Gundam Wing: Odyssey
Prologue: The Awakening
By Clint Worthington
NOTE: This takes place 6 months after the series. Yes, it's AU. (Okay, let's *assume* NYC exists in the After Colony era.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The time: A.C. 196
The place: New York City
The Hall family was content with their lives:
Dr. Kevin Hall, the patriarch, was a very jovial man, and was the head of research & development for a major military weapons manufacturer, Horizon Corporation. His specialty was creating new Mobile Suit systems.
Susan Hall, his beautiful wife, worked on the International Identification Database (IID) Project. Their job was to create a database of every person in the world, and their current whereabouts.
They had many things in common, but the thing that held them together the most was the love of their 11-year-old son, Aidan.
But soon after Aidan reached that age, an event occurred that tore their family apart forever, and sent Aidan Hall on a most dangerous journey:
*********
Horizon Corporation Headquarters
Research & Development Division
New York City, New York
1-16-196
*********
Kevin entered the room, full of energy. He wore his lab coat and greeted his fellow researchers.
He was surprised (and irritated) to see the Horizon president, CEO Joseph Dravin, waiting for him inside the lab.
"Kevin! My boy!" He put one hand on Kevin's shoulder and extended a hand.
In actuality, he didn't like him very much. The ideal company man, Dravin was big on the practice of sweet-talking a man into getting what he wanted, then stabbing him in the back.
Kevin forced a smile and took his hand, shaking it. "Mr. Dravin, sir, it's a honor to see you!"
"How's 'the project' coming?"
"Uh, great. But I've got to get back to work on it..." He gestured back toward the lab, where his coworkers were looking at the conversation with confused expressions.
"Nonsense! You can take a break, can't you? Come, let's go to my office. We need to have a little chat."
Kevin was led by Dravin across the building (a very long way) to Dravin's large, posh office, and gestured for Kevin to take the seat opposite from Dravin's vintage-wood desk. "Come, sit down."
Dravin went over to the window and stared out at it while he talked. "Kevin, feel free to call me Joseph. I'll be frank with you. I need the new Mobile Suit system by next week."
Kevin, although predicting that would happen, didn't expect it this soon. "Sir, we still have to work out the bugs, the inconsistencies. I mean, what if something happens to the pilot of the Mobile Suit?"
"Call me Joseph, Kevin," Dravin stressed. "Nevertheless, I need it as soon as possible. And that has to be within this week. I can't have the competition jumping ahead of us. I hear Orion Inc. is coming out with a new Mobile Suit design. That'll put them on top with the World Nation's military. And you know what that'll make us, Kevin?"
"What, s-Joseph?"
"Obsolete. Aging. Invalid. Extinct." He stressed that last word with a slight hiss. "Everyone will come running to Orion to have their nations armed. We'll be ripped from the picture."
"Sir, I wasn't aware that things would be that serious."
"Oh, they are. And call me JOSEPH, Kevin."
It was almost a forced courtesy.
"Joseph. I'll try to get it done in a week."
"Good. You had better. Get to work."
It seemed as if the conversation had irritated Dravin. "Yes...Joseph."
Kevin stormed out of the office, feeling grimy.
When he returned to the lab, his coworkers felt concerned. "Kev? You okay?" they all muttered. Kevin simply said to them, "We gotta work faster. Get this done in 7 days. Go!" He went to his desk to begin debugging the pilot interface.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-16-196
*********
Kevin opened the door, closed it behind him, and leaned on the wall, exhausted.
Susan walked up to him, and began to take his trenchcoat off. "Bad day at work?"
"Oh yeah. Now we gotta get the project done in a week, or there'll be hell to pay."
Kevin smiled at his son, Aidan, who ran up to him and hugged him. "Dad, you're back!"
"That's right, my boy!" he said as he walked to the kitchen. "Listen, why don't you go upstairs for awhile? Mom and I have to talk, okay?"
"Well," Aidan said with hesitation, "Okay." He ran up the stairs to his room.
After he was gone, Kevin turned to Susan and whispered, "There's a problem. My boss says the reason the deadline was changed was to beat Orion at getting a new design out."
