Gundam, but from the Ground Alliance to the Human Alliance to the out-of-control servitor

"Oh - it's a new model."

Captain Dan crossed his arms and sighed.

"So, Dan, are you really not considering joining the MS team? You have the foundation of a fighter pilot yourself, and we also made contributions together in the Battle of Hart..."

"I told you not to mention it again. I think the Swordfish is great."

Captain Dan turned his face away. The small dining table was safe, and the noisy background sounds around him that had been ignored during face-to-face conversations now seemed noisy again.

"Chief of General Staff Reybil personally visited the front lines of the Asia Minor battlefield on September [-]th to express condolences to the frontline officers and soldiers of the Federation Earth Army; Chief of General Staff Reybil highly praised the frontline officers and soldiers for their tenacity in the face of the Zeon Army's attack..."

Cynthia's voice rang out from the loudspeaker in the cafeteria. In such a military base that is isolated in the universe and surrounded by enemies on all sides, news from friendly forces on Earth is particularly exciting.

"...Our navy and air force officers and soldiers worked closely together, and after seven hours of non-stop tracking, they sank a Zeon submarine and two amphibious mobile suits in the Philippine Sea..."

"Oh, it's just about reporting good things and not bad things."

Captain Dan looked at Lieutenant Wells who seemed to be listening carefully, sneered, and shook his head;

"The last time I heard news about the Middle East, it was said that the Zeon army's advance from North Africa was successfully blocked on the Arabian Peninsula. Now it sounds like victory all the time, but how come the battle line has been pushed to the Asia Minor Peninsula? Woolen cloth?"

"Uh...Do these two places mean that the Zeon army has successfully expanded its occupied area?"

Lieutenant Wells, who had no idea about the location of these two peninsulas with unfamiliar names, asked cautiously.

"Were you born in space?"

"No, I'm from North America."

"Oh, that's the same-"

Captain Dan, who was well versed in various regional discriminations and stereotypes on the planet, showed a tacit smile, but at the next moment, he suddenly realized something and quickly hid his smile;

"——Uh, sorry, I didn't know you were from North America for so long..."

Currently, all of North America, except for the Anchorage base in Alaska in the northwest corner and a small area around the Panama base in the southernmost corner, is still under the control of the federal army, and the rest has been reduced to the occupied area of ​​the Principality of Zeon.

"It's okay. Because of my New Year's trip, my family happened to be in the UK when the colonial satellite crashed, and we have been stranded there ever since. Our hometown was destroyed, but my family members are all fine."

Lieutenant Wells waved his hand.

"That's the luckiest thing. With you serving in the space army, your family's life should be guaranteed even in a refugee camp, right?"

"Hey - there are war zones everywhere on the earth now. As long as you can survive, how can you expect so much?"

Heavy topics such as the current situation of the family during the war, family separation and separation once again brought embarrassing silence to this dinner table; both of them were caught up in the concern for the safety of their families.

That small coastal town in California and the beach under the sun were not clean and tidy. Tangled clumps of seaweed were often washed ashore by the sea and rotted on the beach, attracting swarms of mosquitoes. But it was the childhood of Lieutenant Wells. playground:

At that time, he liked to go with the neighbor's children, holding branches or wooden sticks, looking for such seaweed balls to poke around on the beach, watching the swarms of flying insects being stirred up as if they were exploding, and then hurriedly running away. ;

It doesn't make much sense now that I think about it, but Lieutenant Wells enjoyed it as a child.

There are always thousands of sailboats at the cruise ship pier in that small town. If you choose a sunny day at the end of summer and autumn, rent a speedboat in the morning, and you can observe whales and dolphins on the sea not far from the shore. ;

In the afternoon, you can set up a deck chair on the deck, catch fish, shrimps and crabs all afternoon under the shade of a parasol, and return with a full catch before the sun sets; Enjoy the sea breeze and enjoy a feast of freshly prepared seafood.

'When the war is over, I will take leave and go back to my hometown to have a look, even if there is only ruins left there...'

Lieutenant Wells thought.

Chapter 2: Hide and wait (2)

"...The 'Mid-Autumn Offensive' launched by our army in the Asia-Pacific Theater has been declared a complete victory. The recovery of Mandalay City will cut off the land connection between the Zeon Army on the South Asian subcontinent and the Zeon Army on the Indochina Peninsula."

Lieutenant General Cunningham walked quickly in the corridors of the base, and Cynthia's gentle report echoed in the wireless headphones in his ears.

