Dozle Zabi abandoned all restraint.
The moment Solomon's outer line began collapsing, he turned the full, monstrous bulk of the Big Zam toward one target: the Ananke. Revil. The symbol of the Federation's will.
And he intended to crush it personally.
"ALL ZEON FORCES—FOLLOW ME!" Dozle roared, voice shaking even hardened veterans. "WE END THE FEDERATION HERE AND NOW!"
Hundreds of Zeon mobile suits surged with him, a tidal wave of desperation and fury. The Big Zam's thrusters ignited, tearing through space, firing a devastating mega-particle sweep that instantly vaporized a dozen GM units guarding the command ship.
The Ananke shook like it had been struck by a meteor.
Inside, alarms blared and officers scrambled.
"Big Zam approaching at full speed—impact trajectory!"
Revil stood firm, jaw set. "Hold the line. Delay him as long as possible."
But the only reason the Ananke survived the first attack was because two machines threw themselves between it and annihilation.
Strike Gundam and Duel Gundam.
Gary Lin and Mikazuki Augus.
Gary cut across Dozle's approach with a blazing arc of his anti-ship sword. "You're not touching our commander!"
The blade clashed against the Big Zam's I-field, sparks scattering harmlessly.
Dozle didn't even flinch.
"OUT OF MY WAY, INSECTS!"
He fired at point-blank range.
Only Mikazuki's brutal timing saved Gary—Duel rammed the Strike aside, taking the hit across its shield. The entire left arm assembly detonated, but Mikazuki didn't blink.
"Stop yelling," he muttered. "You're too loud."
He charged.
Gary followed, the two Gundams weaving in a deadly rhythm—Mikazuki's ferocity holding Dozle's attention, Gary striking the exposed joints between armor plates. They were gnats against a war beast, but they slowed him, forced him to shift, to defend—
To keep him off the Ananke.
Dozle's fury only grew.
"I WILL TEAR YOU APART MYSELF!"
His next blast nearly ate both Gundams alive.
But they held.
---
Far across the battlefield, another battle carved its own shockwaves.
Tanya von Zehrtfeld's Gelgoog slammed against Samus Aran's Full Armor Gundam, sparks ripping through space as their blades clashed. Tanya's newtype power surged again, deeper, sharper, her senses cracking open like a faultline.
Samus felt it.
She answered with her own awakening.
Two flaring minds collided—silent thunder shaking every newtype in the region.
Char. Griveous. Amuro. Even Athrun felt it deep inside Solomon.
Tanya pushed harder, her movements spiking to impossible speed.
Samus countered with deadly calm, firing with predictive precision.
Their fight became a storm.
Char Aznable forced his Great Zeong through the chaos, carving apart the last defenders blocking his path to White Base. His main cameras locked onto one signature:
Gundam.
And the pilot inside it.
Sayla.
Artesia.
His sister.
The Great Zeong's hand-mounted mega-particles charged—then hesitated.
White Base's cannons fired, slamming into Char's upper armor, but his fingers still froze.
Sayla's eyes widened in her cockpit.
"Casval…?"
The Great Zeong's aim trembled.
The hesitation almost killed him—Kai's Guncannon fired a shot that grazed his head unit, snapping him back.
Char gritted his teeth.
"Damn it… not now—!"
But Sayla didn't fire at him.
She simply stared—
And that hesitation carved itself into Char like a blade.
---
Meanwhile inside Solomon, Athrun and Lockon fought the adjutant's defense force step by step.
And outside, Gary and Mikazuki still held back an enraged Dozle, refusing to yield even an inch toward the Ananke.
Revil stood on the command deck, watching all of it unfold with a clenched fist.
"Oreki," he said quietly, "we must regain control of Samus Aran. If she remains in that state… she may become more dangerous than Zeon."
Oreki's mind raced, mapping variables, simulations, neural patterns.
"I'll find a way. Just buy me time."
Time that Gary, Mikazuki, Athrun, Lockon, Tanya, and Samus were all bleeding for at that very moment.
The battle for Solomon was far from over.
