The sudden force of the launch catapult slammed the unprepared Xiao Ran against the back of his seat. However, with physical abilities roughly two to three times those of an ordinary Earthling, he adjusted his posture in an instant. Watching the launch tunnel streak past on the monitor, he gave a light push just before reaching the exit, pressed the buttons on the control stick with his left hand in sequence except for his thumb, and stomped down with his foot. Flames erupted simultaneously from the Flight Pack's six thrusters, bringing the Ginn to maximum speed the moment it cleared the catapult.
"Ding. Unit 678 has obtained its first mecha. Mecha model: Ginn. Mecha rank: D+. Complete a Side Mission of the same rank to convert this mecha into an exclusive mecha? Yes/No."
"Ding. New Faction Side Mission triggered: Rescue the Earth Force Eighth Fleet's advance fleet. Mission completion will be determined by the number of surviving advance fleet vessels at the end of the battle. Completion rate will affect the final reward. If the advance fleet suffers losses exceeding 90%, the mission will be judged a failure. No penalty for mission failure. Accept? Yes/No."
The voice in Xiao Ran's mind did not affect his mood. He raised the Ginn's shoulder shield in front of him and immediately performed a climbing maneuver after launching from the Archangel, rapidly gaining altitude as he scanned the surrounding situation.
The Archangel and the Naska-class warship were locked in fierce combat, missiles and beams filling the space between the two vessels. The Strike Gundam had long since charged into the more distant chaotic battlefield between the advance fleet and the ZAFT forces, but with the Aegis Gundam tying it down, it could only spare what little effort it could to assist the advance fleet.
Ahead of the Archangel, the yellow Moebius Zero had also engaged two Ginns. Relying on nimble maneuverability and the unexpected attacks of its wired gun barrels, it was holding its own. The Archangel's combat strength alone had tied down a third of ZAFT's forces and fought them to a standstill, yet the entire advance fleet—seven warships and over thirty MAs—could not contend with ZAFT's remaining two-thirds. This showed just how incompetent the Earth Force was.
While the Ginn had yet to join the battle, Xiao Ran's mind raced. In less than ten seconds, he had considered both prompts. I can abandon the exclusive mecha mission. The final Main Mission hasn't even appeared yet, and I might obtain a better machine later. There's no need to waste time on this. The Side Mission, though, is worth accepting. With Lacus aboard the Archangel, the mission can be completed at the very least. It's practically free rewards. As for Flay's father, if he survives, that'll be his luck. But it doesn't look promising.
Xiao Ran glanced at the advance fleet flagship being heavily targeted by ZAFT. It was the only Nelson-class among the seven warships, and at the moment, it was being relentlessly watched by a Loorasia-class and two Ginns. The other Ginns also occasionally sent bursts of fire toward the Nelson-class, making Xiao Ran shudder. Better not get myself killed.
"Lieutenant Xiao Ran, what are you doing?! Why haven't you joined the battle yet?!" Bargyll's furious voice suddenly erupted over the communications channel. Xiao Ran gave an embarrassed laugh. "So it's Lieutenant Bargyll. You know, I need to get familiar with this newly modified machine first. Otherwise, I'd just be throwing myself away out there."
"Hmph." After hearing Xiao Ran's explanation, Bargyll merely snorted, seemingly accepting his reasoning. Her voice lowered slightly as well. "Help Captain Mu destroy those Ginns, then hurry and support Kira."
"Understood." Xiao Ran nodded and cut the communication. After refusing the exclusive mecha mission, he accepted the Side Mission to support the advance fleet. The instant he did, a percentage appeared at the corner of his vision: 87%. Before he could react, the number plummeted by another 10% amid a flash of light on the cockpit monitor.
"Damn!" Xiao Ran turned to look. That flash had come from an exploding Earth Force warship, and only six Earth Force vessels remained. "Do they really go down that easily?!"
Xiao Ran grunted, his eyes sharpening as he focused completely and piloted the multicolored Lightning Ginn toward the Moebius Zero's battle.
Moving through space at nearly MA speed, the Lightning Ginn became a streak of light as it flew toward the Moebius Zero. During its high-speed charge, its Beam Rifle continuously fired at one of the Ginns. Its left hand reached behind it, and a Beam Sword snapped out instantly. In barely over ten seconds, it had charged into the center of the battle between the Moebius Zero and the two Ginns.
As it passed between the two Ginns, the Lightning Ginn suddenly swung its left arm forward and caught one of them off guard, severing both its legs. A burst of flame exploded in space.
The Moebius Zero seized the opportunity and deployed its four wired gun barrels. They fired simultaneously from above, below, left, and right at the Ginn whose legs had been cut off by the Lightning Ginn. That Ginn only had time to activate its thrusters before it was reduced to debris.
"Nice work!"
"Thanks for the praise." Hearing Mu's voice through the communicator, Xiao Ran could only smile wryly as he pulled the controls, guiding the Lightning Ginn into a wide arc through space before lining up with the remaining Ginn and charging again.
"You're not piloting an MA, are you?" Mu's puzzled voice reached Xiao Ran's ears.
