Susumu listened to the voice of Kato, who was continuing his reconnaissance flight with the Cosmo Tiger squadron, coming from the speaker at the combat station.

“We haven’t found any enemy ships or bases in the northern hemisphere of this planet.”

“I see. Understood.” Susumu said into the mic.

The Cosmo Tiger squadron had split into several locations and was scouting the entirety of Aquarius. A message came from another Cosmo Tiger.

“This is Yazaki, Cosmo Tiger squadron.”

“Kodai here. Let me know the situation.”

“The same goes for the southern hemisphere. We couldn’t find any enemy ships or bases. However, we have found what appears to be a Tritium pumping plant!”

“What?!” Susumu became nervous. The other crew members listened intently to the communication. The speaker continued.

“The enemy fleet is probably using this as fuel… Ah! The enemy fleet is firing at us from the floating continent!”

Communication was cut off for a while. They were probably wondering whether to turn around or not.

“Yazaki, what’s wrong?”

The voice came from the speaker again.

“A torpedo squadron and countless fighter planes! Heading to the floating continent where Yamato is anchored! We’re heading to intercept Yazaki’s planes!”

Communication to Yamato was cut off. But from the speaker, the Cosmo Tigers could be heard communicating with each other. They were planning to unite and intercept the enemy. Susumu switched off the mic.

The crew members who had been listening to the communication immediately went into emergency mode.

“Sixty degrees to starboard, many enemy aircraft approaching!” Yuki shouted as she watched the radar panel.

At the same time, Ota, who was following the exploration satellite, said. “Information from exploration satellite! A huge flying object has been discovered fifty space kilometers behind Aquarius!”

Ota was watching a different radar panel from Yuki’s, quickly reading the information on the display.

Captain Okita twitched his right eyebrow and ordered, “Display it on the video panel.”

“Yes, sir!”

The strange figure of the gigantic city satellite Uruk was displayed on the video panel. Yuki stared at her radar panel in a fluster.

Susumu looked up at the video panel and said, “This is the enemy’s main body! No doubt about it!”

“I see,” Shima said. “The warp system is in that city satellite.”

“Enemy aircraft approaching!” Yuki reported.

“Sanada,” Captain Okita called out.

“Yes!”

“What about the defense against the Hyper Thermonuclear Missiles?”

“It’s finished. But…”

“But?”

“We haven’t tested it yet.”

“That’s fine.”

“Sir!”

Yuki shouted, “The enemy has launched a missile!”

Captain Okita gave the order after a moment.

“Yamato, launch!”

Shima hurriedly checked the instruments and gripped the controls.

“Full power! Climb angle 40 degrees, full speed ahead on both sides!”

Yamato made an emergency takeoff from the lake. The water surface churned and rippled, and a tremendous amount of water fell from the bottom of the ship. Yamato took off, kicking up the entire lake. As if blown by a storm, the lake water splashed all around, shaking the nearby sea of trees.

At the same time, a group of missiles flew over the lake surface, passing the area where they were anchored. Some of the missiles hit the high rising waves and fell into the lake. The rest flew toward the sea of trees.

Yamato rose at an incredible speed. The lake steadily became smaller. An explosion occurred in the lake, giving rise to a huge column of water. Then, explosions occurred one after another in the sea of trees, scattering debris.

“Full power injection! Full speed ascent!” Shima gripped the control sticks.

Susumu shouted loudly, “Everyone, put on your space suits!”

The order was transmitted to all parts of the ship.

Sanada said to Nanbu. “Prepare Hyper Thermonuclear Missile defense!”

“Understood!”

Nanbu headed for the third bridge.

A communication came from Kato. “Cosmo Tiger squadron assembled! We will attack the enemy squadron!”

“I’m counting on you!” Susumu shouted into the mic.

Space suits were distributed, and everyone put them on while doing their part.

Lugal II was in the cockpit of the command fighter heading for Yamato above the floating continent, giving orders with a grim expression.

“All fighters, dive attack!”

Dengil’s fighter planes began dive bombing Yamato, which continued to rise through the sky above the floating continent. However, the Cosmo Tiger squadron attacked from the side. Yamato opened all its guns to fight back, and continued to rise into space.

