Mobile Suit Gundam: Road to Axis
The year is UC 0081, it's been two years since Zeon's defeat of the OYW. Zeon has no strong holds, and all their fleets are all but dead. However, a secret Manufacturing plant on the dark side of the Moon still remains. Its loyalty lies with Zeon, and they have newly designed Zeonic Mobile Suits. Fortunately there is one more fleet that can use these new model Mobile Suits . . . The Mars Fleet
Chapter 4: Arrival
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January 27, 0081
1011
The Blitzkrieg eased through the darkness of space, following the "road" shown to them from the Hangar bay. The yellow bars, illuminated their immediate surroundings. They plotted the course for the Blitzkrieg to follow into the hangar. As the tail end of the ship passed the illuminating bars, they disappeared into the darkness of space.
All was quiet onboard the Blitzkrieg. Only a few officers on the bridge scurried about. The mechanics, pilots, and the rest of the officers lay in their quarters, resting. Few were in the ready room chatting, finishing their meals, and some were just there to think. Near the rear of the room one could see the auburn colored hair of Joachim.
He sits solemnly by himself at the back of the room. His greenish-golden eyes were hidden behind his eyelids. He wasn't sleeping, and very much knew what was going on around him. He couldn't help but overhear an ongoing conversation about the Feddie's mobile suits between two mechanic's.
"I can't believe we've been able to last this long." the one with the golden brown hair, stated.
"Me neither, their new GM's, so they're called, are far superior to our Zaku's." this one was short, and had vibrant red hair. His voice was coarse but he looked no older than 20, though, "Their pilots seem to lack skill. Which, is why we've been able to defeat them."
Joachim chuckled a bit under his breath. 'They're smart, those two.' he whispered to himself making sure no one heard him. The conversation between the other two went on, but Joachim found himself staring out a nearby bay window.
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Luna Manufacturing Plant
1015
The maintenance crews scrambled around trying frantically to prepare the landing sequence. This was their first docking, and they were nervous. Not just the mechanics, even the high-ranking officers bit their lips. As the anterior end of the Musai-class Cruiser entered the bay, landing platforms protruded from the cold blue metal floor. The Blitzkrieg eased down onto the platforms and came to an abrupt stop.
"Alright, close the airlock, and prepare for departure." rang through the docking bay.
Docking tunnels extended, from the side bay, to the Blitzkrieg. Air hissed as the airlock was broken on the Musai.
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Blitzkrieg
1016
"Attention all personnel, we have arrived on Luna. Report to the docking tunnels on the East & West side of the ship. Their will be a briefing at 1130 hours. Stay in the vicinity of the Docking Bay." filled the hallways.
Obeying their orders, pilots and mechanics alike made their way to the docking tunnels. Their noise seemed to echo throughout the now immobile ship. Their boots clanked loudly off the cold metal floor as they made their way through the ship.
Japa drug his heels as he walked through the empty corridors of the Blitzkrieg. He was the last to leave his sector; not by accident though. He planned it this way. He knew the whole crew would be bumbling through the corridors. He stayed behind until last call.
'Idiots, they're all idiots,' Japa thought to himself. He slowly started to pick up his heels, as the repetitiously clanking was rather annoying. He didn't like the eerie silence now bestowed upon the ship. He chuckled as the thought crossed his mind. He was always under the interpretation that silence is what he truly wanted, but in actuality, he didn't. He wanted to be silent, not for everything to be silent.
"What took you so long, Japa?" the familiar voice of Andrea echoed from in front of him.
"I must have missed the first call. What a shame." he continued on, passing Andrea.
"You don't like it here. Do you, Japa?" Andrea said softly. Her crystal blue eyes, filled with tiny sparkles from the above lights, watched Japa contentedly as he walked past. She finally thought she understood, Japa. She didn't, though. 'It's as if he's trying to block me out. But...why?' she asked herself. She had feelings for, Japa, and she soon realized he didn't for her. Tears began welling up in her eyes. She shook her head violently and the tears disappeared.
"No, Andrea, I don't like this place." broke her train of thought. Overwhelmed with anger, she ran off in the other direction, tears splattering on the floor.
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Luna Manufacturing Plant
1130
The docking procedure had been completed. All officers on board the Blitzkrieg were relocated in the plant. It was the other Musai's time, now.
