Disclaimer: still don't own Gundam Seed Destiny or any other elements from other material.
Lunamaria tried to hide her nervousness as she walked into the conference room with Athrun at her side.
Dressed in formal whites than her old ZAFT elite pilot uniform, she felt odd and out of place. When she was first presented with the uniform, Lunamaria was surprised on how comfortable the clothing was. The skirt was certainly longer than what she normally wore.
Inside the room were a great many of ZAFT's top brass. Lunamaria had never seen so many Admirals and Commanders before and was not sure how to act around them. She saw that Chairman Durandal was talking to a pair of Commanders along with Captain Gladys.
The Minerva had arrived at Armory One just this morning. During the flight from Earth, Lunamaria had undergone her training in her new position. She was still getting used to being saluted.
Most of the training exercises that she and Athrun planned had gone smoothly. Lunamaria was handling Impulse well and she believed that she was ready to use it in battle. The only aggravating thing she had to deal with is Shinn's attitude. He was more arrogant than ever and there were a few times that he refused her orders. Lunamaria knew it was only a matter of time before she would have to reprimand him.
"Nervous?" asked Athrun, turning his head to smile at the girl. Lunamaria nodded and he laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Just remember what I said and you will do fine" said Commander Zala. The Sub-Commander nodded and the two took their seats once Durandal signal for the meeting to begin. The room darkened and a four-way screen lowered in the middle of the room.
Commander Benett, head of naval intelligence, rose from his chair. Catching everyone's attention, he began to speak. Tall with silver hair and blue eyes, he had served as head of naval intelligence when Patrick Zala was Chairman. It was also rumored that Commander Benett had been one of Zala's supporters and detested Naturals.
"Three days ago, our agents in the Earth Alliance's High Command informed us that Daedalus Lunar Base has acquired a large stockpile of nuclear weapons. As you all know, Daedalus is under the complete control of the Blue Cosmos and has become their headquarters in space" informed the man.
"Do they plan to use them?" asked a ZAFT Commander that Athrun did not recognize. There were more than a few officers present that Athrun knew and had met before. However there were also a lot of newly promoted officers as well and Athrun wondered if they had received their promotions by Gilbert in order for him to have more support in ZAFT.
"We believe that they will; we must not allow that to happen" said Benett in a firm tone.
"What do you mean?" asked another ZAFT Commander.
"That we must take military action against Daedalus while there is still time" stated Gilbert Durandal. His words surprised most of the assembled. Athrun narrowed his eyes but stayed silent.
"Is that wise? By attacking Daedalus, we will be committing open war with the Alliance" said Commander Marco Amalfi. He was Yuri Amalfi's younger brother and a close supporter of Siegel Clyne's ideals.
"Our aim is not to destroy the base but rather to take control of it. Once the Lunar Base is in our hands, we can expose the Blue Cosmos weapons to the rest of the Earth Sphere. The Alliance will have to back down" stated Gilbert.
Athrun had to agree with the Chairman. Though attacking Daedalus base did not sit well with him, he could not deny that initiating a first strike would be the smartest course of action. By attacking first, they would deny the Blue Cosmos the opportunity to use the weapons against the PLANTs.
"Why should we worry about the Blue Cosmos having nuclear weapons anyways? As long as we have the Neutron Stampedar, the PLANTs are safe" stated a ZAFT Admiral. A few of the assembled nodded at the man's words.
"Not if the Blue Cosmos use a different type of delivery system. We caught the Alliance by surprise the last time. It won't work a second time" said Commander Sark, a supporter of Gilbert Durandal.
"When is this attack supposed to be carried out?" asked Athrun suddenly, ending the argument.
"In two weeks; astronomers are predicting a medium size solar flare that will occur and will disrupt radar and communications around the moon. We will use this blackout to commence our operation so that Daedalus cannot receive reinforcements from any of the other Lunar Bases" answered Commander Benett.
"The Alliance will notice the fleet build up; what do you plan to tell them?" asked Amalfi, curious.
"That we are conducting a fleet exercise" informed Admiral Sai, sitting Gilbert's left. Amalfi nodded, satisfied by the answer.
"Formal preparations will commence tomorrow. Until then, everything that has been said is highly classified and is not to be repeated outside this room. Dismissed" said Durandal.
All the officers present stood and saluted the man as he left, Captain Gladys at his side. The large contingent of military brass then separated into small groups to discuss the upcoming attack.
As Athrun and Lunamaria turned to leave, Commander Almafi walked up to them with another Commander at his side.
"It is good to see you again Athrun; how long has it been?" greeted the man.
"About four year's sir; when you attended the graduation ceremony at the academy" answered Commander Zala, shaking the man's hand.
"This is Commander Shinji Hahnenfuss; a close friend of mine" said Marco, introducing his companion. Athrun shook his hand as well.
"This is my second-in command, Lunamaria Hawk" said Athrun. Luna just smiled and nodded at the men.
"How do you like commanding your own team?" asked Commander Amalfi with curiosity.
"It has its high and low points" answered Athrun with a smile.
"That is understandable; your first team is always the most difficult. From what I have been hearing, you have been doing well" said Marco.
