The Dengil fleet was anchored in space near Mars. Its appearance was indescribably eerie, like a swarm of grim reapers hiding in the darkness of space.

Lugal II sat on the bridge of the flagship with a satisfied expression on his face. It was no wonder, since everything was going according to his wishes.

“Combat aircraft carriers are set off for Earth,” he ordered. “Leave Earth’s attack to them.”

His order was immediately transmitted to the carrier group. Soon, several carriers launched from the stationary task force. A voice came from the instrument panel.

“The carriers have left the main fleet!”

Lugal II nodded. “Good. Now, let us return to Pluto space for the time being. We’ve achieved enough here.”

The message was sent to all ships. With the flagship taking the lead, the fleet started moving away from Mars. The Dengil task force had taken complete control of the major planets of the solar system. As planned, they had contained the human race on Earth like weak mice cornered in a dead end by a ferocious cat. And now, combat carriers were heading for Earth to make a final attack.

Attack planes were launched one after another from the carriers that arrived in the skies above Earth. They dove for the ground in a swarm.

“Enemy aircraft carrier over Earth! Countless attack planes are heading toward the surface!”

Upon receiving the report, the Commander immediately gave the order.

“Prepare for battle! Launch attack aircraft!”

Sirens echoed throughout the cities. Those still on the ground panicked and ran for cover. The Dengil attack planes swarmed across the sky with a thunderous noise like a lightning strike.

“They’re here!”

Their attack concentrated on military installations, spaceports, and other strategic points. Anti-aircraft fire erupted from all the bases at once, and Earth’s aircraft rose to meet the enemy. A fierce aerial battle set the sky ablaze with red.

However, one by one, military facilities were destroyed. Ships docked at spaceports were also destroyed. These spaceships comprised the second evacuation convoy that was scheduled to carry escapees. As this fleet was completely wiped out, it became impossible for the people of Earth to escape.

People died in devastating numbers. The enemy was overwhelmingly strong. It was as if an enormous monster had trampled the Earth. Many cities were destroyed beyond recognition.

“The fleet hangar has been hit!” a staff member informed the commander. Another came running. “The spaceport is wiped out!”

The Commander stood on the floor of the control room with his hands clenched. Smoke and flames rose from everywhere. Enemy aircraft soared overhead with unchecked superiority. Anti-aircraft fire tore through the sky in vain.

Earth was easily overrun in only a short time. There wasn’t even a single intact battleship or spaceship left on the planet.

“Commander…” a member of the command staff lowered his shoulders and said with a trembling body, “It’s a complete defeat…”

Hearing these words, the commander became angry. His outburst sent ice through the man’s veins.

“You idiot! Don’t say those words so easily!”

The commander turned and trudged into his office. He closed the door behind him and stood there, never more helpless. Although he had yelled at the staffer, he felt the same way in his heart.

“No,” he said, shaking his head as he tried to convince himself. “We must not be defeated! It will mean the extinction of the human race. We cannot be defeated! The only thread left…the only thread of hope is Yamato…”

Lugal II’s fleet returned to the Dengil mobile fortress mothership, which was standing by in Pluto space. Lugal II stood by the bridge window of the flagship, staring out into space.

“All so easy…” he said, smiling. “All that remains is for the Grand Leader to bring Aquarius close to Earth and submerge the human population. Earth will be flooded like our lost planet Dengil. Women, children, and old people will die…”

Lugal II glanced out the window, imagining his mother’s and brother’s faces, floating in space, then quickly dismissed them.

“I must follow the example of the Leader and become even more ruthless…”

Outside the window, the mobile fortress mother ship came into view. Lugal II looked at it blankly.

Susumu Kodai got out of bed and began to change into his clothes. From the window of his hospital room, he could see the city at night, filled with rising plumes of orange smoke. Flames the color of red flowers on a window sill flickered from a nearby building. The sirens of firefighting air cars can be heard incessantly.

Dengil’s attack had ended. All the aircraft had returned to their carriers, which then disappeared.

Susumu left the hospital room. His legs were still a little wobbly, but he was able to walk. He proceeded down the corridor to the elevator. Doctors and nurses hurried past him. Hospitals across the country were overflowing with wounded from enemy attacks. Susumu, who was almost back to normal, had to vacate his room.

