Disclaimer: I do not own or have any title, interest or right in either
Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon. This fanfiction is not being used for
commercial purposes. I own all other rights (to the extent legally
permissible) in connection with this writing.
Chapter 1: ROOTS OF WAR
* * * * *
"Competition of riches, honour, command, or other power inclineth to contention, enmity, and war, because the way of one competitor to the attaining of his desire is to kill, subdue, supplant, or repel the other." - Thomas Hobbes (Levithan, 1651)
* * * * *
Colony: X18999 March 15; 4:20 pm
A gloved hand swirled the glass of dark merlot. Stern, blue eyes watched the rich color of the wine. After a moment of reflection, he smoothly sipped the glass.
"Mr. Barton," came a nervous voice from the shadows.
Dekim Barton turned to glare in the direction of the interruption. A look of annoyance crossed the weathered face of the patriarch of the Barton Foundation. The gray-haired man stared at the figure standing anxiously in the door to his office.
"What do you want?" Dekim snapped irritably.
"I just came to inform you that the Earth Sphere Unified Nations has just issued a statement," the visitor coughed timidly.
"Well, what did they say?" Dekim demanded.
"Ahem. As we expected, they condemned the Barton Foundation's usurpation of the former leaders of this colony," the visitor informed him. "The ESUN General Assembly passed a resolution demanding that the Barton Foundation restore the previous government immediately. But ESUN has not imposed any sanctions or deadlines for the moment."
"Of course!" Dekim snorted. "ESUN is an organization of words, rather than action. That pathetic bureaucracy won't risk mobilizing its forces to enter a bloody war for such a distant and minor colony. As long as we don't pose a direct threat to ESUN, we will be fine."
"There is one more thing, Mr. Barton..."
"Spit it out, man!" Dekim yelled angrily.
"The L1 Colony has also issued a statement that it considers the Barton Foundation a threat to peace in outer space. The governing body of the L1 Colony has issued a resolution authorizing the use of force against X18999."
Dekim's eyes grew wide with alarm. "They wouldn't dare! That would be a violation of the non-aggression pact between our colonies! And the L1 Colony won't get the support of ESUN and the other colonies to support any military action."
The visitor gulped fearfully. "We think that the L1 Colony may be willing to wage war without the support of ESUN or the other colonies. L1 also says that the non-aggression pact no longer applies, since the pact was made with the former rulers of X18999, and not with the Barton Foundation."
"I thought your advisors assured me that the L1 Colony would not go to war over this! Your advisors told me that the L1 colony's sagging economy and its domestic troubles would make it too difficult to start a war! What the hell happened?!" Dekim hollered angrily.
"Ahem. I believe my advisors did not consider the possibility that L1's domestic woes would actually be one of the reasons for starting a war. They now believe that the president of the L1 Colony wants to avert attention from the colony's internal problems."
"That doesn't seem to be reason enough," Dekim grunted skeptically.
"Well, we believe that the president of the L1 Colony expects to initially consolidate popular support during the war. And if the military campaign is successful, the L1 Colony will gain access to X18999's wealth of natural resources."
"So that's it," murmured Dekim. He slowly opened up a drawer to his desk.
"Mr. Barton, may I leave now?" the visitor requested in a polite voice.
Dekim slowly drew the gun out from his desk and aimed it at the man. "For your failure to properly assess the situation, you shall take your leave...permanently."
* * * * *
Colony: L1 March 15; 5:30 pm
Lieutenant Trowa Barton sat quietly at the front of the briefing room. He was a tall, handsome young man with an impassive face. He wore a neatly pressed dark, blue uniform that was standard issue for officers. Several other uniformed men and women were hurriedly seating themselves in anticipation of the emergency meeting. All of the soldiers in the room were members of the L1 Colony's elite "Space, Earth, Air and Seas" forces, commonly referred to by the acronym of SEAS.
