Gundam Seed: Viral Liner Preface, a gundam seed fanfic

Introduction

Viral Liner tells the story of engineering student-turned-soldier Bernard Felix, orphaned and severely injured by the First Battle of Orb. Recovering in the care of relatives in Eurasia, he becomes the subject of an advanced surgery that replaced his spine and brainstem with cybernetics and extensively modifed his nervous system, restoring his ability to walk in some capacity while making him one of the first successes in cybersurgery in the CE-era and a major postwar innovation for the Earth Alliance. Out of some level of gratitude to the Eurasian Federation, he enlists in the EF's branch of the OMNI Enforcer, secretly wishing vengeance on both ZAFT and the Atlantic Federation for forcing his homeland into the conflict and causing the deaths of his mother and two younger brothers, but in many ways simply wishing a means to forget about his loss. Wishing to become a technician, something is revealed during training.

Although a Natural, the surgery has altered his nervous system substantially. Even minor physical problems such as a limp and requiring genetic therapy to make his body more tolerant to the implants, his responses are simply faster than those of an average mobile suit pilot and his cybernetic organs allow him to tolerate punishing G-forces. His improved abilities see him being assigned to the 67th Autonomous Mobile Group "Dea Matrona", where is he is to assist in the testbedding of new mobile suits.

Struggling to find his own place in the world and coming to terms with his own grief over the loss of his family, he will discover the love and camaraderie of his fellow Eurasian soldiers and struggle for his very life when pitted against the greatest aces of the Cosmic Era!

Timeline

Gundam Seed: Viral Liner is a piece of fanfiction by first-time writer LineArk which elaborates on the Cosmic Era continuity in Sunrise's popular and timeless Gundam franchise. Although the original material is in many ways compelling, it is plagued by poor characterization and numerous plotholes on both sides of the Bloody Valentine War.

This fanfiction will diverge from the original setting largely on three fronts. First, the Earth Alliance will be written as a collection of cooperating Earth-based powers attempting to reclaim the rebellious PLANTs for largely economic reasons. Groups such as Blue Cosmos and Logos will be present, but their influence will not be represented in a somewhat realistic manner, and the politics and real-world demands of the Earth Alliance will dominate Earth Alliance policy. The fanfiction will assume that the Earth Alliance is in fact not composed almost entirely of racist xenophobes who believe that Coordinators are posthuman monsters and arms dealers capitalizing on it with such gusto as to make Destro blush. It will also infer that the core of the Earth Alliance has in some ways made innovations that ZAFT did not for a variety of reasons, and vice versa. Closer to its UC counterpart, the primary constituent states of the EA will be more closely knit or have more realistic responses to poor actions by their neighbors, and as such, the outcomes of certain events will be altered to reflect this.

Secondly, the actions of both factions will be explored more thoroughly during intermission chapters. Incidents such as the terror attack on Junius 7, the April Fool Crisis and the Break the World Incident are given reasonable socio-political impacts.

The third and last major change will be the technological divergence of the Earth Alliance caused by the Bloody Valentine War. The pressures of the changed environment of Earth will cause new emergent technologies to appear on its many land and sea-based powers. Although ZAFT will have made numerous advances in nanotechnology and theoretical particle physics, the Earth Alliance's cold fusion power is new technology that is seeing promise two years after the Battle of Jachin Due.

However, for the sake of continuity and ease of writing, the majority of the timeline and all names for canon organizations, states and locations will be preserved.

AD calendar

As petroleum resources run out, and environmental pollution worsens, a worldwide economic collapse ensues. The world's nations form economic blocs, and the planet becomes divided into a handful of major powers.

Ethnic and religious strife leads to a global conflict known as the Reconstruction War, while the Type S influenza virus spreads throughout the world. Disease and war produce massive casualties.

-16, April 1

George Glenn is born

CE Calendar Begins

Nuclear weapons are employed on the frontlines of central Asia, in the Kashmir region.

George Glenn is nominated for a Nobel Prize.

George Glenn enlists in the military.

The Reconstruction War ends. The previous national order has been radically changed, and new powers like the Atlantic Federation, Eurasian Federation, and Republic of East Asia have emerged.

