The maintenance crew and Sergeant Maddock were stunned when they saw the Moebius Kai carried in by the Strike Gundam, along with the Buster Gundam weapon held in its mechanical arm.
Thor Cni kept the modifications, recovered the New DG Cells, and climbed out of the Moebius Kai. Sergeant Maddock spoke to him.
"Kid, you're something else. You've gone and added to our workload again."
"Hehe, sorry about that, Uncle Maddock.
"My luck's pretty good, isn't it? I went out once and picked up an MA for free—the Moebius Kai."
Thor Cni pointed at the Buster Gundam's Assault Shield System components.
"These are all my spoils of war. Can you help install them on the right side of this Moebius Kai?
"Also, are there any spare shields for the Strike Gundam? It'd be best to add one to the left side of the Moebius Kai, so it'd be nicely symmetrical.
"And I want to be this Moebius Kai's pilot."
Sergeant Maddock stroked his chin.
"Sure, kid. Didn't expect that from you. But first, you'll need the captain's approval and a whole lot of training before you can become an MA pilot.
"As for the modifications, they'd be a bit of a mismatched mess if we did it your way, but your suggestion is worth considering.
"I'll draw up a blueprint later and show it to you.
"You should head back to the bridge and report in first."
"Thank you so much, Uncle Maddock."
At that moment, Kira Yamato also climbed out of the Strike Gundam's cockpit. Mu La Flaga had arrived in the hangar and greeted him.
Kira Yamato ignored him completely, heading straight back to the rest area and collapsing into sleep.
Mu La Flaga looked at Thor Cni beside him.
"Kid, did you pick up this Moebius? Its appearance is a little different. It should be a custom unit.
"And you even brought back the Buster Gundam's Assault Shield System. Your piloting skills aren't bad."
"The Buster's arm was cut off by Kira. Just moving around while sitting on it was already exhausting for me.
"By the way, Uncle Mu, teach me how to pilot an MA. I want to fly this Moebius alongside Kira and protect the Archangel, as well as my friends."
Mu La Flaga hooked an arm around Thor Cni's neck.
"Sure, you've got quite the resolve. But come with me to report to the bridge first. Once your punishment is over, I'll teach you how to pilot an MA.
"I'm a professional instructor, you know. I've trained quite a few ace MA pilots."
"Thank you so much, Uncle Mu."
Mu La Flaga led Thor Cni toward the Archangel's bridge.
On the bridge, Miriaria Haw saw that Thor Cni had returned safely and happily threw herself into his arms.
"Thor, thank goodness you're all right. You scared me to death."
Lieutenant Bagiru coughed. Miriaria Haw shyly pulled away from Thor Cni's embrace.
"Ahem. Thor Cni violated military discipline and will be confined for one day, effective immediately. Captain Mu, take him to the confinement room."
Before Thor Cni could leave, the radar operator on the bridge spoke up.
"Confirmed once again. There are no enemy ship signals within a radius of five. It appears we've completely shaken off ZAFT's pursuit."
Mwu Lamias relaxed against the captain's chair.
"It seems the explosion at Artemis Military Base allowed us to shake off ZAFT's pursuit."
Mu La Flaga joked.
"For that alone, we should thank the people at Artemis Military Base."
Thor Cni, standing nearby, nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, we really should thank them. They truly are such wonderful people."
Mwu Lamias spoke dejectedly.
"Getting away from ZAFT's warships is a good thing, but not a single one of our own problems has been solved."
Lieutenant Bagiru lowered her head in thought, then suddenly looked up and noticed Thor Cni was still there. Her expression turned stern.
"Captain Mu, why haven't you taken Thor Cni to confinement yet?"
Mu La Flaga laughed.
"Didn't we get caught up talking? We're going now."
Thor Cni said, "Can I have an MA simulation trainer?
"I want to become an MA pilot too, so I can protect the Archangel and everyone with Kira."
Miriaria Haw stepped forward in objection. "No, Thor. It's too dangerous."
Thor Cni held Miriaria Haw and gazed deeply into her eyes.
"Miriaria, I know it's dangerous, but it's also dangerous to make Kira face so many enemies alone.
"So I want to train more and learn to pilot an MA as soon as possible. Then I can share some of Kira's burden. That way, I can protect you too."
Lieutenant Bagiru coughed again.
"Captain Mu, arrange a training unit for Thor Cni. Make sure he trains properly. If he fails to qualify, he will not be allowed to pilot an MA."
"Thank you, Lieutenant Bagiru."
Mu La Flaga took Thor Cni to the training room for confinement, and while they were there, he taught him a little about piloting an MA.
Inside the training room, Thor Cni asked Nami,
"Nami, are the collected fragments and wreckage enough to manufacture the core components of Satellite Xerxes?"
"Master, the collected fragments and wreckage are enough to manufacture Satellite Xerxes's core components, with some left over.
"Unfortunately, the space is too small to continue manufacturing the other parts of Satellite Xerxes."
"Ah, there's still a long road ahead. It looks like I'll need to travel through a few more worlds before I have enough storage space.
"Nami, let's stop here for now. We'll talk about the rest once the space gets bigger."
"Yes, Master."
At lunchtime, Thor Cni arrived at the cafeteria and heard Sai Argyle speaking to Frey Alsta.
"Frey, let's go apologize to Kira together later."
Frey Alsta said reluctantly, "Do we have to?"
Sai Argyle said,
"Frey, what you said earlier really was a little too much. And in a situation like this, it'd be better to apologize."
Thor Cni walked over to them.
"It was because of one thing you said that he ended up trapped in such a difficult position."
Frey Alsta said unhappily, "But I only..."
"We've already gotten used to the fact that he's a Coordinator. It's a very delicate issue, especially under these circumstances."
Sai Argyle spoke up beside Frey Alsta.
"Frey, anyway, just try talking to him. Say something like you're sorry.
"Otherwise, whenever you run into each other on this ship later, it'll always be a little awkward."
Frey Alsta finally relented.
"If even you think so, Sai, then I can go."
Before you continue