It only took a few moments for all the SEAS members to settle into their seats. A few minutes later, two familiar men enter the room. Captain Milliardo Peacecraft gracefully strode into the room. Lieutenant Commander Wufei Chang followed with a deep frown upon his face.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Captain Peacecraft greeted the soldiers. "As you may know, the Barton Foundation has taken over Colony X18999 through a bloody coup. In response to this development, the L1 Colony has resolved to take any and all necessary actions to remove the Barton Foundation from power. We will be instruments to enforce the L1 Colony's policy."
There was a quiet murmuring among the soldiers. Although many had been aware of the coup, very few of them seriously believed that the L1 Colony would actually commit itself to a war.
"I am very proud to announce that your special operations team will be the first to insert themselves into Colony X18999," Captain Peacecraft continued. "The regular military troops are currently in the process of mobilizing. It will take at least another month before the build up is complete. In the meantime, we will need your team to be the advance eyes and ears for our forces. Your commanding officer will explain the details."
Lieutenant Commander Chang stood up. A holographic display of X18999 materialized next to him. He gestured at the schematic.
The young Chinese man began outlining the operations, "Our first objective..."
* * * * *
Space Carrier: 1LSS Amuro Rey 3rd Fleet of the L1 Colony March 15, 7:00 pm
A beautiful, young blond woman was walking down the steel corridors of the space carrier. Her sparkling blue eyes and warm smile drew the attention of the many young men aboard the 1LSS Amuro Rey, flagship of the L1 Colony's 3rd Fleet.
Lieutenant Commander Minako Aino was used to all the interest she received from the men stationed on the space carrier. She had been in the L1 Colony's Space Forces for the past two years, and Minako was generally happy with her duty aboard the 1LSS Amuro Rey. She absently fingered her short, blond hair. Perhaps one of the things she regretted most was that she had been forced to relinquish her cherished long, blond hair in favor of a shorter, more professional hair cut. Damn military protocol.
She was heading towards the mess hall, her stomach grumbling. The young pilot had just finished a routine Combat Air Patrol (CAP) flight and was ready to eat almost anything. As she drew closer to the mess hall, she paused in front of a closed door.
Grinning, she rapped on the door lightly.
"Who is it?" asked a voice from the other side.
"It's me, and I'm coming in," Minako announced. She swung open the door and poked her head inside.
Minako surveyed the immaculately clean room. A stern, young man with short, unkempt hair and blue eyes was typing furiously away on a laptop. He didn't bother to glance up at her.
"Did you know that it's dinner time?" Minako queried in a cheerful voice. "I'm heading down to the mess hall. Why don't you join me?"
"Hmph," Lieutenant Commander Heero Yui grunted, his eyes focused on his laptop.
"It's not healthy to be so unfriendly," Minako advised him.
Heero continued to type away on the laptop, ignoring her completely.
Minako shrugged and resumed her march to the mess hall. Heero was the only member of the 1LSS Amuro Rey that did not express any outward interest in her. She found it somewhat amusing, and it became almost a game for her. Minako would flirt and tease the young Japanese man, just to get a reaction. Unfortunately, he seemed quite capable of ignoring her charms.
Minako waltzed into the mess hall, disregarding most of the stares that she received. She was far too hungry to deal with her admirers right now. Minako grabbed a tray and rushed up to the chef, ensign Motoki Furuhata.
"What's cooking, Moto?" she chirped in a cheerful voice.
Motoki's face looked serious.
"Did you hear the latest? Our entire fleet has received new orders. We're heading to Colony X18999," he whispered to her, as he slid a plate of food onto her tray.
Minako's grin faded away. "You're kidding me. You mean the L1 Colony is committing itself to a war?"
Motoki nodded gravely. "Yes. And it appears that our fleet will be spearheading the attack."
* * * * *
Colony: L1 March 15; 11:15 pm
"Where the hell is she?" demanded an angry, red-faced woman. The normally calm and composed figure of Dorothy Catalonia was now on the verge of exploding. The tall, blond woman was standing behind her desk and glaring at the man across from her.