"So?" Susan said, suspicious.
"I looked into it. Orion isn't coming out with anything like that. He's moving us up for another reason. Why, I don't know." He sighed. "So, how was your day?"
"Well, nothing compared to what happened to you. But...I did find something interesting while looking up names for the IID."
"What's that?"
"I found the Gundam pilots."
"That's nice-what?" Kevin said. "The Gundam pilots have been missing ever since the war ended. You found them?"
"All five of them. I did a little detective work myself. It was complicated-it took me all day to find them-but I did it. I haven't copied their whereabouts down to disk yet, but I will tomorrow when I go back to work."
"I'll look into Dravin's ulterior motive for the deadline change tomorrow as well."
"What if it's something bad?"
"Then we'll hope it's not. But if something were ever to happen to us, you know about the tunnel in the basement, right?"
"Yes, dear."
The two looked at each other. They knew their whole world was about to change.
*********
International Identification Database (IID) Office
New York City
1-17-196
*********
The gigantic control room was lined with computers and gigantic viewscreens. Many people worked at these computers, taking people's names, location, and information-age, sex, date of birth, criminal record-and storing it all into the database.
Susan Hall worked silently at her computer, secretly loading the files of the 5 Gundam pilots onto a minidisk. Quite a few times she had to quit and restart because some curious coworker began peering over at her screen. She let an exasperated sigh and started again.
*********
Horizon Corporation
Research & Development Division
New York City
1-17-196
*********
At the same time, Kevin Hall worked at his computer, looking for a clue that would help him figure out the deadline change for the new Mobile Suit design. Why? What could be so important that the deadline would be moved to so soon?
He decided to match up the date with which, if they got the project done in the week allotted, the new Mobile Suits would be manufactured, with every news feed, to find anything major that would happen at that time. It would be most likely that they changed the deadline to act upon a major situation that arose.
One month from now. One month after that week, the Mobile Suit would be completed. And on February 23, 196, what happens?
He flipped through article after article in the news feeds. Nothing major, except...He flipped to an article about Vice-Foreign Minister Relena Peacecraft's crusade against war. She was going to get an order passed to demilitarize the World Nation!
That's it! Kevin thought to himself. He's going to use the Scorpio Suit to assassinate Ms. Peacecraft, and keep the world militarized!
*********
"But why?"
"Because without war, we're out of business." Mr. Dravin said to him.
Kevin had confronted him with this evidence in Dravin's office. Dravin shrugged it off.
"But assassinating the Vice-Foreign Minister? That's wrong!"
"That's the problem with you, Hall. You're too black-and-white. Haven't you heard the saying 'To make an omelet, you have to break some eggs'?"
"Well, sir, this is one egg that won't break without some serious repercussions."
"Don't worry, Hall. I've got it taken care of."
"I thought we agreed on using each other's first names."
"I was being nice. Sit down." He forces a smile as Kevin sat down. "So, how much of a raise do you want? 50,000? 100,000?"
"You can't bribe me, sir."
"Then you're fired. Huh? How'd you like that?"
"I would enjoy it, sir."
"Then get out of my sight."
Seething, Kevin stormed out of Dravin's office once again.
Once he was out, Dravin spoke to a figure in the shadows of his dimly-lit office. "Hall is too much of a danger. I want him eliminated as soon as this project is over. Remember, don't screw it up, Arnavisca. You're my security chief. I expect much of you."
The silent figure left the room.
Kevin said goodbye to his coworkers. "I've been let go, guys. I'm sorry. You'll just have to...finish the project without me." This feels awful, he thought to himself. I'm afraid if I say any more, they'll threaten you too.
Solemnly, he walked out of the room forever.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-20-196
*********
Kevin and Susan put everything in the duffel bag, everything that they need...that Aidan will need, that is.
Kevin reached out and took her hand. He looked into her eyes. "Susan...this is just an emergency bag. Just in case we don't make it, Aidan's got to take on the job."
"I feel we have to tell him..."
"No. Not yet. It might not have to come to this."
Filled with sorrow, they held each other in the night.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-24-196
*********
BANG! The flashbang burst, blinding everyone inside the room. The door burst in, several soldiers running inside.
