Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Mobile Suit Gundam Fan Fiction / Gundam SEED Fan Fiction ❯ Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament ❯ Level 1, Match 05 ( Chapter 7 )

Episode 07

Level 1, Match 05

Written By
Mark Moore

Author's note: I'm sorry for the delay. I'm going to try to get the series back on schedule. Enjoy the story. Feedback is welcome.

Iran has defeated Russia and remains in the tournament. The Russian Gundam team has shared its data and met with the American Gundam team. Now, attention shifts to the next match.

October 8, 2007, 4:52 PM, Eastern Daylight Time

The United States military base where the Gundam was being tested was Aznable Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. The Gundam was in a hangar.

Lunamaria Hawke, the Gundam's test pilot, was sitting in the cockpit, which was located in the Gundam's chest area.

Emma Sheen stood on the platform adjacent to the cockpit, watching Lunamaria. Standing at consoles on the platform were Nina Purpleton and Lucette Audevie, the two engineers that had designed the Gundam for the United States Government. They worked for Anaheim Electronics and were currently under military command while on this project. The fourth person on the platform was Relena Peacecraft. She was interested in the proceedings but was primarily there to give moral support to Emma.

"Okay, raise the right arm."

At Nina's request, Lunamaria pulled the lever on her console that controlled the right arm. The arm slowly rose up until it was pointing straight up.

Nina smiled. "Good. Now, make a fist."

Lunamaria pressed the right fist button. The Gundam's right hand closed into a fist.

Nina nodded. "Good! Now, lift the right leg."

Lunamaria pressed the right leg button. The Gundam's right leg lifted.

Nina nodded. "Good! Now, extend the leg into kicking position."

Lunamaria pressed and held the right leg button. The Gundam's right leg extended.

"It looks like the leg's fixed. I think we should shut the Gundam off and consider boosting the legs' strength."

Nina nodded. "Agreed, Lucette. Power down, Lunamaria."

Lunamaria opened the Gundam's hand, lowered its arm, lowered its leg, and shut off the Gundam. The blue glow in the Gundam's eyes disappeared.

Lunamaria got out of the cockpit.

Nina looked at Emma. "If we increase the legs' strength, your kicks will do more damage."

"Will I be able to win the match faster?" Emma asked her.

"Theoretically, you should. It's no guarantee, though."

Murrue Ramius, Emma's superior officer, walked into the hangar.

Emma and Lunamaria saluted her. "Captain!"

"At ease. How's the Gundam coming along, Nina?"

"We fixed the leg, and we're thinking of boosting the strength of each leg. It'll be pricey, but I think it'll be worth it."

"I guess you were so caught up in your work that you forgot about the time. Match 05 is going to start soon."

Lunamaria smiled. "Thanks for reminding us. Let's go to my house to watch it. I'll cook dinner."

Murrue smiled. "Sounds good."

Emma, Relena, Nina, Lucette, and Murrue gathered in the living room in Lunamaria's house and took their seats.

Lunamaria, carrying a tray with six large glasses filled with cola, walked into the living room. The other five women each took a glass. Murrue set the tray on the table, took a glass, and sat down.

Lunamaria turned on the television.

"Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to Level 1, Match 05, of the First Gundam Tournament. We're here live in Vienna. Allow me to introduce myself to those of you watching at home. My name is Bright Noa. I am the commentator for this tournament. Today's match is Austria versus Israel. The Austrian pilot is Heinz Gusenbauer. The Israeli pilot is Shimon Olmert. Austria's Gundam - the green one - is 16 meters tall, 1 meter of which is taken up by the head. It is armed with a beam rifle. Israel's Gundam - the red one - is 20.5 meters tall, 0.5 meters of which is taken up by the head. It is armed with a beam rifle. The match is about to begin."

"Fight!" a simulated male voice declared over a speaker.

Heinz moved his Gundam forward and punched Israel's Gundam with its right fist. Israel's Gundam was knocked back a bit.

Shimon made his Gundam jump into the air, then he fired at Austria's Gundam with the beam rifle in its left hand. The shots hit Austria's Gundam repeatedly.

Heinz fired at Israel's Gundam repeatedly with the beam rifle in his Gundam's left hand. The shots hit Israel's Gundam repeatedly.

"Overheating!" the simulated male voice of Israel's Gundam declared.

"Take that!" Heinz yelled.

"Take this!" Shimon yelled.