The United Nations formally adopts the Cosmic Era calendar and announces a new space development program. Construction of the space station Yggdrasil, which had been interrupted by the global war, resumes at Lagrange Point 1.

The Space Colony plan begins in earnest, and a space industry arises to exploit the new frontier. Construction of the lunar city Copernicus begins.

George Glenn becomes an employee of the Atlantic Federation's Federal Aeronautics and Space Administration (FASA).

The Atlantic Federation establishes the Federal Space Force (FSF). The Eurasian Federation and the Republic of East Asia follow suit.

The space station Yggdrasil is completed.

The lunar city of Copernicus is completed.

FASA launches a Jupiter exploration project and announces the development of the exploration ship Tsiolkovsky. George Glenn is to be the ship's chief designer, and the space station Yggdrasil will serve as the construction site.

The exploration ship Tsiolkovsky is completed.

George Glenn's Confession. As George Glenn departs for Jupiter aboard the Tsiolkovsky, he reveals the existence of Coordinators, and releases the necessary genetic engineering techniques onto the worldwide network.

Technology proves to be revolutionary, as new developments in gene therapy and reproductive assistance promise to greatly improve living standard of 1st world nations. Large-scale civil unrest rises among conservative religious societies in the Middle East, North Africa and South America, while minor protesting occurs in more secularized western nations.

In the name of environmental protection, the pressure group Blue Cosmos (a radical breakaway of Earth First) declares itself adamantly opposed to Coordinator technology.

An international conference is held to discuss the Coordinator controversy issue. A protocol on genetic modification is adopted, placing reasonable limitations on genetic modification. The 'Coordinator' template is expressly banned, but pre-natal genetic screening and therapy to remove congenital defects and predispositions to certain diseases. Interestingly, Kingdom of Scandinavia and ORB union are non-signatories.

Nonetheless, some wealthy individuals secretly have their children turned into Coordinators.

A hospital in Chicago which has secretly been creating Coordinators is set ablaze. Blue Cosmos is rumored to be involved. UN dispatches InterPol to investigate.

Construction of the Porta Panama mass driver begins in Central America.

Construction of the Habilis mass driver begins on the shore of Lake Victoria.

The Tsiolkovsky reaches Jupiter and discovers the fossil known as Evidence 01. Much of the civilized world is stunned by the revelation, and assists the early space industry by generating interest. FASA orders the Tsiolkovsky to bring back the fossil.

Siegel Clyne, a Coordinator, is born in the Kingdom of Scandinavia.

Patrick Zala, a Coordinator, is secretly born in the Atlantic Federation.

George Glenn returns from Jupiter with Evidence 01. The fossil is taken to the Zodiac research colony at Lagrange point 5 for detailed examination.

The world's religious authorities gather at the Palestine Conference. Christian, Jewish and Islamic groups take a hardline stance, while mainstream Buddhist and Hindu authorities favor neutrality and responsible genetic modification. Reform Judaism, European Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox churches reverse opinions and assume neutrality but publicly denounce coordinator template. Influence of hardline religious factions wane.

Tolerance for Coordinators spreads throughout the world, and the first Coordinator boom begins.

The space industry heats up, and construction of numerous space colonies begins at Lagrange Point 4.

The Orb Union begins construction of the Kaguya mass driver and the resource satellite Heliopolis.

The restrictions on George Glenn are lifted, and he begins examining Evidence 01 at Zodiac.

The colony's extraterrestrial research organization expands into a huge research facility.

The Atlantic Federation establishes a lunar base in the Ptolemaeus Crater, drawing international condemnation, and unveils its first series of mobile armors. Earth's major powers begin a space arms race, and the Eurasian Federation begins the construction of Artemis.

The Zodiac research colony is further expanded. George Glenn announces his concept for a new type of Space Colony, and construction of these new colonies begins. This project is funded mainly by the Atlantic Federation, the Eurasian Federation, and the Republic of East Asia, and the new L5 colony cluster is to be managed by representatives of these sponsor nations.

The first generation of Coordinators, many of whom were born in secrecy, reach maturity and begin to excel in every scientific, artistic, and athletic field. The differences between Coordinators and Naturals thus become very clear, and critical voices emerge.

