Rivers know this:
There is no hurry.
We shall get there some day.
- A.A. Milne
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"It's just going to be a matter of time before the shit hits the fan."
"I'm working hard on avoiding that. You should, too."
"There's only so much we can do. She's not helping matters with that temper."
"What has she done again?"
"We met with the ambassador from the Atlantic Federation last week. Of course, they also wanted an alliance with us. Every nation from here to the Bahamas wants an alliance with us."
"And?"
"I'm sure you can guess the rest. She told them in no uncertain terms where they can stick that idea. They weren't too happy about it."
"It'd be a mistake for her to ally with them too."
"But there are nicer ways of putting it than we're not going to help you attack another nation just because you are greedy and want more territory."
"… She said that?"
"Something to that effect. Let's just say, she's no politician."
"Coming from you, that's almost a compliment."
The conference room exploded into blinding light as he took his seat at the long table. Of all people, he ought to be the one accustomed to the flash of cameras and the clamor of the media, but the youngest Supreme Council Chair in the history of the PLANT colonies still found himself having to look away in discomfort. Any official press conference held by the PLANT Supreme Council usually guaranteed a large turnout but one with all twelve Council Members in attendance, including the highly elusive Chairman Zala, inevitably drew an unprecedented amount of attention. Particularly when it concerned the affairs of the impending bloodbath on Earth.
"Chairman Zala, what is your opinion of the current state of emergency in the United Emirates of Orb? The Atlantic Federation, Eurasian Federation, Republic of East Asia and South Africa Union all have their sights set on Orb currently; do you think there is any chance that a common objective might lead to a reformation of the Earth Alliance?" a pale, aristocratic female journalist spoke up eagerly.
Three years after the Second Bloody Valentine War. Everything was different but really, nothing had changed. Blue Cosmos and Logos were names that belonged to the past but new factions had arisen, the various federations on Earth had found new matters to fight over and history continued plodding along, one bloody battle at a time.
Clearing his throat, Athrun began. "I would think that a reformation of the Earth Alliance under the current circumstances is highly improbable. The four main federations of Earth have been at odds with one another ever since the war ended. Even this imminent battle in Orb is merely an extension of their conflict. Orb, as a neutral nation caught in between their quarrels, has our sympathies."
The previous two wars with the PLANTs had so weakened the Earth Alliance superstates that they began turning onto each other. The high ideals purported in the past wars, of preserving a blue and pure world and other such nonsense, were abandoned in a mad scramble for territory, power and resources. Orb, with its strong economy, advanced military and well-educated population, inevitably became a prize to be had. It was not what Athrun had intended.
A bespectacled male journalist raised his hand immediately, obviously eager to follow up on a conversation that Athrun had started. A Natural. Athrun knew of no Coordinators who would leave an elementary flaw such as short-sightedness unchecked.
"Chairman Zala, Orb's position is becoming more and more precarious. Will the PLANTs offer aid to them? You have always been an advocate for non-violence but do you think the PLANTs should intervene and try to restore peace?"
The space colonies had so far been left untouched and the mass media was effusive in its praise of their young, charismatic leader whose diplomacy and political adroitness kept the hungry intruders at bay.
What utter nonsense. Athrun knew better.
It was raw, overwhelming power that kept the ravenous federations away from the PLANTs. He wondered if she had become as jaded as him in these intervening years.
Judging from the latest reports, perhaps not.
He gestured to Lacus who was Chair of the Diplomatic Committee and Representative of Aprilius City to speak. He was a strategist, capable of pulling the strings behind the scenes but when it came to the media, there was a reason why he usually gave them a wide berth.
"At this point in time, we would still like to believe that the conflict can be resolved through peaceful means of diplomacy. If we were to intervene between the various nations, we will only drag the PLANTs into war and escalate the bloodshed needlessly." Lacus' voice was soft-spoken and melodic, but she had always been a compelling orator and the group of media spokesmen listened in solemnity. "As a neutral party in this conflict ourselves, we respect Orb's policy and will do all that is in our power to support it. Orb has officially requested our help and the council has responded with an alliance treaty. We await their favorable response."
Three days ago, Athrun's plans had come into fruition in the form of a simple, white missive laid on his desk.
