Disclaimer: I do at this moment declare that I do not own the story, characters, or anything else from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn and anything like it. I only own this story itself, my created characters, and anything else that I have created for the purpose of this story. Thank you.
Mobile Suit Gundam UC: The Trails We Blaze
A Gundam Unicorn Alternate Universe Story
Written by,
William R. Woods
Aka Deathzealot or
Deathzealotzero
Foreword:
This story came to me when I was watching the new RE:0096 Series and coming across a picture of all three of the Unicorn Gundams surrounding the Neo-Zeong on Gundam Wikia. I then asked myself what if each of the Unicorns was given to different factions, therefore, making it a race to find Laplace's Box between these three different factions. What that in mind I sat down and started to come up with further ideas for the story as well as plotting out the story as best I could without actually writing anything down. This story is that result of that brainstorm, and I am quite excited to write it.
That said, I like to mention that I am making some changes to the overall larger Universal Century Timeline. The main point I am changing is that the First Neo-Zeon War never happened at all, and instead, it follows the ending of the New Translation Movies with the Axis Zeon retreating from the battlefield after the end of the Gryps War. Following this general retreat, the Federation, and the Axis Zeon enter a stage of pseudo-Cold War between them. This would allow the Federation to rebuild its forces as well as hunting down the remaining groups of Titans at large who refuse to surrender. This goes on for like two to three years before one of Haman's officers, Glemy Toto, leads a rebellion against her due to Glemy tired of sitting doing nothing against the Federation. However due to the Federation not ready for another war they put together a small taskforce to support Haman's loyalist faction. This taskforce is led by the new Nahal Argama, which carries the so-called Gundam Team, a team of Gundams and their pilots. Similar to the same team in Double Zeta just a bit different. During the following battle both Haman and Glemy are killed along much of their forces. However, while another major war is prevented this rebellion still splinters the Axis Zeon and other Zeon Remnants into many different smaller factions, many of which do not get along with other thanks in part to the Rebellion. It is thanks to this that Londo Bell is formed to start hunting down these small Zeon Factions. Of course, a few years later Char arrives on the scene and manages to gather together a few of the smaller Zeon Remnant Factions together into the Neo-Zeon Faction leading to Char's Rebellion.
This leads to the start of the story where Zeon Remnants are still several smaller factions, the Londo Bell Taskforce struggling to keep a lid on them, and a strange new offer made by the Vist Foundation: handing over Laplace's Box to anyone who wants it. Unknown to the Earth Sphere at large Vist built three new Gundams which would serve as Keys to the Box. Each of these Gundams sporting La+ Programs that will allow the Factions to receive them from searching independently for the Box in their way. This is where our story begins.
All that said this story would not follow the major storyline of the OVA and the RE:0096 Series just with the addition of three Unicorn Gundams and their pilots trying to find the Box. Instead, I shall be adding new stuff I have created, along with stuff from the Novels and the Manga, and stuff from other side stories in the Universal Century. This is to make things interesting for the reader and not treading the same Path RE:0096 is doing right now. I believe that is about it and time to get started! Enjoy!
Prologue: Springboard
To My Only Desire, The Beast of Possibility, The Symbol of Hope…
- Vist Family Creed
Nearspace
Industrial Seven, Side Four
Lagrange One, Earth Sphere
April 7, UC0096
On the bridge of the Zeon Remnant Ship Landra, the figure of Major Yonem Kirks floated in zero gravity looking out of the bridge's viewport at the distant form of Industrial Seven Colony with a frown on his face. For he wasn't quite sure about this operation for attacking a civilian colony like this just didn't feel right to him at all. Granted for several years he fought in a guerilla war with the Zeon Remnants on Earth, therefore, had attacked a few civilian targets during that time but still attacking Industrial Seven did not sit well with the veteran Zeon officer. Even then he would follow orders for he had no choice since Commander Mahdi Garvey had been the one who had managed to get him and his men off Earth during the Axis Zeon Civil War and now his overall commander. He was suddenly jolted from his thoughts when a second figure approached him.