Shimon fired his Gundam's beam rifle repeatedly, hitting Austria's Gundam over and over again.

"Overheating!" the simulated male voice of Austria's Gundam declared.

"You won't do that again!" Heinz exclaimed.

Heinz kicked Israel's Gundam ten times with his Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!" the simulated male voice of Israel's Gundam declared.

Shimon kicked Austria's Gundam repeatedly with his Gundam's left leg.

"Overheating!" the simulated male voice of Austria's Gundam declared.

Heinz fired his Gundam's beam rifle. Shimon activated his Gundam's thrusters and flew his Gundam into the sky, dodging the blast.

Shimon fired his Gundam's beam rifle repeatedly at Austria's Gundam, hitting it repeatedly.

"Checkmate!" the simulated male voice of Austria's Gundam declared.

Heinz's Gundam fell backwards.

"Well done! Glory to the winner!" the simulated male voice declared over a speaker.

"Damn it!" Heinz exclaimed. "How could this happen?!"

"And there you have it. Israel has beaten Austria. Austria is out of the competition, but it is allowed to assist another nation of its choice. Israel moves on to Level 2. There will be more coverage on your evening news. Thank you for joining us."

Lunamaria turned off the television.

"We've got some time before the evening news begins. I'll make dinner now." Lunamaria stood up.

Lunamaria collected the empty glasses, placed them on the tray, and carried them into the kitchen.

Lunamaria placed twelve pieces of chicken on a pan, opened the oven door, placed the pan on an oven rack, closed the door, and set the temperature.

Lunamaria quickly washed the glasses and set them to dry.

Lunamaria walked back into the living room.

She took her seat.

The evening news came on.

Peter Jenkins, the lead anchor, was sitting at his desk in New York City.

"Good evening, everyone. The fifth match of the first level of the First Gundam Tournament was held in Vienna this afternoon. The participants were Austria and Israel. Israel won. It will move on to Level 2. Austria, meanwhile, having been eliminated from the tournament, has announced today that it will back Germany in the tournament. We turn to our White House correspondent, Donald Samuelson. Donald, how is the White House reacting to Israel's victory and Austria's defeat?"

"Peter, both Austria and Israel are considered friendly competitors, so the White House wasn't too interested in the outcome of this match. It is mildly disappointed that Austria isn't supporting us. Overall, it's mostly a neutral reaction."

"Do the resources of both Germany and Austria match those of the United States?"

"It's possible, Peter, but it's still difficult to say. We have to see Germany's Gundam first. We really don't know what we're up against."

"All right. Donald Samuelson, many thanks. Now for the day's other news."

Lunamaria turned off the television.

"Dinner should be ready." Lunamaria stood up.

The rest of the women stood up as well.

Lunamaria opened the oven and took out the pan. She placed it on the stove.

Each woman took two chicken legs and placed them on her own plate.

Lunamaria added mashed potatoes on each plate and then poured gravy on it.

The women took the plates to the table, sat down, and started eating.

"What do you think of the match?" Murrue asked.

Emma swallowed a piece of chicken. "Neither Gundam is particularly impressive."

Relena swallowed a piece of chicken. "Yeah, I didn't care for this match."

Lunamaria smiled. "There will probably be more Level 1 matches like this. When Level 2 starts, things will be more interesting, because the best competitors from Level 1 will be competing against each other."

Murrue smiled. "Yeah, that'll be fun to watch."

Nina looked at Lucette. "We've still got a while until our first Gundam match. We should use the time to run more simulations and upgrade our Gundam as much as possible."

Lucette considered that for a moment. "Yeah. The data that the Russians provided has been really helpful so far."

Murrue frowned. "Once we finish dinner, let's go back to base and run some simulations."

The women entered the simulation room in the base.

Emma got into the simulator. "Okay, I'm ready."

Murrue made some selections on the computer console. "Using the battle data that was sent to us from today's match, I'm going to program the drone to be a combination of our, Australia's, Niger's, Kuwait's, the United Kingdom's, Turkey's, Poland's, Russia's, Iran's, Austria's, and Israel's Gundams. If you can beat this, it won't be a guarantee of victory in your first match, but it should boost your confidence. Okay, try this."

The screens inside the simulator turned on. They displayed a city street at night. Skyscrapers appeared to Emma's left. A clone of Emma's Gundam appeared in front of her.

"Fight!" the simulator's male voice declared.

