Xia Ya's Troubles

His gaze was firm and cold, as though he were stating an unquestionable objective fact rather than a decision open to discussion.

Although Patrick's attention was mainly focused on the report as he spoke, Athrun keenly sensed the deeper meaning in the fleeting glance his father casually cast his way when he mentioned the "pilot" and said the words "irrelevant."

He was almost certain that his father's words, along with the act of deleting part of the report, were a warning aimed specifically at him—or rather, at the "weakness" he might harbor. It was also a helpless acknowledgment of political reality.

Athrun understood in an instant. The "pilot" his father had mentioned, the portion deleted from the report, could only have referred to the pilot of the Strike Gundam—the girl who had fought him several times at Heliopolis and ultimately caused his mission to fail—Jiliang.

The report should originally have clearly stated that the pilot of the Strike Gundam was a Coordinator.

And now, that crucial piece of information, enough to cause an uproar within ZAFT, had been ruthlessly and unquestioningly erased by his father, Patrick Zala, in his capacity as Chairman of the Defense Committee.

Athrun understood the considerations behind it all too well.

If word spread through the ZAFT military that the pilot of the enemy's newest and most powerful MS was one of their own—a Coordinator—it would be like dropping a bomb into a still lake, stirring up towering waves.

It would severely damage the morale of ZAFT's soldiers, shake their faith in the war—Who exactly are we fighting?—and might even spark internal doubts about the justice of the war.

For ZAFT, which was currently at war and desperately needed internal unity and high morale, that was absolutely unacceptable.

He could fully understand his father's actions, which were based purely on political and military strategy.

From the position of Chairman of the Defense Committee, in order to preserve the military's stability and keep the war going, he seemed to have... no other choice.

But...

Whenever such cold political topics filled with schemes and calculations came up, Athrun felt as if his heart were shrouded in a heavy, invisible gloom.

His soul, once relatively pure and beautiful in his youth, seemed to have been corroded by something filthy and oppressive, leaving him unbearably stifled, suffocated, and pained. He did not like it. Not at all.

"(Jiliang—)"

Athrun silently repeated that name in his heart. In his mind, the image of that girl piloting the Strike Gundam at Heliopolis and confronting him with resolute eyes surfaced uncontrollably, along with the words she had once spoken through the communicator in a voice that trembled slightly yet remained exceptionally clear: "I fight to protect my friends!"

To protect her friends...

Then what about him? Athrun asked himself. What exactly was he fighting for in this war?

For P.L.A.N.T.?

For the future of the Coordinators?

Or simply because of his father's orders and expectations?

Did he... have friends in the truest sense, people he would disregard everything and stake his life to protect?

As he looked into the inner world of his own heart, which seemed to be growing increasingly lost, he realized that in his eyes, the girl named Jiliang was like an extraordinarily brilliant star rising in an endless dark universe.

She had a clear and pure reason to fight. Though that light might have been faint, it was unwavering, illuminating her own path.

That resolve and purity left him both envious and somewhat... ashamed and lost.

Rau Le Creuset had remained quietly at the side. The white mask on his face concealed most of his features, revealing only a pair of smiling eyes.

His expression appeared calm and unruffled, yet a closer look might have revealed a barely perceptible ripple deep in his eyes, like an undercurrent in the depths of the sea.

He had not missed the fleeting struggle and pain on Athrun's face, nor had he overlooked the subtle, tense atmosphere between father and son.

After the brief conversation—or rather, reprimand—ended, Patrick Zala said nothing more. He merely nodded before turning and leaving the shuttle.

He had more important matters to attend to.

Athrun and Rau Le Creuset quietly took their seats.

The shuttle hatch closed, the engines started, and it began slowly moving along its designated route, gradually approaching the city that symbolized P.L.A.N.T.'s highest authority—a prosperous metropolis filled with invisible pressure—Aprilius.

A storm revolving around war, politics, and destiny was quietly brewing there.

The Archangel's hangar remained as busy as ever.

The maintenance crew were tensely yet orderly inspecting and servicing the Strike Gundam and Blaze Gundam, both of which had just gone through fierce battle.

The air was thick with the mixed smell of engine oil, coolant, and welded metal. The clanging of tools, the hiss of hydraulic systems, and the crew's shouted instructions intertwined.

Xia Ya had just finished confirming the Blaze Gundam's basic condition and recording its data.

Although more in-depth maintenance had to be left to professional technicians, he had always been accustomed to personally understanding the condition of his machine.

He took off his pilot suit and changed into relatively clean casual clothes. Raising his head slightly, he softly said to Maddock, the experienced old mechanic directing the work nearby, "I'll be going now, Mr. Maddock."

His voice was not loud, but it carried with a distinctive clarity through the noisy hangar, calm and steady.

Maddock, who had been gesturing at a damaged piece of armor, immediately stopped what he was doing and turned around. The old technician, whose hair had gone gray and whose face always wore a hearty smile, answered in his booming voice, "Oh! It's Xia Ya! You've worked hard! Go get some rest. Leave this place to us!"