Terrified, Susan led her petrified boy downstairs to the murky, dark basement, and they hid there. Upstairs, they heard the scream of a now dead Kevin.
Susan, scared to move, looked over at her terrified son. "Aidan, my dear, sweet son...you have to go."
"Wait, Mom...no..."
She drew him close and embraced him. "Yes, you have to. Listen, Aidan, you have to find the Gundam pilots. They can stop these people from killing again."
Aidan knew what this meant. "I don't wanna leave you, Mom..."
"But you have to, sweet Aidan. We probably won't see each other again, but I want you to know that whatever happens, I love you more than life itself."
Susan led her boy over to the opposite wall. She used a nearby crowbar to open a loose brick in the wall of the basement. She reached her hand inside and pushed a button that was hidden there. A huge chunk of the wall opened, like a door. It made a large CREAK as it widened, alerting the intruders to their location.
The leader gestured for the rest to follow him. They traveled toward the basement...
...Meanwhile, Susan was giving Aidan instructions. "Aidan, sweetheart, your father made this so that we could get away if they ever found us. It leads into the sewer system."
"Who are 'they'?"
"You'll find out." Out of the now-revealed tunnel, she produced a duffel bag from a compartment near the entrance. "Put this on." After he donned the bag, Susan turned him around to face her. "We don't have much time."
The soldiers reached the basement, and began descending down the stairs.
"There's a disk in there that tells you what to do. It tells you where the Gundam pilots are. Find them, Aidan. Go!"
With that, she pushed her son into the abyss, and closed the door.
That was her last moment, as a trio of bullets from the leader's gun silenced her forever.
The soldiers stayed for an hour to search for the boy, but gave up and torched the house. There they ended their search for the Halls.
ONE MILE AWAY...
It was a rainy day in the city of New York. In an alley, a sewer grate popped up from its manhole. The cover slid to the side, and two small hands carried its tired body up to the street.
There Aidan Hall laid there for what seemed like forever, frightened, sad...
...and alone. Oh, so alone.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Prologue: The Awakening
By Clint Worthington
NOTE: This takes place 6 months after the series. Yes, it's AU. (Okay, let's *assume* NYC exists in the After Colony era.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The time: A.C. 196
The place: New York City
The Hall family was content with their lives:
Dr. Kevin Hall, the patriarch, was a very jovial man, and was the head of research & development for a major military weapons manufacturer, Horizon Corporation. His specialty was creating new Mobile Suit systems.
Susan Hall, his beautiful wife, worked on the International Identification Database (IID) Project. Their job was to create a database of every person in the world, and their current whereabouts.
They had many things in common, but the thing that held them together the most was the love of their 11-year-old son, Aidan.
But soon after Aidan reached that age, an event occurred that tore their family apart forever, and sent Aidan Hall on a most dangerous journey:
*********
Horizon Corporation Headquarters
Research & Development Division
New York City, New York
1-16-196
*********
Kevin entered the room, full of energy. He wore his lab coat and greeted his fellow researchers.
He was surprised (and irritated) to see the Horizon president, CEO Joseph Dravin, waiting for him inside the lab.
"Kevin! My boy!" He put one hand on Kevin's shoulder and extended a hand.
In actuality, he didn't like him very much. The ideal company man, Dravin was big on the practice of sweet-talking a man into getting what he wanted, then stabbing him in the back.
Kevin forced a smile and took his hand, shaking it. "Mr. Dravin, sir, it's a honor to see you!"
"How's 'the project' coming?"
"Uh, great. But I've got to get back to work on it..." He gestured back toward the lab, where his coworkers were looking at the conversation with confused expressions.
"Nonsense! You can take a break, can't you? Come, let's go to my office. We need to have a little chat."
Kevin was led by Dravin across the building (a very long way) to Dravin's large, posh office, and gestured for Kevin to take the seat opposite from Dravin's vintage-wood desk. "Come, sit down."
Dravin went over to the window and stared out at it while he talked. "Kevin, feel free to call me Joseph. I'll be frank with you. I need the new Mobile Suit system by next week."
