And on day 7 I write the one that isn't part of the storyline. So, I went for a sci-fi crossover with two old masterpieces: the original Mobile Suit Gundam and the tragically less known Venus Wars (manga version). Hope you'll have as much fun as I had scouring the UC fluff for this.
Day 7: Futuristic AU
Warsaw defense line, August 15, 0079 UC
Colonel Lila Rossi, commander of the Third Italian Land Artillery Regiment (one of the many national units the Federation had mobilized to counter the Zeon invasion of Earth), was inspecting the battlefield of Zeon's latest attempt at taking the old Polish capital and the remnants of the enemy forces, decimated by the Earthnoid artillery units like hers even before the armored forces, led by the superheavy tanks from the Venusian colony of Ishtar, shattered them, sitting in a sidecar attached to one of the gigantic "Hound" bikes license-built from an Aphrodian design.
"Did you know that this is actually Zeon-occupied land(1)?" she said to her pilot, a rather attractive (physically and in personality) French volunteer temporarily attached to her unit. One whose size compared to the one-tonne bike made her sure that if they had been characters in a story the author obviously wanted a small cute girl driving a gigantic bike(2).
"Well, I do see only Zeonics here." the pilot, Federal sergeant Marinette Dupain-Cheng, said as they passed the hulk of a Gallop. "Think we can make use of some of this?"
"We use mostly the same ammo. That's why I'm here, checking what I can have for my how-"
"Adrien!"
"AAAUGH!"
The sergeant had suddenly stopped the bike and jumped down, going close to the body of a Zeonian trooper and looked at his face.
"I take you knew him?" Lila asked her pilot after reaching her. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence, Zeon had been attracting immigration from the various Sides and she recalled Marinette was from there.
"We went to school together, back on Quintzem-we were together before my family had to leave."
"I see. I'm sor-" as her hand reflexively went to her sidearm, Lila suddenly remembered where she had heard about Quintzem. It had been on the news in September the previous year for the riots and how they had been put down by the Side's government-Zeon's government. "Wait, you're from Zeon?!"
"Munzo(3). There's a difference."
"May I offer my condolences for your loss?"
"It's been months. He choose his father and his pro-Zabi positions, my boyfriend died that day. I'm fine."
"Well then, shall we continue our inspection? Wouldn't want someone else claim my shells."
As the two women returned to the bike, Lila decided she'd help the pilot get over her lost lover. She may have to seduce her, and that was definitely against regulations-but then again, Lila was a career soldier and Marinette a volunteer in service for the duration of the emergency, there wouldn't be time for consequences. And if there were, she didn't care, Marinette had lost her home and her boyfriend to space Nazis, she needed a break.
Notes
(1)The various OYW maps show Poland as completely occupied-yet the official timeline indicates Warsaw as one of the starting points of Operation Odessa.
(2)That's the whole reason I've put in the manga version of Venus Wars, where the Hound isn't a monowheel but a conventional bike massing a tonne and equipped with an 80mm rifle, anti-tank rockets, and booster rockets. That, and I couldn't figure out how to get Lilanette in that setting, hence me recycling an old idea for a Mobile Suit Gundam/Venus Wars crossover.
(3)Zeon's original name as the colony was founded, before Zeon Daikun took over and renamed it after himself.
