Children of War
By: Ghost of the Dawn

Chapter Eight: The Betrayed and Outraged

"Damnit!"

A dark fist collided fiercely with the desk.

"Damnit! Damnit! Damnit!"

Dr. Karren didn't even flinch at the display and continued to stand emotionlessly through the ranting and cursing. The shadowed figure of Mr. Underwood took a moment to compose himself and assess the situation.

"You're sure all the mobile dolls on that colony were destroyed," he said.

"Yes," Dr. Karren replied, brushing a red curl from her face. "Every mobile doll there is non-operational. It will be no time at all before the citizens start taking back the colony."

Mr. Underwood let out a heavy breath and settled himself into his chair.

"Are you sure it was one of those pilots?" he asked.

"It has to be," Dr. Karren replied. "He knew about the mobile dolls' automatic targeting system. They were destroyed because he somehow triggered the system and got the mobile dolls to attack each other."

"Clever," Mr. Underwood mumbled to himself; and then said louder. "Are you sure our more...upgraded models don't have the same drawbacks?"

"Yes, we got our AI technology from the former OZ files. They will far surpass that of the mobile dolls we have now. And when the Earth sees these, they'll be too afraid of them to give us much resistance."

"You have far too much confidence in your plans," the shadowed figure informed her. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's to always count on resistance." He paused a moment in thought. "Dr. Karren."

"Yes sir?"

"Even without their infamous Gundams those pilots are already starting to get under my skin. I want you to find that pilot and make sure he doesn't interfere any further."

Dr. Karen tried hard to hide the smile of satisfaction that was forcing its way on her face. "Yes sir."

The shapely, red-haired woman turned on her heels and marched out of the darkened room. Once in the light of the hall, she made her way to her own office and sat down at her desk. Only then did she let her mouth twist into a smirk as she fingered through five separate files on her desk. The tab of each file had a name on it. Heero Yuy. Duo Maxwell. Trowa Barton. Quatre Winner. Chang Wufei.

Dr. Karren pulled her hair out of its tight bun and let the river of fiery curls flow down her back. Mr. Underwood didn't realize just how much she knew about these Gundam pilots. He also had no idea what she was really after. She had sent agents out to that colony long before he gave her orders to do so. She was going to get what she was looking for and not even he was going to stop her.

The dark eyed woman opened the first file and tapped at the picture of a young, emotionless man with blue eyes and unruly moss brown hair.

"I've got you now," she whispered to the picture. "You're mine."


The darkness and the lateness of the hour didn't bother Felicia much. She flourished in such conditions. Even chilly winds or rain could be tolerable. But when putting those things all together and then having to walk through it in merely Preventers issue pants and a T-shirt did not make Felicia a happy camper.

Since her rendezvous with this strange Professor G, they had been traveling nonstop to heaven knows where. They went from bus to train, from cab to plane--all for the sake of making their trail harder to follow. Felicia didn't know to whom they were trying to stay invisible and she didn't want to know. All she wanted now was a warm cup of hot chocolate and a soft bed as the two travelers trudged endlessly through the darkness, rain and wind.

At least that stupid professor, or whatever he was had a heavy coat. Felicia didn't have much at all. The old man didn't seem to care. But then again, Felicia didn't expect him to. They had marched endlessly from one end of the darkened city to the other. The drenched, dark-haired girl was beginning to wonder if they were ever going to get there.

Suddenly, Felicia stopped as the oddest feeling of deja vu hit her. For the last half hour she hadn't even bothered to look at the streets and buildings as she passed them. But at that moment, something made her lift her head and look around. Through the pouring rain she could see it in the vague glow of an old street light.

She couldn't believe it at first, but there it was. The same place from her dreams. It was real! The same building with the same dark alley. Felicia changed her direction and stepped toward it. There, in the shadows, would she find the same door that would finally answer all her questions? Would she at last be able to open it?

"What are you doing?" a sharp voice pierced her thoughts. "We're almost there. Now quit dawdling and come this way."

Felicia swallowed the urge to ignore the scientist and instead, moved to obey. Along the way she took note of the street signs and promised herself she would be back to this place when she could.

