Crossing Orb: Newtype Commander

The third day after Char fell into a coma.

PLANT's Supreme Council passed the "Joint Declaration of War against Earth" by an overwhelming majority. Patrick Sara stood on the podium in the conference hall, behind him was a huge photograph taken at the time of the Junius VII explosion—the gaping hole, several kilometers in diameter, looked like a scar torn open in the universe.

"We once believed in peace." Sarah's voice echoed throughout every PLANT colony via broadcast. "We once believed that as long as the Coordinators proved their worth, the Naturals would accept us. We were wrong. In the eyes of the Naturals, we will always be monsters to be eliminated. In that case, let them see the power of monsters."

Thunderous applause erupted. Siegfried Klein sat in a corner of the parliamentary seat, his face ashen. He had attempted to propose an amendment for "limited retaliation"—attacking only military targets and sparing civilians—but no one supported it. Hatred had overwhelmed reason.

On the same day, ZAFT's war machine was fully activated. The GINN production line went into 24-hour operation, and hundreds of mobile suits poured out of PLANT's docks. The fleet assembled on the outskirts of the colony, its sights set on Earth.

Shortly thereafter, Patrick Sara issued the order for "retaliation."

The target is not the Earth Alliance's military base, nor the headquarters of the Blue Universe, but the entire Earth.

Hundreds of "neutron jammers" were launched from PLANT's satellite silos, traversing space and entering Earth's atmosphere. These devices are made of special heat-resistant materials and will not burn up during atmospheric reentry. They are designed to be deployed across the globe—over deserts, oceans, forests, and cities.

When the first neutron jammer fell over the Pacific Ocean, nobody knew what was happening.

But then, nuclear power plants around the world shut down one after another. Hospital MRI machines failed. The engines of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers stalled. Nuclear submarines lost power in the deep sea and slowly sank. All technologies that relied on nuclear fission became useless in the same instant.

The Earth Alliance's energy system collapsed as a result.

An hour later, Patrick Sara delivered his second speech. This time, his voice was cold and calm:

"Nature beings, you slaughtered our compatriots with nuclear weapons. Now, you will pay the price for your arrogance. The neutron jammer will completely disable Earth's nuclear energy. Your Earth Alliance will lose 70 percent of its energy supply. Your warships will be unable to leave port, your fighter jets will be unable to take off, and your radars will be blind."

He paused.

"You want war? Fine—now the war begins."

While the world descended into chaos, the lights of Orb remained lit.

Seven years of preparation have proven their worth at this moment.

The Minovsky particles and the neutron jammer do not interfere with each other—a fact Char Aznable confirmed years ago. Orb's solar power platforms provide over 40 percent of the nation's electricity, while the Minovsky nuclear reactor provides the remaining 50 percent. The new vanadium redox flow battery energy storage system had already stored more than three months' worth of power before the neutron jammer was deployed.

The emergency command center of the Dawn News Agency was brightly lit. Technicians were monitoring the national energy network, and not a single green indicator light was off.

"Orb's power supply is normal. The solar power platform is operating well. The energy storage system is stable." Erica Simmons sat at the command console, her voice calm, but her hand holding the pen trembled slightly. Not from fear, but from worry—Char had not yet woken up.

Uzmi stood behind her, watching the flashing green dots on the big screen.

"Are we capable of supporting other countries?"

"We don't have the capacity," Erica shook her head. "Our solar power platforms can only cover the territorial waters of Orb. We can't help other countries on land."

Uzumi was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Then hold Orb. That's all we can do right now."

In the underground medical facility of Orb Dawn, Char lay on a hospital bed, his face as pale as paper.

His body was intact, his heartbeat was steady, and his breathing was normal. But he had been in a coma for forty days. Doctors couldn't find any organic lesions—his brain activity was abnormally high, far exceeding the levels of normal humans and even modulators. But those neurons were firing erratically, like an unquenchable storm.

No one knows what his consciousness is going through.

—In the darkness. There is no light, no sound, no direction.