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The Manufacturing sector, probably the busiest part of the Plant. And, unlike any other Lunar city, such as Granada, it was hidden deep within the Moon's outer layer of crust. Not protruding through the ground. This way it was safe from an array of attacks. Rows and rows of facilities lined the underground city. Machinery every which way you looked. Personnel scrambling about nervously. Intersections of rafters, rafters going left, going right.
Yet amidst this chaos, the sector looked rather dull. No color to it, just the vacuous grey color of the many manufactured facilities, rafters, and the machinery. The yellowish-white luminous lights above did nothing but magnify the dullness of the sector. Flashes of orange and yellow illuminated small sections.
Joachim, astonished, sauntered around, taking in every bit of this gargantuan sector. Even more astonishing than itself, he was amazed that the Feddie's knew nothing about this, yet wondered if they did know. 'Something of this multitude can't be a secret. It isn't feasible, even in this era of technology' raced through his mind. He gazed at the vast array of facilities, personnel, and in the distance even mobile suits appeared.
Joachim found his way through the maze of rafters to where the MS had been stored. As he approached the MS, he noticed a familiar figure conversing with a mechanic. Japa. 'Should've known he'd be the first to see the new MS.' he chuckled to himself. As he looked to his left he saw two magnificent MS that seem to be of the Model. Once again, Joachim found himself looking at a dreary Grey color.
"I didn't expect you to be here, Joachim." Japa said in a somber tone.
"You must be the pilot Japa, has been telling me about. It's a pleasure." exited from the lips of the mechanic. He had deep brown hair, and his eyes were no different. His robust appearance hinted to Joachim that he may be a drinker. His simple, welcoming face, comforted Joachim in way that only his father did when he was younger.
"Japa , have you been telling this man lies? Everyone knows you're the best pilot out of us." Joachim chuckled a bit.
"Well, it doesn't matter, now. We have enough mobile suits for everyone. Now, we must gather all of the pilots together and begin our briefing." the mechanic walked away, almost waddling. Japa and Joachim followed.
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Command Center
Briefing Room
1130
Andrea sit quietly, listening to the ranting of Colonel McFarren. She was tired of if hearing his shrilled voice and wanted to leave. She didn't like this place; to dark and gloomy for her taste. 'Ship isn't much better' she said to herself. Her crystal-blue eyes sat fixated on the main screen. The tiny red dot coming from the pointer moved continuously, she tried following but found she couldn't.
"Are you paying attention, Andrea? Or, are you off in your own little world?" McFarren blurted out, turning the heads of every other officer in the room.
"I'm sorry, sir. I'll pay attention from now on." she blushed with embarrassment. Her face turned cherry red and she could feel the heat in her head. She grinded her teeth in anger and clinched her fists.
"That's better." he replied, "Andrea, I want you to inform Japa and Joachim of their duties. Japa is going to create a diversion, while Joachim and McIlwee infiltrate the main defense line. Lt. Colonel Ran will then take his Musai in and commence the attack on Granada. After their attack has been complete, the Mars Fleet will begin its long journey back to Axis. This should stall their forces and give you a good time cushion. Operation Zeit begins in 96 hours. Inform your crews and be ready for departure by then. This should give your men time to train in their new mobile suits and prepare for the mission. That is all.Sieg Zeon!"
"Sieg Zeon!"
The officers filed out and Andrea was one of the first. 'That was almost as bad as hell.' she said to herself. Before the Colonel exited the room she hurried away, so she didn't get another lecture.
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Mobile Suit Hangar
Ready Room
1210
Adam McIlwee, Riko Schneider, Raye Hataki, Joachim Hyldebrand, Japa Serscu, and various other pilots sat in the Ready Room examining the MS suit shown on the main monitor. They all sat with deep interest. They did, after all, enjoy mobile suit piloting. Not one of them was daydreaming or not paying attention. Their eyes were wide, and their ears tuned. On the main monitor in front of the crowd, appeared a few MS. Thus, began the long debriefing of the new mobile suits they will be receiving.