"The above is the information we received when we contacted the Gabro headquarters again this week and the war situation on the earth's surface."

"It looks like the Earth Army is getting ready to launch a counterattack?"

Lieutenant General Cunningham asked as he walked.

"Judging from the frequency of our army's proactive offensives in recent times, this is indeed the case; however, in terms of scale, the current several counter-offensive operations do not see cross-theater-level troop mobilization. They should still be testing the strength of the Zeon army. .”

Cynthia incorporated the newly logged-in numbers into the database and entered them into different evaluation models to get feedback; although the Federation Earth Army had already established a firm foothold and maintained its relationship with Zeon under Zeon's early crazy offensive. Weng Jun lowered his troops to a stalemate——

The Federation, which has gradually completed its military and industrial mobilization, has completely annihilated several Zeon troops and boldly parachuted into the center of Federation-controlled areas such as Western Europe and East Asia, trying to replicate the lightning-quick and victorious landing of Zeon troops in the early days of the Earth battlefield. .

However, defending in a position is a completely different challenge than actively attacking enemy-controlled areas;

The two hasty counterattacks launched by the Earth Army in the Middle East and South America last month not only failed to recover the Zeon-occupied areas, but also lost troops and generals. The Zeon army drove them all the way back to the starting position. They did not even hold the starting position. In the end, they had to They retreated their defense lines hundreds of kilometers before regaining a foothold.

Judging from this result, Gabro's headquarters should still be hesitating whether the time for a full-scale counterattack has come. Cynthia made a prediction and then received confirmation from the agent.

"That's it. It seems that the Earth Army is trying to make a difference before our space army is preparing for the battle to regain control of the universe."

Lieutenant General Cunningham considered this issue from a tactical perspective; according to the Space Army, the homeland of the Principality of Zeon is in the universe. Naturally, resources should be concentrated to rebuild the Space Army fleet first, and then go straight to Side 3. It is the most efficient choice.

As for the Zeon forces on Earth, the Earth Army only needs to barely maintain the current front line to ensure that Gabro's Space Launch Center and Space Shipyard can safely complete the 'Binson Plan' and 'Project Binson' for rebuilding the space military fleet. Plan V'.

Without supplies and reinforcements from the mainland, and without orbital bombing and reconnaissance in space, two crucial advantages for the Zeon Army in ground operations, the Zeon Army troops stranded on the surface of the earth are nothing more than rootless pods. Cleaning them up will be a piece of cake when the time comes.

Of course, this plan to endure beatings and pressure throughout the whole process, and the highlight moment of defeating the Principality of Zeon was all occupied by the space army, was obviously unbearable for the Federation Earth Army.

"Yes, according to what I have received so far, the strategic timetable for this year from Gabro's space army, the newly built warships on the ground will be launched into orbit from the end of November to the beginning of December."

"Then, before the Zeon army has time to adjust its deployment between the earth and the universe, advance to the Zeon army's homeland, wait for another fleet decisive battle, and directly occupy the Zabi family's lair?"

"exactly."

"Such tactics are indeed Admiral Ray Bill's style."

Lieutenant General Cunningham easily understood the second half of Cynthia's plan; the Federation Space Force lost the battle and lost control of the Earth's orbit, and the Federation Earth Force could still engage in a tug-of-war with Zeon's descended forces on the ground.

And if Zeon's space fleet is defeated, then Zeon's homeland, the colonial satellite group located in Side 3, will be a piece of cake in front of the Federation Space Force's fleet, allowing the Federation to slaughter it.

"However, it will not be easy if the Federation Earth Army wants to launch a large-scale counterattack before that."

The troop gathering points on the front line, the supply transfer hub in the rear, and the air force bases responsible for ground support will all face the possibility of bombing from orbit; even if rice particles are released on the ground to cover up, the communication coordination during the organization of the attack will be difficult. becomes a new problem.

"However, the officers and soldiers of the Earth Army also want to prove that their importance and fighting will are no less than, or even better than that of the Space Army, so they made such a decision. The funds consumed by the Earth Army this year have been almost the same as in the past 20 years. The total is even.”

"There is a dispute between the services - but if they can really attract more Zeon troops to the ground, it will also be beneficial to our space army's subsequent operations."

The construction facilities of space battleships do not share the production lines of various equipment of the Earth Army. Generally speaking, there will be no competition for the production capacity of the military industry, except for new multi-field general equipment such as mobile suits.