Emma moved her Gundam forward. She swung the left arm at the drone. The drone jumped and avoided the attack. Emma jumped and fired her beam rifle. The blasts hit the drone repeatedly. Emma then kicked the drone three times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

Emma knew that she had caused damage to the drone. She activated her Gundam's thrusters and flew the Gundam into the sky. She fired at the drone with her beam rifle.

"Not enough power!"

Emma's Gundam landed back on the street. The Gundam didn't have enough power for long flights and had to recharge.

The drone came at Emma and kicked her Gundam five times with its left leg. Emma punched the drone three times with her Gundam's right fist. Then she kicked it six times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

Emma knew that she was close to victory. She kicked the drone ten times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Checkmate!"

The drone fell down.

"Well done! Glory to the winner!"

The simulation ended. The screens went black.

Emma got out of the simulator.

Murrue smiled. "Pretty good, Emma."

Nina looked at the statistics on her screen. "Your reflexes are pretty good."

Lucette looked at the statistics as well. "So is your strategy."

Emma walked over to them. "I don't know. All that it proves is that I can defeat Australia's, Niger's, Kuwait's, the United Kingdom's, Turkey's, Poland's, Russia's, Iran's, Austria's, and Israel's Gundams."

Relena frowned. "She's right. Who knows what the other nations have?"

Lunamaria gave Emma a cheerful smile. "Don't worry, Emma. The real thing feels just like the simulator. I think you'll be able to use our Gundam to its full potential."

Emma smiled at her. "I wish I was as confident."

Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament

Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament

In Montreal, Canada, Christina MacKenzie and Flay Allster sped down a road in Christina's red convertible. They were listening to "Victory" by Bond on the radio.

They soon arrived at École du Ciel.

Christina parked her convertible in one of the faculty parking spaces.

After parking the car and getting out of it, Christina and Flay walked to the school's entrance. It was a cool Autumn evening. A gentle breeze was blowing.

Christina inhaled the fresh air and exhaled. "The breath of Autumn is a whisper to the soul."

Flay inhaled the fresh air and exhaled. "Absolutely. I know what you mean, Christina. It feels wonderful. It's so refreshing and uplifting. It makes me feel joyful."

Christina opened the door to one of the buildings and stood aside. Flay walked into the building, and Christina followed her.

They walked down a corridor and over to an office.

Christina knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Christina opened the door and walked into the office. Flay followed and closed the door behind her.

Natarle Badgiruel, Christina's superior officer and the school's dean, was sitting behind her desk.

Christina saluted Natarle. "Lieutenant Christina MacKenzie reporting as ordered, sir."

"At ease, Lieutenant."

Christina relaxed.

Natarle smiled. "Miriallia has upgraded the Gundam a bit, Christina."

Christina smiled. "How so?"

Natarle stood up. "Let's go to the hangar. She's show you."

Christina grinned. "Yes, sir!"

Natarle, Christina, and Flay each submitted to thumbprint and retinal scans outside the hangar. Then Natarle typed in a code on the keypad.

The hangar doors opened.

Natarle, Christina, and Flay walked into the hangar.

The hangar doors closed.

Soon, they arrived at the Gundam.

"It doesn't look any different."

"Patience, Christina."

Natarle, Christina, and Flay walked into the elevator. Natarle pressed Up, and the elevator rose. It stopped at the chest area, and the three woman got out of the elevator.

Miriallia Haw, the Gundam's head engineer and communications officer, was standing at a console. Catherine Bloom was also standing there, staring at the Gundam in fascination.

Miriallia turned to face Natarle and saluted. "Sir!"

"At ease."

Miriallia relaxed.

"How's the Gundam coming along?" Natarle asked.

"Well enough. It'll be ready in time."

"I want you to explain the new upgrades to Christina and Flay."

"Well, basically, we increased the Gundam's leg power. Both legs have been ungraded. It's an expensive gamble, but I think it'll pay off when you win your first match."

Christina smiled. "You seem to have a lot of confidence in me, Miriallia."

Miriallia smiled. "Think positively."

"I'll try."

"Will you be ready in time?" Miriallia asked Christina.

"I believe so. I've practiced in the simulator for many hours."

"Want to try her out?" Miriallia asked.

Natarle frowned. "Let Asuna worry about the test piloting. I want Christina in the simulator."

"Yes, sir." Miriallia turned to face the Gundam. "Asuna! Come on out!"

