Lunar Base
Just as Mu and the others had suspected, Muruta had acquired the keya key that left him so deliriously overjoyed he had ordered an immediate return.
"Hehehe, hahahahahaha! This is it! This is finally itthe Neutron Jammer Canceler!"
Back in his private quarters, Muruta stared at the files on his monitor, laughing like a madman.
"With this... hahahaha! PLANT is finished! Every last Coordinator will be wiped out! Hahahahaha!"
Swept away by triumphant ecstasy, he had not stopped to wonder why an escape pod would contain a disk holding the complete data for a Neutron Jammer Canceler. Who had put it there? Why leave it inside a life pod?
He did not spare a single thought for any of these glaring contradictions. All that consumed his mind was getting the Neutron Jammer Canceler into mass production as fast as humanly possible, fitting it onto the nuclear warheads that had sat dormant for an entire year.
Without delay, he scrambled to contact the top brass and convened an emergency meeting of the Joint Military Council.
Although a significant portion of the Earth Alliance military command opposed the use of nuclear weapons, more than half of the high command belonged to Blue Cosmos. Those outside the faction made up only a small minority.
Their voices were swiftly drowned out by the chorus clamoring for nuclear deployment.
And so...
The Lunar Base immediately began preparations to manufacture new nuclear missiles equipped with Neutron Jammer Canceler technology. Once everything was assembled, the full-scale assault on PLANT would commence.
As for the Archangel and the Freedom...
The only reason they had bothered chasing the Archangel in the first place was to secure the Neutron Jammer Canceler. Now that the prize was already in their hands, who cared about them anymore?
On the bridge of the Dominion, Natarle watched the bustling activity displayed on the main screen outside. When her eyes caught the markings painted on certain missile frames, her expression darkened.
"Nuclear weapons... What on earth was that escape pod? Wait... Could the 'key' Rau spoke of when he was aboard that pod have been this all along?
"I remember one of those three Nazca-class ships was the Vesalius... the Creuset Team, wasn't it?
"Rau Le Creuset... Was it really him? But why would he hand something like this over to his enemies?"
Unlike Muruta's unhinged euphoria, Natarle found only a gnawing tide of suspicion rising within her chest. Too many questions remained unanswered. The entire situation felt profoundly wrong.
"The Archangel... Captain Murrue... You people must know something about this..."
Nearly a month had slipped by. Hidden away in a secluded anchorage, the four ships of the Archangel's group were taking on supplies provided by their underground contacts.
Word reached them that Boaz, one of ZAFT's heavily fortified space strongholds, had fallen to a sudden Earth Alliance assault.
Most horrifyingyet entirely predictablewas that the Earth Alliance had resorted to a nuclear strike. Utilizing new warheads outfitted with Neutron Jammer Cancelers, they had turned the battle into an overwhelming slaughter.
Now, an Earth Alliance fleet centered around the Dominion was advancing toward the PLANT homeland, bristling with the new nuclear arsenal.
Upon receiving this intelligence, the Three Ships Alliance resolved to sortie immediately, determined to halt this madness before the cosmos went up in flames.
Bridge of the Eternal
The commanders of the four vessels were gathered via video conference. Andrew stared grimly at the data on his terminal, his voice heavy.
"It's just as we feared from the beginning. The Earth Alliance got their hands on the Neutron Jammer Canceler data and unleashed a nuclear strike on Boaz.
"Damn you, Creuset..."
Silence hung over the channel. Lacus let out a slow, steadying breath.
"Let us set forth. Ending this war is the very reason we are here, is it not?"
A week later.
The Earth Alliance fleet reached the Jachin Due defense line, and full-scale combat erupted with the ZAFT forces.
Barely had the fighting begun when the Earth Alliance deployed their nuclear weapons. Locked in a fierce duel against the Phantom Pain unit, Yzak caught sight of a detachment of Moebius Mobile Armor units slipping through a gap in the defensive perimeter. His pupils dilated in sheer horror.
Every single one of those Moebius units carried missiles bearing that unmistakable insignia.
"Are those... nukes?! Filthy Naturals!
"All units, intercept those missiles! Do not let PLANT be destroyed!"
Yzak roared, tears of fury and panic stinging the corners of his eyes. He was a squad leader now; the burden of command weighed entirely upon his shoulders.
Yet the Earth Alliance Mobile Suit forces had no intention of letting ZAFT shoot down the deadly instruments that, to their eyes, were as magnificent as fireworks.
Pinned down and unable to break away, Yzak watched in mounting despair as the Mobile Armor launched their payloads, sending the nuclear missiles streaking directly toward the colonies of PLANT.
"Stop!"
Right at that desperate second, a brilliant streak of blue light pierced into the battlefield.
"Weapon control unlocked. Targets acquired..."
Across the cockpit monitors, a multi-lock-on targeting grid snapped into place. Mikazuki raised his gaze, his eyes calm and cold.
"Nukes... So long as I hit a few in the middle of the swarm, that should do it, right?"
The weapons mounted across the various sections of the Kutan Type-III Booster unfolded simultaneously.
Thump!
His index finger squeezed down. Missiles and beam fire erupted in unison, slamming directly into several warheads nestled within the incoming missile volley.
BOOM!
The nuclear missiles struck by the barrage triggered instantaneous fission reactions. The terrifying nuclear detonation swept over the surrounding cluster, triggering a cataclysmic chain explosion. A colossal sphere of blinding fire expanded violently across the silent, pitch-black void of space.
"What... what is that?!"
Before Yzak could even get a clear look at Gundam Barbatos and its massive booster unit, another tremendous barrage of fire swept through the area, completely wiping out the remaining nuclear missiles approaching from other vectors.
A breathtaking display of detonating nuclear fire unfolded before everyone present, stunning the entire sector into disbelief.
Whoosh!
While not quite matching the blinding speed of the blue streak from moments before, two extraordinarily fast machines hurtled into the combat zone.
Equipped with their massive METEOR Systems, the Freedom Gundam and the Justice Gundam flashed directly over Yzak's head.
"Athrun? Wait, could that earlier one have been the Wolf?"
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