The silver wings of Jachin Due

In April of Cosmic Era 70, the flames of war in the Earth Sphere did not die down with the successful deployment of Neutron Jammers. Instead, they burned even more fiercely in another, more desperate and brutal form. Having lost nuclear power as a strategic mainstay, the Earth Alliance forces faced an unprecedented energy crisis and mounting pressure from social unrest. To break the deadlock and reverse their strategic disadvantage, the Earth Alliance High Command devised a bold and risky plan: Operation Spear of Odin. Its central objective was to concentrate overwhelming forces for a decisive offensive intended to cripple or even destroy the massive military fortress of Jachin Due, the final barrier protecting the PLANT homeland and the seat of ZAFT's space command.

At the time, Major Mei Hock had just completed Operation Uranus, and his Silver Wing special operations unit and attached fleet needed rest and replenishment. He happened to receive orders for a short-term posting at Jachin Due, where he would also attend a tactical conference for senior officers hosted by the PLANT Supreme Council's Military Committee. His flagship, the Silver Wing, and his own Mobile Suit team were temporarily incorporated into the fortress's defensive forces.

On April 17, Cosmic Era 70, the Earth Alliance Forces' vast attack fleet appeared on Jachin Due's long-range early-warning radar screens, surrounded by countless Moebius units like a swarm of locusts blotting out the sky. The shadow of a major battle instantly fell over the sector.

Inside the fortress's central command hall, the tension was almost tangible. On the enormous tactical star chart, red dots representing enemy forces surged like a boiling tide from several directions toward the blue dot marking Jachin Due. Shrill battle alarms rang through every corner.

"Large numbers of enemy ship signatures detected! Identified as the main fleets of the Earth Alliance Forces' Atlantic Federation and Eurasian Federation!"

"Enemy warships number... more than eighty! Still increasing!"

"Estimated time to contact: thirty minutes!"

The commander-in-chief of the ZAFT defenders, a veteran general, rapidly issued preliminary defensive orders with a grim expression. As one of the higher-ranking frontline commanders present, Mei Hock was also entrusted with important tactical duties.

"Major Hawke!" The commander-in-chief turned his gaze toward Akira. "Your Silver Wing and three other Laurasia-class ships will form the Fourth Squadron under your command. You will defend the fortress sectors from North Wing-7 to North Wing-9! That is one of the enemy's likely main assault routes, as well as the critical passage connecting to the external defense platform Iron Shield-4! Hold the line at all costs and buy time for the fortress's main guns to charge and our Mobile Suit forces to deploy!"

"Understood! We'll get it done!" Akira snapped to attention and saluted, his gaze sharp. His ACCORD ability had already imprinted the terrain of his assigned defensive sector, friendly positions, and the enemy's likely attack routes in his mind.

He hurried back to the Silver Wing's bridge. The warship was already prepared to sortie, its engines rumbling low. The communications officer immediately reported, "Major, every ship in the Fourth Squadron has acknowledged your command authority. All Mobile Suit pilots are in position!"

"Good." Akira settled into the captain's chair, his white uniform standing out beneath the command center's lights. "Broadcast to the entire squadron: this is Silver Wing, Mei Hock. Our mission is to hold the north wing sectors and protect Iron Shield-4's flank. All ships, deploy in the preset Alpha-7 formation. MS teams, conduct mobile defense in small units, using the fortress's fire coverage and the debris field. Prioritize enemy mobile suits attempting to break through our line, especially units carrying heavy antiship weapons! Remember, our advantages are Jachin Due's fire support and our local numerical superiority. Do not charge out blindly. Make use of every piece of cover!"

His clear, calm orders reached every captain and Mobile Suit team leader instantly over encrypted channels. His battle-tested subordinates had complete faith in their young commander, the Silver Wing Angel, and carried out his orders swiftly and efficiently.

The battle erupted the instant the enemy entered firing range. Countless missiles, beams, and solid rounds poured toward Jachin Due like a torrential downpour, while the fortress's massive gun batteries and defensive missile arrays spat deadly fire, weaving a dense interception screen through the blackness of space. Akira's squadron held its designated positions like an immovable rock. The ships covered one another with alternating fire, establishing crossfire that destroyed incoming enemy craft one after another.

Akira's ACCORD ability played a crucial role in commanding the squadron. He was like a conductor leading a symphony across a cosmic battlefield. Vast streams of information flooded his consciousness, only to be instantly broken down, processed, and transformed into the most precise orders.

"Nostromo, fifteen degrees to port, elevation minus three! Fire a full salvo! Cover that Moebius team trying to flank us!"

"Heinlein, fall back two distance units. You're too far forward! Watch the asteroid belt on your right flank. There may be an ambush!"

"Third MS team, stop pursuing that damaged Moebius! Support Iron Shield-4's southeast corner immediately. Two enemy craft carrying bombs are approaching!"

