WAR IS OVER
WAR IS OVER was a special edition of GAZE released after the end of the Lighthouse War. It appears in "The New System", the final cutscene of Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. The full cover image was included in the Japanese edition of Aces At War: A History 2019, but the English edition omitted the title and subtitle. Portions of the text were re-translated from certain pages in Aces At War.
Below is a partial transcription of the magazine. Ellipses (...) are present where the text is cut off or difficult to read due to the framing and motion of the cutscene.
The end of the Lighthouse War[edit]
In December 2019, the countries of Osea and Erusea forged a peace agreement at the EC conference. The longstanding war between them will end with the signing of a nonaggression pact that's planned to take place next month at North Point. ... In fact, a part of the Kingdom of Erusea is demanding independence while Free Erusean ... is increasing around the North. The International United Nations Peacekeeping Force (IUN)—the majority of which comprises forces from Osea—is planning a large reorganization with forces of Usean ... under this ... will be dispatched to each location accordingly. ... People are gathering around the lighthouse.
Report & Photos by Albert Genette
Refugees Flock to the Space Elevator[edit]
A long line of cars stretches almost endlessly across a bridge connecting Selatapura to the space elevator, their occupants hoping to escape the war that rages behind them. The base of the mountains surrounding the elevator is now home to a large refugee camp for more and more people from across Usea. The Erusean military guides the people, while the Osean military provides them with necessary supplies. These troops decided to stay behind on their own volition and formed their own self-government organization. Meanwhile, Yuktovanian[sic] aircrafts continue to drop additional supplies. What a strange scene. Three[sic] nations who fought against each other a couple of months ago are now redefining the rules by helping these refugees as one.
According to the text of establishment of interim administrations agreed by U.N. Security Council, the very idea of a country as it is traditionally defined no longer exists. Borders are not stipulated and members of the government are not disclosed. An area within a 20-kilometer radius of the space elevator island is tentatively regarded as an air defense area. An idealistic thought like cosmopolitanism can be seen in the text as a whole, and the idea of "promotion of restructuring of the whole world around the space elevator" is used as a pretext. Still, the real is far from the ideal. At the end of the day, it is a refugee camp built in the once-battlefield; supplies are never sufficient, and the pungent smell of char clings to the nostrils. Even so, the people living here continue to smile warmly while ... children play just like they are in an athletic ... and adults help each other out to develop a new ... The sound of young girls singing old, ... songs can be heard over the general din of the ... tension in the air, and no one tries to ... This can be put down to the efforts of ... Princess Cossette of The[sic] Kingdom of Erusea, who called for countries to come together to build the refugee camp, and provide its people with aid. She comes here regularly, despite being busy with restoring regions of Erusea, including its capital of Farbanti. Dressed in a white shirt and regular pants, the scruffy-haired young woman looks nothing like your typical princess; only her radiant smile sets her apart. People are naturally drawn to her, and the air is filled with ease.
Rosa Cossette D'Elise helped spearhead the war efforts, and as such carries a great weight on her shoulders. The Erusean king was killed in this war, while the queen had already passed away from illness beforehand. The responsibility is too heavy for an 18-year-old girl to bear under the confusion in the government. Even with everything she has had to face, the princess has never stopped working, involving herself in international congress by acknowledging Erusea's culpability in the war, imploring international cooperation, and seeking to use the space elevator for peace. It reminded us of the princess who inspired her nation's people with enthusiasm at the beginning of this war. She never uses her words to blame, only to inspire hope. She influenced the world this time.
The princess Cossette is only a legitimate heir to the former throne. The selection of the next king is an urgent issue but Erusea does not recognize female heads of state. A new head needs to be found in the royal family as with the Restoration period. The majority of people favor the princess, but they may be in for a long wait before a woman is ever allowed to permanently sit upon the throne. It might not be a nation the princess is aiming for. The refugee camp contains people from all over the world. There are no borders here. She certainly sees a place for them to live before her.
Lighthouse War: From Beginning to End[edit]
...mechnical precision. When... were used in actual combat, they... And with... against Osea's actions, public opinion tilted greatly in favor... the drone program they had been developing for some time, and deployed the birds, making their defenses practically... stationed on the mainland eastward, further restricting Osean movements. Erusea then deployed... auto-intercept system on an outpost...
...had found a blind... exactly the same time, Erusea took out all of the satellites still under Osean control, causing the entire communications network to go completely dark. Forces... found themselves... The war was supposed...
...found anywhere. Even so, Erusea's young revolutionaries were still brimming with confidence. They set up an HQ near the space elevator, and... their forces with... were covered by...
