Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Mobile Suit Gundam Fan Fiction / Gundam SEED Fan Fiction ❯ Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament ❯ Level 2, Match 7 ( Chapter 32 )

Episode 32

Level 2, Match 7

Written By
Mark Moore

Fa Yuiry has scored her second victory, defeating Germany and keeping Japan in the tournament. Now, attention shifts to the next match.

Saturday, December 1, 2007, 4:44 PM, Eastern Standard 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!"

"I think she can take a break for a while. I'd like to see about increasing the Gundam's flight duration."

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

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

Lunamaria got out of the cockpit.

Nina looked at Emma. "You can take a break, too."

Emma smiled. "Cool. Thanks."

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?"

"Good. We wanted to ask you for permission to increase the Gundam's flight duration."

"Wait until the Level 3 match-ups are revealed. We might need to install missile launchers instead. I guess you were so caught up in your work that you forgot about the time. Match 7 is going to start soon. Let's go to my house to watch it. I'll cook dinner."

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

Murrue, 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.

Murrue turned on the television.

"Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to Level 2, Match 7, of the First Gundam Tournament. We're here live in the streets of Dublin. 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 Ireland versus Zambia. The Irish pilot is Martin Ahern. The Zambian pilot is Levy Chiluba. Ireland's Gundam - the green one - is 18 meters tall, 0.5 meters of which is taken up by the head. It is armed with a beam rifle. Zambia's Gundam - the black one - is 22 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.

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

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

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

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

"Take that!" Martin yelled.

"Take this!" Levy yelled.

Levy fired his Gundam's beam rifle repeatedly, hitting Ireland's Gundam over and over again.

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

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

Martin kicked Zambia's Gundam ten times with his Gundam's right leg.

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

Levy kicked Ireland's Gundam repeatedly with his Gundam's left leg.

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

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

Levy fired his Gundam's beam rifle repeatedly at Ireland's Gundam, hitting it repeatedly.

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

Martin's Gundam fell backwards.

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

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

"And there you have it. Zambia has beaten Ireland. This is quite a surprise. Ireland is out of the competition, but it is allowed to assist another nation of its choice. Zambia moves on to Level 3. There will be more coverage on your evening news. Thank you for joining us."

Murrue turned off the television.

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

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

Murrue turned on her grill in her backyard, placed six hamburgers on it, and closed the grill.

Murrue walked back into the kitchen and then 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 seventh match of the second level of the First Gundam Tournament was held in Dublin this afternoon. The participants were Ireland and Zambia. Zambia won. It will move on to Level 3. Ireland, meanwhile, having been eliminated from the tournament, has announced today that it will back the United Kingdom in the tournament. We turn to our White House correspondent, Donald Samuelson. Donald, how is the White House reacting to Zambia's victory and Ireland's defeat?"

"Peter, it's a mostly neutral reaction, but the White House is disappointed that Ireland will not be supporting us."

"Will the combined resources of the United Kingdom and Ireland help the United States?"

"It's possible, Peter, but we really won't know until we see the resulting Gundam in action."

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

Murrue turned off the television.

"Dinner should be ready." Murrue stood up.

The rest of the women stood up as well.

Murrue opened the grill, turned it off, picked up the hamburgers, and placed them on a plate.

Murrue walked over to the picnic table, where the other women were seated, and set the plate on the table.

Murrue sat at the table.

Each woman took a bun, placed it on her own plate, took a hamburger, placed it on her own plate, and poured barbecue sauce over it.

The women started eating.

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

Emma swallowed a piece of hamburger. "I'm surprised that Ireland lost. Its Gundam was impressive."

Relena laughed. "I think it surprised everyone."

Lunamaria smiled. "I think it was just dumb luck. Zambia's Gundam isn't that good. They'll be eliminated in Level 3."

Murrue smiled in amusement. "I recall you saying they'd be eliminated today."

"Well, I was right about Ireland." Lunamaria stuck out her tongue.

Nina looked at Lucette. "We should upgrade our Gundam."

Lucette considered that for a moment. "Yeah."

Murrue frowned. "Once we finish dinner, let's go back to base. There's someone that I want you to meet that will be arriving shortly."

Murrue was sitting behind her desk in her office on the base.

Emma, Relena, Nina, Lucette, and Lunamaria were sitting in chairs in front of the desk.

