeus IX” docked at Dakar’s harbor 20 minutes later than expected, and it arrived at the 23rd sea berth the LNG chain designated The tugboats, which were equipped with buffers at the bow, positioned the to the instructions of the ee tanker that had a capacity of 200,000 tonnes was silently nudged into its sea berth At this phase, the docking was practically complete The captain stared at the backs of the seatheir job, and heaved a sigh of relief However, that was before the tree