[Hathaway's Flash] Vol.02 Ch.14

Chapter.14
Damage in Dark Bottom

　Though the pollution in the atmosphere had not yet entirely cleared, the constellation centered around the Southern Cross etched out each brilliant point of light with precision. The earth, so profoundly and lustrously black, seemed as if it might reflect the very stars above.

　Yet, silence was absent.

　From right to left, left to right.

　At times, streaks of light that marred the constellations' glow would stretch out, reminiscent of a ferocious beast.

　Whether it be material or otherwise, those displaying fierce intent in a localized area could only be perceived as radiating madness toward nature itself.

　WHOOOM!

　The streaks of light transformed into fireballs, the ensuing acoustics sliding across the pitch-black earth and diffusing in all directions. It was as if the phenomenon revealed the transparency of sound.

　"We did it!"

　"Confirmed! Manuevering!"

　"Below! I see the tail nozzle's light!"

　"Just intimidate, don't pursue!"

　Such communications crisscrossed amidst the interference of Minovsky particles because they, the mobile suits, were in close proximity.

　"We must disengage..."

　Upon the earth, flashes sparkled like earthbound stars, while from slightly above, a rain of light showered down.

　However, amidst the vastness of the earth and stars, these running lights appeared as mere pointillist details, added as if to provide a subtle shift in the landscape.

　And to further embellish this transformation, a red glow spread out, leaping onto the earth in elongated streaks.

　This light brought the surrounding rubble and mountains of debris into sharp relief, yet the glow of the downed mobile suit seemed to vanish with alarming haste.

　In due course, a wildfire sparked as if from a forgotten memory, gradually infiltrating the darkness on all sides with tendrils of flame.

　By that time, the roar of the mobile suits had faded into the darkness, leaving the stars to merely bear witness to the expanding feast of fire as it began to lap at the mountains of waste.

　Hathaway Noa and Iram Masam, who had visually spotted the tendrils of flame on the left horizon, exchanged uneasy glances in the cockpit of the Xi Gundam.

　The images magnified by the camera at maximum zoom showed the wildfire had spread over a considerable area.

　"Could it be a controlled burn or a mountain fire these days?"

　Masam, seated in an improvised seat next to the regular one, muttered quietly.

　Since they had left Darwin's territory, they had confirmed that the Galcezon, carrying Chang Hei and about thirty soldiers under Fabio Rivera, was headed towards Ayers Rock. So there had been no cause for concern.

　Yet now, just a breath away from Ayers Rock, they were faced with an unexplained wildfire.

　"Yes, it's a wasteland around here..."

　The two consciously discussed other matters. Hathaway checked the 360-degree view on the multi-screen, and the direction calculated by celestial navigation seemed safe for the moment.

　"We've long passed Mount Zeil..."

　Hathaway uttered the obvious, trying to shake off the ominous feeling.

　"Shall we go check it out?"

　Masam's hand patted Hathaway's, even through the pilot suit.

　"We have no choice but to investigate what's bothering us."

　As Hathaway directed the mobile suit toward the direction of the wildfire, they quickly closed the distance.

　The small mountains they saw were piles of garbage, their flickering lights revealing various colors of flame and smoke.

　The fire had spread widely, creating a scene reminiscent of magma pushing up to the surface.

　"How did the fire start?"

　"It must be spontaneous combustion."

　Even as he spoke, Hathaway knew it wasn't true. His ominous feeling only intensified.

　"The windward side is this way."

　Hathaway directed the mobile suit into the wind. The air pressure created by the Gundam stirred the flames below, causing them to spew embers wildly.

　"...!!"

　Both Masam and Hathaway exhaled breaths that could not form words.

　Their premonition had come true.

　Amid the distant glow of the flames, a single leg of a Messer pointed towards the sky. It must have been blown off by the explosion of the main body.

　No other fragments of the mobile suit could be seen.

　Hathaway lowered the cockpit to the main body's chest level and, with a manipulator, grasped the standing Messer leg amidst the burnt wreckage.

　"It's Moree's suit..."

　Reading the manufacturing number on the heel, Hathaway groaned.

　The thought of her body having that curled-up feeling, consumed by fire brought a sharp pain to his chest.

　"What about the others...?"

　The two, not forgetting to keep watch on their surroundings, searched for the remains of mobile suits around the area where a massive explosion seemed to have occurred. But amid the flames and the heaps of debris, they could not find any.

　Their wingmen were Rod Hein's Messer and Hendrix Hiyo's 3 Galcezon.

　"..."

　"This crater must have been caused by the main engine's explosion..."

　"Or maybe it's just the way the debris is piled up."

　No matter how one looked at it, Hathaway's observation was far from optimistic.

　"We should consider it as the enemy's mobile suit movement route. Let's go."

　Masam urged Hathaway forward.

　Raising the cockpit again, the Gundam headed towards the rendezvous point at Ayers Rock.

　Neither of them knew yet that the Valiant had been sunk.

　Once again, they flew through the darkness, relying solely on celestial navigation, soaring between the stars and the pitch-black earth.

　"This should be the area..."

　The area the Gundam approached was once the most famous tourist spot on the continent. However, now it was impossible to discern its distinctive rocky outcrops in the darkness.

　After activating the camera, the Gundam flashed its signal lights a few times. The two of them scanned their surroundings in turns.

