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(There'll be a second chapter after midnight. If you can't wait, check it tomorrow when you wake up. This holiday was really exhausting.)
On the Archangel's bridge, Mwu, Bargyll, and the others had already been feeling low because they had no choice but to abandon their comrades and leave on their own. But a text message from the Menelaus made Mwu and Bargyll leap to their feet, their faces filled with utter disbelief and shock.
"Mutiny!?" Mwu slammed a hand onto the armrest and shouted anxiously, "Contact the Menelaus immediately! I want to speak directly with General Harborton!"
Intelligence Control officer Dalida—the curly-haired man with glasses on the bridge—tried contacting the Menelaus, then answered loudly with an anxious expression, "There's no way to contact the Menelaus. They've unilaterally cut off all communications with the Archangel."
After hearing Dalida's answer, Mwu was clearly starting to lose her head. "Turn the ship around one hundred and eighty degrees. Set course for the Menelaus. We're going to support them!"
Mwu's order stunned everyone on the bridge. The helmsman in particular looked at her in astonishment.
"Damn it!" Bargyll clenched her fists tightly and turned to Mwu. "Captain, calm down. There's nothing we can do by staying here! We'll only become a burden to the entire Eighth Fleet. You absolutely cannot turn back now and betray the lives of those soldiers who sacrificed themselves!"
"But General Harborton..." Mwu lowered her head and said softly in a trembling voice, "Are we really just going to pretend we didn't see this and run away by ourselves?"
Bargyll gritted her teeth and walked up to Mwu, lowering her voice somewhat. "This isn't running away. Our departure is precisely what will save them. Only after we leave will ZAFT stop attacking, and only then will General Harborton have the chance to gather personnel and suppress those mutineers."
It wasn't that Mwu didn't understand the situation, but she couldn't accept having to face attacks from people who had originally been on their side while fighting the enemy. It was simply too much for her to bear. After a long silence, Mwu looked up at the massive warship that had slowly moved behind the Archangel and blocked its rear, then took a deep breath. "Maximum speed, disengage from the combat zone. Begin calculating the descent trajectory. The hangar must complete all securing work in the shortest possible time. Notify everyone to prepare for Earth descent."
A chorus of voices rang out across the bridge. "Yes!"
Miriallia, seated at the CIC station, simultaneously forwarded the information to Xiao Ran and Kira.
"The Menelaus has suffered a mutiny. The Gendarmerie and Landing Force are completely unable to resist. The mutineers are advancing toward the bridge. This ship has decided to block all attacks directed at the Archangel before the mutineers reach the bridge. Archangel, accelerate and leave the combat zone for Earth immediately."
"The ship is preparing for Earth descent. Strike Gundam, do not move too far away from the ship. Lightning Ginn, prepare to return at any time."
After destroying a Ginn charging toward the Menelaus, Xiao Ran, piloting the Lightning Ginn, saw the message Miriallia had sent him. After reading it, he merely sighed and shook his head. He wasn't the least bit surprised that this had happened.
It seemed that anyone within this combat zone would receive the same faction mission. So not only had the four Participants aboard the Menelaus received the system mission prompt, Xiao Ran had received the same mission as well.
Up to this point, Xiao Ran had directly refused the first mission, but he hesitated over the second. He knew the Eighth Fleet would be completely wiped out here, and they were facing even more ZAFT forces than in the original story. Their annihilation was beyond doubt. After all, Cruze was in command. Cruze, who sought to provoke an even greater war, would never miss such a good opportunity to make ZAFT draw more hatred. If he didn't wipe out the Eighth Fleet, it wouldn't be Cruze's style at all. That was why Xiao Ran had refused the first mission without hesitation.
But Xiao Ran had his reasons for hesitating over the second mission. After receiving Miriallia's message, he understood what was happening aboard the Menelaus. Those four Participants who should have been under surveillance had likely received the same mission. They intended to subdue Harborton and take him away for the C-class mecha data, which was why they were advancing straight toward the bridge. He had originally been considering whether to refuse, but after seeing that the Gendarmerie and Landing Force were completely helpless against them, Xiao Ran began considering accepting the mission and reaping the benefits as the fisherman.