Marriages among first-generation Coordinators produce a purebred second generation, who soon prove to have inherited their parents' abilities.

Most second-generation Coordinators do not receive additional genetic enhancements, but those that do demonstrate only mild improvements over their contemporaries.

Muruta Azrael is born in the Atlantic Federation. Early genetic screening determined him to be highly succeptible to psychosis, and he is prescribed medication to normalize his behavior at an early age.

Patrick Zala and Siegel Clyne, participating in the construction of new colonies at Lagrange point 5, meet for the first time.

The first ten space colonies (later known as Aprilius City) of the new L5 cluster are completed. These colonies, dubbed PLANTs, are intended to serve as large-scale production sites. The one thing they don't make is food, which the PLANTs are strictly prohibited from producing and which must be imported entirely from Earth.

The estimated Coordinator population now exceeds ten million.

Anti-coordinator organizations begin carrying out acts of terrorism against the PLANTs. Since they have no political autonomy and are thoroughly demilitarized, the PLANTs are unable to defend themselves, and the Coordinators working in the PLANTs become increasingly dissatisfied.

UN Security Council Resolution 7211 results in Blue Cosmos and 13 other bioconservative organizations being deemed terrorist organizations. Atlantic Federation initially refused to sign due to political pressure from Blue Cosmos lobbyists, but later reverse decision for an unspecified reason. As a consequence, Blue Cosmos leaders are considered criminals within most nations on Earth and only given amnesty in exchange for cooperation. Muruta Azrael among many of those who officially cooperated, while secretly coordinating its revival as 'Logos' from behind the scenes.

Al Da Flaga visits the Mendel colony at Lagrange Point 4. He commissions Dr. Ulen Hibiki, the chief researcher of GARM R&D, to create a clone of himself. Rau La Flaga is born later this year.

The Zodiac Alliance is formed.

George Glenn is assassinated by a young Natural who is angry because he was not born as a Coordinator.

A PLANT Supreme Council is formed, made up of representatives from each of the PLANT cities. Radical factions are not initially powerful, but rising tensions from continuing terror attacks and raids on hidden Zodiac Alliance weapons caches by UN peacekeepers lead to increasing drive to militarize.

First Mobile Suit developed; Zodiac Alliance renames itself ZAFT (Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty).

UN calls for increased demilitarization of space, and requests that ZAFT cease development of space-use mobile weapons. UN peacekeeper force consisting of mobile armors is dispatched to ZAFT space, but suffer mysterious equipment failures and are forced to withdraw later that year. No formal statement is issued by either side.

ZAFT rolls out the ZGMF-1017 GINN, the first fully-functional mobile suit.

UN withdraws all remaining forces from ZAFT space and formally condemns new mobile weapons program, stating the dangers of developping weapons for use inside of space colonies. ZAFT does not acknowledge the condemnation. As a consequence, food and immigration embargoes are lodged against all colonies at the Lagrange 5 point, with only the Oceania Union and Orb Union continuing food shipments to PLANTs.

ZAFT cuts ties with UN and major Earth-based powers.

Many PLANTs begin de-urbanization initiatives to increase self-sufficiency in regards to food production.

The Atlantic Federation begins a mobile suit development program.

In response to rising nuclear threat from the Atlantic Federation, ZAFT develops N-Jammers, blackbox femtoscale nanomachines that generate quantum interference that inhibits the movement of free Neutrons. This effectively cripples nuclear fission, the main source of power on Earth and the only kind of nuclear warhead that can be effectively mass-produced. The primary kernel that operates the nanomachines is developped on Junius 7 in secret, but its existence is eventually discovered by Blue Cosmos operatives.

The Earth Alliance is established by the Alaska Declaration after a terrorist attack wipes out the United Nations on the moon in the Tragedy of Copernicus. The Alliance declares war on the PLANTs.

70, February 14

Using intelligence garnered from Blue Cosmos, Muruta Azrael uses connections in Alliance military to order the attack on Junius Seven, with the aim of preventing the dissemination of N-Jammer technology. The Bloody Valentine War begins.

70, February 14

The first major battle of the war is fought at the prewar international space station Yggdrasil. The battle lasted about a month and resulted in the loss of the space station. Earth Alliance makes first use of nuclear weapons in space, largely against ZAFT warship formations.

