Chapter 323
Coming of Age
"Dear viewers, the Federation Forces Reconstruction Project has today achieved its objectives perfectly! Upholding its excellent work ethic, the reformed Federation Forces has become a solid force enabling the Earth Federation to maintain stability and peace, and to advance into space exploration..."
"On the centenary of the Universal Century, Prime Minister Artesia Deikun of the Republic of Zeon, on behalf of all citizens of Zeon, hereby announces the renunciation of autonomy. After half a century of turmoil, humanity is once again an indivisible whole!"
"The federal government's centennial celebrations will be held at the new Laplace residence. Stay tuned for our news coverage!"
The radio waves were filled with news of all kinds, which made the young man holding the radio frown.
He turned off the radio and focused his gaze back on the lush greenery before him. He pushed himself up with his hands behind him, and his body floated forward, plunging into the vibrant green of the vegetables.
This is the third-generation vertical hydroponics food production satellite, and this young man is working as an intern here. He enjoys watching plants grow, especially in space, which gives him the feeling that he can thrive in space as well.
"Beep beep-"
Just as he was filling out today's report on the form, his phone beeped.
He opened his phone and saw a video call from his father.
Thinking of his proud father, the young man's lips curled up slightly, revealing a gentle and shy smile. However, he quickly wiped the smile away and nervously opened his phone.
"Ahem, can you hear me, Hathaway?"
The father on the other end of the communication was wearing a military uniform, and he was clearly on his way to a mission. He called out Hathaway's name, and his expression was quite unnatural.
"Yes, Father."
Hathaway Noah understood perfectly why his father had that expression. His father probably felt indebted to him; as a general, as Brad Noah, the legendary captain, he had been absent from many of Hathaway's formative years.
If it were Hathaway in his rebellious phase, he might not have given Brad a warm welcome. But now, Hathaway, who considers himself an adult, fully understands his father's difficulties.
Ironically, when he was a child, he actually dreamed of becoming a mobile suit pilot like Uncle Amuro. He almost caused a big problem during a visit and got a scolding from Uncle Eli.
Hathaway was inexplicably afraid of Eli, always feeling like he was about to be electrocuted.
"Are you coming to the celebration today?"
Brad inquired, as he led his troops into the Laplace space region. With the Earth Federation capital re-established in space, a new colony of satellites naturally began to be built around the Prime Minister's residence.
Hathaway worked in this field.
"I can't go, but I'll watch you on TV."
"Is that so? Then let's find a place to meet after the celebration."
Brad hadn't asked his child to do anything for a long time, so it wasn't a big deal that the child didn't come to the celebration.
After hanging up the phone, Brad got up from the sofa in the captain's cabin, then went outside, where he was met by a chestnut-haired man.
"Amuro, is there something you need from me?"
"We need to speed things up a bit. The two fleets coming from the moon are arriving earlier than expected, so we need to make way."
Brad nodded and walked with Amuro toward the captain's cabin.
"Speaking of which, is your child about to be born?"
"This worries me. Can I really be a good father now?"
Amro rubbed the back of his head in frustration. His romantic life hadn't been smooth sailing, but he eventually ended up with Christina and became her husband.
It could be said that he was the last among the people in the White Base to get married.
"Don't worry, you can do it."
Brad chuckled and patted Amuro on the shoulder.
"It's so easy for kids to say this when they're all grown up."
"That's right, my child is very well-behaved."
When his children were mentioned, Brad puffed out his chest even more.
As the two entered the bridge, their gazes immediately fell upon the outside. Surrounding them was a small cluster of colonies, with solar panels, modified from the destructive powerhouse of the solar system, positioned at the very center of these colonies. These panels transmitted electricity via microwaves to the colonies to provide power for their inhabitants.
The Prime Minister's official residence, New Laplace, is directly above the solar panel installation.
"Zeon's ships... ah, they'll all be Federation ships from now on."
Upon hearing his subordinate's words, Brad turned around and saw Zeon's iconic angular warship. The red-painted warship was moving slowly, clearly adjusting its course.