The wings were retracted. Yamato fought back and escaped from Aquarius’ ring of ice blocks. A fierce aerial battle broke oiut between the Cosmo Tigers and Dengil’s fighter planes. Pulse lasers flew from all sides, causing their targets to explode.

Yamato‘s gunports spat energy into space, and many enemy fighters were destroyed by the pulse lasers. The battle gradually left Aquarius and moved into space.

Dengil’s torpedo squadron was waiting there, rapidly approaching Yamato.

In the cockpit of the command fighter, Lugal II twisted his mouth into a sneer.

“Yamato…” Then he gave the order. “Torpedo squadron, commence Hyper Thermonuclear Missile attack!”

Missiles were fired simultaneously from the torpedo squadron’s multiple launchers.

On Yamato‘s third bridge, Nanbu was looking at the modified targeting panel. Sanada’s tense voice came from the speaker, and Nanbu became nervous.

“Many Hyper Thermonuclear Missiles approaching at 2 o’clock!”

Staring at the targeting panel, Nanbu turned on the switches one after another.

“Sensor, catching target! Automatic targeting circuit open!”

“Energy charging!” Sanada’s commanding voice rang out. “Energy recharge complete!”

“Fire!”

An anti-Hyper Thermonuclear Missile beam was rapidly fired from Yamato‘s modified bow radar. It hit the group of missiles approaching Yamato in a straight line like an arrow. They were destroyed as their detonators and warheads melted. They struck Yamato, but were unable to penetrate the armor plating and were deflected.

However, the torpedo squadron continued to fire missiles one after another.

“Fire anti-Hyper Thermonuclear beam continuously!” Sanada ordered with spit flying from his mouth. “Fire anti-aircraft guns with chains!”

Anti-aircraft shells with chains attached were fired one after another from launch ports on the ship’s side. The shells spun their chains at a tremendous speed, heading toward the incoming group of Hyper Thermonuclear Missiles. Several missiles were deflected and flew off in a completely different direction. Some even exploded.

Susumu and the others stared in amazement at the scene on the video panel.

“Amazing! Just like Sanada!” Ota said with an impressed look on his face.

Okita, in the captain’s seat, nodded in satisfaction.

Sanada didn’t reply, but looked up at the video panel. Soon the torpedo squadron’s attack stopped.

“You can take off your space suits now,” Susumu said.

Ota was the first to take his off. “Thank goodness. It’s hard to move around with these on.”

Dengil’s attack aircraft also temporarily stopped pursuing Yamato.

Captain Okita said, “We will launch immediately toward the enemy’s giant satellite!”

Lugal II was hunched in the cockpit of the command fighter.

With a half-dazed expression, he was staring at the videovision on the cockpit’s instrument panel. The small videovision showed Yamato shooting down all the Hyper Thermonuclear Missiles launched by the torpedo squadron. Lugal II shook his head in disbelief.

“Yamato…when did they get such a defensive weapon…?”

He was silent for a while, but suddenly gave a frantic order with a demonic expression on his face.

“All ships, advance to the artillery battle area! Crush Yamato!”

With Aquarius at its back, Yamato opened all its guns and sailed forward. The retreating torpedo squadrons exploded one after another as Yamato‘s guns lashed out at them.

Ahead of Yamato was a group of asteroids. The Dengil fleet, centered around a super-dreadnought strike ship which had been waiting in hiding, began firing. The overwhelming firepower struck Yamato with one hit after another. The entire ship shook from the repeated impacts. A considerable shock was felt all the way to the first bridge. The sound of the hits echoed softly from the floor.

“Damn it, they’ve brought in reinforcements this time,” Susumu muttered as he endured the shock.

Sanada was staring at the emergency command panel. The display showed a diagram of the ship’s interior, with damaged departments displayed with symbols. The areas with major damage were flashing red.

“Second main gun turret damaged!”

Another area immediately began flashing.

“Bow torpedo room damaged! Dispatch the emergency team immediately!” Sanada ordered.

The bridge shook again.

“There’s no end to this,” Shima said, gripping the control stick.

Okita, sitting in the captain’s seat, made a decision. “Shima. Avoid the asteroid ahead!”

“Understood! Turning 40 degrees left! Full speed ahead!”

The sound of a hit was heard, and the bridge shook. Yamato began to turn toward the asteroid belt.

“Kodai!” Captain Okita said to Susumu.

“Yes!”

