The White Base drifted across the horizon of the scarred battlefield, its engines flaring unevenly as if straining from previous engagements. Bright Noa's eyes narrowed, studying the radar. The enemy presence had not vanished; it was drawing closer, organized, deliberate.
"Sir, enemy craft on intercept course!" a sensor officer reported, voice taut with fear.
Bright gripped the railing. "So… Garma Zabi himself has taken the bait." His tone was cold, though a bead of sweat traced down his temple.
The image became clear. Zeon mobile suits advanced in formation, flanking their commander's vessel with ruthless precision. Three full squads of Zaku, their mono-eyes burning like baleful lamps. Behind them, the bulkier silhouettes of a Dom squad moved with ominous confidence. And further forward, gleaming cobalt armor marked the Goufs, weapons raised eagerly for battle.
Bright muttered under his breath, "Exactly as predicted. This is no simple capture mission for him—he's brought half a regiment."
On the White Base bridge, tension thickened. The ship's crew knew what this meant. Garma was not here for probing attacks. He had come to crush them outright.
"Launch teams, prepare for combat sortie!" Bright barked.
The launch deck roared to life. Technicians scrambled, securing mobile suits in their catapults. Amuro Ray climbed into the cockpit of the Gundam, his face pale but resolute.
"Just another battle… I can do this," he whispered, hands tightening on the controls.
Kai Shiden clambered into the Guncannon, grumbling as always. "Tch, why do I always end up stuck in these suicide runs?"
From another bay, Hayato Kobayashi slid into the Guntank, sweat running down his brow. He didn't speak at first, then muttered to himself, "This time… I won't let anyone down."
Bright's voice thundered through the comms. "Amuro, Kai, Hayato — launch immediately! The White Base cannot survive alone."
"Roger!" Amuro called, determination sharpening his tone.
The Gundam shot down the catapult, white armor gleaming against the void. Moments later, the Guncannon and Guntank followed, their trajectories splitting outward to shield the ship.
--
The battlefield ignited instantly. Zaku squads swarmed toward the Gundam, machine guns blazing.
Amuro's blade ignited in a flare of heat and energy. "Stay back!" he cried, swinging the beam saber to carve through an oncoming Zaku, the mobile suit splitting apart in a fiery explosion.
But more came. Two Goufs closed in, their heat swords crackling with menace. The Gundam reeled under the ferocity of their strikes, sparks showering against its armor.
Inside the cockpit, Amuro's teeth clenched. "They're… stronger than the Zakus!" His hands darted over controls, blocking, countering, but the relentless duel pressed him backward.
Elsewhere, Hayato struggled desperately. The Guntank's cannons roared, obliterating one Zaku in a single volley, but five more closed in, circling him like predators.
"I can't hold them off!" Hayato shouted, panic bleeding into his voice as rounds hammered his armor. The Guntank shuddered, alarms shrieking.
"Keep firing, Hayato! You must not let them close the gap!" Bright's voice snapped back over the comms, but even he could hear the strain.
Meanwhile, Kai cursed as he traded fire with a Dom squad. The heavy mobile suits barreled forward with thruster bursts, their bazookas sending shockwaves that rattled his cockpit.
"Damn it, I'm almost out of ammo already!" Kai shouted, ducking behind a burst of debris. "How the hell are we supposed to keep this up?"
On the bridge, the crew clung to their posts as the White Base shook violently from enemy salvos. Sparks erupted from consoles. Refugees screamed in the lower decks as the hull trembled.
"Damage report!" Bright demanded.
"Hull integrity dropping! Multiple sections are compromised!" came the frantic reply.
Mirai Yashima turned, her voice wavering. "If this keeps up, we'll be torn apart."
Bright slammed a fist against the railing. "Hold steady! The mobile suits need time!"
---
Amuro grunted as the Gundam staggered under another Gouf's crushing blow. "These pilots… they're not ordinary soldiers."
The Gouf commander snarled over open comms, "Your Gundam ends here, Federation!"
Amuro countered with a desperate swing, cleaving the heat rod before it could coil around him. His breathing was ragged. "I… won't fall here!"
Hayato's situation worsened. A Zaku leapt atop the Guntank, striking wildly with its axe. Hayato screamed, pulling the trigger in sheer desperation. The cannon fired point-blank, vaporizing the assailant, but the Guntank shuddered violently from the recoil.
"Damn it… at this rate…" Hayato's voice trembled.
Kai's Guncannon staggered under another blast. He snarled, teeth clenched, forcing out bursts of fire from his twin cannons. A Dom exploded in flame, but two more advanced relentlessly.
On the Zeon flagship, Garma Zabi leaned forward in his chair, eyes alight with arrogant triumph. "Magnificent. They crumble just as Lelouch once predicted they could. The Trojan Horse will fall before me!"
His officers cheered, emboldened by their commander's confidence.
Back on White Base, Bright shouted over the chaos. "All hands, brace for impact! We cannot falter — not now!"
The ship lurched under another wave of fire. The cries of refugees echoed like a chorus of despair.
Amuro's voice cracked over the comms. "Bright! I can't… I can't hold all of them!"
"You must, Amuro!" Bright thundered. "The White Base depends on you!"
The Gundam's saber clashed again with the Gouf's blade, sparks and flame scattering across the void. Amuro screamed in defiance, refusing to yield.
Hayato's cannons fired wildly, blasting apart another Zaku even as two more struck him. "I'm… not strong enough!"
Kai's curses filled the comms as he fired his last rounds. "Out of ammo! Out of damn ammo!"
The bridge went silent for a heartbeat as the realization struck.
Bright drew in a sharp breath, then barked, "We endure! Even if it costs us everything!"