"Major, Lieutenant Garvey has reported that her team has arrived at the colony and ready to start the operation," the figure of the ship's commander, one Vaan Vickson reported making Kirks look over at the younger man.
"Understood Captain. Let's get started then," Kirks ordered the other man with a nod of his head who saluted before turning to look at his crew. Kirks himself turned away from the viewport to start heading down to the ship's mobile hanger to get himself ready for the operation.
"You heard the Major. Helm bring us around on an intercept course for Industrial Seven, Tactical bring all weapons online…" the younger man started snapping out orders to his crew while Kirks floated through the bridge's main hatch before it closed cutting off the rest of the man's orders. As he continued to the hanger, he briefly wondered if Loni Garvey, Mahdi's young daughter, would be able to complete this mission. With another sigh, the man turned away from his worried thoughts of the young girl and onto the mission itself.
-o-o-o-
Stateroom
Vist Family Mansion
Magallanica, Industrial Seven
In one of the finely decorated staterooms of the Vist Family Mansion the figure of Princess Mineva Lao Zabi, the last member, and heir of the former leaders of the old Principality of Zeon, stood looking out of the window of the room. Down below the window, the young man who had helped her get to the Mansion was now being led away back to the Colony itself and the Anaheim Technical College he attended. With a frown, the young woman turned to looked over the middle-aged looking man standing at her side.
"Was that necessary Director Vist? He did manage to help me get here without Captain Zinnerman or his crew knowing I was here after all," she mentioned to the man, one Cardeas Vist, head of the Vist Family and Director of the Vist Foundation. The man smiled slightly at her before sighing and eying the figure of the downtrodden looking young man, one Banagher Links, as he turned to look slightly up at the towering mansion.
"If it were anyone else, Princess, I would have gladly kept him around, but I don't want my youngest son involved in any way with this. I had promised his mother after all before she passed," the man explained sadly making Mineva look in some shock at the man.
"He is your son! But I thought Alberto Vist was your only child?" the young woman managed to say after several long moments of sheer shock. Cardeas only smiled sadly at her before sighing.
"You are quite correct publicly Alberto is my only child from my first wife, but what hardly anyone knows is that I started a relationship with a second woman a few years after the death of my wife. She was a pianist I meet during a few parties I attended, and the two of us clicked far better than with my wife. After several private dates and talks, I invited her to stay with me in this mansion. From that relationship came Banagher, but I made a few mistakes with him for that was the time research was started on Newtypes and it didn't take me long to figure out Banagher was one. I, like many others wanted to know everything about Newtypes as I could, therefore, put Banagher through numerous tests when he was around five or so. His mother soon found out and tore into me about the tests, but I had already started to feel a bit guilty about it, therefore, let her take him away. When Banagher was thirteen she called me saying she was dying and wanted me to come to her, and there on her deathbed I promised her that while I will stay away from him, I will still watch over him," Cardeas explained to the surprised Zeon princess before shaking his head.
"I'm sorry you didn't come here to hear my life story, but seeing him again really shook me up more than I thought it did," Cardeas continued as he turned away from the window. He waved towards the small tea set placed on a small tea table.
"Let's get to matters on what why you have come here to visit me in the first place?" he invited as he took a seat on one side of the tea table. Mineva shook herself before taking a seat on the other side of the table. The two then served themselves the tea before Mineva sighed and leaned forward in her seat.
"I came here Director for two reasons, first, of course, was to get the reason for you handing over Laplace's Box over to Captain Frontal's Sleeve's Faction and to prevent another war from starting between the Spacenoids and the Earthnoids," Mineva explained making Cardeas raise an eyebrow in interest before sighing and placing down his tea on the table.
"I hate to say this Princess for I believe you are a quite intelligent young woman, and you don't deserve it, but you are quite naïve and innocent," he mentioned with a hard tone of voice making Mineva look at him in sheer shock and a little hurt at the man's comment.