“Call the Cosmo Tigers back!”

“Understood!” Susumu hailed the Cosmo Tigers, who were following Yamato. “Cosmo Tigers, return to base!”

Kato’s reply came from the speaker. “Understood! We will return immediately.”

The enemy fleet’s attacks continued without pause. The entire Dengil fleet was attacking the single Yamato. The ship was hit, but turned toward the asteroid belt and advanced at full speed.

The super-dreadnought ship’s giant shells didn’t deal a fatal blow like the Hyper Thermonuclear Missiles, but their power was still so great that Yamato began to trail smoke.

Yamato finally escaped into the shadow of the asteroid belt. The Cosmo Tigers, who had been gauging the distance to return, were safely taken aboard.

Susumu looked at Captain Okita. “All Cosmo Tigers have returned!”

Captain Okita nodded curtly. The giant shells were blocked by the asteroid belt, and the hits stopped. His eyes flashed and he spoke up.

“Prepare to fire the Wave-Motion Gun!”

Susumu gave the order in response. “Prepare to fire the Wave-Motion Gun!”

Susumu asked, “Yuki, how far is the enemy fleet!?”

Yuki quickly read the numbers flashing on the display. “Distance to target: 10 space kilometers. But there’s an asteroid belt between us.”

Countless dots of light indicating the enemy fleet were visible on the radar panel, but between Yamato and the enemy fleet, the asteroid belt flowed like a river.

“It doesn’t matter!” Captain Okita said. “We’ll smash the asteroids to pieces. Charge the Wave-Motion Gun!”

“Stop all engines,” Chief engineer Yamazaki said. “Start charging the Wave-Motion Gun!”

Captain Okita gave Yamazaki an immediate command. “Open the circuit to the Wave-Motion Gun!”

“Opening the circuit!”

Susumu read out loud from his panel. “Safety lock, zero! Pressure rising. 0.2 left.”

In the Wave-Motion Gun control room, the firing pin lock was released. A voice echoed through the speaker in the Wave-Motion Gun control room.

“Striker compressor activated.”

A low sound began to echo in the control room.

“Final safety released.”

“Increase tachyon particle output!” Yamazaki said, looking at his instruments.

“Wave-Motion gun ready!” Captain Okita called out.

Susumu ran his gaze over the instrument panel, reporting one thing after another.

“Target scope open! Cross gauge, brightness 20! Target, enemy fleet behind asteroid belt! Distance 10 space kilometers! Ten seconds to firing! Take anti-flash protection!”

The crew lowered their goggles.

Susumu counted off the numbers on his panel. “Five, four, three, two, one, zero…”

“FIRE!”

A huge, dense beam of light erupted from Yamato‘s muzzle. The tremendous light made Yamato disappear for a moment. The beam annihilated the asteroid belt and pierced the enemy fleet behind it. In an instant, the entire Dengil fleet was engulfed in a huge ball of light, scattered as if melting from the heat.

The ball of light grew even larger. Lugal II’s command fighter, which had been waiting in the rear, turned and fled as if chased by the energy approaching from behind.

Only Lugal II’s command fighter managed to escape. It was truly a stroke of luck. The huge ball of light shining in its wake eventually scattered into space and disappeared. Literally nothing remained afterward.

Lugal II clutched the control stick, his whole body trembling. His eyes were wide open, as if they would burst out. His teeth were chattering. For the first time in his life, Lugal II experienced the fear of death.

“Enemy fleet destroyed,” Yuki said, looking at the radar panel.

“We did it…” Susumu relaxed his shoulders.

The other crew members also breathed a sigh of relief. However, Captain Okita was still tense, with a stern expression. He looked at Susumu, then Shima, before speaking.

“Rush full speed to the enemy satellite.”

The crew tensed again. Susumu’s expression also became stern. Shima responded to Captain Okita’s order.

“Aye, sir! Amplify energy, full output!”

At that moment, Yuki, who was watching the radar panel, raised her head, furrowing her brow.

“There’s one enemy plane escaping.”

“That one’s lucky,” Susumu said.

Yamato sailed toward the giant city-satellite Uruk. Far ahead, Lugal II’s command fighter was fleeing toward the same destination. Lugal II sat motionless in the command seat.

