[X][Mega-Particle Cannon] Let the Feds take their prize. You'd rather not have all those enemy Mobile Suits turn their attention to you.
[X][AA Guns] Leave them inactive, it wouldn't be smart to antagonize people who'll be allies tomorrow.
It would be so easy. A switch here, a button press there, and you could send that Garuda down in flames. Would it be worth it, though? The Feds look like they're preparing to disengage, and honestly you're not sure your current forces could hold this airship if they assaulted you.
Damn it. Guess they're getting away. And you won't turn on the AA guns either, everyone fighting around you is a potential future ally. Just one Mobile Suit isn't worth burning those bridges…
You head back to the helm and reset the coordinates to the previously-agreed location. So far so good. Outside, the battle is still raging. Right in front of the bridge windows two Mobile Suits are fighting. A blue Zaku II with atmospheric jets strapped to the legs, and a GM Custom with similar modifications. It's a bit terrifying to see Mobile Suits fighting so close when there's only glass and thin steel protecting you, but you can't help but notice the ingenuity of both MS. You wouldn't have ever thought to try to make those Suits flight-capable, you would have just gotten Base Jabbers for-oh god the Zaku just fired its bazooka and missed.
You throw yourself to the ground as the rocket streaks past the bridge, impacting the Garuda somewhere farther back, shaking the whole transport. Idiot! That pilot is an idiot! Alarms go off all around you and the Garuda starts to tilt! You lunge for the helm control and bring up the systems readout. Port engines are all good, but one of the starboard engines is unresponsive! Fuck!
Putting more thrust into the remaining starboard engines slows the list, but the Garuda is simply over-weight now! It can't stay airborne unless it loses weight, and fast!
You lock the controls and stagger over to the comms station. Where's the open frequency setting… there! You grab the headset and jam your finger on the transmit button.
"Attention, everyone!" You shout into the mic, "The Garuda has sustained damage and needs to shed weight, now! All Mafty forces on top, get off! Everyone else, clear the way, unless you want the Feds to be the only winners in this absolute mess!"
To everyone's credit, you see the fighting stop, mostly. The Garuda's systems even indicate that it's periodically getting lighter. Guess the Mafty Suits up top are jumping off. But it's still not enough! If Sicilia and Lorelei were smart, they cleared out as well! But it's just not enough! You need to lose a lot of weight to stabilize, but what could you possibly-?
…
There's something.
"This is big enough to carry a Mobile Armor. How big is this Mobile Suit?" You curse as you climb on top of the MS container in the hangar. Getting to it was a bitch and a half, since the Garuda is listing 30 degrees to the right. The transport rattles and groans around you as the autopilot tries to keep it stable, but if you can't get this thing out of the hangar, it'll fail and then everything here goes straight to the bottom of the ocean! You won't let that happen!
Reaching an access hatch in the container, you throw it open and peer down into the darkness. That looks like a hatch for a Mobile Suit… you can't make out the overall design, but that's not important! You drop down on top and fumble for a switch. A satisfying click answers your probing hands, and the cockpit hatch hisses open. Score!
You drop straight down into the cockpit, the systems coming to life. Looks almost standard, but… well, you can tell quality when you see it. The hardware in here is a whole generation ahead of anything you've flown.
"Okay. Startup sequence, startup sequence…" The hatch closes, shutting out all the noise. Your murmurs are the only sound filling the cockpit. Onscreen, the Anaheim logo flashes. It fades out to display the designation of this Mobile Suit.
RX-105 Xi Gundam. Minovsky Flight System Mobile Suit.
"Minovsky?" You stare at the title. Holy shit, that thing goes on spaceships! Did Anaheim seriously cram one onto a Mobile Suit? You almost can't wait to take this thing out for a spin, if so!
The screen transitions, hopefully to the proper menus so that you can-Oh you've got to be kidding.
"First time setup." You repeat the words being displayed, "You want me to do first time setup?!"
Everything shudders, as if to emphasize that you're currently in a transport that's going to crash into the ocean at full speed unless you launch right fucking now.
[] Select all the System Defaults, you just need to get this thing in the air before the Garuda passes the point of no return!
[] Given that this Mobile Suit has apparently never been activated before, this might be indicative of a bigger problem with it. You need to spend at least a minimum of time reading the instructions.
[] Fuck this. Get back out and jettison the containers holding spare parts and optional equipment. You refuse to risk your life on untested hardware, but you'll save the Mobile Suit itself, at least.
