Part 93: Mission 27 (Rand) - The 15-year-old Ghost - Part 2
Holland managed to survive what looked like a direct hit, but he has no clue where to actually find Eureka once he's inside the base.
Katokk shows up, yelling at him to stop, and they both start trading shots; Holland sees that Katokk’s quite experienced and, in turn, Katokk figures Holland isn’t your average joe from all the other guards he’s already taken out.
That said, Katokk knows that, sooner or later, Holland’s going to run out of energy even if he takes him out; Holland isn’t going to let that happen, though, yelling that he can’t afford to die in a place like this – he’s got something he has to protect above anything else!
Katokk’s rather impressed with his resolve and asks if he’s looking to rescue the LFO girl and, in that case, he surrenders. Katokk offers to help Holland if he spares his life, obviously surprising him.
Katokk remembers how his wife said one of his good points is that he accepts adversity easily BUT it would annoy him if things turned out exactly as Tifa said, so he wants to try opposing it a bit.
Holland asks who the hell he is and Katokk says he’s just a huge, selfish liar.
Katokk guides him to where everyone’s held up and Garrod quickly asks what he’s up to. “You guys feel like changing the future?” Katokk asks.
He relates Tifa’s prophecy of how she’d never see any of our folk again and, as selfish as he is, Katokk didn’t much enjoy hearing that. As for why he’s helping us, he doesn’t think anyone could possibly see the future so he’s doing this simply as a way to prove Newtypes wrong.
Jamil tells Garrod to handle Tifa’s rescue while he uses the GX in his place. Garrod’s surprised that he’s going to pilot a Mobile Suit but he has no choice if he wants to stop Lucille.
Sara sees that the woman’s quite important to Jamil and he says everyone has memories they don’t want to talk about. He fears he’ll lose something important if he puts it into words and Sara somberly lets the matter be.
Jamil leaves with Tex and Shingo assisting and Holland sets out to rescue Eureka. Katokk wishes him luck, looking forward to this future that Holland’s fighting to protect.
Holland says that’s what he lives for and Katokk finds it quite interesting that he, a man who had forgotten his future, ran into someone like Holland. Renton wants to help rescue Eureka but Holland tells the kid to piss off.
This is his battle to fight and a useless brat like him should just get out of his way.
Katokk’s leaving with Garrod, hoping to reverse the future Tifa saw and Garrod says he better not be lying now.
Outside, Gainer’s starting to worry that Holland really was killed but Gain tells him not to worry as Holland said he’d pull it off and we know he’s not one to go back on what he says.
Besides, Hayato reminds everyone that we have another problem with that monstrous unit ahead – Michiru then detects something else emerging from the base.
: The GX! Garrod?!
: No… it’s me.
: Jamil! You’re piloting an MS?!: I have to stop that Mobile Armor - and Lucille - with my own hands.: So I can put this 15-year-old ghost to rest…!
: Eureka, what happened to Holland?!
: He’s fighting inside the base, still trying to rescue her!
: Ah? Renton’s flying the Nirvash?!
: Oi, you alright in there?
: Holland said it’d just get in his way…: But, I…I wanna do something for Eureka – for everyone!
: Renton…
: Heh…the kid’s out to play in the big leagues with just his guts? 
: And that's fine! You can’t do anything if you don’t at least have guts!
: Alright, Renton! Get to it!
: Things aren’t looking good, though. Don’t think you’ll do much with spirit alone.: Right!: (Nirvash… I’m also fighting for Eureka and our friends! So please… help me out here!)
: All units, concentrate your attacks on the Mobile Armor! Stop it in its tracks!!
: …
: Wait for me, Lucille! I’m coming to save you!
Patulia (Autonomous Circuit)
Features:
- Barrier Field (All incoming damage reduced by 1000)
No tricks to this one. It’s a 2L sized damage sponge but it’s got no skills and average stats.
