January 26, C.E. 71, around 10:00 AM standard time.
Aboard the Nazca-class High-speed Battleship Vesalius, White Uniform Captain Rau Le Creuset was in his private quarters, communicating with his superior, Chairman Patrick Zala, the leader of ZAFT, who was far away in their home nation of Plant at L5.
"I have already received confirmation of your situation from Dr. Gilbert Durandal. Don't worry, your merits in the World Tree campaign have more than proven your loyalty to Plant. For some unknown character to think they can make ZAFT hand over a Nebula Medal recipient with mere slander is nothing but a pipe dream. I hope you will continue to fight for Plant and ZAFT as a Coordinator, leading the Creuset Team!"
"Thank you for your trust, Your Excellency Zala. I, Creuset, will fight for you with this broken body until my last moment."
Faced with Patrick Zala's reassurance, Creuset made a solemn declaration, but he knew in his heart that he could no longer have Patrick Zala's complete trust as before.
And although he would continue to lead the Creuset Team, he feared that excuses would soon be found to transfer away the second-generation Red Uniforms like Athrun, Yzak, Nicol, and Dearka.
The reasons were readily available; after all, the son of Chairman Jeremy Maxwell, Red Uniform Rusty Mackenzie, had died in this operation. Considering the arrest warrant for "Celestial Being," the Creuset Team was clearly no longer the best choice for the second-generation Red Uniforms to gain experience.
But in any case, at least the ZAFT under Chairman Zala's control was willing to continue sheltering him, so his previous efforts had not been in vain. However, this meant he would have to find a way to contact Logos... That damned "Celestial Being"!
Although these thoughts were racing through his mind, Creuset, who had removed his mask to show his sincerity, revealing a face that seemed overly mature, still maintained his expression well. From the other side of the communication, Patrick Zala's voice continued.
"Next, regarding the 'Heliopolis Collapse' incident, while there were indeed some inappropriate details, I still approve of your on-the-spot decisions overall. Those damned Naturals, secretly designing such high-performance mobile suits. It seems we must continue the war after all. And Orb, too, claiming neutrality with their words, yet not only developing mobile suits for the Earth Alliance but also engaging in thievery themselves. How dare they accuse us!"
"Your Excellency is absolutely right. And this 'Celestial Being' is also quite suspicious. I was acting on your orders to investigate the Earth Alliance's secret base construction here at L3, which is why I had the right personnel on hand to promptly carry out the seizure of the 'G' series when we received the tip-off about Heliopolis. This is all thanks to Your Excellency's far-sighted planning and command. On the contrary, 'Celestial Being's' sudden and timely arrival is fraught with suspicion. They couldn't even pick a better excuse."
After echoing Patrick Zala's sentiments, Creuset turned the tables and slandered Luther.
Judging from Patrick Zala's response, he was clearly pleased with Creuset's flattery and also held much dissatisfaction with "Celestial Being"—that is, Luther's views.
"Hmph, Celestial Being, Newtype, and precognitive abilities... to think someone in this day and age would dare use such old tricks of illegal cults in front of us. It's laughable. In any case, you need to prepare yourself. The Earth Alliance, which will never give up on destroying us, has developed such powerful mobile suits. How can we afford to stagnate!"
"Yes, Your Excellency. But how should we handle the matter of the Strike Gundam and 'Purple Beetle' pilots possibly being Coordinators?"
Regarding Patrick Zala's misunderstanding of "Newtypes," Creuset, who had firsthand combat experience with Luther, had no intention of clarifying. Instead, he took the opportunity to inquire about how to handle the pilot portion of the report to the Supreme Council—or more accurately, to gauge Patrick Zala's intentions.
"Didn't that Luther Daiken call himself a Newtype! Report it just as he said. As for the Strike Gundam, there's no doubt a Natural is piloting it, which is why we had to respond with our full strength. Isn't that right?"
"Your Excellency is absolutely right. The Earth Alliance has already developed high-performance mobile weapons usable by Naturals. For the future of Coordinators, we must also give it our all."
Seeing that Creuset understood his meaning, Patrick Zala nodded in satisfaction.
"In any case, if the war does not end in victory, it will be meaningless. The Kaohsiung Spaceport assault in Operation Ouroboros has already been completed. Thanks to Bartfeld's efforts, the Victoria Spaceport has been isolated for over half a year and should be easily conquered next. Then, once the troops have reorganized, we will conquer the Panama Spaceport in one fell swoop, and the victory of us Coordinators will be certain! For this very reason, neither 'Celestial Being' nor that Long Leg ship called the 'Archangel' can be allowed to reach the Lunar Base, let alone Earth! Once you've dealt with the Council, you must prepare to pursue both of them as soon as possible!"
"Yes! I, Creuset, will bring you victory this time, for ZAFT!"
After once again listening to Chairman Zala's grand strategy, Creuset naturally expressed his firm resolve first, which prompted an equal response from Chairman Zala.
"Mm, for ZAFT!"
"But, Your Excellency Chairman Zala, this battle has also fully demonstrated the enemy's combat strength. Whether it's the 'Archangel' or 'Celestial Being,' they are indeed difficult to handle with just GINNs. Furthermore, Orb has its own spaceport. Although they claim to be neutral, the situation in Heliopolis proves that since it is a nation on Earth led by Naturals, we must be on our guard against them."
Faced with Creuset's 'stating the facts and difficulties,' Patrick Zala fell silent for a moment, thinking hard before responding to Creuset.
"You're right about Orb. We must indeed be on our guard. As for combat strength, since the data has been extracted, those few Earth Alliance mobile suits will be temporarily assigned to you. In addition, the new mass-produced GuAIZ, which was still under development, now needs to be redesigned because of these units. The few early-type GuAIZ that are basically complete will also be handed over to you. Depending on the actual combat situation, I will temporarily coordinate support from other teams for you. That should be enough combat strength, right? But Creuset, you understand, don't you?"
"Yes, Your Excellency Chairman Zala. We will not let the sacrifices of Rusty and the others be in vain! These Earth Alliance units all have Phase Shift Armor. Let us make good use of them."
Confirming from Creuset's reply that he had grasped his meaning, Chairman Zala nodded in satisfaction.
Afterward, they discussed a few other matters before the busy His Excellency Patrick Zala cut the communication.