"This machine is faster than an MA, but it isn't as sturdy as the Strike Gundam!" Xiao Ran replied helplessly. "And unlike an MA, it isn't a single integrated unit. The frame hasn't been reinforced either. I'm afraid it'll fall apart."
With all thrusters engaged, Xiao Ran's Lightning Ginn truly possessed speed beyond D-Class machines, even reaching that of a C+-Class unit. Yet aside from using the Strike Gundam's weapons to add some firepower, this Ginn had not been improved in performance, maneuverability, reaction speed, energy output, armor, or anything else. Its structural strength in particular made it seem even more fragile at such speeds.
"Probably not. ZAFT equipment is pretty good quality..." Mu sounded hesitant, but his hands never stopped firing at the remaining Ginn entangled with him.
"I'll test that when it's safe." Xiao Ran ended the communication and piloted the Lightning Ginn like a nimble venomous snake, rapidly closing in on the enemy along a curved path.
Facing attacks from both the Moebius Zero and the Lightning Ginn—especially two high-speed machines—the Ginn wisely chose to retreat. But the Lightning Ginn had no intention of letting it go. The Beam Rifle fired six or seven consecutive beams, each narrowly missing as the Ginn changed direction.
Seeing that his attacks were useless, Xiao Ran gave a soft snort. "Run. Can you really get away? Let me show you what triple speed with red horns means! No—triple speed with multicolored horns."
With that, Xiao Ran shoved the control stick all the way forward and stomped hard on both pedals. Under his control, the Flight Pack's six thrusters, the thrusters under both feet, and the two small vents on its legs all burst with intense white light. In that instant, the Lightning Ginn's speed rose to another level, closing on the fleeing Ginn at an unbelievable pace.
Even with the Ginn ahead running its thrusters at full power, it could not escape the Lightning Ginn's pursuit. A white streak carrying a pink glow flashed past, and a bloom of fire erupted along its path.
"Ding. Destroyed a D-Class mecha from a Hostile Faction. Received 500 Merit Points."
Hearing the prompt in his mind, Xiao Ran curled his lips into a smile. "On the battlefield, you dared turn your back on an enemy you didn't understand. You were asking for death."
After laughing, Xiao Ran did not stop. He drove the Lightning Ginn toward the most chaotic part of the battlefield. "Mu, I'll leave the rest to you!"
In less than thirty seconds, the Lightning Ginn had already charged to the edge of the battlefield. Its shooting-star speed gave everyone in that region of space a severe shock. On radar and monitors, everyone could clearly see that it was a Ginn—but how could a Ginn possess such speed?
Leaving aside whether a Ginn's frame could withstand that speed, the mere fact that its pilot could endure it, resist the immense G-forces, and still operate the machine without making mistakes at such velocity was already unbelievable.
If it had been a Gundam, or some unseen new prototype, such speed would only have been surprising. But this machine was a Ginn. That made it impossible to believe. Too many people in this region knew the Ginn's specifications well, especially ZAFT. They were the most shocked of all. They knew that a Ginn's shock absorption system could not support a pilot operating at such speeds, and that system was closely tied to the frame, making modifications almost impossible. That was why the Lightning Ginn seemed so inconceivable to them.
Unless this machine was not truly a Ginn at all—or it was a Gundam wearing a Ginn's shell. But was that possible?
The Lightning Ginn streaked like a brilliant meteor into everyone's hearts, but no one could have imagined that Xiao Ran was not from this world. His physical abilities alone were three times those of an ordinary person, so the burden on his body was not an issue at all. As for operating a machine normally at such speeds, that was entirely due to the even more unreasonable skill he possessed. As long as a machine was D-Class, Xiao Ran could pilot it normally through his D-Class General Mecha Piloting Skill.
If the Lightning Ginn accidentally became C-Class, Xiao Ran would not dare push it at full speed, because he could not completely control it. It would be like piloting the Strike Gundam—he could only bring out eighty percent of its performance and would be prone to operational errors.
Although the Lightning Ginn's entry into the battlefield gave the ZAFT forces a powerful shock, its actual effect was not particularly significant. Its Accuracy Rate was low, and it could not perform basic maneuvers such as a normal V-turn. It could only weave back and forth through the battlefield, relying on its speed advantage to fire and force enemies back.
Every time he cut through the battlefield, Xiao Ran felt as though he were dancing with death. Countless bullets flew past him, including stray rounds from allied forces, making his scalp tingle. Only after making three passes did Xiao Ran seize an opportunity, destroying a Ginn just as it blew up a warship and earning another 500 Merit Points.
Xiao Ran did not dare let his machine slow down. Once he did, with his D-Class cannon-fodder-level Piloting Skill, he would be no match for the numerically superior ZAFT Ginns. Besides, the Aegis Gundam was watching him like a tiger from nearby. Once, while Xiao Ran was making a pass, he came especially close to the Strike Gundam. Who would have thought that the Aegis Gundam would abandon its struggle with the Strike and charge directly at the Lightning Ginn? If the Strike Gundam had not reacted quickly enough to block it, Xiao Ran might have already made a glorious retreat.