"Thank you; I am trying my best" said the young man.
"What do you think about the coming attack?" asked Commander Hahnenfuss. The man was only a few years older than Athrun and had long dark hair.
"I don't know what to think; I was hoping the peace would last" answered Commander Zala truthfully.
"If everything goes according to plan, the peace may last" stated Amalfi.
"Maybe; the Blue Cosmos are a threat to the PLANTs" admitted Athrun with a frown.
"But you have your doubts" stated Shinji with an eyebrow raised.
"Yes" said Athrun. Luna turned to look at her Commander in surprise.
"I also have my doubts; both to the attack itself and the validity of Commander Benett's information. He is one of the strongest proponents for the war in ZAFT" informed Commander Amalfi.
"He is?" asked Luna, stunned by the statement.
"Oh yes; he opposed the present ceasefire and wanted to launch an invasion of the Atlantic Federation homeland" informed Marco.
"That is not good" stated blue-haired man with a deeper frown.
"I agree; I hope this plan of capturing Daedalus is truly a plan to seize the facility instead of destroying it; if it isn't, then we will have a full fledge war on our hands" said Hahnenfuss. Athrun nodded his head in agreement along with Luna.
"Well it was good talking to you sir; I have to get back to the Minerva and make preparations" said Athrun.
"It was good talking to you as well; see you tomorrow" said Marco. Athrun and Luna then took their leave.
"So what do you think?" asked Amalfi to his companion, making sure there was no one in earshot.
"Definitely not in Durandal's camp" stated the young man.
"That is good; more and more ZAFT Commanders are aligning themselves with the Chairman. Soon, he'll have the power to usurp the Council and take complete control" said Marco.
His companion nodded and hoped that his father was right about having Yzak Joule on the Council as a benefit to them. If he was wrong, then the backlash would be catastrophic.
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"They actually bought it" stated a surprised Fllay Allster as she read the communiqué she just received from Heavens Base.
She was in her wheelchair out in the garden of her mansion, which was located on a small island in Indonesia area of the Equitorial Union. It was a private island, owned and operated by the organization she belonged to. At her side was a woman who was tall with long green hair and gray eyes.
Just ten feet in front of her was her twin daughters, Felicia and Via, who were playing in the dirt. The three year olds were making mud pies and were not paying attention to her mother or the woman next to her.
"What do you mean Ma'am?" asked Seras Akumo, a longtime servant of the Allster family. She had worked for Fllay's mother and father for years as had the rest of her family before they were killed during the attack by ZAFT on Panama during the first war. She also acted as a loyal bodyguard to Fllay and her daughters.
"Nichos's ruse; ZAFT actually bought it" said the red-head with a laugh. Fllay truly did not think it would work.
"When does he expect ZAFT to attack?" asked Seras. When it came to her mistress's plans and goals, she was always in the loop.
"In a couple of weeks during a projected solar flare" answered Fllay. She watched her daughters with a smile.
The young girls looked more like their father than her. Both had brown hair and purple eyes. Felicia's hair was long while her sister's was short. The girls also had a knack for computers and building machines with their hands. Luckily for Fllay, the two had yet to inquire about their father since the red-head was not sure what to tell them.
"Should I start making preparations for our move to a more secure location?" asked the attendant. While their present location was well protected, there were other more sheltered areas in the Equatorial Union.
"Yes, I suppose so. Once the retaliation is done, I'll need to deal with the fallout in Jakarta so I want the children safe while I am gone" said Fllay with small frown. She hated being away from the children.
"Understood; I'll make the preparations" and with that said, Seras turned and left the family alone in the garden.
Fllay continued reading the intelligence report. The amount of firepower that ZAFT was going to use would definitely overrun Daedalus, even though the base had three Destroys in its arsenal. However, she knew that the Blue Cosmos had a secret weapon at the base which would catch ZAFT by surprise.
As she wheeled herself towards her daughters, Fllay knew that she had to send her latest intelligence report to Nichos.
Their partner in Orb had reported that Athha had four Eternal-class ships under construction as well as assembly lines producing Doms. This would increase the size and firepower to their already string orbital fleet. Orb was also increasing the size of their naval fleet and would be up to prewar size in about a month.
Fllay and Nichos actually found Orb's military production comforting. In the off chance that they lost the war, Durandal would have to face a very powerful Orb in order to initiate his Destiny Plan. He would lose because ZAFT would be bled dry from defeating Alliance.
The thought of Gilbert Durandal and ZAFT getting their asses kicked brought a smile to Fllay.
Everything was also going well on her end in the Equatorial Union. The increase in the nation's military was going smooth and her influence in the Government was solid. The construction of the nations MS Methuss was on schedule. Everything would be ready when she was prepared move with her partners.
The Unification Initiative was proceeding.
Author's Note: Here is chapter 7 and I hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be the longest chapter yet because it will display a major battle. It will also be my first time writing MS combat.
I am still not sure what to do with Athrun and his pairing, so do not assume that just because he is a little friendly with Luna and Meyrin, that he will be paired with them. I am still unsure whether to give him a harem.
As for Kira, Fllay, and Lacus- It won't be quite a harem, but all three will be together at the end of the fic.
Please R&R