Chapter.03 Black Shadow

The sensation of outer space around Haman and Judau quickly faded away. Haman was aware that it was the boy in front of her that put the pressure on her earlier. At first, Haman thought about the Newtype Corps. If he was an artificial Newtype, in other words, a Cyber-Newtype, he might be able to put a lot of pressure on himself.

Judau apologizes, saying he got lost in such a big place. He flashed a cheeky smile, but there was no way Haman would buy it. She demanded to know who he was and held up the gun. He mutters an excuse, so she fires off a shot towards the balcony, the bullet grazing the roses on the railing. Judau recoils in fear.

Two guards who had been waiting outside came rushing in. Seeing Judau, they pointed their guns at him. Haman stops them before asking who he is and his affiliation. Judau says that even if he told her, she probably wouldn’t understand, to which she again points her gun at him saying she doesn’t like that.

Begging her not to shoot, a black shadow rises from Haman, gradually taking on a shape of its own. It looked like a demon, but it vanished in an instant. There was no time for Judau to think about it as the door to the room swung open, and Ple jumped in. Joyful that she found him, Haman and the guards were distracted by the sudden intruder. This gave Judau the only chance he had. He jumped up on the balcony railing and tells Haman that he’s with the Argama before jumping down.

Ple tries running out onto the balcony but is stopped by one of the guards. The other guard tried seeing where Judau had run off to, but he was nowhere to be seen. He had jumped to the balcony on the lower floor. The guard ran out of the room in pursuit of him nonetheless.

Haman, meanwhile, was shaking. Had the Argama crew infiltrated Axis? Ple was desperately trying to shake off the guards’ arm. Snapping out of it, Haman walked over to Ple and touched her cheek. As expected, the power of her touch quieted Ple.

Judau slipped out the front of the palace, lucky because it was just before the shift change for the palace guards, which allowed him to steal a military elec-car. By the time they noticed and fired off their weapons, he had already broken through the main gate. As he glanced back at the palace, he wondered who that woman was (or what rather) before punching it away at a breakneck speed.

When Glemy heard the commotion outside, he rushed to Haman’s side. Leina, who was with him, stayed in the guest room. She looked out the window and saw the figure running away, a figure who looked all to familiar to her: her brother. But, before she was sure that he was there to save her, he takes off on a military elec-car. The sound of footsteps in the corridor was constant. Fearful, Leina plays he won’t die and that he gets away.

Elpeo Ple was quickly cleared of being a spy, Magany proved she was a member of the Newtype Corps. Haman was surprised that this girl was a member of that unit. But, was convinced in part thanks to Magany’s explanations that she was a Cyber-Newtype sample. Ple was turned over the Glemy, but she was still resisting, so she was given a tranquilizer and put to sleep in the guest room.

Magany explains that he doesn’t think that the imprint failed; it was just that the intruder’s resonance and Glemy’s might have been similar, thus causing her to make a mistake. Glemy wonders if this happens often, and Magany says it’s a mechanical process, and he can’t say that it doesn’t happen. Pondering what to do, Magany explains that she can’t be used as a Neo Zeon soldier as long as she is resonating with the enemy. She would have to be reprinted.

Flipping through her interrogation report, he feels that is the only way. The intruder’s name was Judau Ashita of the Argama, who was described as having sneaked into Axis to help his sister, and offering Ple a chocolate parfait. Glemy is certain he heard that name somewhere before.

Judau slips into Moussa’s port with the stolen vehicle. He notices that the Endra had been outfitted with an Earth-drop ballute system. He’s certain that it was the same ship his sister was on. He tried to stop the vehicle next to the ship, but a team of several other military vehicles came up behind him. They raised their guns at him, ready to fire.

Punching it, Judau sped away as fast as he could, almost taking out Gottn and Chara as they were in the walkway crossing. Swarms of military elec-cars passed them by, and Gottn wonders what all the commotion is about, to which Chara wonders if it isn’t just an out-of-place out-of-time biker gang.

Hugging one another as they drifted down the pier, they could see the ship they’d be assigned to below them: the Mindra. Chara comments on how good Gottn smells and asks what cologne he’s wearing. He says it’s Cullen & Cullen (or something), and Chara comments on how the name is strange. Gottn says he likes it though. As he replies, though, he realized he was in a risky position. With his hands around her waist, he suddenly buries his face in her gaping cleavage.

