Mobile Suit Gundam: The Mane Invasion

by awkwardGardener

Chapter Four: Corsair and the Comet

“I’ll take over from here. Can you and Shiden still fight, Slender?” Char asked as his Zaku clashed with the Mequine.

“Yes Commander, sir.” Slender saluted, Kai rolled his eyes.

“Good, then I want you to join up with Bravo team and assault the hanger.” The Red Comet swung his heat hawk again
only to have his foe parry with a heated left wing. “I can take care of this myself.”

The two suits turned towards the fortress and took off leaving Char and the Mequine to fight one on one.

The two suits jumped away from each other. Both stood ready for the other to strike, yet neither one moved. Char began to strafe his foe, who did the same.

It was Char who broke the silence, “You’re being rather more cautious than before. Worried that your suit won’t be able to match mine, or maybe that you can’t match me perhaps?”

“Says the infamous Red Comet, Char Aznable. Any smart pilot would be cautious against such a well-known enemy, yar.” Corsair replied. “You’ve sunk too many of my allies for me to be reckless around you. But ye won’t be addin’ me to count me today!” The Mequine sprang into action and charged the suit before it.

Having been faced with charging enemies in the past, Char automatically feinted to the side. He almost instantly realized that his mistake as the Mequine’s mono-eye followed his movement. He also noticed an opportunity spawned by the very same mistake.

“Got you now!” Corsair stated calmly as her suit’s right wing moved towards her enemy’s mid-section, the Zaku’s cockpit.

“I don’t think so.” Char replied confidently. He swung his heat hawk and hit the wing just below its heated segment, cutting the entire thing off with little effort. Releasing his rifle, he grabbed the detached wing and ran it point first into the Mequine’s side. He retrieved his rifle as he jumped away from the possible explosion.

The whole event seemed to happen in slow motion for Corsair, yet there was nothing she could do. Without the wing that side was completely undefended.

“I hate prototypes.” She said to herself as Char backed off.

Lights began to turn red across her console as the suit realized the damage it had received. The wing had at least missed the main reactor, but it had hit just about everything else and left the suit unbalanced to boot. Corsair furiously tried to regain control as the suit started to drift off.

“You had a good suit…” Char admitted as he took aim, “… but you were no match for me.”

A bright yellow beam fired from his rifle and pierced the Mequine where its wing once was, causing multiple systems to detonate simultaneously.

Corsair sat back in the cockpit and looked out at the stars, “It looks like dad’s bandanna wasn’t so lucky after all.” She said as a large explosion went off in the suit’s other wing. The blast caused her to fly head first into the view screen. She couldn’t see the stars anymore.

Char turned his back on the explosion and flew towards the fortress to assist Bravo team.
“Too bad she wasn’t on our side.”

***

Pale Sky watched momentarily as the Mequine and the Red Comet fought. She turned back to the soldier she had been speaking to.

“What is the current total?” She asked him.

“Sir, six wounded and thirty-four dead.” The soldier stated.

“Damn… all because of that flash… What was that anyway?” Pale Sky asked to no one in particular.
She looked out at the battle again but couldn’t see her daughter’s suit or the red Zaku anymore. One of the officers in the room turned to her.

“Admiral Sky, ship approaching on the right!” He announced.

“Is it one of ours?” She asked. Any back up would be a blessing at the moment.

“Negative, sir. It seems to be a Federation Magellan class battleship.”

“Damn it, of all the things that could have happened! Even Discord couldn’t make this into any more of a losing battle!” The Admiral yelled. She sat back down in her chair for a moment, but rose again seconds later.

“Call back all of our fighters.” She ordered. “We’re abandoning A Baoa Qu.”

***

Mane fighters flew around to make another pass over Kai’s Guncannon, but they broke off halfway and retreated into the hanger. All of the enemy’s fighters seemed to be retreating. Kai watched as they flew away from him. He could shoot a couple more down, but that just gave them more of a reason to turn back around so why bother?

“What are they doing?” Kai asked loudly.

“Hey look, reinforcements. That’s convenient.” Slender stated. Kai turned his suit around and noticed the Magellan battleship.

“Well look at that, they do care.” Kai said as three Federation GM Mobile Suits left the ship. “Too bad they didn’t get here earlier tho-…”

“We’re lucky to have gotten reinforcements at all.” Interrupted the Red Comet as he landed his suit next to Kai’s. “You should be grateful. I know I am.”

Char, Kai, and Slender’s com screens lit up as one of the GMs approached them. To their surprise, their screens displayed a dark blue pony with a long silvery blue mane. All three raised their weapons as the pony spoke.

“Whoa, hold on guys!” The pony exclaimed. “I’m on your side! Petty Officer Robert Stallion, I’ve been sent to assist in the recapture of A Baoa Qu.”

“What? Are you serious?” Kai yelled.

“Hold on, I’ll check on this.” Char stated after confirming that Minovsky Particle density was low enough for long range communications. “Vice Admiral Dozle, sir. Have you heard anything about the Federation having ponies as pilots?”