His eyes were fixed on the instrument panel in front of him, but he was unable to focus on it. The shaking that had come over his whole body like a fever had subsided, but his mind was still blank. After all, the entire fleet he had commanded was annihilated in an instant, so it was no wonder.

“Just that one battleship…”

Lugal II couldn’t believe that he was now on his own, fleeing back to Uruk. He even began to wonder if the destruction of all the battleships had been a hallucination.

“Two failures…what will my father say…?”

He thought that he might be disowned and stripped of his rank.

“No.” Lugal II muttered and shook his head. If that was all, he thought, it would be fine. My father abandons all those who are weak and who lose. Maybe I…

Lugal II was lost in thought in the dark, silent cockpit when he suddenly came to his senses.

“That’s right. I must contact my father…”

The light-emitting elements on the instrument panel were flickering. Through the cockpit windshield, he could clearly see Uruk, a huge lump of rock with a dim, dark red glow on its top. Lugal II let out a trembling sigh and reached for the videovision switch on the instrument panel.

He flipped the switch and sent a message to Uruk, looming ever larger ahead.

High Priest Commander Lugal clasped his hands behind his back, his face expressionless as a mask. He stood by the window of the battle command room on Uruk, gazing into space.

At the moment, no one felt they could approach Lugal. He already knew that the Dengil fleet had been annihilated. The explosion was clearly visible even from Uruk. It disappeared into the darkness of space, leaving behind a flicker like a supernova for a moment.

No one could read what the expressionless Lugal was thinking. A staff officer timidly approached him from behind.

“High Priest Commander…” the officer began, standing behind him.

But Lugal didn’t reply, just stared out the window.

“…we have received a message from His Highness Lugal II. He was the only one who escaped the explosion and is returning. He will arrive at Uruk shortly.”

Even when Lugal was informed that his son had survived, he did not even move an eyebrow. Silence dominated the battle command room like darkness. His staff officer, sweat dripping from his forehead, waited patiently for Lugal’s reply.

He spoken again timidly. “Commander…”

Suddenly, Lugal shook his cloak and turned to face his staff officer. The officer cried out and almost stepped back, but remained upright and motionless. With a gaze so cold that it seemed as if it would instantly freeze anything in sight, Lugal stared at the officer’s face for a moment. The officer looked around like a frightened animal searching for a way to escape.

“Panel on.” Lugal said slowly in a low voice. His lips barely moved.

“Y-Yes!”

The staff officer was stunned for a moment, then ran off in a panic. He nearly fell over.

Lugal turned to the large video panel and raised his head. The panel was switched on, and suddenly Lugal II’s face was shown. Lugal, still expressionless, stared at his son’s face. Lugal II, who was in the cockpit of the command fighter, spoke in a low, murmuring voice. He almost looked emaciated.

“Father… I’m ashamed…”

He paused for a moment before speaking again.

“Our fleet fought with all our might, and was close to destroying Yamato. However…”

Suddenly, Lugal raised his right hand.

“Panel off.” He said in a monotone voice.

“But unfortunately, Yamato‘s…”

While Lugal II was speaking, the video panel was suddenly switched off.

Lugal walked over to the instrument panel toward his staff. Everyone stared at Lugal as he approached. He stopped and gave the order.

“Fire a Neutrino Beam at Yamato.”

The staff hesitated for a moment. Lugal repeated it again, expressionless.

“Fire a Neutrino Beam. Are you making me give the order twice?”

The staff shouted in a panic. “Firing Neutrino Beam!”

Lugal II’s command fighter was heading toward Uruk’s launch port. The communication had been cut off abruptly, and no matter how many times he tried to resend it there was no response.

Suddenly, a Neutrino Beam was fired from Uruk. Lugal II’s eyes widened and his mouth opened. But before he could even scream, his command fighter disappeared in the beam.

The Neutrino Beam continued to lance outward toward Yamato, which was sailing in pursuit of Lugal II’s command fighter.

In the Combat Command Room, they could see that Lugal II’s command fighter had been caught in the Neutrino Beam and burned up in an instant. Commander Lugal didn’t care that his son had been annihilated by a weapon that had been fired under his own command.

“Yamato,” Lugal muttered, “may you be baptized by my Neutrino Beam cannon.”

He continued without a change in his expression.

“Everyone, proceed with the twentieth warp.”

Continue to Act 21

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