Sieg Zeon - Chapter 4: The Battle of Loum

The Federation had actually taken the bait. That fact kept ringing in Valeria Caine’s head as she made her way to the Holstein’s crew lockers ahead even of her teammates; given the urgency and palpable anticipation around her, it never hurt to go one step ahead. Briskly changing out of her uniform and slipping into her green pilot suit – considerably tighter fitting compared to the bulkier, old astronaut-style “normal suits” others used to protect themselves in space – she still felt the same sense of relief even now, just a couple days after the sleight of hand became apparent. To think I also fell for it, the young woman mused wryly as she saw more of her comrades in arms file in. At least no more dropping colonies this time!

By making the Feddies believe that Zeon was going to continue with Operation British, it seemed like there was no other choice but to deploy all their remaining fleets in an attempt to stop it at Side 5, Loum. But the bait, supposedly cooked up by Vice Admiral Dozle Zabi himself, was just part of a wider strategy. If all went according to plan, the coming battle would break the back of the EFSF and give the Principality an undisputed position of superiority over the Federation.

From there, perhaps sanity would finally prevail and a peace treaty could be made that’d end the Earthnoids’ oppression of those who live in space. Could it work though? She had to admit however, as she left for the briefing room, that for the first time since this war began, she might actually be excited.

A battle that could end the war that just so happens to be a straight up fight? No gas attacks? No colony drops?

It's almost too good to be true. Valeria’s enthusiasm dampened somewhat as she vaguely recalled a key detail that’d most likely pop up in what could be the final briefing. With Admiral Tianem dead with the rest of his fleet, it left the strong possibility that the Feddies would send their most competent and distinguished commander to take charge of the attack.

That thought alone caused her to frown. The face of Johann Ibrahim Revil, after all, wasn’t unknown in Side 3, the man having made publicized visits to the homeland in in the years leading up to the war. But for all his grandfatherly façade, the general was considered incredibly talented even by Spacenoid standards.

And I don’t think he’ll be giving us victory on a silver platter either. Even with the loss of the entire EFSF 4^th Fleet helping give Zeon’s combined forces more of an equal footing in terms of ships alone, the fact remained that Revil’s presence alone would make winning the imminent battle even hard, if not force more drastic measures with all the talk of nuclear warheads on standby. Still, as the young pilot found her spot, she shrugged off that familiar sense of dread. 

“Whatever happens,” she murmured inaudibly just as the Holstein’s captain entered. “I’ll live through this!”

--o--

In one of the Zaku-II’s onboard monitors, a live, if stuttering feed played that was being broadcast through the video and audio channels. The images alternated between the crews of the Jormungand cannon and the supply ship Jotunheim, both commandeered by the 603^rd Technical Evaluation Unit. Not even the growing effects of Minovsky Particle interference hindered the audible cheering as ships belonging to Zeon’s combined forces advanced ahead. With several Chivvay-class heavy cruisers and even Vice Admiral Dozle Zabi’s personal Gwazine-class battleship close by to ensure the rear wasn’t compromised.

<"Receiving a transmission signal!”> One voice announced over the now-static laden images, most likely one of the crewmen on board the Jotunheim reading a message from Dozle Zabi himself. <”The result of this battle will be determined by you, the fleet, and your new weapon.">

<"Respond: We are eagerly waiting for the fleet to send us the precise coordinates for the long-range attack. We give our thanks in advance.">

All this however remained just that, in the screens and comms before Valeria, while she and the rest of the 87^th MS Team remained on standby in the Holstein’s hangar. Not for much longer though. Waiting for their cue as per the plan, the young woman took note of the date displayed in the live feed: January 15, UC 0079. 11:20 GMT. There was no going back, anymore.

True enough, the flickering images shifted to muted scenes showing the sleek shapes of Musais, Chivvays and Gwazines exchanging fire with their particle cannons and missiles, further underscored by the faint rumbling of the Holstein’s own guns going off. She wasn’t sure though which was more worrying. As tense anticipation, the fact that the use of nuclear warheads was greenlit or the growing sense that the Federation took the bait a tad too well seemed to well in her all at once. Still, it disgusted her how the Feddies seemed so brazen as to position themselves so close to the colonies making up Loum. 

Whether the enemy was waiting until the last minute to even consider evacuating the local Spacenoids or General Revil was that keen to call Zeon’s bluff didn’t matter much to Valeria, as either reason still meant collateral damage was inevitable. As she sighed however, the scene flickered once more to an exterior shot of the prototype cannon itself as its myriad mechanisms sprang to life. While she wasn’t so vulgar as to comment on its phallic appearance, she had to admit it was an impressive piece of engineering with all its moving parts. Here it comes…

<"This is the Jormungand. Deployment complete. Coolant preparation complete. Have loaded the initial round. Awaiting data on enemy positions.">

<"Acknowledged, Jormungand. Sending data now.">

<"Data received. Taking aim. Firing in 3, 2, 1 . . .">

A bright flash of plasma-infused energy appeared on screen as the weapon fired, the ensuing blast soon destroying swathes of the enemy in the portion of space it fired at. The sight along caused the pilot to gape in shock, only for the Jormungand to soon fire a second time, destroying an advancing Feddie battle group before it could even get close to the massive gun. As the scene repeated a few more times, the pilot momentarily wondered how horrifying it must be to be on the receiving end of such a powerful weapon, only to shrug it off. Better them than us.

