Gundam SEED: Knights of Summer
By:
Mystwalker
A/N: Resurrecting an old idea I had way back when I was a teenager, after watching Gundam 00 got me back into the fandom. For the twelve of you that still check the Gundam SEED fanfiction archives, enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam SEED.
Phase 01: Child of Light
Year 83 of the Cosmic Era
Bioengineering Facility, Februarius Eleven
"We are reporting live from the Februarius Genetic Research Center, where the first child from Dr. Marthus's fertility research project is expected to be born. The child, born to PLANT Supreme Council Chairwoman Lacus Clyne and her husband, Special Forces Commander Kira Yamato of the ZAFT military, is the second successful artificial womb infant in recorded history. The success of this project brings hope to many third-generation Coordinators across the PLANTs and is one of multiple proposed solutions to the observed fertility decline in Coordinators of later generations. The project, coupled with the genetic correction technology developed for children who would be born to second-generation Coordinators, spells hope for the ensuring future of the PLANT nation and the people who inhabit it."
"The parents are joined today by Commander Yamato's sister, Orb Union Representative Cagalli Yula Athha, her husband and consort, Admiral Athrun Zala, and their child, Prince of Orb Keiran Zala Athha. When asked for comment earlier today, Representative Athha said…"
Kira pulled away from the window before the press could catch a glimpse of him, turning his back towards the reporter and letting the curtain fall. On one of the screens in the room, the woman's report continued, showing pictures of Athrun and Cagalli's arrival earlier that day.
"Look, Dad, we're on the TV!"
Keiran, a boy of three, jumped up from his seat on the couch to point excitedly at the screen. Athrun smiled, patting him on the head and ruffling his blond hair. "Yes, Kei," he said. "We are."
"Why does Mama always have to stop and answer their questions?" asked Keiran, his green eyes wide as he watched the screen.
"Well, your mother's a very important person, Kei," said Athrun. "A lot of people in the world want to hear what she has to say."
Kei thought about this for a minute, staring at the screen as a pre-recorded video of Cagalli filled it. He rocked back on his heels, looking up. "Aunt Lacus is really important too, isn't she?" he asked.
"Yes," said Athrun. "Your aunt is a very important person."
"Well, what about you and Uncle Kira?" asked Kei, frowning. "You're not important?"
Athrun chuckled. "We're important in our own way," he said, leaning down to Kei's level.
"Can I go play with my cousin now?" asked Kei.
"In a minute," said Athrun, smiling. "In the meantime, why don't you go play with your toys? We'll call you when you can come to meet her."
"Okay," said Kei, running back to the padded chairs that lined the room. Kira watched as he started rummaging through the bag Cagalli had brought with her, looking for the toy he wanted. A brightly-colored mobile suit action figure appeared in his hands, tracing a path through the air as he moved it in a figure eight. Kira watched him, and despite everything, couldn't help but smile.
"Nervous?" Athrun asked, turning towards him.
"A little," Kira admitted.
"You'll do fine," said Athrun. "You've already had a lot of practice." He smiled, watching Kira watch Kei. "How's Lacus doing, by the way?"
"She's happy," said Kira, looking back at his friend. "A little disappointed, I think. This wasn't how either of us wanted things to turn out. But…after last time…"
He looked away, not wanting to think about that on a day like today. The past couple of miscarriages had been bad, but it had been that one, when he had almost lost her, that had led them to this point in the first place. He'd had his reservations—they all had—but Lacus had her heart set on a child, and if Kira was being honest with himself, so did he, just not at the cost of losing her. He took a deep breath, looking up as the door hissed open, admitting a technician in sterile white scrubs.
"You should go in now, Commander," the tech said, walking up to him. "They're about to open the chamber."
Kira's heart jumped in his chest.
"Thank you," he managed to say, nodding to the tech before starting forward.
Athrun stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, giving it a supportive squeeze. "Good luck," he said.
Kira nodded, not looking back at his friend. "Thanks," he said, stepping forward.
The tech led him into a sterile room, filled almost entirely by the chamber at its center. The chamber was made of metal, making it impossible to look inside, but the various instruments that led off it beeped and whirred, keeping the conditions inside the womb as close to natural as possible. According to the doctor that had supervised the project, that was the problem with third-generation Coordinators. Their genes were so far removed from normal that it was difficult for their bodies to maintain a 'natural' environment.
