Astray novels and photonovels

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E08
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:00 am

Astray novels and photonovels

Time to share Astray novel and photonovel’s stories. First up, fixing the gap at the end of Astray manga vol.1. Astray novel provides the backstory on why Elijah is there, Gud Vair’s story which is interlinked with what happen at the end of the manga and a clue on why EA appeared there. Astray B provides the reason why EA is there and what happen to Lowe and the EA fleet.

From the novel:
Gud Vair’s past is unknown to ZAFT, but they accept him as he possesses the capabilities they need. Like many people, Gud joins ZAFT after the Bloody Valentine incident. ZAFT’s size thus swells swiftly, but this also weakens the force and numerous recruits left due to injuries after every battle. Gud stood out among the recruits as he managed to destroy the enemy forces while his comrades were all killed in his 1st mission. A year passed, he remains undefeated and none of his enemies survived. The populace were delighted to hear his achievements and he became the hero of ZAFT. He deserted ZAFT later. Prior to his desertion, he developed memory impairment. His combat memories were badly affected and he was referred to the medical officer. He stole a GINN while deserting and shot down all pursuing units. Patrick Zala is shocked and unhappy to hear the news and wants him punished. He contemplates sending the Creuset team as only the best can match Gud’s skill, however, they have other more important task. The other option is to hire mercenaries and he wants them to be coordinators as he does not want the hero of ZAFT to be killed by naturals.

When Gai knows about the job from Reed, he wants it rejected as he has accept a job from EA to find missing nuclear weapon. They are currently stored at a moon base but as they are useless due to N-Jammers, someone suggested sending them to the sun for destruction. Some nukes were sent to the sun to test the idea but they went missing. This becomes a political issue and the job is given to Serpent Tail as EA feels they need an outsider to handle it. Reed tells Gai that Elijah accepted the job and Gai feels that it is best that he completes it himself. According to Reed, Gud has a record of friendly fires but ZAFT erased them. He suggested that Gai pays Elijah a visit after completing his job and Gai agreed.

Litilia is allowed it to announce its neutrality as the country it belongs to deems the decrepit colony useless. Due to its old age, only a portion of the colony receives power and they are mainly used by the life support system. Inhabitant’s lives resemble those on earth centuries ago. It has a mixture of naturals and coordinators, most of them are here to escape the war. Majority of the original inhabitant have return to the country or left for other colony. Elijah found Gud but he did not capture him, instead they became friends. He knew from the beginning he is no match for Gud, he wants to know why he deserted. Although Gud knew Elijah is after him, he has no intention of escaping. Gud deserted due to the emptiness of fighting. He dislikes fighting and is disgusted at becoming a hero by killing naturals. He tried to commit suicide but lacks the courage. He came to Litilia as it suited him. To escape the war, Litilia is being coverted into a spaceship and its destination is a space station near Jupiter built during the early days of space exploration. George Glenn used it as his base while at Jupiter. If EA or Plant knows the plan, it is likely they will try to stop them. Gud decided that he will fight to protect the colony and he finds it meaningful. These words confuse Elijah and he delayed deciding on what to do with Gud till the fighting occur and Gud is thankful he gets to meet him. Elijah spotted Lowe’s Astray but decided against paying him a visit.

Gud suggested that Elijah’s parent only ‘give’ him good looks as they do not want to ‘modify’ him too much. In fact, his looks may be natural and his parents only ‘modify’ him to be healthy. Due to his words and after some thinking, Elijah stops hating himself. The inhabitants like to listen to the recorded “Bloody Valentine Anniversary Ceremony” when they are free as they want to hear Lacus’ songs. Gud previously did not pay much attention to them as he is a noise junkie; he is addicted to noise and derived pleasure from hearing them. His earphone is spoilt and only emits noises. He carries it around when in ZAFT and cannot battle without it. Lacus’ songs remove his addiction and he also discovered his other self. The latter puzzled Elijah.

The peaceful days are interrupted by a siren and Gud informs Elijah that an EA fleet is nearby. As Gud runs to his GINN, Elijah offered to help but he declines stating that he do not wish to give him more trouble. As he puts on his earphone, Elijah notices that his expression becomes cold. They launched in their GINN and Elijah comments that the enemies are rather far away. Gud replies to the contrary and attacks Elijah. He evades, hears an unpleasant laughter and Gud says that he has been tricked. He feels that Gud has become a different person and noises from the earphone can be clearly heard. Gud reveals that he has 2 personalities. Elijah thinks that this personality is a fake one created due to pressure and demands that it disappear. Gud replies that the current personality should be considered the ‘real’ him. Proof is that while the naïve personality is active, he still remains in his consciousness. However, while this aggressive personality is active, the other is asleep. Hence, Gud’s memory impairment. The aggressive Gud feels that the naïve personality betrayed him as he is created to fight (he is a combat coordinator created by EA) but refuse to do so, even deserting ZAFT and planning to escape to a place without war. It is the aggressive personality that allows Gud to be a hero. He is glad that the EA fleet is here and find the situation interesting. Elijah is disgusted and concludes that he is the one that inform EA.

Their fight resumes, Elijah uses a ‘sure kill’ move that he learns through his experience but Gud dodges it and comments that he is interesting and such fight is meaningful. He modifies Elijah’s move and use it against him. The attack only affected Elijah’s GINN’s right arm, his movement did not match Gud’s expectation. Gud uses the same move again, Elijah knows that normal attack will not work and is determined to survive. He only dodged the attack that is aimed at the cockpit, allowing the rest of the MS to get shot. As Gud’s GINN get close and about to bring his sword down, Elijah stood his ground and turns GINN’s head 180⁰, swinging down the blade on it. Gud cannot evade the strike as his MS is accelerating, their blades penetrate the other’s MS. Gud raises his machine gun but the impact never arrives. Elijah hears lacus’ song and sense that the Gud he knows is back. Gud apologises and explains that when the song is being played, he can seal the other personality. The other personality will fall asleep when he hears the song. He realise the song’s effect on the other personality as it plays when he is planning to escape from ZAFT. To play the song, he asked someone to repair the earphone. It is not fully repaired and works due to the impact during the fight, it is unknown when it will fail again. He begs Elijah to kill him; he refuses and suggested bringing him back to the colony so that a doctor can treat him. Gud replies that it will not work as he is unsure which personality is the ‘real’ him. He again begs Elijah to kill him and again Elijah refuses. They remain silent as the song plays. As it ends, they bid each other farewell and Elijah soon feels an impact.

Elijah opens his eye and sees that the cockpit on Gud’s MS is gone and there are traces of beam impact. He knows that it is Gai as few MS have beam weapons. Gai explains that he is doing his job and is accompanying the EA fleet. The aggressive Gud informs the EA, leading to Gai’s presence which results in his death. Elijah asks for the reason Gai is fighting and he replies that he has to find his own; otherwise he will be confuse about what to do. Gai says that he is the advance force for the EA and wants to know what is happening here.

From Astray B:
Someone (Gud) had informed EA that the missing nukes are at the colony. From Elijah, Gai knows about the situation at the colony and the nukes are being used as propulsion for its journey to Jupiter. As he now knows the location of the nukes and why they are stolen, he considers his job done and watches as the colony leaves for Jupiter. The EA fleet then wants Gai to fight against an unknown MS (Red Frame) but he rejects as he is not well prepared (he prepares equipment for fighting only when the job requires/states it)and is not being paid to do so. He has another matter in mind; Elijah’s GINN is badly damaged and immobile, Blue Frame’s power is also near its limit. He thinks that the junk guilds in the area can bring them home as long as he pays them.

Gai then receives a transmission from Lowe. Lowe shows off Red Frame’s katana and Gai knows that its OS must be modified as using a katana requires special techniques. Lowe then demonstrates his new found skill by cutting a metal debris in 2. Gai then asks if Lowe intends to use his skill on him and he replies that it is not a bad idea. The EA’s Moebius team approaches with the intention of capturing Red Frame. Lowe then suggests they have a competition to see who can destroy the most moebius. Before Gai can say anything, Lowe already moves towards the moebius team. He has no choice but to go along. He did not notice that he is actually game for it and that this may be due to Lowe’s action. As explosion occurs after every slash, Gai thinks that Lowe’s method is inefficient but he does not dislike it. Gai won the competition and after hearing his circumstances, Lowe offered to bring him to his destination (since he lost) and to fix Elijah’s GINN.

The story also has some comments regarding how Gai feels about Elijah and how Elijah is affected by Gud’s words regarding his look (some people may know this already). I did not include them as I feel it is better to put them in a later post with Elijah’s backstory.
E08
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

The conclusion for the fight between Edward and Gai in the promo video is in the Astray novel. Astray B contains 1st half of the video from Mikail’s point of view and shows why the Serpent Tail is capturing a GINN High Maneuver Type. However there are some inconsistencies between them and the video.

From Astray B:
Mikail complains that with the way the enemies are, his techniques (known as ‘hand of god’) are going to get rusty. He is nicknamed ‘Doctor’ as he used to be one and is feared even among his comrades. During battle, he is merciless as he sees enemies as pathogens and cancer cells; they will spread quickly if they are not removed totally (In Seed MSV, Mikail is also heartless towards his teammates). He is unhappy that all his enemies are killed quickly and feels that simple jobs are not for him as he cannot use his skills fully. As he looks for a new target, he spotted Blue Frame 2nd L. He gets excited and recognises it, even though it is modified, as the one he fought while protecting Nova (which become Boaz). He is slower then but now it is different. A twisted smile appears on his face. Although Blue Frame 2nd L is fast, it is no match for GINN High Maneuver Type. Mikail is confident he has pushed the enemy into a corner. He saw the high adhesive nets, tried to stop but still crashes into them and the MS is immobilised. As he tries to get out of the nets, he complains that the battle is unfair. Gai tells him to freeze and not to waste his life; a MS without pilot is just an object while a pilot who wastes his life is a 2nd rate one (seems to be totally different from the video). He wants him to come down. Mikail felt extremely humiliated, but is not stupid enough to choose death. He swears that he will get his revenge as he opens the cockpit.

EA employs serpent tail to capture GINN High Maneuver Type without a scratch. They want the machine as their MS’s basic movement and mobility is not as good as ZAFT’s. By disguising their ship as a famous one, Serpent Tail’s ship should be able to travel close to the battlefield safely although there is no guarantee (Mikail did destroy a medical ship beforehand). However, Gai and Elijah who are in their MS will have a much difficult time. Thus, the ship leaves first while they wait till the battle is over before leaving (different from the video where they left with the ship). As they plan to leave, Gai spotted Sword Calamity closing in. Gai asks Elijah to leave but he suggests they fight together instead. Gai rejected the idea as both their MS’s energy and ammo are low due to the mission. They cannot win even if they fight together, thus Elijah leaves to increase their chance of winning (read on to find out why). Gai comments that Sword Calamity is carrying out space testing. His analyses that it launched for testing after the result of the battle is clear. Edward’s performance in space is unknown but Gai knows not to underestimate his enemy. Their machine then clashes.

From the novel:
Gai fought with a Sword Calamity piloted by Four Socius before and knows the machine in front of him belongs to EA. He recognises the markings as Edward’s, who is a test pilot for EA. One of the incidents that make him a legend is that he returned from the 3rd Battle of Victoria with his MS shining due to oil from enemy’s MS. Gai figures that it is carrying out space testing as the place they are at has no strategic value, meeting EA forces here is a rarity. In addition, there is only one enemy MS, normally multiple units will be deployed for combat mission. (Rather different from the video & Astray B)

Gai wants to avoid fighting as both Elijah and his MS are low in energy and ammo. He wants Elijah to leave and get in touch with Reed as he can only fight for 5 mins. Reed and the others are some distance away, awaiting their return. Ship is the MS’s lifeline but is also their weakness, thus to overcome this weakness, Gai and Elijah prefers to be far away from their ship. If Elijah gets in touch with Reed, the possibility of being saved is high. Reed previously works for EA and has many contacts; he is also good at negotiation. Elijah resents leaving Gai alone and to reach the ship would take more than 5 mins. Gai hurries him to leave. Sword Calamity attacks and Blue Frame 2nd L dodge it (different from video & Astray B again). As Elijah prepares to leave, he is unsure if doing so is the right thing. He thinks of contacting Reed using the radio but this will reveals the ship’s location and puts it in danger. As he struggles with what to do, he realises a contradiction in Gai’s words. Why would Gai tell him to go to Reed who is more than 5 mins away and mentions that he can only last 5 mins? He realises it is a coded message and understands what Gai wants him to do.

Gai ditches the Tactical Arms and other stuff to lighten the MS. Although the Tactical Arms in sword form can counter the Anti-ship Swords, he wants to conserve his remaining energy. He dodges the enemy’s attack with as little movement as possible and uses Armour Schneider to defend against the swords. He knows that this will not last long. Armour Schneider breaks due to the stress and Gai is defenceless. However, the enemy retreats and Gai knows that Elijah got his message.

Gai’s coded message is to find the enemy’s ship, which should be 5 mins away, and attack it. The ship will then order Sword Calamity to retreat and protect it. He did not tell Elijah directly as Edward will take protective measures and they will lose their chance of winning. Elijah wonders what Gai will do if he had stayed to help and he replies that he will just think of what is the next best move. Elijah is glad that he gets the messages and did not stayed to help; otherwise he will let Gai down and puts his life in greater danger.
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balofo
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Gai really likes finishing other people's nemesis, first Gina, now Gud. Excellent work pal, we really need this kind of contribution, anxiously waiting the following updates.
E08
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:00 am

Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Wait no more, cause here's the next chapter.The novel gives us more details about Gai’s mission to Heliopolis and a few twists about it. I omitted out certain parts as they are the same as the Astray manga.

