Disclaimer: Gundam SEED belongs to Bandai Animation. All the Equatorial Union and the GAT-zero series mobile suits and United Nations personnel mentioned in this fic belong to me.
Fair warning: 1st, some parts of this fic are based on the manga version. 2nd, there's going to be some military terms used in this fic. Also, this fic will focus more on my cast, I'm assuming you already watched the show.
This is my first Gundam Seed fic, hope you'll like it.
Gundam Seed: Iron Brotherhood
Phase 01: The Peacekeepers
--
As the shuttle began
to dock into Heliopolis, Lt. Col. Antonio Le Saint Claire stares out
the window.
Outside he sees the Earth, the only planet in the
solar system blessed with the phenomenon called life. Out of nine
planets, it's the only one that has the elements to support it.
And yet this blessing may well also be its curse, Antonio thought sadly.
Gaia, the Earth, was scarred by countless centuries of wars. Wars started by man. Wars started sometimes by good reasons and reasonable causes, but most of the time it's started by greed, fear, hate and misunderstanding.
For so long there is man, there shall always be war. (-Albert Einstein)
Antonio ran his hand through his short black hair, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "My poor dear Gaia, what has become of thee?"
"What was that?" The young blonde teenage girl sitting next him asked.
He looked at her on the corner of his soft sky blue eyes. "It's nothing, just thinking out loud." He answered calmly. "You should get ready Cagalli, we'll be docking soon."
She nodded, donning a pair of heavy tint sunglasses.
Antonio then turned his attention to his partner and best friend, Major Michael Takahashi.
His eyes were closed, he leaned his slightly inclined backrest, wearing a pair of ear buds probably listening to either a Lacus Clyne song or some old school rock.
As if she was reading his mind, Cagalli starts shaking him. "Wake up lazy ass."
It took five minutes or so, but he eventually wakes up. "We're here... already...?" He yawned, taking the earpieces off.
"Yes." Cagalli replied. "Now rise and shine, you bum."
"Yeah, yeah." Michael mumbled, squinting as his emerald green eyes adjusted to the light. He runs his hand through his dark brown hair and scratches the back of his head.
After they had docked in, Michael said, "Well? What're we waiting for? Let's go."
--
After about half an hour of getting off the shuttle, retrieving their bags and going through security, they finally make it out into the colony.
Waiting for them was a soldier dressed in a dark green army fatigue and the UN peacekeeper's light blue beret. He had brown eyes and dark long hair that was held together with a ponytail.
He saluted upon approaching them, "Hope you had a good journey sir."
Michael nods, "It was fine, at ease Lt. Spear"
"How're things doing here?" Antonio asked
Spear shrugged. "Not much sir, aside from a few mix-ups with shipments, things are as calm as it can be.
The lieutenant then grinned, "By the way nice suit sir."
Antonio wore an expensive looking Armani brand suit and shirt. He flushed when Spear brought it up.
"Your salary must be pretty good." Spear added with a little envy in his voice.
He just laughed, "It's not what you think, sorry Danny."
He places a hand on Cagalli's shoulder, "She gave it to me as a gift on my birthday."
Cagalli blushes a little.
"I guess it pays to be an old friend of an Orb Noble family." Michael quipped.
"He earned it Mike," Cagalli glared at him.
Antonio rolled his eyes.
Here we go, he thought, expecting the two to start bickering again.
"Ahem," Lt. Daniel Spear cleared his throat. "We should be going to Morgenroete. Shall we?"
They all climbed aboard the jeep Daniel drove from the Morgenroete and went on their way.
"Thanks," Antonio whispered
"I did us both a favor." Daniel whispered back.
--
After ten minutes driving through the colony, they finally make it to their destination, Morgenroete Incorporated's factory in Heliopolis.
They drove to back, parking the jeep on its usual spot.
"Okay Cagalli," Antonio began. "Be back here as soon as you're done." He said with a stern tone. "If no one's here when you come back, just wait, okay?"
She frowns at him, "I'm not a kid anymore, Anton, so don't treat me like one."
"Just wanted to make sure your visit here's kept quiet," He takes his duffel bag and attaché' case from the back of the jeep. "I won't help your plans if some brownnoser recognizes you."
She sighs, "I know, I know, my father won't exactly be thrilled when he finds out what I've been doing behind his back."
"And," Michael added, lighting a cigarette. "Kisaka's going to get in a lot of trouble."
"You just had to bring that up?" Cagalli grumbled but she knows they knew better and she trusted them and their decisions.
Antonio received a call from Col. Ledonir Kisaka, an officer of the 21st airborne unit of the Orb nation's Defense forces two days ago. He quite literally begged him to watch over Cagalli Yula Athha for at least a couple of days. Apparently he was arranging something for the two of them. Antonio didn't know the details but apparently it involved Cagalli and him going to Tassil, his hometown in the African Community, A ZAFT supporting nation. He wasn't sure what they're planning but he knew any attempt to talk them out of it was pointless and out of the question.
"Cagalli," Antonio looks straight into her eyes. "I don't know what you're planning but I'm not going to stop you, but all I'm asking from you is to take a few cautious steps because you'll probably not have a second chance at whatever you're doing."
She sighed again, but this time she gave a tired smile. "You win. Alright I'll be careful I promise."
Antonio smiles "Good."
He looks at the corner of his eye at Michael, who was talking to Daniel.
"I never did thank you for this suit." He bent a little to kiss her on the cheek.
Cagalli blushed a little, "It's okay, like I say said, you earned it."
"Well thanks anyway." He gave her a hug, which she accepted it well.
"Now remember," He whispered to her ear. "You're a big girl now, so act like one."
Cagalli rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, not caring if anyone saw her. "I will."
--
Capt. Regina Alexis Dante stood up and salutes as she saw her superior officers.
"At ease," Antonio said. "How are the two monsters doing?"
"Surprisingly well actually," The faded brunette haired, lavender-eyed captain replied. "C'mon, Mrs. Kajiura will give you the details." She then smiled at her commander, "Nice suit by the way…"
She led them through a labyrinth of halls and corridors that were all too familiar to them. Le Saint Claire's unit Taskforce Bravo had been a member of the G-project for 5 months now. Testing two secret prototype mobile suits designated GAT-X013 and GAT-X014, the first two working prototypes of the "Zero" series.