"Before you say anything let me explain. As you know within four years' time the Republic of Zeon will be no more and be finally absorbed into the larger Federation. Therefore, those in the Republic who want to keep their independence from the Federation are going to do whatever they need to prevent it from happening. Combined that with the tension that comes from the Axis Civil War seven years go, and the continued split between various Zeon Remnant Factions that happened thanks to the war and a new war is guaranteed to start in the near future I'm sorry to say," he explained in a softer more saddened tone of voice making the Princess look at him in a combination of horror and sadness for she cannot really say anything against it for when putting like that she could understand what he was saying to her.
"Therefore I decided to do something about it, hence my reasoning to hand over the Box, which I hope will maybe prevent this war from happening in the first place. Granted there will be combat and such but I have to hope it be small and concerted in a few places. This is because I am not directly handing the box over to someone, even Captain Frontal, instead he is only one of three people I am going to test in the form of handing over a key to them. This key will lead them on a journey to not only test them but discover several things about the Universal Century along with the true history of the Box. Only then will the key lead them to the box where they have one final test done by the Box's Guardian before it will be handed over to the person who completed every single test successfully," the man explained with an almost smug looking look on his face. The Princess leaned back in her chair before taking her teacup and sipping from it to give her time to think over what the Director had revealed to her. After several moments of thought, she placed the teacup done and leaned forward once more this time with a more focused and intent look on her face.
"Can I have one of these keys Director?" she asked making Cardeas look at her for a moment with a judging look on his face before nodding.
"I admit I had been hoping you would ask that Princess and the answer to that are yes for I believe you to be one of my better options for using the key," he mentioned with a small laugh and got up before walking over to a smaller side table which an aging looking phone sat. He picked up the phone's handset and spoken briefly into it before quickly placing it back.
"Since you are going to need some personal and such to go through the tests I shall let you use my private transport and its crew. For I don't think you will want to use Captain Zinnerman's ship and crew after all. This crew though I am sure will be pleased to follow your orders and lead," he explained with a small smile on his face. Mineva looked up at him in some confusion before someone knocked on the door to the stateroom. Cardeas made his way over to the door and opened it letting a weathered scarred older looking man into the room. This man wore what looked be a soft blue uniform with the unicorn emblem of the Vist Foundation on the breast of the coat.
"Douglas. I believe you know Princess Mineva though I admit it has been several years since you have seen her. Princess this is Douglas Meyer one of your father's subordinates during the One Year War," Cardeas said introducing the two with a hidden smile on his face. The man blinked at this before his jaw dropped and he stiffened into a state of attention. He then brought his arm over his chest in an old style Zeonic salute. While Mineva look surprised at this before eying the man with an inquisitive look on her face.
"Lady Mineva! I haven't seen you since you were a baby. It's an honor to see you once more," the man managed to say after several false starts. Mineva could only stare at him in further surprise before shaking her head.
"I am quite pleased to meet you once more Mister Meyer for I admit I never really have met anyone of my father's men before. I have only really known Admiral Karn, his subordinates, and his family therefore never got a chance to meet any of you," Mineva finally managed to say after a few moments of silence between the two. Meyer looked surprised by this before nodded his head at her.
"Douglas I am going to be giving the Princess one of the Keys to the Box, but since she does not have anyone to help her I am going to lend her the use of the Fenice and her crew. Therefore, will you escort her to the dock and brief her on the ship along with what the Key happens to be. I have another meeting I need to get too," Cardeas interrupted the two with a smile on his face making Meyer looked at him in further surprise before Cardeas turned to Mineva.
"I am sure Douglas can answer any further questions of yours, but pardon me I need to meet with Captain Zinnerman," he said with a short bow towards her before moving towards another door leaving the two.
"Director, before you go please answer me this. You telling me about your son and his history wasn't because his appearance shook you but something else?" Mineva called out to the man as he opened the door making Cardeas turn slightly with a smile on his face before bowing his head towards her and leaving the room. Mineva stared at the now closed door for a moment before sighing and turning to look at Douglas Meyer.