Their journey didn't last long. Professor G suddenly stopped on a street corner. Felicia looked at him quizzically, but never said a word as she shivered in the rain. A few minutes went by before a dark car pulled out of the night and up to them. Wordlessly, the aged man got in the front passenger seat. Felicia was left to climb in the back. The car started off again to destinations unknown.

"I take it the trip was successful," spoke the driver of the car in that same single tone voice Professor G always used.

The driver was a much larger man than the professor and minus any hair. Felicia could only see a small portion of his face in the rear view mirror, but he had the same presence about him.

"Yes," Professor G then replied. "I doubt anyone has a clue to what we are doing yet."

That includes me, too, Felicia thought to herself as she watched the wet, dark world pass by out the window.

In the moment of silence that passed, Felicia asked herself what she was doing with these strange men. She really had no idea what they were up to--though she had an inkling as to who they were. She knew they would be able to use her in whatever they were planning and it had been her in the first place that let them find her. In all reality, they would have never gotten her this far if she hadn't wanted to go. What it all boiled down to was the fact that they knew information she wanted. They knew how to find what she was looking for. Felicia also knew that if she stayed with them long enough, eventually she, too would know.

The car stopped and the two men got out. Felicia opened her own door and slipped out into the pouring rain once more. Before her was a large, warehouse-like building. No windows and no door that was visible to the naked eye.

"Welcome to your new home," Professor G informed her.

Felicia stared dubiously at the great grey building.

"Whoopee..."


Relena paced back and forth behind the curtain. Only a few more minutes until the release of the official statement to the colonies denying Earth's involvement with yesterday's attack. Relena's military adviser, Commander Girmaud, would be giving it. Relena could have stated it herself if she wanted to, but she just didn't have the heart for it. No matter what was said today, Relena knew there would be confrontation. There was no way to get out of it. The future was taking a turn for the worst and she was powerless to stop it.

On the other side, Relena heard the press suddenly get quiet and the sound of flashing cameras begin. Commander Girmaud must be moving to the stand. Relena carefully slipped out from behind the curtain and watched at a distance as the commander read the statement given him for all the universe to hear.


Quatre slowly sipped the rim of his tea cup as he watched the television. He saw the Cinq Kingdom's military adviser as he read from the paper in his hands. But Quatre didn't need to hear the statement to know that the Earth's powers didn't have any connection with yesterday's attack. The mobile dolls still occupied many of the abandoned colonies, though whoever had sent the mobile dolls in the first place still had yet to show themselves. They weren't just trying to take over the colonies, they clearly wanted the people gone from them as well. Why?

The blonde young man noticed the figure caught by the camera standing at the edge of the screen. Relena. Quatre's heart went out to her. She was probably taking this rough. He would have to find some time to go to Earth and visit her. She looked like she needed a friend.


Heero watched the cracked TV screen with little interest. He didn't care what Earth had to say. Anything they did now couldn't change what was already done. Oh, they would try. Of course they would do anything to stop the confrontation. But there was someone working against them. Someone with a lot of power who wanted this war badly. The only question that remained now was why.

Heero's attention was drawn away from his thoughts when he heard a small whimper. Next to where he was sitting was the young boy Heero had encountered the night before. He had brought the child back to his apartment which was quite a mess now but still, surprisingly, in one piece. Heero had immediately put the kid to bed and did his best to clean the poor boy's cuts and burns with what he had.

The young boy had been sleeping peacefully ever since he had been put to bed. Only now was he starting to toss and whimper a little bit in his sleep. Heero watched him carefully for a few moments. He seemed to be having some sort of bad dream. Heero easily guessed what it was he was possibly dreaming about. He considered waking the child when another series of whimpers escaped his lips and Heero was thrust into another flashback...

"That boy is too soft, you need to do something about him or he'll ruin everything."

"Just give him more time. I can train him so he'll do anything he's told."

The was Dr. J talking. The young boy watched secretly from around the corner as his guardian continued to argue with a man in uniform. He was one of Dekim Barton's men. Concerned about his leader's precious project. "Operation: Meteor" it had been called. Heero knew all about what it was. A horrible plan in which a colony, when orbiting at just the right time, could be set flying to the Earth, creating mass hysteria and killing countless people.

