Part 108: Post-Intermission
Thanks. And trust me, nobody is looking more forward to that mech than me.------------------------------
: Good work, Ensign Uraki.
: What are we going to do with the GP02, sir...?
: After dismantling it, we'll keep it securely sealed away on the Argama, of course.
: Oh, I see...
: Kamille, how's the Freeden's removal work coming along?
: Duo, Garrod, and others are working on it as we speak.
: I hear Masaki, Mio, and their group also joined up with the Freeden.
: Yes, sir. Still... I wasn't expecting for us to excavate the GP02, much less have the Moon Race come after us for it...
: Sir Gwen, is that mechanical doll really that dangerous?
: What's dangerous is the bomb it's armed with. According to Laura, it apparently sears the land and generates a powerful poison which contaminates the land for centuries.
: My, how dreadful...
: No... Think of it as a cursed relic of the Black History.
: (.........)
: (.........)
: Judging from the battle situation, the Moon Race's military seems to be split into two major factions.
: The Diana Counter, under Diana Sorrel's direct command, and that unaffiliated group, right?
: They must have been the ones who attacked us before.
: (.........)
: I hear you know a lot about the Moon Race. Is there anything you know about that
: ...It is true that the Moon Race's armies are split into two major factions. One is the Diana Counter, which you're familiar with. The other is the Ghingnham Fleet...
: Ghingnham...?
: Ghingnham is the name of the family which historically heads the Moon Race's military. They have a private fleet in lunar orbit, and they've trained continuously over thousands of years to deal with external threats.
: Trained over thousands of years...!?
: And, what external threats?
: It is said that the Ghingnham Fleet was originally formed in order to deal with extraterrestrial invaders.
: (.........)
: Of course, now they take the Innocent to be that external threat.
: (.........)
: So the Diana Counter is an army reporting directly to Queen Diana, and the Ghingnham Fleet is the moon's regular army?
: Most likely, yes.
: (Two militaries under one umbrella organization... That sounds an awful lot like how things were with the Earth Federation and the Titans.)
: By the way, Sir Jamil. What was the situation at the Innocent base in Fort Severn?
: As we were informed, they were gathering Breakers as anti-Moon Race forces.
: Then, I take it negotiations with them went smoothly?
: (.........)
: ?
: Wh-what did you say...!?
: The Innocent attacked you...!?
: An artificial Newtype... Something similar to a Cyber Newtype...?
: It seems the Innocent at Fort Severn had been conducting Newtype research for some time. And they tried to capture Tifa to use as one of their samples...
: And apparently, Rosamy was also at their Newtype research facility.
: Rosamy...?
: That woman claiming to be your younger sister, Kamille?
: (.........)
: B-but... Our firepower should have been valuable to the Innocent!
: The Innocent probably view us as dangerous and want us dead along with the Moon Race.
: B-but that's...
: But, I don't understand the reasoning here. Why would we be targetted by the Innocent when we're also fighting the Moon Race?
: Yeah, she's right! Sir Biel even gave us a special dispatch...
: (.........)
: Besides, the Gallian Innocent are cultured people who hate fighting. How could they start a fight themselves...?
: It's most likely because we possess the GX and Turn-A, along with many other mobile weapons of the Black History. We may very well be seen as more of a threat to the Innocent than the Moon Race themselves...
: (.........)
: (... Th-that only counts for the Innocent in North Ameria, right? The Gallian Innocent... Sir Biel would never launch any attacks on us...)
[SCENE CHANGE]
: (.........)
: M-my goodness... I've definitely felt like something was out of place this whole time... But, why would you be in a place like this... Lady Diana?
: (.........)
: (So this is... the queen of the moon, Diana Sorrel... But she doesn't look all that much older than me or Loran...)
: Ohh... Lady Diana, whom I respect and admire so much, and Lady Kihel... How... How could I have not been able to tell the two of you apart...!
: Loran...
: (.........)
: Loran Cehack. Your dear Kihel Heim is in a very distressful situation right now.
: (.........)
: Her life may be in danger. All because we did such a foolish thing...
: So Miss Kihel really is on the Soleil?
: That is correct. She has been forced to act in my stead... Given the rapid deterioration of the situation over the past several days, we cannot afford to continue like this any longer.
: Yes, we cannot keep this up...
: If the fighting continues, it will only bring misfortune to both the Earth and the moon. For the sake of our people, split apart, and for the sake of this beautiful land and shining moon... Loran Cehack, please, lend me your strength.
: Do... Do I even have strength...?
: As I am right now... You are the only one upon whom I can rely.
: (.........)
: Ryouma, it pains me to make such a selfish request, but...
: I understand. I'll keep quiet about this... Until you choose to reveal the truth about yourself.
: You have my deepest gratitude for your consideration...
[SCENE CHANGE]
: (.........) ...Nowhere in particular.
: Liar. You're hiding something, aren't you?
: What makes you say that?
: Heh, because I've been around you a long time... You know, I hear that Kihel lady looks an awful lot like the queen of the moon, Diana.
: (.........)
: On top of that, I hear Kihel spent some time in the Diana Counter's flagship.
: What are you getting at?
: I was thinking that the Diana Counter could've set Kihel up as a spy then...
: (.........) Even if you're wrong about that, don't discuss it with anyone else.
: ...Alright, fine, Ryou. I can't disobey the leader, I guess.
: (.........)
: (But this confirms that there's something up with Kihel...)
: What's wrong, Chizuru?
: Tetsuya and Kenichi have gotten into a fight!
: What'd you say!?
: Please, stop them!
: (.........)
: Ryou, this is your area of specialty. I'll sit this one out.
Hayato walks off.
: Hayato......
: Ryou, come quick!
: Ah, right... Got it.
[SCENE CHANGE]
: (.........) ...Because we thought investigation should come first.
: That's not true. It was Lt. Burning's decision to...!
: So naive. What were you planning on doing if you got hit by the GP02's nuke?
: Cut it out, Tetsuya! It's not Kenichi's fault!
: Kouji... We got lucky this time, that's all. If the GP02 had gotten stolen, it could've been a nightmare.
: (.........) Listen, I'm warning you. If you keep doing things with such a soft attitude, you'll end up doing even more damage than you would have otherwise.
: (.........)
: You should all think that over.
Tetsuya walks out of the room
: Tetsuya...
: (.........)
: What was his problem...!?
: Kenichi... Don't worry about what he said.
: ...No, what Tetsuya said wasn't wrong. Nor was Lt. Burning's judgement.
: Kenichi...
: We know all too well how fearsome that Gundam is. I should have done something, since I was the one who discovered it.
: But he didn't have to be so harsh about it.
: (.........)
Kenichi leaves as well
: (.........) Kouji, did something happen with Tetsuya?
: (.........) I'd like to know that, myself...
-------------------------
Needless to say, if you fail to stop the GP02 from getting stolen then the above conversations become different. Here is the different text from Tetsuya and Kenichi's fight.
quote:
: Kouji... They should have focused on guarding the GP02 from theft. If Kenichi had bothered using his head, that is.
: Gr...!!
: Kenichi's obviously the one at fault here. It'd be too late once a nuke went off.
: Tetsuya, that's enough, knock it off!
: This is exactly how it went in Operation Stardust during the Balmar War! What'll you do next time you see the GP02, just hope for the best and pray we can stop it?
: ......!
I'm not sure what the far reaching consequences would have been if I hadn't stopped it.
In any case, next time I start on finishing the Fort Severn route.