Both were created under the contract with the United Nations and its permanent peace keeping force UNAAF, which was currently composed of volunteer troops from the Equatorial Union, the Kingdom of Scandinavia, the Orb Union and people from warring nations who chose to remain neutral.
Lt. Col. Le Saint Claire and his team are also of the peacekeepers. The top brass and the current secretary-general chose them to test and troubleshoot the two G-weapons and the new EU mobile suit, the Wyvern.
The group entered one many assembly wings in the facility. Inside, there were four mobile suits. Two of which were look exactly alike, these were the Mk109 Wyverns. They were colored dark blue on the torso, white on the head and the limbs, while the flying equipment and visible weapon systems were either grey or black. Their basic body design was similar to those of the M1 Astray frames except during flight mode, the legs are designed to fold into the torso to reduce drag and increase mobility and handling.
Both machines stood on opposite positions facing each other. These suits performed well during their test run on the Philippine Sea. The OS for these units was similar to what most EU and Scandinavian pilots are used to. They require highly trained pilots who were also trained in using the ZAFT OS.
It was a procedure that OMNI- Enforcer or commonly known as the Earth Alliance had a hard time to adapt. There weren't any retired or former ZAFT pilots on the OMNI-Enforcer supporting countries who would willingly train their troops. Not to mention their Blue Cosmos backers would never support such a move.
Aside from the high training standard, which was common for Equatorial and Scandinavian mobile suits, The EUMS-Mk109 Wyvern was well on its way as the EU's, Scandinavian Kingdom's and UN Peacekeepers' new close ground aerial support and space mobile suit.
"How're they handling Regina?" Antonio tilted his head toward one of the wyverns.
The former Eurasian GIGN operative gave him a wide grin, "Like a dream Sarge." She replied, using a part of his nickname 'Le Sarge.' He was called this because of his drill sergeant-like way of issuing orders on the field.
"Everything is just great, the stability, maneuverability and speed are great. And the targeting system and reaction speeds are way better than the Dragonfly."
The Mk104 type 4 Dragonfly had been the standard aerial and space mobile suit for 4 years in the 3 neutral nations, though it was functional and workable, it was never been popular among MS pilots who use the variation. Part of the problem is the MK104 is designed for land and sea combat. Even with its modifications for air and space flight, it just barely passes. Regina has a lot of respect for the Mk104 but the type 4 version just doesn't cut it.
Antonio chuckles, "Looks like we're gonna have to start converting type 4s into other variations."
"They're better off that way." A loud, Aussie-accented voice laughed boisterously
He turns around to find another man in his team, Sgt. 1st class Franklin Snow, an auburn haired, brown-eyed ex-marine from Queensland.
Frank salutes his officer, "Aye boss, Specialist Lawman and the other techies already taken care of them hardware problems on the G's, sir. They should handle better now."
"I sure hope so" Michael replied placing a hand on the GAT-X014. "It'd be a shame if these big boys end up being scrapped."
"We have no intention of letting that happen." Another voice answered, this time was a young lady's.
Antonio turns to the directions of the assembly wing entrance. There stood two more members of his team, Spc. Lucian Helmsley Lawman and 2nd Lt. Janus Llewelyn Aelia and the woman in charge of the GAT-Zero project, Miyuki Kajiura.
"We worked too damn hard to see them get scrapped." Lucian added the black South African thumbed at the X013. "Besides, these things are ready for the second test tomorrow."
They did pass the first one," Janus chimed in. "Considering they were full of bugs and glitches."
"And since they're both ironed out "She continued. "Tomorrow should be a cinch."
Frank suddenly points an accusing finger at her, "Who are you! And what did you do to our most pessimistic teammate!"
After about a second of blank stares, everybody bursts out with laughter as what Frank said sank in.
"Very funny Frank," Janus said with a rueful grin. "And I'm a realist."
Kajiura shook Antonio's hand, "Nice to see you again sir."
"Likewise," He gestured to the X013. "So… what do you think Mrs. Kajiura?"
"They'll pass," She said simply. "And even if they don't, they'll have to get through me before they'll even scrap them."
Antonio smiled he could tell the resemblance to her father, she had the same hardliner attitude.
"Well enough about that," She readjusts her glasses and pushes a lock of her hair behind her ear. "I believe you came to see our progress."
"Yes ma'am," the Lt. Colonel replied. "The budget boys down on earth are starting to get stingey. I got to show them something or else they'll pull the plug."
Kajiura shook her head. "Damn pencil pushers," She muttered. "The test tomorrow should shut them up."
"I still need to show them something to hold them off."
She snaps her fingers, "How about the test data? The fact they passed in such bad state… can that keep them quiet?"
"That'll do." Michael nodded.
"Then by all means," Antonio said. "Let's send them that."
"Follow me Lt. Colonel," Kajiura said. "They're in my office."
When the two left the assembly wing everyone resumed to what they were doing.
"Hey Lucian," Daniel began. "I'm going to the next wing to check on my Headhunter. I need someone to help me integrate the A2 upgrades into the OS."
Lucian shrugs, "Sure. Hey Janus, you coming?"
The young blonde haired, blue-eyed coordinator shook her head, "No, I'm going to adjust the OS on my wyvern, sorry."
He looked disappointed but shrugged "Whatever you say."
He then turned to Frank, "How 'bout you man?"
Frank shrugged, "Sure why not." He closes his tool kit. "Pretty much done what I can here anyway."
"I'm going out for a drink," Regina declared she gave a wave as she walked toward the exit. "'later guys."
"And I'll just go check my boy's OS." Michael climbed the stairs to the GAT-X014's cockpit.
With that, everybody parted ways.
--
Antonio and Miyuki didn't talk during the walk to her office. It was located in the executive branch of the complex.
Antonio whistled when he realized where they were.
"It's just temporary," Kajiura said. She apparently knew what he was thinking "After this is over, they'll send me back to Orb and back to my office next to the janitor's closet."
"I feel sorry for the janitor." Antonio quipped.
"Very funny."
They entered her office. It was spacious, furnished in her typical style. In from of the rosewood desk there was a pair of peach colored sofas facing each other with a teakwood coffee table. There were several potted flowers on a rack on one side.
Antonio smiled when he saw what was on her desk aside from the console and pictures of her family, the Agni, The Le Saint Claire family heirloom.