In Xiao Ran's eyes, those Participants really might be able to take Harborton off the ship and escape this area. Judging from his previous encounters with other Participants, their abilities all seemed rather strange. There had been that young Participant who could tell at a glance who was a Coordinator and who was an ordinary person, and the bald Participant whose body bullets couldn't pierce. Xiao Ran believed that the Participants aboard the Menelaus might possess other abilities that could ensure they completed the mission. Otherwise, they wouldn't have made such a move.
Although the mission didn't mention any penalty for failure, Xiao Ran didn't believe there would truly be no consequences if he failed. But after thinking it over, he gritted his teeth and accepted Faction Side Mission Two, the mission to protect Harborton. Compared to an unknown failure penalty, the mission reward was simply too tempting.
Looking up at the Menelaus slowly moving behind the Archangel, blocking the enemy's path of pursuit and attack while also blocking Xiao Ran's line of fire toward the center of the chaotic battle, Xiao Ran narrowed his eyes. "Accept Faction Side Mission Two!"
Faction Side Mission accepted: Protect the brilliant strategist Harborton. Ensure Harborton's safety until the battle ends. Mission reward: C-class mecha construction data. Mission failure: Expulsion from the Earth Force faction and joint pursuit by the Earth Force and ZAFT factions.
"Whew." Xiao Ran let out a soft whistle and finally relaxed. He hadn't expected the penalty for failure to be expulsion from the faction and collective pursuit by both sides. But that was no big deal to Xiao Ran. His ultimate faction objective had never been the Archangel. It was Orb, or rather, the Three Ship Alliance. Once he joined Orb or the Three Ship Alliance, both sides would pursue him anyway. This punishment was neither here nor there.
After accepting the mission, Xiao Ran turned to look at the Strike Gundam, which was fighting the Duel Gundam and Buster Gundam. With a push and pull on the controls, the Lightning Ginn raised its arm and fired a shot at the Buster Gundam. Immediately afterward, a series of red beams, even faster than before, streaked toward the Buster Gundam one after another.
"Has this guy gone crazy?" Dearka sat in the cockpit, continuously operating the Buster Gundam to evade the Lightning Ginn's attacks. He discovered that the Lightning Ginn's firing rate was now a third faster than before. Dodging those attacks alone left him with no time to spare, and he couldn't provide combat support to the Duel Gundam in the distance at all.
After a continuous barrage of relentless high-frequency fire from the Lightning Ginn, the pulse cannon in its steel hand gradually heated up because it couldn't dissipate heat quickly enough. Even the muzzle slowly turned red. But Xiao Ran didn't stop firing just because the muzzle had turned red. Only after firing more than a dozen additional shots did he finally release the trigger under the cockpit's warning alarms. By then, the Buster Gundam had been driven far away by the Lightning Ginn's assault.
Watching the distant Buster Gundam on the screen, along with the Duel and Strike locked in combat, either clashing Beam Swords or exchanging fire, Xiao Ran directly pressed the communications button. "Calling Archangel. I can no longer continue attacking. Lightning Ginn requests permission to return."
"Lightning Ginn, permission granted. Return through Catapult One."
"Understood." After ending the communication, Xiao Ran operated the Lightning Ginn to disconnect the power supply linked to the pulse cannon. With a kick of its legs, the thrusters behind it activated with a whoosh. It rapidly flew away from the Archangel, then swept far ahead of it before turning in an arc and flying toward the Archangel's open catapult hatch. The instant it entered the hatch, the Lightning Ginn spun around, and deceleration thrusters across its body fired continuously. It finally stopped only after slamming into the Archangel's internal arresting belt.
Just as Xiao Ran stepped down from the Lightning Ginn, an announcement echoed throughout the Archangel. "The Archangel is about to fully enter the Earth Sphere's gravitational range. All personnel are to prepare for descent immediately after completing their work. The hangar must finish securing the Ginn within three minutes. Descent procedures will begin in five minutes."
As Xiao Ran walked away from the Lightning Ginn, he saw a crowd of staff in yellow uniforms rushing out from every direction. He could also hear Sergeant Murrue's already hoarse voice shouting, "Hurry! Everyone, move faster and secure the Ginn!"
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