AUTHOR NOTE - This is a complete AU Gundam Story, has nothing to do with any characters or events in Gundam SEED or Gundam SEED: Destiny. I didn't know where else to post it. Most Concepts are taken from Gundam SEED such as Coordinators and Naturals and their struggle. Technology is going to be simplified, because writing about them is too difficult. So, please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't know Gundam SEED or anything of the like. Any similiarities are not to be taken as MY ideas. Only characters and plot belong to me. Thanks! (This is the only time I'm writing one of these!

NOTES - NOA is neutral. Providence is Naturals. SGATH is Coordinators. Just so you know. :)

"Introductions: The Girl

BESIDE YOU - Marianas Trench
- "And the words you want are out of reach, but they've never been so loud"

628 C.E. July 3 - Victoria Mental Asylum, Victoria, BC, Canada. - NOA

It's like any other day in the Institute. Quiet and still, just how she likes it. It means the war has yet to reach the West Coast. Naturally, staying closer to the Middle East rather then Canada. It still unnerves her, having a non-neutral nation so close to NOA (United States - Providence). The war has been at its peak for years. At least since she had been about four years of age and living with her 'loving' family.

She scrunches up her face and grits her teeth only to reform her concrete barrier. If there is one thing she does not need right now is to remember them. Of course, in the Institute, she is safe from them and what they subjected her to. What they made her into.

You see, she is what they call a "Coordinator". About one hundred and twenty-five years ago, a group of scientists known as S.G.A.T.H. – meaning Scientist's for Greater Advancement in Technology and Humanity – created something that no one would've dreamt of in their wildest dreams. A Coordinator. A human with personalized qualities and skills, with advanced learning abilities then the average human being. With that one human they began creating more and more. And before they knew it, the S.G.A.T.H. was taken over by Coordinators and created a completely separate Colony of human beings. The SGATH (*pronounced as read) colony complete with a majority of the Coordinators, which contained thirty-two percent of earth's population. Forty-six percent contained the Naturals, a part of the Providence Colony which believes solely that the Coordinators are abomination's and insults to life. And the remaining twenty-two percent are belonging to a few Rebel Colonies that are loosely tied to the neutral Colony of N.O.A. (*NOA: pronounced No-ah) – meaning Neutral Organization of Agreement. It has been a long time since the earth was divided in war.

Back to the institute. It's about one in the afternoon. Her lunch is to arrive soon, along with her friend and personal psychiatrist, Lisa Rhodes. Dr. Rhodes is the institutes leading Psychiatrist, only meeting with the most problematic Coordinators in the building. This is no Institute, she knew that, it was an Insane Asylum. She turns to the door just as there was a beeping sound, Lisa has arrived. The door slid open, and there she stood with the tray of food in hand and walks in. Placing it at the table, Lisa turns to the other occupant in the room, smiled and waved her over to the other seat she wasn't currently sitting in.

She stands and walks to the table. A calm look on her face and looks to her food. A purely vegan meal, just what she liked. She slowly smiles, looks to Lisa and sits down. She knows Lisa wants to talk.

"Ah, hello miss, how has your day been?" Lisa jokes. She always jokes, because she knows it acceptable here, with her, because she trusts Lisa.

"Quiet. You know that." She smiles more profoundly. It still doesn't quite reach her eyes. A fake smile, indeed.

Lisa nods knowingly. She always wants it quiet. Quiet means its safe. Dr. Rhodes writes down some things on her chart regarding her behaviour. She was normal. As normal as a Schizophrenic young woman can get, at least.

"Tania, I see you have been painting again. Mind telling me about the inspiration? Has something happened or perhaps, a memory triggered it? It isn't a very pleasant looking scene," Dr. Rhodes noticed the easel in the corner, and just as mentioned a painting sat upon it.

The painting was disturbing. No, it was morbid. It depicted a room, much like a morgue, covered in red substance. Blood.

Tania turns to her painting. She agrees It's very unnerving to see, "It's kind of both. It was in my dream." She said nothing more on the matter. She dislikes speaking much.

"I see," Dr. Rhodes nods and writes down another note. Afterwards, she puts the clipboard aside, gently, and looks at Tania, about to question her on another matter. Something she was unsure of bringing up. "Tania, I-"

"I need more red paint," Tania states, bluntly. "I've run out." She stares blankly back at Lisa.

"Okay, I'll get some more for you, but I have something I need to bring up with you." Lisa waits for a reaction, gets none and proceeds, "I'm being relocated to a space colony."