It was a short sword, an Islamic Kris. The blade was adorned intricately with designs of vines and flowers with a blue jewel embedded on the base of the blade, the handle grip was made of fine black leather and the sword guard was made of gold, it too had an intricate design.
"I see, they finally handed it down," He began "I'm happy for you Yuki."
She smiled and shook her head, "You deserved it more than me. The Agni shouldn't be with me Ton-ton." She used his old family nickname.
"There's a reason you're entrusted with it." He decided to finish their task at hand and changes the subject. "Anyway we should get that data."
Miyuki nods, "Right." She quickly taps in a few keys, which initiated a downloading and began transferring data. After a few minutes she pulls out a UMD and hands it to Antonio.
"That's everything, now let's–"
Just then, Regina barges into the office, she held another woman by the arm. She wore an orange mechanic's uniform. She looked distressed, apparently by Regina claw-like grip.
"Sorry for the intrusion sir," She began. "But I found this one sneaking about near our wing."
Antonio's face instantly hardened as he eyed the unknown woman.
"How the hell did make it pass the perimeter inspection?" He demanded, "Did the guards let you in?"
The lady mechanic didn't budge, her eyes shifted between the Lt. Colonel and Mrs. Kajiura.
Oh shit, was all Murrue Ramius thought. It was bad enough she was caught by a superior officer. But she had the misfortune of being caught by one who reports directly to one of the officers in charge. And it just happened she had the luck to be caught by one of the officers of Lt. Col. Antonio "Le Sarge" Le Saint Claire, the Spartan of waves
She winces as the captain held her arm even tighter. If she didn't loosen her grip soon, Murrue would swear her arm would fall off.
"I can't believe this" Antonio rubs his temple. "Somebody's going to the guard house tonight…"
Murrue swallowed hard, wondering what Le Sarge would do to her. She felt a chill up her spine, as he looked straight into her eyes. She felt as though they went right through her.
"Can't you at least tell me your name?" He asked coolly.
What the hell, She thought. He's going to find out anyway. "Lt. Murrue Ramius sir."
That took Antonio by surprise, "Murrue Ramius! Admiral Lewis Halberton's protégé?" He yelled, looking at her more intently. "You better not be pulling my leg!"
"No sir," she tried to keep a level gaze despite her fear. "It's true." She hands him her ID.
Antonio looks hard at the ID. After examining it hands it back and said "12-32-65 Murrue Ramius?"
Murrue looks at him blankly.
"12-32-65 Murrue Ramius?" he repeated.
Murrue then realized what he was saying. Admiral Halberton's code! How did he know that?"
She started deciphering the numbers in her head.
12-32-65- Murrue Ramius?
Are you really Murrue Ramius?
"17-24-67-78." She answered.
Yes I am sir.
"I see…" He said in a tone she didn't quite like. "Lt. Ramius don't tell me the OMNI-Enforcers are resorting to spying on us."
"No sir, it's not anything like that sir." How the hell am I getting out of this? "It's-"
"She snuck in for me," Kajiura answered. "Don't be so harsh on her."
Murrue's eyes widened, Yuki! What are you doing!
"What?" Antonio rapidly turned towards her, confused. "Do you know her?"
Kajiura nods, her tightly clasped together. "We were good friends back in high school."
Confused as Antonio was, Regina decided to take charge of the situation.
"Why is that Yuki?" She asked, letting her grip on Ramius loosen.
"Mama…?" a tiny voice said behind Antonio, he turns around to find Miyuki's two and a half year old daughter, Elle.
The little child rubbed her eyes holding her favorite stuffed teddy bear, Totoro, she was apparently asleep in the back room of the office. "Mama… what's go on?"
"Nothing dear," Miyuki answered gently. "I'm just talking with your uncle and his friends, go play in the back. I'll get anything you want when I'm done"
When Elle went back into the backroom, Miyuki manages to give a weak smile. "I guess I have some explaining to do."
Antonio simply nods, not saying anything.
"I guess you're aware I'm not allowed to leave the premises." Miyuki began, "After a few months into the project, I just couldn't stand leaving Elle home alone with a nanny anymore."
Antonio was perplexed, "Alone? Then why didn't just you ask Darren to watch over her?"
Miyuki smiles sadly, "Antonio…"
"He got killed during Bloody Valentine," Murrue answered for her.
Antonio turned to her "What? I thought he was in Germany during the time?"
Regina finally lets her go.
The brunette lieutenant shook her head, "It was a cover story, he was in Junius 7 during the time. He was supposed to have there as a diplomat for another attempt at ending this war peacefully, sir."
As the word sank in, Antonio suddenly felt angry, "Why wasn't she informed earlier."
"Because it was top secret," Ramius felt equally angry about it. "OMNI intelligence kept it under wraps until 4 months ago"
"One night, I snuck out to get some food for Elle," Miyuki continued. "That's when I met Murrue and she found what I was doing. That's when she started sneaking in here to keep Elle company when I was busy in the assembly wing."
There was an awkward silence in the room.
"Why didn't you just tell me, Miyuki?" Antonio finally asked. "I'm your closest cousin aren't I?"
"I'm sorry…" Miyuki looked done the floor. "I saw you guys were in so much pressure I didn't want to involve you in more problems."
"Yuki…" Regina sighed, "I'll be outside if you need me sir."
"No" he answered with clear voice. "Stay where you are captain."
He looked at Miyuki as sternly as his conscience would allow him. "You committed a serious breach in security, considering that you're in a high security project, I thought you'd knew better. I'm sorry Yuki, but you'll have to come with me."
Miyuki simply nodded, "I understand."
He turns to Murrue and Regina, "Lt. Ramius, you're free to go. Capt. Dante please look over Elle while we're gone."
Both stared at him in disbelief.
"You're seriously taking her in, sir…?" Ramius was in complete shock.
Even Regina, who was usually by the book couldn't believe how cold her commander was acting. "Sir, please reconsider… She has a very valid reason-"
Antonio silences her with a cold glare, "Are you questioning my decision Captain?"
She couldn't believe what she hearing but she didn't answer and backed down.
"How can you be so cold," Murrue asked, she had recovered from her shock, she clearly wasn't happy about what was happening.
Antonio looks back with a pained impression in his face, "It's not like happy about this Lieutenant."
"Then why are you doing it?"
"Because I have no choice."
Murrue shook her head in disbelief, "Are the regulations that God damn important to you?"