“Unfortunately yes. I just received word from General Reval stating that they had four ex-Mane pilots and they were sending one of them to help take back A Baoa Qu.” The large man brought his hand to his forehead. “I have no clue what he was thinking. He said that he is at least keeping a close eye on them.”

“Thank you, sir.” Char said slowly as he closed the communication. “As suspicious as this is, he’s telling the truth.” He said to Slender and Kai.

Robert nodded as he said, “That’s right, I’m here to help. Just give me the order, and I’ll do it.”

***

Ponies had begun to board the Alicorn class battleship named Cloudsdale. Admiral Pale Sky watched as her remaining troops loaded the left over fighters and the few functional Zakus they had left. There was still no sign of her daughter, but she was confident that she would return before they left. The brown pony that had been with Corsair earlier trotted up and saluted the Admiral.

“Sir, we have finished loading the Zaku I’s and II’s. Shall we start moving essential personnel onto the Cloudsdale?” He asked.

“Yes, do so now. I’ll make my way on board as well.” Admiral Sky stated. ‘We’ll have to pick up Corsair as we leave.’ She thought to herself as she cantered up the ramp into her ship.

She was passed by at least a dozen or so of her troops, some nervous and some confident that she would get them out of this mess. She made her way to the ship’s bridge and stood next to the window. She still saw no signs of Corsair as she looked out at the few fighters that had refused to retreat still locked in combat with the Federation reinforcements. They were gone moments later. Her gaze wandered over to a Red Comet’s Mobile Suit.

‘Wasn’t that the same Zaku that had fought the Mequine? No, it couldn’t be.’ She thought. She began to turn away but something caught her eye. It was the Mequine!

‘But… most of it is missing. It should be moving, why isn’t it moving? No… there was no way… did she lose to the red suit?’ Seeing, but not wanting to believe, a tear ran down Pale Sky’s cheek. She turned around to address her crew.

“Everypony to your battle stations. We’re going to fight our way out of here!” She yelled, tears still in her eyes as she turned to look at the red Zaku again. She wasn’t going to let that pilot live.

***

With a gasp Corsair awoke from unconsciousness, her left eye flared with pain as she went to open her eyes. She was still in the Mequine. Her helmet had saved her life, but the visor had shattered on the left side. She realized the reason for the pain in her eye as she patched her visor, there was no way that she would see through that eye again.

Tears of pain flowed from her working eye as she pulled her wings into her normal suit and sealed it up. She pressed the emergency release on the cockpit hatch and was sucked out as the little remaining atmosphere left. Managing to regain control with the small thrusters on the back of her suit, she began to drift towards A Baoa Qu. She could only watch as the Cloudsdale launched and began its attack against the Federation’s Magellan battleship.

***

Char Aznable felt only respect for the crew of the Mane ship before him. They had lost this battle, yet they still fought knowing that they would have been allowed to pass had they just surrendered. But respect would not stop him from fighting and defeating them. Robert, Kai, and Slender were ahead of him. They attacked the ship along with the remaining Zakus of Bravo team and the GMs from the Magellan.

The enemy battleship was surprisingly resilient compared to anything the Zeon had. It was quite possibly as tough a nut to crack as the Federation’s White Base. He had been examining the ship from a distance, but had found the weak point. He flew his Zaku straight at the ship, dodging as its main guns fired at him. His Zaku slammed into the front of the ship and he looked into the bridge as he raised his rifle. Inside was a mare with a sky blue coat and blonde mane staring at him defiantly, her face remarkably similar to the pilot he had fought earlier. He jumped back and fired his beam rifle into the bridge, killing everyone inside.

The Red Comet made a final comment. “You put up a good fight; you have my respect for that.”

***

Watching as the Red Comet’s suit fired at the Cloudsdale, Corsair wept. There was no way that her mother wasn’t on that ship. That man, Char Aznable, had taken not only her eye, but her mother as well. Nothing could make her forgive him. She swore that he would die by her hooves, but not now. She was tired, so very tired. The last thing she saw before unconsciousness took her was a Zaku turn and fly towards her.

***

Slender watched as the Mane battleship crashed down onto A Baoa Qu. Sparks flew as the ship slid across the surface. It finally stopped. Though he had certainly killed everyone on the bridge, it seemed that Char had managed to preserve the ship itself. He could be such a show off at times.

Slender turned around as he felt a chill along his spine. There was a Mane pilot drifting towards him. He flew over slowly. As he got close he realized that it was the Mequine’s pilot. Her name was Corsair Sky… but how did he know that? He wasn’t sure how, but he also knew she was alive, though barely. He gently extended his Zaku’s hand and caught her. He knew not why he was saving her, but it felt like they were connected somehow. He felt a great sadness radiating from her as he turned and flew back to the Magellan.

“I hope the Antarctic Treaty applies to Mane pilots as well. She’s in enough pain already.” He said to himself

Comments

[Deathpony]

man that is sad to see your own mother die in front of you so sad cant wait for the next