The size difference, paired with two ALL attacks, can decent damage but none of your reals should be getting hit if they’ve Focus on.
Swarm and destroy.
Jiron and Rand are crossing the pond aboard the Gekko (while Aquarion is position itself to punch the Patulia), so we’ll take the time to get rid of these G-Bits for extra
.
They’re all flying solo, so we can easily take them out in Center Formation.
Kei and Marin keep the trend going.
Talk some sense into her, Jamil.
: Lucille! If you can hear me, stop this thing!: You’re not someone who should be fighting!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCbORbYKQEU
We’ll take it slow with this thing.
Renton isn’t at his dodgiest without Eureka but Invincible had that covered. Nearby, Ryouma tears a G-bit to shreds.
Enemy Phase!
Only one G-Bit left after this one gets dropped by Gainer and the Patulia is still focusing on Jamil.
Player Phase!
Last one before we start tearing the Patulia down.
Roybea profits a level and learns Analyze.
And I have Apollo cast Spirit just to get the Element System going.
The plot won’t kick in until we do some damage, so Rand and Apollo cut the Patulia down to size.
Witz wonders what’s going on with Garrod and Holland but Jun still can’t get in touch with them.
Rand asks Garrod what he’s doing, as Tifa’ll get angry if he makes her wait around too much and Talho tells Holland not to go dying in there.
Garrod and Katokk have already rescued Tifa and are shooting the place up as they escape. Katokk figures they were in luck, as the guards assigned to protect the girl weren’t very good.
Garrod wonders where the Frost Brothers ran off to as they weren’t keeping an eye on Tifa – she doesn’t know either, having not seen either of them after the fighting started. Either way they have to keep going and try to make it to the hangar, where Garrod plans escaping with whatever unit they can grab.
Katokk says he’s thinking too small, though – if you’re going to steal something, you gotta gun for the big prize. He decides to play decoy to give the kids time to escape and runs ahead, guns blazing, before Garrod can say that it’s too dangerous.
Katokk gets hit by a shot but tells them to keep running, as he continues to cover them.
They reach the hangar and, with the door and bulkheads closed, they’re safe for a while – Katokk’s been shot a lot and is bleeding out, though: “I guess this is when I should pour one final glass of bourbon… Shame that I can’t drink…” he smirks.
As his eyes grow heavy, he says he’s been searching for a place to die for a long while and figures this isn’t so bad now that he’s, at least, invalidated half of Tifa’s prophecy.
He tells the girl to keep Garrod safe and remembers that Garrod said that adults just wrap him and his friends in their problems. Still, Katokk says there are adults that are good people, adults that kids should strive to be like – just look at Jamil and Holland.
Garrod says he’s a good man, too, but Katokk insists that he’s just a huge liar. He says both that war and the Gundams are problems from before kids like Garrod were born and they shouldn’t be burdened with them.
Katokk tells him to live freely in this crazy world and, as he passes on, his last words are: “Don’t repeat the same mistakes.”
Tifa says he fought desperately to change the future and Garrod’s not going to waste his sacrifice. He wants Tifa to wait here while he goes out to fight but she wants to join him.
She tells him not to be surprised at what is to come, and to believe in her.
: A new Gundam?! 
: The Double X! Is that you, Garrod?!
: Yeah! And Tifa’s here with me!
: More of those face-less mechs launched!: We’ve to fight this many G-Bits...?!*Lorelai’s song echoes through the area.*
: …
: !
: Tifa, what’s going on?!: Jamil…can you hear my voice?: Lucille…?!: Yes…I am Lucille Lilliant. Your old comrade. : What happened? That’s not Tifa?!
: I’m not sure but it looks like Lucille is speaking through her. : As I told this girl, I needed to borrow her body and mind…: Lucille, can you stop the Mobile Armor?!: No…I’m being forced to operate the system. : That’s why, Jamil…you must stop me by destroying this machine.: But what about you…?!: I died 15 years ago…I’m no more than a ghost now. So--: Jamil! Just attack everywhere but the place she’s at!
