A MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM - THE SECOND CENTURY VIGNETTES story by Ellis Alpha, with assistance from JHellscythe.
May 19, U.C. 0094…
Alert. Sad. Scared.
She was alone in the dark, hearing the outside world go about her. She viewed the world outside the alleyway with soulless amber eyes. Her pale face covered in dirt and ash. Covered in black with her raven hair up in a bun. The girl was roughly seventeen, but she cared less as she fiddle with the ornate handle of her sword. Observing; waiting for new prey.
Alert. Greed. Lust?
SPARK!
She felt a strong pressure in her head as her amber eyes caught a flash of pink appearing from one end of the alley. A younger girl of asian descent played with her messy, short pink hair. A black hoodie engulfing her small but, petite frame. Lust began to consume the emptiness as her battered mechanical legs began to move on their own accord. Creeping careful like a shadow, empty eyes ran across the girl's form in a carnal hunger. A moist tongue ran over her dry lips as she continues to stalk her prey.
Want! Want bad! Want Her!
But, she had enough patience to wait for her chance. She knew it'd be worth the wait. Opportunity will come. But, the feeling kept getting stronger with each passing second. She bit her lip in an attempt to hold back, but the attempt was failing.
Mine, mine, mine! Must have! She is mine!
Dull amber eyes spotted an alley up ahead. Pale pink lips turned upward into a lustful grin. It failed, however, to reach the dull, amber eyes that continued to watch the young girl's hips swaying as she walked. She quickened her pace, quietly, till she became the girl's shadow. Excitement and lust grew as she counted the steps towards catching her prey.
Soon. Mine soon. Want bad! So bad! Mine, mine, mine!
Now!
In one fluid movement, she grabbed the younger girl's arm as she turned into the alleyway. With that same motion, pinned the the pink haired girl up against the wall. The girl opened her mouth to complain, but a pair of pair of plump lips sealed hers to prevent the action. She did it. She had her prey. However, no satisfaction of her achievement came.
Surprise. Confusion. Disgust. Anger. Fight!
The lust disappeared from her form as she pulled back only to feel a fist connected with her cheek. Dull amber caught anger brewing like a raging storm in the girl's silver eyes. That anger now filled the momentary emptiness. Teeth clenched in hate as girl went in for another hit.
Disgust. Hate. Anger.
Body moving in combat mode, she avoided the next hit as she drew her sword, a rapier. She thrust the sword at the girl, now identified as an enemy. The girl dodged and launched herself at the her. The sword was knocked out of her hand as she hit the other wall.
She got back up only to find her sword hand being restrained behind her back. She thrashed around and struggled, trying to get out of the girl's strong grip. The anger that burned in her wouldn't let her get caught so easily.
Hate. Anger. Confusion?
She stopped struggling and frowned. The young girl's grip had a bit of slack in it, but it was still tight. They sat like this for a long moment, before she heard the girl spoke for the first time.
"I promise to let you go if you don't try to make a move against me. Deal?" She asked, carefully.
She slowly nodded her head. She truly didn't have much of a choice in the matter. This girl was better at close combat than she was. That and her legs can't take another beating or they'll break. None of the less, she felt the girl release her and back away. She took a moment to examine the arm, though she felt no pain. She hadn't for a long time now.
"I'm sorry if I gripped you too hard," the girl apologized, "Then again, you did try to molest me so I say we're even… I think..."
Her voice was a mixture of alto and soprano notes that marked her in the development of womanhood. She came around to face her. Silver eyes held a curious interest in their depths. She watched the girl pondered her in observation as she did the same with her dull amber eyes. The girl's eyes were quite beautiful. If she were honest, the girl was quite beautiful in general.
The girl frowned, "I don't get it. You're definitely a Newtype like me and yet I can't feel a damn thing from you at all."
She matched the girl's expression, "...New… Type…?"
Her voice sounded hoarse from not speaking for a while. Still, most would have describe her voice belonging to that of a princess. But, she felt as surprised as girl in front of her. After a moment, the pink hair girl stood and offered her a hand. A smile donned the girl's features.
