Crossing Orb: Newtype Commander

Early spring, CE59, Orb.

The headquarters of the Dawn Society is located on the east coast of Orb Island, in a research park comprised of white buildings. It is the core of Orb's military technology, undertaking key tasks such as defense technology research and development, aerospace engineering advancement, and new energy exploration. The park is heavily guarded; only researchers with the highest authority can enter the innermost areas.

Fourteen-year-old Char stepped into this place for the first time as a "technical advisor".

His official title was "Special Technical Advisor to the Dawn Society, Askha, directly under the Chief's Office." This title was specially designed for him by Uzmi—it had enough authority without revealing his true technical abilities. To the outside world, people only knew him as the Chief's adopted son, a precocious genius, who came to the Dawn Society to "learn" and "provide some advice."

In his first month after joining the Dawn Society, Char did not come up with any groundbreaking theories.

He spent a great deal of time in the Dawn Society's library and technical archives, poring over materials on all of Orb's existing technological systems. He needed to know exactly where the country's technological level stood—which areas it had an advantage in, which areas it had a weakness in, which technologies were mature, and which were still just theoretical concepts.

A month later, he sent Erica a memo.

The memorandum is titled: "Several Recommendations on the Technology Roadmap for the Dawn Press over the Next Five Years".

The content is divided into three parts:

The first part consists of an analysis and optimization suggestions for Orb's existing technological system. Char pointed out areas for improvement for Dawn Corporation in multiple fields, including materials science, energy storage, and propulsion systems. Each suggestion is accompanied by detailed mathematical derivations and experimental plans.

The second part consists of several medium-difficulty technology proposals, including more efficient solar cells, new composite armor materials, and a magnetic field-confined plasma thruster. These projects are all within Orb's current technological capabilities, but require a certain level of research and development investment.

The third part consists of only one sentence: "If all the above projects can be completed on time, Dawn Society will have the basic conditions to verify the 'Minovsky particle' theory."

After reading the memo, Erica remained silent for a full ten minutes.

"This memorandum," she finally began, "is invaluable if it were leaked. Do you know how many countries would be willing to pay exorbitant sums for it?"

"I know," Xia said, "that's why I only gave you the paper version. Burn it after you've read it."

"You want me to burn a priceless technology roadmap?"

"You don't need to burn the contents, you just need to burn the piece of paper," Xia laughed. "The contents are in your head, aren't they?"

Erica glared at him, but still put the memo into the safe.

"I will seriously consider it."

In the latter half of CE59, Char began to promote a secret research project codenamed "M-Project" within the Dawn Corporation.

The project has only one goal—to verify the possibility of the existence of the Minovsky particle.

In the Universal Century (UC) era, the Minovsky particle was the foundation of Minovsky physics and the cornerstone of a range of technologies, including mobile suits, beam weapons, and Minovsky levitation systems. However, in the SEED universe, this particle has never been discovered.

What Char needed to do was not to "create" the Minovsky particle out of thin air, but to provide the researchers of the Dawn Division with a theoretical framework to guide them in discovering this particle that already existed in the universe.

The core hypothesis of "M-Project" is that under the influence of strong magnetic fields and specific energy fields, certain subatomic particles will undergo a peculiar phase transition, producing a new type of particle with rest mass and capable of forming an "I-field".

This theoretical framework was packaged as a "bold hypothesis" and submitted by Erika to the Dawn Society's academic committee in her own name. The committee's reaction was predictable—most experts considered it "pure fantasy," but some said it was "worth a try."

"Are you sure this theory is correct?" Erica asked Char privately.

"I'm sure," Char said, "but I can't tell you how I'm sure."

"Then I won't ask," Erica shrugged. "I'm used to it anyway. Give me the experimental plan, and I'll do it."

Over the next three months, Char prepared a complete experimental plan for Erika—from magnetic field strength to energy input, from detection methods to data analysis, with detailed instructions for every step.

Erica built the experimental setup according to the plan. The first experiment failed. The second failed as well. The third, the fourth…

It wasn't until the seventh experiment that a faint but definitely present signal appeared on the detector.

A completely new particle.

Erica stared at the data on the screen, her hands trembling.

"This is..." she murmured to herself, "This is the kind of particle you predicted?"

"Minovsky particles," Char said, "or at least their prototype. We don't fully understand their properties yet, but we're heading in the right direction."

