Slightly turning his head to glance toward the doorway behind him, Creuset confirmed the status of the two soldiers before striding toward the Providence Gundam.
Stepping into the cockpit,
Creuset scanned his surroundings, then pressed his finger against the activation button.
The cockpit lights illuminated, and the screens lit up as well, though the mobile suit itself remained inactive.
Observing the input field on the screen, Creuset looked down at a sensor area to his left and retrieved the identification card obtained from the maintenance team leader.
With a light tap of the identification card, the system officially booted up.
All devices began operating!
However, when Creuset attempted to initiate any actions, the Providence Gundam's system did not respond.
"It seems the identification card can only start the system but not activate the Providence."
A faint smile on his lips, Creuset muttered to himself in understanding.
His gaze shifted to a small keypad on the left. He reached out, pulled it forward, and began typing with both hands.
A minute or two later, having grasped the state of the Providence Gundam's system, Creuset reached into his pocket and retrieved a storage device.
Twirling the storage device in his hand, he inserted it into the corresponding port.
Within mere seconds, all screens and instrument panels in the Providence Gundam went dark, leaving the cockpit in complete darkness.
In the gloom, Creuset waited with a smile curling at the corners of his mouth!
Time passed minute by minute. At the doorway, the two soldiers exchanged glances, one of them asking in confusion,
"Captain Creuset, it's been an hour and a half already."
The other nodded in agreement and muttered,
"What exactly is Captain Creuset doing?"
As they spoke, both turned their gazes toward the Providence Gundam inside.
At a glance, they saw the dormant Providence Gundam's eyes suddenly flare with light.
The light reflected in their eyes, and as they looked at each other, a realization dawned on them, their faces instantly paling. One of them reached out and triggered the alarm!
A shrill alarm blared throughout the Lorentz Military Base, rousing the resting ZAFT soldiers from their sleep.
In Phelps's room,
Phelps quickly dressed and stepped out, stopping a hurrying soldier to ask,
"What exactly is happening?"
The soldier halted and replied,
"Captain, there's a problem with the Providence Gundam!"
Phelps frowned, muttering in puzzlement,
"The Providence Gundam has its own security lock. How could there be a problem?"
After this muttered remark, he looked up at the soldier and waved him off. The soldier saluted and hurried away at a jog.
Once the soldier had left, Phelps quickened his pace and headed off in the same direction.
Inside the Providence Gundam's cockpit,
Creuset watched as the Providence Gundam restarted, letting out a triumphant laugh.
"Just as I expected!"
As he spoke, Creuset pushed the thrust lever and pressed the forward pedals with his feet. Under his control, the Providence Gundam began to advance.
Two soldiers at the entrance shouted through ZAFT's public communication channel!
"Captain Creuset, please respond!"
"Please respond!"
"Cease your actions immediately!"
"Stop what you're doing!"
A series of calls received no response. The two soldiers looked at each other, about to say something when the maintenance team arrived.
"What's going on?"
The deputy squad leader looked at the two guarding soldiers and questioned them with a stern expression. The soldiers turned to the deputy squad leader, their faces grave as they replied.
"Captain Creuset has activated the Providence Gundam!"
"Impossible!"
Hearing this answer, the deputy squad leader immediately denied it. But the next moment, the moving Providence Gundam came into view.
Watching the Providence Gundam in motion, the deputy squad leader's eyes widened, filled with disbelief. He muttered under his breath.
"Without the key, how did he activate the Providence Gundam?"
As he spoke, his gaze fell on the two soldiers and the communicator in their hands. He snatched it and began calling out to Creuset.
Observing his actions, one of the soldiers said.
"There's no way to establish any contact inside!"
Hearing these words, the deputy squad leader stopped his calls. Then, a voice sounded beside him.
"Deputy squad leader, the squad leader is dead!"
The tragic news made the deputy squad leader's pupils contract, his eyes filled with shock. He staggered back two steps before quickly regaining his composure.
With a stern expression, he issued an order.
"Initiate the emergency lockdown procedure!"
Following the command, a piece of bad news soon arrived.
"The procedure is already executing, but we can't connect to the Providence Gundam's system. Remote lockdown is impossible!"
Hearing this, the deputy squad leader pondered silently.
Meanwhile
Athena
In Felix's room
Felix, who had been resting, was awakened by the communication chime. He opened his bleary eyes, quickly adjusted his state, and got up to answer the call at the desk.
"What is it?"
"Captain, something's happened at the Lorentz Military Base!"
Aric's serious and grave voice came through the speaker.
Felix frowned slightly and asked.
"Did the Earth Alliance launch a surprise attack on the Lorentz Military Base?"
Aric shook his head and then said.
"Captain Creuset has activated the Providence Gundam without authorization!"
Hearing this, Felix was slightly surprised and asked.
"Doesn't the Providence Gundam have a security lock?"
Aric shook his head, unaware of the details.
"They haven't figured out the specifics yet. They're currently investigating!"
"What's the current status of the Providence Gundam?"
Felix nodded slightly and inquired about the Providence's situation, then added.
"How are the troops on site?"
"Captain Creuset has already driven the Providence Gundam out of the hangar where it was stored. The troops there are trying to stop it, but the Providence Gundam is equipped with the Dragoon System.
This has caused significant losses to the intercepting forces."
Aric's eyes burned with anger, his voice filled with hatred and fury as he spoke. After learning the current situation, Felix thought carefully before issuing orders.
"Tell Phelps to cease the interception. Let Creuset leave with the Providence Gundam!"
"Yes, sir!"
Aric listened to the command, raised his hand in salute, and responded.
Felix ended the communication and immediately made another call.
This time, when the call connected, PLANT Chairman Patrick appeared on the screen.
"What is it?" Patrick inquired with a steady expression.
Seeing Patrick's calm demeanor, Felix thought to himself:
'You won't be able to stay calm in a moment!'
Muttering internally, Felix then reported, "Chairman, Creuset has unauthorizedly activated the Providence Gundam and is using it to launch attacks against our ZAFT forces!"
"What did you say?!"