Erusea Pursuing an Ultimate Evolution of Drones[edit]
In 2004,[sic] the Kingdom of Erusea (formerly the Erusean Republic) lost the Continental War. The kigndom once boasted a deadly military force comprised of the Aegir Fleet—said to be invincible—and lead[sic] the world in the[sic] military technology such as the variable-sweep stealth aircraft development. By the end of the war, most of their technology was gone. Erusean forces maintained "the minimum organization for self-defense" though dismantlement of the forces was promoted after the war. They invested a great deal in the development of drones in the name of global cooperation. That was only a way for them to survive.
Countries across the globe were competing fiercely to develop drones as a means of reducing human suffering and overcoming the lack of human resources during wartime. Erusea had superiority at the beginning of the war even with this background, which can be a result of them investing effectively on unmanned weapons, especially drones.
The joint project with the giant corporation North Osea Grander IG[sic] was one of cases[sic] where Erusean taxpayer money was spent on. Erusean forces participated in the project to work on the joint development and provide test pilots and bases. They deployed a test flight squadron to their air base of the EASA, and utilized an ace pilot with unmatched combat ability and experience to gather combat data that would be used to form the basis for an artificial intelligence to be used in battle.
A chief researcher "Dr. Schroeder" requested for a capable pilot. The pilot fought endless waves of aggressor squadron[sic] to gather data which was then used to update the AI. Thanks to the pilot as well as the researcher, development of the drone program progressed with unprecedented speed. How did Erusean forces find this pilot even though they lost many pilots in the previous battle?
Some say that the Principality of Belka was involved with a large part of Dr. Schroeder's project. North Osea Grander IG[sic] had previously operated as a government-run weapon production facility in the south of Belka. ... Belka and Erusea were world-renowned ... their prowess in the field of technolo... surprising that their coop... advances in ... mass-produced ... the air ...
Unnamed Section[edit]
One of the aims of the space elevator project was to harness the sun's vast energy for solar power applications. A solar battery was to be sent into space, where it would collect the sun's energy and then send it back to a facility on Earth via microwaves. The announcement caught the attention of the entire world. The energy shortage caused by the Ulysses disaster remains as an international issue, causing wars to erupt all over, particularly the Continental War, and soon people had high hopes for a new way forward that reduced over-reliance on nuclear energy and fossil fuels.
It was decided that the elevator would be constructed in the old Erusean Republic region of Gunther Bay near the equator for two reasons: the area seemed to be a favorable site for easy installation of construction materials because it was a critical passage of maritime traffic; and it was the nearest place to Selatapura trade port which is achieving significant economic development recently. However, this plan caused a new conflict in Usea. The Erusean interim government at that time raised an objective that ... construction on the site was a cultural ... that ignores its historical value. Erusea ... defeated nation who confused the ... and the resistance showed by Erusea ... their place, which provided a ... the active defense of allied nations ... forces to Osea who spent a ... of money to the project. Osea, ... deploy drone motherships: aerial arsenal ships, aka the Arsenal Birds.
...corporations who joined ISEV went ahead with the plan. The construction progressed as planned. That is, until just before its completion, when Erusea declared war. President Harling was inside the elevator on the very day Erusea seized control of it.
Unfortunately, the former president lost his life after being dragged into the conflict. When the Circum-Pacific War ended, he was referred to as the Ambassador of Peace, so it was only natural that his death caused shockwaves around the globe, causing the war to intensify.
Although Erusea utilized the space elevator for military purposes during the war, Princess Cossette begged the international conference to use it for peace after the war ended. She was successful with her efforts and a global pact was signed, selecting her as an ambassador.
Arsenal Birds were deemed counterproductive to peace and disappeared. In their place, a new defense air force was formed. Though they operated as a peacekeeping force that answered directly to the United Nations, they had no connection to the IUPF. While some say they are little more than Princess Cossette's lapdog, and that all military forces should be disbanded, there is no denying that the world is not yet totally at peace. As such, it was determined that the country where the space elevator is located and those surrounding it needed protection.
The space elevator also functions as a space station. Shortly before the war concluded, the planetary observation team Pilgrim 1 came home from its seven year mission. Its captain, Kei Nagase, gave the following quote upon her return:
"The universe continues its perpetual expansion. And now we've got a gateway to further our exploration on our quest for knowledge. Cheers to the pilot who gave us all a future."
With the cooperation of the Erusean Space Station, Princess Cossette's plan for international space development was put into motion. The flag of hope once carried by Osea's President Harling is now being held firm and high by the princess of Erusea.