It wasn't all third-generation Coordinators—Athrun had been prove that—but even Kei had had to undergo the same correction therapy that the children of second-generation Coordinators were now going through, to repair some of the decay in his genetic structure. It wasn't a cure, it wasn't close, but it bought them a few more generations.
He came to stand beside Lacus, who was the chamber with a solemn look in her eyes. Beside her, Cagalli touched her shoulder in support, patting Kira on the arm and exchanging a glance before turning to leave the room. Kira took her hand. It was cold.
All around them, the techs sprang into action. Kira didn't speak, his eyes on the chamber as machines whirred to life.
"Draining fluids," one of the techs said, pressing a few buttons on a glowing console.
Pumps began working, pulling fluids away from the interior of the chamber. An instrument chimed an alert, quickly silenced by one of the technicians. A seal popped on the artificial womb, followed by another. In the distance, the doctor's statement could be heard on the news, proclaiming the beginning of a new age for Coordinators. Hydraulics hissed as things within the chamber shifted, pieces gently drifting apart. He gripped Lacus's hand tighter.
"Fluid extraction at 40%...60%...70%. Beginning final extraction."
"Roger. Final extraction started."
The technicians and nurses moved with the efficiency of bridge operators. There was a hiss of steam as the chamber in front of the split apart.
That was the first time Kira saw his daughter.
She lay cradled at the bottom of the artificial chamber, on a cushion. Her chest was still as the last of the fluids drained away, her form cradled in silence. His breath caught in his throat, and he felt Lacus's fingers tighten around his own for the first time.
She was perfect.
The last of the fluids drained away, the cord that bound her to the machine detaching itself. Her chest rose and fall as she took her first breath.
Then she opened her mouth and began to cry, and Kira felt a weight lift off of his chest.
One of the nurses reached into the chamber, picking her up with careful hands and wrapping her in a cloth. She was smiling as she approached Lacus, holding out the baby. Lacus took her, cradling her in her arms, and Kira saw some of the weight that had been sitting on his wife's shoulders for the past few years finally fade away, saw her eyes light up as she looked down at the child. Lacus reached out, brushing a strand of pale pink hair from their daughter's forehead and smiled, humming soothingly and rocking as the baby wailed.
"Hush now," she said. "You're here, you're safe, and your father and I are very happy to meet you."
The child stopped crying, looking up at her with bright blue eyes. As Kira watched them, he realized he had never seen a more beautiful sight.
"There," said Lacus, her voice soft. "That's a good girl."
She took one of the baby's hands in hers, gently tucking it back into the swaddling clothes. "My little girl," she said.
"My precious Mitsuko…"
Year 98 of the Cosmic Era
ZAFT Military Academy, Martius One
"Hah!" the girl yelled, springing back out of the simulation chair. She tugged the visor off of her face, raising a fist into the air as she stared at the screen. "First place. Take that, Renner Joule!"
"First place, first place," repeated the white Haro that jumped around next to her, bouncing between the simulation chair and the boy.
"Congratulations," said the boy standing next to her, his eyes on the screen as well. His hair was a pale silver, his eyes a deep violet. "You managed to nearly overheat your mobile suit and escape the enemy forces by a margin of 0.01%."
"Well, sacrifices had to be made," said the girl, smiling. She tucked a strand of pale pink hair behind her ear.
"You nearly flew into the sun."
"You're just jealous because you're afraid I'm going to place higher than you on the final exam in three weeks," said Mitsuko, grinning.
"Jealous," said the Haro in its mechanical voice. "Renner is jealous!"
"I'm not worried if my only competition is someone who will fly into the sun," said Renner, arms folded as he studied the results screen.
"Oh, come on," said Mitsuko. "It was only a little bit into the sun."
"I don't know why you guys are fighting," said another boy from where he stood leaning against the simulator's console. His hair was long and dark, his skin slightly tanned more from genetics than from the sun. He was dressed like Renner was in the light green uniform of the ZAFT Academy. Mitsuko wore the same uniform, in orange. "I mean, it's pretty obvious that you two are going to get the best two pilot postings out there."