Yes, Heero know all about it. He may have been young, only ten years old, but he was not stupid. He knew that it was wrong. He knew Dr. J knew it too. His guardian and teacher would never go along with it, no matter how much he said he was loyal to the cause. Dr. J never failed to disappoint him. He had another idea up his sleeve.

"You see that you do that," the officer continued to demand. "Because if Commander Barton does not see your pilot fit, he will appoint someone else in charge of this operation."

Heero scowled from his hiding place as the officer turned on his heel and left. He was a bit surprised when Dr. J turned and looked right at him. He apparently knew he had been listening. The scientist gazed down at the boy. Heero didn't have a name back then. He was just a number, a nobody.

"It looks you're going to have to try harder," Dr. J said coldly. "You disappoint me. I'm beginning to think you'll never be good enough."

The boy looked back, eyes wide with surprise and hurt. Just the other day Dr. J had told him how well he was doing; that his skills were unlike anything he had ever seen before. Now this? Why?

"If you're ever going to make it," the scientist went on. "You're going to have to be stronger, harder. And don't give me that look. That's one of the reasons you'll never succeed. You can never let the enemy know what you're thinking. It gives them the advantage. Now go. We'll start your new training tomorrow."

The young boy watched Dr. J go. The look of disbelief was still on his face. His small fists clenched at his sides as he growled in frustration.

It wasn't fair! He had given it everything he had to please the old scientist. He did everything he was told; all he was asked. But that wasn't enough to make him happy. He had to give up not only his strength, his mind and his time, he had to give up his life and his soul as well. He had to give up who he was--his humanity. Nothing less would ever be accepted.

The boy suddenly turned and ran the other way. He couldn't do it. He just couldn't do what they were asking. As hard has he tried to quell the emotions, they always surfaced. They always got in the way. He had done everything in his power to hide what he was feeling, but it never worked. He would never be able to live up to his mentor's expectations.

The young boy ran down the halls until he reached a dead end. Tears were streaming down his face now. Another show of emotion he was unable to stop. It just made him madder and more frustrated. He punched the wall in irritation and slid to his knees, sobbing and pounding on the floor. He was only a kid. How could they expect him to do it all? He had nothing left to give.

"I told you," a quiet voice came from the shadows.

Heero wiped his eyes hastily and looked behind him. The silhouette of a small girl stood in the darkness.

"I told you that you wouldn't be able to hide your emotions forever," the girl's voice continued. "As much as you try to bottle up your feelings inside you, you can't keep them there. They have to come out eventually."

The young boy just hung his head and clenched his teeth. "I have to! I have to do it!" he cried as he pounded his fist on the hard metal floor. "I can't let anyone else be better than me! I have to be the best!"

There was a span of silence.

"Then...I'll help you."

Heero didn't reply to such a ridiculous response. All he did was continue to stare darkly at the floor. Her? Help him? How? She didn't understand what he went through. He never saw her going through such grueling training as he. All Dr. J ever had her do was sit in her bunker and read stacks of books. How could she possibly even begin to help him?

The boy tightened when he felt small, gentle arms suddenly circle around him. Such physical displays of affection were foreign to him. It felt strange and yet, good. In the girl's arms he almost felt...safe?

"I'll do it," the girl announced. "I'll take your emotions. Give them to me. I'll feel them for you so you don't have to. When you get mad or scared, give it to me so you can keep Dr. J and the others happy."

Heero felt her soft sleeve brush against his face to dry his tears, but he still couldn't bear to look the girl in the face.

"I'll always know how you're feeling where ever you are. And no one will know but me. And when you feel like crying, I'll know that, too, because I'll cry for you."

The boy only nodded dumbly. He never understood fully at what she meant by that or how she was going to do it. All he knew was the next morning the girl was gone--disappeared without a trace. Dr. J would never say anything about it when he was asked. But from then on, Heero had no problem keeping his face a mask void of all emotion. But only now did he remember that long ago promise.

