"The machine... turned red?"
Seeing the Penelope before him manifesting a red glow, Graham Aker frowned slightly.
Was it a precursor to using some weapon, or had some special machine mode been unlocked? It couldn't possibly be just turning on LED strips to intimidate the enemy.
Damn it, communications are jammed by some unknown factor. There's no way to exchange tactics or intel with my teammates right under the Penelope's nose.
And for some reason, the machine's movements are starting to feel sluggish... is it because the parameters weren't tuned properly?
As the UNION's ace pilot, Graham's control over his machine was exceptionally strong. He naturally sensed the slight input delay occurring in the Union Flag Custom.
But there was no time for deep thought. A chill instinctively surged through his body. He subconsciously maneuvered the machine to quickly drop down one level.
A purple beam grazed the top of the Flag's head, vaporizing a small section of the symmetrical triangular antennas on either side of the head monitor.
At that moment, Graham saw the source of the attack.
The Penelope raised the multi-function shield on its left arm. The shield flipped, revealing the Mega Particle Cannon nestled in the middle; clearly, the previous attack had originated from there.
With the initiation of this attack, the battlefield—which had been slipping into a stalemate—became active once more.
Three Over Flags retreated slightly. After ensuring they had sufficient space and altitude, they somewhat stiffly transformed back into flight mode.
After forming this special unit known as the "FLAGFIGHTERS," Graham had shared his methods and insights on performing mid-air transformations with the Flag with his teammates.
However, due to the difference in experience and talent, these teammates clearly couldn't master it as quickly as Graham. Even though these aces from various units understood the operation, the machine's transformation remained clunky. Consequently, if they wanted to transform, they had to ensure they had enough altitude and clear airspace.
Roz Links naturally saw these Flags undergoing transformation, but he had no intention of interfering. He turned and began his assault on Graham.
Beep-beep-beep-beep...
Despite the Minovsky particle interference, at such close range, the machine's radar managed to function marginally, emitting the rapid chirping of an approaching enemy unit.
Compared to the Penelope's landing or the brief glimpse in Moralia—scenes that had fascinated Graham—it was only now, sitting in the cockpit as the Penelope's official opponent, that he truly experienced its overwhelming pressure.
A mass of glitching mosaic pixels (caused by the camera interference) was closing in, accompanied by a radar alarm urgent enough to drive any pilot to despair.
"Truly... beautiful and dangerous! Gundam!"
Faced with such a situation, Graham actually laughed and drew his high-frequency vibration blade once more.
"Since turning red, you've become even more agile!"
The plasma edge sliced through the night sky, clashing against the beam saber extended from the Penelope's multi-function shield.
Even though Graham felt like his feet were about to stomp through the cockpit floor as he floored the pedals, and his four specially reinforced thrusters erupted with powerful flames, the machine was still pushed back slowly by the Penelope's sheer output.
Three Over Flags in flight formation unleashed a barrage of bullets that swept across the Penelope's armor. Their legs opened to reveal internal missile bays; six air-to-ground missiles slammed accurately into the Penelope, erupting into a massive cloud of smoke that nearly engulfed the machine entirely.
After glancing at the PS Armor status, Roz intended to finish off Graham in one fell swoop, but in the next second, his brain suddenly felt a jolt like an electric current.
Two directions. Inside the smoke. A trace of killing intent.
Sure enough, as the three Flags that had just fired missiles veered back, chaff for jamming locks was scattered near the smoke. Two pale blue glows emerged as two Over Flags, brandishing high-frequency vibration blades, lunged toward Penelope.
In an incredibly short window of time, after Graham had opened an opportunity for them, this team had achieved a telepathic coordination to complete this string of attacks, all for the sake of these two machines' killing blow.
If it were Celestial Being, their scalps might be tingling right now, but Roz remained remarkably calm in the face of this situation.
His right hand tapped a few buttons on the control stick, and he pulled back with extreme speed. Two large beam sabers concealed within Penelope's shoulder armor suddenly rose in Graham's line of sight, aiming toward the positions of the two approaching plasma blades.
He didn't even need a lock from the fire control radar—or rather, the chaff interference made a lock unnecessary anyway. Roz felt the brainwaves approaching from behind; he tilted the muzzles up slightly and pulled the trigger.
Two thick purple beams erupted from the muzzles of these large beam sabers serving as shoulder cannons, tearing two holes directly through the dense smoke.
The upper torsos of the two Flags acting as the finishing blow were struck; their entire upper halves were shredded by the Mega Particle Cannons, leaving only a few parts still connected to the cylindrical cockpits at the waist.
While Roz had begun to deal heavy-handedly with the AEU forces, he still maintained restraint toward the UNION units... at least until they started mixing with those Lord God people, he remained relatively restrained.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the two Flags with their upper bodies destroyed falling toward the ground, Graham gritted his teeth. Maneuvering his free right hand, he drew his experimental linear rifle and pulled the trigger frantically at Roz.
"Don't think it ends like this!"
At that moment, a somewhat youthful voice came through the public broadcast of one of the Flags that had just lost its upper half.
With a cry filled with frustration and defiance, two unguided surface-to-air missiles were launched from the lower leg, striking Penelope.
In the initial design of the Flag, to ensure its versatility, it was capable of re-entering combat in a special posture after transformation even if only the upper or lower half remained. The Over Flag, modified and strengthened from the standard model, naturally retained this function.
The remaining lower half began a crude transformation. The legs bent backward, and the remaining two thrusters in the lower half became the main propulsion. The feet splayed out, turning into a mechanical claw with three "fingers."
The mechanical claw gripped a fallen high-frequency vibration blade and lunged toward Penelope.
"Joshua! Stop it!"