That smile was like warm winter sunlight, carrying an elder's concern for a younger person. It instantly dispelled some of the hangar's cold mechanical atmosphere and made people feel warm and at ease.

Xia Ya waved goodbye to Maddock and the other busy mechanics who nodded to him.

He returned a polite yet somewhat reserved smile—the expression was just right, conveying his gratitude while maintaining a certain distance, like the layer of gentle harmlessness he had always worn as a disguise.

Then he turned and left the noisy hangar with unhurried yet remarkably steady steps, heading toward the ship's dining hall.

He needed to replenish some energy. More importantly, he needed a relatively quiet environment to sort through his chaotic thoughts.

In the long, somewhat monotonous metal corridor leading to the dining hall, the only sounds around him were the steady hum of the ventilation system and the echo of his own footsteps. Xia Ya's thoughts began to gallop wildly like unbridled horses.

He had been deeply contemplating a problem, a worry that had lingered in the depths of his mind like a ghost ever since he had begun formally piloting the Blaze Gundam in actual combat.

Xia Ya frowned slightly and murmured in a voice only he could hear, "...The Blaze Gundam's firepower really isn't enough."

The core issue troubling him was the Blaze Gundam's armament configuration and combat role.

As one of the G-Series prototype units developed alongside the Strike Gundam, the Blaze Gundam's greatest design feature and most prominent advantage was undoubtedly its overwhelming mobility and burst speed, enough to leave other units of its generation far behind.

Its frame was more lightweight, and its propulsion system had received special reinforcement. Like a crimson bolt of lightning on the battlefield of space, it possessed the powerful assault capability to rapidly close on an enemy in an incredibly short instant through astonishing acceleration, then cut them down with its Beam Saber before they could react.

With that unique and extreme advantage, Xia Ya had indeed escaped danger several times in previous encounters and even achieved some eye-catching results, initially establishing his position as one of the Archangel's top pilots.

However, everything had its advantages and disadvantages. When facing ace pilots who also operated high-performance MS and possessed extensive combat experience, the Blaze Gundam's design, which overemphasized close-range assaults at the expense of versatility and sustained firepower, gradually revealed its shortcomings.

Just like in the heart-stopping battle at Artemis Fortress that had just ended. Against the equally formidable Blitz Gundam, which possessed Mirage Colloid capability, the opposing pilot, Nicol, had cleverly used his unit's characteristics and the complex terrain to avoid engaging Xia Ya in pure close combat. Instead, he had relied on maneuvering, harassment, and stealth ambushes, creating a stalemate of sorts.

Xia Ya had absolute confidence that if the Duel Gundam and Buster Gundam had not appeared in time, and the battle had continued one-on-one, then with his superb piloting skills and deep understanding of the Blaze Gundam's limits, he would eventually have found an opportunity to shoot down the Blitz Gundam.

But he also had to clearly recognize that if the Blaze Gundam's own firepower had been stronger, if it possessed greater medium-range suppression capabilities or more threatening long-range attack options, then even after the Duel Gundam and Buster Gundam joined the battle and created an unfavorable three-on-one situation, he should have been able to maneuver more calmly, hold out longer, and perhaps even find an opportunity to defeat them one by one, rather than falling into the desperate position of having to retreat immediately almost the instant before.

As Xia Ya continued walking in silence, he rapidly constructed all manner of possible modification plans and tactical concepts in his mind. With his brow tightly furrowed, he muttered as if speaking to himself, "Even so, if I simply add equipment and pile on firepower, then I'll lose the fundamental advantage the Blaze Gundam relies on..."

His heart sank into deep conflict and struggle.

At first, he had simply considered designing a similar enhanced external equipment set for the Blaze Gundam, like the Assault Shroud that Yzak later fitted onto his Duel Gundam in the original work.

Adding extra armor, thrusters, and weapon hardpoints might strengthen its offensive power and survivability to some degree, making up for its lack of firepower.

But he quickly rejected the idea himself. He understood the flaws in that approach better than anyone.

Once the heavy Assault Shroud was installed, the Blaze Gundam's overall weight and structural burden would inevitably increase dramatically. As a result, the cheetah-like mobility and agility it took such pride in would inevitably be severely weakened, perhaps even lost.

And mobility was precisely the Blaze Gundam's core value, the quality that set it apart from other G-Series units such as the Strike Gundam, Duel Gundam, and Buster Gundam. It was the foundation that allowed it to survive on the battlefield and perform at maximum effectiveness.

If it sacrificed those sharpest fangs in pursuit of so-called "all-round capability," then the Blaze Gundam would become unremarkable, perhaps even more mediocre due to its unclear role.

How could he grant the Blaze Gundam stronger effective firepower, enough to handle complex battlefield environments and assaults by powerful enemies, while preserving—or even further improving—its extreme mobility?

That had become a thorny problem before Xia Ya. He needed a more ingenious, innovative solution, not simple "addition."

Without realizing it, he came to a stop in the empty corridor and looked out through the distant porthole at the deep, boundless universe, where danger lay hidden.