"Sempai," Miyuki pleaded. "Its okay, I–"
"No it's NOT okay!" She snapped. Her fear of the Lt. Colonel was gone; it was replaced by anger and outrage.
"Lieutenant, please don't get involved." Antonio kept his composure.
She glared at him, "I'm already involved."
"The penalties of her offenses as a civilian aren't as severe as–"
"That's beside the point!" Murrue planted herself firmly in front of him. "You're her family, you should've been the one defending her!"
Antonio expression hardened, "What I'm supposed to do? Act like this never happened? I don't have the luxury of overlooking protocol like you or Admiral Halberton for that matter."
Murrue's eyes turned into little slits, "How dare you…"
Antonio notices her clenched fists "What are you going to do? Hit me? Go ahead, I'll make sure you'll–"
Murrue Ramius didn't bother waiting for him to finish. She gave a good, clean, hard right hook to the jaw. The higher officer reeled back and fell down.
"Murrue-sempai!" Miyuki stares in shock, "What are you–?"
"It's okay," Murrue manages to smile. "I'm fine."
Regina simply stood there, not knowing what the hell to do.
Antonio groaned in pain as he sat up.
"Ton-ton…" Miyuki calls as goes to him as continues to glare at him.
"If you're going to court-martial Yuki then you're going to have court-martial me too." She manages to regain her composure but that didn't stop her from being defiant. "And don't you EVER speak ill of the Admiral again and I don't care if I'll be a lieutenant for the rest of my entire career because that felt good!"
That's when she realized that Antonio was smiling, "What the hell is so damn funny?"
Antonio couldn't take it anymore, he let's go and bursts out laughing.
It a few moments, but Regina and Miyuki sighed when they realized why was Antonio acting so cold.
Murrue however thought she had just knocked a superior officer's sanity out of him.
After his laughter subsides, he stands up, rubbing his jaw. Damn, that was a good hit.
The first thing he did was smiled at Yuki, "See Yuki? You definitely deserve the Agni."
"Ton-ton…" She shook her head, "I can't believe you went that far…"
He then turns his attention to Regina, "Captain, can you get us something to eat?"
Regina shook her head and grinned, "Whatever sir."
"And get some ice and a first aid kit." Miyuki added, seeing the bruise starting to swell.
"Right."
The brunette captain left as a wildered Lt. Murrue Ramius tried in vain to make sense of it all, "Can somebody please tell me what's going on?"
Antonio simply smiles, "First of all that was one hell of a shot and I'm sorry about that remark about ol' Halberton."
"If you were a man, I would have said you had brass balls." He shook his head and pats her shoulder, "You're one gutsy woman, I can tell you that."
"Uh thanks… I think..."
"And finally thank you for watching over my niece. I appreciate it."
"You're… welcome..." Murrue was in a complete loss of words
"Congratulations Murrue," Miyuki smiled weakly. "You just passed the test of the Spartan of waves."
"Mama…? What's all that noise?"
--
Murrue sat her bed, going over what had happened a few hours ago.
The young Lieutenant didn't know what to expect when she was escorted to Yuki's office to meet Lt. Col. Le Saint Claire. But the person she expected to find was a hardened and embittered old mustang officer, she couldn't have more wrong.
He was still a mustang officer, a known radical thinker during his years as an Atlantic Federation enlisted man and then as an officer in his own nation, the Equatorial Union. And despite his rank, chose to remain on field duty
But he wasn't the bitter old man she though he was. In fact, he was much younger than she anticipated, along with being very calm and rather gentle.
From what Yuki explained, he acted the way he did because he wanted to test them both. They both passed when they both stood up for each other. And he also wanted to prove to Yuki that she deserved the Agni, the sword Murrue had seen numerous times on Yuki's desk. It was supposed to be given to the bravest of the family.
"The Agni was given to my great grand father by a rebel leader after his group had surrendered in 21ce." Yuki explained to her that afternoon. "He chose to hold the peace talks with the rebel group on their home territory despite that risk of being taken hostage. One of the leaders, Khalid Mustafa was so impressed by this that he had a smith fashion this sword for him. Khalid gave it as a symbol of friendship, respect and as a reminder of his bravery."
Murrue could understand why Yuki was given such an honor. Despite her timid nature, Yuki was much of a radical as her cousin was. Murrue had first hand experience of her during their high school days. She took calculated risks and stood up for her loved ones and belief. She faced everything without hesitation no matter how unpleasant the outcome. It was a trait Murrue admired her old best friend and Kohai for.
And today, Murrue made a new friend. She pulls out the passkey from her pocket, the Lt. Colonel had given her his spare executive passkey, and it would open any door in the facility even if they were locked down.
She refused it at first but eventually accepted because she had to admit; sneaking through three levels of guards was turning into a bothersome pain.
Murrue grinned as she remembered what he said as he left them in Yuki's office
"Care for a couple of drinks tonight?" And he gave her a quick wink.
That line alone was very scandalous.
She only knew him for an hour and she already liked him, as a friend anyway. She looks as her watch, 8:23pm; her shift was over ten minutes ago.
"Better get changed," Murrue told herself.
She doubted that he was trying to be romantic with her, he was being too direct to the point for that and he didn't strike her as man who settled for one-night stands and quickie relationships. And he did assure her it wasn't date. They're just going to go downtown and have a few drinks with Yuki and his team.
It was an opportunity for her to catch up with Yuki, since they had been out of touch for sometime now and it was a chance for her to get to know the Lt. Colonel.
--
Maj. Michael Takahashi had been in the cockpit of the GAT-X014 for several hours now.
He decided earlier to completely rewrite the whole MOS. It wasn't as hard to do as some people think. Sure, it's hard at first, but you eventually got used to it.
Michael had been raised along side coordinators; he never really understood why there was so much hate toward them. They live like us, talk like us, feel and love like us. They laugh and cry like the best and worst of us. No matter how you look at it, they're still human just as much as any natural.
He heard footsteps, was someone climbing the stairs to the cockpit. He raised his head to find Regina, holding on to the sides of the cockpit's door frame. "How's it going Mike?" She asked
"Almost done," he resumed typing. "Gina, why do some people hate coordinators so much?"
This was a typical question Regina got from Michael when they were alone together, usually involving politics or philosophy, they sometimes chat for hours.
She shrugged, leaning against the frame, "'Dunno, maybe because they're afraid of them."
"Maybe," Michael turns off the MS terminal. "Or maybe they felt inferior and they resented."