Gai’s employer is a high ranking politician in Orb. When he knows that ZAFT is nearing Heliopolis, he ordered the Astray development team to destroy the MS and all related data. However, he knows that they may not do so; the worst scenario is that while taking the Astrays out, they are spotted by ZAFT and/or EA. Orb will then become the enemy of ZAFT and EA. He wants Gai to verify that the order was carried out as he cannot trust them and to destroy any remaining evidence and witnesses. Gai comments that the information dealer who sells the news about ZAFT to the politician is also likely the one who sells to ZAFT the information about Heliopolis.

The meaning behind ‘Serpent Tail’ is that if they fail their mission, they will be the first to be ‘cut off’. Although they have been ‘cut off’ several times, they still manage to survive. The Moebius that Gai uses is actually from his employer, he has a habitat of using different machines to suit different mission. Markings are put on the machines as they need to promote themselves. It is also easier to prove that a certain mission is done by them. All objects collected by the Junk Guild have their ownership transferred to them. The world’s productivity is low and without recycling, nothing new can be produced.

Gai wants Elijah to suppress the Junk Guild’s ship and to inform their members inside the colony of his presence, so as to remove their will in resisting him. Gai dodges the beam shot from Blue Frame due to his observation skills. The MS is slightly different from that shown to him. He was shown a gold coloured MS but saw a blue coloured one. He thinks that it might have been repainted or that multiple painted units exist. He notes that the backpack is small and speculates that it can change backpack to suit different mission. As Gai sees Lowe standing outside Blue Frame, he realises that the guy’s thinking may be a bit abnormal as no normal person wants to fight with a mercenary. Since the enemy is from Junk Guild, Gai wants to know the condition when the MS is discovered and if other MS are being shipped away by his companion. Gai stops about 30m away. Any further, Lowe can rapidly get back into the MS and attack. He likes Lowe as he is willing to fight for his treasure and is rather curious about his next move but is disappointed when Lowe mentions his luck.

Gai is unsurprised that the employer betrayed them and plans to get even with him. He wonders whether this is due to Lowe’s luck but banished the thought quickly. Since carrying out the mission is meaningless, he lets Lowe off and thinks that he is indeed lucky. He notices that Blue Frame’s OS is incomplete and the adjustment between the OS and the machine is not done. He wonders if EA is using the same OS and notes that if it is for Naturals, Orb will have to do more adjustment. He rewrites the OS and moves toward Elijah’s location. He is shocked by how responsive Blue Frame is and enjoys piloting it. For the 1st time, he thought of a machine as partner. As Gai wonders why the employer betrayed them, he notices something unnatural. If the employer wanted to kill them, it would be more suitable to do it after confirming they have completed the mission. It is possible that the employer has a change of mind. The employer could also be killed and the faction that wants to protect the Astrays is responsible for the attack. Gai considers the latter more likely. No matter what the reason is, he has no intention of running away. From Reed, he knows that the enemy has deployed 20+ Moebius and understands why Elijah sounds panicky. He wants Reed to contact the EA even though reinforcements are unlikely. He knows the enemy does not want a 3rd party involved as they will wonder why a fight has occurred and while solving this question, they will eventually know about the Astrays.

Moebius’ attack destroyed one of Elijah’s GINN’s shoulder armour. The automatic posture control regains balance after some time. As Elijah thinks he is going to die, half of the enemy forces retreat. This is due to Reed’s action; the enemy is afraid of reinforcements and thus left, leaving 10 units to finish off Elijah’s GINN. Gai appears and his combat capability is fully release after obtaining Blue Frame. Within a minute, only 1 unit is left. It moves towards the Junk Guild’s ship, mistaking it for Serpent Tail’s. Gai thinks of Lowe when he sees Red Frame and is confused, he can likely win if they fight but he has no wish to fight with him. He asks Lowe if he wanted to try his luck again. Lowe does not mind but he does not wish for both machines to be damaged. Gai just cannot hate him.

Gai and Elijah landed on the Junk Guild’s ship as suggested and both sides handed over their weapons. Gai wanted to return the MS since they are the first to discover it. He knows that Lowe and gang will be attack by other groups after the Astrays. Lowe gives the Blue Frame to Gai as thanks for helping them and Gai finds Lowe interesting.
E08
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Time for update.

According to the Astray novel, Kazahana Adja is a Natural. She wishes that she is not a Natural, prefers not to be a woman but does not dislike being one (she finds it tolerable) and hates being a kid. She is worried that they will prevent her from becoming a member of Serpent Tail. She is taller but thinner than kids her age and her mother attributes this to being in space for a long time. She keeps her hair short as long hair is inconvenient in space. Due to her hair style, she used to be mistaken for a boy. She understands why guys want to be close with her mother and is fine with it. Her mother gave her such a name as she seems to be touched while looking at snow swirling in the wind when on earth. Kazahana herself has not being to earth since born (although she later did). She does not know who her father is and her mother did not mention him. When she asks around, the replies are all the same, that it should be a member of Serpent Tail. In the group, she thinks Gai is the most likely. She likes his hairstyle and thinks that he will make a strict father. Other thinks that he is the one as he is Japanese and so is her name. Elijah is too young to be her father, although she does not mind having him as her boyfriend. She feels that Reed is most unlikely. She hates that he reeks of alcohol and always mispronounces her name (something like Zazahana?). He says that he does it as it sounds more family-like. She also hates his look and will doubt her mother’s sense of beauty if he is her father. Her mother did praise that his intelligence gathering skill is the best in the world but sheprefers to have a handsome father. She does not know why her mother is a mercenary except that she likes her job. Kazahana has not seen or been around anyone her age and prefer it this way. She hates how adult sees kid as being dumb. She is always by her mother’s side except when her mission is on a battlefield. She hates it when people pity her as she feels the word contains the meaning ‘unfortunate’. To those who pity her, she will respond by thanking them and saying that she does not mind her current lifestyle and finds it fulfilling. Upon hearing her reply, some will praise her as being clever and others will be angry. She likes listening to music but her only music disc is spoilt due to overuse. Her mother also serves as the pilot of Serpent Tail’s ship.

Members of Serpent Tail work together only if the mission requires it. Mission in the debris belt are usually given to mercenaries due to the danger involve. Only 50% of a mercenary’s job is combat related, the other 50% involve dangerous jobs. Some mercenaries are envious of Serpent Tail; one such group lured them to the debris belt and destroyed their ship using mines. Elijah and Gai escape using their MS, Reed and Loretta takes the escape pod while Kazahana is with Gai (her mother’s idea). As the impact from the ship’s explosion hits Blue Frame, due to her pride, Kazahana tries her best not to vomit. Elijah recovers the escape pod. As Kazahana looks at the screen, she sees earth and feels that it is a scary. The leader appears in front of Gai and threatens the safety of his comrades if he does not surrender. Gai follows the leader’s instruction and get out of the MS. Before getting out, he asks Kazahana for her assistance and she is glad to help. He wants her to use Blue Frame to attack the enemy who will close in to kill him. As Gai left, he leaves the cockpit door open as it will be unnatural otherwise. Kazahana stands on the seat, bending down so as to reach the targeting scope. The enemy did not notice her as he focuses on Gai. She fires when the enemy is at a certain position on the scope as instructed by Gai and destroys the MS (There is a reference to this incident in X astray I think). To survive, mercenaries have to remember some rules. Firstly, do not get involve in a battle you cannot win. Secondly, do not be enemies with Serpent Tail. Kazahana wonders why Gai gave her the task and he replies that it is because she is capable of completing it. He likes that she knows herself well enough, including her own weakness, and will not be arrogant. She then realises that she is a member of Serpent Tail all along. She looks at earth as Blue Frame moves away and is not afraid anymore.

A short story from a later chapter relates an encounter with Prayer. Although Kazahana is happy to meet with Lowe and gang again, she is a bit heavy hearted as Serpent Tail is responsible for the theft of the NJC. Her first impression of Prayer is negative but as she observes him, she finds that he is different from her impression of a kid as he does not complain, is independent and leads with his action. She is most impressed that he tries his best to figure out things he does not understand. What she hates most about kids are that they want to know everything but do not bother to figure it out themselves first. Prayer addressed her as ‘Kazahana Chan’ when he finds her observing him. Although she hates Reed mispronouncing her name, somehow, the way prayer addresses her made her feels more unhappy. Despite this, she feels even worse if he did not add the honorific, or addresses her as ‘Miss Adja’ or something similar as she feels it implies that she has no name. She decides to tolerate it and starts to question him sarcastically but he did not notice. Payer’s answers are more mature than expected and even manages to turn the table on her during her last question. Kazahana then understands that her negativity towards him is because he is an odd kid just like her. She apologises to him for her childishness but did not say why as she thinks that doing so is not adult-like. Prayer remarks that she is a weird kid and she fails to rebut him as she is embarrassed. Her feelings towards Prayer changes and she is unsure why.

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The ruling class is the first group of people to have children who are Coordinators. They disregard the law as they feel that they can change it to suit their situation. Ethics are brushed aside as they think they can manipulate the feeling of the populaces. High costs that prevent many from having Coordinator offspring then is no obstacle for the ruling class. With George Glenn’s return, the demand for Coordinators increase and as the cost reduces, the demand further increase. Coordinators are no longer restricted to those in the ruling class.

The Amazon forest seems to be a demilitarised zone; EA and ZAFT exercise self-restraint and only maintain a small surveillance team in the area. The thing that left the biggest impression on ZAFT troops is the insects. Although they also exist in PLANT, they are confined to certain places and do not appear in the residential area. There are also no insects that are considered as pests. They consider insects that disturb their sleep as the next most troublesome enemy besides EA forces. A small village in the forest has a mix of Coordinators and Naturals, marriages between the 2 groups exist. When a Coordinator mates with a Natural, the child inherits only half of the Coordinator traits. If that child has an offspring with a Natural, the Coordinator traits will be halved again. If this continues, the offspring will soon be no different from a Natural. Such ‘return to Natural’ way of thinking is taboo in PLANT. Siegel Clyne employs Gai to protect the village. PLANT also contains Naturals who migrated together with their Coordinator children. As they grow older, some wish to spend their remaining lives on earth but the current conflict makes it difficult. They are also hated by Naturals who view them as their enemy’s creator. Some of their children wish to fulfil their dream and brought them to earth. They know that they must live in secrecy and one suitable place is the Amazon forest as suggested by Siegel Clyne.

A ZAFT officer in the surveillance team is tipped off about the village and to gain fame, he and a mixed blood subordinate left for the village in a GINN and ZuOOT respectively. Gai viewed the latter as a useless weapon if ZAFT wants to minimise damage to the forest while fighting. Although he is unsure why it is deployed, he wants to prevent it from using its weapons. Bug type robots that the Coordinators brought along to protect themselves from the forest animals are reprogrammed to harass ZAFT MS’s sensors/mooneye as instructed by Gai. He also equips the villagers with several Guti and teaches them to use it to spot and harass the enemy. The ZAFT MS are lured to Blue Frame’s location. Gai defeated the GINN with Armour Schneider and wants the pilot to command the ZuOOT to surrender. Gai kills him when he does the opposite and ZuOOT’s pilot immediately surrenders. He later left ZAFT and joins the village. Siegel Clyne shreds Gai’s report after reading. The village is like Siegel’s idea world and he wishes to live there. He wonders whether ‘return to Natural’ is a good thing and ponders what is the path Coordinators should take.
E08
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Time for the Socius chapters. Astray novel has a more detailed story while Astray B has a shorter version with additional details. The following is mainly from the novel with details from Astray B added in. The 2nd part will be added later in the week.

After George Glenn announced that he is created through genetic engineering, the first to act is the military (this is before the creation of EA). They started a secret project to create soldiers specialising in combat using genetic manipulation and later moves it to L4 as there are colonies specialising in genetic research. Due to the massive support for Coordinators then, the project gains speed but the Combat Coordinators created have a major problem; they are resistant to psychological/mental control. Coordinators created through the combination of excellent genes are mentally strong and are highly resistant to brainwashing and other similar actions. Some of the earlier batches escaped and the focus shifted to mental control. They got interested in the “obedience genes” and by using it with genetic imprinting (I’m not sure if this is the correct term)it is possible to control one’s action regardless of his/her will. The project enters a new phase and is named “Socius Project”. As it nears fruition, the war between EA and ZAFT erupts. Although mental control through the use of “obedience genes” is successful to certain degree, it is still not perfect. An enterprise linked to Blue Cosmos and contracted to make MS for EA takes over the soon to be cancelled project, as it requires Coordinators for the development of MS. The Socius clones are treated as disposable objects during the process. As they cannot disobey Naturals, they carried out their mission faithfully. For them, serving Naturals is the only joy in life. As the Natural-use OS is completed and Biological CPUs developed, the clones are now useless.