"Do you know what this means?" Erica turned around, her eyes shining. "It's a whole new kind of physics. If our findings are confirmed, the entire physics textbook will have to be rewritten!"

"I know," Xia said calmly, "so we can't go public for now."

Erica calmed down and nodded.

"You're right. So what should we do?"

"Continue the research, but keep it strictly confidential," Xia said. "At the same time, start thinking about the practical applications of this technology. Minovsky particles can be used to create new energy systems, new propulsion systems, new weapons... but our primary goal is energy."

"energy?"

"Yes," Char said. "If Minovsky particles can be stably produced and utilized, humanity will possess a near-infinite clean energy source. That's what we truly need."

In CE60, Char was fifteen years old.

Project M is progressing faster than expected. Under Erica's leadership, a small research team has been able to stably produce Minovsky particles and has begun to study their physical properties.

But Char knew that he and Erika alone were not enough. To truly transform the Minovsky particle into practical technology, they needed more talent.

He began secretly selecting team members within the Dawn Society.

The selection criteria were unique. It wasn't about academic qualifications, seniority, or the number of papers published—none of these were the most important factors in Xia's eyes. He valued three qualities:

First, loyalty to Orb, not to any individual or faction.

Second, they are capable, but are suppressed or marginalized within the existing bureaucratic system.

Third, they are dissatisfied with the status quo and yearn for change.

In other words, he was looking for people who were "capable but lacked opportunity." These people didn't have many vested interests, were more receptive to new ideas, and were more likely to become loyal to a new leader.

The first person selected was Hiroshi Kato, 32 years old, a materials science engineer.

Kato worked at the Dawn Society for eight years, but was never given a significant role. The reason was simple—he was a natural person, and a natural person without any connections. His path to advancement was blocked in the Dawn Society's senior research positions, which were dominated by Coordinators.

But his abilities are beyond question. Char reviewed all the project records Kato had participated in and found that he had performed exceptionally well in almost every project, but his superiors always took the credit for him.

"Mr. Kato," Char found him in the Dawn Society's café, "I would like to ask you to join a special project."

"What project?" Kato looked at the fifteen-year-old boy with a puzzled expression.

"A project that could change the future of Orb," Char said. "But if you join, your name will not appear in any public papers. Your work will be classified as a state secret. Are you willing?"

Kato remained silent for a long time.

Why should I believe you?

"Because I've seen your talent wasted," Xia said. "You've been with Dawn Press for eight years, contributing at least ten key technological breakthroughs, but your name has never appeared as the first author. You're not happy about that, are you?"

Kato's expression changed.

How do you know all this?

"I've reviewed your file," Xia said. "Kato Hiroshi, born in CE28, PhD in Materials Science from Orb Institute of Technology. He joined the Dawn Society in CE52 and participated in at least fifteen important projects, but your name only appeared on the reports of three projects, and not as the first author. Your superiors appropriated your achievements, and because of your introverted personality, you never fought for them."

Kato gripped his coffee cup tightly.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"I want your talent." Xia looked directly into his eyes. "I promise that in your lifetime, your contributions will be properly recognized. But for now, you need to trust me."

Kato stared at the boy for a long time. In those deep red eyes, there was a sincerity and determination that was impossible to refuse.

"Okay," Kato finally said, "I'll join."

Following Kato, Char Aznable selected five more people:

Rin Sato, 28 years old, female, energy systems engineer. A Coordinator, but ostracized by the Dawn Corporation for refusing to become a PLANT citizen. Her area of ​​expertise is thermonuclear reactor control; she is exceptionally capable but has a withdrawn personality.

Christina Belmont, 26, female, Atlantic Commonwealth immigrant. A mixed-race individual of Natural and Coordinator descent, she is not accepted by either side. Her area of ​​expertise is artificial intelligence and control systems; she is one of the few in Dawn who truly understands quantum computing.

Ron Mitchell, 30 years old, male, of Oceania Union descent. A natural person, former technical officer of the Earth Alliance, who retired due to dissatisfaction with the policies of the Blue Universe and immigrated to Orb. His professional field is weapons systems and ballistics.

Li Yuehua, 27 years old, female, of East Asian descent. A Coordinator, her expertise lies in new materials and nanotechnology. She has a gentle yet determined personality and was one of the first to embrace Char Aznable's ideals.

as well as……

"Erika Simmons, you're already a core player," Char said at a small gathering.