Duo Maxwell shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me! I don't know where she is!"
The young reporter was casually leaning against the wall of Dorothy's office, toying casually with his long, chestnut braid.
Suddenly, the door burst open and a young blond woman stumbled into the room. She was breathing heavily. Her long blond hair were fashioned into two buns at the top of her head. She gave Dorothy a weak grin.
"Sorry, Miss Catalonia!" Usagi Tsukino apologized. She bowed her head deeply, nearly colliding into Dorothy's desk.
Dorothy Catalonia, chief-editor of the Satellite News Network (SNN), glowered at Usagi.
"You should have been here fifteen minutes ago," Dorothy said acidly.
"Gomen!" Usagi cried out, bowing again. This time, she smacked her head into the table. "OW!"
Dorothy rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"So what's with calling us here so late at night?" Duo sighed, clearly not interested in spending any more time in the office than necessary. "Are you trying to ruin what remains of my social life?"
Dorothy turned to glare at both of them.
"I have an emergency assignment for both of you," she told them crisply. "As you may know, the L1 Colony has just passed a resolution authorizing the use of force to remove the Barton Foundation from X18999."
"So what?" Duo shrugged. "We all know that it's a bluff. Why should the L1 Colony get involved with X18999's internal affairs?"
Dorothy folded her arms across her chest. "Well, perhaps it is a bluff. But the L1 Colony Department of Defense has just extended SNN the opportunity to have some of its correspondents become 'embedded' reporters."
Duo's eyes widened. "You can't mean..."
"That's right," Dorothy told him smugly. "Both of you will be assigned as embedded reporters to the L1 Colony's Third Fleet!"
* * * * *
Author's Notes: This story is dedicated to all of our troops and allied forces, as well as the innocent Iraqi civilians victimized by the war. This fanfiction came to me earlier yesterday morning (probably watching too much news), and I just had to put it into words. I am still working on my other fanfictions. The chapters for this story will continue to be fairly short, at least until I finish up The Celestial Covenant. I appreciate any reviews.
Chapter 1: ROOTS OF WAR
* * * * *
"Competition of riches, honour, command, or other power inclineth to contention, enmity, and war, because the way of one competitor to the attaining of his desire is to kill, subdue, supplant, or repel the other." - Thomas Hobbes (Levithan, 1651)
* * * * *
Colony: X18999 March 15; 4:20 pm
A gloved hand swirled the glass of dark merlot. Stern, blue eyes watched the rich color of the wine. After a moment of reflection, he smoothly sipped the glass.
"Mr. Barton," came a nervous voice from the shadows.
Dekim Barton turned to glare in the direction of the interruption. A look of annoyance crossed the weathered face of the patriarch of the Barton Foundation. The gray-haired man stared at the figure standing anxiously in the door to his office.
"What do you want?" Dekim snapped irritably.
"I just came to inform you that the Earth Sphere Unified Nations has just issued a statement," the visitor coughed timidly.
"Well, what did they say?" Dekim demanded.
"Ahem. As we expected, they condemned the Barton Foundation's usurpation of the former leaders of this colony," the visitor informed him. "The ESUN General Assembly passed a resolution demanding that the Barton Foundation restore the previous government immediately. But ESUN has not imposed any sanctions or deadlines for the moment."
"Of course!" Dekim snorted. "ESUN is an organization of words, rather than action. That pathetic bureaucracy won't risk mobilizing its forces to enter a bloody war for such a distant and minor colony. As long as we don't pose a direct threat to ESUN, we will be fine."
"There is one more thing, Mr. Barton..."
"Spit it out, man!" Dekim yelled angrily.
"The L1 Colony has also issued a statement that it considers the Barton Foundation a threat to peace in outer space. The governing body of the L1 Colony has issued a resolution authorizing the use of force against X18999."