"...I'll cry for you..."

Heero was once again snatched back by reality when he heard a startled cry. He looked down at the bed to see the young boy was now awake and staring at him with eyes as big as saucers. Before Heero could say anything, the boy drew a deep breath and screamed.

"MOMMY!"


Lucretia Noin looked up from where she was attempting to repair one of the downed Mars explorer vehicles when she heard the oddest sound. Someone was whistling some happy little tune. Upon further investigation, Lucretia discovered it was coming from...Millardo? He was dressed in the same blue mechanics suit she was. His long hair was pulled back in a pony tail and a faded blue cap adorned his head.

The blonde pilot's pace was brisk as he strolled up to the tool box next to her and merrily started digging through it.

"Well, someone's in a good mood today," Lucretia commented as she stood. "What's the occasion?"

Millardo pulled out the ratchet he was looking for and waved it animatedly as he spoke.

"Lucretia, I have come to a decision," he told her.

"Really," she replied, folding her arms and leaning against the machine she was repairing. "And just what is that exactly?"

"I have decided that I will be through here one month from today."

Lucretia laughed right out.

"One month? At the rate we're going? Right now I'd say only about seventy percent of our equipment is in full working order. Probably less before the day is over. There's no way we're going to be done with this project within one month."

"I don't care," Millardo responded whimsically. He twirled the ratchet in the air and caught it neatly. "One month Lucretia. Then, I'm going home. I think it's about time I went to see my sister."

Lucretia smiled at him. "Would you mind if I tagged along?"

"You're welcome to come if you'd like."

"Did I hear correctly?" an older man with brown hair and brown eyes asked as he walked around the large explorer vehicle over to them. "Are my two best recruits planning on deserting me?"

Millardo smiled good naturedly at the man he had been working with for nearly two and a half years now. Benson Hues was his name. He had been working as head mechanical engineer since his arrival on Mars. Both Millardo and Lucretia had been able to work closely with the much knowlegable engineer and had come to know him not only as a co-worker, but also as a friend.

"I'm afraid so," Millardo confirmed. "I think it's about time I took a break and checked up on what's going on back home. You got us for another month and then we're taking a vacation for a few weeks."

"Well, I'll tell you right now, I'll hate to see you go. Especially since we're now closer than we've ever been to getting this thing over with," Hues replied, touching the smooth, shiny surface of the explorer vehicle.

"Don't worry, we'll be back," Lucretia assured him with a smile. "We're not going to abandon you forever. We've worked on this project too hard not to see it through."

Mr. Hues looked relieved at that. He was about to say something when one of the other workers cut him off.

"Hey guys, check out what we picked up on the toob!"

Hailing to the call, the three walked over to where a few of their co-workers were huddled around a small, staticy tv. One of them was meddling with the antenna as he tried to get a better picture. But at their current location, it was quite difficult.

"What is it?" Millardo wanted to know.

"Apparently, some of the colonies were attacked yesterday by an army of mobile dolls," another worker replied. "No one knows where they came from or why, but Earth's getting blamed for it."

"What!" the two pilots exclaimed at the same time.

"Yeah," the worker continued. "Earth's releasing a statement denying their involvement with the attack right now. What a place, huh? We're always the last one to know everything--even the beginning of another war."

Millardo and Lucretia instantly gave the tv their full attention. Neither one of them noticed when Mr. Hues' face went pale at the news. His posture turned frantic as he dashed for the nearest phone. But even that was not enough to gain anyone else's attention.

Millardo was riveted to the screen as Commander Girmaud of the Cinq Kingdom read his written speech. In the corner, Relena's regretful form could be seen and the pilot's heart went out to his younger sister. She always tried so hard. The painfully hard grip on his arm was the only thing that managed to tear his eyes away from the tv.

"Zechs," Lucretia breathed, not realizing she used his other alias. "That--that's not Commander Girmaud."

Millardo gave her a confused look. "What do you mean? It says right at the bottom of the screen it's him."

"No. I mean, it looks like him and it sounds like him. But that is not the man I hired before we left."

Millardo turned and grabbed her shoulders. "Lucretia, are you positive?"

