Gundam: From Piece to Player

"Amuro, tell me honestly, did you sneak into my room and look at Gundam information?"

Amuro nodded guiltily.

"If anyone asks you about it later, you should say that you found the Gundam instruction manual in the chaos and had no choice but to board the MS... If you tell the truth, things will get a little complicated, you understand?"

"Dad, I understand."

Amuro nodded blankly.

"How was the fight just now? Did you find the Zaku easy to deal with?" Tim Ray asked.

Amuro nodded vigorously.

"Gundam is much more powerful."

"It's not just the Gundam that's impressive. I just watched your combat video, and based on the first time, my son, you have more piloting talent than those so-called test pilots of the Federation."

Amuro was somewhat surprised by his father's praise.

"Dad, am I going to fight Zeon?"

"You're fighting to protect everyone in Side 7. You've seen it on the news, right? Those bastards slaughtered hundreds of millions of people on Christmas Eve to win the war. Now someone needs to pilot a Gundam to end this war."

Amuro wasn't actually against piloting Gundams. His father had rarely praised him since he was in junior high school, partly because he often traveled for work, and he was a little afraid of his father.

I hope piloting a Gundam will earn my father's approval.

The floor suddenly trembled again; it was the sound of artillery shells hitting the ground.

"Damn it, less than 5 minutes have passed. Amuro, get on the Gundam right now."

"Okay, Dad."

"Don't call me 'Dad' in the army, it's like a child. Address me by my rank, call me Captain Lei or Dr. Lei."

“Okay, Dad… Dr. Ray.”

In the hangar of the Zeon battleship.

Char Aznable was giving his subordinates a pre-deployment pep talk: "Do you all understand the mission? Destroy the White Trojan. We're currently in Federation-controlled territory, so we can't take the ship with us. Capturing mobile suits will suffice."

"Yes."

“Especially Lieutenant Dick, I have high expectations for your performance.”

Major Char's voice wasn't loud, but it was quite intimidating, and Dick was already sweating profusely.

He knew what Major Char was referring to.

Before conducting any combat operations, the Zeon forces always follow the mission instructions. What was supposed to be a reconnaissance mission was instead carried out as an attack mission by Lieutenant Dick.

If Char is willing to say that this mission was a change he verbally gave, then the matter can be dropped.

But if Major Char insists on taking this seriously, he will face a military court.

The white base slowly entered and hovered in the colony's airspace.

Based on their experience in the first battle against the white mobile suit, the three Zakus replaced their main weapon, the machine gun, with a high-powered rocket launcher, while Char's Red Zaku carried a 215mm anti-ship sniper rifle.

Captain Paul is currently on the top-level command bridge.

Brad, on the other hand, was stationed on the second bridge of the White Base, where he served as the CIC director in charge of reconnaissance and enemy intelligence gathering.

What is the concentration of Minovsky particles?

"It reached the baseline value just now and is still rising. The radar detection system has lost its image."

"Has the integrated detector detected any enemy?"

"A trace of infrared fluctuation was detected 5 kilometers away. This should be the location of the enemy. Mark it immediately and report to the bridge."

"Yes."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Brad saw a flying object streak past his window, followed by a loud explosion from above.

Chapter 97 You said there are 3 Gundams?

Five kilometers away, Char confirmed that the White Horse's bridge watchtower had been penetrated by his anti-ship sniper rifle.

"It seems my shooting skills haven't deteriorated."

Char turned off the aiming assist device.

Red Zagu leaped up, carrying a sniper rifle.

They deliberately exposed themselves to the White Horse's line of sight, while two Zaku tanks, each carrying large-caliber rockets, maneuvered from both sides, preparing to circle around to the White Horse's flanks.

Brad entered the upper combat command bridge via the fire escape ladder and was immediately shocked by the horrific scene before him.

The cold wind poured in through the completely leaky opening at the front, while the large hole at the rear indicated that it was a round with terrifying armor-piercing capabilities.

Captain Paul, who had been giving orders, was leaning against one side, panting heavily. Seven shards of glass were embedded in his right side, and his lower body was gone. Blood was gushing out.

Even if Brad wasn't the medical officer, he could tell that the situation was beyond saving.

"captain."

Captain Paul is retiring in a few years and is very gentle with his officers.

Brad was overwhelmed with emotion, but he held back his tears, knowing there was no time for mourning now.

"What are our plans next?"

"Brad, you'll be the acting captain from now on. Make full use of the Gundam..."

Before he could finish speaking, Captain Paul's pupils had already dilated.

