HI fellow readers, writers and reviewers. This is the 2nd chapter in my story "Damned", and has taken a considerable amount of effort to finish, so I would very much appreciate a few more reviews! Some characters (so far Kaeda and Hisoka) are not mentioned in the original Gundam Seed or Gundam Seed Destiny, but are my original characters. I will try to make the time between updates shorter, but this will make the chapters also a little shorter.

Thank-you for your patience, and don't forget to review!

*DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM SEED OR ANY OF THE PRODUCTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE GUNDAM FRANCHISE

Lights:

Lights sparkled and flashed behind his eyelids. Sabers danced and the barrels of many a gun whirred, clicked and cooled. It was vivid, colourful torment. It changed, but took him nowhere: there was no end. He couldn't help but feel he was doing something terrible, that somehow, he could escape this, and protect. Everyone, anyone! He tossed and turned until finally he was pulled from his slumber by the unrelenting sunlight.

He looked around, his eyes closing and opening, blinking and trying to set the room horizontal. The room? I don't have time for this he grumbled. He swung his legs over the side of his bed, looking back at where he had been laying. Ha! Well that's amusing! He was staring at the clear outline of his body, painted perfectly in sweat and grime. He shook his head, the ghost of a smile pulling up the corner of his cracked and bloodied lips. This'll mean people! If I'm in a room like this... He stood, sucking in air, when the wound on his neck pulled tight and split, oozing blood. Reaching up to stem the blood with his hand, he came into contact with gauze. Okay, so they're Christians. This should be fun. He wobbled across the floor, an ancient fan in the corner cheering for his departure. He leaned on the splintered doorframe, looking down onto the face of the little boy from earlier.

"Kaeda!" he squealed, "Kaeda, it's Kira! He's awake!"

Still looking at the boy, he heard the footsteps of 'Kaeda' as she entered the room. His violet eyes dragged his attention up to the new comer. She stood broad and tall, almost as tall as Kira. She looked covered in dirt and the used sunlight of a deep tan. She possessed proportionate facial features, apart from her eyes, which were huge and very green. A light blush tainted her cheeks. Oh I definitely DO NOT have time for this, he thought and made a beeline for the door. Dragging his body as if it were extra baggage he was unnecessarily lugging along with him on his journey. Then he realized: I don't have a shirt. He looked back up at the girl.

"Sh..shehhhh", He licked his lips, swallowed dryly, "shirt please?"

She lowered her gaze, spun around and strode off. Kira's eyes slid away from where she had been, as his head fell forward and he lowered himself down the doorframe to sit on the floor. He shut his eyes and exhaled. He heard the scrape of cloth on ground, and looked up to see the little boy sitting in front of him.

"It's really you! The genuine Kira Yamato! Ace pilot of the Strike Freedom!" The boy wriggled closer, his eyes shining in excitement, "the rogue aboard the infamous Archangel! I knew you'd come!"

"Hey…yeah, I suppose you're right. We—urrgh!" Kira winced and clutched his stomach. It felt like demons were boiling and stewing in his gut. The colours began to flash again, wilder and brighter and he reached out, but all he could grab was a double-crescent gold hairclip as he fell into the torture of the colours.

When he awoke, he was back on the bed. Kaeda was sitting next to him, knitting something that looked remarkably like a tasteless, bland turtleneck. How has SHE managed to get me up onto this bed twice? I'm not exactly light… His head was clanging and ringing like a gong, and he couldn't settle the demons inside him for a time. He began to sit up. She let him be.

"We're going down to the markets today. All three of us." Kaeda stated without looking up. "We need some supplies and you need the walk."

He nodded wearily and pulled the shirt lain beside him over his head. Kira stared down at the floor, where his feet were dangling loosely. He curled and un-curled his toes, sending shadows flying through the dusty sunbeams caused by the rusted window set in the wall. He chuckled. Hehehe! I have functional toes at least! What am I without toes! I am much better off than I thought!

Barefoot and scruffily dressed in the baggy clothing of an ORB refugee, he staggered to the door. Looking out onto the makeshift street, he saw the women and children hurrying goods in baskets and boxes out down the road and around a bend. He strained to see their end destination, but he couldn't. He turned back into the house and began shuffling, stumbling around the room, attempting to apply normality to his stride. He caught at the wall, using it to stabilize himself. Suddenly he felt a warm little entity in his hand. The little boy, Hisoka, was holding tightly on to Kira's hand.

"Come on Yamato-san! I believe in you!" His big brown eyes shone with trust and faith. "You've got this, I know you do!"

A single tear began to form in Kira's eye, but he never let it fall.