Crossing Orb: Newtype Commander

November 5, CE70, Atlantic Federation, Mondalia.

This is a small town located on the east coast of the United States, which was historically a trading port during the colonial era.

Today, it hosts the most important international conference since the outbreak of war—the signing ceremony of the Earth United Treaty. Representatives from dozens of countries around the world have gathered here with only one purpose: to unite against PLANT.

The meeting was held in the city hall, a two-hundred-year-old stone building. The delegates sat on either side of a long table, with their respective national flags and accompanying officials behind them.

President William Sutherland of the Atlantic Federation sat in the chairman's seat, flanked by the Prime Minister of the Eurasian Federation and the President of the East Asian Republic. Representatives from the United States of South America, some member states of the African Community, and the Equatorial Union were also present.

Outside the venue, the voices of protesters rose and fell—"No war!" "No racism!" But police used riot shields to keep them several blocks away, and the peace slogans from loudspeakers were drowned out by the roar of helicopter rotors.

Sutherland stood up and read the preamble to the treaty: "We, the following signatories, in our shared desire to maintain peace and security in the Earth Sphere, have decided to establish the Earth United Armed Force to jointly counter the military threat posed by PLANT. This is not a war against the Coordinators; it is a war against aggression. PLANT's Supreme Council has been hijacked by radicals who have paralyzed our energy systems with neutron jammers and occupied our territories with mobile suits. We have no choice but to unite and defend our home." He made no mention of the blood-stained Valentine's Day incident caused by the Blue Cosmos.

Applause erupted as representatives from various countries signed in turn. The Atlantic Federation, the Eurasian Federation, the East Asian Republic, the United States of South America, the African Community (partial), and the Equatorial Union (nominal)—one name after another was signed on the treaty, and one by one, the red seals were affixed.

The Mondalia Treaty is in effect. The Earth Union is officially established.

Orb, Dawn Corporation command center. Char stood before the holographic screen, a vast amount of data compiled by VEDA—the military strength comparison of both sides, equipment parameters, deployment locations, each item marked with its confidence level and intelligence source. Mina stood beside him, Uzumi sat in a chair behind him. The numbers on the screen were coldly arranged, each number representing steel and flesh behind it.

The Earth Alliance's weaponry primarily consists of outdated Mobile Armor (MA) – those mobile suits jokingly referred to as "flying coffins," plagued by inferior performance and extremely high failure rates. While their fleet numbers around 300, a significant numerical advantage on paper, most are old models with questionable survivability against Mobile Suits (MS). Nuclear weapons, though on the stockpile, have been rendered useless by neutron jammers – without fission reactions, nuclear bombs won't detonate. Their over one million soldiers represent a massive numerical advantage, but most have never engaged in combat with MS, are poorly trained, outdatedly equipped, and suffer from low morale.

PLANT has approximately 800 mobile suits, primarily composed of GINN, and this number is rapidly increasing. It also has about 150 warships, fewer than the Earth Alliance, but all are new types equipped with mobile suit carrying capabilities and beam weapons, making them far more powerful than the Alliance's older warships.

PLANT did not weaponize nuclear energy—not because they couldn't, but because Patrick Sara used all the nuclear materials for neutron jammers and energy. The army numbers approximately 30, all Coordinators—each rigorously selected and trained, possessing superior physical abilities, reaction speed, and cognitive skills compared to ordinary humans.

Char's gaze shifted back and forth across the screen.

"PLANT has the advantage in the number and performance of its mobile suits. The Earth Alliance has the advantage in manpower and resources. PLANT will win initially—their mobile suits are virtually unmatched on Earth, and the Alliance's outdated mobile armor and tanks are like paper against GINN. However, a protracted war is disadvantageous for PLANT—their manpower is limited, and they rely on imports from Earth for resources. Once the Earth Alliance blocks space routes, PLANT's economy will collapse. Therefore..."

Mina continued, "PLANT will seek a swift victory. Before the Earth Federation can establish an effective mobile suit force, they will force the Federation to surrender with overwhelming mobile suit superiority."

Char nodded: "The only problem is—when will the Earth Alliance be able to build its own mobile suits? The window of opportunity is only six months to a year. If PLANT achieves a decisive battlefield victory within this year, the war will end with PLANT's victory. If the Earth Alliance survives this year and has its own mobile suits, the war will enter a stalemate and then become a war of attrition."

"And what will be the result of this war of attrition?" Uzumi asked.

"Both sides lose," Char replied. "Neither will win. Only the hatred of future generations will remain on the ruins."

The meeting room was silent for a few seconds.

Mina looked at the data, her voice low and somber: "Can we survive in this kind of war? Caught between two sides."

Char paused for a moment and then said, "It's difficult. But there's always hope."

On November 6th, the day after the signing of the Mondalia Treaty, ambassadors from various countries pressured Orb to "make a statement as soon as possible," essentially demanding that Orb join the Earth Federation. The Atlantic Federation faced the greatest pressure, with their ambassador visiting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs almost daily—ostensibly for friendly exchanges, but in reality, to constantly urge Orb to expedite the process. The Equatorial Union nominally signed the treaty, but its pro-Orb faction continued to vie for the possibility of "retaining neutrality as an observer."

The Orb Foreign Ministry issued a statement, the wording of which was carefully considered by Uzumi and Char, with each word meticulously chosen. The core content consisted of only one sentence, which was read by the Foreign Minister at the press conference:

Orb neither recognizes nor opposes the Earth Alliance. Orb is merely a neutral country.