Eleven Socius watches calmly as Eight Socius’s GINN is destroyed by Biological CPUs during battle practice. EA recovered many abandoned GINNs and fix them so as to carry out experiments and to gather data on MS. He knows that his is no longer useful and is sadden that he cannot work for Naturals anymore. Eleven is aware that the battle practice is an excuse to kill them but he is not afraid. If Biological CPUs are mass produced, it is likely that Long Dagger will be put into mass production. A month has passed since Eleven is assigned the Long Dagger for testing. He feels that it is made for him and wants to pilot nothing else. He thinks that Biological CPUs are inferior to Socius as they need medication. He questions why they are not given the chance to perform and knows that such thinking is dangerous. He ponders if their mental control is incomplete and if that is so, removing them is correct. Eleven enters the battle practice. He dodges the attacks and thinks that it is a pity that they did not cooperate. He wonders what if the Socius are used on the battlefield and if he defeats the 3 MS, will Socius be recognized again? He knows it will have the opposite effect, besides, he cannot attack them. As he thinks of what to do, the trio suffer from withdrawal symptoms. He comments that they are incomplete soldiers and doubt their ability to protect Naturals. If that is the case, Socius will still be needed and he needs to prove their worth. An idea crosses his mind, since they are created to battle Coordinators; defeating the strongest Coordinator will prove their worth. He escapes from the facility, something that he never imagines before. Although his MS is given only a small amount of propellant, his skill is able to compensate. He reaches the lift to the surface, he knows that his action is unforgiveable but feels neither excited nor regretful, he is just happy that he can prove himself. He wonders again if their mental control is imperfect. His escape as not for himself but for Naturals and is the right thing to do. No pursers appear and he successful escapes.

Serpent Tail is at Orb as Gai assists in the testing of M1 Astray. In return, he wants Blue Frame modified to suit his use better. Earlier, he sent Kazahana ahead to orb and entrusts her with negotiating the contract and his designs for the upgrade parts as his mission with EA is still incomplete. Kazahana refuses to make any concession while negotiating the finer points, shocking Erica as she has a child her age. Kazahana collected information on Archangel on her own accord; this is made easier as she accompanies Lowe and gang as they help with Archangel’s repair. She completes her mission successful as other members arrive. Gai is interested in the OS and is informed that it is modified by Kira. He first heard of his name while at Artemis. As the qualities of the M1 Astray pilots are poor, Gai developed a training plan for them. He did not execute it himself as his prior mission from EA has new developments. As he returns to Orb, he receives the challenge from Socius (Eleven did not reveal his full name). Orb values Serpent Tail highly and prepared the best hotel rooms with protection from eavesdropping and other such dangers for them. As they discuss about going back to space, Kazahana appears unhappy as she wants to see the scene that inspires her name. So far she has been to Panama, Amazon and Orb; none of them are snowing areas. Gai then announces that he accepts the challenge and will go alone. After further discussion, Loretta consents and says that she will help Gai. She argues that Serpent Tail will be finished if he loses and thus the battle is also theirs. She urges the others to help. Although Elijah is reluctant, he is later persuaded by Loretta. Seeing how Kazahana is picking up skills from her mother as she talks with Elijah, Reed is worried about how manipulative she will be in the future. As they will not interfere in the battle, Gai relents and the discussion ends without his explanation for accepting the challenge.

The battlefield is a deserted town. Blue Frame has no additional equipment as Gai wants to be flexible and light to counter any traps. Although he prefers to fight using the upgraded Blue Frame, the parts are still not ready yet. Only Loretta, who is in her Guti, is with Gai as she has an important job to do; the others are on standby in a nearby town. Gai receives a transmission from Socius but did not see him. He question if Gai’s mission with EA is over. He is relieved to hear it is over, otherwise he cannot kill him. From his reply, Gai knows that he is under EA’s mental control. Socius asks if it is true that he is the strongest Coordinator like what others say. Kira’s name flashes across Gai’s mind and he wonders who will win if they fight. He banishes the thought quickly as it is unrelated and replies that he is not sure as he did not battle with every Coordinator. Socius then asks if he ever lost to any Coordinator and is satisfied when he replies no. The battle starts and Gai uses the shield to protect himself from the missile attacks and the following beam shots. He notices the attacks are from 2 places that are 300m apart. He cannot believe that Socius can move that far without him noticing and estimates that the missiles are from a drone. He avoids all the traps in the town. Gai changes his strategy and moves to the town square so that Socius can spot him and vice versa. Blue Frame’s lighter weight as compared to other MS allows it to have longer operating time and higher mobility/speed. Under the same condition, the faster Blue Frame will have the advantage. Socius complements him for the daring tactic. Blue frame then deflects a shot from the railgun; Gai has been waiting for this as it helps him in locating Socius. Gai runs towards Socius and blocks shots coming his way without slowing down. As he sees Loretta’s marking, he knows that there are no traps there. He rushed forwards and faces Socius. He takes a quick glance at the Long Dagger, throws away his beam rifle and pulls out the beam saber. In close combat, beam rifle is ineffective and by observing the rifle’s movement, the beam trajectory can be estimated. This can only be done by a skilled pilot and Gai sees Socius as one. Socius brings up his shield but Gai changes the direction of his slash and avoids it. An intense flash appears and Gai’s attack misses.

Blue Frame is knocked back by an impact and Gai almost loses consciousness. He moves back and realises that Long Dagger has sheds its extra armour. It throws away its shield and rifle, pulls out a beam saber and rushes towards Blue Frame. As they clash, Gai realises that Long Dagger is lighter and has higher thrust. The beam saber shaves off Blue Frame’s armour and although there is no serious damage, Gai is put on the defensive. If he mistimes his actions, there may be serious damage. Gai feign losing balance and as Socius attacks, he dodges the accurate slash and lunges towards Long Dagger. Just as he thinks that he has won, he feels an impact and sees another Long Dagger in the rear view camera. He realises his stupidity for assuming that there is only 1 enemy and how Socius can move without him noticing, but he cannot do anything as the backpack is damaged. Attacks come in both direction and soon Blue Frame is lying on the ground. As Gai loses consciousness, he hears Socius commenting that the battle is over and they have proven their strength. Gai is shocked to see that the monitor is full of his blood, he tries to say something but vomits out blood. As Socius expresses his gratitude, he aims the rifle at Blue Frame’s cockpit. Loretta jumps in, shocking the Socius clones. They recognise the marking on her Guti (a number 3) and know they cannot attack her as she is a Natural. They remove Blue Frame’s head as proof of their victory and left. Loretta tries to communicate with Gai and when there is no response, she expects the worst.

After receiving Loretta’s message, the other members gather around the damaged Blue Frame. Loretta forces open the cockpit using Guti, which is made easier by the fact that Blue Frame’s armour is weaker than normal MS. She checks on Gai, finds that he is pale, unconscious, has a weak heart beat and shallow breathing. His body is full of bruises and cuts, with his right lung punctured. Although she is an experienced mercenary, she is frozen by the sight and Elijah pulls her aside. With tears in his eye, he tried to stop the bleeding from Gai’s wounds. Loretta realises that her experience make her give up on Gai too easily and envy the sentimental Elijah. Together, they finish the emergency treatments and pull Gai out. Kazahana is badly shocked and shivers, she tries her best not to cry. Reed, who is the calmest, informs them to prepare to move Gai to Orb and that Blue Frame will be transported separately. Besides his contacts within EA, he also has many without; he has contacts within ZAFT and even with underground groups. His strength lies in using other people’s capability as his own. Although it is mainly used in gathering intelligence, it is also useful in the current situation. A helicopter with emergency medical devices and the best medical staffs arrives with blood for Gai. These are meant for a president of a nearby country and are proof of Reed’s wide contacts. To those who refuse to help, he will beg with some while for others, he will threaten them into helping. Reed accepts all terms in exchange for help as losing Gai is the most unfavourable. Fighter jets escorts them as they pass through the air space of a certain country. They pass through EA and ZAFT controlled air space easily. On the way, Reed continues to negotiate with other parties. As he finishes the final contact with Orb, he announces that Blue Frame’s repair is taken care of as Lowe is at Orb.

Lowe looks at the damaged Blue Frame and sighs. He cannot believe that Gai is defeated when he first heard the news. He adjusts his mood and started on the repairs. He knows that Gai will return to the battlefield once he can move even if he is not yet fully healed. A common point between Junk Guild and mercenaries is that they are committed to their beliefs. Lowe knows how important Blue Frame is to Gai and that he has to fix it before Gai moves again. Erica, as the developer of the Astray series, has a special feeling towards Blue Frame and helps in the repair. Before the fight, she was entrusted with the manufacture of Blue Frame’s upgrade parts. The main improvements are on the shoulder armour and feet. They are completed after the fight and are installed together with the repairs, but they are not enough to fix the damages. The main problems are the removed head and the damaged backpack. Astray’s thin armour covers only critical areas and is weak at handling direct hits. Lowe suggested using Red Frame’s upgrade parts. Erica wonders if Blue Frame can use them as they are created specifically for Red Frame. He brushes her concerns aside and states that they fix Blue Frame’s problem nicely and doing so is the priority, he does not mind if Gai returns them later. Lowe believes Gai can use the parts effectively while Erica has her doubts. She suggested using the leftover PS armour material in the cockpit area. Lowe knows they are from Strike Rogue and the IWSP pack is being assemble for it. He notes that PS armour is energy intensive and the extra weight will hinders Astray’s ability to evade attack. Lowe then has an idea and inputs data into ‘8’, a design appears and Erica realise that it is a double layered armour system. Lowe explains that the outer armour stays as it is and the inner layer use PS amour material. Pressure sensor is installed in the former and when it is under pressure or damaged, the latter will be activated. Erica is amazed by his idea. It saves energy as PS armour is not continuously activated, critical area is protected during emergency and the MS is kept light as minimal PS armour is used.
E08
Posts: 629
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:00 am

Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Time for the 2nd part of the Socius story.

‘Created to serve Naturals’ is an absolute order to the Socius clones, and their reason for action is bounded by it. They think and act only on matters related to Naturals. The happiness of Naturals is also their happiness. As there is a slight possibility that they may betray EA, they are not deployed in combat and are used for other purposes. They will be disposed of soon but compared to dying; they are more worried that they cannot serve Naturals anymore. Their creators did not expect the order to serve Naturals to have such a strong effect.

The other Socius clone with Eleven is Seven. He has similar thoughts as Eleven and escapes after much difficulties. After the fight, they go to a small EA base as they want to contact the higher ups. It is possible that they will punish them and not hear them out but they have no other choice. As only a small group within EA knows about Long Dagger, the base goes into chaos. They state their intention and the base commander immediately contacted HQ for orders. In their MS, they receive a transmission from HQ. As it is a long range transmission using EA’s secret network, the image and audio quality is poor. They can only see that an officer is standing next to someone in a suite. The story hints that the ‘someone’ is Azrael. Beside the suite, it is later revealed that he is the leader of an anti-Coordinator group. A surprised Azrael wants to see the proof they have. Eleven relaxes as he talks about the fight with Gai and imagines working with Naturals again, he then shows him the proof. Azrael remarks that sadly, their action is misinterpreted as betrayal and the other clones at the facility are dealt with. Since he knows about them, Eleven concludes that he is closely rated to the “Socius Project”. Azrael clarifies that they are not executed; instead drugs are used to destroy their psyche. Their ability to judge situation on the battlefield is reduced but they can understand simple commands (A later chapter adds that they can live normally but as they have no sense of self, they only act when ordered. They cannot lie and are unable to express their thoughts and feelings). He feels that this is better than betrayal. Eleven thinks that they are now like zombies, but since they can now work with Naturals, they are in a way saved. He wonders if he can find happiness if it happens to him. He thinks that since it is done by Naturals, it cannot be wrong. Azrael adds that it would not have happen if they did not escaped. Eleven expresses their apologies for what happen to their comrades. Azrael notes that defeating Serpent Tail is impressive but of no benefit to EA, he thinks that destroying a ZAFT base is better and suggested that they destroy Gibraltar base. Eleven and Seven knows that the suggestion is unreasonable but they cannot reject it.

The officer questions why Azrael did not execute them and let them go. He replies that he wants to recoup some of the cost spent on creating them and they will not betray them otherwise they would not have contacted them in the first place. He thinks that the mental control is effective but not needed anymore since Biological CPUs are successfully developed. He considers that the mental control techniques used on Socius are more effective than the medication used to control the Biological CPU. It hints at the possibility that the creation will not fail, has a clear mind and will obey every command. He comments softly that it is stupid to manipulate genes to create people with high combat capabilities. It is better to create people with ordinary capabilities but will obey the ruler. There will be no war and no need for military officers. He smiles to himself as he thinks about his plan.

3 days after returning to Orb, Gai regained consciousness. The members of Serpent Tail gather around him and he announces that he wants to fight with Socius again. They are not surprised but feel that it is too soon and unlike his normal behaviour. He has not yet recovered; the slightest movement will reopen the wounds. Elijah asks for the reasoning behind the fight, a question he previously did not answer. Gai removes his glasses and reveals that an ID number is printed on the blood vessel in his retina. This is done by the organisation that created him and is for management purposes. He is a Combat Coordinator, just like Socius. The other members do not know his past and did not see the need to know as they feel it does not change Gai’s importance. However, they are still shocked and rendered speechless. Gai continues on, he is born at Mendel and is unsure what generation of Combat Coordinator he is. As the results of the mental control are unsatisfactory, he is labelled a failure and is about to be killed, but he escapes and defeats all his pursuers. He thought that the secret project is terminated long ago. He puts the glasses back on, adds that his ID number should be in EA’s database and the glasses are a disguise to avoid unnecessary troubles. He got his freedom and he wants Socius to be free as well. Kazahana wonders if Gai intends to defeat them and convince them to become partners. Gai comments that it is very difficult as their mental control is stronger, proof being that they did not attack Loretta. It is also hard to imagine them accepting the invitation to be partners. Kazahana questions the need for fighting and Gai replies that like him, they can only find their true self through fighting. Kazahana still does do not understand and her mother comfort her and ask her to trust Gai.