He got on the elevator and descended to the first floor, heading for the front entrance of the Federal Central Hospital. Injured patients were brought in one after another on self-propelled stretchers. A nurse rushed by with a patient on a stretcher, holding up an IV container. It was obvious at a glance that some of the stretchers were carrying dead people. Susumu avoided them and went out the front entrance.

There were several ambulance air cars parked outside, their red lamps rotating. He looked up at the night sky. It was past midnight, but the sky was still lit, burning orange. Buildings on fire could be seen here and there, flames rising from them to color the night sky. There was probably no one sleeping in the city now except for children and the sick. An explosion could be heard in the distance, vibrating the air.

“This is…horrific…”

Susumu went from the front entrance to the underground parking lot of the Federal Central Hospital. It was quiet compared to the noise above. The sound of his footsteps echoed. He opened the canopy of one of the federal air cars. Fortunately, it was unlocked. He got into the air car and turned the key to start it.

He left the underground parking lot and entered a tube-shaped road. The buildings on both sides of the tube were gutted and looked unreal. Some of the roads were also destroyed and impassable, so he had to detour around them.

Susumu parked his air car on a road near the base and got out. The destruction of the landscape was even worse than the city. It had been reduced to wasteland. Explosions were heard everywhere, and the tremors could be felt even from where Susumu was standing. Several buildings still burned with red flames. Firefighting operations were probably not going well. Even here, the sky above was bright red.

Susumu was reminded of the ruins of Dessler’s palace, which he had visited in Yamato. How ironic, he thought. This time, the Earth base was about to be turned into ruins. Susumu and his friends had tossed a bouquet of flowers into Dessler’s palace. If Earth were to perish, there would be no one to throw flowers. The Dengil would probably spit on them.

Susumu’s cheeks flushed red as he started walking down the road. He stumbled a little, but quickly recovered and continued on his way. He was heading for the fleet dock.

Although the fleet dock escaped the fire, the damage was significant. Fortunately, Yamato was unharmed. This was probably due to the fact that everyone had defended it to the death. Yamato was the only ship that could not be destroyed. The last remaining trump card.

Several large cranes were set up around Yamato. Repair mecha were roaring and groaning. Workers were everywhere. The destroyer Fuyuzuki was also housed nearby, but in a damaged condition. Yamato‘s repairs took top priority.

Susumu Kodai entered the fleet dock. He stopped under Yamato and looked up at it with deep emotion.

“Yamato…” he muttered to himself and headed for the boarding ramp.

Once on board, he walked toward Yamato‘s engine room to find Yamato‘s second chief engineer, Yamazaki, who became a member of the engine team after the death of the first chief engineer, Tokugawa.

The surviving members of the engine room and the engineering department were hurrying to repair the equipment. All of them were dirty with oil and had pitch black hands. Tasuke Tokugawa was struggling to repair a part of the wave engine. The portly Tasuke spat, his nose blackened with oil.

“Damn it! What a stubborn mecha! It won’t move at all! We have orders to launch tomorrow morning!”

Susumu heard Tasuke’s loud voice and entered the engine room. Chief Engineer Yamazaki noticed Susumu’s ghostly steps as he entered.

“Captain!”

Everyone turned around at the sound of Yamazaki’s voice. They all looked surprised. Susumu walked up to Yamazaki and looked around the engine room.

“Is the repair work progressing?”

“Yes,” Yamazaki replied with a shrug. “It seems we were hit pretty hard by the enemy that time. There’s a lot of damage here and there. It’s going to take some time…”

“I see. Please restore it to normal as soon as possible.”

“Of course…”

Yamazaki frowned at Susumu’s lack of energy. “How are you feeling, Captain?”

“Oh…” Susumu replied weakly, “I’ve been discharged from the hospital.”

Tasuke and the other members of the engine department brightened as Yamazaki smiled.

“Well…I’m glad to hear that. That must be why the order to launch was given so suddenly!”

“Launch?” Susumu’s eyebrows furrowed. He hadn’t heard of an order to launch. The engine crew, oblivious to Susumu’s confusion, was in a flurry of activity.

