Chapter 241: Barbatos Gundam III
Ein, who had originally been tasked with long-range suppression, finally lost his patience. He raised his battle axe and charged straight at Barbatos Gundam.
But with the Alaya-Vijnana System enhancing his reactions, Mikazuki moved far faster. He hurled the mace-spear directly at Ein.
Ein had no choice but to block with his battle axe, deflecting the weapon with a harsh metallic clang.
He hadn't expected, however, that Mikazuki would immediately make Barbatos leap high into the air, reclaiming the weapon mid-flight.
Using the full momentum of his descent, Mikazuki brought the mace crashing down, smashing through the Graze's left arm and shattering its battle axe along with it.
Ein reacted on instinct—he tilted the Graze backward and fired his thrusters at full force, quickly escaping Barbatos's attack range.
The thruster jets blasted against the ground, kicking up thick clouds of dust that obscured Mikazuki's vision.
At that moment, Crank's Graze lunged forward, raising its own battle axe for a downward strike.
Mikazuki immediately brought up his mace-spear, blocking the blow with a heavy clash of steel.
The two mobile suits locked together, straining against one another. Crank opened a comm line and barked, "I don't know where you got that machine—but do you really think an antique like that can stand against Gjallarhorn's Graze units?"
Mikazuki calmly switched on his own comm and replied, utterly unfazed, "Oh? Funny. I already killed one of you just now."
Crank froze for a moment, startled by the voice that came through his receiver—
It was the voice of a boy.
"What—? That voice… you're just a child?"
"That's right," Mikazuki said flatly. "And the ones you were so eager to slaughter earlier—they were all children too. Now it's your turn."
He increased Barbatos's output, forcing Crank's Graze backward bit by bit.
Crank's disbelief deepened. "Impossible! A relic like this—overpowering a Graze?"
"Don't worry," Mikazuki added coldly, "the one who kills you will still be just a kid."
"Lieutenant Crank! I'm coming to assist!" Ein had recovered and rejoined the fight, firing his assault rifle at Barbatos.
Seeing the incoming gunfire, Mikazuki abandoned his offensive, pushing Barbatos into a backward leap to evade the rounds.
The Gundam skimmed low across the ground, flying just above the surface as the bullets ripped past.
But before he could retreat far, a new warning blinked on his display.
Barbatos's thruster fuel was running out. The propulsion system couldn't maintain flight any longer.
Watching the scene remotely, Tolle sighed to himself. Figures… propulsion in this world is still so primitive. Seed-era thrusters really are superior.
Unlike the fuel-based systems used in UC, Wing, or Iron-Blooded Orphans, Seed-series machines used plasma propulsion powered by an internal energy source.
As long as there was energy, the drive could keep running indefinitely—until the thruster nozzle overheated and failed.
And they could function in any environment.
Fuel-based thrusters, by contrast, required different propellants for different conditions.
Like the Gundams from Wing—take them into space without swapping the fuel, and the thrusters were useless.
And then there's 00's GN Particles… Tolle thought wryly. Now that's the pinnacle of propulsion tech.
Back in the CGS control room, Nadi suddenly realized the same thing and cried out in horror, "Ah! Takaki—we're screwed! I forgot to refuel Barbatos's thrusters!"
Takaki nearly fell over in panic. "What?! What do we do, old man?!"
"Don't ask me now—it's too late! Damn it, damn it! I was so dizzy after boot-up I completely forgot! I don't even know how long the remaining fuel will last!"
Out on the battlefield, Mikazuki slammed Barbatos's mace-spear into the ground, sending up another massive dust cloud to obscure Ein's aim.
Using the cover, he dashed forward at full speed. Barbatos burst through the haze, thrusting its mace-spear upward in a brutal stab aimed straight at Ein's Graze.
Ein, still on alert, barely reacted in time—he stepped back just enough that the strike only grazed him, tearing through the cockpit armor and part of the head unit.
Crank, seeing the situation deteriorate, made a quick decision. He fired his thrusters at maximum output, darted past Barbatos, and grabbed Ein's damaged Graze.
With both suits battered, Crank didn't hesitate—he carried Ein out of the combat zone.
Softhearted to the end, he issued a retreat order to the remaining Gjallarhorn troops as he withdrew.
Following Crank's command, the Gjallarhorn soldiers began retreating rapidly from the CGS base.
Orga and the others finally let out a long sigh of relief. The battle was over.
Inside the cockpit, Mikazuki, utterly drained, lost consciousness. Barbatos dropped to its knees, motionless.
Elsewhere, Crank immediately reported their failure to Commander Carta Issue's subordinate, Coral.
When Coral received the transmission, his voice exploded with frustration. "What did you say? You failed?!"
"Yes, sir," Crank replied solemnly. "Commander Orlis Stinten was killed in action. We've lost thirty percent of our forces and one Graze unit. We had no choice but to retreat."
Coral slammed his fist on the desk, his voice trembling with anger. "You've got to be kidding me! How could this happen?!
Kudelia Aina Bernstein—the so-called heroine of Mars's independence movement—was supposed to die gloriously in our attack!
Without her, Mars would have fallen into chaos, their hatred for Earth would've deepened, and everything would've gone exactly as planned. But now…"
He banged his head lightly against the desk, muttering bitterly, "And on top of that, we lost a Graze and so many mobile workers…
If we can't secure funding from Nobliss… am I finished? No… I won't accept that!"
Crank stood silently, watching his superior's breakdown, unable to say a word.
At last, Coral snapped and barked toward his adjutant, "When is Special Officer McGillis Fareed scheduled to arrive on Mars?"
The adjutant responded crisply, "Two days, sir."
Coral glared back at the comm. "Listen carefully, Crank! Before Special Officer Fareed arrives—no matter what—it is imperative you capture Kudelia Aina Bernstein.
And then erase every trace of this battle. Leave no witnesses."