Despite the pain, Brad realized how dangerous and urgent the situation was... because the Zeon forces were still attacking, and they had to repel this second wave of attacks to have any hope of survival.

He quickly returned to the second bridge and instructed the personnel around him to activate the backup systems on the secondary bridge.

Both the White Base and the Magellan-class were designed by Fox Shipyard, and both have a twin-bridge system.

The purpose is to ensure that, in the event that one brain is destroyed, a second brain can successfully take over the warship.

"Gentlemen, Captain Paul has passed away unexpectedly. He has entrusted me, the highest-ranking officer, to serve as the acting captain of the White Base. Please cooperate. Sergeant Long, please pilot the Guncannon and take command of the operations team. Amuro Ray, please pilot the Gundam and take command of the operations team immediately."

"receive."

Although the amount of information was substantial, Sergeant Long responded quickly, and Brad moved closer to the CIC communications officer's seat so that Long could see him.

"Sergeant Long, you are the only one on our ship with combat experience. The camera just captured images of the enemy, and their paint scheme is not ordinary. We have most likely encountered the enemy's elite forces. We must make good use of the armor and coordinate with the captain's son to focus on defense and avoid close combat as much as possible."

"Can we use beam weapons?"

The dragon's meaning is that if they fight freely, the destructive power of SIDE7 will increase, but it is also unacceptable to allow the white base to be destroyed or eliminated by the enemy without fighting freely.

Both Brad and Dragon were Federal Space Force officers selected to carry out Project V, and they had already signed the relevant agreement.

The primary task is to preserve the warships and collect as much valuable data as possible. As for protecting civilians and fighting against Zeon, although it is not stated, it does not seem to be as important as the former.

"Avoid it as much as possible, but if you're in a dangerous situation, you'll have to use it."

"Yes."

They watched as the warship in front of them hovered in the atmosphere and began to slowly retreat, with its close-in weapon system still firing.

"It can still move?"

Red Zaku lurked in the shadows of a tall building. Char was surprised that even with the bridge destroyed, the White Horse still had combat capabilities... Was it a backup bridge?

And that cutting-edge Federation mobile suit... it has the same face as Karma's machine.

He had previously watched the video footage of the Dick machine. The pilot was just a novice, but the machine's sturdiness... and that beam weapon also made Char somewhat wary.

And this is only the visible weaponry; who knows what other hidden weapons they have up their sleeves?

Lieutenant Dick, I'm counting on you to test it out. After all, you're the one who significantly increased the difficulty of the mission, and as a man, you have to take responsibility.

The hangar at the White Base has been opened, and Amuro has once again activated the Gundam.

"Amuro, how's the beam rifle's power supply? Is it working properly?"

"No problem... Dr. Ray."

"Okay, try to finish the battle with the beam saber as much as possible. If you use the beam rifle, the energy will be consumed very quickly, and the ammunition will only last for a maximum of twenty rounds... after which you will have to recharge it."

Beam weapons consume a lot of energy.

It seems there's no such thing as having it all, Amuro thought to himself.

Close combat means high risk.

Perhaps it would be safer to use a beam rifle to fire at close to medium range?

"Little brother Amuro, please attack as soon as possible," Dragon urged from the side.

"Yes, Amuro Ray, launch the attack."

Amuro mustered all his courage, stepped on the accelerator, and pushed the control stick. The Gundam once again leaped out of the white base, and the detector immediately transmitted feedback on the enemy's location.

They've actually gotten within 500 meters of the white base.

Blue flames shot out from the jets on the Gundam's back, waist, knees, and ankles. In just three seconds, the Gundam was already right in front of the Zaku.

"You monster!"

Dick was furious when he saw the white machine charging towards him; it was this mobile suit that had put him in this predicament.

Zaku picked up the powerful rocket launcher, intending to fire a close-range bomb at the Gundam, but due to the tension at that moment, his movements became distorted.

The rocket grazed the antenna on the Gundam's head.

If he couldn't hold onto victory, death awaited him the next moment. The beam saber pierced straight into the Zaku's cockpit, completely vaporizing Dick's body.

The Zaku's red-eye monitor also went out.

Amuro gasped for breath, his heart filled with the joy of surviving a disaster. Although he was still a little scared, he had won and had not triggered another detonation, causing further damage to the colony.

But in that moment of confusion...

A sniper shot pierced the Zaku's "corpse" from behind, instantly detonating the still-burning Zaku fusion reactor.

"Stop, stop, stop! What are you doing?"

Listening to Char recount his encounter with the Gundam, Garma felt like he was watching a recap episode.