Chapter 147: Turning the Tide

Chapter 147: Turning the Tide

"Albion has arrived? Understood. I'll finish up my work here immediately."

Receiving Arthur's message, Eli sat in the captain's seat and gazed down at the ocean beneath him.

This was Sydney Bay.

At this critical juncture, Eli had crossed the Pacific aboard the White Chaser to arrive here—naturally, for a specific purpose.

The silhouette of Torrington Base gradually emerged on the horizon. Australia's summer remained as scorching as ever.

As the White Chaser descended, Brigadier General Hawkins Marnery, the base commander, was already waiting below.

"All units, be prepared! If anything goes wrong today, we'll all end up in prison!"

Eli shouted to the MS pilots of the two squads under his command.

With that, the pilots boarded their respective mobile suits.

"Keep them in check," Eli instructed the two squad leaders, Sanders and Ryan.

"Understood!"

Sanders was still piloting an EZ-8, but while it bore the same name, it was no longer the battlefield-modified unit he had used before. That one had been severely damaged in a battle due to enemy concentrated fire, but its thick chest armor had managed to save Sanders' life.

Now, he was piloting a mass-produced EZ-8, officially adopted by the Federation, with added heavy armor.

Ryan had also switched to a new machine—an RX-81 G-LINE, a unit issued only to ace units.

The one Ryan was piloting was the standard armored type.

Originally, this high-performance yet costly mobile suit was nearly scrapped, but thanks to Eli's stock donations, the Federation military was able to bypass budget constraints imposed by the council. This allowed limited mass production of the RX-81, with around thirty units currently in service.

Eight mobile suits, along with the modified GM units stationed at Torrington Base—equipped with intelligence-gathering systems and bombardment backpacks from Yashima Heavy Industries—formed the base's defensive line.

What was about to be transferred to the White Chaser warranted such stringent security measures.

Riding in Hawkins' convoy, Eli headed toward a part of the base he had never visited before—the nuclear storage facility.

The convoy stopped at the entrance, where two modified GM units stood guard.

Following Hawkins inside, Eli noticed that base security was even tighter here, with armed guards sealing off every door.

This was the level of security required for handling nuclear warheads. The scenes in the original story—where just about anyone could stroll into a nuclear base—were simply unrealistic. The Federation military might be corrupt, but they weren't fools. Moreover, the current Federation military discipline had significantly improved compared to the original.

After undergoing retinal and fingerprint scans, Hawkins placed his hand on a mechanical keyboard and entered the final confirmation code.

He wasn't worried about anyone seeing the password since it was dynamically generated in real time.

The facility's systems activated, bringing a warhead into view.

This was a tactical nuclear warhead—an MK82. After carefully cross-checking the transfer documents, Eli and Hawkins signed off on the handover. The warhead was then securely packed and loaded onto a transport truck bound for the White Chaser.

Just then, Eli's eyelid twitched.

"Suspicious signal detected in the northwest... It's a Zeon artillery-type MS! Data is being transmitted!"

A sudden report came through the comms.

It was from a modified GM equipped with intelligence-gathering systems, patrolling the area aboard a light escort ship-class SFS.

"The enemy has launched missile strikes! Be advised!"

Hearing the warning in his earpiece, Eli remained calm.

The remnants of Zeon were still using equipment from the One Year War era. In Minovsky particle-heavy environments, precision-guided weapons were largely ineffective. The missile attack was likely a saturation bombardment meant to cover an advancing force.

Torrington Base might be a secondary-line facility, but that didn't mean its nuclear security personnel were amateurs.

The moment the patrol unit reported its findings, multiple modified GM units in the base immediately dropped to a semi-crouching stance. The Gatling guns on their backpacks began spinning up.

While Anaheim Electronics had secured the contract for the GM Kai, Yashima Heavy Industries had primarily focused on manufacturing MS weaponry.

Unfortunately, in high Minovsky particle density environments, full automation of mobile suits was still impossible. Even with aerial reconnaissance data, aiming and firing the Gatling guns still required manual operation by pilots.

Despite this, the modified GMs successfully laid down a dense anti-air barrage, continuously firing at designated high-threat targets and intercepting most of the incoming missiles.

A few stray missiles did hit the base, damaging some roads and unoccupied warehouses, but the nuclear warhead transport convoy remained completely unharmed.

"Accelerate the transfer! Notify Isthar to prep my machine!"

Eli shouted into his earpiece as the truck driver steeled his expression and slammed on the accelerator.

Despite being in a truck, Eli felt a pushback sensation as if he were piloting an MS.

"No need to worry, Major. I believe our forces can handle these Zeon remnants."

A calm, reassuring voice came through the comms.

Looking up, Eli spotted a custom GM stepping out from a nearby hangar.

"Captain South Burning is leading the counterattack!"

The custom GM gave a battle cry before charging forward with its squad, engaging the incoming Zeon forces.

The Zeon remnants' assault unit consisted of Doms and late-type Zakus—machines that had been considered high-performance during the One Year War.

While the modified GM was improved, it still didn't have a huge performance edge over them.

However, compared to this group of enemies, whose tactics were still stuck in One Year War-era thinking, the Federation forces had far more refined battlefield strategies.

Bang!

The leading Dom was suddenly struck by a shot from above. Its shattered frame, still carrying tremendous momentum, tumbled helplessly across the ground.

It was the patrol GM on the SFS that had taken the shot.

With Yashima Heavy Industries involved, the trend of overly specialized mobile suits had diminished. Instead, modular weapon loadouts were now used to enhance performance.

For example, an intelligence-gathering GM, when equipped with the sniper rifle used by GM Sniper II, could function nearly on par with a dedicated sniper unit—providing cover fire from the air while supporting ground forces.

The Zeon remnants quickly realized the airborne threat and began scattering.

Moments later, an artillery shell exploded in midair, releasing a shower of fragmentation submunitions aimed at downing the patrol GM. But the strike failed to hit its mark.

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