Dekim's eyes grew wide with alarm. "They wouldn't dare! That would be a violation of the non-aggression pact between our colonies! And the L1 Colony won't get the support of ESUN and the other colonies to support any military action."
The visitor gulped fearfully. "We think that the L1 Colony may be willing to wage war without the support of ESUN or the other colonies. L1 also says that the non-aggression pact no longer applies, since the pact was made with the former rulers of X18999, and not with the Barton Foundation."
"I thought your advisors assured me that the L1 Colony would not go to war over this! Your advisors told me that the L1 colony's sagging economy and its domestic troubles would make it too difficult to start a war! What the hell happened?!" Dekim hollered angrily.
"Ahem. I believe my advisors did not consider the possibility that L1's domestic woes would actually be one of the reasons for starting a war. They now believe that the president of the L1 Colony wants to avert attention from the colony's internal problems."
"That doesn't seem to be reason enough," Dekim grunted skeptically.
"Well, we believe that the president of the L1 Colony expects to initially consolidate popular support during the war. And if the military campaign is successful, the L1 Colony will gain access to X18999's wealth of natural resources."
"So that's it," murmured Dekim. He slowly opened up a drawer to his desk.
"Mr. Barton, may I leave now?" the visitor requested in a polite voice.
Dekim slowly drew the gun out from his desk and aimed it at the man. "For your failure to properly assess the situation, you shall take your leave...permanently."
* * * * *
Colony: L1 March 15; 5:30 pm
Lieutenant Trowa Barton sat quietly at the front of the briefing room. He was a tall, handsome young man with an impassive face. He wore a neatly pressed dark, blue uniform that was standard issue for officers. Several other uniformed men and women were hurriedly seating themselves in anticipation of the emergency meeting. All of the soldiers in the room were members of the L1 Colony's elite "Space, Earth, Air and Seas" forces, commonly referred to by the acronym of SEAS.
It only took a few moments for all the SEAS members to settle into their seats. A few minutes later, two familiar men enter the room. Captain Milliardo Peacecraft gracefully strode into the room. Lieutenant Commander Wufei Chang followed with a deep frown upon his face.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Captain Peacecraft greeted the soldiers. "As you may know, the Barton Foundation has taken over Colony X18999 through a bloody coup. In response to this development, the L1 Colony has resolved to take any and all necessary actions to remove the Barton Foundation from power. We will be instruments to enforce the L1 Colony's policy."
There was a quiet murmuring among the soldiers. Although many had been aware of the coup, very few of them seriously believed that the L1 Colony would actually commit itself to a war.
"I am very proud to announce that your special operations team will be the first to insert themselves into Colony X18999," Captain Peacecraft continued. "The regular military troops are currently in the process of mobilizing. It will take at least another month before the build up is complete. In the meantime, we will need your team to be the advance eyes and ears for our forces. Your commanding officer will explain the details."
Lieutenant Commander Chang stood up. A holographic display of X18999 materialized next to him. He gestured at the schematic.
The young Chinese man began outlining the operations, "Our first objective..."
* * * * *
Space Carrier: 1LSS Amuro Rey 3rd Fleet of the L1 Colony March 15, 7:00 pm
A beautiful, young blond woman was walking down the steel corridors of the space carrier. Her sparkling blue eyes and warm smile drew the attention of the many young men aboard the 1LSS Amuro Rey, flagship of the L1 Colony's 3rd Fleet.
Lieutenant Commander Minako Aino was used to all the interest she received from the men stationed on the space carrier. She had been in the L1 Colony's Space Forces for the past two years, and Minako was generally happy with her duty aboard the 1LSS Amuro Rey. She absently fingered her short, blond hair. Perhaps one of the things she regretted most was that she had been forced to relinquish her cherished long, blond hair in favor of a shorter, more professional hair cut. Damn military protocol.
She was heading towards the mess hall, her stomach grumbling. The young pilot had just finished a routine Combat Air Patrol (CAP) flight and was ready to eat almost anything. As she drew closer to the mess hall, she paused in front of a closed door.