70, April 1

In response to the direct nuclear attack and the destruction of the primary development site for their anti-nuclear countermeasure on Earth, ZAFT modified N-Jammer technology as a countermeasure against nuclear weaponry in space. With the modified production schedule, the N-Jammers were not dropped on Earth until 1 April, as the first phase of their Operation Uroboros.

The use of N-Jammers on Earth and the subsequent energy crisis, April Fool Crisis, provoked mass starvation due to how heavily people relied on nuclear energy. Nearly a seven hundred million people worldwide die of primary (starvation, infrastructure collapse) and secondary (loss of working hospitals/life support) effects of the shutting down of nuclear power plants.

70, April 8

For the first time in the Cosmic Era, mass anti-ZAFT protests take place in the Western world roughly one week after the deployment of N-Jammers, and witchhunts erupt all over Earth Alliance states, including normally Coordinator-neutral regions of the Atlantic Federation, Eurasia and Republic of East Asia such as Germany, Canada, France and India.

Enlistment in OMNI Enforcer, the Alliance Military, enters an all-time high.

70, April 17

The Earth Alliance ordered its 5th and 6th fleets, stationed on the Moon, to attack PLANT on April 17, C.E. 70. They were intercepted by ZAFT forces and engaged at the resource satellite Jachin Due. In the aftermath of this battle the PLANT Supreme Council decided to convert the entire asteroid of Jachin Due into a defensive base.

70, May 3 - June 2

The Battle of Endymion Crater took place on the Moon. The battle came to an end due to the usage of the destructive Cyclops System and resulting in the loss of the majority of OMNI Enforcer's Mobius Zero mobile armors.

70, May 25

The Mediterranean fleet of the Earth Alliance fought against a ZAFT submarine carrier fleet near Casablanca. ZAFT won the battle and their forces entered the Mediterranean, and advanced further into the south of Africa.

70, May 30

The Battle of Suez, won by ZAFT invading forces, ensured ZAFT the key Black Sea territories and the control of the Suez area.

70, June 14 - July 12

ZAFT forces launch a drawn out series of raids against the Earth Alliance resource satellite of Nova at Lagrange Point 4. Fighting between the two sides lasts for nearly a month, with neither side ever decisively defeating the other. Ultimately, the Alliance abandons the satellite and ZAFT converts it into the space fortress Boaz.

By late August of CE 70, a territorial stalemate on Earth was reached, with northern Africa and Australia firmly in ZAFT hands, Sub-Saharan Africa, Eurasia, South Asia and the Americas in the Alliance, and the majority of Oceania neutral.

70, January 15-23

The Battle of Kaohsiung took place on the island of Taiwan, where ZAFT forces successfully attacked the Earth Alliance spaceport located in the city of Kaohsiung. This was the first of three mass drivers ZAFT had captured from the Earth Alliance. The mass drivers located at Panama and Victoria would either be destroyed or recaptured by the end of the war.

71, January 25

To put an end to Earth Alliance mobile suit development plans, ZAFT planned an operation to seize the mobile suit prototypes secretly developed on the neutral colony Heliopolis, which was owned by Orb; and to destroy their carrier prototype ship Archangel.

Although ZAFT was able to capture four out of five units and heavily damage the colony's harbor, the fifth unit, the GAT-X105 Strike, remained in Alliance hands, was activated and engaged them in battle. The resulting Battle of Heliopolis between the Archangel, the Strike and ZAFT forces caused the complete destruction of the Heliopolis colony from collateral damage caused by both sides, and was the first of a series of battles between the Rau Le Creuset team and the Archangel crew.

71, January 27-30

The Archangel, pursued by the Le Creuset Team, docked at the Eurasian Federation base Artemis. Here the Archangel was taken into custody because of the lack of a friendly ID code on the ship and partly due to the Eurasian Federation's rivalry with the Atlantic Federation, who built the Archangel and the GAT mobile suits. Soon after the ZAFT forces attacked the base when it's defenses were disabled by the GAT-X207 Blitz, and the ship was able to escape admidst the chaos that ensued. As the battle ended, the Eurasian Federation base was completely destroyed by the subsequent damage taken.