: Look at that thing – it’s ginormous! We oughta be able to stop it if we can wreck its engine!: Everyone…
: That means quit mopin' around and get in there already!
: Fight, Jamil! For her sake!: You’ve good friends, Jamil. To risk their lives for someone like me…
: We gotta deal with those mooks first!
: Easy for you to say! There are loads of them!
: Garrod…: I got it, Tifa!*Garrod moves far from the island.*
: Heads up, everyone! I’m using the Satellite Cannon!!: But the G-Bits are too nimble! It--: Jamil…take control of the Flash System.: Stop the G-Bits with your will.: But I…: Your power’s simply asleep. I’ll help you.: …Understood.*Scrambled Newtype Flash noise.*
: I can’t do it...I can’t join my mind with yours...!: Stay strong…! Remember how it used to be!: How it used to…: Jamil!: Lucille!
: I see the Moon!: Now, Garrod! FIRE!!: I’ll give you power…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTBp2D2U8U8
: Nice one, Garrod!!
: Whoa! Awesome! That thing really is double what the GX is!: Jamil…the rest is up to you.: Roger that, Lucille! I’ll set you free from this 15-year-old ghost!: I’ll help you out, Jamil! I won’t let the same mistakes be repeated - for Katokk!
Yeaaaah, boy. Garrod’s got his sweet upgrade and, like Pierre said, it’s superior to the GX in nearly everything.
With bigger stats and damage, the only thing it’s missing is a way to reliably deal with mooks once it has run out of TRI ammo but we’ll get a way to fix that eventually.
Jamil will now be the default pilot for the GX and the Divider’s tailor-made for him (you can switch other people in, mind) so everyone wins!
Jamil didn’t take control of all the new G-bits, so there are plenty still around.
Mind you, they’re exactly the same as they were before so, to keep things simple, let’s just show Garrod taking out this one since it’ll allow us to see his new Hyper Beam Sword.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3khZAFbz61g
Kickass!
One thing before we go after the Patulia:
Secret Alert! - Gundam X’s Secret – 5th Point: Take out the Patulia with either Garrod or Jamil
Now, it’s time to get Jamil’s girl back. Let’s do this!
: I won’t stand for any who'd use humans as weapons!
: Be they from Earth or from S-1, I’ll crush all such people!
: Wait just a bit, Lucille! We’re gonna save you!
: And, as thanks, you could go out with me! Jamil can be next in line!
: I’m gonna do this…! We have to stop this thing or the battle won’t end!
: Wait for me, Eureka! I’ll take it down and come find you!
: Damn, this thing stinks!
: Come here, fat-ass! Imma tear you a new one and get rid of that nasty smell!
: Darling, be really careful not to hurt Lucille!: Don’t worry, that thing’s HUGE!
: Which means today, after a long time, I get to go full-on The Crusher!
: Every guy dreams of saving a captive princess, you know!: Hang in there, Lucille! We’ll help you out no matter what!
: I’m more than used to dealing with huge machines after fighting landships!
: Here I go! Courage and guts always come out on top, even in smaller packages!!
: Jamil broke free of his past and boarded a Mobile Suit!
: We cannot waste his courage! Time to clip this machine's wings!
: It’s huge… It could overpower even Getter if we screw up!
: This isn’t an enemy we’ll beat easily! Get your head in the game, Benkei!
: We have to pull this off, whatever it takes! We'll give these men who use others as weapons a taste of all our power!!
: Lucille…! I will not yield to this 15-year-old ghost – to the errors of the past!: I’ll fight to overcome it, so the next generation doesn’t inherit our tragedy!
: Garrod…Lucille is…: I got it! She’s being forced to fight us!: And that’s why I’ll save her! No way Imma let some 15-year-old ghost get the better of me!