Gai asks Reed about Socius whereabouts and he says that they receive orders to destroy Gibraltar base and are heading there. EA seems to be making the maximum use of the duo; their victory is a gain for EA while their defeat means nothing. The others comments that it is unreasonable and sympathises with them. Gai decides to head towards Gibraltar and Reed says that they have little time to spare as 30 hrs has passed since he got the information and as Socius move very quickly, it is possible that they are attacking the base as they speak. Serpent Tail manage to arrive at the base before Socius. Along the way, Reed negotiates with ZAFT and disguises the fight with Socius as a mission to protect the base. Elijah is informed that DaCosta has left for PLANT with his injuried superior. He then visits Gai who is preparing his MS, and is shocked to see him tying himself to the cockpit seat. He replies that it is the only thing he can do and when Elijah points out that the wounds may reopen, he calmly states that they do not matter if he is thrown out of the seat. Gai rejected Elijah’s offer to help level the playing field (2 vs 2) but accepts that he will interfere with the battle if Gai is in danger. Gai steps out of the base and broadcast on all frequency that he wants a rematch with Socius. They are shocked that he survives and Gai replies that it is thanks to his comrades. Socius notes that it is nice to have comrades, they used to have many but most of them died and the remaining are dealt with after their escape. Although his voice is emotionless, Gai detects his sadness. They later questions what benefit he will get from fighting them. He replies that there may be none but he learns a lot through fighting and no matter what kind of fight it is, he did not lose his sense of self and he wants them to see this. They understand what Gai is saying; it is an action decided by oneself and respects the individuality of a human (not sure if I translate it correctly). They are happy to be serving Naturals, there is a purpose behind their action and they are satisfied by the reasoning. If all these are given to them by other people, is that sufficient reason to deny them and is sense of self important? Currently, Socius cannot answer these questions.

They accept Gai’s challenge and appear. Although the battlefield this time is different, Gai still intends to defeat them using speed. Blue Frame 2nd L flies towards them while they time their attacks so that even if Gai dodge one, he will be hit by another. However, Gai unfolds the wings differently and his movement becomes erratic. Such movement cannot be done by a standard OS; they are due to Gai’s experience and reflexes. As Blue Frame 2nd L enters melee combat range, the Long Daggers ejects their extra armour. Gai also ejects the backpack as it becomes a burden in melee combat. He can recall it later if needed. Without its backpack, Blue Frame 2nd L slows down. Socius attacks with a beam saber but misses; he is shocked to find that Gai is on his right. This is thanks to the fin thrusters that Gai designs. Blue Frame 2nd L attacks with 2 Armour Schneider and Long Dagger responses by slashing with the other saber. Armour Schneider slices apart the saber and Long Dagger’s engine compartment is damaged. Socius then realises it is coated with anti-beam coating. Gai dislikes shield as he thinks it is an extra weight. He prefers to block beam saber using the anti-beam coated dagger and evade beam shot using mobility. Gai’s wounds are already reopened and bleeding, he must end the fight quickly.

As the other Long Dagger closes in, Blue Frame 2nd L flies forward and reveals the hidden blades on the foot while aiming its kick. Socius thinks that he has won as an airborne MS can only make limited movement and is open to attack when it lands. Unexpectedly, Blue Frame 2nd L changes its direction by twisting its arms and legs, landing behind the Long Dagger. Socius immediately reacts and barely avoids the daggers in Blue Frame 2nd L’s hands. Blue Frame 2nd L attack with the blade on its foot while Socius aims his saber at the upper body but it merely scratches the armour. Gai uses the fin thruster to move the upper body to evade the attack, thus the distance between them is unchanged. He activates both fin thrusters causing Blue Frame 2nd L to rotate rapidly, the blades on the foot together with the centrifugal force hits Long Dagger’s engine compartment. The fight is over in 5 mins. Eleven and Seven wonder whether this is the power of a fighter with sense of self. They know that even with similar machine, they will have difficulties imitating Gai. His fighting style does not just rely on physical power, the movements generate a great deal of Gs and a normal person would have fainted long ago. He is also badly injured in the previous fight and must have felt great pain with every strike. They conclude that despite the pain, he stills persist in fighting due to his ‘will to fight’. Gai not only has a sense of self but also will.

Eleven wonders what they should do. It is not wrong to serve Naturals, however rashly attacking the base is as they cannot serve Naturals if they are dead. He realises that he might not have really carried out his mission to serve Naturals, and the need for more sense of self and will. Eleven and Seven step out of their MS, both of them have the same conclusion. They admit that Gai won and say that they will not return to the military. Gai opens the cockpit door, his seat is drenched in his blood, he calmly asks for their future plan. They are unsure but they wish to continue to serve Naturals, despite it being an order from other people. They feel that it is the right thing to do. Following the army’s orders may not really be serving the Naturals and they want to find a better way. Gai did not interfere with their decision as doing so is no different from EA’s mental control; their way of living is their own. They bid Gai farewell and left.

According to Astray B, after the fight with Socius, Gai is informed by Reed that a group of Blue Cosmos is approaching the base. It seems that EA plans to use the chaos created by Socius to attack the base and deliberately leak the news to Blue Cosmos. As they have a contract to protect the base, Gai will have to defeat them as well. Gai recalls the backpack, transforms it into a gatling gun and fires on the enemies as they appear on the horizon.
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Socius’s mental control did not include killing all Coordinators as it will be illogical (they themselves are Coordinator) and will result in mental breakdown. Socius who have their psyche destroyed by drugs are sold/supplied to other countries as ‘parts’ for controlling MS. Eleven and Seven are at an abandoned colony in L4 and discuss about the way forward. Their first conclusion is that if what a Coordinator does is beneficial to a Natural, they should protect him and this also means protecting other Socius. Socius identity as a Coordinator will thus not be a problem. Socius clones not only look alike, their thinking is also similar. Their second conclusion is that Naturals who harm their kind is also their enemy. They are a bit shock at this conclusion as there is a possibility of it destroying their reason for existing, however they cannot brushed it aside as killing such a Natural will save the lives of many others. They know that it is impossible for them to do this personally; in fact, one feels dizzy when using the word ‘kill’ in conjuncture with ‘Natural’. This is how strong their mental control is but they still feel that the conclusion is correct. They finally conclude that the biggest threat to Naturals is EA. Although they know the answer, they have difficulty saying it; one can barely form a sentence and can only whisper it out. Again, this is due to their mental control. They know doing this means betraying their creators, but it is a fact that the leaders in EA send their troops to dangerous battlefield and ignore the energy crisis on earth, causing many Naturals to die of hunger and cold. Although all these will end when EA wins but throughout history, few root causes of war are solved when the fighting ends. Eleven and Seven see this as their biggest enemy. They know they cannot fight it and this is their limit.

The only way out is to integrate into the society and slowly change how Naturals think as a whole as foolish leaders are produced by indifferent public. Socius do not plan to accomplish this through brainwashing or by giving them guidance, they want Naturals to discover the right path themselves. They know that this will take a long time and needs to be well planned; it cannot be done within their lifespan. They are not discouraged as they found the ‘Seed of Socius’. Eleven and Seven have been travelling around the world looking for their comrades. Recently, inside an EA genetic research facility, they found a large number of secretly frozen Socius foetuses. This new generation will continue their work after they pass away and Socius will always work for Naturals. They view a world that has no need for Socius as the ideal Natural world. Although they cannot see it, they are filled with happiness working towards it. Later, it is revealed that they also found frozen Socius around their age. These clones undergo plastic surgery, conceal their identity and integrate into every country, including PLANT. This is only possible due to the after war chaos. Eleven and Seven fail to find any Socius who have their psyche destroyed until they receive a tip off from a Socius planted within Eurasia. Serpent Tail is employed to confirm the truth.
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Deathzealot
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Wait? I thought Kazahana is a Coordinator. It says that clearly in some of the Astray Mangas. Give me a second... /reaches for Astray mangas/ :shock: Okay maybe not! Heh. It doesn't say anything out in the open of her being a Coordinator, just a very smart and dedicated six-year old girl. (That likes her Coffee apparently!)

Anyways back on topic interesting summaries of the novels and photonovels. Thanks!
E08
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Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:00 am

Re: Astray novels and photonovels

The novel provides us with some details about Erica's past and how she feels about some events.

Erica feels that she has never being able to choose the path to take till that faithful day. Her parents are excellent engineers but are no match for a Coordinator. They hope their child will also be an excellent engineer so they made her a Coordinator. They are also influenced by the thinking then that Coordinators are a new beginning for the human race, which is due to the birth of the 2nd generation of Coordinators. Erica spends her early years among Naturals. Some Naturals see Coordinator as tools and did not treat them as human being. Many of the Coordinators that are expelled moved to PLANT, Erica thought about moving there with her parents, but doubts they will agree to it. She feels that living among Natural is painful as they are cold towards her. They ignore her hard work and treat her excellent results as a given, but when she fails, they think she is being lazy. Most of them did not understand that Coordinators still need to work hard to obtain good results, although they did get better results with the same amount of effort as Naturals. Kids around her age mocks that she cheated since birth, she cannot refute as she feels that it is true and this hurts her badly. She tried discussing it with her parents but their reply made her feel that they love her abilities more than what she is. In order not to let them down, she tries hard to increase her engineering capabilities.

Her parents are later killed by Type S2 influenza. Due to the situation then, Erica is unsure about going to PLANT. Before her parents' death, they plan to migrate to Orb as it accepts both Naturals and Coordinators. They think that with Orb’s large population of Coordinators, she can better concentrate on her work. In the end, she still follows their decision as she has no wish to move to PLANT. As she grows up among Naturals, Coordinators are not really friends and she used to blame them for her suffering. As she migrates to Orb, she decides to hide her Coordinator identity. She convinces herself and suppresses her guilt by thinking that this lie does not matter much as she has been cheating since birth. CE 70.6, 16 years has passed since she arrived at Orb. She is married to a Natural and he accepts that she is a Coordinator. Her son is still in the dark, she plans to tell him when he is older and understands the implications. She tries her best to suppress her Coordinator capabilities, e.g. deliberately typing slowly. Once, she unconsciously types at high speed and stuns her colleagues. Realising her mistake, she immediately acts as if she is playing a fool. Although she successfully bluffs her colleagues, she is afraid that they will discover the truth. As the war between ZAFT and EA is on-going, Erica feels that the majority of the people would agree with the sentence,’ I was led astray by bad directions.’

Orb is ruled by 5 noble clans, they each have a leader and according to the constitution; one of them will become the head of state through an election, the others will enter the privy council and provide support. The assembly is voted in by the populace and act as a counterbalance to the head of state. This helps to maintain a political system that seems outdated due to the involvement of blood ties. However, for generations the head of state has come from the Athha clan. The election has become ceremonial and the assembly also blindly agrees to the selection. Orb’s neutrality is made possible due to the support Uzumi gets from the 5 clans. Sahaku clan is in charge of working behind the political scene and has deep ties with the military. As such, they are also close with Morgenroete Inc. which is at the centre of Orb’s military industry. Naturally, Erica who works at that company belongs to the Sahaku faction. It is unknown why they have such responsibilities but they are bitter about it as there is little chance of appearing on the glamorous political stage. As a result, they quietly resent the Athha clan.

Erica’s direct superior, Rondo Mina Sahaku, is one of the few that is openly critical about Uzumi and dislikes his neutral policy. She actively criticises him in front of her subordinates and wants him to remember that his neutral policy is possible due to the hard and dirty work done by Sahaku. Orb’s neutrality is partially due to its strong military strength. Although it is no match for ZAFT and EA, whoever attack will have to pay a high price and currently they are not interested in attacking a third party that will cost them more. Although Uzumi realises the need for MS, he prefers MS development to be restricted to within the country. Sahaku clan think differently and Mina criticises that he is blind to the reality. As military affairs are their responsibility, Mina decides to do things the ‘usual way’. Onogoro Island serves as the core of Orb’s military industry and only few knows about the underground facilities. Erica works together with 20 quantum computer AIs to develop Orb’s MS. She feels that they are same as her, something created by other people. She tries to achieve a work-life balance and although she sometimes fails, it is not serious enough to badly affect the family. She is shocked when Mina tells her that they are manufacturing EA’s MS. Mina wants to obtain their technology by helping them and Erica realises later that her ‘usual way’ refers to using underhanded methods. They have supported Orb from the shadow using such ways. She feels that Erica is stagnant in her MS development and resorts to such a method to move forward. She has a summary of their MS’s basic data and although the basic system structure is similar to Erica’s, they have superior technologies in other areas. She knows that obtaining their MS technologies can greatly boost Orb’s MS development. Thus, she immediately acts.