"Very good Mister Meyer let's go," she stated waving at the door he had come through. The man nodded opening the door for her as she approached.
"Yes Milady," he said as she passed him and out of the door. She took one final look at the room and figured this was a start of a new phase of her life. One that could see her becoming as infamous as the rest of her family or make her rise above that and make her own impression on the Earth Sphere.
-o-o-o-
In a darkened small private mobile suit hangar, one of several that the Vist Foundation had hidden around the Factory Section of Industrial Seven several shadowed figures could be seen moving into the hangar. Towering above them was the hangar's sole occupant with its black armor, and dull red eyes that seem to gleam as the unknown figures quickly secured the hangar before one of the figures looked up to stare up at the towering figure with cobalt blue eyes and a small smile on their face.
-o-o-o-
Central Port Authority Building
Industrial Seven, Side Four
With a silent hiss the lift doors opened showing the waiting figure of the Cardeas Vist and a single escort standing in front of the lift waiting for the four men in the lift. The lead figure of the four Captain Suberoa Zinnerman had a look of slight surprise on his face at the appearance of Cardeas.
"Ah! Captain Zinnerman I apologize for the wait but I had some issues to deal. Some figures in the Industrial Seven Port Authority were quite miffed about lending me this building for our meeting," the man explained with a short bow.
"The Director of the Vist Foundation himself in person. I am honored sir," Zinnerman mentioned a slight nod of his head to the man.
"We are entrusting you with the fate of the Foundation. I couldn't leave this to anyone else," Vist replied before stepping back and bid them with an extended arm towards a hallway with several black suited security guards along the walls.
"This way. Come," Cardeas beckoned before turning around and started down the hallway. The three other Sleeve members looked over at the captain who just shrugged slightly before following behind the aristocratic gait of their host.
-o-o-o-
Private Dock
Magallanica, Industrial Seven
Located inside the Colony Builder's own industrial grade harbor, where much of the needed resources for building a colony are unloaded, is the Vist Family's Private Dock with direct access to the Family's Mansion in the massive structure's small Residential Section. In this private access way the figure of Mineva Lao Zabi followed behind the tall figure of Douglas Meyers as the man escorted her through the long hallway like access way. The two had been talking back and forth about Meyers time under her father's command and when he had last saw her. Mineva had been quite interested to learn about that day since Meyers was most likely one of the few who had been there for it all. She also had been quite surprised to find that he had along with a handful of other pilots managed to hold a larger Federation Mobile Suit Pursuit Force at bay. It had only been the intervention of her father's bodyguard and best friend Shin Matsunaga that saved Meyers from dying that day. Even then he had been injured during the battle and had been transferred to the medical facilities at A Baoa Qu when they arrived there. He then missed the entire Battle of A Baoa Qu and had been captured by the Federation following the battle. It was thanks to him being held up in a medical bay that prevented him from joining her and her mother in their Exodus to Axis.
"So Mister Meyer Director Vist mentioned this Key to Laplace's Box being something else then just a key?" Mineva asked finally after a few moments of silence between the two after Meyers finished his story. Meyer blinked at this before chuckling slightly at the change in subject from her.
"The Key, or Keys rather, to Laplace Box are actually three prototype RX-0 Gundam Mobile Suit Units, codenamed Unicorn, Banshee, and Fenix. Inside the operating systems of these three mobile suits is a program called the La+ Program which unlocks little by little after going to several different series of Coordinates. Each of these Gundam units are quite powerful and are equipped with a new prototype Total Psycoframe technology allowing only Newtypes to be able to pilot it," Meyers explained making Mineva once again totally surprised at something. She never even thought that the Key to Laplace Box was not actually a physical key but instead a program inside a Gundam mobile suit. A Newtype Gundam at that. She knew that she was a Newtype thanks to her being tested by Char Azanable right before the Neo-Zeon War.