: (This is a battle for our very future… Garrod, I'll help you as well…)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUTZlNGbYy8
: Lucille!!: It’s alright, Jamil. She’s safe…: Really…
: No…! The DX and the Newtypes…I’ve lost them all…
: (However, we’ve achieved our goal.)
: (Tifa Adill… Indeed, we’ll need your powers.): (We shall meet again, eventually. I hope you’ll look forward to that day.)
: Seems the last of the base personnel just turned tail and ran.
: Incoming transmission from the base! The Freeden’s crew and Holland are safe!
: He pulled through, somehow…
: Then, Eureka’s also fine…
: Jamil…Katokk’s dead. His last words were for us to not repeat the same mistakes…: That “15-year-old ghost”… I wonder, was it a personification of those mistakes…?: Still, we cannot erase the past... We must face it head-on in order to avoid repeating the same tragedies - to be able to move on with our lives…
Things aren’t looking good for Aimzat, who’s being held at gunpoint by the Frost Brothers. When he asks what they’re doing, Olba says it wouldn’t be right to say this is revenge.
Aimzat is confused and Shagia says he wouldn’t understand the pain of being branded as second-class people. That said, the times are changing and they plan to move to their next stage by using him as a stepping stone.
“You deceived me! Did you forget how well I treated you even though you’re not even Newtypes, you damned Category Fs?!” Aimzat yells. The brothers do not appreciate being called that, killing him on the spot. Shagia says it won’t be Newtypes who’ll lead the future but them, those called “Category F”.
That said, Olba does concede that it was thanks to Aimzat that they were able to carry out their objective – they now know that, with Tifa's powers, they’ll be able to awaken “that” from its sleep.
And, THEN, they will exact revenge: against the world and the man who twisted their fate.
Back at Zonder Epta, Renton tries giving Eureka a welcome-back hug but Holland jumps in, telling him to stay away, and punches the kid back.
He yells that a brat like him, barely out of his diapers, has no right dragging Eureka around – what happened to her is all on him. Talho notices that Holland’s injured but he says it’s nothing, as all that mattered to him was keeping Eureka safe.
Holland yells that, unlike this kid that’s always playing around, he’s willing to do anything to protect her. Ken-goh tries to calm him down, saying Renton understands what he did, and Hap wants to get the guy’s injuries treated before anything.
Talho turns to Eureka and asks if she understands that Holland was fighting for her sake and that’s why he’s so hurt right now.
As Eureka listens in silence, Gainer understands that Renton was only trying to save Tifa but, regardless, he didn’t quite make the right call.
Gauli is rather amazed at Holland, that he’d really manage to rescue Eureka by himself and Adette sees that he wasn’t lying when he said that he’d “do anything” to protect Eureka, as evidenced by the trail of destruction that he left where he passed.
That said, Jiron thinks Holland’s obsession with keeping Eureka safe goes a bit beyond what’s normal and Kei’s sure it’s no ordinary guy-girl thing. Gain figures, whatever it is, it’s gotta be tied with the Gekkostate’s objective.
Renton goes into his monologue, telling his sister that he’s never felt as miserable as he does now. He’s been doing his best to help out but he now sees that Hollands ten times more resolved than he is.
In the end, he’s still a kid but the problem is that a kid can’t help but act as a kid...
Outside…
: …: Lucille…: It’s good to see you again, Jamil. Now I have no more regrets…: I used what remained of my powers...it will all be be over...: What do you mean…?!: There was only a little piece of me left…: When I die, please sink me back into the sea. I was at peace at the bottom of the ocean…: Lucille...: I’m a bit sleepy...it won’t be long now.: But I feel very comfortable...like I’m dreaming…
: Forgive me…in the end, I couldn’t save you…: It’s alright. I am happy…that I could see you as a grown man…: Goodbye, Jamil…: …Thank you, Lucille…
As she dies, Garrod wonders if Lucille was happy and Tex says she was the only one who’d be able to answer that. That said, Tifa notes that she felt warm and peaceful while Lucille was possessing her.