Regina nods, looking out toward the GAT-013. "Envy and pride have their ways of getting into even the most virtuous men."
"And yet that maybe all it really needs to get us all into this damn mess of a world war." Michael murmurs.
We should save this for another time." She gives him a tired smile, "I want to get that drink."
Michael grins, "Right."
--
"Okay," Daniel runs the MOS. "I'll test her out now."
"Roger," Both Lucian and Franklin backed away.
The Mk105 Headhunter, a mobile suit made specifically for snipers. It bore some features of the Mk104 like the all-terrain spider and hoverdyne system which makes it able to operate in almost any terrain with high maneuverability.
Its head was considerably thin looking at it up front. You had the impression it was wearing a roman legionnaires' helmet with a long metal fin sticking out on the forehead. Its eyes glowed of blue as it comes to life. Its upper body resembled that of an Astray though slightly thinner, mostly because designers needed to make room for a larger battery pack, this also meant sacrificing space for flying equipment which limits the Mk105 to vernier jumps when on earth.
However, these modifications make the EUMS-Mk105 a highly effective long range attack and support unit. The reduced weight made it so much quicker in movement, conversion and reaction speed, It also consumed the least amount of energy in a set time which helped it attain and hold the record the longest mobile suit engagement w/o charging battery packs, which was 6 days.
Daniel's Headhunter was colored black with yellow marks to help break its general outline.
Next to it were two versions of its predecessor, the Mk104 type 1 Scorpion and Type 2 Firefly. The Mk104, officially named Legionnaire has been the standard mobile suit for the Equatorial Union and UN forces. Designed for all-terrain and amphibious combat, it was ideal for the EU's scattered islands. Its spider and hoverdyne, like the Mk105, make it highly mobile and maneuverable. This system makes the MK104 and MK105 to work anywhere without the need of major modifications to suit the terrain. The upper body was like those of a ginn, except the arms were thinner and had smaller shoulder plating. Its head is similar to the Mk105 except it's wider and does not have the fin. The scorpion has several variations; the standard type 1 scorpion; the type 2 firefly, made for long range artillery support; the type 3 heavy scorpion, basically a heavy armored version of the type 1 and the type 4 Dragonfly, the aerial version.
Daniel upgraded his unit w/ A2 capabilities, which integrated the Wyvern's new LR targeting system and a new technology called mirage colloid. He hasn't seen it in action yet, both the GAT-X013 and X014 had it but neither worked during the first sea trials.
He starts with the targeting systems, "Hey Frank, toss a wrench."
"Here we go..." Frank and Lucian ducked behind a large metal crate, and then Frank lets the wrench fly.
A single 57mm. CIWS round hits it, splitting it into two. The round ricochets to the ceiling.
Daniel smiled, the targeting reticule locked on within two seconds, a second less than the old system.
He continues on by testing the new software and hardware that operate the mobile suit's various systems, eventually all that was left was the mirage colloid.
"Let's see how effective this cloaking device is." Frank looks through a thermal scope, while Lucian wore the motion detection infantry gear.
"Activating mirage colloid," Daniel's cockpit lights dimmed slightly, his mobile suit gradually disappears from plain site. "How is it guys?"
Frank whistled, "You're not showing on thermal."
"Ditto with the MD," Lucian added.
"What about radar?" Daniel keeps his eye on the battery pack gauges.
"Not a thing." Lucian shook his head, "This is incredible."
"How's the energy consumption?" Frank asked.
"Not too bad," He answered. "The one-oh-five can last a day with it on."
"So can we call it a night?" Lucian closes his laptop.
"Might as well," Daniel opens the cockpit. "We'll finish things up in the morning."
"You guys go ahead," Lucian heads to the exit. "I'll just take care of a few things at my bunk."
"Sure Luke, we'll meet you there."
--
Miyuki quietly leaves her office so's not to disturb her daughter.
She suddenly felt as though someone was watching her.
A loud bark makes her yelp in fright, the brunette haired woman turns around to find Rhiannon, Daniel's wolf.
She smiles ruefully, bending down to pet him. "You scared me darn you."
He responds by licking her hand and then panting.
"Come on boy," Miyuki stood up. "Let's go find Danny and the others."
She noticed her gold chain was hanging out of her shirt; attached to it was her wedding ring and medal.
A pang of pain bit into her heart, it had been a while since she learned what happened to Darren, her husband and first love, but it still struck her hard. He was gone, killed in Junius Seven during Bloody Valentine.
Darren Kajiura, a young and somewhat naïve politician who dreamed of a world without war. He also dreamed of equality and peace between naturals and coordinators.
A member of the Atlantic Federation's house of congress, Darren constantly pushed for laws that protected coordinators and their rights despite all the protests and threats.
Miyuki held the ring with both hands against her heart, as her sorrow consumed her.
She then felt something brush against her leg, she looks down, it was Rhiannon. He whimpered softly, as though he was trying to comfort her. His amber colored eyes looked into her blues ones.
Miyuki smiles, wiping her tears; she places a hand over his head.
"Thanks boy," She said. "I appreciate it."
She locked her office and leaves as Rhiannon tails her.
Miyuki tucks the chain into her shirt. But before doing so, she looks at the medal; The Sagittarius Crest, the highest military honor of the Zodiac Alliance Freedom Treaty after the Order of Nebula. It was another reminder of her past, one that was more she was ashamed of; A reminder of her final military action as a Zaft officer.
Darren, forgive me for what I have done.
--
"Hey Luke," Regina said, seeing him toward where she and Mike came. "Where you going?"
"Looking for Janus," he replies. "She isn't in her room, "'figured she's still in her MS."
"Regina looks at Michael who shrugs. "Don't look at me, I was busy with mine."
As Lucian walked away, Regina grabs Michael by the arm. "C'mon."
"Hey Llewellyn," Luke yelled as climbed up the stairs. "You in there?"
He looks inside and enters the cockpit, Luke smiles at what he finds.
Llewelyn had fallen asleep, her head slumped to one side, her face calm and serene, and free from all the hassles and pressures they've been put through for the past few months.
He quickly checks her work and saves it, then turns the terminal off.
Luke gently carries her out of the cockpit and slowly walks down the stairs.
Both Regina and Michael grin as they watch Luke head to the living quarters with Janus in his arms.
"Close couple don't you think?" Regina comment as they peered from a corner.