Mina first managed to win EA’s trust and joins their MS development plan. As the contact is through Morgenroete and not between countries, EA lets it guard down. After helping EA in some of their MS developments, Morgenroete finally gets the contract to manufacture the MS. They will then be supplied with the relevant information. Although Erica is worried that EA will punish them if they know about it, Mina is not worried as EA and ZAFT will be their enemy sooner or later. If EA discovers the truth, they will show them their power. Mina reveals that Uzumi rejected EA’s cooperation request and she is secretly cooperating through Morgenroete. Thus, he is ignorant about it. She adds that he does not know the meaning of ‘dirty’ and the ones protecting Orb is the Sahaku clan. Gina will be sending the data from Heliopolis and she orders Erica to use them to develop Orb’s MS. Without a choice, Erica accepts. CE 71.1, the prototype Astrays are completed in Heliopolis and the mass production type M1 is completed in Onogoro. While inspecting the M1 production line, Mina gives Erica the honour of naming the MS. The sentence, ’I was led astray by bad directions’ appears in her mind and she mumbles the word ‘astray’. Mina heard the word and thinks it suit the MS. For an MS created using stolen technologies, the name is very fitting.

The fate of the prototype units mirrors the name. Erica does not wish to see them destroyed so she informed the Professor. She later wonders why she wants to protect those units, as the completion of the production type means they are now worthless. She first thinks it is because they are her creation but later attributes it to the name, ‘Astray’, a word that also fits her well as she is ‘lost’. She later sends one of the piloting candidates that escape from Heliopolis to find out why Lowe can use the MS. She meets him after he lands on earth. Orb employs Gai to train the pilots and in return he requested the underwater equipment and the manufacturing of Blue Frame’s upgrade parts. She fixes Gold Frame with Blitz’s right arm and sees the arm as representing the fight for peace. She also has a foolish thought that it can restrain the out of control Gina. At that time, she has doubts about the siblings’ idea and methods of protecting the country. Although she does not believe in spirits, she believes in the destiny and mission that lies in an object. She knows that it is stupid but thinks it is due to how she sees herself as an object; the view also contains her expectations. She develops the "Maga no Ikutachi" and sees it as a non-lethal weapon that symbolizes Orb’s neutrality. Gina knows that EA is eyeing Orb’s mass driver and strikes a deal with them, they will leave Orb alone if he helps them reclaim Victoria base. Gina heads to Victoria while Mina left for Ame-no-Mihashira to prepare for future battles. EA broke their promise and attack while they are gone. Erica believes they got the news but somehow did not return to help. She wonders whether Uzumi’s last actions are correct.

On that faithfully day, Erica meets Gai who arrives together with Junk Guild to resupply the TSA. He wants to repay Erica for her help in repairing Blue Frame. He informs her that Gina is trying to contact her and plans to sink Kusanagi as he sees the surviving member of the Athha family, Cagalli, as an eyesore. She realises that Gina is seeking her assistance in killing Cagalli. She does not want to help but feels that she cannot disobey as she is his subordinate. Gai points out that although the leader can point the path forward, whether she wants to take the path is her own choice. Erica comments that power is needed so that she can survive after disobeying Gina. Gai replies that what is required is the will to carry out her thoughts and he will be her fighting power. Erica is confused and Gai waits patiently for her answer. As she looks at him, her confusion disappears and she feels that for the first time, she is choosing the path to take. She tells Gai that she will not help Gina and wants him to fight. Several days later, she receives a coded message that only those in the Sahaku faction can decode. It is similar to what Gai said, 3 days later a MS will attack the ship and Erica is to kill Cagalli at the same time. She ignored it.

The day arrives and Erica has difficulties settling down. She is unsure if her choice is correct and is angry at her own weakness as she has already made up her mind. She spotted the MS and wonders whether it is send by Gina, an EA MS send to destroy the ship or that Gina is making use of an EA MS. The MS is a Sword Calamity and its attack is interrupted by Blue Frame 2nd L. Kusanagi’s MS team did not deploy as they are informed that Serpent Tail will handle it. Sword Calamity throws its boomerangs with a slight lag in time in between so that dodging becomes difficult, but Blue Frame 2nd L easily evades and uses Armour Schneider to deflect the rocket anchor that is launched at it. The precision of the enemy’s attack make it seems that a machine is piloting it. However, this also makes dodging easier but one needs to be at Gai’s level to do it. When Erica was upgrading Blue Frame, she takes a look at Gai’s combat data and observes that he finishes the majority of the battle at extreme close range. She thinks that Gai must be planning to get close to the enemy while evading the attacks. The enemy attacks with the “Scylla” cannon and when Erica thinks that it will be a direct hit; Blue Frame 2nd L removes the extra energy pack, throw it in the line of fire and destroys it with the gatling gun. As the beam passes through the resulting explosion, its power is reduced. It seems as if Gai knows his opponent next moves.

Blue Frame 2nd L fires the gatling gun at Sword Calamity but is ineffective due to the latter’s TP armour. It fires the gatling gun again and Erica notices that the shots are now a mixture of beam and solid shells. When the weapon was manufactured, there was no such function and she concludes that Gai modified it himself. The firing continues and the enemy soon retreated. Erica understands that Gai did not pursue as he wants the enemy to return and informs Gina that she has severed her ties with Sahaku. She thanks Gai and decides not to hide her Coordinator identity any more. She will now choose the path to take so that she can be herself. She throws away the idea that she was led astray by bad directions and concludes that as long as the path is chosen by oneself, it is okay even if it is ‘astray’.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Time for Elijah's backstory.

Elijah joins ZAFT after the ‘Bloody Valentine’ tragedy because other people he knows are doing it. He thinks that a change in environment can lead to a change in himself. He is first deployed in the battle of Yggdrasil and guards supply ships. Although he is assigned a GINN, he can barely move it and using it for combat is almost impossible. His friends who join ZAFT at the same time are fighting at the front line. Some people mock Elijah behind his back as he does not have the physiological advantage of a Coordinator, they doubts his Coordinator identity and wonder if he is a Natural spy. Elijah tries to improve his piloting skills through hard work. Later, while others are congratulating Rau for obtaining the ‘Order of Nebula’, Elijah is trapped by his feeling of inferiority. He leaves ZAFT in a manner close to desertion and to survive, he uses his Coordinator identity and becomes a mercenary. Civilians at that time employ mercenaries to protect themselves from the fighting and Coordinators are preferred as they can defend against MS threats. Elijah knows his weakness, thus he chooses jobs with Naturals as the enemy as they surrender once they know he is a Coordinator piloting a MS. He rents his GINN from Junk Guild but manages to own it after many easy victories. He soon fell into an illusion that he is really strong but this is destroyed when he meets a ‘true’ mercenary. He is employed by a civilian satellite factory producing simple weapon spare parts for EA. Although ZAFT did not bother it, it is a target for pirates and raiders as the place is rich. The factory is attacked and the attacker manages to enter the satellite’s interior. Elijah accompanies his employer and waits for the attacker at the central area. This is the first time someone intrudes so far in since his employment and Elijah is nervous as he senses a ‘real’ fight ahead.

The employer is shocked when he sees from the monitor that the attacker is Serpent Tail. Elijah knows that it is a top class mercenary group; he nervously looks at the monitor and sees a Moebius with a serpent marking. He notes that it is a mass produced EA MA owned by many civilians and questions the use of the ridiculous marking. His view of mercenaries then is a group of people fighting using a bunch of tricks and thinks that Serpent Tail’s marking exaggerate the threat they possess. He launches in his GINN, confident of victory, but is disabled immediately after stepping out of the hanger and did not even manage to confirm the attacker’s identity. Elijah has a hazy memory about what happens next. He gets out of the damaged GINN, running, failing, shouting and feeling afraid while finding the exit. The factory is totally destroyed and he loses track of time while escaping. As he calms down, he discovers blood flowing down from a facial wound. He did not remember when and how he got it and amazingly he feels no pain. He realises that he is a ‘fake’ mercenary and the feeling is worsen as he feels that he is a ‘fake’ Coordinator too. He is determined to be the ‘real thing’ and believes he will achieve something with his hard work. He restarted his MS training and is honest to his employers about his ability. As expected, his work decreases and is mainly employed by those who requires the presence of a MS to intimidate others. He is also employed as a cannon fodder/ meat shield during large battles and feels that this suits him well as he can hones his combat skills. The wounds on his body increases with every battle. Some see him as a beautiful guy and are sadden by his wounds while others feel that they add to his odd charm, but Elijah remains uninterested in his appearance. No matter what, he wants to battle and is careful not to die. He wants to live so that he can battle Serpent Tail again.

In CE 70.7, Elijah heads to L4. The colonies there are damaged by the war and some are totally ruined. Majority of the residents fled to earth and as the population decreases, security got worse. Pirate attacks became common, increasing the outflow of people and soon the colonies are deserted. Some rich people in the area hire mercenaries to protect themselves and their assets while planning their move to earth. Elijah’s employer is such a person; he has too much stuff to move and thus needs some time to complete his move to earth. He employed 10 other mercenaries and Elijah hopes that among them are members of Serpent Tail. Although he did not know how they look like, he is sure they will have the serpent marking. He did not see them and one mercenary remarks that such job does not require their presence. He tells his employer the truth about his ability and is immediately sacked. As he steps out of the house he notices a garden filled with white flowers, he did not see it before as he was occupied by other thoughts. This is a rare sight, planting flowers in space is a luxury as land and water are difficult to obtain. A girl approaches and offers to employ him. She wants him to protect the garden as the recently sacked gardener is sad to leave it. She believes that once the war ends, they will return and her father will rehire the gardener. Elijah senses that she is close to the gardener but doubts her father will rehire him. Elijah questions what he gets in return, she replies that he can have one flower from the garden as the seeds are from earth and thus expensive. She senses his unwillingness and offers 2 flowers. Elijah tries to reject but is unsure how as he sees that she is trying hard to suppress her tears. He looks at the beautiful garden and suddenly feels like accepting the job. This is the first time he feels that he cannot reject a job and if he rejects, he cannot become a ‘true’ mercenary. A beautiful smile appears on the girl’s face as he accepts her offer.

The family left with the mercenaries protecting them and Elijah started planning on how to defend the garden. He concludes that the garden is likely to become a battle ground if raiders arrive and he has to prevent this. He comments that he got himself a troublesome mission but did not regret accepting it. He puts the flower that serves as his payment in the cockpit and prays that no raiders intrude. After a few hours the worst scenario happens, the raider arrives in an MS, meaning that Elijah’s enemy is a Coordinator. The enemy uses a Proto GINN and although it is an older model, its performance is similar to GINN. The pilot’s skill will be the deciding factor and Elijah is at a disadvantage. He knows not to underestimate his enemy and lures him away so that the garden will not be hit by a stray shot. He concentrates on fighting after he is far away from the house. However, the enemy does not seem interested in fighting; he does not attack if Elijah did not and when Elijah attacks, he just dodges. On one hand, Elijah has a bad feeling about the fight but on the other, he is glad that it is away from the garden. The enemy fled after 10 mins and both sides did not sustain any critical damage. Elijah does not understand why the enemy fled but is glad that he protected the garden.

Upon his return, the house is missing, fire is everywhere and the garden is destroyed. Elijah realises that the Proto GINN is actually luring him away and while he is gone, accomplices raided the house, sets fire after discovering there is nothing valuable and escapes. Elijah is mad at his own stupidity and returns to his GINN as he thinks the raiders may still be around. Although he knows defeating them will not cause the garden to return, he needs to vent his anger at someone. Elijah soon spotted a MS and recognises it as Serpent Tail’s due to the marking on it. As he closes in, he sees the Proto GINN lying on the ground and the cockpit is penetrated by an Armour Schneider. Gai asks him not to attack and he did as told as he did not sense any forceful atmosphere. Gai identifies himself and explains that he is employed to kill the raiders and since his job is done, he is leaving. It seems the raiders offended a rich person elsewhere and he/she employs Serpent Tail to kill them. Gai adds that he wants to leave without a fight. Elijah is unable to reply. He shouts to vent his anger as he lost his target for doing so. He is so enraged that he thinks about attacking Gai, but did not do it as Gai is innocent. He knows the one responsible is himself. Gai did not leave and asks Elijah what he is doing after he calms down. Elijah senses a mysterious power from Gai’s voice and tells him about his job and what happened. He is certain that Gai will laugh at him for his ineptness and for accepting such a dumb job.

However instead of laughing at him, Gai invites him to join Serpent Tail. For a moment, Elijah is shocked and cannot comprehend what he just heard. He asks why and Gai replies that it is because Elijah is a ‘true’ mercenary. Elijah doubts it and Gai explains that his attitude towards the fight is correct for a mercenary. He adds that a mercenary fights not for his own ideal or view but simply for the employer. As they risk their life for other people, the reason for fighting is important. Although he may look stupid to other people, his feelings are correct, a ‘true’ mercenary should have the same feeling as the employer while fighting. Elijah then points out the flowers are all burnt. Gai responds that although he failed his mission, he manages to survive and mercenary with the correct attitude will only get stronger. Elijah does not know how to reply, tears flows down his cheeks uncontrollably and they are warmer than the previous blood. Gai repeat his invitation and Elijah accepts. Elijah later place the flower between pages of a thick book and stores the book in the far end of Serpent Tail’s warehouse.

An earlier chapter notes that Elijah tends to get panicky when caught in a sudden occurrence. He is very sentimental and Gai views it as part of his personal charm but also sees it as a weakness for mercenary. Kazahana feels that Elijah worries too much about his abilities and gets too upset about it. After a talk with Gud, Elijah thinks deeper about why his parents did not give him any of the Coordinator’s abilities. He realises that it is because of his inferiority that he works harder than other people, his inferiority actually made him stronger. His strength is due to his hard work and so is his sense of pride and confidence. He wonders if this is the reason why his parents made him the way he is. Although he is unable to know the real reason, he did not hate himself anymore.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Here's the final chapter for the novel with some interesting facts about Gina and Mina. Will be moving on to Astray B.