Then at last, the firing and images ceased. The signal came.

<”This is Jormungand to all combat forces. Phase One of the Operation is complete! Commence Phase Two!">

<”This is Holstein to the 87^th MS Team. You have clearance to engage! Good luck and good hunting!”>

The time had come for the Mobile Suit to have its time in the sun. Following behind the rest of her teammates, the young woman took a deep breath. Now or never!

"Ensign Valeria Caine! Launching!"

With those words, she joined the nearly 500 Zaku-IIs being unleashed upon the EFSF’s so-called First Combined Fleet. On first exiting the Holstein's hangar, she was nearly overcome with shock at the sheer spectacle of what’s going on before her very eyes. She knew this battle was going to be a large one – perhaps the largest one of its kind in space – yet seeing so many ships, fighter craft, and MS engaging each other all at once was a sight that could only be described as awe inspiring. All while her comms grew packed with so much chatter that it was difficult to even tell one apart from the other. So this is war, then…

She was thrown out of her momentary paralysis as a swarm of Saberfish headed towards her direction, only for the sudden appearance of a gigantic beam of energy to vaporize the glorified fighter jets as it cut through space towards a nearby Magellan. For those brief few moments before the enemy vessel exploded, she watched as the blast simply cored through it. Seems like the Jormungand wasn’t out of juice just yet, huh? 

Shaking free of the shock, Valeria charged right into the enemy's ranks. Like the vast majority of Zakus involved in this operation, she was once again equipped with the Machinegun and a Sturm Faust. More than enough for me! There were simply so many more MS than Feddie ships that there was little need to restrict herself to the standard-issue Bazooka normally reserved for such targets.

Around her meanwhile, more Saberfish than she could count were engaging with Zeon’s own Gobble craft in vicious dogfights while fellow MS pilots were laying waste to the Federation's forces left, right, and center. Every now and then, the Jormungand would fire another shot or an occasional ace – including a red-painted Zaku-II – passed through towards their prey. These were things that, as a soldier, even she couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride in.

However, not everything present at this battle was as promising. In the distance, she witnessed a few more explosions that were evidently nuclear in nature. On top of this, she saw with growing dread how many of Side 5's colonies were already in a terrible state, some appearing as though they were merely glass cylinders smashed upon the ground. Even in the thick of battle and the constant threat of enemy fire, she wondered how many civilians must have died by then, be from an unlucky stray shot or from the Federation’s neglect. 

This is war, then. All this…no…NO!

She refused to fall into despair. The sight only drove Valeria to fight harder so that she might try to save those colonies that weren’t yet been ruined by all of the fighting. And make those Feddies pay for their hubris!

“Out of my way!” she gritted as she gunned down a Saberfish that was in her way, downing it as though it were merely an insect. Small and insignificant. After using up the Sturm Faust on the blue hull of a nearby Salamis, she began copying the tactics she’d seen other MS pilots used, either firing at the missile launchers to trigger secondary detonations or strafing the ships’ bridges themselves. Anything to bring them down as quickly as possible. At the very least, the pain would be quick.

Eventually, the Zeon pilot lost count of how many ships she had taken down with such methods; in the thick if the action, it was even becoming harder to reconcile her sense of time with what her console's clock read. Still, had become apparent that the Federation visibly was pulling back. Against her growing exhaustion – and the growing sense that she was beginning to enjoy this a bit too much – she continued dodging enemy fire towards a small group of vessels that was evidently the rear guard. But as the last Magellan in that group was destroyed from another passing Zaku-II, the name Nereid momentarily visible on the vessel before exploding, she set her sights on a crippled Salamis that still tried to aim its particle cannons at her.

“This ends now, you fucking sons of-”

<”Caine, hold your fire!”> her superior Halder’s voice rang through the comms. <”We just got word that a team calling itself the Black Tri-Stars just captured Gen. Revil! The Feddies are calling for a surrender!”>

“Sir?” Valeria gasped in surprise as the implications of those words began sinking in. “We defeated them, Sir?!”

There was a faint, relieved chuckle from across the link. <”Just make sure they don’t do anything stupid. But rest easy, Caine. You deserve it. We all do.”>

For once, she smiled as she sat back in her Zaku’s cockpit. “Yes, sir!”

While the EFSF’s First Combined Fleet wasn't totally destroyed, it might as well have been as far as anyone’s concerned. While no doubt Zeon suffered casualties as in any battle, the Federation losses, Valeria mused, could only ever be described as catastrophic. They’d be foolish to think they could still fight on after this! Still, there was reason for her to feel optimistic and relieved.

She checked the date. It was the early morning of January 16. After several hours of intense fighting, the Battle of Loum was over.

And I’m still alive to see it. Victory never felt any more sweet. Zeon had won.