Chapter 102: SEED – The Desert's End 4
Because of the explosion aboard the Lesseps-class land battleship, Yzak and Dearka couldn't sit still any longer.
Without the Desert Tiger's permission, the two of them took their Duel and Buster and flew onto the deck of the battleship, acting as stationary gun turrets.
They intercepted the missiles fired from the Archangel, guarding the Lesseps-class battleship.
Meanwhile, the Desert Tiger's two land battleships relentlessly pursued and attacked the Archangel, continuously bombarding it with main cannons and missiles.
Although the Archangel's automated Vulcan anti-air turret system intercepted most of the incoming missiles, several of the main cannon shells still struck its hull directly.
The Archangel, battered by the shockwaves of explosions from the shells and missiles, was sent lurching and tumbling before crashing heavily onto the grounds of the old Albatia factory.
Just like before, the obstacles on the ground blocked it from taking off again. Temporarily unable to fly, the Archangel could only remain stuck on the ground, while nearby, Cagalli took the opportunity to board the ship.
Tolle, not far away, was utterly speechless. All the ZAFT troop deployments had changed, so why was the Archangel still getting smashed into the ground?
And the key point—was Cagalli still going to pilot that Skygrasper equipped with the Sword Striker pack?
Had all his previous efforts to change the storyline amounted to nothing? It felt completely useless, everything still unfolding the same as before. It was downright exasperating.
So, was that old saying true? Minor events can be changed, but the larger course of history cannot?
Kira was still piloting the Strike Gundam, locked in battle with the LaGOWE piloted by Andrew and Aisha.
But it was clear that Andrew and Aisha's LaGOWE held the upper hand—in the desert terrain, the LaGOWE possessed absolute superiority.
Though the Strike Gundam kept firing its beam rifle, Andrew's superb piloting skills and the LaGOWE's mobility allowed him to evade every shot.
Sometimes he even used nearby sand dunes as cover, leaving Kira helpless.
Aisha coordinated with Andrew, maneuvering the LaGOWE while firing its beam cannons. Under their combined assault, Kira found himself with no chance to strike back, unable even to dodge—he could only raise his shield in defense.
Seeing that the beam rifle wasn't working, Kira switched the Strike Gundam to its beam saber and charged at the LaGOWE.
But Andrew had no intention of giving him the chance for close combat. The moment the Strike got near, he immediately turned and pulled away, perfectly executing the "kiting" strategy often seen in online games.
Kira was flustered and drenched in sweat, the drawn-out battle draining not only his stamina but also rapidly depleting the Strike Gundam's energy.
The LaGOWE then extended its jaw-mounted dual beam sabers and lunged at the Strike Gundam.
Kira immediately fired his thrusters to dodge, but it was too late—the LaGOWE was already too close. He had no choice but to raise his shield and block the beam sabers' strike.
Andrew pressed his advantage, striking the helpless opponent like a predator on wounded prey. He swung the LaGOWE's treaded foreclaws, grinding them hard against the Strike's face.
Though this didn't cause much actual damage, the insult was extreme, and it constantly drained the Strike's Phase Shift Armor energy.
The Strike's energy reserves plummeted further and further, nearing critical levels. Seeing the danger, Kira made a burst escape, pulling away from the LaGOWE's clutches.
Things weren't looking good for the Archangel either. Caught on the ground and unable to fly, it had no choice but to endure the Desert Tiger's relentless assault.
But the Archangel didn't ease up on its counterattacks. Natarle kept issuing rapid-fire orders—launching anti-ship missiles one moment, anti-air missiles the next—while also managing the cooldown times of the linear cannons and beam cannons. The tension on the bridge was palpable.
Tolle could only guard the Archangel in his Recon Ginn, using its heavy machine gun and beam sniper rifle to intercept the Desert Tiger's incoming missiles.
But the Recon Ginn was ill-suited for desert terrain, incapable of flight, leaving him mostly playing a supporting role. And without Phase Shift Armor, stepping too far out was basically suicide.
Then the Archangel's radar detected the Storm Gundam and the Duel Gundam. The radar operator reported:
"Storm Gundam and Duel Gundam spotted on the deck of the Lesseps-class battleship!"
Captain Murrue immediately ordered:
"Activate the accelerators! Get the Archangel airborne as soon as possible. The Lohengrin cannon isn't within effective range right now."
The helmsman replied, "Underway, but something seems to be holding the ship back."
Murrue ordered, "Notify Ensign Tolle immediately. Find out what's wrong and fix it as quickly as possible."
Miriallia quickly opened communications to Tolle and relayed the situation. As it turned out, just like before, the Archangel was snagged by underground pipes and cables.
Tolle opened fire with the Recon Ginn's heavy machine gun and beam sniper rifle, blasting apart the entangling pipes within moments.
But while Tolle was clearing the obstacles, Cagalli boarded the remaining Skygrasper armed with the Sword Striker pack. She turned to Murdoch and declared:
"In this situation, how can we just leave a fighter sitting empty? I'll take this one out!"
Murdoch snapped angrily, "What did you just say!?"
But Cagalli didn't give him a chance to finish. She immediately powered up the Skygrasper and shouted over her comms from the cockpit:
"Get out of the way! Don't let the airflow blow you off, open the Archangel's hatch!"
Murdoch grumbled at those around him.
"Kids these days… Fine, open the hatch! But don't come crying to me if you get shot down!"
Back on the Archangel's bridge, news arrived that the pilot of Skygrasper Unit 2 had launched. Everyone was puzzled—who was piloting it?
Only after asking Murdoch did they learn it was Cagalli. The entire crew could only sigh at her recklessness.
But with the Archangel's forces stretched thin, they had little choice. They let Cagalli sortie in the Skygrasper as reinforcements.
Cagalli quickly linked up with Mu's Skygrasper Unit 1. The two of them weaved in formation and launched an assault on a Petrie-class medium land battleship.
With beam rifles and missiles, they destroyed most of the ship's main and secondary guns, as well as two BuCUEs.
Meanwhile, Yzak, still guarding the large battleship, watched helplessly as weapon after weapon on the medium battleship was blown apart. His heart filled with anxiety.
But his Duel Gundam was too far from the two Skygraspers.
And in the desert heat, the thermal interference badly disrupted the accuracy and effective range of his beam rifle and shoulder-mounted anti-armor shotguns. He simply couldn't hit the two Skygraspers at all.
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