In the hangar of the Alighieri,
"Captain, your MS is fully prepared and ready for launch at any time!"
The maintenance crew chief stood before Felix, reporting to him. Turning his head to look at him, Felix gave a slight nod, then withdrew his gaze and continued toward the Dawn's cockpit.
Entering the cockpit, the hatch closed.
The hanger rack carried the Dawn toward the central track.
Upon reaching the designated position, the Dawn was released from the hanger rack. Its feet landed on the mobile transporter, and the locking mechanism secured the Dawn's feet in place.
After the hanger rack retracted, the mobile transporter carried the Dawn forward.
Exiting the hangar, it stopped in the equipment configuration area.
The partition door separating the launch area from the hangar closed, while the side doors of the equipment configuration area opened. Mechanical arms extended, carrying weapons.
The weapons were configured for the Dawn.
Inside the Dawn's cockpit, Felix observed the display on the weapon status monitor, then reached out to activate communications.
"Dawn, preparations complete! Requesting launch clearance!"
"Clearance granted! Captain."
The communications officer's voice echoed through the comm.
With a brief acknowledgment, Felix closed the communication channel, his eyes fixed ahead.
The launch door had already opened by this time.
Placing his left hand on the throttle, Felix increased the Dawn's thrust output. The back thrusters began emitting thrust, and the locking mechanism beneath its feet disengaged.
Under the combined effect of thrust and weightlessness, the Dawn hovered, the power cable at its back pulled taut.
The electromagnetic catapult activated at that moment.
The powerful output of electromagnetic force generated terrifying acceleration.
The power cable was torn away as the Dawn shot out of the warship at extreme speed.
Once the Dawn had cleared the warship, Felix placed his left hand on the throttle again, pushing it forward to further increase thrust output.
The back thrusters erupted with even greater thrust.
This powerful thrust propelled the Dawn rapidly toward the battlefield ahead.
On the battlefield, two Mobius units, under their pilots' control, joined two other Mobius units to encircle and attack a single GINN.
The two Mobius units, maneuvered by their pilots, opened fire on the GINN from the left and rear.
Their firepower had just been unleashed, not yet fully effective.
The Mobius attacking from behind instantly exploded.
"Who is it?"
The pilot of the Mobius attacking from the left, seeing his comrade's fate, showed a look of horror in his eyes, a shocked question escaping his lips.
No one answered his query.
As he searched for the threat, large-caliber bullets from afar pierced through the Mobius's left propulsion system.
Urgent alarm sounds blared inside the cockpit.
The pilot, staring at the constantly alerting screen, displayed a mix of tension and despair on his face.
The next moment, a heavy sword stabbed directly into the cockpit.
The pilot died instantly from the blow, his final thought wondering who had done this.
The heavy sword was pulled out from the Mobius's cockpit, and the Dawn reattached it to its waist, then gripped the heavy assault machine gun hanging at its side once more.
The muzzle lifted, firing several shots straight ahead.
Each shot was a critical hit, explosions blooming one after another in front.
"It's the Sword of Damocles, that white MS!"
A terrified voice growled from a Mobius pilot's lips.
As the pilot manipulated the Mobius into erratic maneuvers high above the moon, Felix watched with a scornful smile curling at the corner of his mouth before pulling the trigger.
Two shots fired!
The first disrupted its evasion, while the second, guided by Felix's prediction, struck the Mobius squarely.
After destroying it, Felix piloted the Dawn to engage other MAs. His hands moved swiftly, guiding the Dawn to dodge left in mid-air.
Evading incoming fire, he raised the Heavy Assault Machine Gun and opened fire.
Flames spat from the muzzle as bullets sped out of the chamber at incredible velocity. Crossing kilometers through space, they struck another Mobius.
The Mobius's right propulsion system was destroyed.
Both thrust and maneuverability plummeted instantly.
The pilot attempted evasive maneuvers with the crippled machine.
Just then, a GINN closed in at high speed, drawing the Heavy Sword from its waist. With a fierce slash, it cleaved the Mobius in two.
After the deed, the GINN pilot swiftly retreated.
"Got my kill stolen," Felix quipped inwardly.
After the brief amusement, his mind settled back into calm.
Under Felix's control, the Dawn continued weaving through the battlefield.
Aboard the flagship of the Earth Alliance First Mobile Fleet, the Adjutant reported to Iacus, "Commander, that white MS our soldiers privately call the Sword of Damocles has appeared."
Iacus paused at the nickname, then instantly recognized which MS it was upon hearing "white MS."
"Sword of Damocles?" he muttered, then added, "It's quite an apt nickname. That MS on the battlefield truly is like a blade of death hanging over everyone's heads."
With that, Iacus issued the order.
"Fire the flash missiles and retreat from this airspace!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Adjutant acknowledged and relayed the command to all ships.
Under the Tactical Commander's direction, every vessel launched their flash missiles.
Meanwhile, the Earth Alliance's Mobius units on the frontlines received corresponding orders, all preparing to retreat under the cover of the flash missiles while evading and attacking.
In the Dawn's cockpit, after eliminating a Mobius, Felix noticed the incoming missiles on his screen.
His finger pressed the trigger.
The Dawn raised its Heavy Assault Machine Gun and fired.
A bullet streaked toward the missiles.
Precisely hitting one, the warhead detonated due to the exploding propellant, setting off a chain reaction.
A blinding flash of white light erupted instantly.
"Not these custom flash missiles again!"
Frowning, Felix muttered in annoyance.
After saying this, Felix fired at these Flash missiles again. Just as he finished two shots, he saw three Mobius units charging toward him.
His hands moved to operate the controls, and the Dawn maneuvered accordingly.
It dodged left and backward to evade the attacks from the three Mobius units.
The Heavy Assault Machine Guns raised by the Dawn each targeted one Mobius unit.
Felix didn't fire immediately; instead, he paused briefly and, after evading a few times, opened fire with the Heavy Assault Machine Guns in the Dawn's hands.
Bullets shot out from the gun barrels.
The two Mobius units targeted by Felix couldn't dodge in time, and their bodies were instantly pierced by the bullets.
Explosions followed!
Two bursts of explosive flames lit up this area of space.
Amid the explosions, the Mobius units shattered into fragments, continuously falling toward the lunar surface.
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