Of course, this is an advantage. As for the disadvantage, it is naturally the Federal Central Finance Minister's despair as if he was in cardiopulmonary arrest when he looked at the skyrocketing bills submitted by the federal land, sea, air, and space forces. expression.

However, Lieutenant General Cunningham still shook his head. On the so-called 'Absolute Home Defense Circle' of the Principality of Zeon, the estimated combat power of Solomon and Abavakon, the two space fortresses transformed by the Zeon army using asteroids, is came to his mind——

Even if the Earth Army can attract Zeon's attention, the Federation's space military fleet will not be able to attack these two well-defended fortresses if they don't have a pair of teeth to attack the coastal defense artillery head-on.

"Yes, Lieutenant General Cunningham, the federal prime minister's guarantee to the military is that as long as this war can be won within this year and the Side 3 colonial satellite group is captured and taken over by the federation as intact as possible, all military The government will try its best to meet the expenses.”

Lieutenant General Cunningham gradually slowed down as he watched the end of this inspection approaching;

"This year," Cunningham chewed these three words, "Oh - the government's finances will be unable to survive, right? With the size of our federation, we have to take risks and find ways to compete with Zeon. A quick victory?"

Otherwise, encircling the point for reinforcements, or relying on the rice particle fog to continue bombing outside the fortress's visual range, are all attack tactics that can reduce losses better than a strong attack.

"Lieutenant General Cunningham, what affects the outcome of a war is the resources a country's government can mobilize and invest in military affairs, rather than the country's overall total resources. At this point, even if our Earth Federation has an advantage, I am afraid it will not It won’t be that obvious.”

Chapter 3: Hide and wait (3)

Lieutenant General Cunningham stopped. In front of the wide observation deck in front of him was a floor-to-ceiling window that occupied the entire wall;

Outside the window is the busy shipyard of Luna 2, the largest arms production center of the Federal Space Force in space.

"Salute to—Your Excellency, Commander-in-Chief!"

The officers of the Space Force Ship Engineering Bureau who came to greet him lined up on both sides of the observation platform and neatly paid tribute to Lieutenant General Cunningham.

"Okay, okay, everyone doesn't need to be so serious. I'm just checking on the production progress of the new warships as usual today. Also, Your Excellency, Commander-in-Chief, this title is too heavy and I'm not qualified."

Lieutenant General Cunningham waved his hand, but the inadvertently raised eyebrows on his face made his modesty look a bit polite;

After Lieutenant General Thiam was transferred back to Earth by Gabro Headquarters some time ago to train and form a new fleet composed entirely of space battleships built on the ground, Lieutenant General Cunningham has become the highest-ranking military officer on Luna 2. of people, and the title of acting commander-in-chief of the fleet seems more justified.

"It's...Commander Cunningham," the officer from the Ship Engineering Bureau looked at Vice Admiral Cunningham without any intention of blaming him. He knew that he had flattered the right one, but the time was not ripe yet and he could not act too hastily. Changed his words:

"Please see, in this batch, the ten Marco Polo-class battleships that we started construction at almost the same time have all entered the final outfitting stage; among them, the three with the fastest progress have been completed and are undergoing installation tests. , the remaining seven ships can also be delivered before November."

Whether it was in a large-scale fleet battle or a small-scale encounter, the Marco Polo, which had proven its strength in the battle, naturally became the one eager to increase the combat effectiveness of the troops at this time——

However, because the battleship bridge is frequently attacked by Zeon army MS, and there is an extreme shortage of qualified space battleship officers, the Luna 2 base is the best choice.

Based on the Ogas system, it is an unmanned intelligently controlled battleship equipped with a Mega particle main gun, a mixed live ammunition and laser close-in defense gun system, and several modular missile vertical launch arrays;

Only a small number of human officers are required to be stationed on the ship, as necessary supervision and emergency operation backup that is only theoretically required, to achieve air defense efficiency, anti-strike capabilities, and reaction speed that far exceed those of ordinary Magellan-class battleships.

"Um……"

Lieutenant General Cunningham stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the ten steel behemoths that were being worked on at the same time in the vast factory building in front of him; at first glance, they seemed to be nearly completed;

The three battleships on the edge seem to have been painted in the dark blue color of the Space Force. Masking tape is now attached around the locations where the hull number and identification pattern should be added, and they are waiting for the final painting work to be completed. In terms of appearance, there is almost no difference from the current battleships.