"Navigation officer, calculate the enemy ship Raijin's next maneuver! Set lead time to zero-point-seven seconds. Main guns, stand by!"

His predictions were astonishingly accurate. Often, the moment an enemy craft began a maneuver, ZAFT's gunfire was already waiting along its path. Under his direction, the Mobile Suit teams moved as seamlessly as extensions of his own body, always appearing at the most crucial positions and breaking enemy attacks at minimal cost. Although the Fourth Squadron's sector came under immense pressure, its line remained firm. It even managed occasional small counterattacks, damaging or destroying several enemy ships that advanced too recklessly.

"Report! Iron Shield-4's side armor has been breached! Internal explosions confirmed! Firepower reduced by forty percent!"

"Enemy MA formations are concentrating their attacks on the platform! They're trying to open a breach!"

A crisis had emerged! If Iron Shield-4 was destroyed, it would leave a massive gap in the north wing defenses, allowing the enemy to threaten Jachin Due itself directly.

Akira's gaze sharpened, and he made his decision instantly. "Broadcast to the entire squadron! Concentrate fire around Iron Shield-4 and provide covering fire! Silver Wing, advance and draw the enemy's attention! All Mobile Suit teams, stop enemy craft from reaching the platform, whatever the cost!"

At his command, the Silver Wing surged into the fiercest fighting like a fearless lead whale, charging straight into the dense barrage. Its fierce return fire succeeded in drawing a large share of the enemy's attacks. But there were simply too many enemies. Several mobile armors still broke through the interception screen and lunged toward the damaged Iron Shield-4.

Seeing that the platform was about to fall, Akira sprang up from the captain's chair. "Transfer bridge command to the executive officer for now! Is my mobile suit ready?"

"Major! Your machine is fully prepared! But it's too dangerous!" his adjutant urged.

"This is no time to hesitate! Hold the bridge!" Without a moment's delay, Akira turned and rushed toward the hangar. He knew the fleet's firepower alone could no longer stop those agile mobile suits. Someone had to enter the front line personally and turn the battle around through overwhelming force.

In Jachin Due's North Wing-7 sector, the fighting had reached fever pitch. Under the enemy's concentrated fire, the Iron Shield-4 defense platform teetered on the brink of destruction. Fires burned in several places, and flashes of explosions kept bursting from within. Like sharks scenting blood, several Earth Forces mobile armors ignored the ZAFT Mobile Suit teams' desperate attempts to intercept them and charged toward the enormous target, intent on destroying it outright and opening a path for the main fleet behind them to reach Jachin Due itself.

At that critical instant, a silver-blue bolt of lightning shot from the Silver Wing's emergency launch port! It was Mei Hock's personal machine, a Ginn Custom that had undergone repeated upgrades and modifications. Painted in striking silver and blue, it was known with awe by soldiers on both sides as the Silver Wing Angel!

The machine displayed astonishing agility the moment it entered the battlefield. Its large rear thrusters unleashed far more thrust than those of a standard Ginn. Following a bizarre curve that bent almost at a right angle, it instantly slipped into the blind spot beside a mobile armor preparing to fire rockets at Iron Shield-4.

"What is that? It's so fast!" The Earth Forces pilot barely had time to cry out before the Silver Wing Angel's 76mm Heavy Assault Machine Gun spat a short, precise burst. Rat-tat-tat! Three rounds drilled into the connection of the mobile armor's rocket pod with surgical precision!

Boom! A violent explosion tore the mobile armor and its weapon apart. The machine spun out of control and crashed into distant space debris.

"It's the Silver Wing Angel! He's launched!" ZAFT soldiers' cries rang over the open communications channel, mingling excitement with awe.

Akira did not pause. His ACCORD ability and SEED Factor activated simultaneously, and the world seen from his cockpit seemed to shift into slow motion. Every enemy movement, every trajectory of incoming fire, even the positions of friendly units became cold, clear streams of data. His hands moved with uncanny speed. Under his control, the Silver Wing Angel became a phantom of death.

Seeing this, another mobile armor immediately abandoned its attack on the platform and charged straight at Akira. He neither dodged nor retreated, instead driving his machine sharply forward. At the last possible instant, he precisely deflected the enemy's cannon fire with the edge of his shield. At the same time, the Heavy Slash Blade in his left hand snapped out and swept upward in a vicious rising cut!

Screech-! The blade sliced effortlessly through the mobile armor's belly plating, setting off a small secondary explosion in its internal ammunition. The enemy craft instantly became a fireball.

"A third one! Watch his speed!" The remaining enemy craft began to panic, trying to open the distance and rake him with autocannon fire. But Akira's Silver Wing Angel clung to them like a relentless parasite. Using his machine's superior agility, he constantly made small, irregular evasive movements that sent every shot wide. Meanwhile, his head-mounted 75mm Anti-Aircraft Vulcan Cannon System spat continuous fire. Although it lacked the power to penetrate their armor, it successfully disrupted their aim and vision.