Kevin, although predicting that would happen, didn't expect it this soon. "Sir, we still have to work out the bugs, the inconsistencies. I mean, what if something happens to the pilot of the Mobile Suit?"
"Call me Joseph, Kevin," Dravin stressed. "Nevertheless, I need it as soon as possible. And that has to be within this week. I can't have the competition jumping ahead of us. I hear Orion Inc. is coming out with a new Mobile Suit design. That'll put them on top with the World Nation's military. And you know what that'll make us, Kevin?"
"What, s-Joseph?"
"Obsolete. Aging. Invalid. Extinct." He stressed that last word with a slight hiss. "Everyone will come running to Orion to have their nations armed. We'll be ripped from the picture."
"Sir, I wasn't aware that things would be that serious."
"Oh, they are. And call me JOSEPH, Kevin."
It was almost a forced courtesy.
"Joseph. I'll try to get it done in a week."
"Good. You had better. Get to work."
It seemed as if the conversation had irritated Dravin. "Yes...Joseph."
Kevin stormed out of the office, feeling grimy.
When he returned to the lab, his coworkers felt concerned. "Kev? You okay?" they all muttered. Kevin simply said to them, "We gotta work faster. Get this done in 7 days. Go!" He went to his desk to begin debugging the pilot interface.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-16-196
*********
Kevin opened the door, closed it behind him, and leaned on the wall, exhausted.
Susan walked up to him, and began to take his trenchcoat off. "Bad day at work?"
"Oh yeah. Now we gotta get the project done in a week, or there'll be hell to pay."
Kevin smiled at his son, Aidan, who ran up to him and hugged him. "Dad, you're back!"
"That's right, my boy!" he said as he walked to the kitchen. "Listen, why don't you go upstairs for awhile? Mom and I have to talk, okay?"
"Well," Aidan said with hesitation, "Okay." He ran up the stairs to his room.
After he was gone, Kevin turned to Susan and whispered, "There's a problem. My boss says the reason the deadline was changed was to beat Orion at getting a new design out."
"So?" Susan said, suspicious.
"I looked into it. Orion isn't coming out with anything like that. He's moving us up for another reason. Why, I don't know." He sighed. "So, how was your day?"
"Well, nothing compared to what happened to you. But...I did find something interesting while looking up names for the IID."
"What's that?"
"I found the Gundam pilots."
"That's nice-what?" Kevin said. "The Gundam pilots have been missing ever since the war ended. You found them?"
"All five of them. I did a little detective work myself. It was complicated-it took me all day to find them-but I did it. I haven't copied their whereabouts down to disk yet, but I will tomorrow when I go back to work."
"I'll look into Dravin's ulterior motive for the deadline change tomorrow as well."
"What if it's something bad?"
"Then we'll hope it's not. But if something were ever to happen to us, you know about the tunnel in the basement, right?"
"Yes, dear."
The two looked at each other. They knew their whole world was about to change.
*********
International Identification Database (IID) Office
New York City
1-17-196
*********
The gigantic control room was lined with computers and gigantic viewscreens. Many people worked at these computers, taking people's names, location, and information-age, sex, date of birth, criminal record-and storing it all into the database.
Susan Hall worked silently at her computer, secretly loading the files of the 5 Gundam pilots onto a minidisk. Quite a few times she had to quit and restart because some curious coworker began peering over at her screen. She let an exasperated sigh and started again.
*********
Horizon Corporation
Research & Development Division
New York City
1-17-196
*********
At the same time, Kevin Hall worked at his computer, looking for a clue that would help him figure out the deadline change for the new Mobile Suit design. Why? What could be so important that the deadline would be moved to so soon?
He decided to match up the date with which, if they got the project done in the week allotted, the new Mobile Suits would be manufactured, with every news feed, to find anything major that would happen at that time. It would be most likely that they changed the deadline to act upon a major situation that arose.
One month from now. One month after that week, the Mobile Suit would be completed. And on February 23, 196, what happens?
He flipped through article after article in the news feeds. Nothing major, except...He flipped to an article about Vice-Foreign Minister Relena Peacecraft's crusade against war. She was going to get an order passed to demilitarize the World Nation!