Serpent Tail’s base is in the civilian space station, Snail, located at L3 and they have a permanent lease contract to use the top floor of a high class hotel. All the luxurious decorations/objects are replaced by simple ones, while the high class furniture is replaced by large communication devices and computers. Thick armour materials are inserted into the walls and the windows are bullet proof.

Rondo Mina Sahaku is the last member of the Sahaku clan. She and her twin brother are Coordinators created specifically for Orb and are adopted into Sahaku clan. The 5 noble clans in Orb value abilities more than blood ties and with it, they manage to maintain the outdated ruling system. EA gave several MS and 3 Socius clones (Four, Six and Thirteen) to Gina as repayment for his assistance. Mina likes them, although they have no feelings, their intentions are pure. There is no flattery, sympathy or scheming behind their words and actions, it makes her feels that they truly care for her. Her ideas change after Gina’s death; she feels that a nation belongs to the citizens not the leaders (although it is not stated in the novel, I think she is influenced by Lowe in X astray). She now thinks that Gina’s idea is wrong, he wanted to create a world designed for rulers/leaders and the citizens are just slaves working for them. Similarly, Uzumi is wrong to sacrifice the citizens for his ideas. Their ideas seem to be different on the surface but they have a common underlying point; they are imposed on the citizens. Mina feels that their death is due to this mistake and she must not repeat it.

Eleven Socius arrives at Snail to discuss a matter with Serpent Tail. Elijah is sent to receive him and is shocked by his looks. Eleven clarifies that he is not Gud and understands why he is mistaken. He then identifies himself, surprising Elijah. Eleven sits in the same room with Gai, Elijah and Reed while Loretta and Kazahana are on standby in another room. Eleven first talks about Ame-no-Mihashira, causing Gai to wonder if he wants them to attack it. He replies that he is half correct; he wants them to attack but without causing damage. He questions if they know that it is recently attacked by Eurasia Federation. Reed did not heard about it and Eleven explains that it is a top secret operation to claim the facilities there as Eurasia lacks such facilities after the war. However, the 30 Strike Daggers deployed, which makes it the largest operation after the war, are defeated in 10 mins by a few MS guards. Gai asks about his source to confirm the authenticity of his information. Eleven replies that it is from a Socius within Eurasia and adds that his comrades are now in every country. He mentions that all the pilots survived and a possible reason is that the MS guarding the place is piloted by Socius who have their psyche destroyed. Eleven adds that other than confirming the presence of Socius, he also wants to know what kind of person Mina is as she may affect their plans. Elijah replies in a contemptuous manner that she is an evil leader trying to rule the world. Eleven asks if he meets her before and when he says that he is basing it on her past actions, Eleven replies that people do change with time. Gai then accepts the job. Eleven reveals that Gud is a Combat Coordinator, some of his data is used to create Socius and his split personality might be due to the failure of the mental control. Eleven and Seven came to know about all these while finding the other Socius.

Gai decides to use Blue Frame 2nd in L configuration as it is flexible enough to handle the unknown situation. Elijah fitted his GINN with heavy weaponry and plans to discard them if they get in the way. Kazahana talks to Elijah about his GINN’s armaments and reveals that she will be going along with her mother and Reed. He wonders why she is going and Gai replies that it is her wish and they need Naturals to confirm the presence of Socius. Elijah has a question for Gai but he already left.

Gai and Elijah move towards Ame-no-Mihashira while the others are on standby in the shuttle and will infiltrate the place if required. As they get close, they are attacked by long range beam fire. While evading the attacks, Elijah prays that Gud protects him and is surprised to see that the enemy is 3 blue- colored Astray. The enemy notices that Elijah’s GINN has stop moving and one of them close in with a beam saber. Elijah instinctively moves back, a beam pass by his previous location and Gai tells him that they are not Blue Frame. Elijah notices the differences but it changes nothing as their strength remains a mystery. Without a choice, he attacks the saber welding enemy. Blue Frame 2nd L moves toward a solar panel near Ame-no-Mihashira, 2 M1A Astray pursue with saber in hand. They attack Blue Frame 2nd L as it lands on the panel. Gai avoids the attacks and notices that their sabers are strengthen as they leave deep scars on the armour by passing closely. The enemies coordinate their attacks well and Gai is certain they are piloted by Socius. He moves to a location between the solar panel and Ame-no-Mihashira. The enemies follow and both slash at Blue Frame 2nd L at the same time. Instead of dodging, Blue Frame 2nd L moves forward and slashes with Tactical Arms. The enemies’ saber suddenly dissipates and are beheaded by Blue Frame 2nd L. It is as Gai planned; microwave produced by the solar panel flows through their location, the saber’s magnetic field is affected by the strong electromagnetic interference and dissipates. He move towards Ame-no-Mihashira and did not help Elijah as he views him as a professional mercenary. He will have to ask for help if he needs it.

Elijah is unsure if he can win Socius, as they are created for combat unlike him, but is determined not to lose as he is a professional mercenary. His defeat will also invalidate the time he spent with his teammates; he cannot tolerate this and fights hard. He only has the machine gun and recoilless rifle; the other weapons are discarded to catch up to M1A Astray’s speed. He knows that Kazahana will tease him about it if he manages to return. He evades all the attacks and the enemy is hit by a floating debris, losing balance. This is a good chance to attack but he hesitates due to the similarity between Socius and Gud. When he comes to his senses, the enemy already regains balance. GINN’s shoulder armour is damaged as Elijah tries to evade an attack. He counterattacks with his sure-kill move, attacking with the recoilless rifle first and using the machinegun to hit the enemy who is evading the earlier attack. He manages to disable the M1A Astray and moves towards Ame-no-Mihashira.

Inside Ame-no-Mihashira, Gai meets Mina. She correctly guessed his identity and wonders why he is here. Gai replies that he is doing his job and wants to know where her followers are as he did not see a single soul before meeting her. She refuses to answer. She knows that Gai killed her brother and causes Erica to betray her. She finds it interesting that Gai will go all out to find the answer and attacks him. Gai tries to stop her attack with his dagger but Mina catches it with her cape and grabs hold of his throat with her left hand. She lifts him off the ground and Gai is unable to free himself. Mina is stronger than Gai, who is a Combat Coordinator; some special genetic manipulation must have been used in her creation and it is most likely carried out so that she can live as a Sahaku. She releases her grip and asks why Gai did not try to kill her with his dagger. He calmly replies that he does not see the need to hurt her or threaten her with death for her to tell the truth. Mina finds him interesting but too gentle and Gai refuses to join her as he wants to be free. Mina does not mind and tells him the truth to thank him for not killing the 3 Socius clones. She explains that she dismissed her follower as she wants to wait for the right opportunity to rebuild Orb and they are now hiding in various places. If she tries to do it now, she will be attacked. Another reason is that she does not want to restrict her followers’ actions with her ideas. She can simply gather those still loyal to her when she takes action. She chose to stay at Ame-no-Mihashira as her disappearance will make it clear what her plan is. Having known the truth, Gai turns and prepares to leave. Mina repeats her invitation but Gai still refuses and says that he will fight with all he got if she tries to make him stay. Gai meets Elijah along the way and they left without being attacked.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Astray B

Chapt 1

Serpent Tail’s mission is to destroy the generator of a military facility in an asteroid. The generator is surrounded by many layers of rock and has a thick layer of armour; it cannot be penetrated from the outside. The only way to get close to the generator is through a narrow tunnel that barely fits a MS. Even if a MS get close, the tunnel prevents it from being equipped with heavy weaponry, thus destroying the generator is difficult.

Gai sneaks into the facility while his teammates are fighting outside. The tunnels are like a maze and he only has 10 mins as beyond that, he is likely to be discovered and they will cut off his escape route. As he reaches the generator, 7 mins have passed. The specially prepared beam rife that he is using consists mainly of parts from Blue Frame’s standard rifle, its power is adjusted to the maximum and is 3 times that of the standard rifle. However, the rifle can only withstand 1 shot. Gai likes the tense atmosphere but considering the time needed to get out, he have to finish it quickly. He pulls the trigger and left, he did not wait to confirm the destruction of the generator as currently there are few anti-beam defenses.

Chapt 2

A high speed experimental spacecraft went out of control and Serpent Tail is employed to retrieve its data. Reed laughs at Blue Frame’s looks; it is equipped with a booster largely than itself. It reminds one of a comedian strapped to a large rocket and once it is lighted, the comedian will blast off and explode like a firework. Gai saw such scenes in movie several times but have difficulty laughing as he will be using it.

Gai is woken up by the alarm. This is the 1st time he experiences such a long period of acceleration and is knocked unconscious by it. His sight is rather blurry and he thinks that it is caused by the bursting of a small blood vessel beneath the eye. The alarm means that he is close to the spacecraft. He matches Blue Frame’s speed with the spacecraft and knows that if they are hit by debris now, they will be fragmented into many pieces. Gai comments to himself that although it is not bad to die laughing, to be laughed at after his death is bad. He then starts on his recovery work.

It seems that the spacecraft is later discovered by Lowe in Astray vol 1. According to the novel, directly after this mission, Gai is employed by EA to find missing nukes which leads him to Elijah, who is with Gud.

Chapt 3

Gai is shocked when he hears that the enemy is invisible. Reed expected Gai’s reaction and provides more information about the mission which is from an old friend, who is now an employee of a weapon manufacturer that is working for EA. An experimental unit equipped with Mirage Colloid is stolen. Reed explains that he accepted the mission as the employer is willing to build optional equipment inside Blue Frame’s database for free. The term is enticing as Serpent Tail does not have the ability to build them. The employer also states that one of them is useful in the mission. Gai accepts and correctly guessed that the equipment is being manufactured as they speak, embarrassing Reed. He informs Gai that Elijah and Loretta is heading towards the enemy’s hideout.

Elijah is attacked by the enemy without warning. Loretta, who is on standby on the ship, offered to help but Elijah refuses and warns her not to get close. He refuses her help as if the ship is destroyed, he will have problem surviving. She wants him to return quickly and although he is not confident about it, he replies that he will. GINN’s right leg is hit but the damage is not critical. Elijah notices something about the enemy and knows that with this information, Gai will surely win. He is determined to return and tell him about it. He moves toward the ship while evading the attacks and manages to return safely. Gai is carrying out final adjustments on Blue Frame’s new equipment when he receives the information from Elijah. Gai simply replied that he got it, although he did not thank Elijah, his reply assures him that his trip is not in vain and that his information is of use. As Blue Frame launches, Gai is confident of his victory.

From the employer, Gai knows that the experimental unit is based on Moebius and the biggest problem is the Mirage Colloid system. The experimental unit can maintain a perfect invisible state for about 10 mins. Gai manages to evade the first shot mainly due to luck. Blue Frame moves towards a shoal region nearby, this is the battlefield Gai has chosen. As the enemy wants to finish him quickly, he will definitely fell for the trap. Gai activates the optional sensor unit upon entering the shoal region and enters a command. The computer immediately provides the answer; Gai fires his beam rifle at the location and destroys the enemy.

Loretta wants to know how he locates the enemy and Gai replies that it is due to Elijah’s information; he discovers that a portion of an asteroid in the battle becomes invisible. This is because the dissipated colloid particles that got onto other surfaces will render that area invisible. The location of the invisible enemy is revealed due to changes in the surrounding. Human usually have difficulty detecting such minor changes but Elijah still manages to notice it. Thus, Gai orders the computer to inform him when any of the surrounding area suddenly goes missing. It is thanks to the new senor unit that such minor changes can be detected. Gai is excited by the unknown possibility that Blue Frame holds and views it with satisfaction.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Chapt 4

Gai encounters Lowe after rescuing Elijah at Litilia, refer to the 1st post.

Chapt 5

To prevent ZAFT from gaining total control of space, EA started on a project and to keep it secret, regular units cannot be redeployed at will. Thus, mercenaries are used to fill the manpower gap. Serpent Tail lands on Earth after they are employed by EA and their first mission is to destroy ZAFT forces at a particular location. As this is a secret mission, Gai does not have all the details and they will not be receiving backup from the regular forces. Serpent Tail only knows that their enemy has a minimum of 9 MS. This is the 1st time their opponents consist entirely of MS, although Gai is not worried, Elijah is. Loretta points out that fighting power does not depend on numbers and that their mercenary status will help them. Elijah does not understand and she adds that the biggest problem is how long their MS can function without resupply. Elijah agrees and thinks that against such numbers, lasting for more than a minute is already a miracle but did not express this in words as he does not want to be seen as inferior to others.

As Gai and Elijah arrive at the location, they are immediately surrounded by 12 MS. A demoralized Elijah notes that they are at disadvantage and thinks they will be finished in less than a second if the enemies concentrate their attack. Gai calmly replies that the situation is within his expectation; it seems that he purposely picked such a scenario. Elijah is surprised he by his own calmness. He holds onto the control sticks tightly, waiting for the attack but it did not arrive. He wonders why and Gai says that they will make the first move. Blue Frame is currently equipped with missile launchers, bazookas and chaff launcher on the shield’s underside. Gai terms this form, ‘Full Weapon’; the weapons are selected based on energy efficiency and allows it to handle a large number of enemy over a prolonged period.