71, February 13

After a long pursuit by the Le Creuset Team, the Archangel finally received reinforcements from the Earth Alliance's 8th Fleet, and received new orders to proceed to Federation headquarters at JOSH-A. The pursuing LeCreuset team and an accompanying escort of several Nazca and Laurasia-class decimated the 8th Fleet, but failed to capture the Archangel and the Strike Gundam.

The same day, ZAFT was able to capture the Victoria spaceport and seize the second mass driver, further advancing its campaign to remove the Earth Alliance's ability to put new ships into space.

71, February 15-28

After descending to Earth the Archangel took part in the Desert Dawn resistance movement's battle with ZAFT in North Africa. They eventually defeated Andrew Waltfeld's unit posted to Banadya and were able to break through the remaining ZAFT forces. Although Waltfeld and his wife Aisha avoid death, Waltfeld is confined to a military hospital at Janarius-5 for the remainder of the war and Aisha recovers but becomes paraplegic.

The Archangel enters the Red Sea, where it faces Carpentarian submarine forces, barely managing to defeat the fleet and push into Orb. The ship undergoes repairs in exchange for the safe delivery of Cagalli Yula Athha and the assistance of Strike pilot Kira Yamato in the development of Orb's own Astray mobile suits.

Upon exiting Orb, the Archangel is intercepted by the LeCreuset team, resulting in the destruction of the Strike, Blitz and Aegis Gundams, as well as one Skygrasper unit. ZAFT pilot Nicol Amalfi and Tolle Koenig were among the casualties of the battle. It is unknown how Strike pilot Kira Yamato survived a detonation that incinerated his cockpit, but the event led credence to his legend as the greatest ace of the Bloody Valentine War.

71, May 8

The battle of JOSH-A, the Earth Alliance's Atlantic Federation HQ, takes place with a failed ZAFT offensive that is disrupted by the Federation's usage of a Cyclops system built beneath the facility. Due to intervention by the newly-developed Freedom Gundam, the casualties unexpectedly low for Atlantic and ZAFT forces, but Eurasian forces posted to the back lines suffered massive casualties.

The event sparks censure on the Atlantic Federation by both East Asia and Eurasia, but it succeeds in cowing critics with threats of military intervention. Longtime proponents of the now-dismantled Blue Cosmos succeed in gathering support for the more militaristic regime and supress protests in less conservative regions such as the East Atlantic Coast, Canada and the Central Americas with force. With the loss to Eurasia's military strength, the Atlantic Federation has succeeded in taking control of the EA.

71, May 19

The Earth Alliance (controlled by the Atlantic Federation) makes the unprecedented gesture of annuling the Geneva Convention. Under heavy but silenced objections from Eurasia, it prepares for massed nuclear assault on the PLANTs after the aquisition of N-Jammer Canceller technology. East Asia remains neutral on the issue, but pledges industrial assistance to the Atlantic Federation.

Although the technology is in short supply and almost impossible to replicate on Earth, due to combined electromagnetic and gravitational interference disrupting the replication phase, the Atlantic Federation pushes to have them expended on retrofitting stocks of existing nuclear weapons and bringing them to operational status.

71, May 25

A few days later, ZAFT retaliated by attacking the Panama mass-driver base with a heavy force. While the Alliance forces introduced their mass-produced GAT-01 Strike Dagger, ZAFT deployed the Gungnir EMP weapon, disabling all Alliance military equipment in the area and resulting in an overwhelming victory for ZAFT. Porta Panama, the last mass driver in Alliance hands, was thereby destroyed, cutting off the Alliance space forces from Earth-based resources.

71, June 15, 16

With the destruction of their last mass driver in Porta Panama, the Atlantic Federation turned its interest to the Kaguya mass driver in the neutral Orb Union, one of the last mass drivers operating on Earth. Suffering from severe microwave burns after his shuttle was sabotaged by a Eurasian soldier, Atlantic Federation 'negotiator' Muruta Azrael attempted to cow Orb with treats of dismantlement if it refused to join the Earth Alliance and lend it its mass driver.