Garrod promises to both her and Katokk that he won’t allow people to repeat the mistakes of the past and, while Sara tries to comfort Jamil, he walks always saying he needs to be alone.
Roybea says it’s just like Jamil to not show his sadness to others. He tells an angry Sara that he’s not joking and, speaking quite seriously, he says he cares a lot more for a certain living woman than for the dead – Sara doesn’t respond, though.
Either way, with Jamil going back to work as a pilot, Roybea says it’ll fall on her to act as the Freeden’s captain and he assures her that she can count on him.
At the Freeden’s lounge…
: Hm...So that’s the story between you and that Katokk guy...: He sacrificed himself and entrusted the future to us…
: The guy was looking for a place to die… : Still, that ain't for me...Not old enough to pass the baton just yet.
: You’re going to keep at it, hm? It’s not easy being the steadfast leader.*The door opens.*
: Hey there, old timers.: Rand, Gain…?: Garrod told us about Katokk…: So we figured we oughta pour a glass for him.: Sorry but it seems he didn’t like alcohol.: We'll drink one for him, then.
: Not a bad idea. I don’t think he'd want all this melancholy.: Is it alright, Holland? What about your wounds?: What? Ain't it common knowledge that you should give alcohol to injured folk?
: That’s only when it’s used as a stimulant or a disinfectant.: Ah, don’t be such a stick-in-the-mud, Doc. This here's medicine for the mind.: Alright, I’ll allow it. Good sake makes for good food for thought.
: Some poet said that?: No, it’s my own pet theory.*Jamil takes off his glasses.
*
: Then, here’s to the brave Katokk and the souls of all those 15-year-old ghosts…: Cheers.: Cheers.Whew, that was a lot of cutscenes. Still, there’s one more thing to do.
Have you been following the steps for the Gundam X secret? If so, you’re now at the last requirement, provided you did four of the five previous ones:
- Destroy Enil on Mission 7(Rand)
- Destroy at least one of the Frost Brothers on Mission 7(Rand)
- Have Garrod convince Enil on mission 14
- Enil survives Mission 14
- Either Garrod or Jamil shoots down the Patulia just now.
If you got that done, then there’s a scene at the Bazaar.
On the way to the bazaar, the Iron Gear folks mull over the massive damage the Iron Gear sustained on the way to the base.
Rag relates how, while they were busy rescuing the Freeden, it seems Cotsett has spent all that time doing whatever he can to get the ship fixed. Dyke spots Fatman in the distance, running towards them and Jiron figures that he came to the bazaar to buy parts of the Iron Gear’s repairs.
From Fatman’s costumary “!” response, Jiron sees that it’s not so – he was actually asked by Cotsett to buy something for this hobby of his. Burume isn’t amused that he guy was playing around while we were away, and Rag asks Fatman to hand the blue stones over.
She and Chil figure they’ll go and buy something really crazy to teach him a lesson and it seems Fatman knows exactly what’ll work.
Secret Alert! - Gundam X’s Secret – 6th Step: If you got four of the five previous requirements, purchase the Black Box F.
Back at the Iron Gear, Chil presents the box and it’s certainly not what Cotsett had asked Fatman to buy.
Chil quickly turns on the waterworks and “apologizes” for screwing it up but Cotsett isn’t angry: it’s not what he asked for but any engineer worth his salt enjoys poking through some unknown gadget – he’s already quite excited for this thing.
Burume didn’t expect him to actually like it and Dyke wonders if might be Cotsett’s brain that’s in need of repairs. Rag figures, in that case, we’d have to call Rand over to fix it but there’s a very good chance he’d just wreck Cotsett’s brain even more…
We don’t get anything now but this’ll give us some very nice prizes MUCH later in the game.
Very excited for next mission…I’ve been waiting for this one for a long while!
