Why would I join the army if I can’t drive a Gundam!

Chapter 244 Exposed
"Order the Shamon to return to port immediately!"

"But the enemy is less than two hundred nautical miles away from us!"

At the South Pacific base on Taal Volcano Island, Elder Doni, the commander of Revanhu's personal guard, strode into the base's command tower.

As soon as he entered, he eagerly gave instructions to the communications officer, who, though curious, repeated the order. But then, still puzzled, he asked Elder Doni for his opinion.

"It's a trap!"

Donnie, who was tall and burly like a 200-pound strongman, explained while patting his bald head.

"The Federation forces have already destroyed our transport ships that departed from other bases. There's no reason for them to let the Shamon go. This ship has been sailing safely at sea for over ten hours since it set sail. Is that even possible?"

"Sir, the Shamen reports that they are turning!"

"Tell them not to rush back the way they came. Try to circle around at sea a few times to at least disrupt the Federation's surveillance. Also, they'd better be prepared to abandon ship at any time!"

Upon receiving Doni's orders, the monks on the transport ship Shamon immediately attempted to disrupt the ship as instructed, and their strange actions naturally attracted the attention of the Federation forces.

"They've realized what's happening!"

"It's no use realizing it now. Look at their movement trajectory before they turn, and draw a predetermined flight path for me!"

"Report: There are four suspected targets along the flight path!"

"That's enough!"

"Helmsman, set the course, order the purebred steeds from the White Base to rendezvous with us, and notify the Pacific Fleet to blockade the surrounding waters. I want the encirclement so tight that not even a mosquito can escape!"

As the battle alarm sounded, the crew members of the Federation warships, who had never left their posts, quickly went into combat mode. The Spartan, which had been refueled and replenished with ammunition, took off again and headed at full speed toward the target area.

"It's terrible, Elder! The Federation army is coming towards us!"

Although the military strength of the Nanyang Alliance suffered a severe blow, its foundation remained strong, like a centipede that, though dead, still had a large number of believers who were doing everything they could to provide intelligence support to the Order.

Therefore, when the federal army began its operation, the Nanyang Alliance garrison on Taal Island received the news very quickly.

"The Shamen's operation is still too slow!"

"This has little to do with the Shamon. Our controlled area is only so big. If the Federation forces keep searching every day, they will find us sooner or later!"

Elder Doni in the headquarters sighed helplessly.

"You inform the elders, I'll go inform the abbot!"

At this very moment, Lei Fanhu was still performing his daily meditation in a temple in a corner of the Taal base. He sat high on a futon above the steps of the main hall, surrounded by swirling incense smoke. Along with the rising wisps of smoke, chanting continuously came from behind him, emanating from the hundreds of monks below the steps.

Doni strode to the outside of the hall. He wanted to barge in, but hearing the Sanskrit chanting coming from inside, he stopped and waited outside the gate.

"Donnie, what happened?"

Just as the massive Elder Doni was circling the sentries outside the main hall, the slightly unstable voice of Lei Fanhu suddenly echoed in his mind.

"Lord Sengzheng?"

Doni stopped and looked at the main hall. Lei Fanhu remained motionless, sitting steadily on the futon.

"The Federal Army is heading this way; they've probably already spotted us!"

Then, Doni heard the rhythm of the wooden fish being struck in the main hall suddenly stop for a moment.

"Sengzheng?"

"I'm fine, Doni. Immediately organize the surrounding manpower to salvage food and other supplies, then abandon the outer base and retreat to Taal!"

"Furthermore, I need you to allocate dedicated ships to send all the ordinary believers and children on the island out. The Federal Army will not make things difficult for them. Our cause should be inherited by them, not left here to die with us!"

"What about the council of elders?"

"They have to leave too!"

The elders that Doni mentioned refer to a group of elderly people from the former Nanyang Buddhist organization. It was thanks to them that Lefan Hu became a monk. Later, after Lefan Hu founded the Order of Order, it was these religious elders who supported and encouraged him behind the scenes.

Most of these elders are quite old and have lost most of their teeth, so they now remain at the Taal base, the true headquarters of the Southeast Asian Alliance, where they enjoy a leisurely retirement while undertaking the mission's enlightenment work.

While Lei Fanhu was away holding a Dharma assembly, these elders were in charge of the daily operations of the cult. These old people couldn't hold on for long under the flames of war, so it was best to move them before the Federal Army completed the blockade.

"I understand!"

Donnie nodded and strode away. He was now not only the commander of the guards but also the supreme commander of the Nanyang Alliance garrison. Deploying troops to defend the base was also his task.

Then, the base, which had remained calm until the past, suddenly exploded as if a drop of water had been splashed into a pot of oil.

There was no alarm, but the senior monks were already standing on the high ground, holding megaphones and ordering their subordinates to make various preparations. From the very beginning, this base on Taal Island had taken future security into account, and therefore many defensive measures were in place. Now was the time to put these facilities into use.

The long-sealed bunker doors were opened, and the anti-aircraft guns covered with camouflage cloths were brought to the light of day again. Missile positions hidden in the rainforest were also set up with launchers, and missiles pointed straight at the sky.

Ordinary believers who usually lived in the area were also mobilized. The men carried tools and began to destroy the roads in the rainforest, while the women quickly packed their belongings. After their husbands returned, they quickly took their families to the port. They were not combatants, but ordinary believers, so they were naturally included in the evacuation.

In contrast to them were the monk-soldiers from several nearby outposts near the Taal base. Because of their proximity, they didn't need large ships; speedboats were sufficient to reach them. However, these monk-soldiers who came to reinforce the base only had light weapons and a small number of anti-tank weapons; they didn't have a single mobile suit.