The enemy is unable to withstand Blue Frame’s attack and falls down one by one. They did not attack as Elijah’s GINN closes in and he realizes that they are afraid of hitting their teammate by mistake. He now knows why they did not attack earlier; they are too close to each other and are afraid that a stray shot will hit their teammate. He finds their movement to be too slow and manages to destroy 2 GINN at one go. He thinks that they are too unprepared and finally understands what Loretta meant; as they are mercenaries, they are used to MS battles while ZAFT pilots lack such experience. The gap in experience between them is too large. Gai readily discards weapons that are out of ammo as carrying them lead to unnecessary energy consumption. He finishes the last GINN with a stolen sword and when the battle ends, only the 2 mercenaries are left standing.

Chapt 6

Gina wants P01 to be transported out first and for all data to be copied onto its computer. When he is informed that the data is too large for the computer, he orders the additional data to be copied onto P03 while the Natural-use OS is to be copied onto P02. He questions if P-01’s launch preparation is complete. Although Gina’s voice did not contain anger or anxiety, there is a sense of coldness that terrifies his subordinates. He is told that it is completed but there is no feasible transport route. He replies that he will find a way after launching and wants the Duel’s bazooka prepared. The bazooka is selected as it can cause damage in a wide area, which is more suitable for securing the escape route while the beam rifle uses too much energy. Gina enters P01’s cockpit and completes the OS optimization in 2,3 mins. As P01 stands up, he comments that it is a good MS and nods his head in satisfaction. It picks up the bazooka and the hand plugs automatically adjust the weapon’s setting. He tells the workers that he is destroying the celling and wants them to stand back. However, he did not give them much time to react before firing. He leaves his subordinate with the final order that he is leaving first and to transport P02, P03 out once they are ready.

According to the information, the ZAFT force closing in is the famous Creuset team which is known for their thoroughness. Some people within Orb oppose his plan and must be gloating over this situation; Gina feels that he must not let them succeed. Due to ZAFT’s attack, the Astray units are bound to be destroyed. The government has ordered their complete destruction as Orb will be in a crisis if their existence is known. Gina feels that there must be another way and destroying the units is an act of cowardice. He cannot stand seeing his hard work ruined and decides to disobey the order, secretly transporting the units out. Gina thinks that ZAFT’s attack started when Heliopolis shakes violently. He admires Rau’s accurate judgment and decisive action. He doubts the other 2 Astray can escape and is determined to protect P01. The right arm short-circuits, he discovers that it is overloaded and the whole MS may be affected if he does nothing. This is likely because the MS is not an EA design and they have no time to test its compatibility with EA’s weapon. He is thus not surprised that the arm overloads. He types on the keyboard and the arm drops off.

A Moebius is waiting for Gina outside of Heliopolis, and its pilot requests that he hands the MS over or he will attack. This matches Gina’s estimation that the pilot is from Orb and is here to confirm Astray’s destruction. He did not respond as he finds the request dumb, the pilot has the same problem as the majority of Orb’s citizens, thinking that others will obey as long as they ask politely. Gina says that he will create his own future and cuts off transmission. He pulls out the beam saber and although he does not want to waste energy, he is forced to destroy the Moebius. While this is happening, Junk Guild and Serpent Tail enters Heliopolis from the opposite direction.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Next few chapters...

Chapt 7

Gai is shocked to see M1 Astrays and recognizes them as mass produced Astray. He wonders what Erica’s intentions in showing him these MS are; he is here to do his job, not to sightsee. She happily confirms his suspicion that she is just showing off and add that she is also satisfied to see his shock expression. She explains that the OS is greatly improved due to a certain teenager’s help and Naturals can now pilot MS. She points out that although M1’s test results are satisfactory; it is still different from real combat. Gai surprises her by correctly guessing that the teenager is Kira and adds that although he does not know him personally, Kira has some reputation as he manages to survive several ZAFT attacks. Gai accepts the job as he is interested in M1 Astray and its OS.

Gai and Elijah are on a deserted island that serves as testing ground for M1 and is some distance away from Orb, which is being closely monitored by ZAFT due to the presence of Archangel. The island is selected as Orb wants to keep M1’s existence a secret from ZAFT and EA. M1 and Blue Frame are equipped with low impact firearms for the test. Originally, Orb suggested paintball guns but Gai objects, he reasons that the combat testing is meaningless if the MS and pilots did not experience the impact when a bullet hits. A lady’s scream is heard as Gai lands his shots on a M1. He raps the pilot as it is a frontal attack and she should have use the shield if she cannot dodge. The pilots’ performance has been disappointing and Elijah comments that the problem is unlikely to be the MS or the OS. Gai notices this as well, the problem is with the pilots. To solve this, besides training, combat experience is needed. He points out that the OS is still buggy. M1 will sometimes do weird actions for unknown reason, with the most exaggerating being a martial artist’s pose. Elijah wonders if this is due to Lowe’s influence as M1 uses data from Red Frame which Juri obtained while working with them. Gai is not bothered as it is unrelated to his mission, which is to carry out a thorough combat testing. In order to get to the root of the problem, Gai suggests checking out the basic movements and requests Elijah’s help.

A M1 moves toward Elijah’s GINN but fell down after a few steps, Elijah scratches his head while complaining as he helps the M1 up. They are attack unexpectedly by 2 BuCUEs. The numbers are too small if they are sent to destroy them, it is more likely that they chance upon them while patrolling. Gai knows that it will be troublesome if they report back about M1. The BuCUEs rush towards Blue Frame and Elijah’s GINN as the former pulls out its sabers. Although the BuCUEs has better weaponry and its mobility and jumping power on earth is better than Blue Frame’s, Gai has experience on his side. One of the BuCUE jumps towards Blue Frame while the other attacks from the ground. Blue Frame jumps, slicing the leaping BuCUE and destroys the other while landing. Gai suggests leaving quickly as if the ZAFT HQ knows about this, they will have trouble repelling them and as they are not paid extra for fighting. Gai intends to help improve the OS for free as part of after sale service as he wishes to see better performance from the Astray units.

Chapt 8

The war between Naturals and Coordinators has ended. Gai’s new employer wants him to make a trip to the sun. He takes out some photos of the sun and Gai notices a black shadow near the surface. He correctly guesses that it is a cannon and wonders why it is there. The employer is unsure about the cannon’s origin or purpose, except that it is aiming at earth. Gai’s mission is to destroy the cannon and the employer provides him with the equipment required. It seems that the cannon uses the sun’s energy and magnetic field to maintain its position. Similarly, the energy for its cooling system and ammo, which is assumed to be laser, is also from the sun. With an almost infinite supply of energy and an unexpected location, it can be considered as a perfect weapon. Although the war has ended, the situation is still tense and a small spark can restart it.

Gai stops thinking about the cannon’s origin and purpose as a mercenary only need to accomplish his task, cause and effect are not his concerns. Currently, he only needs to think about how to win. While he is carrying out the final adjustment on his MS, he smiles and thinks that the mission is a rare and interesting one. He immediately feels the difference in surrounding after launching from the transport near the sun. The OS is configured to handle the extra gravitational force from the sun, but Gai is still experiencing a stronger than expected pressure. To protect his eyes from the sun’s blinding brightness, multiple special filters are applied on the cameras and what he sees is a composite image created by the computer. Sweats appear on his forehead and palms even though the heat should be blocked by the PS armour. Ablative gel around the MS is evaporating at an amazing rate and as its supply is finite, time is also Gai’s enemy. Blue Frame moves toward the cannon and witness the generation of a large corona along the way. Gai has to be careful as Blue Frame will be instantly vaporized if a corona passes close by.

Gai fires the pistols and back mounted laser cannons simultaneously. Although his shots hit the cannon, he is unable to confirm if it is critically damaged. He quickly changes the form of the extra armour; this form enhances Blue Frame’s thrust greatly. Ablative gel can only last a few more seconds as most of it is already consumed. As Blue Frame moves away, Gai experiences intense force as it battles against the sun’s gravitational forces. Soon after Blue Frame’s successful escape, a large explosion appears on the rear monitor. The cannon exploded and although Gai’s attacks did not directly destroy it, as it is close to the sun, any damage is critical. He confirms the mission is completed and did not expect to see the explosion as the precise moment requires a certain amount of luck. After a certain distance away from the sun, Gai decelerates Blue Frame.

Chapt 9

Gud vs Elijah, refer to 1st post.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Another 2 new chapters.

Chapt 10

Gigafloat is a space port secretly created by EA to counter ZAFT’s effort to contain them on earth (this is the project mention in chapt 5). ZAFT discovers the near completed Gigafloat accidentally when a DINN on recon mission is forced to change its course due to a storm. Serpent Tail lands on earth as they are employed by EA to protect the Gigafloat. To maintain the secrecy, regular forces are not used. Mercenaries like Serpent Tail are also better at keeping things a secret then members of EA.

A GOOhN appears in front of the scale system equipped Blue Frame. As there is only one enemy, Gai thinks that it is a recon unit. He likes meeting such unit(s) as they are of value to him. The GOOhN fires its torpedoes. A normal MS has difficulty avoiding torpedoes and the GOOhN’s pilot must have thought that Blue Frame is the same. He is stunned when Blue Frame sidesteps the attack without moving its limbs, as ZAFT’s aquatic MS is incapable of such movement. This is the main advantage of the scale system, a MS system designed for underwater close combat. To report the presence of the unknown MS, the GOOhN retreats. Blue Frame easily catches up as the combination of scale system and high powered underwater jet engine on its back enables it to move at high speed. Unable to shake Blue Frame off, the GOOhN turns around and fires its phonon maser. Gai is unable to dodge the accurate attack and decides to block it with the arm’s armour plate. Upon impact, the scales on the armour plate produce a vibration that cancels out the attack. This is a defensive use of the scale system but as the scales in the impact area are damaged, it cannot be used multiple times. The GOOhN is destroyed by Blue Frame’s supercavitating torpedos.

Gai uses the underwater sensor and detects a Vosgulov class submarine in the direction the GOOhN is heading. As the enemy has the numerical advantage, Gai decides to destroy the submarine rather than fight with the MS and rushes forward.

Chapt 11

Lowe is angry when he heard from Gai that Gigafloat is actually for military purposes. Kisato is unsure what to do and after a short while, Lowe replies nonchalantly that they should continue with the construction. He adds that there is no reason to leave it half built and that they will negotiate for civilian usage after completion. Gai thinks that he is too naïve but compared to giving up, he prefers Lowe’s way of thinking which is what Junk Guild would do. Lowe requests Gai’s assistance in protecting the Gigafloat and he replies that it is his job. Gai has already defeated the recon team and it is high likely that ZAFT will deploy a much larger force in their next attack. Although Gigafloat’s location has changed, there is no doubt ZAFT will try their best to locate it again. Besides the scale system equipped Blue Frame, Elijah has also arrived to provide support.

As expected, ZAFT attacks again. Gai wants Elijah to deal with the MS on Guuls and to lure the landing GOOhNs ashore before fighting to prevent an aquatic battle while he fights with the GOOhNs underwater. Although Elijah tries his best, he has difficulty hitting the agile airborne enemy. Lowe cannot stand watching it anymore and launches in his Red Frame although he does not wants it to suffer damages. Flight unit equipped Red Frame attacks with its katana, destroying a GINN. While flying close to the sea surface, it destroys a surfacing GOOhN despite being unstable. Lowe is warned about his unguarded rear and as Red Frame turns, a GINN rushes in but is destroyed by Blue Frame. Gai tells him not to let his guard down and he apologizes. Red Frame increases its altitude and after confirming that Lowe returns to the Gigafloat, Gai submerges again.

During the battle, ZAFT suffered heavier than expected causalities as Lowe handles the airborne enemy while Elijah deals with the landing ones and Gai destroys aquatic threats. To prevent further loses before their next major operation, they retreat.

Chapt 12

Gai vs Socius part 1, refer to earlier post.
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angelwingzero
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Awesome stuff man. I've always wondered about those novel-only stories. It's also cool that a lot of this was incorporated into SRW W, though I didn't know it when I played it.
"So he's wearing an all black pilot suit and you put him in the CRAZY MACHINE. In the mental state that he's already in, does that seem like a good idea?" - My favorite Chris quote.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Glad that you like them, angelwingzero. Stay tunned as i plan to post more novel stories.

Chapt 13

One day, ZAFT suddenly built 4 supply bases on a convenient space route. This route is also favored by civilians but once ZAFT uses it, they cannot use it anymore. After some discussion, members of the space freight industry decide to employ mercenary to destroy the bases. Gai accepts the job and does not mind if they pay him later, he just wants them to prepare a GINN immediately.

Gai’s attack took the base by surprise as there are no signs beforehand. The guards managed to identify the enemy as a customized GINN and although they try to hit it, it is too fast. They try to look for its mother ship as a MS requires it for survival, but are surprised that they cannot find anything in range. After Gai left, the leader of the guards wonders if they meet a ghost. Gai has the GINN modified to suit the mission. He plans to attack the bases single-handedly without a mother ship and to use hit and run tactics. Elijah points out that it cannot withstand a MS battle and Gai replies that he plans to evade all attacks and has no intention of engaging in MS fight. Elijah remarks that Gai better pray that he does not meet an enemy that can match the GINN.

While destroying the last supply base, Gai meets with a customized GINN that he cannot shake off. Without a choice, he decides to fight. The pilot of the cutomized GINN is Miguel and after identifying themselves, the fight started. Gai knows that he is from the Creuset team and will be a tough adversary. Miguel’s attacks are intense but some of them can be better. Gai concludes from his actions that he is easily agitated and does not see the need to defeat him as his aim is to complete the mission. He purposely rushes in and did not dodge Miguel’s attack. Miguel comments that he won and Gai does not mind giving him the victory.