Tania noticeably flinched. She was being abandoned! By the only person she trusted, she starts breathing deaply, worry on her face. An emotional response. Something she barely attributes towards people.

"Calm down, please, I've asked for you to be transferred aswell." Dr. Rhodes commented quickly, noticing the much younger girls sudden response to the news. Lisa knows she can't leave her here in the care of someone else. "The request has been given to the board, and they've approved the transfer. I have sent in a request to get you to travel with me. Although, I don't know if it is possible, being a high-risk patient."

Tania did calm down. Her features relaxed into her serene look. Her breathing slowed to normal, and nods her assent. Although a little unsure about traveling to space, she's always been on earth, what would space be like?

"We will leave next week, is this okay with you?" Lisa looked uncertain with Tania's reaction.

"Yes," Tania said simply, "I still get my paint?"

Dr. Rhodes smiled. How one track minded Tania was. "Of course, I can go now and be back in twenty minutes if you'd like."

Tania only nods. She is hoping to continue her next painting. She needed more red paint.

Lisa gets up. Heading to the she turns, noticing Tania beginning to eat her lunch, slowly, carefully and with purpose. "See you in a bit."

She looks up from her food, and looks to her food again. A salad. No meat. She hates meat. It makes her sick.

The door made a swoosh sound and it closes. Leaving Tania in the white room, to her lunch and the impending thoughts on moving to a space colony. Although some would find this exciting, Tania is indifferent. Her condition has left her with a diffused emotional response to most anything.

The next half hour was spent in silence, upon Lisa's return, the tray was empty, and Tania is sitting on her bed, legs crossed staring at the windowless wall across from her. It was still silent.

"I've brought you your paint. And more canvas, I noticed you have three left, I'd hate to see you run out." Lisa smiled and placed the stuff down by her easel. "Have you been thinking of things? Anything to talk about?"

Tania turned to her right, looking at Lisa, "Not really."

'It's sad.' Lisa thought. 'She is so shy, quiet and introverted, she should learn to talk more.'

"I'd like to talk about something. Have you been contacted at all by your family?" Tania flinched, "Are they at all concerned about you? You've never told me about them."

"I don't like them, much," Tania whispered. So quietly, Lisa had to stain to hear her.

"You don't like them, much? Why?" Lisa pressed on, Tania never said anything about them, this is the first time she had acknowledged the conversation topic about her parents. Her family. What were they like? Are the like? Are they even still alive?

Silence. Tania said nothing, but looked away from Lisa with – was that shame? She was ashamed? 'Her parents must not be very good people'

Lisa looked to the clock and sighed. It was 2:30, time for her to go get her own lunch. "Tania, I will see you at dinner, I have lunch and other patients to see afterwards. Okay?"

Nod.

With a sigh, Dr. Lisa Rhodes left the young woman in her room for the second time today. Walking to her office she picks up her jacket from the back of her chair and slips it over her shoulders, buttoning it. She then grabs her purse from the desk and leaves the room. Walking down the expanse of hallway, she views the various paintings and drawings framed along the walls. A vast majority being the pleasant paintings that Tania had painted over the years. The very small amount of sceneries, people and animals she had commited to memory from the picture books she had read as a child.

Dr. Rhodes has not met someone quite like Tania. She was the same as most of her other patients, yet she was different all the same. She was special. Lisa had been a psychiatrist for the best part of her forty-five years of life. She met Tania when she was eight. It had been ten years and Tania grew to be a beautiful young woman. A shame. She will spend the rest of her life in a NOA Mental Asylum. Never improving enough to leave.

Why Tania was there, she didn't know. What had she done? Surely she could've learned to function properly over ten years? Why did someone give up on her?

She was not briefed on that. It was a closed case.

Lisa made a last turn entering the glass elevator and dropping from the sixth floor to ground level in twenty seconds. Exiting she gave a curt nod to the front desk secretary, who looked up as the elevator doors opened. She smiled back and continued work.

As Lisa stepped out of the front door, towards the parking lot she heard something

"WHO?"

Someone was questioning, who? She turned only to be blinded by the sun. How forgetful, she reached into her purse squinting. There were no windows in the building. No natural light, how she forgot about the sun being out this afternoon. She pulled a pair of sunglasses, placing them over her eyes, she looked again.

An owl? During the day?

Bad omen.

END -

Okay, that was just an introduction. Tania is the main character, if you haven't guessed, you will learn more about her later, but now is just a bit of a teaser. I'm still working on it, but tell me what you think. R/R

:) - soeki