"Come on. I'm taking you to my Dad. He's better at explaining this more than I am… Just don't kill anyone, alright?" The girl explained, helping her up on her feet.
She went to pick up her rapier and place it back in its scabbard. She, then, turned to follow the girl. She didn't know why, but she had a feeling that this girl was different. That she can help change this place.
Her mechanical legs creaking slightly as she walked. They had taken more damage than expected today.
"Ouch! Your legs look horrible! I'll be sure to fix them up at my place." the girl commented with a grimace, "Oh, and the name's Penelope, by the way. Penelope Spencer."
Fear. Distrust. Concern?
These were the feelings that currently resided in her empty form as the girl, Penelope, began to explain the entirety of her predicament to the greying man she was sure was her father. She also noticed his arm, as well as a blond haired girl's arms (whom she had come to known as Violet), were also mechanical and looked well taken care of in contrast to her battered, dirty legs.
After an hour of feeling what seemed like a rainbow of different emotions and the longest explanation imaginable, the man began to pondered his daughter's words. Penelope was lucky to have a parent like him. She can see his concern for his child's well-being and safe. It almost reminded her of her own father once upon a time… What was his name again?
Jack had watched this girl's expression change with every emotion his daughter put out, literally matching her expression every time... to be honest, he found it a little unsettling.
"Tell me," says as he speaks for the first time since Penelope brought the girl to him, "Who are you."
She snapped out of her thoughts and turn her dull eyes at him, "Who...? ... Princess... The... Ash Princess..."
"Well the Ash Princess is certainly not a name," Penelope says with a giggle, "So why don't we call you Cindy... Cindy Homura."
"Cindy... Homura...?" She questioned, confusion flickered in her dead eyes.
"Yep! Cindy is short for Cinderella and Homura means flame in Japanese. You remind me of both of those things. Especially, your eyes," Penelope explained, "They're like a flame that hasn't completely given up, yet. So, won't you let us help you?"
At that moment, the emptiness suddenly vanished as her heart began to beat faster. Her body began to feel warm as a small blush bloomed on her ashen cheeks. And for the smallest moment, everyone felt it: a small flicker of hope from the newly christened Cindy Homura.
Penny grab her by the shoulders and smiled, "Come on, let's get you clean and your legs fixed up. You can stay in one of the guest rooms tonight. We don't mind."
Cindy nodded as she allowed Penelope to show her the rest of the house. Her legs were in need of repair. She couldn't remember the last time she got them fixed, either. They went upstairs into the house area, leaving Violet and Jack alone in the shop.
The young blonde walked up to the head of the house, her eyes never leaving their guest. "You intend to let her stay?"
"Yeah."
"Forgive me then if I'm overstepping my bounds, but I'm not so certain that would be a wise decision," Violet replies, "She is the Ash Princess, after all."
"Violet," Jack said in a tone she had only heard him use with Penelope: the tone of a caring father. "I came back to Zum City to set things right by making this a place people want to raise their families... How can a fulfill that goal if I'm not willing to try and save the soul of a girl not much older than my own daughter."
Violet thought carefully on his words before saying, "I understand, sir... Shall I order us dinner?"
"Sure," he replied with a smile, "I'll even let you choose what we get this time."
"I'm alright with whatever you want, sir."
Jack sighed and mumbled, "Still a work in progress, I see."
"What?"
"I said Chinese is fine with me."
The lovely sound of cheerful humming filled the kitchen on a summer afternoon. Cindy checked on stew brewing in the pot and gave it a taste. Humming in agree that it was almost done, she set the stove to low as Violet came in from the shop. She sniffed the with a mild smile.
"You are oddly cheerfully today. I can smell your cooking from the office." Violet complemented.
"Thanks!" Cindy chirped, happily, "I even made a apple pie for dessert, too! They're coming home from Earth today, so I'm making a big meal for them! Oh! Speaking of the pie!"
A timer went off just as Cindy opened the oven. The smell of spice and apple filled the kitchen now, enticing small delighted moans from the two young women. Setting the pie off towards the side to cool, Cindy went to work gather the plates and cups for four to set the table.
