The Threat

"What do you mean?"

Norris struggled to block Shiro Amada's slashes while also dodging Sanders's beam fire.

"My men are holding off the enemy battleship, and Mobile Suit reinforcements will be here any moment. If we can hold out a little longer, we still have a chance of getting through this."

Ramba Ral was also facing Amuro's pursuit. With one arm of his Mobile Suit disabled, he could barely hold his own.

If not for the Flight Test Type Gouf's ability to maneuver in the air, Ramba Ral figured he would have been shot down already.

He dodged a beam while flying through the air, then turned to look in another direction.

On the horizon, a point of light glimmered in the night as it drew closer.

It was the Gallop-class land battleship piloted by his men.

It might not have much firepower, but at least it could threaten a battleship.

There was no time to hesitate. They had to risk their lives to hold off the White Fortress.

The Gallop also carried three Mobile Suits. It wasn't many, but it was one of the few cards Zeon could still play.

"Whoosh!"

The shriek of a shell cut across the battlefield, heading for the White Base. A moment later, several Dopps flew in from that direction and swarmed the White Base.

Seeing the White Base immediately bristle with anti-aircraft guns like a startled hedgehog, Ramba Ral felt a little relieved.

At least the Trojan Horse wouldn't be able to decide the battle in one fell swoop.

Then he turned his full attention back to the fight before him.

Fortunately, the Gatling Gun was built into the shield, so he could still use it.

Along with a short length of Heat Rod, that was all the Gouf Flight Type had left in its arsenal.

But more than that, Ramba Ral was worried about something else. The turbines and nozzles all over the Mobile Suit were heating up after prolonged use.

If the stalemate continued, the turbines would likely shut down from overheating.

And if he fell back to the ground and lost his mobility advantage, that monster wasn't going to let him off easily.

Looking down from above at the Gundam's almost humanlike face, Ramba Ral felt as though a shadow had fallen over his heart.

The White Devil had earned its reputation.

But while Ramba Ral could still find the time to issue orders to his subordinates, Norris was on the verge of collapse.

Once the Mobile Suit marked 06 joined the battle, it immediately became the linchpin of the operation.

With Eli keeping him occupied, Norris had no chance to break away. All he could do was cautiously face the Beam Saber swings from the Gundam Ground Type before him.

Another Ground Type was nearby, continually backing him up and pursuing him with long-range fire.

But what worried Norris most wasn't his own predicament. It was the last Ground Type, which was already heading for the core unit of the Apsalus!

"Miss Aina!"

Seeing the Ground Type place its hand on the Zaku serving as the core unit, Norris's eyes widened as he cried out in alarm.

"Where are you looking at a time like this?"

Since the Mobile Suit cockpit only had a forward-facing screen, the pilot had to turn the head to see what was happening far to the side.

Eli immediately realized that the enemy before him was focused on another "battlefield."

"Aina, come with me!"

"Let's leave the war behind!"

"You shouldn't be inside something like that!"

Shiro Amada had been trying to persuade Aina to surrender over the comms for some time now.

Eli couldn't understand what kind of bond the two of them could have formed in just a few hours, but he knew he absolutely couldn't let Norris interfere with Shiro Amada.

Seizing the moment when Norris was distracted, Eli raised his Beam Saber and brought it down.

His target was the Gouf Flight Type's rear thruster!

"Damn it!"

Norris immediately realized he'd let his concern for Aina cloud his judgment. He was bound to pay for it.

Just as he'd seen Ramba Ral use vector thrust to dodge, he tried the same maneuver. But Eli was ready for it too, and immediately changed the course of his blade. It struck the outer side of the backpack that provided the Gouf Flight Type with most of its lift.

The slash didn't hit the backpack's nozzle directly. Instead, it cut off one of the stabilizing fins before scraping the backpack's outer armor.

Eli wasn't discouraged, and Norris wasn't relieved.

As he'd said earlier, the flight system was already unstable. Even a few broken fragments of the outer shell getting sucked inside could be enough to shut it down or even melt it down.

Sure enough, the right nozzle failed first. The bright blue stream of light it had been emitting went out.

After spitting out a few intermittent bursts of sparks, it stopped working entirely.

"It's not over yet!"

Even in such a dire situation, Norris slammed down on the pedals again.

The backpack's last nozzle flared to life, providing the Gouf with lift once more!

Norris was willing to risk blowing up his Mobile Suit if it meant driving Shiro Amada away from Aina.

The Gouf Flight Type quickly reached the front of Shiro Amada's Ground Type, its Heat Saber glowing a vivid orange-red!

But a beam pierced the Gouf's arm before Norris could strike, and an explosion erupted right in front of him.

Even after losing his chance to take out the Ground Type in one blow, Norris kept pushing the control stick forward with grim determination. The explosion had even cracked his Mobile Suit's head.

Its oversized foot, enlarged to accommodate an extra engine, kicked Shiro Amada to the ground as he focused on trying to persuade Aina.

Norris then drove his Gouf Flight Type in close and grabbed the head of the Gundam Ground Type with the Mobile Suit's only remaining arm.

With the Gouf's joints groaning as if they could barely take the strain, the Gundam Ground Type was lifted right off the ground.

Eli, who had raised his Beam Rifle, stopped.

"Everyone back off! Or does this guy's life mean nothing to you?"

Norris's already sparse hair fell across his forehead as he opened the Mobile Suit's loudspeaker and shouted to everyone.

Norris considered himself a soldier. Normally, he would never use this kind of threat.

But to save Aina, he was willing to abandon his principles.

"Everyone, get off the Apsalus!"

Even as Norris threatened Eli and the others in a harsh voice, he felt helpless inside.

The Gouf had no way left to threaten the Ground Type. All he could do was hold it up with the one arm the Ground Type had raised for him.

So he held the Ground Type in front of himself, using it as a shield to make them hesitate.

It was undoubtedly the right choice.

But Norris had anticipated Eli and the others' moves and figured out what Shiro Amada would do. There was only one person he hadn't thought of.