MM Racing Chapter 28: The Chessboard Collapses and the Bloodstained Comet
Chapter 28: The Chessboard Collapses and the Bloodstained Comet
[ZAFT command ship "Gamov", bridge]
"Warning! A high-speed heat source is rapidly approaching from behind the ship! Unidentified! Repeat! Unidentified!"
The piercing alarm sounded like a sharp blade, instantly shattering the relaxed atmosphere on the bridge that had arisen from the advantage at the front.
Xiao Ran turned around abruptly, the inexplicable feeling of unease turning into a cold reality. He rushed to the tactical platform, his pupils suddenly contracting.
On the screen, a tiny, insignificant gray dot of light, which should have been negligible, was tracing a path through the pitch-black universe in a manner completely defying the laws of physics. Its speed increased three times in quick succession, leaving behind an extremely unstable, eerie scarlet tail.
That's not a missile.
That was not any known type of aircraft.
That trajectory, filled with the wildness and precision of human manipulation, was like a madman dancing the most frenzied waltz on the tip of a knife.
A thought exploded in Xiao Ran's mind like a thunderclap.
"We've fallen for their trap..."
He stared intently at the crimson trail, his jaw clenched, spitting out each word with a chill. A cold shiver ran down his spine, and a sense of unease crept into his heart.
Everything he had envisioned, his targeting of the enemy's "ace," and the counter-encirclement he had laid out—at this moment, all became a complete joke.
The real ace isn't the Strike Gundam, which got played like a fool by four Gundams on the front lines.
Instead, it was this ghost that had been detached from the chessboard from the very beginning, and now it was piercing his heart!
[CGUE DEEP Arms Custom "Ghost" Cockpit]
Ling Yu's lips curled into a wild grin, as if he could hear the frantic alarms coming from the distant flagship.
Just seconds before, he pressed that virtual button and, in an aria-like tone, recited that line hidden deep within his soul.
"Let me tell you, the performance of a mobile suit is not the decisive factor in the difference in combat power!"
[System Notification: Char Aznable (R Card) Trait 'Crimson Comet' activated!]
[Effect: Increases the unit's instantaneous burst speed by three times, greatly enhancing its mobility. Duration: 60 seconds.]
[Warning: Energy consumption rate increased by 500%.]
"Triple speed, horns, red! That's more like it!"
Ling Yu let out a wild laugh, his hands moving in a blur across the control panel and joystick.
This "Ghost," which had been scolded by Old Man Maddock for three days and three nights and thought would fall apart at any moment, now unleashed performance far exceeding its design limits. The joints of the machine groaned under the strain of overload, and the sensors flashed red lights frantically, but it still hurtled towards the lone command ship at the rear of the ZAFT fleet like a true comet.
The two Lauracia-class warships escorting the flagship finally reacted, unleashing a dense barrage of bullets from dozens of Vulcan cannons in an attempt to weave an interception net.
However, it was all in vain.
The "Ghost" performed an unbelievable zigzag maneuver amidst the barrage of bullets, sometimes skidding, sometimes abruptly stopping, each change of trajectory occurring precisely in the blind spot of the ballistic prediction. To the horrified gaze of the ZAFT radar operator, that crimson trail, like a slippery venomous snake, playfully pierced through the barrage of fire.
[ZAFT command ship "Gamov", bridge]
"He's gone through the barrage! The target hasn't changed! It's still our ship!"
"It's too late! The engine evasive maneuver is too late!"
Chaos reigned on the bridge.
Xiao Ran's face had turned from shock to ashen. He shoved aside the communications officer blocking his way, grabbed the communicator, and roared at the top of his lungs into the entire channel.
"Athrun! Nicol! Return to defense immediately! Top priority! Abandon the assault and return to defense immediately!"
However, distant water cannot quench a nearby fire.
His gaze fell despairingly upon the battleship Vesalius, its illustrious reputation standing to the side and stern of the Gamow. There lay his most respected mentor, Captain Mattis, who had taught him tactics and ideals.
The teacher is the deputy commander in charge of directing the entire rear fleet.
From the very beginning, the target of that ghost was not the flagship where he was located, but the secondary brain of the entire fleet!
[The bridge of the battleship Vesalius]
"Captain! Enemy aircraft have breached the final defense line!"
As the red light drew ever closer on the main screen, Captain Mattis's wrinkled face showed no fear, only a bittersweet sense of relief.
He picked up the communicator and connected to Xiao Ran's private channel.
"Xiao Ran." His voice was as steady as ever, carrying the gentle warmth of an elder.
"Teacher!" Xiao Ran's voice trembled.
"Your tactics were excellent, truly superb." Captain Mattis gazed out the porthole at the gray mobile suit that had brutally rammed into the last escorting Zeon, and said slowly, "But on the battlefield... there are always unexpected events. Remember, don't let anger cloud your judgment. We fight for all Coordinators... to build a better world..."
Before he could finish speaking...
The "Ghost" appeared like a phantom outside the bridge of the Vesalius. Ling Yu could even see the terrified faces of the ZAFT officers on the bridge.
Without the slightest hesitation, he swiftly and cleanly pierced the center of the bridge with his beam saber.
"Feel sorry."
On the communication channel, Xiao Ran only heard a piercing crack of electricity, followed by eternal silence.
On the screen, the green identification signal representing the Vessanius flickered briefly amidst the intense explosion, then went out completely, turning into a glaring, blood-red "DESTROYED".
For a moment, time seemed to stand still.
Xiao Ran stared blankly at the extinguished signal, his blood seemingly freezing. The string of reason snapped.
The calm, meticulous, data- and results-oriented ZAFT elites, the "order maintainers" who viewed war as a meticulously planned game of chess, erupted at this moment.
Instead, there was an avenger with bloodshot eyes and an aura of beastly ferocity.
"Aaaaaaaahhhhh!"
He let out a roar that sounded inhuman, and slammed his fist into the reinforced glass of the tactical table, causing spiderweb-like cracks to spread instantly.
"You bastard...it's you! It's you!"
He finally confirmed it: the "kindred spirit" who had repeatedly thwarted his plans and made him feel like he had a thorn in his side was inside that gray Gene!
This is not tactical, this is provocation! This is murder!
"Pass on my order!" Xiao Ran's voice was hoarse and cold, filled with a desperate madness. "All mobile suits! All warships! Abandon all targets! At all costs! Shoot down that gray Zeon!"
"I want him dead! I want him to pay for his crimes in blood!"
"Tear it to pieces!"
Having just delivered the fatal blow, Ling Yu hadn't even had time to savor the thrill of successfully "changing homes" when the piercing alarm pulled him back to reality.
[Warning: Energy remaining 7%. Propellant remaining 12%.]
The effect of the card "Char Aznable" has ended.
The cost of triple speed is that the machine is almost completely hollowed out.
Worse still, on the tactical radar, two incredibly fast, high-energy reactions were rapidly approaching from the direction of the main battlefield. One red and one black, they were Aegis and Thunder.
Behind him, the enraged ZAFT fleet had also turned all its cannons around, the dark barrels gleaming with the light of vengeance.
Aces are in front, and the fleet is behind.
Piloting a modified Zeon that was about to stall, he was all alone, surrounded by the raging fire of the entire ZAFT fleet.
Ling Yu chuckled coldly, wiped the blood from his nose that was floating on the helmet screen, but there was no panic on his face. Instead, he showed a relieved smile.
"Okay, this time we've really messed up."
He stared at the two red dots on the radar getting closer and closer, then leaned back in his chair, completely exhausted.
"Am I going to die...?"