This one's a great piece.
Io.
Is this pirate radio again?
Put on some headphones, at least.
Sound is something you got to feel with your entire body.
Did you pick this one up the other day?
They played some good tracks.
No kidding. You're lucky you managed to pick up the waves.
Maybe the thunder brought in the radio waves.
By causing the Minovsky particles-
To disperse?
Whatever.
Dub me a copy later.
Here it is!
This part is perfect right before a sortie!
I know what you mean.
When I listen to this,
I picture myself dodging past debris in the nick of time.
I can feel my ass vibrating in my seat.
The switches by my hands and feet.
They all become my eyes and move at my will.
Can't they do something about the air quality inside the hangar?
That's your cold talking.
Cornelius, tissues.
I want them back when you're done.
Thanks.
Catch you later.
I'll run through the mission overview.
We will take out the enemy snipers nested in our motherland, Moore, the Side 4 space colony.
In the past month, they've shot down more than 40 of our Suits in that zone.
We cannot forgive these barbarians
for destroying our homeland, the Thunderbolt Sector!
This war is entering its final stage,
and regaining this sector
will turn the tides of war in our favor.
We shall bring glory back to Side 4, Moore,
and deliver death upon Zeon!
My "comrades"?
We were just born in the same, stupid place.
Free jazz is definitely the way to go here in Thunderbolt.
I love being in a Mobile Suit!
Whether I'm in a battle or just floating in space, it's where I can set myself free!
This is bad. We're giving off too much light!
When they fire at us, we can simply trace the shot back to where they are!
All right, now let's see who gets to draw the short straw.
Who just got hit?!
It was Ensign Io!
Commander! Commander!
Mayday! Mayday!
Commander Alan was disabled by a beam cannon.
His unit's too damaged to confirm amongst the debris!
The enemy's sniping from behind the debris!
All radio's jammed with a Minovsky cloud this thick!
Start looking for-
Dave!
Sniff out the enemy sniper!
How are they spotting us?!
The Minovsky particles have been so dense the entire time!
Trace the shot back!
It's from Side 4!
You sayin' we open fire on our homeland?!
The barrel's reached its lifetime.
I'll focus on sending the trajectory estimation data it's collected.
Good job, Chief Petty Officer Daryl.
I'll handle the rest.
I'm getting an Iron Cross after this!
Gonna show it off to your girlfriend back home? Or...
It's hard to please whoever Ensign Hoover reports to, Sean.
Oh, shut up!
I'm gonna shoot 'em all down, the Feddies and my girl's heart!
Wow, Daryl's amazing!
Does he have a sixth sense or what?
Or is he one of them rumored Newtypes?
Gonna take some R&R right after I'm decorated back home!
Ensign Hoover, I think your unit is starting to drift away.
Your comm keeps cutting.
Please check the cable connection.
Oh, really?
What?
Hey!
Hoover!
It's a person!
That's a Feddie normal suit!
Daryl! Can you take him out?!
I can't aim from my position!
But Hoover's...
He was shot in the head! You saw it, didn't you?!
This cockpit ain't all that different from a Zaku's.
What up?
You might be the ace sniper,
but your taste in music certainly doesn't measure up. How disappointing.
Big talk for a guy who got lucky.
I'm not even surprised a crippled motherfucker like you's taking wimpy pot shots.
Are you making fun of my legs?!
I've figured out your firing positions.
I can cruise control my ass back home via your blind spots.
You won't escape the next time we meet!
I'll get you for sure.
I'm Chief Petty Officer Daryl Lorenz.
I'll keep my eye on you.
And I'm Ensign Io Fleming.
When you hear the jazz play, it means I'm coming for ya.
That was Patti Page singing Tennessee Waltz, right?
Yeah. You could hear it?
I prefer the Royal Teens myself.
Ah, you liked Short Shorts?
Nah, I'm talking about this.
Oh, true.
If you're interested, let me know.
I'll think about it.
Out of the 24 we sent out, these are the only ones that made it back?
That's what happens when a dumbass plans the mission.
Get the mechanics on that thing! Top priority!
Io!
Ensign Io Fleming has returned.
I never did like him...
Fronting to come across as a playboy...
Carry the corpse to the Reuse Lab.
We miraculously found him,
and we want to send his remains to his family.
Retrieving the data from his prosthetic arm comes first.
Even dead, we're just guinea pigs to you?
It's because of that data that you can fight, right?
Professor Karla, what should we do with the-
Professor?
Heavily damaged: four.
Lightly damaged: six.
Ejection cockpits only: five.
Units lost: nine.
I see.
We're currently extracting data from the Rick Dom
that Ensign Io Fleming captured.
We might be able to learn more about the enemy's formations.
Uh-huh.
The cargo has also arrived,
and some people have been assigned to take care of the crates.
Our mechanics have also returned, so we can begin preliminary testing immediately.
Who'll be the pilot?
I believe Ensign Io is our only option.
You're right...
Should I give the order?
No... I'll be the one.
An experimental Mobile Suit, huh?
Did the Moore Brotherhood pass the Federation money under the table?
The only remaining pilot who outranked you died in the last operation.
Otherwise-
I'm not the only one who's been promoted because a senior officer was KIA.
Right, Madam Acting Captain?
Unhand me, Ensign Io Fleming!
That's an order!
Yes, ma'am.
So that's how it is.
Who'd have guessed, right?
Where's the Captain?
That little girl is spending quality time with her man.
I see.
She gets to be captain just because she's privileged?
Talk about special treatment.
Speaking of which, I heard Io's getting the prototype.
It's the same with him. He's the son of Moore's leader, too.
It was because of that incompetent aristocracy that
Zeon was allowed to invade and destroy our homeland.
But they'll serve as suitable scapegoats.
They'll be the young heroes who valiantly died to fulfill their ideals.
We'll turn those sinful ancestries
into propaganda for the Moore Brotherhood.
That's what the Gundam is for.
I can't go on loving you anymore.
With my feelings cast aside, I can bring myself to order you to your death.
That's right, Claudia!
Tell me to go out there!
I've been entranced, you see,
by these mobile suits burning bright in the blanket of the night!
I listened to the audio records from the battle.
The man who killed Hoover...
When you hear jazz, that's his signal, right?
Yeah.
I'm begging you, Daryl.
Kill that man on sight.
You're a supposed god on the battlefield. You can do it, can't you?
Professor Karla, can I get some painkillers?
The legs you gave me...
They ache more than usual tonight.
We're just confirming the enemy's sniper rotation extracted from the Rick Dom's data.
You got that?!
Don't do anything more than a simple flight test!
Cornelius, tissues.
Sure thing.
Buddy, hook me up with some music too.
You got it.
Holy shit. There's no comparison.
So this is... a Gundam.
This is ecstatic! This is the power I've always wanted!
Gundam...
Lend me your power.
He dodged it?!
No way!
Damn! What is this monster?!
It's jazz.
Three Zakus were gunned down like this,
all of them containing footage of their Big Gun's fire being evaded.
It's a heavily armored, high-mobility Mobile Suit.
That makes it a fearsome foe, full of trouble for our Living Dead Division.
The Feddies'-
Gundam!
It's him!
♪ White Day, in the blue.
A month has passed is true.
Stained chocolates vary the air.
You were on your knees.
I hoped for your words of pleasure.
Were you just a sprinter crouching down?
Best Valentine's Day you was.
I know for sure, because praying for a good night,
I could not go to sleep.
My blue, white day
will be when my flower allow ya.
Good morning my little heartache. ♪
CHAPTER 2
FEBRUARY
2016