Doug fell silent upon hearing this, saying nothing.
Felix looked at the silent Doug and reached out to pat his shoulder. He lowered his hand, gazed at the electronic map before him, and placed a call to Andrew.
The communication device rang once or twice before connecting.
"Hello! Who is this?"
A familiar voice came through the comms, and the next moment, Andrew's face appeared on the screen. Andrew was momentarily stunned to see Felix, then he smiled and asked.
"When did you get here?"
"Just arrived not long ago."
Felix smiled slightly and replied.
His gaze fell on Andrew's helmet as he asked with concern.
"Is it not over yet?"
"Not yet!"
Andrew nodded slightly and replied with a smile.
Hearing this, Felix looked at him and teased with a grin.
"Are you losing your touch? You still haven't finished off a guerrilla squad like this."
"These guys aren't that troublesome to deal with, but they hide and scurry around like rats, which makes them a pain to find. We spend most of our time looking for them, not fighting them."
Looking at Felix, Andrew didn't respond to the teasing, instead starting to complain.
Seeing his complaining look, Felix chuckled.
"Need my help?"
"No need, we can handle these guys."
Shaking his head, Andrew declined Felix's kind offer.
After speaking, Andrew glanced down at the time and added.
"We'll talk more when I get back. I can't keep chatting with you right now."
"Mm."
Just as the "Mm" left his lips, Felix saw the communication get disconnected.
Looking at the ended call, Felix turned to face Doug. Doug looked at Felix and smiled faintly.
"Shall we continue our chat?"
"Mm."
Felix nodded slightly in response.
Fisher, who had just walked into the command room of the Earth Alliance Forces' African Theater Command, asked his Adjutant.
"What are the current movements of our various units?"
The Adjutant turned, and seeing it was his superior, he raised his hand in a salute and called out loudly.
"Commander!"
Lowering his hand, the Adjutant looked at the Commander and continued.
"All units are currently proceeding smoothly. Based on the current situation, the bait for the Broken Sword Operation will ultimately be the ZAFT Forces' Land Combat Mobile Suit team that is currently operating in the field."
As he spoke, the corresponding information was displayed on the large screen in front of them. Fisher sat in his chair, resting his chin on one hand as he watched the screen, and nodded.
"An excellent choice."
"Thank you for the praise, Commander!"
Having received approval, the Adjutant looked at the Commander and expressed his thanks.
Fisher waved his hand and said.
"No need to thank me. This is what you've earned."
With that, Fisher's gaze fell on the large screen, waiting for the results.
Meanwhile, in the ZAFT-occupied territory in the northern part of the East African Plateau.
"Captain, we have a situation!"
Martin, seeing the anomaly on his screen, hurriedly opened a communication channel with his superior. As soon as the call connected, he reported anxiously.
Andrew heard his subordinate's report and asked calmly.
"What's happened?"
"A large number of Earth Alliance Forces fighter jets are flying towards us from multiple directions."
Martin reported the specific details, looking at the feedback on his screen. After hearing this, Andrew grunted in acknowledgment.
"Understood," he said, then gave an order. "Report the situation to the Spaceport."
"Roger!"
Martin replied.
In the ZAFT Forces command post at Victoria Spaceport.
"Captain Griffith, Captain Doug, we have a situation!"
A soldier stood at the door, looking at Felix and Doug inside the room, his voice urgent as he reported.
Felix looked up at the soldier, his expression stern as he asked.
"What's happened?"
"The Earth Alliance Forces are advancing on Captain Barthfeld's team from multiple directions!"
The soldier saluted, then lowered his arm and delivered the news.
Felix's expression tightened at the report. He looked down at the electronic map, and Doug waved a hand at the soldier. The soldier, acknowledging the gesture, saluted Felix and Doug before turning to leave.
"They launch an attack the moment you arrive. It seems they really did formulate a plan targeting you."
Standing before Felix, Doug's face was grave, his voice low. Felix lifted his head and looked at Doug.
"Even if it is aimed at me, I can't just do nothing. I have no choice but to walk into their trap."
"A blatant Overt Stratagem!"
Doug clenched his fists, his expression grim.
Felix didn't say much more. He put on his military cap and walked outside.
Watching Felix's actions, Doug opened his comms and issued an order.
"All forces on alert! Markham Team, Peter Team, Stark Team, and James Team will sortie with the Griffith Team. You are to follow Captain Griffith's commands completely!"
After issuing the order, Doug ended the communication. He stood there, his hands braced on the table, fists clenched tightly.
"Damn Earth Alliance Forces!"
Anger surfaced on his face as he growled.
"Has something happened?"
Hearing the blaring alarms and seeing the grim-faced ZAFT soldiers hurrying past, Lacus realized something was wrong. She turned to ask Gusta, who was guiding her on a tour of Victoria Spaceport.
Gusta looked at Lacus with a solemn expression.
"Miss Lacus, it's not safe outside. Please come with me."
"Mm."
Seeing the look on Gusta's face and sensing the seriousness in his tone, Lacus didn't ask any more questions. She gave a slight nod and allowed Gusta to lead her toward the underground shelter.
As Lacus entered the underground shelter, she looked at Gusta, who was about to leave, and said with a hint of worry in her voice.
"Be careful!"
"Thank you!"
Gusta paused, turned to look at Lacus, and smiled in thanks.
After expressing his gratitude, he broke into a run and charged outside.
After Gusta left, the door to the underground shelter closed.
Lacus watched the closed door, then turned and walked toward a seat.
"Miss Clyne, is a battle about to start?"
A cultural worker looked at Lacus, voicing her worries and suspicions.
Lacus turned to her, offered a gentle smile, and shook her head.
"I'm sorry, but just like you, I don't know what's happening either."
Seeing that Lacus wouldn't say, the cultural worker didn't press further. She sat down, clasped her hands before her chest, closed her eyes, and began to pray for safety.
Watching her, Lacus lowered her head to look at the Haro she was holding. Haro's small eyes lit up, and it chirped, "Haro, Haro."
Gently stroking Haro, Lacus smiled warmly and spoke with sincerity.
"Haro, let's pray together for the brave ZAFT warriors fighting valiantly! May they all return safely!"