Cagalli Yula Athha, Chief Representative of Orb, requests an audience with Chairman Zala of the PLANTs to discuss a possible alliance between the two nations.
Unbidden, a rare, genuine smile had spread across Athrun's face as he read the message. He prided himself on being an inordinately patient man. After all, he had already waited three years, but the last few weeks had been a true test of his patience. Every morning for the past two weeks, he had woken up early to tune in to the news, bracing himself for news of a significant attack on Orb. When there was none, he would wait with bated breath to hear from her but the stubborn woman had waited until the very last possible moment to request his help.
He knew he was being cruel, but in this game of high stakes, it was imperative that she made the first move.
In return, he summarily denied her request of an audience.
An alliance treaty had already been pre-approved by the Council. There was nothing left to discuss; at least nothing that he wanted to risk discussing with her in person. As expected, the news of a possible alliance between PLANT and Orb had deeply unsettled the media correspondents.
"Don't you think that the Earth federations will also declare war on the PLANTs if this alliance is announced?" A brown-haired, female journalist put aside her heavy camera equipment to pose the question.
When she finally raised her head from the camera, his eyes widened in shock, before he quickly schooled his expression into one of indifference. Miriallia Haw! Ever since the conflict on Earth had escalated into armed combat, it had not been easy to travel to the PLANTs. Miriallia would have to have been in the PLANTs already before the four federations had issued their ultimatum to Orb.
If Lacus was as surprised as he was at her appearance, she showed no signs of it.
"Both Orb and the PLANTs will only attack in self-defense. We will open peace talks and diplomacy with all Earth federations, asking only that Orb and the PLANTs be left alone. It is our hope that the Earth federations will be more willing to compromise with Orb given our support," Lacus replied, deftly sidestepping the real question.
Of course what she really meant was that they were more likely to back off in the face of the combined strength of ZAFT and Orb's military.
"Why are we responding to Orb's request for aid?" a middle-aged man with grey-blond hair said, haughty and full of conviction of the PLANTs' superiority. "Why are we wasting our resources and the lives of our citizens to defend a small nation of islands when we can conserve our energy to wipe them all out after they deplete each other fighting? They even allied themselves in the second war against us!"
There was a collective gasp in the conference room at the man's sheer audacity but, sadly, also a few murmurs of agreement. Three years were not quite long enough to erase decades of hatred.
Athrun made a mental note of the paper he belonged to. After the conference, he would see to it that the man never wrote another word in his professional career. Even among the Supreme Council, Athrun knew there were enough people who shared the journalist's radical, extremist opinion. That the PLANTs and their genetically superior Coordinators could and should conquer and dominate Earth. For the sake of mankind, of course.
"So are we to repeat the same mistake they made and abandon them in their time of need?" Lacus said softly, with the barest hint of disappointment and Athrun knew many of them immediately felt chastised. He should know; he had been at the receiving end of that particular tone of voice quite a few times. "Historically, Orb has always been an admirable nation. They welcomed Coordinators even when we were despised on Earth and do not discriminate between Coordinators and Naturals. They were instrumental in restoring peace in both previous wars. We must support them now or Earth will only spiral further into war." Lacus left the rest unspoken. Who do you think will be their next target after they destroy Orb?
"I think you should be careful with your words," his National Defense Committee Chair, Yzak Joule said to the journalist who had previously hinted at the PLANTs' desire for world conquest. His tone was low and threatening and Athrun could sense the menace seething dangerously just below the surface. These few years had managed to provide a more respectable façade for Yzak's infamous wrath and only a few, selected individuals ever got to see his true colors now. A pity that Athrun was part of that exclusive group.
"PLANT will never seek to expand to Earth. Why should we when space has been our motherland for so long?" Yzak scowled hard at the group of media personnel and his eyes promised swift and sure vengeance if they dared contradict him.
Athrun had anticipated this, which was why more than a year ago, once he had acquired enough power and influence, he had begun paving the road to an alliance with Orb. He had deliberately started his political career in National Defense and at his suggestion, or rather gentle coercion, relocated a few of ZAFT's top engineers to Orb, or more specifically, Morgenroete.
They were essentially still on ZAFT's payroll and presumably serving as spies but with his approval, they were allowed to make significant contributions to Orb's defense and was probably the main reason Orb eventually came to possess weapons much more advanced than the other Earth nations.