"Okay that is interesting but I only have limited experience in piloting mobile suits therefore who will be piloting it then," she continued on with her questioning. However before she be answered the two entered the start of the Dock's null gravity zone seeing the two of them starting to float in the zero-gee gravity.
"Well one of the crew of the Fenice had been the original test pilot of the Unicorn and through that the tester of the Total Psycoframe therefore is quite capable of piloting it once more," Meyer explained with a small laugh as he grabbed a hand tractor on the wall near him.
"Okay what about the Fenice itself then and what about its crew?" she asked as she too grabbed a hand tractor letting it start to pull her on her way. Meyer only smirked before nodding to the now windowed roof of the access way showing the dock itself and the ship docked within it. Mineva blinked at she stared up at the ship in sheer shock for it wasn't some sort of large luxury transport shuttle or private space yacht like she thought someone Cardeas Vist had as their private transport. Instead it clearly looked to be some variant of the old Zeon Zanzibar Class Mobile Cruiser painted in a white and dark gray paint job.
"Meet the Fenice and yes it had once been a Zanzibar Class Cruiser but it had massively refitted to serve as Master Cardeas private transport while still sporting weapons to defend itself not including the ability to carry six mobile suits," Meyer explained with some pride in his voice while Mineva gaped in sheer shock at the sight above her.
"Originally Master Cardeas had a private Klimt Class Shuttle as his private transport but with the assassination of his wife twenty-five years ago, a handful of smaller assassinations on his own person since then, and two other Klimt Class shuttles destroyed over the past two years Master Cardeas decided to upscale his transport into something that could handle itself in a battle. Granted while she is armed she still follows the Federation's laws on armed private vessels, though I admit she does have a few surprises packed in her," Meyer continued on with a frown on his face as the access way took a slight upwards tilted towards the ship itself.
"What about the crew? What makes them so special?" Mineva finally managed to recover enough to ask making Meyer once again chuckle slightly.
"Master Cardeas had me personally hand-pick the crew when he first received the ship two years ago. I choose many former Zeon personal who had either joined the Republic Military or retired after the end of the One Year War while also being trustworthy. Many of them had once been under your father's command during the War. She is currently captained by Charlotte Hepner, a former member of your Aunt's Midnight Fenrir Corps, and later an officer in the Republic Military. While her mobile suit squad is led by the Mu La Flagga, a former Anaheim Test Pilot and one of the few members of the crew to not be from Zeon and the Newtype test pilot I mentioned earlier," Meyer explained as they approached the ship's personal hatch which was guarded by a pair of Green Normal Suited figures who stiffened at their approach. While a third figure in a similar uniform to Meyers own stood in between them as if waiting for them.
"Mister Meyer. Master Cardeas ordered the ship readied for launch but did not explain the reason for it or what is going on?" the third figure, a red-haired older woman asked with a frown looking over at Mineva before turning her attention back to amused looking Meyer.
"Captain Hepner as of this moment the Fenice along with the RX-0 Unicorn is being transferred to the overall command of Princess Mineva Lao Zabi where she will be using the Unicorn's La+ Program to unlock the location of the Laplace's Box," Meyer explained with a small smile on his face. The Captain and the two guards stiffened in shock at the identity of Mineva. A moment later the Captain shook off her shock and bow slightly towards Mineva.
"Understood Mister Meyer. Lady Mineva it is an honor to meet you, let's get you onboard and settled," the Captain directed with a wave of her hand to the opened personal hatch and the ship itself.
"Of course. Thank you Mister Meyer for the escort and pass my thanks to Director Vist for the use of this wonderful vessel. Also thank you for helping to save me when I was baby," Mineva mentioned with a small blush and a wave at the man who only bow his head at her thanks before following the now amused looking Captain Hepner. Meyer blinked at this before turning away from hatch and heading back to the Residential District.