"Hmph." Amuro suddenly turned his head away, refusing to look at the warship.
Brad knew that something in the Newtype chat room must have upset Amuro.
Needless to say, Char Aznable was naturally inside the Zeon battleship. Unlike Amuro and Bright, who readily accepted higher military ranks and responsibilities and dedicated themselves to the Federation's military reforms, Char seemed to have played that role his entire life and could no longer shake it off. He returned to his position as a colonel, patrolling the Earth Sphere with his wife, Lara.
To Amuro, the experience of waking Lala was still an unbelievable dream. He wasn't sure if it was real.
But at least Char had a happy ending.
"Amuro is still the same as before."
Despite being given the cold shoulder for his goodwill, Char remained unperturbed, watching with amusement as his subordinate Camus crossed his arms and frowned, harassing Amuro through the Newtype's senses.
"It's so good to be young."
"The colonel is already that age."
Lala remained as gentle as ever, sitting beside Char. Few people remembered that when Char was young, he wanted to emulate his father and create a world for the new humans.
Currently, in this world still dominated by the old humans, the proportion of the new humans, though small, is slowly increasing. Babies born in space seem to have a more urgent desire to communicate with their own kind, thus fostering the birth of new humans.
Conversely, the Earth Federation is also investing in the practical application of the new human abilities in society.
For example, in communications, the artificial communication base stations built by the Newtypes play an irreplaceable role in the low-latency transmission of emergency messages. Although this method is currently too primitive, Xia believes that the Earth Federation can certainly make greater changes in the next century.
"That's just how my brother is."
Artesia, dressed in a formal gown, entered the room and casually circled in front of Lala, receiving an affirmative response from the latter.
"Lala, you're too accommodating to him. Aren't you tired of running around with him every day?"
"How could you not be tired of staying by the colonel's side?"
Artesia sighed, but then thought about herself.
Unexpectedly, even after relinquishing the responsibilities of prime minister, he still couldn't stay with the one he loved...
"brush--"
A pure white machine streak flew through the gaps between the warships, instantly drawing the attention of all the new humans present to that machine.
"The Federation's latest model Gundam?"
Char murmured to himself unconsciously, his hand twitching involuntarily.
"The driver is very talented."
Amuro nodded, and the one draped over his waist nodded in return.
These two people actually had the idea of challenging this machine at the same time.
As this machine moved, the Earth Federation's centennial celebration officially began.
The spherical array of warships surrounding the Prime Minister's residence suddenly fell silent.
Until, in the Prime Minister's official residence, which was almost identical to that of a hundred years ago, a familiar figure gradually stood still on the podium.
Eli looked at everything that was happening before him, and then at the stone tablet behind him that was covered by a red velvet cloth.
A new era begins, and perhaps new blessings are needed.
"The idea of the universe is rooted in human history from the first time that ancient apes looked up at the sky. Yuri Gagarin took the first step, and when Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon, the idea of human colonizing the universe was launched."
"And now, traveling to space is no longer an expensive affair; it is a form of travel and leisure that every citizen of the Earth Federation can undertake at any time."
"But I think history teaches us that humanity should not stop its journey into the universe. It's not that our current lives are unsatisfactory, but that the universe is there, and we need to be ready at all times to embrace new hopes and challenges."
"In the future, we will have new spaces, new energy sources, and new social forms, but I hope that everyone who has experienced the greatest war in human history and witnessed the era of human unity can remember the pain of war and the possibilities of exploring the future and the universe."
Eli rattled off a long speech, and then the machine that had given birth to the Beast of Possibilities swept across the dome of the Prime Minister's residence.
In that instant, the originally white fuselage shone with brilliance. Even the distant colonies, whether side 1, side 2 or others, whether lunar colonies or even more distant Martian and Saturnian colonies, seemed to be able to see a glimmer of emerald green light.
Against the backdrop of the universe filled with darkness and light, it was not conspicuous.
But it exists. (End of Chapter)