Gundums, the birth of a new technology…what did the scientists behind operation meteor do to achieve their mastery…and what impact did that have on our pilots?

Warning: elements of mind control and manipulation (no slash)

This story is thought to be a reflection of events in or about AC 193 leading up to the original operation meteor. The scientists responsible for the construction of the Gundam's and the training of the pilots are referred to collectively as Makar; and this is their story.

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A Makar's Confession

Everyone agreed that mobile suits were a seminal advancement of military technology. But weapons are only as fine as the raw materials used to construct them. Gundaniam is one of the strongest substances in the universe. It is also unbelievably difficult to work with. It is born of the stars and can only be refined in the vacuum of deep space. Deathscythe, Heavyarms, Sandrock, Shenlong, and Wing are thought to be our masterworks, the greatest weapons ever created. They are not.

As I said weapons are only as fine as the raw materials used to construct them, and there is a substance stronger than Gundanium with far greater potential. Crafting the suits, was only a necessary by product when compared to our greatest achievements. I sense you do not believe me. Perhaps you recall destructive capabilities of the first Gundam, Tallgeese. I know rumors have spread far and wide regarding the megalithic war machine we created but could not tame.

After the powers that be judged the Tallgeese project a fiasco the technicians responsible for its inception were scattered to various colonies but our work for project meteor progressed in isolation. The Leo prototype vividly illustrated our success and our failure. None has been its equal nor could it be till now. Unlike OZ Leo and Ares the five Gundam's are true heirs to the might of noble Tallgeese. But as I have said they are not where our mastery resides.

After twenty years the masters; G, S, H, O & J, not only reinvented the Gundam…they bent their craft to shape the stuff of life as well. All they required was the raw material to see their vision realized. Not in circuits and steal but flesh and bone, look you to the pilots to see the culmination of our sweat and tears. Maxwell, Nanashi, Winner, Wufei and Yuy proved to be perfect specimens, raw material to be shaped to exacting specifications. Little can they suspect the degree to which our mark is written in them body and mind.

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Section One

Entry One
Colony L3-X18999

I am Naught, a mere tech who could not presume any but the most nominal roll in the work of the greats. But I knew them, and was in a place to oversee the work that was done on the colonies behalf. Thus, I bear some of the responsibility of the Makar and this is my record.

When I first laid eyes on 0-1, the half-starved child was more beast than boy, pacing the confines of his small cell growling incoherently. Every so often he would rush headlong throwing his body against the clear resin barrier that closed the door of his cell. The force of the charge sent him sprawling backwards on the floor. The boy shook his head as if to clear it, rocked back on his heels and stood in one fluid movement…then resumed his pacing.

I was alone in the observation chamber watching the subject's frenetic activity. Sensors in walls floor and ceiling recorded his every move…sensors secreted beneath his flesh monitored minute changes to body temperature, heart rate, respiration as well as more delicate data pertaining to the complex condition of his mind.

Doctor J took no notice of me when he scuttled into the room licking his chapped lips and muttering to himself. I often wondered if his red-lensed goggles showed him the same information as my data screen for he rarely seemed to take notice of the data my terminal meticulously recorded. "Yes, yes…my boy, you will do nicely, very nicely indeed." The master muttered, his three fingered robotic hand barely brushing the tinted barrier separating the observation chamber and the cell.

Somehow the captive sensed the contact he pivoted on his heal to assault the barrier, hammering with both fists, slamming his shoulder against the mirror like surface. Long strings of code shot across my monitor like quicksilver. So much anger…so much rage. Pain, fear, guilt, loneliness, yearning; the boy was a seething caldera of emotion. His body fairly quaked with it. "Focus." a tiny device behind the boy's ear permitted him to hear Dr J's voice through the barrier. "FOCUS!" the man commanded again.

The boy tried. His wild Prussian blue eyes closed and he pressed his forehead against the barrier. "Hnnnnn" he let out a sound more growl than word but something of both. His concentration didn't last long. The drugs coursing through his system caused his thoughts slide helplessly off one another leaving him easy prey to the emotional riot like lightning in his mind. He could not battle what was raging within; so he struck out; renewing his pointless assault on the barrier.

The boy's brief attempt seemed to please the doctor none the less. He sighed, content for a time, watching the youth struggle before twisting the knob that released a fine mist into the cell.

0-1 looked confused at first, his pounding faltered. He staggered back a few steps. I saw his vitals spike as he gasped for breath, clawing at his bear chest. Within minutes he crumpled unconscious on the floor.

And that was my introduction to the Gundam project.

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