"I'm sorry I'm not much help in my condition." Violet apologized.
"It's alright, Violet! I really don't mind! I quite enjoy cooking for you all, anyway." Cindy smiled, her amber eyes now glowing with enthusiasm and excitement.
It was Violet's turn to smile now, "You've gotten a lot better since Penelope brought you here, you know."
Cindy was a bit surprised by Violet's smile. But, none of the less, she definitely improved a lot over the years. She had taken up cooking duty after the first week of her new beginning (takeout got old after awhile). And she rediscovered her love for dancing. Especially since Penelope began making improvements to her prosthetic legs. They were able to take much more punishment now. The more she worked on her legs, the better Cindy improve her mentality.
Though, there were some drawbacks. While she was able to distinguish between her emotions and those of other people, she found certain emotions caused her to become unstable again. She almost hated herself for it, but Penelope was oddly patience with her. She gave Cindy the strength to keep going.
Penelope Spencer was her reason to change.
Her heart began to flutter at the thought. Cheeks became the color of roses as she practically danced around the table. She will not deny that since their fated meeting, she became quite fond of the pink haired mechanic. She liked the others in the shop, but Penelope was the apple of her eye. She giggles at the warmth in her heart as she locked hands with a startled Violet.
"Come dance with me, Violet! I don't care if your bad at it, no one's watching us anyway!" Cindy laughed as she pulled her into the dance. The two women began to laughing and dance quite terribly in Violet's case. However, that didn't stop them from having fun.
Spark!
Cindy felt grief constricting her heart. Her heart ached as she managed to keep herself from crying. Labeling it as an outside emotion, she looked up to find that not only that Jack and Penelope had returned home, they had brought a guest as well.
"Welcome back, Jack. I wasn't expecting you to bring a guest tonight." Cindy said as politely as she can manage in her state.
"I suppose I should introduce you," he said as he gestured towards the new comer, "This is Gale Turner... He served under my command during the One Year War... He'll be living with us."
If Cindy was shocked, she didn't express it very well. After all, currently, there were no rivals from her claim on Penny nor did she trust this man. Now, she was expected to accept him as a permanent resident?! The man was slightly taller than her with blond hair stared at her, specifically. His emerald eyes expressed a deep remorse. His gaze was crushing her with agony. Between that and her own simmering anger, she couldn't take much more of this!
"I see…please, excuse me. Dinner's ready when you are," she managed to state as she stormed to her room.
If anyone tried to stop her, she failed to notice as she locked herself in her room. She slid to the floor with a heartbreaking, angry sob. Part of it wasn't even her emotions and yet it was completely unbearable! Either way, she was back to cursing her Newtype abilities. A wave of worry replaced the grief as she heard a knock at the door.
"Cindy? You okay? Dad told me what you felt. We didn't expect Gale to do that and I don't think he meant to hurt on purpose. Either way, we're sorry we kinda sprung this on you." Penelope called out, "Dinner smells great, though! Will you be okay joining us?"
A small smile graced her face. Penelope always knew how to cheer her up. It was one of the many things she admired about her. She had slowly became her knight in shining armor; the ideal human being. And yet, she had to hide herself away under the guise of a pink haired mechanic.
This sadness Cindy knew was her own, but she slowly stood up and wiped her eyes. This was supposed to be good moment. She won't let it ruin their dinner, at least. She put a small smile as she opened the door. For Penelope, she'll restrain herself from skinning the newly arrived man alive for now.
"You know, Dad would always try to get me to vent to him whenever I came home with a bad mood and vice versa. Maybe, you can talk it out with him?" Penny suggested.
Cindy pondered this for a moment, "I might take him up on that, actually."
She walked up to the man in question without further delay. The sooner she can breathe, the better for the household.
"Jack? A word, please," she asked, "In private."
"Sure thing," he says, "Let's go to my office."
She follows him to said office. As she enters, she realizes she's never actually been in here. "I had this room soundproofed," he tells her, "You could fire a gun and no one would hear a damn thing outside this room."
He then goes and sits at his desk. "I presume this is about Gale."
"I wouldn't come to you otherwise! " she frowned, examining the place, "So, why is he really here, Jack?"