"Personal pride," said Mitsuko, shoving the visor at Renner's chest. He took it, shooting her a slightly annoyed look as she flashed him a smile. "I can't leave this Academy with Renner having the simulation high score."
"I wasn't fighting," said Renner, ignoring her as he faced the other boy. "If we both place well, we'll probably end up on the same ship. I don't want to trust my life to a girl who files into the sun."
"You're both hopeless," said the boy, raising his hands up in the air as he started to walk away. "Here's hoping I don't get an assignment with either one of you."
"Oh come on, Val, you know you love me," said Mitsuko.
The boy, Valien Altare, flashed Mitsuko a smile. "Love is a strong word," he said. "Sorry, Micchi, you're just not my type."
"You're awful," said Mitsuko, tossing a pen at the back of his head. "Go back to chasing skirts, but don't come crying to me if you get in trouble for it."
"Me? Cry? I wouldn't dream of it," said Val, giving her a smirk.
"What's going on?" asked another voice, making them look up. A brown haired boy walked over towards them, his eyes a bright green. He placed a hand on Valien's head, pushing it down almost automatically. "Is Val being an idiot again?"
"When is he not?" asked Renner, shrugging.
"Ouch," said Valien, straightening up. "And here I was about to start siding with you, Ren."
"I'm not sure that's what you want," said the brown-haired boy.
"Honestly," said Renner, "Me neither."
"Did something happen, Jas?" asked Mitsuko, frowning.
The brown-haired boy, Jasper Ellis, shook his head, removing his hand from Valien's. "Just came in to say goodbye. My shuttle's leaving in a few hours. I'll see you guys after the spring holiday."
"Yeah, see you," said Mitsuko.
"Don't get too bored back in Junius," said Renner.
"Don't worry," said Jasper, smiling. "I won't. See you guys when we get back. Don't study too hard."
He turned, leaving the room. Mitsuko and Renner watched him go, the doors closing behind him. Valien rubbed at his neck, shooting the door an injured glance.
"Don't study too hard, he says, when we all know he'll be spending the vacation buried in books," said Valien.
"He wants to place high," said Renner. "Can you blame him? He's a first-generation Coordinator, after all."
Mitsuko frowned, her eyes on the door. Jasper's parents were Naturals, Earthborn citizens lured away from their comfortable surface lives by the promise of space. It was making Jasper a Coordinator that gave them the right to live in the PLANTs in the first place. She supposed her mom might have something to say about what that said about Earth-PLANT relations, or even her sister.
"I should get going too," said Renner, drawing her back to reality. "My father's sending someone to come pick me up."
"Shuttle's too good for the newly-made Councilman's son?" asked Mitsuko, smiling.
"You're one to talk," said Renner, glancing down at her. Mitsuko only smiled wider.
"Oh, right," said Valien, looking up at her. "Are you doing anything fun over the break, Micchi?"
"Ah, just boring stuff," said Mitsuko, waving a hand dismissively. "I'm actually heading down to Orb tomorrow morning."
"You're heading to Earth?" asked Renner, his eyes widening slightly. "That's not exactly boring."
"Yeah, but it's not like it's for fun or anything," said Mitsuko, shrugging. "My cousin's going to some boring leadership conference in Scandinavia. His parents aren't super thrilled about him going alone, so, guess what, I get to go too. Honestly, I'd rather be up here with you guys."
"Only you can hang out with the heir to one of the world sphere's most powerful nations for a week and call it boring," said Renner.
Mitsuko rolled her eyes. "When you spend every summer since you could walk with 'the heir to one of the world sphere's most powerful nations', it's not that special anymore," she said. "Anyway, you know politics isn't my thing. I'm just babysitting, making sure my aunt and uncle know their precious lion cub isn't getting out of hand."
"Boring, boring," Haro chirped.
"Isn't he three years older than you?" asked Renner.
"Yeah, but I'm the more responsible one."
"I'm scared for your family."
"Anyway, Scandinavia huh?" asked Valien, smiling. "That sounds like a lot of fun. Bring me a souvenir."
"Will do," said Mitsuko, grinning.