"Not quite," Michael answers "They're working on it though."
He taps her on the shoulder, "Let's leave 'em alone. For now at least,
Regina, somewhat reluctantly nods, "It'd be nice if they make it work though."
"Yeah," Michael smiles
In Janus' room, Luke gently laid her on her bed. He takes off her combat boots and her heavy fatigue shirt.
Luke sank onto a chair next to the bed and sighs. He looked at Janus for a while and eventually he stands up.
"Later Wynn."
As he's about to leave, Janus answered. "Thanks Luke."
He looks over his shoulder to find her looking at him.
Her head lay sideward on the pillow, she gave a tired smile. "Sorry I made you carry me."
Luke grinned. "It's alright," the young black South African gives a wink. "It's my pleasure."
She blushed, "G' night Luke."
"'Night LT," Luke switches the light off and leaves.
Janus looks up the ceiling, crossing her arms as she held her shoulders.
His touch felt nice.
She smiled as she closed her eyes and went to sleep.
--
"You sure you don't want to come?" Antonio leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.
He was in the hotel he, Michael and Cagalli were staying. But this wasn't their room; it belonged to another officer in the G-project.
The short black haired woman who rented it shook her head with an apologetic look. "Sorry Anton, I know you were looking forward for this."
Antonio was clearly disappointed; he shrugs and lets out a sigh. "Forget it. It's okay I understand."
She tries to lift his spirits, "How about tomorrow? In lunch, it'll be my treat."
Though still a little glum he manages to smile. "Your treat eh?"
She raised her hand as she would taking an oath. "I promise, cross my heart."
Antonio laughs loudly; he then gives her a slightly evil grin. "I get to pick the place."
She winced, "Just as long it's not expensive."
He chuckled, "It won't, don't worry."
Antonio tilted his head toward her desk, on top of which was her lap top. "I can always help you out with that."
She smiled, "Nice try but no, I'm working with classified information."
Antonio groans and finally decides to leave, "I guess I'll have to go now then.' later Natarle."
"Sorry about this," Natarle Badgiruel gave him a quick peck on his cheek as he puts on his leather bomber jacket.
"Just don't work yourself too hard," Antonio also kisses her on the cheek. "You're a Badgiruel but you're still human."
"I will," She leans against his body. She slips her arms around his waist, Antonio does the same. Her violet eyes looked into his blue eyes.
Then their lips met.
He left without either of them speaking another word.
--Cagalli peeps through the crack of the door before cautiously sneaks out of her room.
"And where do you think you're going?"
She cringes as she heard the familiar voice; she turns around to find Antonio leaning against the wall next to the hinges of the door. His arms were crossed as he stared straight at her.
The young Athha could feel a knot forming in her stomach, wondering what she was going to do. Or say.
"I … I just wanted to go out for a walk." She replied, looking away.
"Uh huh, it's pretty late to do that kind of thing, Heliopolis may not be high on crime but it's still a little risky to go out at night."
"Anton!" Cagalli scowled at him, "Stop treating me like a kid!"
"Then stop acting like a kid." His voice was calm but Antonio's face was stern. "One of these days you're going to get yourself into something not even I can bail you out."
Cagalli didn't argue, she was in no position to and because he was right.
He, Michael and Col. Kisaka had helped get away with so many things she had done. Some of which she herself would agree was stupid.
Antonio pushes himself off the wall and walks pass her. He looks over his shoulder, "Why are you doing this anyway?"
"I have to find out if the rumors are true," she replies without hesitation.
"Maybe they're just that, rumors," He thrusts his hands into his pockets.
"Even if they are, I have to make sure."
"Hmph," Antonio smirked. "You're stubborn as usual."
Cagalli turns around, "Why is your team here anyway?"
He shrugs sheepishly, "The wyverns and the Zero project what else? Those things are a joint project with the UN and Neutral nations after all."
Antonio then looks up the ceiling, "Cagalli, talk to this professor in Morgenroete." He hands her a piece of paper.
She reads it then looks at him. "Is he–?"
"Yeah, he is." Antonio begins to walk to the elevator. "I'll tell him about you in the morning, you'll get what you need if you talk to him. So don't go sneaking into the facility. Now go to sleep Cagalli-chan. I'll take care of the rest."
Cagalli watched as the elevator doors closed, a bit confused by Antonio's actions. He was risking his career and a hefty jail term.
He always has been a good friend, "Anton…"
--
Antonio lights a cigarette as he leaves the hotel. He smiled as thoughts of Cagalli and Natarle ran through his mind.
He met Cagalli back in the Eurasian-Pacific war, through her father Uzumi Nara Athha just before the war's final major battle in Kaohsiung. Ever since then he was to her sort of a close uncle. He had personally trained her in marksmanship and wilderness survival.
Natarle entered his life just a year ago. They were introduced after she broke up with his young brother. She was incredibly dutiful and loyal even for his standards and she was a bit of a deadbeat in his point of view. She in the other hand didn't quite like his at times laid back approach when it came to protocol and not to mention he was thirty-two, eight years older than she was. But somehow they found something in each other to stay together. Natarle sparked a flame inside him, one he thought was long dead.
The embers of the cigarette gave a pale orange glow as he walked through the dimly lit street.
Both Cagalli and Natarle were in a way Antonio had used to fill in a void in his life. One that been with him for the last eleven years, ever since he lost her and their children.
As he walked through the darkness, he heard shots of a rifle, then the screams of people panicking. Antonio flicks his cigarette at a nearby storm drain and runs toward the source. He pulls out a .44 caliber revolver.
When he reached the place where the havoc was, he hides behind the corner of a building. He inched his head to the corner to see what was happening. The shooter was an Asian male, probably in his teens; he was firing a Eurasian MAR 42 assault rifle on semiautomatic with what looked like a 10 power Albertan scope at a small café in the middle of the block from a building across the street. There were two teenage girls down on the ground, Antonio couldn't tell whether they were dead or just fugazi. People were running everywhere to out of the line of fire.
Antonio stands out on the corner and lines up the sights, without hesitation, he pulls the trigger.
The gun's discharge was echoes loudly through the street. The shooter screams in agony taking the bullet in his shoulder, his rifle fell onto the street below.
Antonio hears screeching tires, he turns around to see a black car careering down the street. Knowing what was coming, he dives behind a parked car as they drove by and shot at him. He laid flat on the ground, covering his head.