"Yes. I knew Commander Girmaud, and that isn't him."

Millardo's blood ran cold. There was an imposter down there running the Cinq Kingdom--and the bastard was also there with his sister.

"Start packing," he announced as he stood. "We're leaving for Earth right away."

"Sorry friend, not this time," a calm, cold voice said behind him.

Before Millardo could react, he felt something sharp pierce the back of his neck. Almost instantly, he felt his body crumple beneath him. Millardo fought valiantly to get back up but all his energy was gone. His body felt numb, he couldn't feel his limbs let alone control them. Gazing to the side, he found his beloved Lucretia already passed out on the floor. All the other workers were just standing around, watching. Why wouldn't they do anything? Why wouldn't they help?

The last thing Millardo saw was his friend Mr. Hues standing over him. But now he didn't look the same. His face had gone cold and emotionless as he watched the blonde pilot struggle during his last seconds of consciousness. In his hand was an empty syringe.

With his last ounce of strength and control, Millardo managed to grab his pant leg weakly.

"Hues, I'll get y..."

Those were the last words Millardo Peacecraft was able to speak. One last promise before his world went black and his head fell lifelessly to the floor.


Heero was at a loss at what to do. One minute, he was lost in memories of the past. The next minute he was back in his dumpy old room with a little boy screaming bloody murder at him. Heero reached out to the child to assure him he wasn't an enemy. This only caused the boy to scream louder and hide under the covers.

He continued to scream beneath the blanket for another minute or so. Then the cries began to die down to small whimpers. For nearly ten minutes afterward, the little body remained silent under the covers. Bright, curious brown eyes finally peeked out to see if there was still anything around to be afraid of.

Heero remained where he had been waiting the whole time; with arms crossed, leaning against the window frame. The boy watched him for a while and then with a sniff, uncovered his head and stared at the young man.

"You, you were there last night," he said quietly.

"Hn," Heero nodded.

The boy climbed out further from the blankets.

"You took me from my mom and dad," he said quietly.

"You realize that I could not have saved your parents," Heero said evenly. "They were dead before I got there."

A bit harsh thing to say, perhaps, to a ten year old. But the boy took the statement with little response. He merely sniffed and rubbed his eye.

"I know," he finally said.

"Good," Heero said as he moved away from the wall and started on his way across the room. "Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"

"Yeah," the boy said as his face brightened.

"Come with me," Heero motioned the boy to follow and led him into the apartment's tiny kitchen.

The young lad eagerly hopped up on the nearest stool and started swinging his legs behind the counter. Heero retrieved a bowl, spoon, and a box of cornflakes from the cupboards and drawers and plopped them down in front of the kid.

"Here," he said. "I don't have much else to eat here."

But the boy seemed more than happy with what he had and began pouring himself some cereal. Heero moved to the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk. He opened it and took a precautionary sniff. It smelled okay. Heero was usually pretty good about keeping the contents of his refrigerator fresh.

"What's your name?" the boy asked when Heero handed him the milk.

Heero paused at the question. While working in the colonies he had to use a number of different aliases because his original code name was still too well known by the older population. But this was just a child. Heero didn't think it would matter here.

"Heero," he responded simply.

"I'm Kade Carver," the boy replied right back. "I just turned ten last month. I know I don't look ten. People are always telling me I look young for my age. My mom says the doctors said I was... "failure to thrive" whatever that means. My grandma says it runs in the family. Uncle Jack was like that, but then he hit puberty and sprouted up like a weed, my grandma says. She says that I'm a lot like Uncle Jack. But I don't want to have a boyfriend like Uncle Jack has. Do you think boys should live together like that Mister Heero?"

Heero leaned an arm against the counter and slowly lowered his face to meet Kade's. The boy stayed silent as Heero delivered his patented Death Glare to him.

"Eat. Your. Cornflakes."

Kade shoved another spoonful into his mouth and chewed obediently. Heero let out a deep breath and moved away. He wasn't accustomed to such constant chatter. It made him feel uneasy. The young pilot moved over to the window and peered out through the dusty glass.