There was a knock at the door.

Murrue smiled. "Come in."

The door opened. A woman walked into the room. She had short, red hair. She closed the door behind her.

The woman saluted Murrue. "Lieutenant Matilda Ajan reporting as ordered, sir."

"At ease, Lieutenant."

Matilda relaxed.

"Let me introduce you to the rest of the Gundam crew. These are Emma Sheen, the pilot; Relena Peacecraft, her girlfriend; Nina Purpleton, the head engineer; Lucette Audevie, another engineer; and Lunamaria Hawke, the test pilot. Girls, this is Matilda Ajan."

Emma, Relena, Nina, Lucette, and Lunamaria stood up. Each of them shook Matilda's right hand and exchanged greetings with her.

Matilda smiled at Emma and Relena. "So you're the ladies that I'll be guarding."

Emma and Relena were surprised.

"Guarding?" Emma asked.

Matilda was surprised and looked at Murrue. "They don't know?"

Murrue looked at Emma and Relena. "Matilda will be your bodyguard."

"Bodyguard?" Relena asked Murrue. "Do you think we really need one?"

"This wasn't my idea. It came down from the Chief of Staff. Now that we're at Level 3, Emma might be considered a target by Iran or another nation." Murrue smiled. "Besides, I seem to recall you requesting body armor when in Iraq, Relena."

Relena smiled. "Point."

"Matilda will be living with you and will follow you at all times."

"Understood." Emma looked at Matilda. "We don't have a guest bedroom."

"It's okay. I'll sleep on the couch."

Relena smiled. "It'll be nice to have a guest for a while."

"How old are you, Matilda?" Emma asked.

"27."

"Same as the captain."

Murrue smiled. "Matilda's a bit older than me."

Matilda smiled. "And with age comes wisdom."

"Go and practice in the simulator, Emma."

"Yes, sir."

Emma opened the front door and walked out of the office, followed by Relena, Matilda, Nina, Lucette, and Lunamaria. Lunamaria closed the door behind her.

Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament

Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament

In Montreal, Canada, Christina MacKenzie, Reccoa Londe, and Flay Allster sped down a road in Christina's red convertible. They were listening to "The Warrior" by Scandal 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, Reccoa, 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 air is getting colder. Winter is approaching."

Flay inhaled the fresh air and exhaled. "Yeah, so is the end of the tournament."

Reccoa inhaled the fresh air and exhaled. "I know that the tournament ends this month, but the end isn't in sight. We're still at Level 2."

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

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

Une Antonn was sitting in a chair in Natarle's office.

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

"At ease, Lieutenant."

Christina relaxed.

Natarle smiled. "I'll take you three to check in on the Gundam first, then I want you to hit the simulator."

Christina smiled. "Hehe."

Natarle stood up. "Not like that, Chris. Let's go to the hangar."

Christina grinned. "Yes, sir!"

Une stood up. "I think you'll find that the Gundam is coming along quite nicely."

Natarle, Une, Christina, Reccoa, 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, Une, Christina, Reccoa, and Flay walked into the hangar.

The hangar doors closed.

Soon, they arrived at the Gundam.

"So what's been done to it?" Christina asked Natarle.

"Patience, Christina. Miriallia will explain."

Natarle, Une, Christina, Reccoa, and Flay walked into the elevator. Natarle pressed Up, and the elevator rose. It stopped at the chest area, and the five women got out of the elevator.

Miriallia Haw, the Gundam's head engineer and communications officer, was standing at a console. Standing with her was Stella Loussier. 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 bring Christina, Reccoa, and Flay up to speed."

"Well, basically, I tweaked the thrusters to make them more powerful. You'll fly higher. It was a bit pricey, but I think it'll pay off when you win your second match."

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

Miriallia smiled. "Think positively."

"I'll try."

"Stella helped me with the upgrades."

Stella smiled. "I look forward to your second match."

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

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

"On your way there now?" Miriallia asked.

Christina smiled. "Of course."

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 campus.

"Do you want to try fighting a human opponent?" Miriallia asked Christina.

"Sure."

"Okay, get in."

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

Miriallia made some selections on the computer console. "I switched the program to 2-player mode. Do I have a volunteer?"

Stella walked over to the second simulator. "I'll try it."