The Atlantic Federation ambassador, looking grim, went straight to the Foreign Minister's lounge after the press conference. Char Aznable happened to be there.

"Commander-in-Chief Asuka, Orb's attitude is disappointing. The Earth Federation is fighting to protect the Earth Sphere, and Orb has chosen to stand idly by."

Char stood there, leaning against the window, overlooking the streetscape of Orb. Sunlight shone on his face, and his deep red eyes remained devoid of any emotion.

"Ob is not your vassal and does not need to meet your expectations."

The ambassador's lips twitched, as if he wanted to say something in rebuttal, but in the end he just snorted coldly and turned to leave.

Mina entered through a side door, watching the ambassador's departing figure, a hint of helpless amusement in her red eyes. "You've offended someone again. This time it's the Atlantic Federation ambassador—last time it was the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the time before that it was the special envoy. Are you planning to offend every diplomat in the Atlantic Federation?"

"If they all want to force Orb to take sides—yes."

Mina shook her head, but her smile didn't disappear. "At least you have principles. Although principles can often be a headache."

"I'm used to it."

That evening, Char Aznable saw a more detailed list of treaty signatories on VEDA. The Atlantic Federation was naturally the core, providing the majority of military funding and equipment. Although the Eurasian Federation was a traditional power, it was deeply divided internally regarding whether to go to war with PLANT, and its signing of the treaty was more of a political gesture. The East Asian Republic had extensive trade relations with PLANT and signed the treaty to avoid isolation; its actual participation was expected to be low. The United States of South America, some members of the African Community, and the Equatorial Union were nominally represented—most of these countries were "represented" without their own parliaments even having a chance to discuss the treaty.

"In name only," Xia said softly, "this world is always harmed by alliances in name only."

"What did you say?" VEDA asked.

"It's nothing." Char rubbed his temples. "Let's analyze how our military would be used if Orb were forced to join the Earth Alliance."

"According to the treaty text, the armed forces of member states are under the unified command of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. If Orb joins, the Orb Defense Forces will be incorporated into the Joint Forces and may be deployed to the front lines. Considering the performance of Orb MS, they will most likely be used as the main assault force. The expected loss rate may exceed 40% in the first month."

Char closed his eyes, conjuring up images in his mind: Orb's Zaku and GM were dispatched to the African battlefield, clashing head-on with ZAFT's GINN. For every Orb mobile suit destroyed, a young pilot perished in the flames. He had personally selected and trained those pilots; he remembered almost every name and face of them.

"Inform Mina that there will be a meeting tomorrow morning. We need to discuss how to protect Orb's army should the worst-case scenario occur."

"Instruction recorded."

November 10th, five days after the signing of the Mondalia Treaty. The world rapidly split into two camps—the Earth Federation and PLANT. Neutral nations virtually disappeared, either voluntarily siding with one side or being forced to choose sides. The Scandinavian Kingdoms declared "limited support" for the Earth Federation, allowing Federation forces to establish supply depots on their territory. The Equatorial Federation, nominally neutral, had effectively sided with the Earth Federation, opening its ports to Federation warships. The Oceania Federation, however, completely aligned itself with PLANT, allowing ZAFT to establish military bases on its territory.

Only Orb remains standing there. An isolated island, but it has not sunk.

Char Aznable said at the defense conference, "The world has gone mad. Two giants are fighting, and all the small countries are being used as cannon fodder. Orb has no intention of becoming anyone's cannon fodder."

Mina asked, "If the Titans are finished fighting, regardless of who wins—will they let Orb go?"

Char remained silent for a few seconds.

"No. But after they finish, they'll be in a period of exhaustion for at least ten years. Orb needs to become strong enough during those ten years—strong enough that anyone who wants to eat us will have to break a few teeth first."

Late on November 20th, Char didn't leave his office. He stood by the window, watching the cables of the orbital elevator shimmer in the moonlight. In the distance, on the sea, underwater mobile suits were conducting nighttime training—the dark green lights undulated underwater, like some kind of deep-sea creature.

He was pondering a question: if one day Orb had to choose sides—when would that be? Not because of diplomatic pressure, not because of economic sanctions, but because a gun was pointed at his head, and he would die if he didn't choose. Maybe a year from now, maybe two years from now, maybe never. But if that day came, he would have to make a choice. Not a choice between "Earth Alliance or PLANT," but a choice about "how to keep Orb alive."

"VEDA, if Orb joins the Earth Alliance, will we lose?"

"According to wargaming simulations, if Orb joins the Union, the war is expected to last three to five years, with a 60% chance of victory for the Union. If Orb does not join, the Union has a 40% chance of victory. However, the losses Orb suffers in the two scenarios differ significantly."

"explain."

"If they join, the Aubu Defense Forces are expected to suffer more than 50% losses, and the homeland will suffer at least one large-scale air attack. If they do not join, the Aubu Defense Forces are expected to suffer less than 20% losses, and the homeland's security probability will be higher than 90%."

Char closed his eyes. "Then I won't join for now."

Outside the window, moonlight spilled onto the sea, creating shimmering waves. In November of CE70, the Earth Union was established, and the world officially split into two major camps. Orb stood in the middle, siding with neither side and offending both.

It's not because it enjoys solitude. It's because it's waiting—waiting for the storm to pass. Even if that day never comes, it can only stand there.