Even so, these warrior monks came without hesitation. With their burning faith, they embarked on this path of no return like fanatical martyrs.

Thanks to strong cohesion, the evacuation of the entire base was very fast. Most civilians and ordinary believers boarded the evacuation ships, but Doni encountered trouble when evacuating the elders.

"No, we won't leave!" A withered, emaciated old man with piercing eyes forcefully stopped the monk soldiers who wanted to help him up, and then cursed at Doni.

"We've seen it all in our lives. Now you want us to leave? What do you take us for?!"

"Yes, yes!"

Another elder, equally old but still somewhat fleshy, removed his robe, revealing his withered muscles, and then began to pat them repeatedly.

"Don't let my current state fool you, give me a gun and I can fight alongside you!"

"Elders, the situation is critical. The Federation Army is extremely powerful. In addition to their massive combat forces, they have also dispatched their top ace from the One Year War, codenamed Red Dragon, Markarius. Our chances of victory are extremely slim!"

"Could it be that even our secret weapon is no match for him?"

Another elder asked curiously. He knew nothing about military affairs and paid little attention to the news, so he had no idea what level the so-called top ace was.

Donnie hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

"He's very strong. When I was in the Zeon army, I heard countless stories about his deeds. Those famous ace pilots and combat heroes of the Zeon army couldn't last a single round against him. The only one who managed to escape from him alive was the now missing Red Comet!"

"So even Lei Fan, the monk, can't fight against him?"

"He is also a Newtype, and it can be said that he is the most powerful Newtype pilot in the entire Federation Forces!"

Donnie sighed.

"In the Zeon army, many soldiers lose their fighting spirit at the mere mention of his name. Some even choose to self-mutilate to avoid the possibility of going to the battlefield because of the possibility of encountering him. Ever since the Federation forces began attacking us, he has been active on the battlefield. He even wiped out the entire Flying Tigers unit with a single person and a single machine!"

"Those who commit heinous acts of killing on the battlefield will be punished!"

"Then, please also leave with the evacuation fleet, otherwise, we will not be able to fight the enemy with our backs against the wall!"

Doni thought that bringing up Markarius would frighten the elders, but he found himself terribly wrong, because the elders were even more determined to stay on the island!
This made Doni extremely anxious. If he wasn't worried about injuring the old men, he would have already sent someone to carry the elders away.

At that moment, Lei Fanhu entered the temple where the elders resided.

"Sengzheng!"

"Thank you for your hard work, leave this to me!"

"Understood, then I'll be leaving!"

After Doni left, Lei Fanhu continued to talk with the elders, but unfortunately, he couldn't persuade them. In fact, he was comforted by them instead.

“We are already the bones of the old era. There is no place for us on the ship of the new world. If this is the final destination of the earthly heaven, then it is only right for us to meet our end here!”

"Yes, if we leave, who will take care of appeasing the ordinary believers? You all go and fight with peace of mind!"

Seeing the elders' relieved expressions, what could Lei Fanhu say? He could only kneel on the ground and perform the grand salute once again.

"Then, please move to the base's underground bunker; it will be safer there!"

"Okay, then I'm going to enjoy the fan and eat ice cream!"

The skinny elder who had spoken first immediately smiled and said...

"No problem. Although we don't have much else, we have enough ice cream and jam at the base!"

While the Taal base was constantly handling personnel and supplies, the strike fleet that had set off earlier was already approaching the area. Now, the Federation forces no longer needed to inspect the four islands one by one, because the massive movement of people had already explained everything.

"Dispatch mobile combat units to intercept all departing ships. They are not allowed to fire first, but if attacked, they may proceed with standard counterattack procedures!"

"Where is the navy? Tell them to hurry up. Are you suggesting we take charge of screening the personnel?"

As the order was given, flight platforms carrying mobile suits or infantry took off from the warships. At the same time, the Federation fleet also launched a global broadcast, ordering evacuating ships at sea to stop.

Faced with armed warships with their guns fully open, many transport ships obediently chose to cooperate, but many others increased their speed, attempting to force their way through.

"Greyhounds, intercept them immediately! Destroy their engines!"

"This is the Greyhounds, they're firing!"

On the deck of the Grey Ghost, GM SP2 sniper mobile suits equipped with additional optical aiming devices in their heads were quickly deployed. These mobile suits were armed with 75mm live ammunition sniper rifles and began firing freely after receiving the order to fire.

With a crisp gunshot, 75mm armor-piercing rounds, fired from above, whistled through the fragile hulls of civilian ships and penetrated their propulsion systems. Just one or two rounds were enough to turn the propulsion systems of those civilian ships into scrap metal by the shattered metal fragments. Without power, these desperately fleeing ships immediately slowed down.

However, some people still harbored a侥幸 mentality, thinking that the snipers in the sky would not notice them, and thus chose to escape in another direction.

On a high-speed yacht donated by a wealthy tycoon, dozens of believers were gathered together, praying for a safe escape. Just as they seemed about to break free of the encirclement, the sea in front of the yacht suddenly began to boil with white foam.

Then, with the surge of seawater, a federal submarine suddenly surfaced and blocked the yacht's path.

"Turn around quickly! Turn around quickly!"

As the yacht was about to collide with the submarine, the yacht's driver immediately began to frantically maneuver the controls. The yacht and the submarine then made a 90-degree emergency turn. Just when the believers on the yacht thought they had escaped the pursuit, several dark figures emerged from the water again.

"Ahhh!"

Amid the screams of the believers, a water-powered jet, its body still dripping with seawater, raised its iron fist and smashed it to pieces at the stern of the yacht.

"Immediate inspection, stop the ship immediately!"

(End of this chapter)