The four battleships in the middle seem to have completed the construction of the hull, and the seven main gun turrets have all been installed into the gun mounts; however, there are still many scaffoldings built around the hull for fixation and to facilitate the movement of workers;

Busy construction workers climbed up and down the scaffolding lightly, directing the mechanical arms extending from the shipyard to install the close-defense turrets and missile launch tubes on the predetermined bases.

The progress of the three battleships on the other side is slightly slower. Their hulls are similar to pyramids. They are a bit mottled because they are still the original color of the hull materials. Some of the equipment installation openings reserved on the outside of the hulls are still open;

Densely packed workers floated around the ship body carrying small propellers, carrying out anti-beam and anti-corrosion processes on the surface of the warship's outer shell.

Based on Lieutenant General Cunningham's military experience, it is not difficult to see that what the Naval Ship Engineering Bureau officer standing aside is true. These ten battleships, built entirely according to Marco Polo's specifications, seem to be able to join the Federal Space Force in a short time. Order of battle.

'In that case', Lieutenant General Cunningham touched his chin and suddenly said to the wall on one side:

"Marco Polo?"

"Any instructions, Lieutenant General Cunningham?"

The beautiful figure of the girl with long indigo hair was projected directly between the officers who came to welcome her in the observation room, scaring the surrounding federal officers into retreating quickly.

Ignoring the officer from the Ship Engineering Bureau who suddenly froze in front of him, Lieutenant General Cunningham asked Marco Polo directly:

"Has the installation of the Ogas system hosts on these battleships been completed? Does it meet the requirements for system operation?"

Marco Polo's eyes were focused on no one else, only looking in the direction of Lieutenant General Cunningham. Her cold voice came from the speaker installed in the corner of the wall of the observation room:

"The three battleships with the fastest progress have completed the trial operation of the Ogas system. The quality of the battleships in the tests that have been conducted has basically reached the acceptance standards of the Federal Space Force. The remaining test items need to be carried out during the trial, Lieutenant General Cunningham. "

Vice Admiral Cunningham waved his hand outward, Marco Polo saluted, and his figure disappeared from the observation room as quietly as when he came. The Vice Admiral looked sideways at the officers of the Ship Engineering Bureau again, and said :

"Very good. The sooner they can enter service, the greater the tactical options our Federal Space Force will have."

"Understood, Commander Cunningham, all officers and soldiers of our Federal Space Force Ship Engineering Bureau must complete the fleet reconstruction work of the 'Binson Plan' on time and with high quality and quantity."

"What about other light ships? They are also indispensable in the fleet."

"Yes, please come this way."

The officer from the Ship Engineering Bureau wiped the cold sweat from the back of his head and quickly reached out to lead Vice Admiral Cunningham to another room.

Near the factories used to build battleships and other large ships, there are also several smaller shipyards. In these shipyards, Salamis-class cruisers and Antietam-class auxiliary aircraft carriers are operating in an almost assembly-line manner. form to assemble.

"Commander Cunningham, please take a look. What is in this warehouse is the cargo container of the Antietam-class auxiliary aircraft carrier, which is the same model as the Columbus-class transport ship."

The hexagonal pyramid-shaped, honeycomb-like cargo boxes are either stacked on the floor of the factory, or fixed on the walls and ceilings of the work, waiting for further processing;

"The alloy plates transported from the metal smelting plant are first stacked with other materials in a nearby factory to form a composite armor outer wall. They are then spliced ​​here and installed with equipment such as electromagnetic catapults..."

The officer from the Ship Engineering Bureau introduced every step of the assembly line to Lieutenant General Cunningham.

"...In the end, by building the ship modules separately like this and then integrating them together on the final assembly line, from scratch, we can complete the construction of an Antietam-class auxiliary aircraft carrier in only forty days at most. Work."

There was a hint of pride in the officer's tone.

"So based on the current progress, for example... how many warships can be completed by December?"

Lieutenant General Cunningham put his hands behind his back and raised his head to look at an Antietam-class auxiliary aircraft carrier that had just completed a process. Driven by several tugs, it slowly moved to the next processing area.

"In December..."

The officer from the Ship Engineering Bureau swiped the tablet in his hand and found a table containing the expected service time.

"Starting from today until December 12, it is expected that 1 Tiramis-class cruisers and 21 Antietam-class auxiliary aircraft carriers will be in service."

Cynthia whispered into the wireless headset hanging on Vice Admiral Cunningham's right ear; as for why she knew it so clearly, it was of course because the chart that the Naval Engineering Bureau officer was looking for at this time was made by She helped generate it.