Although one could vaguely discern from the corridors of the Nahel Argama that this was a pure battleship designed for combat—capturing the attention of Wang Liu Mei and Sumeragi—the sight of various young boys and girls in Nahel Argama uniforms along the way immediately suppressed their curiosity.
"Are these all... child soldiers?"
As they walked into the so-called meeting room and saw the youth sitting behind tables or standing in the aisles, even Setsuna was visibly moved.
After all, Setsuna himself was a former child soldier; seeing this group in military uniforms almost triggered his PTSD.
"Hey, don't look at them with those eyes. It's rude."
A voice that sounded quite young rang out in their ears.
Shinn, who had not yet changed out of his pilot suit, carried his helmet as he bypassed the stunned Celestial Being group and walked over to Stella, who had been waiting there for a long time.
"Everyone here has participated in brutal and tragic battles—scenes of despair that you cannot possibly imagine."
Before sitting down, Shinn glanced back at the small Celestial Being group. "I've seen your combat footage. To put it bluntly, everyone here besides you is much stronger as a warrior."
'Desperate battles.' Sumeragi extracted those key words.
Following Shinn's statement, Sumeragi began to ponder what kind of wars in this world's history could be called "desperate." Was it the one where Setsuna became a child soldier? It didn't seem like it, and Setsuna clearly didn't recognize them. Or was it some unknown, small-scale regional war?
"Shinn, everyone has a green period before becoming a qualified warrior. Don't forget, you were green once too."
At that moment, a female voice reached their ears.
"How about showing them a little tolerance?"
Christina, wearing a white lab coat, walked up to Shinn and lightly tapped on the table in front of him. After a brief glance at the seating Celestial Being team, she focused her attention entirely on Shinn.
Although it was confirmed that Celestial Being would cooperate with the Nahel Argama, in Christina's priority list, her own crew always came first.
"Besides, everyone has accepted that past. Everyone has their own convictions and goals. Their gazes cannot affect us in the slightest."
"...I know. It's just... I can't accept it myself."
Having said that, Shinn turned his head slightly away, not daring to look Christina in the eye.
It was likely because Stella and Mayu had also ended up in a state similar to the other crew members, making Shinn protective of everyone on the ship. He loathed others looking at them with eyes of pity. Although he didn't know which of the cybernetic crew members were older than him, as one of the Nahel Argama's high-end combat assets, he felt he should protect these "brothers and sisters" like an older brother.
"...Well then, let's not talk about that."
Christina shook her head. She knew it was difficult for outsiders to intervene in Shinn's state of mind; even Roz could only provide auxiliary support to help Shinn work through it himself. She skipped the topic to prevent the atmosphere from growing stiffer.
"Next, there's news. About you."
As Shinn turned back to look at her, she continued.
"Your new machine is basically complete. Remember to go to the hangar for pilot training after the meeting."
At this, remembering the black machine still in the workshop—which bore a slight resemblance to the Unicorn—and the entirely new Psycho-Frame installed within it, Christina sighed.
"Unfortunately, the frame can only use the Courtyard version. The performance differs from Roz's. His version of the frame seems to be completely bonded to him and can't be used by you."
"On the contrary, even this is already great."
Shinn stood up from his chair and gave Christina a military salute. "I promise not to let you down."
-----------------------------------
When Roz entered the meeting room, the Celestial Being group felt a wave of awkwardness wash over them.
On one hand, the more mature members like Lockon, Sumeragi, and Wang Liu Mei were able to restrain their emotions and opinions, viewing the Nahel Argama crew with professional composure.
Setsuna, however, had been in a daze since entering the room. His eyes were fixed blankly on the inactive screen; he had clearly spiraled deep into his own PTSD.
Tieria, on the other hand, made no effort to hide his indignation regarding the Nahel Argama's use of the "Gundam" name and their employment of "child soldiers." Given the current circumstances, he could only force down his rage and attempt to keep his expression neutral.