-o-o-o-
Nearspace
Harbor, Industrial Seven
Hiding along the hull of the colony was the figure of an AMS-129 Geara Zulu Mobile Suit which had been dropped by Captain Zinnerman's ship the Garencieres as it entered the colony's harbor. This was mainly to keep an eye out in the case of any double cross from the Vist Foundation. In the mobile suit's cockpit, it's pilot, one Rintarou Savoir, yawned as he continued to scan the colony's Nearspace for anything suspicious. Suddenly, he blinked as leaned forward looking at one of the screens of his panoramic monitor which showed some approaching anomaly. With a frown, Savoir focused the scans onto the anomaly and after a brief moment the scans returned their results making Savoir gasp in shock for the anomaly was, in fact, the forms of several approaching mobile suits. At first, Savoir believed them to be Federation machines but soon saw he was incorrect.
"Gaza-Ds? What in the world?" he said out load in some confusion as he continued to scan the approaching machines wondering what these Axis developed machines were doing here. He then found his answer when he saw the dark gray colors of the mobile suits which told him the owners of these mobile suits where Remnants of Glemy Toto's Faction of the old Axis Zeon, one of the several different Zeon Remnant Factions spread across the Earth Sphere.
"Oh great," Savoir said with a silent curse before opening a channel with the docked Garencieres.
"This is Savoir. We have some unexpected company. I am detecting six Gaza-D, a modified Zaku-III and a single unknown mobile suit all in the colors of the Glemy Faction. Orders?" he said into his radio sending his message back his ship. However, before he could get any response from them, the six Gaza-Ds opened fire with their Knuckle Buster Beam Cannons on the colony's harbor.
"Keep your head down Savoir. We might need you later," came the response from the Garencieres a few moments later making Savoir only sigh before leaning back and watching as the attack on the colony began.
-o-Fin-o-
Post Chapter Notes:
Well that is the first chapter of this story and already there are several differences from the canon story in the series itself. First Zinnerman and his crew never noticed Mineva stowing away on their ship before trying to recover her. Secondly Mineva becomes one of three receivers of the Key to Laplace's Box which will see her go on a journey to open Laplace Box on her own terms. Her little faction will be the Moderate Zeon/Vist Foundation while the Garvey Faction will be the more Radical Zeon Faction.
Also I am quite proud that I didn't need to create any original characters for this chapter with Meyer being one of the other pilots of the Big Zam with Dozle and the man who later informs Zena about the death of Dozle. His desperate holding action protecting Zena and baby Mineva mentioned in this chapter is from one of the side story mangas. I am not sure if he was injured or not but it does make some sense to see him get injured and be transferred to a medical unit at A Baoa Qu before the start of the battle there. Next we have Charlotte Hepner who had once been a member of the elite Midnight Fenrir Unit which had been formed at the orders of Kycilia Zabi. Later in the Gundam Legacy Manga she is seen as a member of the Republic of Zeon military. I figured she eventually becomes a commander of a ship in the Republic before leaving the military to join the Vist Foundation for some reason. The final character mentioned here is Mu La Flagga who of course is based on the same character from Gundam SEED but is in fact the unnamed test pilot of the Unicorn Gundam seen in the Chapter 3 of the Bande Dessinee Manga. He is a bit different from La Flagga from SEED but still kind of based on him. For example, while he is a Newtype he is a very low key one and only really sports the spatial awareness of a Newtype. Other characters on the Fenice will be introduced in the coming chapters and many of them will be earlier based on other characters in UC or a composite character like La Flagga.
The Fenice itself is like mentioned in this chapter is heavily based on the Zanzibar Class ships, mostly the Keraunos. Thanks to it being a private transport of a civilian it doesn't possess all of the weapons of the original Zanzibar Class only really defensive weapons. It still serves as a carrier for a small squad of mobile suits which still makes it quite dangerous. My original plan for the ship had it based on the Late Production Type Musai Class but really I needed something with a bit more room in the hangar therefore when I once again came across the image of the Keraunos I figured it was a better idea to use that instead.
Anyhow, I do believe that is enough yacking from me. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I shall see you all in the next chapter. Till then Ciao!