"How do we snipe? Is there a plan?!"
Uncle Heier immediately asked.
After all, with just their few Anti-Aircraft Guns, they could only hold off ordinary pirates and posed little threat to a Drake-class ship.
"Yes!"
Miha quickly relayed Fred's words.
"Fred... can he do it?"
Uncle Heier paused. Even though he thought highly of the young man, he wasn't so sure under these circumstances.
He knew that Fred had decent accuracy when using that device.
But after installing so many gas tanks, the mass would change.
What did it mean to require a perfect hit without any testing?
It was like an archer who always hit the bullseye suddenly being asked to hit the center with an arrow weighted down by several rocks.
Since the two were speaking on the public channel, more and more people had heard Miha's plan. At Uncle Heier's question, the entire comm channel gradually fell silent.
They all had doubts about whether Fred could pull it off.
If he failed, not only would they lose any chance of escape, but they would also put all the Mistral pilots in danger.
"There's no other way. The Ptolemy crew won't make it in time. Even if they arrive and fire their Beam cannon, the entire Drake-class might crash into Copernicus's outer wall, still causing countless casualties."
Uncle Heier didn't argue with Miha's words.
Indeed, there was no other option.
"Let him try."
Before Uncle Heier could respond, the commander's voice cut in.
"All Anti-Aircraft Guns target their Close-in Weapon Systems! All Mistrals charge forward! We cannot let that Drake-class crash in our skies!"
"Behind us is Copernicus!"
"Yes."
"Understood!"
Hearing the voices over the comm, other dissenting opinions were temporarily suppressed.
At least for this moment, they were selfless.
Saving others meant saving their own loved ones.
...
Meanwhile, inside Copernicus, alarm bells had long been blaring.
All sorts of vehicles were frantically heading toward the nearest shelters.
However, Flay and Heather remained at home instead of evacuating.
Also at their home were Caridad Yamato and Lenore, who had come over for dinner.
Among them, Heather was a mid-level employee at Actaeon, and Lenore was a senior researcher at the research center—both had well-connected information channels.
The dishes on the dining table had all been cleared away, and Heather had opened her personal computer, projecting a virtual screen in front of everyone.
"According to current intelligence, that Drake-class ship appears to be attempting a terrorist attack. We're some distance from the research center here, and calculations show we won't be affected by the main explosion."
Heather, devoid of her usual casual demeanor, looked at Lenore as she spoke.
"What do you think, Lenore?"
"Yes, that's correct."
After scanning the formulas on the screen and finding no issues, Lenore couldn't help but glance at Heather with concern.
She hadn't realized her neighbor was so capable.
Even with machine assistance, her calculation speed was on par with some Coordinators.
But come to think of it, having a son like Fred made it seem perfectly normal.
This woman was no simple person either.
However, their current interests were aligned.
Moreover, as an international arms dealer, Actaeon had conducted transactions with ZAFT before.
"What we need to do now is seal this room. I still have some emergency space suits here."
Heather continued, ignoring Lenore's gaze.
At Drake's current rate of descent, they would die from air leakage long before reaching any shelter.
It was better to rely on this five-star rated property developer's structure to withstand the initial impact.
"Mom... are brother and the others okay...?"
Just as Heather finished speaking, Flay's voice chimed in, thick with concern.
"...According to the external radar data, those two Mistrals are unharmed."
As an Actaeon employee, she had access to Copernicus' radar intelligence.
This was precisely how she had made her earlier calculations.
In fact, her son's survival probability outside was higher than theirs.
As long as he didn't do anything reckless...
Heather just hoped that foolish son of hers wouldn't attempt any foolish self-sacrificing moves.
Though that seemed unlikely...
Despite her inner unease, Heather didn't show it.
All she could do now was protect Flay, believing Fred would think the same.
After speaking, Heather comfortingly patted Flay's head.
"Don't worry, your brother jumps around energetically every day - he's tough as nails."
"Kira and Athrun are the same."
The other two nodded in agreement after Heather finished.
"Let's start preparing."
...
"Need help?"
Meanwhile, Athrun urgently asked while watching the retreating Mistrals.
"Help me adjust the umbilical cord's launch parameters and remove all safety restrictions. Can you do that?"
"Yes."
"Then it's yours."
"Okay."
In this emergency, their exchange was brief to save time.
In under thirty seconds, Fred had modified the umbilical cord into a temporary, single-use rocket propelled grenade.
Just as Fred completed the work, Athrun reported:
"All safety restrictions have been removed. Ready to launch at any time."
After speaking, Athrun's hands stopped moving as his tension visibly increased.
He couldn't help regretting never having learned any shooting-related skills.
"Confident you can hit it?"
"Yes."
Fred connected the mechanical arm to the umbilical cord as he spoke.
The targeting system immediately appeared on Fred's screen.
Through this system, Fred could clearly see Drake approaching Copernicus' upper atmosphere.
The main propulsion unit's nozzle appeared before him at a forty-five degree angle, emitting dazzling blue light.
The boy's hands gripping the control stick were white-knuckled from excessive force.
Having come this far, how could he possibly fail?
He had been given this second chance to protect everything precious to him - all those regrets and remorse from his previous life.
How could he fail now!
His family - he must protect them.
No matter who it was, he would never allow anyone to take them away.
As thoughts surged like tidal waves in his mind, Fred could only hear the sound of something shattering deep within his heart.
Had it been the usual Fred, he would have certainly realized that he had activated SEED.
Yet now, in this SEED state, he remained completely unfazed by its emergence. His eyes, purified through absolute concentration, remained fixed intently on the blue-glowing thrusters before him.