Jack sighed deeply before his gaze went to the three photos he keeps on his desk. One of his daughter before they started dying her hair pink. One of him and his late wife, Cima Garahau, holding their newborn daughter. And the last a picture taken during the One Year War. He reached out and grabbed the last of these and looked at it with a sad fondness before holding it out towards the assassin saying, "See for yourself."
She took the picture carefully (Lord knows that there is some decency to handling other people's possessions. Assassins didn't have to be complete brutes!) and studied the photo of three individuals in a very humid looking jungle. An old zaku, which was new then, gleamed in the rays of sunlight that had managed to dance on it that day. She, immediately, recognized a now young man Jack Spencer and mildly gaped as a blush graced her pale cheeks.
No scars marred his quite handsome face and a lack of a missing limb was evident. She had to assume this was taken prior to wartime; like they had just landed on Earth.
"You know, Jack," she began, "If I was born a lot sooner and had met you then, I'd make sure you never slept a wink at night. Don't get me wrong, you're still handsome as you are now. But, good Lord... I'm actually quite jealous of the lucky woman who gave you Penny!"
Jack rolled his eyes and said, "I figured you'd be more interested in the girl kissing Gale on the cheek... you two do look a lot alike after all."
This snapped her out of little daydream (though she wouldn't doubt where Penny got some of her looks now). She began to focus on the young couple. The one she recognized as Gale without a scar across his face. Cindy will admit only to herself that he wasn't bad looking either. Then, to the girl that bore an uncanny resemblance to herself, minus the difference in eye color as the girl in the photo had amethyst colored eyes. She was kissing Gale with Jack grinning at the lovebirds. They looked... happy…
Cindy felt a tinge of sadness from Jack as she asked, "Who is she?"
"Her name was Gwen Atiyah," he said with a barely audible sadness in his voice, "and she was the heart of our squadron... she believed we were going to change the everything and everyone for the better, and wanted to document it for future generations... she was young, idealistic, Naive... But that's what made her special: she wanted to believe that the human race wasn't too far gone."
"And she was... important to Gale?" She inquired, hesitantly.
"She was important to all of us," Jack replies solemnly.
Cindy felt a chill run down her spine as the Colonel locked eyes with her: it was a look she had never seen, but recognized all too well... it was the look of a trained killer. "She died in his arms, begging him to forgive those responsible for her death... Why she did that is beyond me... But what I do know is this: she was too good for this life."
"True," she agreed, "War was not made for everyone."
She looked at happiness caught in time. She vaguely, recalled such a time when she was happy. However, that was a long time ago and lost somewhere in her memories. Things change.
"Even so, I'm not her," she states, handing back the photo, "Unlike her, I only see the darkness in people."
An image of an older woman smirking down at her in a dimly lit room flashed in front her eyes as she nearly dropped the photo in shock.
"You still have your own demons to drive out," he said as he took the picture and placed it back on his desk, "It's something you have in common with Penelope's mother."
He then handed her the picture from the day his daughter was born, "Her name was Cima Garahau... and she did something terrible during the One Year War on someone else's orders."
She took the photo after she steadied herself again. This time she can, officially, see the uncanny resemblance between Penelope Spencer and her mother, Cima Garahau. She was a splitting image if you omitted the pink hair and grey eyes. Otherwise, she was a very attractive, strong woman.
"I was right. She is a very lucky woman!" She smirked, suggestively in humor. She wasn't good with jokes, but she did wanted to lighten up the room of the grief for Jack's late wife.
"I wish she thought so."
"Why do you say that?"
"Cima was ordered by a Captain Logan Simmons to place a device in the ventilation system of a colony," Jack explains, "turns out the device contained G3 Nerve Gas."
Cindy felt a cold silver of horrible roll down her spine. Though there was nothing wrong with her legs she felt them buckle under her weight as she hit the floor. The mother of the most ideal human she ever met cause one of the most significant war crimes of the Universal Century. But, all because of one man.
"Why?" She stammered, becoming as pale as a ghost, "Why would anyone do that?! Did she even know?!"