That's it! Kevin thought to himself. He's going to use the Scorpio Suit to assassinate Ms. Peacecraft, and keep the world militarized!
*********
"But why?"
"Because without war, we're out of business." Mr. Dravin said to him.
Kevin had confronted him with this evidence in Dravin's office. Dravin shrugged it off.
"But assassinating the Vice-Foreign Minister? That's wrong!"
"That's the problem with you, Hall. You're too black-and-white. Haven't you heard the saying 'To make an omelet, you have to break some eggs'?"
"Well, sir, this is one egg that won't break without some serious repercussions."
"Don't worry, Hall. I've got it taken care of."
"I thought we agreed on using each other's first names."
"I was being nice. Sit down." He forces a smile as Kevin sat down. "So, how much of a raise do you want? 50,000? 100,000?"
"You can't bribe me, sir."
"Then you're fired. Huh? How'd you like that?"
"I would enjoy it, sir."
"Then get out of my sight."
Seething, Kevin stormed out of Dravin's office once again.
Once he was out, Dravin spoke to a figure in the shadows of his dimly-lit office. "Hall is too much of a danger. I want him eliminated as soon as this project is over. Remember, don't screw it up, Arnavisca. You're my security chief. I expect much of you."
The silent figure left the room.
Kevin said goodbye to his coworkers. "I've been let go, guys. I'm sorry. You'll just have to...finish the project without me." This feels awful, he thought to himself. I'm afraid if I say any more, they'll threaten you too.
Solemnly, he walked out of the room forever.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-20-196
*********
Kevin and Susan put everything in the duffel bag, everything that they need...that Aidan will need, that is.
Kevin reached out and took her hand. He looked into her eyes. "Susan...this is just an emergency bag. Just in case we don't make it, Aidan's got to take on the job."
"I feel we have to tell him..."
"No. Not yet. It might not have to come to this."
Filled with sorrow, they held each other in the night.
*********
Hall Residence
New York City
1-24-196
*********
BANG! The flashbang burst, blinding everyone inside the room. The door burst in, several soldiers running inside.
Terrified, Susan led her petrified boy downstairs to the murky, dark basement, and they hid there. Upstairs, they heard the scream of a now dead Kevin.
Susan, scared to move, looked over at her terrified son. "Aidan, my dear, sweet son...you have to go."
"Wait, Mom...no..."
She drew him close and embraced him. "Yes, you have to. Listen, Aidan, you have to find the Gundam pilots. They can stop these people from killing again."
Aidan knew what this meant. "I don't wanna leave you, Mom..."
"But you have to, sweet Aidan. We probably won't see each other again, but I want you to know that whatever happens, I love you more than life itself."
Susan led her boy over to the opposite wall. She used a nearby crowbar to open a loose brick in the wall of the basement. She reached her hand inside and pushed a button that was hidden there. A huge chunk of the wall opened, like a door. It made a large CREAK as it widened, alerting the intruders to their location.
The leader gestured for the rest to follow him. They traveled toward the basement...
...Meanwhile, Susan was giving Aidan instructions. "Aidan, sweetheart, your father made this so that we could get away if they ever found us. It leads into the sewer system."
"Who are 'they'?"
"You'll find out." Out of the now-revealed tunnel, she produced a duffel bag from a compartment near the entrance. "Put this on." After he donned the bag, Susan turned him around to face her. "We don't have much time."
The soldiers reached the basement, and began descending down the stairs.
"There's a disk in there that tells you what to do. It tells you where the Gundam pilots are. Find them, Aidan. Go!"
With that, she pushed her son into the abyss, and closed the door.
That was her last moment, as a trio of bullets from the leader's gun silenced her forever.
The soldiers stayed for an hour to search for the boy, but gave up and torched the house. There they ended their search for the Halls.
ONE MILE AWAY...
It was a rainy day in the city of New York. In an alley, a sewer grate popped up from its manhole. The cover slid to the side, and two small hands carried its tired body up to the street.
There Aidan Hall laid there for what seemed like forever, frightened, sad...
...and alone. Oh, so alone.
TO BE CONTINUED...