Char's consciousness floated in a void. He didn't know where he was, who he was, or how much time had passed. He only knew that he was alone.

Then, the screen appeared.

He saw a white mobile suit standing on the snowfield, its head featuring a V-shaped antenna and painted in red, white, and blue. It wasn't his goddess of justice, but a legend from another universe—the RX-78-2 Gundam. Amuro Ray stood at its feet, gazing up at the machine that had changed his destiny.

Screen switch.

He saw a red mobile suit, its monocular monitor flashing a cold red light, its thrusters on its back spewing massive flames. It was Char Aznable's Sazabi. Not for protection, but for conquest.

The scene then switches again.

He witnessed a world of brutality—children transformed into weapons of war, struggling to survive in the Martian desert. Mountains of corpses littered the battlefield, and the survivors continued their killing spree. Peace was a joke, hope a luxury.

Then comes W, X, and the inverted A—the wars and peace of every universe, the beginning and the end of every world. The Moonlight Butterfly appears at the end of the scene, its silvery-white wings covering the entire Earth, breaking down all traces of civilization into sand.

"This is the trajectory of human civilization." A voice echoed in the darkness. It wasn't the voice of VEDA, but a voice from a more ancient and profound past. "No matter which path you take, as long as you can't solve the fundamental problem of war, the destination will be the same."

"Then what is the meaning of my existence?" Xia asked. His voice echoed in the void, with no listeners.

"Meaning is something you give yourself." Another voice appeared—this time, it was a soft, warm, and feminine voice.

In the darkness, a light appeared. Not a blinding white light, but a soft, amber glow. From the light emerged a woman—brown skin, long black hair, and deep-set eyes. She wore casual clothes in the style of the UC era, standing barefoot in the void, like a phantom that had traveled from another time and space.

Lala Sin.

"You've come," Xia said. His voice was calm, but there was a hint of emotion in his eyes. This wasn't the first time he had seen her—she had briefly appeared during the time-space turbulence.

"I've always been here," Lala smiled. "It's just that your consciousness has been disrupted. The deaths of tens of thousands of people have simultaneously flooded into the consciousness of a new human—this has never happened in this world before. Your abilities are defensively rampaging, trying to 'protect' you from being destroyed by the emotional shock by 'absorbing all information.' But if this continues, your consciousness will be assimilated—you will lose yourself and become a pure mass of spiritual energy."

"What should I do then?"

"Go back." Lala stretched out her hand, and a scene appeared in the white light—the underground medical facility of the Dawn Society in Orb, Char on the hospital bed, and Erica Simmons and Cagalli sitting by the bed, holding his hand.

"They're waiting for you," Lala whispered. "The other world is waiting for you."

"But I saw those outcomes—Turn A, the Moonlight Butterfly, the end of civilization. What was the point of all I did? No matter how strong Orb becomes, no matter how hard I try, I will eventually be wiped out."

Lala looked at him, her deep brown eyes holding a timeless calm.

Do you know why the UC era wasn't wiped out by the Moonlight Butterflies?

Char remained silent.

"Because people keep trying," Lara said. "You can't change the course of civilization by yourself alone. But every generation's attempt helps civilization continue a little longer. You don't need to save the whole world. You only need to save those you can save."

The white light spread out, engulfing Char's vision.

"Go back, Char Langlad Ashar. Your story is not over yet."

During the brief respite of his return, Char saw two visions of the future, like two mirrors facing each other in the darkness, stretching infinitely.

In a mirror, Patrick Sara stands in the ruined ZAFT command center, consumed by hatred, her eyes filled with nothing but destruction. The wounds on Earth and PLANT deepen, the war seems endless, and everyone has forgotten why they fought in the first place.

In another mirror, Lacus Clyne stands at the signing ceremony of the peace treaty, her voice echoing through the hall, as soldiers from the former warring sides embrace. This isn't the world of SEED, but rather an image from the depths of her memory, a possibility.

Will he choose to be a driving force, or merely a witness?

"Neither," Lala's voice came from the void. "You are the Weaver."

The white light devoured everything.