“All right! Now we can hit back with Captain Kodai on Yamato again! Dengil’s in for it now!”

Tasuke got carried away and smacked his machine opponent with his wrench. Immediately, the mecha started working and began to vibrate with a dull roar. Tasuke stared at it with a puzzled expression.

“Wow, it’s fixed! It’s fixed!” He jumped for joy.

Susumu’s shoulders slumped and he walked out of the room.

He went to the machine shop, where everyone was working frantically. Sanada stood in front of the auto-drafting board with his arms folded. A complicated drawing was on the screen. He stared at it with a serious expression. Shima stood to Sanada’s left, pointing to the screen and speaking. Sanada responded with an explanation. Susumu walked into the workshop toward them. Shima noticed and turned around. He looked at Susumu and his eyes widened.

“Kodai!”

Sanada also turned around.

“Kodai!”

Susumu stopped in front of them.

“Are you okay now?” Shima asked.

“Yes, I’m back to normal,” Susumu said.

Shima patted Susumu on the shoulder with his right hand. “Is that so? You still look a bit tired, but I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

Susumu looked at Sanada. “Sanada-san, the Earth Fleet is no longer…”

Sanada nodded. “Yes, the entire fleet has been wiped out. Both the evacuation fleet and the Earth fleet were probably hit by hyper thermonuclear missiles.”

“Hyper thermonuclear missiles?”

“The same type that broke through Yamato‘s armor and exploded, spreading cosmic radiation. We’re currently working on a defense against it.”

“I see. I hope you succeed in your research as soon as possible.”

Susumu turned his back on them and started to walk away.

“Kodai,” Sanada called out.

Susumu stopped.

“I heard you tendered your resignation.”

Susumu did not look back, but stopped and stared at the floor.

“It’s just as you say,” he said. He started to walk away.

“But everyone and Yamato will miss you.”

Susumu did not answer and continued walking.

Sanada shouted loudly, “Hey, Kodai! Wait!”

Susumu left the workshop without looking back, certain there was no longer a place for him on Yamato.

Susumu finally made his way to the first bridge. He really wanted to see it again. It might be the last time he could. His elevator shuddered and came to a stop. The doors opened to the left and right with a sigh. Of course, Susumu was the only present.

He stepped into the first bridge, dimly lit only by the orange glow of the control lights. No one seemed to be there. The air was still and silent. Not a sound from outside could be heard. He walked to the center of the room and stopped, looking around slowly.

There was an instrument panel in front of him, but all its lamps were off. Outside the window, he could see the dock wall and a crane. He stood there for a while, trying to catch his breath.

“Yamato,” he muttered quietly, “I think this might be the last time I see you. I’ve said goodbye…”

Susumu moved closer to his old station. He put his hands on the instrument panel and his shoulders slumped. His heart was filled with memories of the many times he and Yamato had worked together.

“I’m sorry, Yamato. I had to say goodbye…but when I stepped onto this bridge again, I started to think maybe I was wrong…”

Susumu chuckled to himself. He raised his head and looked out the window.

“I’m groggy and unsteady…but when I got off Yamato, I realized for the first time…I am who I am because of you. Susumu Kodai, who has left Yamato, is worthless…”

He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. His voice was the only sound on the quiet bridge.

“Yamato. You carried our lives on your own, and now you’re about to launch again. I’m a failure as your captain…”

Susumu clenched his fists.

“Yamato. Can you give me another chance? I want to be on board again. Captain Kodai was killed by cosmic radiation. This time I want to board you as another Susumu Kodai, a soldier. I want to fight with you again for the sake of Earth!”

Susumu laughed softly and self-mockingly. He shook his head helplessly.

“But maybe it’s too late for everything…”

At that moment, he heard a small noise behind him and turned around quickly.

“Who is it?” Susumu’s voice echoed in the darkness. “Who’s there?”

A voice suddenly sounded. A voice he could never forget.

“It’s not too late,” the deep voice said slowly.

Susumu looked in the direction of the voice and stiffened. It was coming from the relief of the late Juzo Okita.

“Kodai. The only way for you to live is to be with Yamato. You must get on board again.”

A black shadow appeared beneath the relief. Susumu gasped when he saw the silhouette.

“Impossible…”

Continue to Act 12

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