As for Allelujah? Ever since stepping aboard the Nahel Argama, he had been in a state of total withdrawal. It couldn't be helped—setting Roz aside, the ship was simply teeming with "Newtype seeds." It was likely that given a bit more time, the Nahel Argama would produce an entire crop of high-potential Newtypes.
Faced with such powerful and chaotic spiritual pressure, even his arrogant second personality, Hallelujah, instinctively chose to lower his profile.
"Everyone, here is the situational briefing."
Roz walked to the massive screen and nodded to Christina.
"Given that Celestial Being has just entered a cooperation with us, I believe the following intelligence can be partially shared with them."
Under Christina's operation, the screen flickered to life, displaying various images as the lights in the meeting room dimmed.
"Events have unfolded exactly as we predicted. Due to Celestial Being's diligent interventions, the three major powers have just established their respective anti-Gundam squads, designating all of you as enemies."
As Roz spoke, the screen behind him displayed various intelligence reports. "Among them, the AEU's squad was formed with the most speed. It is highly probable that the criminals have joined their ranks."
"Why are you so certain that these 'criminals' have joined the AEU's anti-Gundam unit?" Sumeragi asked, studying the data on the screen.
"It's simple: because their objectives align perfectly with the three major nations—specifically, your Gundams."
The screen showed footage from the Penelope's perspective during Celestial Being's debut. Two machines specifically highlighted in the video, whose designs were completely alien to any existing MS in the world, caught the attention of the Gundam Meisters.
"Those are..."
Sumeragi narrowed her eyes, beginning to analyze the two units. But in the next second, detailed spec sheets—resembling competitive bidding parameters—were laid out before everyone.
"Based on the Penelope's combat logs, we know these individuals possess a successfully retreated GAZuOOT and the remains of a GM Sniper K9 destroyed by the Penelope."
Roz noted their confusion. "Whether they have other MS or MA hidden away, or if they possess unique abilities of their own, remains unknown."
"In short, they are an extremely dangerous group from beyond this world with whom alliance is impossible. They must be eliminated."
Roz reached out and tapped the AEU's location on the map. "Otherwise, they will throw this world into total chaos, potentially even risking its destruction. I believe everyone on the Nahel Argama understands this all too well."
The crew of the Nahel Argama, having lived through the Gryps Conflict—which was exacerbated by the lingering memetic influence left behind by previous Lord God Agents—loathed these outsiders. Though the Agents themselves never cared about the tragedies they caused, the weight of that sorrow rested firmly on the shoulders of the crew.
Seeing the grim expressions of the Nahel Argama members, the Celestial Being group began to realize the gravity of the situation. Setting everything else aside, if the parameters of those two alien machines were to fall into the hands of the three major powers, it would undoubtedly trigger a Cold War-style arms race. Neither Veda nor the Meisters could accept that.
"I understand. I will have my intelligence network investigate the AEU's side," Wang Liu Mei said, her smile replaced by a look of serious resolve.
She wanted to bring change to this stagnant world, but change and destruction were two very different things. No matter how vast her ambitions for transformation were, Wang Liu Mei knew where to draw the line when faced with a group capable of world-ending impact.
"In essence... you need Celestial Being to act as bait to lure them out, correct?" Sumeragi asked.
"In fact, that is exactly it," Roz nodded. "You can continue to operate exactly as you normally would. We will handle the ambushing of those individuals."
"I am sorry for putting you in this position."
"...Fine. It doesn't matter. It's just one more group of unknown enemies," Sumeragi replied. She didn't have much of a problem with being used as bait; in her mind, it was a viable strategic option.
"That covers the general situation. Moving forward, we will strengthen our intelligence exchange with Celestial Being."
Roz's tone turned solemn. "We are facing an unknown enemy. We know nothing of their personal abilities or their full arsenal. Exercise extreme caution in combat."
....................