He did it so that Orb could be capable of defending itself; because he knew she was too idealistic to want to take part in the arms race and also because he knew that he would need a more tangible reason to ally PLANT with Orb in the future.
What he hadn't counted upon was the development of a weapon capable of completely destroying the PLANTs.
They called it the Close-Combat Hyper Atom Re-dispersive Offensive Neutralization. Or for short, CHARON. How ironically apt.
Only effective in space, the weapon employed a directed energy beam, scaled into the warhead of a missile and upon "detonation" created a field in which the bonds between all atoms were disrupted and all molecules were destroyed. It could destroy something as small as an enemy spacecraft, or even something as large as an entire colony. But there was one crucial downfall. CHARON could only be deployed at very close range and as far as Athrun knew, the engineers at Morgenroete had yet to find a way around the problem.
Few people knew of its existence but suffice to say, the weapon alone had quickly convinced the Supreme Council to try and gain control and access to Orb. There was first outrage that Orb had even dared to develop a weapon of such magnitude but it had been quickly outweighed by the urgency to take control of it. If the weapon ever fell into the hands of any of the other Earth federations… Athrun could not imagine the consequences. If his selfish plan indirectly led to the destruction of the PLANTs…
There was no way he was ever going to allow that to happen.
Most of the Supreme Council had rapidly agreed to the alliance treaty, including the clause that Athrun had added, when they found out about the terrifying weapon that Orb possessed. Some of them had even mentioned how self-sacrificing their Chairman was in providing additional insurance for the survival of the space colonies. Yzak, however, had just laughed in his face when he read about the conditions of the treaty.
The Supreme Council members took a few more questions and finally, the press event was wrapped up in an hour.
He searched for Miriallia right after the conference ended but she was nowhere to be found and Athrun almost wondered if he had just imagined her face appearing in the crowd.
"Looking for her?" Lacus interrupted his thoughts, putting an end to his doubt.
"You saw her too, then. What is she doing in the PLANTs at this time?"
Lacus shrugged. "I don't always know everything."
He was about to express his incredulity at that statement when his cellphone rang shrilly.
"Chairman Zala, Captain Yamato is seeking clearance to depart from December City." A pause and he could distinctly hear the man clearing his throat uncomfortably. "Again."
Of course, he was. That would make it the lucky thirteenth time in the last week that Kira had attempted to travel to Orb. He was hardly surprised; in fact, he had expected his childhood friend would already have defied the rules of his lockdown to charge to Earth in rescue of his twin. He knew he was going to have hell to pay when he next met the overprotective brother, but right now, he couldn't have him messing up his plans.
"Continue surveillance. Under no circumstances will he be allowed to leave the city. You have my permission to detain him physically if need be."
Athrun briefly felt a twinge of guilt as he hung up. Kira must be worried sick but even if he was just one man, Athrun knew what a formidable foe he could be if allowed to go to Orb. Kira could delay his plan to save Orb by weeks and that was a risk he did not want to take.
"I know you have good intentions, Athrun. But you are not being very fair to Kira." Lacus regarded him with deeply disapproving eyes.
"I'm sorry. I trust Kira completely but you know how he will react to this. When the time is right, I'll tell him everything." Athrun ran a hand slowly down his face, feeling absolutely exasperated at the situation.
"When would be the right time? At the wedding?" Sarcasm was not something the former pop idol usually indulged in. She must be under more pressure from Kira than she had let on.
"Lacus, you know if there was any other way around this, I would have tried it. You've seen all the same reports that I have. This is for her own good!"
Her eyes softened slightly and a shadow of a smile played around her lips. "Are you sure it's just for Cagalli's benefit?"
"Yes, she won't like it, but she'll come to see that it's the best for Orb."
"I hope so, Athrun. I really hope so."
Athrun retreated to his personal office where he tuned in to the news on his transmission panel. He was unsurprised to be immediately greeted with a repeat broadcast of her speech regarding the ultimatum issued by the other Earth federations. Orb's predicament and the escalation of war on Earth were all the media could talk about recently.