　"Found it!"

　Masam spotted two lights that were briefly illuminated on the ground.

　"It's still quite a distance away. About 24 kilometers."

　Hathaway measured the distance of the two lights with the camera and began to descend the machine.

　As they reached an altitude of 15 meters and 100 meters from the rendezvous point, a line of headlights appeared on the ground.

　The reddish earth seemed to float up, and more than anything, a wall of rock loomed before them.

　"Damn it! Are we really this close to Ayers Rock?!"

　As Masam cursed, Hathaway continued to lower the Gundam between the beams of the headlights. The lights of the dozen or so trailers disappeared just as the Gundam's landing gear was about to touch down.

　In their place, a few small flashlight beams approached the Gundam.

　What awaited them there was a tragic report, but the 3 Galsezon was still safe.

　"I'm sorry. I couldn't save the two of them..."

　Hendrix Hiyo, Captain of the Galsezon, wiped his tears as he reported to Hathaway.

　"You did well just to shake off the enemy and make it this far."

　Suppressing his regret, Hathaway comforted Hendrix as he headed towards the trailer cabin. There, he learned of the Valiant's sinking.

　"Wedge, Moree, Rod... Why do the good guys always die first..."

　If one survives, another perishes... Hathaway knew this, but he couldn't help but pause.

　"Still, Rick managed to make a bold move just to blind the enemy, and he's only just arrived. He was cool-headed. If it were me, I might've brought the enemy with me."

　Raymond Cain praised his colleague's achievements while trying to pump Hathaway up.

　"That's true. He's something else."

　Hathaway reminded himself not to show despair in front of others, and with a smile, he turned his feet toward the trailer.

　"Mafty."

　Chang Hei's voice came from the shadows.

　"Ah! Great work."

　As Hathaway shook hands with Chang and learned that Fabio and the others were already resting, he said, "Discuss the strategy tomorrow. Leave everything here to Roewest and his team, and rest well tonight."

　"Yes, that's the plan. Take care."

　As Chang disappeared into the darkness near the trailers, Hathaway sensed the fragility of his position, gaining new allies at the cost of losing old ones, and felt the danger looming over Mafty's organization.

　This was no ordinary war. It was a terribly unbalanced battle.

　"Roewest! Regarding the Valiant, I heard you intercepted enemy communications, but have you confirmed this from Darwin or any other means?"

　"...Yes, we're working on it."

　Roewest Heinrich, in charge of this point, confidently shook hands with Hathaway.

　"Sounds like two carriers were destroyed at the Darwin Airport, right?"

　"We let Oenbelli's forces handle that. You know Fabio Rivera, right?"

　"I don't know him, but if that's how it went, it makes sense. I was worried that we had lost another mobile suit. Bad things tend to happen all at once."

　"How are Gawman and the others doing?"

　"I haven't heard any strange radio signals, so they should be fine..."

　As Hathaway caught his breath and finally reached for his coffee, he glanced over the continental map spread out on the table and at Roewest's words.

　"What happened?"

　Hathaway looked at the captains of the Galcezon when Hathaway saw Masam aligning his shoulders with Roewest.

　"Thanks."

　With both hands wrapped around his coffee cup, Hendrix explained the situation. The story was simple.

　Rick's team was caught by a Circe unit squad, and it was too late to intercept them. If there was any disadvantage for Rick's team, it was that Rod and Moree had to be dispersed to avoid detection of the rendezvous point, which led to them being defeated individually.

　"Why weren't the Galcezon pursued?"

　"The enemy and us, we were the same battle unit. After witnessing the two mobile suits being shot down, they seemed satisfied..."

　"Couldn't you inflict any damage on the enemy?"

　"Moree's suit should have taken down a Gustav Karl, and Rod and I should have downed a Kessaria."

　"What! Did you shoot them down!?"

　The captains of Galcezon, including Civet and Raymond, were astonished. Apparently, that report hadn't been made.

　"Unbelievable... While we're desperately monitoring the enemy... Even if there's only one enemy mobile suit left, they won't pursue."

　Roewest, too, couldn't help but smile wryly.

　"Is that so..."

　As Hathaway patted the shoulders of the shrunken Hendrix nestled between Sibet and Raymond, he said,

　"That's how it is on the battlefield. If you keep brooding, you'll be done for. Moree and Rod would laugh at you. Get some sleep. Give him some meds, would you?"

　Hathaway motioned to the two men on either side of him to take care of him and ushered them out of the cabin.

　"..."

　With the blackout curtain in front of the cabin door behind him, Hathaway watched the three depart and remembered the pain of the battlefield when he learned of Quess Paraya's death.

　"It was just awful..."

　It should have been on an asteroid approaching Earth, but he couldn't recall anything of the sort. Instead, a leaden weight churned inside his belly, a constant ache that refused to dissolve - the only memory left behind.

　That was when he started to truly understand the weight of sorrow.

　With that in mind, what had happened with Kelia was nothing more than a trivial consequence of worldly acts.

　And as for Gigi, it was nothing more than the tentacles of lurking lust craving for desire.

　"What a shame..."

　Hathaway murmured while tracing the line where the darkness of Ayers Rock hid the stars with his eyes.

　But upon uttering those words, he felt an unexpected surge of lust and was startled by the depth of his own desires.