She paused in fear, "Does Penelope even know her mother...?!"
She couldn't finish. The words caught in her throat. She couldn't imagine Penny taking this well even if she didn't know.
"Cima was tortured by her actions... she had followed orders blindly, and it ended up being a nightmare," Jack answers, "And the one truly responsible, Logan Simmons, pinned it all on her... that dirty son of bitch got away with mass murder."
The Colonel got up and offered Cindy his hand as he says, "Cima was so terrified by the thought of someone coming after Penny to exact some form of twisted revenge that she left us."
Cindy felt mostly conflicted by this information. However, that didn't change the fact that what Penelope had to go through infuriated her to no end. She gritted her teeth as she stood.
"Jack, I have a favor to ask of you," she began, her amber eyes reflected a burning resolve that, years ago, never existed till now, "I want to help hunt down that bastard for you. All I ask is that I get to break his legs so that he doesn't run again."
"No promises, because Penelope already called dibs," he chuckled.
She gave a small smile, "Don't worry. I fully intend to serve her the main course first. The legs are merely an appetizer for me."
"Look," Jack said with an exasperated sigh, "That's entirely up to Penelope... if she's ok with it, then cool... But what if she doesn't want to share?"
A darker, more sinister smile graced her pale face as she merely states, "Then, I'll starve."
If Penny demanded a full course meal, so be it. She'll make do with what she's given. In fact, she's already making 'dinner' preparations as they speak. No time like the present as they say.
But, for now...
Her smile grew softer at Jack, "We should be getting back. Dinner's not good when it's cold, you know. I do appreciate your advice, though."
Cindy busied herself with the dishes. While dinner went relatively well and she hadn't had too many problems since then. She was very pleased that her efforts didn't go to waste! After all, the best way to a person's heart is through their stomach! At least, she hoped it was the case.
She sighed as she felt just a sliver of grief and it's owner next to her. Gale picked up a dish and began drying it, "Need a hand?"
She frowned, mildly, "I guess. But, you don't have to."
"Doesn't seem fair to leave you to it alone, though." He countered.
"Oh? Are you saying that a lady isn't fit for the kitchen, Captain Turner?"
His cheeks turned pink, "N-no! Of course not! I-I-"
"That was a joke, Captain." She stated with icy tone, "You didn't find that funny?"
Gale paled as he gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry, I… I'm not good at being normal."
"That makes two of us." Cindy agreed, cleaning a fairly sharp knife.
Gale swallowed hard. Cindy may look like Gwen, but she definitely wasn't her. In fact, Cindy was the complete opposite of Gwen. It was throwing him off the boat and ripped apart by sharks. It was fairly disturbing to him, especially when he felt a knife against his neck.
"By the way," she spoke, coldly, "If you go after Penny, I'll keep you alive while i make a coat out of your skin!"
"Trust me," Gale swore, "I have too much respect to touch the Colonel's daughter!"
Cindy smiled, sweetly. "Perfect!"
She turned to hand him the knife as she went for the door. "Please, finish up. I have to go somewhere."
"At this time of night?!" Gale nearly yelled.
"Yes, I forgot to go out today. I'll be back later… welcome to our household, Captain."
She headed out after grabbing her rapier. Gunshots and screams rang out in the cool night air as she walked the streets of Zum City. Hatred and lust hanged in the air like a thick fog. If one thought the city was bad during the day, it got worse during the night.
She heard a scream down a nearby alleyway. A combination of two things she knew very well occupied the place: Lust and fear. Her feet moved on her own accord, becoming one with the darkness. A young girl of 16 with brown hair and blue eyes fill with absolute fear was pinned to the brick wall by three men with lustful smiles. Their Earth Federation Forces uniforms were clearly evident.
But to Cindy, she saw a smirking woman and her daughter terrorizing and abusing a young girl with raven hair and amber eyes. Fury burned like flames in her eyes now as she silently drew her sword.
Lust. Fear. Rage.
Later, a young girl of 16 with brown hair and blue eyes filled with frighten tears made it home safe and sound to her worried parents. The three Federation soldiers were declared A.W.O.L. the following morning.