"Okay. Hop in."

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

The screens inside the simulators turned on. They displayed a dock. The ocean appeared to Christina's left and Stella's right. A thunderstorm was approaching. There were dark clouds in the sky. Lightning flashed. Christina and Stella 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 Stella's Gundam. Stella jumped and avoided the attack. Christina jumped and fired her beam rifle. The blasts hit Stella's Gundam repeatedly. Christina then kicked Stella's Gundam three times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Overheating!"

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

Stella came at Christina and kicked her Gundam five times with her Gundam's left leg. Christina punched Stella's Gundam 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 Stella's Gundam five times with her Gundam's right leg.

"Checkmate!"

Stella's Gundam fell down.

"Well done! Glory to the winner!"

The simulation ended. The screens went black.

Christina got out of her simulator.

Stella got out of her simulator.

Stella smiled. "Pretty good, Christina."

Christina smiled. "Thank you, Stella. It was fun."

"Wanna go again?" Miriallia asked.

Christina looked at her watch. "I've got class in 20 minutes."

"Ooh! Thanks for reminding me!" Asuna cried. "I'd forgotten about it!"

Natarle sighed. "I guess I'll go to my office and immerse myself in paperwork."

Une smiled. "When we get home, we can immerse ourselves in your bathtub."

Natarle chuckled nervously. "Une, not in front of our subordinates."

"What's the matter?" Une asked. "They know you, Catherine, and I fuck."

"Dismissed!" Natarle quickly ordered her crew.

Christina, Flay, Miriallia, Asuna, and Catherine ran out of the simulator room.

Une sighed. "You, too, I guess."

Reccoa and Stella walked out of the simulator room.

"Miriallia, you promised to give a guest lecture in my class tonight."

"That's right, Christina. Thanks for reminding me. Stella and I will dismiss the rest of the engineering staff, secure the hangar, and be there shortly."

Christina looked at Catherine and smiled. "So, Catherine, details! How's Une in bed?"

Catherine smiled. "Great. How's Reccoa?"

Christina was surprised.

"Oh, come on. You're doing it. Admit it."

Christina smiled. "Reccoa's fanfuckingtastic."

Flay smiled. "Your turn, Miriallia. How's Stella?"

Miriallia smiled. "Great. So...I take it that everyone in each household is fucking everyone else."

The rest of the women agreed.

Asuna smiled. "We should have some sleepovers."

Stella smiled. "Definitely."

Reccoa smiled. "I'm all for it."

Christina was sitting behind her desk in her classroom.

She took her attendance log out of her desk's top drawer. She made notes of Flay, Asuna, Catherine, and Reccoa, who were already seated.

Soon, more students walked into the classroom and sat down.

Finally, Miriallia and Stella walked into the classroom.

Stella sat down. Miriallia walked over to Christina.

Christina made a note of Stella in her attendance log. She put it back in the drawer and closed it.

Christina stood up. "Attention, everyone."

The students settled down and were quiet.

"We have a special guest tonight. Please welcome Dr. Miriallia Haw."

The students applauded.

Miriallia smiled. "Thank you, Dr. MacKenzie. Tonight, I'm going to give a lecture and Gundam thrusters."

"Yes, and remember that the information contained in this lecture will make up a good portion of the midterm."

Most of the students groaned.

Christina ignored them. "Catherine, Reccoa, and Stella are on audit status, so they don't have to worry about their grades. The rest of you, pay close attention. Dr. Haw, the class is yours."

"Thank you, Dr. MacKenzie."

Christina went and sat in an empty chair.

"Some of you are in my Mobile Suit Engineering class and already know me. For those of you that don't, my name is Miriallia Haw. I'm a lieutenant. I'm 18 years old. I'm the head engineer and communications officer on our Gundam project. I know this is the Mobile Suit Piloting class, but people in the mobile suit industry need to be familiar with all aspects of mobile suits, no matter their occupation. Tonight, we'll be talking about the thrusters."

"How big are the Gundam's thrusters? Are they massive?" one male student asked.

Some of the other students laughed.

Miriallia sighed.

With Canada's second Gundam match fast approaching, Christina MacKenzie is worried of her performance. Will she be ready in time?

Next on "Mobile Suit Gundam Tournament":

"Christina's Anticipation"

You will race with the tide.