Gai abandons the damaged GINN and escapes. The unpiloted GINN reactivates and follows its programmed movement course, crashing into the supply base. Gai thinks that Miguel must be panicking but at such distance, he cannot stop the fast moving GINN. He floats around in his space suit and is not worried about being detected as radar will not pick up the space suit and his heat signature is small. He plans to call his companions after ZAFT forces leave the area. To conserve oxygen, Gai starts to control his breathing and closes his eyes.

Chapt 14

Gai vs Socius part 2. Refer to earlier post.

Chapt 15

Gina is unmoved by Orb’s fall. He attributes it to Uzumi’s mistake and only he, who understands the mistake, is capable of building a newer, stronger Orb. He strikes a secret deal with Azrael and sees ZAFT as the enemy due to it. He plans to destroy EA in the future and is being obedient to EA currently as it is still of use to him.

While Gina is destroying a ZAFT fleet using Gold Frame Amatsu, slightly outside its sensor range, Gai is monitoring his actions in Blue Frame 2nd L. This job is from Erica and he cannot refuse as he feels that he owes her a lot, especially about Blue Frame’s repair. He is surprise to see Red Frame and guesses that Lowe must be responding to ZAFT fleet’s distress signal. He thinks that it is fate that the 3 Astray meet on the same battlefield. Knowing Lowe’s character, a fight is unavoidable but Gai is doubtful that Red Frame can overcome Gold Frame Amatsu. Despite this, he is certain that something unforeseen will happen and smiles. Gai has been looking forward to Lowe’s action since knowing him and thinks that whatever matter he is involved with, the outcome will always be surprising.

Gold Frame Amatsu breaks the Gerbera Straight; this is the moment Gai has been waiting for and he interferes with the battle, giving Lowe the Tactical Arms in sword form. Gai’s appearance did not affect Gina’s confidence and he attacks Red Frame but is unexpectedly defeated. Although Gai is hopeful about the outcome, he did not expect such a result. Gold Frame Amatsu aims it’s rife at the leaving Red Frame, but Blue Frame 2nd L stabs the cockpit before it can fire. Gai comments that the enemy should be removed immediately if one can defeat them; such is the law of mercenary. Using Lowe’s strength, Gai manages to remove Gina.
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balofo
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Nice work! Good to know the background of the Lowe vs Gina fight, also Gai being badass as always
E08
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

Personally, i think Gai's 2nd fight with mirage frame was more badass, even though it is rather short.

Time for another update.

Chapt 16

Gai’s mercenary instinct tells him that the job is fishy even though it is from a trusted source. However, Gai did not reject it as he wants to know what is making him uneasy. Upon reaching the location specified by the employer, Gai is surprised to see Red Frame and knows that he is correct to be suspicious. Lowe is surprised to see Gai, he explains that he accepts a job from Junk Guild and is there to meet someone. Gai tells him that they are tricked and Lowe wonders who set them up. Gai thinks the only possible person is the information dealer. Suddenly, both Astray receives a transmission; the speaker says that Gai is indeed a top class mercenary and is very clear about the situation. Gai identifies the voice as Kenaf Luchini’s but Lowe does not know him. Kenaf has been monitoring Lowe’s movement and intervenes several times but he did not appear in front of Lowe.

While questioning Kenaf’s motive for bringing them together, Gai is also checking the sensors but they cannot locate the source of the transmission. Kenaf replies that both of them interest him greatly and he is never tired of monitoring them. While watching them, he begins to think who will win in a fight and asks for their opinion. Lowe questions if he is expecting them to agree to the fight and he replies that they will. Blue Frame 2nd L then attacks Red Frame with Tactical Arms in sword form and Red Frame responses with Gerbera Straight. The MS are out of their pilot’s control. As both MS hold their ground, Kenaf finds it monotonous and boring. He decides to make it more interesting and Blue Frame 2nd L is suddenly hit by an invisible enemy. Gai asks if Kenaf is controlling the MS’s computer and he praises him for figuring it out so quickly. The enemy cannot be seen because the sensors are being controlled and Gai thinks that if he opens the cockpit door, the enemy should be within sight. Kenaf comments that Gai cannot be underestimated. He states that his MS, Gel Finieto, is equipped with a virus that can infect quantum computer and explains how the system works as even with these information, Gai can do nothing about it. Indeed, Gai does not know what to do as even opening the cockpit door is computer assisted.

Lowe disagrees loudly and slashes at an empty space. A MS figure appears and Kenaf wonders why Red Frame is moving. Lowe explains that he shuts down the computer and transfers the control of Red Frame over to 8. He adds that he is unsure about 8’s interior but it is no ordinary quantum computer. Kenaf curses and prepares to escape as his MS has no other abilities. Red Frame’s attack seems to stop the spreading of the virus. After regaining control, Gai chases kenaf and slices Gel Finieto in half. He sees Kenaf leaving the MS just before the strike but does not intend to pursue as he is not getting paid. Mercenary fights because of the payment, not for hatred or revenge.

Chapt 17

Gina heads toward Victoria base in the 70% completed Gold Frame Amatsu. Earlier, he strikes a deal with Azrael to help reclaim Victoria base in return for Orb’s safety. In the battle, Gina is assigned 2 Sword Calamity and they are in turn assigned 2 Strike Daggers each. The pilots for the Sword Calamity are Four Socius and Edward Harrelson, Gina recognizes their abilities and did not give them any detailed orders. He feels that only low ranking people need them. They perform as expected, slicing apart ZAFT MS with each strike. Gina activates the Mirage Colloid system and infiltrates the enemy’s positions, causing confusion. The battle is a success due to the special force commandeered by Gina. He later receives news of Orb’s fall, but did not hate Azrael for his betrayal. He attributes it to Uzumi’s insistence on his dream-like neutrality, even abandoning the country in the end. He is glad that the old Orb disappears and a new ambition starts to grow in his heart.

Chapt 18

After successfully defending the Gigafloat from ZAFT’s attack (refer to chapt 11), Lowe requested Kisato’s help in swapping Red Frame’s equipment. He explains that the pilots of fallen ZAFT MS may still be alive and he wants to save them. He believes that since the fighting is over, there is no difference between enemies and allies. Gai does not want to help and Lowe understands as mercenary do not work for free. Gai is astonished by Red Frame’s underwater equipment. Diving into the sea after the swap is completed, Lowe immediately discovers some MS wreckages and ties ropes around them. His companion on the Gigafloat will then recover the units. He comes across a MS pinned down by a metal frame and knows that it cannot be simply pulled up like the rest. He detaches Red Frame’s underwater equipment and slices apart the metal frame. After pulling the MS out, Red Frame quickly surfaces. Water start to seeps into Red Frame soon after purging the underwater equipment and Lowe comments that he nearly becomes sea algae bits (or something like that). Although this is his decision, his head starts to ache upon thinking of the MS maintenance after this.
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Re: Astray novels and photonovels

2nd last post for Astray B.

Chapt 19

EA launches multiple attacks to reclaim the captured Nova as ZAFT moves it from L4 to L5. Although all the resource has been mined, EA is not abandoning it as they do not want to admit defeat. Furthermore, ZAFT is converting Nova into a base while transporting it within EA’s view. However, the results of their numerous battles are disastrous. EA forces are no match for ZAFT’s MS and their current weakness, resupply, is solved as they are receiving it from Nova. Thus, ZAFT’s MS are capable of continuous fighting while the EA fleet has their supplies exhausted by the long trek to attack Nova.

Elijah is unhappy about participating in the battle to reclaim Nova as there is a large disparity in terms of fighting power and wonders if EA officers know their math. Gai explains that EA knows the additional MS will not improve their winning chance; they are doing this as they do not want to waste their fighting strength on a hopeless battle. Elijah wonders if the fight is just to preserve EA’s reputation. Gai did not answer his question but states that it is a good chance to test Blue Frame’s performance and to see if it can work well with Elijah’s GINN.

ZAFT did not deploy any ships to protect Nova as the MS are receiving supplies from the asteroid. Elijah has never fought with such a large group before and is shocked. Gai tells him that he just needs to attack those that come close to him. Elijah thinks that it is indeed so, enemies that are far away will not attack him and he cannot attack them, thus their existence can be ignored. They leap into action and only after a few minutes, Gai has already use up most of the weapons’ energy. This causes him to comment that the weapon usage is heavier than expected. 2 GINN close in and Gai lays down suppression fire using Blue Frame’s vulcans. He destroys them using the beam rifle and thinks that although the vulcans are weak, such weapon that can shoot at a wide area is still useful. Blue Frame attacks a GINN with its vulcans as the beam rifle has run out of energy. While it is being suppressed, Blue Frame rushes in and stabs its arm with Armour Schneider. The GINN lost its grip on the bazooka; Blue Frame steals it and as it cannot be used at close range, Gai stabs the GINN’s engine compartment with the dagger.

Using the bazooka, Blue Frame destroys an incoming GINN. Gai considers using it as Blue Frame’s optional equipment due to its firepower and starts to plan for the new equipment. He often fights in battle where he is at a numerical disadvantage and has been hoping to acquire weapons at a cheap price. This problem will be solved if he can use GINN’s weapon. EA forces are defeated again and in the ending stage, Gai encounters Mikail. During the journey to L5, the guard team for Nova has been changed several times and some of the aces deployed are Miguel and Mikail.

Chapt 20

The employer this time is weird, he wants Gai to join the mock battle involving ZAFT’s experimental MS and to hide his mercenary identity. Normally, Gai will reject such job but this time, he accepts as the employer is Siegel Clyne. Gai does not know that his previous mission to protect an Amazon village is actually from him. Siegel is very satisfied with his performance then, thus he uses his real name this time when contacting Serpent Tail. Gai did not reject him as he realizes the job most likely cannot be done by other people.

Gai is unable to conceal his astonishment when he sees Dreadnought gundam. He is able to conclude from its look that it uses data from the 4 stolen gundams. However, after the mock battle started, his attention is caught by something else. Dreadnought’s performance in all areas surpasses all current MS, Gai’s GuAIZ is no match for it but he thinks that there should be something else as otherwise there is no reason to hire him. He notices the radar is not jammed and concludes that Dreadnought has NJC and thus, a nuclear engine. He realizes the issue is much more complicated. Dreadnought’s beam reamers surprise Gai, he fails to evade their attack and is defeated. The story suggests that Gai would have perform better if he is using Blue Frame 2nd L. Although beam output in the mock battle is lowered, Gai’s GuAIZ is still heavily damaged and it is commendable that the cockpit is still okay. Gai quickly leaves and although only few people there knows his true identity, the longer he stays, the higher the possibility of him being identified. As he is leaving, he receives a disk from Siegel’s subordinate. It contains a new job.

The disk reveals that nuclear-powered MS is an unauthorized development carried out by ZAFT. Siegel has a headache deciding what to do with it. Although he can terminate its development, he is unsure if that is the correct decision for PLANT. As he is viewing the rapidly changing world from PLANT’s point of view, he does not think he can come to the correct conclusion. Siegel wants Gai to understand the gravity of the current situation and to do the right thing about Dreadnought. This is more like a request and it seems that Siegel employs Gai for this purpose. Gai accepts the request and Siegel is soon executed.

Chapt 21

Jean Carry joined EA as he wants to end the war quickly but was chased out after he developed the Natural use OS for them. When in EA, his MS is painted white so that his action can be easily monitored but he does not mind. It is because of his performance in a white MS that make him famous and after that some enemies automatically surrender after spotting his MS, which is the ideal outcome he wanted. He views Long Dagger as an excellent MS that has high production value.

During the battle of Panama, he meets Duel gundam and comments that it is fate that causes the production unit to meet its prototype unit. Yzak is unhappy to hear this and labels Long Dagger as a fake. He asks if Yzak is willing to retreat if he is about to be killed but Yzak treat his words as a joke. Jean later clarifies that he is a Coordinator, causing Yzak to label him a traitor. He feels that Yzak is too agitated to listen to anything he says. The battle starts with close range shooting, both units are unable to distance itself from the other as that will add too many uncertainties. The fight is intense, causing Yzak to complain about the amount of copying that EA is doing. Jean responds that Long Dagger is merely a follow-up MS but Yzak labels his reply as sophistry.

5 mins after making contact and 4 mins after the battle started, Jean realizes that it is impossible to win without damages as the opponent is currently one of the few ZAFT pilots skilled in MS fights. One of the major advantages Jean used to have when battling ZAFT MS is their pilots’ lack of experience in MS fight. Long Dagger purges its extra armour at extreme close range, releasing a blinding flash. This is an additional feature in Long Dagger and Yzak is caught off-guarded. Jean thought that the fight is over as he attacks with both sabers but Yzak blocks with Duel’s shield and pulls out its saber. Jean is surprised by Yzak’s reaction speed. Yzak yells that it is too early for the fight to end and Jean senses that he is enjoying the fight. Long Dagger is suddenly disabled by an EMP and Jean is prepared for his death. However, Duel just stares at it and left after a while.

Lowe wonders if Jean will settle the score with the pilot if they meet again and Jean thinks that is not important. He wants to talk to him instead as he did not kill a defenseless enemy and feels that they can understand each other without fighting. Lowe thinks that the words are indeed from an ace pilot that continues to reject war and is trying to survive in a fight to stop it.
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