Refusing outright, Orb responded by preparing to be attacked and attempted to evacuate all major areas of population. During the ensuing, thousands of Orb citizens were killed, while the Morgenroete and Kaguya mass driver were destroyed in a final act of defiance as the Orb battleship Kusanagi and the rogue Archangel escaped to space.

Representative Athha and the other representatives of Orb were killed in the blast, allowing for a pro-Atlantic Federation to be replace them in the postwar period.

71, June 18

Despite the determined efforts of ZAFT forces, the Alliance managed to recapture the Victoria mass-driver in equatorial Africa with a massive deployment of the Strike Dagger and other prototype units. Because most of its fleet was still in the Pacific after its campaign in the Equatorial Union and tied up attempting to reclaim Panama, Atlantic Federation did not deploy directly onto the field and had only mobilized commando units to secure the mass driver, forcing the already drained Eurasian Federation to stage the main assault.

Surviving ZAFT troops were moved across Eurasian prisons to prevent them from being executed by the Atlantic Federation, and were later returned home after the end of the war.

71, July 12

After Lacus Clyne, Andrew Waltfeld, and the Clyne Faction stole the Eternal from PLANT, they found shelter in the abandoned colony of Mendel, where they joined with the Kusanagi and Archangel. Soon after, both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT forces attacked, but were repelled by the combined forces of all three starships, each considered to be one of the most advanced built during the CE 70's.

The operation is generally considered a turning point in the war because the system delivered a high-compression canister containing a suspension of additional blackbox N-Jammer Canceller nanomachines. It is incorrectly thought of as the point where the Alliance received the technology, as it would be impossible to mobilize at that point, but the amount obtained was enough to upgrade all of the Atlantic Federation's nuclear weapon stocks to fully operational status.

71, September 23

Using their replenished stocks of nuclear weapons, the Alliance carried out a large-scale bombardment of Boaz with over a hundred Mobius mobile armors carrying between two and four high-yield tactical nuclear missiles apiece. This battle also saw the formal retraction of support for the Atlantic Federation by nearly all members of the Earth Alliance council, and set in motion the events that resulted in the removal of most Federation government members with ties to Blue Cosmos during the postwar era.

Riots in major Earth Alliance cities over the waste of N-Jammer technology and recurring fears of nuclear warfare destroying the Earth's ravaged ecosystem push many to speak more leniently of an anti-war policy.

Muruta Azrael dies blood poisonning caused by the severe burns to his body and an adamant refusal to receive medical aid developped by Coordinators, the remaining power structure of the officially dismantled Blue Cosmos finally collapses altogether, while the network of arms dealers he operated to support it, does not.

71, September September 26, 27

The Second Battle of Jachin Due was both the apex of the Operation Peacemaker and the decisive battle of the Bloody Valentine War. As the Earth Alliance prepared to attack the PLANTs with nuclear missiles, the ZAFT superweapon GENESIS was entering its final stages and was ready to fire. Both factions were strongly determined not only to eliminate all enemy forces, but also to completely wipe out the opposing side's civilian population. Going into the battle, Blue Cosmos's main objective was destroying the PLANTs with nuclear missiles.

The usage of GENESIS and mass deployment of nuclear weapons saw both sides of the battle experience heavy losses, although intervention by the 'Three Ships Alliance' was stated to have greatly reduced the loss of life and protected the PLANTs from nuclear attack through usage of the mobile armor-esque 'METEOR' units. ZAFT was said to have lost over a third of their standing ship and mobile suit forces, while the Earth Alliance fleet, at the time consisting almost entirely of Atlantic Federation units, faced casualties in excess of 50%.

During the battle, the Dominion was said to have gone rogue in order to assist the 'Three Ships Alliance', after its accidental destruction of the Strike Gundam, then piloted by EA ace Mwu La Flaga. It later provided a pivotal role in the battle, ramming into the core of the GENESIS weapon and firing its Positron cannons before self-destructing, completely obliterating the station and itself in the process. Captain Badgiruel was posthumously acquitted of charges of treason.

71, September 27

Hostilities end with a cease-fire after the Second Battle of Jachin Due.

71, November

South American War for Independence.

72, March 10

Treaty of Junius signed, formally ending the Bloody Valentine War.

73, October 1

Current date.

Badgiruel.