It was an hour long shuttle from Martius One to Aprillius One and a quick car ride to Chairwoman Clyne's residence and then Mitsuko was home, backpack on her shoulders as she strolled through perfectly manicured lawns to the veritable mansion that lay ahead of her. White jumped over her shoulders as she stepped through the doors, bouncing over to the parade of Haros that moved through the halls and becoming indistinguishable in them. Mitsuko smiled as she watched them go, knowing that White would be back in her room by nightfall. With each passing installment, the Haros seemed to be getting even more sophisticated AI.
She moved past them, heading for her room. Her mother would be at a council meeting until much later tonight and her brother wouldn't be out of school for another couple of hours. If she was going to be heading down to Orb in the morning, she wanted her rest. Re-entry always took a lot out of her.
Although, she thought as she moved through the empty house, if she had been born in the PLANTs, then wasn't it just entry?
She walked down a hallway and up a flight of stairs, and was just reaching the door to her room when it became clear to her that she wasn't home alone.
Mitsuko came to a stop. The door to her father's study was open. She peered in carefully, and there he was, seated at his desk and tapping away at a thin tablet in front of him. He was still dressed in his white ZAFT uniform, his jacket unbuttoned.
"Dad?" she asked uncertainly.
Kira jumped up as if she had startled him, quickly closing whatever window he was looking at. "Mitsuko," he said, looking back at her. "When did you get home?"
"Just now," said Mitsuko, stepping into the office. "When did you get back? I thought the Steadfast wasn't docking until later this week."
"We finished our rounds early," said Kira, smiling. She didn't miss the way he held the tablet behind his back, slipping it under a mound of papers on his desk. A thought occurred to her, and her eyes lit up. "How was training?"
"Good," she said, taking a step forward. "Say, that thing you were looking at…that wouldn't happen to be our assignments, would it?"
Kira tensed, and she knew she had him. "Why would you think that?" he asked. "Assignments aren't announced till after the examinations are graded."
"Oh, I don't know," said Mitsuko, smiling. "Just a feeling."
Kira shrank back against his desk. She grinned.
"So, what is it?" she asked. "Come on, you can tell me. I won't tell anyone. I'll even pretend to be surprised."
"Mitsuko," said Kira. "You know I can't do that."
"Is it the Heisenberg?" she asked. "Or that old rust-bucket, the Feymann? You're not sending me to Earth, are you?"
"Mitsuko…" Kira's tone was tired, like that of a parent that had had this argument too many times to count.
"Please?" asked Mitsuko, her eyes shining. "Come on, I won't tell anyone."
"I can't tell you," said Kira.
"Come on," said Mitsuko, stepping forward again. "Please."
Kira sighed, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "Fine," he said. "But you didn't hear this from me."
Mitsuko nodded, watching him eagerly.
"The Steadfast," said Kira, meeting her eyes.
Mitsuko's face fell.
"What?" she asked, thinking she might have misheard. Blood pounded in her ears, drowning out the world.
"You're getting assigned to the Steadfast," said Kira, his voice sounding like it was coming from farther away. "Starting this summer."
"Did you do this?" asked Mitsuko, her lips moving of their own accord.
Kira blinked at her. "Mitsuko…" he began.
Surprise fell away, an old, familiar anger taking its place. Arguments came back to her, angry words and raised voices, the fight she had to put up to be allowed to enroll in the Academy in the first place.
"You did, didn't you?" she asked, her eyes narrowing as she stepped forward. "Did you put me on the Steadfast so you could keep an eye on me?"
"I didn't—," Kira began.
"Yes, you did!" said Mitsuko, raising her voice. "We've had this conversation before! I know you don't want me in the military, but that's no excuse to ruin my life!"
"Mitsuko." Kira's tone was sharp, a warning.
"I'm the best damn pilot in my class!" said Mitsuko, gesturing at herself with her hand. "I was starting to think you were proud of me!"
"If you would just listen—," Kira began, his eyes narrowing as he stepped forward.
"I've heard it all before," said Mitsuko, turning around. "I'm sorry. I'm tired of hearing it, and I still have three weeks before I have to call you Commander."
She turned around, knowing full well how much trouble she would be in later as she ran from the room.
A/N: So there you go! Regarding the kids and their friendships, I tried to make it a little different from Gundam SEED. So Yzak's child's best friend is not Dearka's child, Mitsuko isn't a Lacus clone, not every important character is related to a SEED character…etc. Let me know if you want to see more!