With that said, Felix strode over to the elevator in just a few steps and took it up to the cockpit.
Seeing the open cockpit hatch, Felix walked straight in without the slightest hesitation and powered up the MS.
The equipment inside the cockpit activated. Felix slid the small keyboard from his side to in front of him, his fingers tapping away rapidly.
"Captain Griffith, you know how to program?"
The factory manager, who had arrived a step behind Felix, asked with some surprise when he saw Felix using the small keyboard to make some operational adjustments and do some coding.
Busy with his work, Felix nodded at the manager.
"I learned programming for a while before entering the military academy because I was interested in it."
"Oh, I see!"
Understanding now, the factory manager asked no more questions.
He left after speaking with the relevant staff, no longer accompanying Felix.
...
Two days later.
In December City Sector 1 Spaceport.
Three Nazca-class High-Speed Battleships, named the Alighieri, the Balzac, and the Maxim, were docked here. Felix led the members of the Griffith Team, who had been resting for some time, aboard these three high-speed battleships.
"This Nazca-class battleship is so much better than the Lauria-class we used before!"
Aric stood on the bridge of the Alighieri, remarking as he looked at the bridge's construction. After speaking, he turned to Felix and asked, "Captain, what units will the Sebastian and the other two warships we used before be transferred to for continued service?"
"You're asking me, but I don't know either! After all, the Ministry of Defense only told me we were getting new warships, not where the decommissioned ones were going."
Felix shook his head and replied to Aric.
He then continued, "Alright! This isn't the time for idle chatter. Let's get the fleet underway!"
"Yes, sir!"
Aric raised his hand in a salute.
Lowering his hand, he sat in the Captain's seat. His gaze fixed forward, he opened the comms and relayed Felix's departure order over the channel.
After the order was given, the thrusters of the three docked Nazca-class battleships—the Alighieri, the Balzac, and the Maxim—remained inactive. They used a small but sufficient amount of thrust to slowly exit the spaceport.
Once they reached open space, Felix looked ahead and gave another order.
"Full speed ahead!"
"Yes, sir!" Aric replied.
He looked at the helmsman and ordered, "Full speed ahead!"
"Yes, sir!" the helmsman responded, maneuvering the helm with one hand while pushing the thrust lever forward with the other.
As the thrust lever was pushed forward, the battleship's propulsion system began to operate at full power. The ship's speed gradually increased, moving forward at a velocity far exceeding its previous pace.
...
April 19th.
The Griffith Team arrived in the vicinity of the resource satellite Jachin Due, which was under PLANT jurisdiction.
"Captain Mark, my unit is here to relieve yours, under orders from the Ministry of Defense."
On the bridge of the Alighieri, Felix opened a communication channel to speak with Mark, the captain of Mark's team.
Upon hearing this, Mark spoke over the comms.
"Ministry of Defense order code!"
"107959!" Felix stated the order code.
Mark cross-referenced the code with the one he had received. Confirming there was no issue, he replied over the comms, "Order code confirmed. Commencing handover!"
After the official exchange, Mark's tone relaxed considerably.
"Captain Griffith, we'll be counting on you to guard Jachin Due from now on. It's hard work."
"It's no trouble! It's what we ought to do," Felix replied with a gentle smile.
A little over ten minutes later, the handover was complete. Felix deployed the three battleships under his command to their respective positions, ensuring the widest possible defensive perimeter.
"I'm leaving things here to you. I'm taking an MS team out for a patrol!" Felix instructed Aric.
Aric nodded in response. "Don't worry, Captain!"
...
In the Hangar of the Alighieri.
Clad in a white combat suit, Felix floated before a brand-new MS!
This was the custom MS the Ministry of Defense had built for him.
After admiring its excellent exterior design from the outside, Felix put on his helmet and floated toward the cockpit.
Once inside, Felix pressed a few buttons. The MS activated, and the dark cockpit lit up in an instant.
Meanwhile, outside, the maintenance crew got to work. The hanger rack moved the MS toward the launch track. Upon reaching the starting point of the track, the hanger rack released the MS.
The MS stood on its two feet at the end of the launch track, and the hanger rack began to return to its starting position.
The bulkhead door closed, and the forward launch bay door opened.
The blackness of space appeared on the screen. The electromagnetic catapult ahead activated, and everything entered the pre-launch phase.
"Felix Leo Griffith, ready for launch!" Felix reported to the bridge via comms.
A second or two later, Felix received a reply from the Communications Officer.
"ZGMF–414 Dawn, cleared for launch!"
"Dawn, launching!"
Gripping the control sticks, Felix's voice was calm yet firm.
He pressed down hard on the foot pedals, and the Dawn's propulsion system roared to life, generating thrust from its nozzles.
The electromagnetic catapult also engaged at that moment!
Under their combined force, the Dawn launched from the Alighieri at extreme speed.
Once in space, Felix maneuvered the Dawn. The attitude adjustment thrusters, responsible for controlling the mobile suit's movement, adjusted their angles, allowing the Dawn to turn and hover in space.
He waited there in space. After the GINNs that were accompanying him on the patrol mission launched from the battleship, Felix piloted the Dawn forward once more.
Inside the Dawn's cockpit.
"Is everyone clear on our patrol mission?" Felix asked his two subordinates over the comms.
Hearing Felix's question, they replied over the channel.
"Clear, Captain."
"Good."
With a soft grunt of acknowledgment, Felix led the two on a patrol mission through the expanse of space before them.
During the patrol, Felix wasn't just patrolling. Sitting in the cockpit, he was simultaneously piloting the Dawn and making fine adjustments to its operating system.
While making these adjustments, he also performed experimental maneuvers in space to ensure that each tweak met his expectations and achieved optimal performance.
"The output of the attitude adjustment thrusters still needs a slight tweak."
After completing a maneuver, Felix analyzed its shortcomings, muttering to himself as he made the necessary modifications.