Through all the gunfire and shattering glass he could just make out the words they were shouting, "For the preservation of our pure and blue world!"
Antonio gritted his teeth,
Blue Cosmos!
His left eye changes, the iris' blue color turns into blood red, the pupil turns into a thin slit like that of a snake.
He pushes himself up onto a crouch position and the aims at the car, "Preserve this!"
One shot ricochet hits the rear left tire, the other ricochets off a wall and blows out the front right tire, making it spin out.
At the same time, an army jeep pulls up in front of it, it was ridden by Michael, Regina and Luke. Michael and Regina had their 9mm. SIG Sauer sidearms drawn, while Luke held a 9mm. H&K MP5/12 submachine gun.
Two of the teens aim their guns at them but were quickly incapacitated when Michael throws a knife at his hand, at the same time Regina shoots the other on the leg.
Luke quickly runs behind the other two, "Drop 'em!"
Both surrendered quickly.
On top of another roof top, another sniper takes aim at Michael. He was about to pull the trigger, "I got you-"
A shot rang out.
Michael ducks down and yells, "Who was that?"
"That was Daniel," Frank replied he ran toward them, pointing to the building. "There was another sniper over there,"
Another car screeches through the street, carrying another carload of shooters.
"Christ," Antonio shoots the tires out of that one too. Two teens got out and hid behind the car and started to shoot at them.
Michael scowled, "They're coming out of the woodwork!"
"Look out!" Frank shoots at one who was about to throw a grenade, the teen falls.
"Everybody get down!" Antonio screamed as he dove back behind the car he used for cover. Mike and Regina manage to pull down the young men closest to them. Luke jumps on the other two, knocking them both down.
The blast that followed shook the whole block. As the dust settled, woman screamed when she realized a part of a palm and two fingers landed next to her. Moans of pain could be heard from the wreckage of the second car.
After a few minutes, EMT's and colony police arrived. One of the two girls was paralyzed from a bullet that struck her spinal column. The other had a severed artery and punctured lung. Both were in critical condition but they'll survive.
From what the police gathered, the café was attacked because a young coordinator worked there.
A typical racist attack, Antonio shook his head. All this for one coordinator…
"Hey boss," Luke called out.
Antonio turned to him, "Hmm?"
"I did a little checking on our bangers, turns out they're related to some Blue Cosmos goon in the Orb administrative."
Mike raised an eyebrow, "Well that's stupid. You mean tell me the left a paper trail linking them to these wannabe gangsters?"
"They probably thought their boys in the PD would let them go," Regina commented.
"Good job Luke," Antonio lit another cigarette. "Forward that to the Interpol office in Orb."
"You got it boss."
"There's not anything we can do about this anymore," Antonio then walks away. "See you guys later."
"Hey Ant," Michael called out. "I thought you're heading downtown too?"
"I need to do something first, later."
Michael shrugged, "If you say so, 'later then."
--
"You're late," Murrue looked at Antonio disapprovingly.
"Sorry, something came up."
"Pfft," She pouted. "That's what you all say, men."
Antonio rolled his eyes.
Murrue at looks at what he was wearing, "What?" She looked slightly disappointed, "Where's that nice suit of yours sir?"
Antonio wore a blue shirt, a pair of old jeans and his leather bomber jacket.
He gives her a raised eyebrow and a rueful grin. "Ha, ha, Very funny."
"And stop the formalities," He continued. "Right now, I'm just Antonio."
She nods, "And I'm just Murrue."
They walked together, getting past the gate to the main road. Antonio hailed a cab and they both got in.
"Lieute- I mean Antonio," Murrue began as the cab went to their destination. "Can I ask a question?"
"Sure, what?"
"How did you know the Admiral's code?"
Antonio shifts his eyes toward the outside, "I served under him for a while, back when I was in the Atlantic Federation Army."
"I see," Murrue decide to dig a little into his past. "How long was that?"
He shrugs sheepishly, "Four years, He took me in when I was 22 because I was the top cadet of the year and nominated by several people to West point."
"West point… It must have been tough to get the nomination as a foreigner."
He shook his head, "Not exactly. My dad had friends in the Senate and I was already a NCO with four years in the field."
"Oh," Murrue chuckled. "I forgot I was talking to a Le Saint Claire."
"Well, being one has its perks," He grins. "I learned a lot when I was with him. Even though I was just a pilot, he took me under his wing."
"What about you Murrue?" He asked, "How did you end up with Halberton?"
"He took in as soon as I graduated from Annapolis."
Antonio whistles, "You must've stood out pretty well."
"Well kind of…" Murrue blushed, looking down at the floor. "I was kind of the instructors' pet back then."
"I was probably my grades," She quickly added, talking to him, a war hero, made her feel like an idiot.
Antonio Le Saint Claire, the Spartan of waves, one of the Spartan Immortals, the four leaders of the Spartan Guard. It was a Special Forces unit that fought in Eurasian-Pacific war in late 68CE.
A war that involved the Eurasian Federation and the Far East Asian Republic against the Equatorial Union, the kingdom of Scandinavia, Oceanic Union and partially the United Emirates of Orb with the Atlantic Federation and Zaft supporting them with military aid, volunteer troops and advisors. It all started with a territorial dispute between The EU and Far East Asia, after some brief skirmishes, the other countries got involved.
Antonio was known in the war for a series of successful raids of coastal bases and the invasion of Kaohsiung which forced the Eurasians and the East Asians to call for peace talks with terms that gave the island of Hainan Dao and the region of Afghanistan to the Equatorials and huge reparation payments to the EU and its allies.
Antonio was also known for his excellent strategic and tactical use of mobilesuit units in a time when they were still in their trial phase in ZAFT, EU, Orb and Scandinavia as military units.
His family was also well known, the Le Saint Claire's were an influential military family in the EU.
"How did you join the Naval Academy?" Antonio asked.
"Nomination."
"By who?"
Murrue didn't answer.
"C'mon Murrue," Antonio said. "Don't be shy, if you want to know, I was nominated by 'Wild Bill' Graham."
"Murrue blinked with surprise, "The pacifist senator 'Wild Bill' Graham?"
"Yeah," Antonio chuckled. "Weird eh? Now c'mon, who recommended you? I was someone pretty high wasn't it?"
"You can say that…" Murrue was clearly embarrassed. "It was…"
"What!" It was Antonio's turn to be surprised. "The President?" he exclaims.