Seeing the Over Flag in its reconnaissance MA (Mobile Armor) state, Graham shouted loudly, attempting to restrain him.
"At this distance, I don't even need to aim!"
Joshua gritted his teeth. The sudden stop after this emergency transformation put significant G-force pressure on his body.
The target before him was obscured by the camera's glitching mosaic, but Joshua believed that as long as he hit it with the high-frequency blade in his hand...
The cylindrical devices on the feet began to continuously scatter chaff to jam locks. The Over Flag in its reconnaissance MA state pushed through the chaff and lunged at Penelope.
But in the next instant, the Union Flag Custom that had been in a stalemate with Penelope was suddenly hacked away by a burst of power from the Gundam. Roz's ReZEL beam rifle—which he had held but rarely used—suddenly aimed at the reconnaissance MA mode Flag charging through the interference chaff.
To Roz, it felt like he was aiming at a Funnel. Having already shot down countless Funnels piloted by "Amuro" types, he pulled the trigger skillfully, not even requiring a lock.
A slender purple beam precisely struck the lower leg of the reconnaissance MA Flag holding the high-frequency blade, causing the un-fired surface-to-air missiles in the magazine to detonate, instantly shattering its right leg.
A second purple beam acted like a beam saber, slicing through the left thigh of the reconnaissance MA. Roz was very careful not to hit the magazine storing the surface-to-air missiles. Finally, a third slender purple beam hit one of the thrusters of the struggling machine.
"Uwaaaaaagh..."
Accompanied by a somewhat foul-sounding noise echoing across the battlefield, the young man named Joshua cried out as he finally completed a crash landing on a patch of wasteland.
Clearly, the battle would not end there. The three Flags originally serving as the diversionary force strafed the Penelope, their shells continuously hammering against the PS Armor.
Roz tapped the buttons on the left joystick twice and pulled the trigger again. Small missiles hidden within the multi-function shield on the left arm streaked out.
These missiles, equipped with beam-shrapnel warheads, bit hungrily into the wake of the three Flags at extreme speeds.
"We're being tailed! Repeat, we are being tailed—"
A thick, gruff voice came over the broadcast. The three Over Flags pulled up; having exhausted all their interference chaff, they could only rely on maneuvers to evade the missiles.
But this played right into Roz's hands. The sixteen small beam-shrapnel missiles detonated simultaneously just a short distance from the Flags.
Sixteen bursts of miniature beam rain, dense as a downpour, drenched the Over Flags. In an instant, their armor was shredded to tatters.
Under such dense fire, the thrusters of the three Over Flags were destroyed one after another. Trailing black smoke, the machines plummeted toward the earth, eventually skidding across the wasteland for a long distance before completing their emergency crash landings.
"Gundam..."
Watching the situation spiral downward, Graham Aker gritted his teeth. He once again maneuvered the Union Flag Custom, raising his experimental linear rifle to fire incessantly as he charged forward.
The Penelope had only displayed this much firepower—and seemed to have plenty to spare—yet five Over Flags had already been brought down. At this rate, he would likely be defeated by her as well.
Since the outcome seemed predetermined, he would be the one to test the full extent of this Gundam's capabilities.
The multi-function shield on the left arm transformed again, and the Mega Particle Cannon fired a purple beam at Graham. It was too late to change direction; Graham raised his right arm, his defense rod spinning at high speed in an attempt to block the shot.
In the next moment, the Mega Particle beam vaporized the spinning defense rod instantly, taking the Flag's entire right arm with it.
The ReZEL beam rifle extended its beam blade once more. The Penelope lunged in front of the Union Flag Custom and swung downward. Having lost an arm, the Custom Flag could only raise its high-frequency knife, spitting plasma, to meet the blow in an emergency parry above its head.
Clearly, Roz had found his rhythm. Without a moment's hesitation, Graham saw the Mega Particle Cannon on the multi-function shield aim directly at his machine.
A purple beam flashed. The upper torso of the Union Flag Custom was completely destroyed, and the remaining lower half fell limply to the wasteland below.
Looking over this area on the outskirts of Tokyo, the collateral damage from the battle—burning wreckage, and fires caused by beam rifle impacts—illuminated the wilderness.
The scene was no less intense than the time he had nearly burned down a forest in AEU territory.
The Minovsky particles scattered over Tokyo began to dissipate, and communications were gradually being restored. Roz could already see several fire engines waiting in the distance.
Looking at the screen, seeing the UNION pilots escaping from their cockpits, Roz chose not to finish them off. Instead, he maneuvered the Penelope into cruise mode, turned, and left the area.
-----------------------------------
"Whew..."
Listening to the fading roar of the Minovsky Flight System, Graham Aker, who had just crawled out of his cockpit, watched the Penelope receding at extreme speed. He pulled off his helmet.
"Defeated... and it felt like I couldn't even put up a fight."
Turning his head to see his teammates' machines approaching him with their signal lights flashing, Graham sighed. "Did you hold back, Raven...?"
He stepped onto the leg of the Over Flag, preparing to climb down from the wreckage, when a sudden shriek of groaning metal echoed beneath his feet.
Graham felt the connection between the machine's legs and the lower torso snap directly, and the wreckage began to topple toward the ground. He gritted his teeth, timed his move perfectly, and leaped straight off the machine.
Tossing his helmet aside, he rolled instinctively the moment he hit the ground to disperse the impact. Graham landed on the soil, shaken but safe.
As for his pride and joy, the Union Flag Custom, it had crumbled into several disconnected chunks of scrap metal.
"It just... fell apart?!"
Staring at the current state of his machine, he was momentarily stunned.
"Raven..."
He lifted his gaze to the night sky where the Penelope had long since vanished. "As I thought, I am deeply fascinated by you!"
..................