The Gundam's cockpit, which was located in the chest area, opened, and Asuna Elmarit, the test pilot, got out.

"Asuna, Christina is going in the sim. Let's go and watch her."

Asuna smiled. "Okay."

All of the women walked over to the elevator and rode down to the floor.

Miriallia smiled. "All right, Christina, let's see how you do."

The women entered the simulation room in another building on the base.

Christina got into the simulator. "Okay, I'm ready."

Natarle made some selections on the computer console. "Using the battle data that was sent to us from today's match, I'm going to program the drone to be a combination of our, Australia's, Niger's, Kuwait's, the United Kingdom's, Turkey's, Poland's, Russia's, Iran's, Austria's, and Israel's Gundams. If you can beat this, it won't be a guarantee of victory in your match, but it should boost your confidence. Okay, try this."

The screens inside the simulator turned on. They displayed a dock. The ocean appeared to Christina's left. The drone appeared in front of her. A thunderstorm was approaching. There were dark clouds in the sky. Lightning flashed. Christina heard thunder. There was a light chop to the water.

"Fight!" the simulator's male voice declared.

Christina moved her Gundam forward. She swung the left arm at the drone. The drone jumped and avoided the attack. Christina jumped and fired her beam rifle. The blasts hit the drone repeatedly. Christina then kicked the drone three times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

Christina knew that she had caused damage to the drone. She activated her Gundam's thrusters and flew the Gundam into the sky. She fired at the drone with her beam rifle.

"Not enough power!"

Christina's Gundam landed back on the dock. The Gundam didn't have enough power for long flights and had to recharge.

The chop in the water was now medium.

The drone came at Christina and kicked her Gundam five times with its left leg. Christina punched the drone three times with her Gundam's right fist. Then she kicked it six times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

The chop in the water was now heavy. Water was splashing onto the dock.

Christina knew that she was close to victory. She kicked the drone ten times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Checkmate!"

The drone fell down.

"Well done! Glory to the winner!"

The simulation ended. The screens went black.

Christina got out of the simulator.

Natarle smiled. "Pretty good, Christina."

Miriallia looked at the statistics on her screen. "Your reflexes are pretty good."

Catherine looked at the statistics as well. "So is your strategy."

Christina walked over to them. "I don't know. All that it proves is that I can defeat Australia's, Niger's, Kuwait's, the United Kingdom's, Turkey's, Poland's, Russia's, Iran's, Austria's, and Israel's Gundams."

Flay frowned. "She's right. Who knows what the other nations have?"

Asuna gave Emma a cheerful smile. "Don't worry, Christina. The real thing feels just like the simulator. I think you'll be able to use our Gundam to its full potential."

Christina smiled at her. "I wish I was as confident."

"Do you want to try it again with the upgraded legs?" Miriallia asked.

"Sure."

"Okay, get in."

Christina got into the simulator. "Okay, I'm ready."

Miriallia made some selections on the computer console. "I programmed the upgraded legs into your simulated Gundam. Okay, try this."

The screens inside the simulator turned on. They displayed a dock. The ocean appeared to Christina's left. The drone appeared in front of her. A thunderstorm was approaching. There were dark clouds in the sky. Lightning flashed. Christina heard thunder. There was a light chop to the water.

"Fight!" the simulator's male voice declared.

Christina moved her Gundam forward. She swung the left arm at the drone. The drone jumped and avoided the attack. Christina jumped and fired her beam rifle. The blasts hit the drone repeatedly. Christina then kicked the drone three times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

Christina knew that she had caused damage to the drone. She activated her Gundam's thrusters and flew the Gundam into the sky. She fired at the drone with her beam rifle.

"Not enough power!"

Christina's Gundam landed back on the dock. The Gundam didn't have enough power for long flights and had to recharge.

The chop in the water was now medium.

The drone came at Christina and kicked her Gundam five times with its left leg. Christina punched the drone three times with her Gundam's right fist. Then she kicked it three times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

The chop in the water was now heavy. Water was splashing onto the dock.

Christina knew that she was close to victory. She kicked the drone five times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Checkmate!"

The drone fell down.

"Well done! Glory to the winner!"

The simulation ended. The screens went black.

Christina got out of the simulator.

Miriallia smiled. "Pretty good, Christina."

Christina smiled. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I definitely felt the improvements."

The next match is Venezuela versus Lebanon. Who will win?

Next on "Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament":

"Level 1, Match 06"

You will race with the tide.