"This is Chief Representative of Orb, Cagalli Yula Athha, releasing our official statement on the war between the four federations of the Atlantic, South Africa, East Asia and Eurasia."
Even though video, he could see the vague shadows under her eyes and the pallor of her skin. The war had no doubt taken its toll on her.
"As many of you may know, a week ago, the Atlantic Federation launched an attack on our islands of Ishigaki and Yaeyama. Three days ago, the Federation of Eurasia tried to invade our main civilian islands of Ryukyu and Miyako."
She paused and took a sharp inhalation of breath.
"Yesterday, the South African Federation attacked Onogoro Island, our military base. Despite our many attempts at diplomacy, these countries have repeatedly chosen to exert violence and force against us. We have said it before, and we will say it again – Orb is a neutral nation that only desires peace. We do not attack other countries but we will not allow ourselves to be attacked!"
Her eyes were golden, bright and fierce as she leaned forward in earnest. The fire had not burned itself out. He could see a shadow of her former self; foolishly brave, painfully direct but always, always inspiring.
"We are a small nation but our people are brave and we will protect our land to the very end. Orb will not bow down to bullies who seek to oppress other states. But we will extend our offer of peace one last time and hope that they will reconsider. Have we not learned anything from our previous conflicts?"
Cagalli looked directly into the camera, her gaze a silent entreaty and just like that, quite abruptly, the newsfeed cut into a commentary on Orb's response and the current emergency situation. Her speech, as usual, lacked eloquence and pomp because unlike most politicians, Cagalli generally detested reading from a prepared, rehearsed script. As his insider in Orb had said, she was no politician.
It had already been three days and he had yet to receive a reply on the PLANTs' alliance treaty draft. He smiled and shook his head, settling into his seat with a sigh. He had to give it to her – she was nothing if not stubborn.
Her sheer pigheadedness was one of the reasons why he had avoided her completely ever since he left Orb during the second Bloody Valentine War. It would have been utterly useless to try and convince her that it was even remotely possible to have a life outside of running a country.
Athrun wasn't sure he could convince himself on that but he'd be damned if he went back to being the bodyguard of the princess. Two years of watching her flounder in her insecurities and beset by the repulsive Seirans yet unable to do anything was more than enough. Alex Dino was a lowly bodyguard who did not have the power to prevent the second razing of Orb during the second war. But Chairman Athrun Zala of the PLANTs could and would prevent this third attack on Orb.
He knew that she saw herself as a failure after the second war and the ensuing three years had proven him right. If Representative Athha had simply been devoted to Orb before the war, after the war, she was now quite literally the face of her nation. She had used the substantial fortunes of the Athha family to rebuild her country. While he had Lacus as his diplomatic front, Yzak the military and Canaver for civil matters, Athha took it upon herself to do every single, damned thing.
Orb and its princess were inseparable. It was a simple equation; if he wanted the woman, he was just going to have to take the country with her.
And so he had done just that. All that was left to do was wait for her to succumb to the inevitable; sacrifice herself for her country like she always did and would always do. He'd like to think the Chairman of the PLANTs presented a better option this time around.
She would sign it. She would have to. Sign the alliance treaty and seal it with a marriage between the last remaining Princess of Orb and the Chairman of the PLANTs.
It was just a matter of time. He was in no hurry.
KEY: In Greek mythology, Charon is the ferryman of Hades who carries souls of the deceased across the river Styx.
Author's Notes: I had a long note in mind when writing this chapter; explaining how The Best Laid Plans is vastly different from A New Dawn and making up excuses for why A New Dawn has yet to be updated and I'm starting a new story etc. But now that I've gotten around to uploading this, I'm tired and still have loads of work to do for the remainder of the night, so I've gotten too lazy to write what I wanted to say. In short, this is kind of my apology for not being able to complete A New Dawn. Despite my best efforts, there are a lot of plot holes in A New Dawn that I'm unable to resolve to my satisfaction. The casual reader probably doesn't realize it but I do... and it bothers me a lot. This, however, is vastly different because each chapter has already been plotted out all the way to its end. So if you've enjoyed reading A New Dawn, I hope you'll follow me on this too.
Lastly, please R&R.
Special thanks to my beta readers Strata-Assassin (especially for coming up with the suggestion for naming the weapon CHARON!) and Quintilis.