"The MS-06 Zaku II, MS-09R Rick Dom, and MS -09II Rick Dom II aren't going to be covered in the main discussion. Rather a manual has been given to you for their information. The MS currently being shown is the MS-14A Gelgoog. It's a shade of forest green and dark grey. Their are only three of them; the rest have been stowed onboard the remaining Zeon ships. Outfitted with a Beam Rifle and a Twin Beam Sword, these Gelgoog's can stand toe-to-toe with the Gundam. You have been informed of the Gundam and given a fair warning of its power. These are made for more than the average pilot. Lieutenants McIlwee, Hataki and Sgt. Williams have been assigned to these units.
"Next up, the MS-14K Gelgoog Kürzer. A close-combat mobile suit. It sports a higher reactor output, and the more durable Lunar Titanium Alloy. Its thruster output is far greater than most OYW mobile suits. This is due to the fact it is meant primarily for short range. It has to be fast in order to evade enemy beam fire. It carries the standard Twin Beam Sword. It is also outfitted with many other weapons. It can be fitted to the like of its pilot. It may carry the normal Beam Rifle used by the standard Gelgoog or carry a Small Beam Machinegun. The Small Beam Machinegun can produce a extremely high rate of powerful fire, but its range is far less than a normal Beam Rifle. Mounted on the forearms are a pair 110mm Machinegun's. These can penetrate lightly armored areas of a GM, and destroy the main camera. Mounted on top of the 110mm Machinegun's are a pair of 3-tube Missile Launchers. These short/mid-range missiles can take out a GM with a few well-placed shots. The Kürzer far surpasses any GM, and, depending on the pilot, it could take down the Gundam. Two Kürzers have been produced and have been given to the some of the best pilots around you. Lieutenant Japa Serscu and Lt. Commander Joachim Hyldebrand are the first to pilot these magnificent mobile suits.
"Its physical appearance as you can see, is very similar to the Type-A Gelgoog. The exceptions being the communications antennae on the head, and the 110mm Machinegun's on the forearms. It's a tad bit shorted than the Type-A and lighter, too. The two pilots assigned to it may also give it a custom color scheme." The crowd rustled uncomfortably in their seats. They were brought back to attention by the booming of the mechanic's voice.
"Pay attention, damnit. Now I have to inform on our pride and joy: the MS-14JgB Gelgoog Jaeger Kai. Specifically designed for Command use. And, it has been assigned to Commander Schneider. You may also customize it to suit you. It is an upgraded version of the Gelgoog Jaeger used late during the OYW. It saw little field time, but it performed above our original standards. One was used during Operation Rubicon late 0079. Though the mission was a failure, the MS itself was a success. We decided to station one here and upgrade it. The final product is superior all around to its predecessor. We upped the generator output, but in turn, that lowered the thrust. It went from an outrageous 2.22 G's to a still but less outstanding 1.80 G's. It's still faster than anything the Feddie's have. It, too, has also been upgraded to Lunar Titanium Alloy. Originally equipped with just a Large Beam Machinegun and Machinecannon's, we designed a few other weapons for it to use. It may also use a 90mm Machinegun. This Machinegun showed great improvement over the standard Zaku II 120mm Machinegun. It was able to penetrate the armor of a GM and gave off a high rate of fire. It does, however, run out of ammo quite fast. Next up, for a one-shot kill, we gave it a pair of Sturm Faust. They're not much, but they do pack a good punch. It can also be equipped with a customized Shotgun. This, 9 round, Shotgun is capable of piercing Lunar Titanium Alloy. Though short on the ammunition side, it does have strong firepower.
"It has a similar appearance to the Kürzer, but it's a bit on the bulky side." his mouth closed and his nostrils flared open, taking in air. He exhaled and began, "That brings and end to our briefing. If you have a question, find your own answer. Training with these new suits will begin at 0630 tomorrow. I guess I'm supposed to tell you that you have the rest of the day free to do what you like. This would be a good time to customize your mobile suits. Dismissed." Some of the pilots sat and lingered about, while the others headed towards the hangar, anxious to see their new mobile suits. McIlwee went down the corridor to his quarters to catch up on much deserving sleep. Raye stayed in the room chatting with a few others. Riko began a conversation with the mechanic. They left the room in search of a local bar. Joachim disappeared into the vast hangar, probably off customizing his Kürzer. Japa lagged behind the main crowd. He held into a railing and peered through the massive sector. He felt like just floating, aimlessly, into space, but he knew he would die. Instead, he just kicked off the floor and somersaulted over the railing, floating in the Zero-G of the hangar.