"Damn it! I can't hit him!" the Earth Forces pilot shouted in frustration. Just then, the Silver Wing Angel snapped into a rapid roll, dodging fire from another Moebius attempting a sneak attack from the side. At the same time, a precise sustained burst from its Heavy Assault Machine Gun blew the ambushing Moebius apart. Seizing the opening, Akira drove his machine straight up to the mobile armor before him. His Heavy Slash Blade shot toward its cockpit like a striking viper!

"No-!" A desperate scream rang over the communications channel, then cut off abruptly. The fourth enemy craft went down.

In less than a minute, Akira had shot down four enemy craft in lightning-fast succession. His terrifying efficiency brought the assault on Iron Shield-4 to a momentary halt. The ZAFT defenders' morale soared, and they seized the opportunity to counterattack, finally stabilizing the faltering defensive line.

"The Silver Wing Angel is in the Iron Shield-4 area! He's stopped the enemy assault!"

"He's incredible! That's our ace!"

Akira's efforts were not confined to this single corner of the battlefield. After clearing the immediate threats around the platform, he promptly turned his attention to the wider battle. His ACCORD ability allowed him to grasp the shifting course of the entire engagement with clarity. Like a firefighter, he appeared wherever the situation grew critical.

On one occasion, two ZAFT Laurasia-class warships came under concentrated fire from a numerically superior enemy force, their shields nearing overload. Akira's Silver Wing Angel emerged like a phantom from the shadow of one of the warships. With precise shots, he detonated several heavy missiles heading toward the ships in quick succession while drawing the attention of a large number of enemy craft, buying the warships precious time to regroup.

On another occasion, a ZAFT Mobile Suit team was lured into a debris-filled trap and surrounded. Making use of the complex wreckage, Akira launched elusive strikes from seemingly impossible angles. He shot down three enemy craft in succession, tore open the encirclement, and led the friendly team safely out.

His fighting style was efficient and lethal, yet possessed a strange beauty. Every maneuver and every shot seemed to have been calculated with absolute precision, without a single wasted movement. He was not fixated on flashy techniques. Every action served one purpose: to destroy the enemy as quickly as possible while protecting his own side. That cold efficiency was more chilling than any flamboyant display.

The Earth Forces' communications channels filled with fear and curses directed at "that silver-blue demon."

"Stay away from him! Don't take him head-on!"

"Our attacks don't work on him! It's like he can see the future!"

"Requesting support! We need more mobile armors to deal with the Silver Wing Angel!"

Akira's presence was an unshakable anchor in Jachin Due's north wing defensive line. Through his command and his own fighting, the sector entrusted to the Fourth Squadron became a wall of steel the enemy could never breach. Accounts of his achievements spread rapidly among soldiers on both sides. Amid the fires of the First Battle of Jachin Due, the Silver Wing Angel's formidable reputation reached new heights.

The battle lasted two full days. Under the Earth Forces' relentless assault, ZAFT suffered heavy losses and saw many outer defensive installations destroyed, but Jachin Due itself remained standing. Ultimately, mounting casualties, supply difficulties, and the failure to take the fortress forced the Earth Alliance Forces to order a retreat.

When radar confirmed the enemy's withdrawal, thunderous cheers erupted throughout Jachin Due and its surroundings. Akira slowly flew the battered but still unbowed Silver Wing Angel back into the Silver Wing's hangar. As he climbed out of the cockpit, intense exhaustion nearly made him lose his footing. The prolonged, high-intensity fighting and mental concentration had drained an enormous amount of his strength.

Yet every ground crew member and soldier in the hangar greeted him with reverent looks and enthusiastic applause. Over the communications channel came heartfelt praise and thanks from the squadron's captains and Mobile Suit team leaders.

"Thank you for all your hard work, Major Hawke! You turned the tide for us again!"

"You truly are the Silver Wing Angel! It's an honor to fight alongside you!"

Akira gave a weary smile, accepted the water a ground crew member handed him, and drained it in one gulp. He looked up at the star-filled sky beyond the hangar as calm slowly returned. Countless wrecked combat craft still drifted there, bearing witness to the cruelty of war.

The First Battle of Jachin Due ended in a tactical victory for ZAFT, but Akira knew this was only the beginning. The Earth Alliance Forces would never let the matter rest. More brutal battles lay ahead. He, Mei Hock, and his Silver Wing Angel would continue fighting amid this sea of stars, blood, and fire to protect the future he believed in. Through his actions, he had once again proved that he was not merely an unstoppable super ace, but also an outstanding commander capable of holding a battle line together at a critical moment. His achievements in this battle would surely give him an even more influential position within ZAFT, and indeed in the balance of power across the entire Cosmic Era world.