Grinning, she rapped on the door lightly.
"Who is it?" asked a voice from the other side.
"It's me, and I'm coming in," Minako announced. She swung open the door and poked her head inside.
Minako surveyed the immaculately clean room. A stern, young man with short, unkempt hair and blue eyes was typing furiously away on a laptop. He didn't bother to glance up at her.
"Did you know that it's dinner time?" Minako queried in a cheerful voice. "I'm heading down to the mess hall. Why don't you join me?"
"Hmph," Lieutenant Commander Heero Yui grunted, his eyes focused on his laptop.
"It's not healthy to be so unfriendly," Minako advised him.
Heero continued to type away on the laptop, ignoring her completely.
Minako shrugged and resumed her march to the mess hall. Heero was the only member of the 1LSS Amuro Rey that did not express any outward interest in her. She found it somewhat amusing, and it became almost a game for her. Minako would flirt and tease the young Japanese man, just to get a reaction. Unfortunately, he seemed quite capable of ignoring her charms.
Minako waltzed into the mess hall, disregarding most of the stares that she received. She was far too hungry to deal with her admirers right now. Minako grabbed a tray and rushed up to the chef, ensign Motoki Furuhata.
"What's cooking, Moto?" she chirped in a cheerful voice.
Motoki's face looked serious.
"Did you hear the latest? Our entire fleet has received new orders. We're heading to Colony X18999," he whispered to her, as he slid a plate of food onto her tray.
Minako's grin faded away. "You're kidding me. You mean the L1 Colony is committing itself to a war?"
Motoki nodded gravely. "Yes. And it appears that our fleet will be spearheading the attack."
* * * * *
Colony: L1 March 15; 11:15 pm
"Where the hell is she?" demanded an angry, red-faced woman. The normally calm and composed figure of Dorothy Catalonia was now on the verge of exploding. The tall, blond woman was standing behind her desk and glaring at the man across from her.
Duo Maxwell shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me! I don't know where she is!"
The young reporter was casually leaning against the wall of Dorothy's office, toying casually with his long, chestnut braid.
Suddenly, the door burst open and a young blond woman stumbled into the room. She was breathing heavily. Her long blond hair were fashioned into two buns at the top of her head. She gave Dorothy a weak grin.
"Sorry, Miss Catalonia!" Usagi Tsukino apologized. She bowed her head deeply, nearly colliding into Dorothy's desk.
Dorothy Catalonia, chief-editor of the Satellite News Network (SNN), glowered at Usagi.
"You should have been here fifteen minutes ago," Dorothy said acidly.
"Gomen!" Usagi cried out, bowing again. This time, she smacked her head into the table. "OW!"
Dorothy rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"So what's with calling us here so late at night?" Duo sighed, clearly not interested in spending any more time in the office than necessary. "Are you trying to ruin what remains of my social life?"
Dorothy turned to glare at both of them.
"I have an emergency assignment for both of you," she told them crisply. "As you may know, the L1 Colony has just passed a resolution authorizing the use of force to remove the Barton Foundation from X18999."
"So what?" Duo shrugged. "We all know that it's a bluff. Why should the L1 Colony get involved with X18999's internal affairs?"
Dorothy folded her arms across her chest. "Well, perhaps it is a bluff. But the L1 Colony Department of Defense has just extended SNN the opportunity to have some of its correspondents become 'embedded' reporters."
Duo's eyes widened. "You can't mean..."
"That's right," Dorothy told him smugly. "Both of you will be assigned as embedded reporters to the L1 Colony's Third Fleet!"
* * * * *
Author's Notes: This story is dedicated to all of our troops and allied forces, as well as the innocent Iraqi civilians victimized by the war. This fanfiction came to me earlier yesterday morning (probably watching too much news), and I just had to put it into words. I am still working on my other fanfictions. The chapters for this story will continue to be fairly short, at least until I finish up The Celestial Covenant. I appreciate any reviews.