"My father was an old college buddy of his," She explained. "He owned him a favor."
Antonio simply looked at her, "That must've been one heckuva favor."
--
"How the mighty have fallen!" Michael raised his glass as Murrue and Antonio approached the cluster of tables he, Yuki and the rest of the team occupied.
"Three cheers for Lieutenant Murrue Ramius!" Regina raised her glass as well as did everyone else, all laughed and cheered.
Antonio rolls his eyes, Murrue places a hand over her lips to suppress a giggle.
"Nice friends," she commented.
"Yeah," he grins, shaking his head.
Murrue wasn't surprised to find Miyuki in the group. "Ara Miyuki-chan," grinned. "The guards must really be slacking off."
Miyuki smirked, "I suppose." She wasn't wearing her glasses and she wore a rather suggestive black dress. Unless you knew her, you'd never suspect her as the woman in charge of the assembly the UN occupied.
Murrue quickly became acquainted with everybody. It was a bit intimidating at first, the members of Antonio's team were just as well-known as he was.
Michael Takahashi of Orb, the Spartan of Hell, another Spartan Immortal. He was known for his campaign in the Afghan region of Eurasia.
Regina Alexis Dante of Eurasia, the Winged Fury, a pilot who was said to be undefeated in air and space flight combat during Eurasia-Pacific war.
Daniel Spear of the Atlantic Federation, the Stone Sentinel, An elite army sniper with more than 200 confirmed kills and counting.
Franklin Snow of Oceania, the Onager, a former marine combat engineer who's good at explosives and is a devastating master artilleryman.
Lucian Helmsley Lawman of South Africa, the Puppet Master, a master hacker and technician who once single handedly crashed the Atlantic Federation's stock market for a South African Union extremist group 4 years ago.
And here she was, having a drink with them, war heroes with distinguished and dangerous reputations. And yet they were so normal, if you didn't know who they were, you would probably pass them in the crowd without a second thought.
"Hey Ramius," Frank filled a glass with a clear liquid. "Try this."
Murrue took a good gulp, squinted then smiled. "Wow," She shook her head as she exhaled loudly. "What was that?"
He grinned, "Russian Vodka."
Antonio too grins, "Too much for ya?"
She grins back, "Not too bad."
Antonio chuckles, "That's the spirit."
This was going to be an interesting night after all, Antonio thought. Even if Natarle's not here.
--
Outside the colony, a few kilometers away,
The Nazca-class 'Ursa Major' and two Laurasia-class ships 'Armstrong' and 'Gagarin' waits for the Nazca class, 'Vesalius' and the Laurasia-class, 'Gamow.'
The captain of Ursa Major was Douglas Marshall, a highly decorated veteran of the Eurasian-Pacific war, a man who once called Junius Seven home. He had no hate for the Naturals in general, his parents after all were Naturals.
His anger was directed at the Earth Alliance military. He would follow the Radical faction to a degree. Attacking every military target without hesitation.
But then again, Heliopolis wasn't a military target.
He wasn't happy when he found out that his ship was ordered to take part in the operation. But what really set him off was that the one who gave the order was Rau Le Creuset. He never really trusted him, there was something about him he didn't like. During the previous war, he learned to trust him instincts.
And from his experience they were rarely wrong.
Inside the Ursa Major's hangar, Visch Donahue, also known as the "Thunderclap of the Wilderness" or the "Wild Thunder" sat inside his customized Cgue. It was painted black on the upper torso, the upper arms and legs, and the hands and feet, the rest of the body was colored red. His personal coat of arms, a skull with an eye patch on the right eye -the same eye he lost during the Eurasia-Pacific war- and two bolts of lightning was painted on the right shoulder.
Visch reviewed the orders given by Le Creuset earlier.
"So… the Alliance's been making some of their suits eh?" He smiled to himself, "This just might be interesting."
--
Several
kilometers from the Zaft taskforce and Heliopolis,
The UN carrier fleet assigned to transport the G-Zero mobilesuits slowly but steadily advances towards their destination. Inside the flagship, Agamemnon class 'Agares', Mstr. Sgt. Jethro Lance Mills, the oldest member of Taskforce Bravo, did not like the events unfolding.
"Sgt. Mills," Capt. Anya Samsonov inquired. "Do you think they're after the Zero units?"
Jethro's blue eyes turned to the direction of the captain, "Right now I can't say for sure skipper, but there's an alternative."
He taps the several keys on the terminal he occupied, a diagram appears on the overhead screen.
"I guess you're aware of the –ahem– secret deal between the OMNI boys and Morgenroete," The 58 year old former CIA agent asked.
The brunette haired captain's brown eyes narrowed as she nods. "The firm agreed to create five GAT-X mobilesuits and a new type of carrier for the Alliance."
"Well," Jethro shows her pictures of the five G-units and the new ship called the 'Archangel.' "They've just been completed four days ago."
"Do you think that's what they're after?"
"It's most likely," He answered. "The project wasn't as secure as ours or the Astray project. In any case, we better hurry."
The 28 year old captain nods, "I know, but we keep our presence unknown."
He nods back, at the rate they were going, they should make it with in eight hours. But they only have six mobile suits and twenty-four mobile armors. Two Nazca-classes were detected meaning there was at least twelve hostile mobilesuits. They needed surprise on their side.
They may have the edge with ship numbers and ship weapons' strength; the Agares carrier group was made eight ships; the Agamemnon-class, Agares; Nelson classes, Tiberius, Caligula and Hadrian and Drake-classes, Basilisk, Avenger, Butte and Suc-Bangblow. Most were fitted with linear catapults and the weapons fitted in these ships were much powerful than their Earth Alliance counterparts or what Zaft fits on its ships. But then again mobilesuits were excellent ship killers.
Though he was a risk taker, Jethro understood that a low profile was the best option right now. He just hopes Antonio, the Bravo team and UN-Heliopolis defense force can hold out.
--
A/N: From here on in, I'll start following Seed's story line. Flames and normal Reviews are welcome, please review, and tell me what you think of this story. And if it's something like someone else's stuff, I had no Idea when I did that and sorry. Anyhow, please read and review letting me know what you guys think of my first strike here on G. Seed.
--
Glossary:
Fugazi – Fucked up/ screwed up
Mustang officer – An officer promoted from the ranks of enlisted men.