Char's Great Zeong pushed deeper into the interior defense corridor, carving a burning path toward White Base. Every instinct screamed for the same goal he had chased his entire life—victory, vengeance, completion of his purpose.
But the sensor ping froze him.
A single Gundam signature.
Closer.
Too close.
Then it emerged from the smoke—white armor scorched, shield cracked, eyes blazing with stubborn determination.
Sayla Mass.
Artesia.
His sister.
The Gundam halted in front of him, beam rifle lowered but ready. Inside, Sayla trembled—not in fear, but in a storm of emotion she had buried for years.
"Casval…" she whispered.
Char felt the name strike him like a physical blow, cutting deeper than any beam saber ever could.
"…It's really you."
The Great Zeong's hands rose automatically, mega-particle cannons humming. He should fire. He should finish the White Base line. He should not hesitate.
But his fingers trembled.
"Sayla… you shouldn't be here."
She didn't back down.
"You're fighting for the people who stole our childhood, Casval. For the monster who killed Father. Why?"
Char stiffened.
He could hear the tremor in her voice, the plea hidden beneath the accusation. And it burned.
"I have my reasons," he said. "You wouldn't understand. Stay away."
"I won't," she shot back. "I can't."
A pulse of defensive turrets fired—White Base backing her up. Char instinctively dodged, returning limited fire. But even then, his beams intentionally avoided Sayla's machine, carving around it like a forbidden line he could not cross.
Sayla saw it.
"Casval, stop this! Don't make me—don't make us fight like this!"
Char clenched his teeth, every nerve screaming in conflict.
"I don't want to fight you!"
His hand trembled.
"I—"
But a sudden flash cut between them.
A black machine darted through the corridor, landing with a crash that shook the entire interior.
Blitz Gundam.
Hikigaya Hachiman.
The hatch opened just long enough for him to shout—in the most bored, irritated tone possible—
"Oh for god's sake, can the two of you NOT have a family drama in the middle of a fortress under siege?"
Both Char and Sayla froze in complete disbelief.
Hikigaya pointed a thumb at the oncoming Zeon reinforcements behind Char.
"In case you didn't notice, blondy, there's like, fifty Gelgoogs behind you ready to turn you and your sister into metal confetti. So how about we NOT do the sibling angst arc here?"
Sayla blinked. "…Hikigaya?"
Char scowled. "Who are you supposed to be?"
"Some guy who's trying not to die today," Hikigaya deadpanned as he activated Blitz's Mirage Colloid. "Now MOVE."
He shoved Sayla's Gundam back with Blitz's shoulder.
Then he jabbed a finger at Char.
"And you—Red Comet—either shoot me or run. Pick one. Preferably 'run,' because frankly, I'm allergic to dealing with complicated family trauma."
Char stared at him in stunned irritation.
Sayla covered her mouth, unable to decide whether to laugh or scream.
Hikigaya sighed loudly.
"God. This war is exhausting. I didn't sign up to be a couples therapist for siblings."
Then the Mirage Colloid fully cloaked Blitz—body fading into black nothingness.
"Sayla, fall back to White Base," he said calmly. "I'll keep Zeon eyes off you."
Char finally spoke, voice low.
"…You're protecting her?"
Hikigaya shrugged—completely invisible, but his voice echoed through the channel.
"Someone has to. Unlike you two, I actually want to live long enough to enjoy old live."
A dozen Zeon units charged toward the corridor.
Char's hesitation shattered.
He swung the Great Zeong's arms around, unleashing a full mega-particle burst past Sayla—annihilating the incoming Gelgoogs.
Sayla gasped.
Hikigaya whistled. "Well… that's one way to show affection."
Char didn't answer.
He simply looked at Sayla one last time.
Sayla felt her breath catch.
And then, without another word, Char turned and rocketed deeper into Solomon, away from her.
Hikigaya reappeared beside Sayla's Gundam.
"You okay?"
She nodded slowly. "Yes… thank you."
Hikigaya shrugged.
"Next time, pick a better place for an emotional breakdown. Preferably one that's not exploding."
Behind them, the interior shook from another Big Zam blast.
The battle moved on.
But the bond between Char and Sayla—broken, bleeding, but unmistakably alive—would scar both of them forever.