He sobbingly asks what the hell they’re doing here to which she replied that it’s a love affair (workplace romance, however you want to spin it). She hugged him tightly, and even though it felt like he was suffocating, he enjoyed it.

Back with Glemy still pondering things, he realizes that the girl in his possession is Leina Ashita. He goes to her room to ask her, and she confirms it. He asks her some more questions, and she spills that her brother is flying a new model suit (the Double Zeta). As he tries to press more, Magany interrupts him. He’s told the Ple disappeared. A sense of jealousy festers inside of Glemy because of the situation. He says they have to search for him first.

Having shaken off his pursuers, Judau arrives at the port to locate his core fighter, but the dummy meteorite he rode in on is nowhere to be seen. He’s told by a worker that they were in the way and that they’re beyond the hatch. Frustrated, he realizes there’s no air beyond the hatch and takes off towards the area he was directed. The man asks where he’s going without a normal suit.

Ignoring him, he reaches the hatch and takes a deep breath before jumping in. Since the space hatch and Axis hatch were closed, there was still air in the passageway. Just as he locates his core fighter, the hatch on the space side started to open. A transport ship was arriving. The debris floating inside began to rush outside.

Barely making it inside, the meteorite explodes with a bang, revealing the core fighter. He passes right by the transport and shoots out into space. Although he was quickly pulling away from Axis, he does a 180 to look back at it. He could see a ton of lights emanating from the Moussa section. It was the Neo Zeon descent force. Convinced the Endra must be among them, he zooms in on them but cannot make anything out.

Just then, someone called out to him. Turning his head, he sees a black shadow passing overhead. It was a black Qubeley. The suit latches onto the Core Fighter. The voice asks him where he’s going. Judau thought it was familiar and realizes that its Elpeo Ple. Ple asks him why he left since his sister was in the palace. He thinks she is lying, and Ple says that Glemy has her, so she’s probably on the Endra by now. This was the first time he heard the name Glemy.

Ple tries to get him to play, prying on the canopy of the Core Fighter. Judau yells at her, saying he isn’t wearing a mobile suit, to which she says neither is she. Judau breaks free, and just as the Qubeley is about to catch him again, a beam blast cuts through the space between them.

The beam was fired from a nearby meteorite, causing it to explode, revealing the Hyaku-Shiki and the Mega Rider. Roux had come to save the day. Two more meteorites that were drifting behind burst open, revealing the Core Top and Base. It was Elle and Iino.

Ple is frustrated, saying she’s just here to play with Judau. Only then, he notices countless dots of light scattered around the Qubeley. They begin firing beams one after another. Judau and the others were confused. Some of the beams grazed the armor of the core fighter and the Hyaku-Shiki. Angered, Judau rams the Core Fighter into the Qubeley. His entire body was exuding an aura like that of Ple’s (oops, forgot to mention that she was).

Scared, Ple screams, and the funnel beams cease. She’s surprised that the funnels aren’t firing anymore. They were rendered inoperable since the Qubeley’s psycommu system overheated. Space was quiet.

Judau docks with the Core Fighter. Ple cries that Judau can’t bully her, but he only says he’s doing it because she’s in a mobile suit like that. She doesn’t get it, calls him an idiot, and flies off. Judau calls out to her, but the Qubeley vanished. In the cockpit, Ple tells herself that Glemy will comfort her.

Judau sees the Endra on the monitor. He’s certain Leina is on it. Roux keeps trying to tell him that they have to get back to the Argama. She levels with him by saying that if they do something now then Leina won’t likely be safe. They had two mobile suits. There’s no way that they’d be able to stand up to the Neo Zeon’s battleships. Even if they could, they’d still have to save her from the ship.

Elle and Iino make contact in their two Core Fighters, telling him that Roux is right and that if they get ahead of themselves then things could end badly. The Double Zeta, the Hyaku-Shiki on the Mega Rider, and the two Core Fighters retreat towards the Argama to their rear. Judau turns and looks back at Axis, the huge asteroid base floating in the inky blackness of space, revealing its cold, rocky surface to him.