Kade watched him as Heero brooded at the other side of the kitchen.

"Mister Heero?" he asked quietly. When it was ignored he asked again. "Mister Heero?"

Heero inwardly rolled his eyes at being called "Mister" but responded nonetheless.

"What is it?"

"Where am I going to go now?"

Heero looked over to see sincere worry in his big, brown eyes. He was quite smart for his age, Heero had to give him that. Already he was wanting to know what he was expected to do now that his parents were gone.

"When people see that the mobile dolls are gone they'll start coming back to the colony," Heero explained. "When transportation is opened up we'll get out of this place and try to locate a member of your family. Until then, you're staying with me."


After a few hours sleep, a shower and a warm meal, Felicia stepped into the large room she had been beckoned to. Now clean and warm and dressed, she was ready to see what exactly was waiting in store for her. She found the two old men--Professor G and the taller bald man she now knew as Master O, standing next to a large curious contraption.

"It's about time you got here," Professor G berated. "We don't have all month you know. The war could break out any day now."

Felicia let out a heavy breath. "Yeah, yeah. Just tell me what you want me to do and let's get this over with."

"Fine by be," the short, older man replied. "Get into the similation chamber. We're going to see how well you can pilot a mobile suit."

"Wait a minute," Felicia argued. "I told you guys before we started this--I am not a pilot. I never was. There's no way I'm going to be able to fly that thing, even if it is just a simulation."

The two scientists looked at each other, but seemed unfazed. Professor G addressed her again.

"We're well aware of your limits. But we think we have developed a system that will dramatically increase anyone's piloting abilities after only one trial. So step inside so we can give it a try."

"Oh, alright," Felicia relented. "Let's get this over with."

She walked over to the contraption and climbed into the fake cockpit. It was an odd feeling being in there. She had never been in anything so tight and with so many buttons. There was a helmet sitting on the control panel. She found out it was connected to several different wires which snaked out from the main computer in front of her. Felicia put on the helmet and snapped on her harness.

"Ready," she announced.

The scientists nodded and closed the cockpit door, leaving the girl in momentary darkness.

"I can't believe I went all this way just to play some stupid video game," Felicia muttered to herself.

She gripped the control sticks to either side of her as the cockpit lights flashed on and the contraption rumbled to life. The screen in front of her switched on and Felicia was treated to a view of a large, open field with a cloudless sky above and mountains and hills in the distance.

"What do they want me to do here?" Felicia asked out loud. "Pick daisies and sing selections from ?The Sound of Music'?"

All of a sudden, the chamber shook as if something had just collided with it.

"What the--"

Felicia pulled back the controls and whirled around to see several mobile suits on screen firing at her. She clenched her teeth as she felt another hit from the enemies. What was she supposed to do? Especially since she had never been inside a mobile suit cockpit in her life.

"This is just great," Felicia growled as she took yet another hit.

She began fiddling with the controls in order to some how retaliate. None of the buttons she pushed seemed to do anything. Warning lights were starting to go off in her cockpit and Felicia still didn't have a clue what to do. Frustrated with what she had to deal with, she grabbed the controls and merely tried to dodge the bullets--but that wasn't working too well either.

"I bet those two bastards are up there laughing at me right now."

"You were right," Master O said as he and Professor G watched the small simulation chamber vibrate as it took hit after hit. "She's going to be perfect for this."

"Shall we begin then?" Professor G asked.

The taller scientist nodded. "Be my guest."

Professor G reached for the panel in front of them which controlled what was happening on the simulation screen. His finger pushed down on a large red button. The words on the small screen above it read "ZERO SYSTEM ACTIVATED".

Felicia was about to the point where she was just going to give up and let the simulation game finish her. There was no point to continue fighting when she didn't know how. She glanced down at the control panel when a large red light flashed on and suddenly, everything went bright.

The young girl gasped as a strange sensation washed over her. The feeling was indescribable. It was as if someone had a pitcher over her and was just pouring information into her brain. Felicia looked to the control panels at her finger tips and suddenly she knew how to use them.

The mobile suits on the simulated screen advanced and Felicia gripped the controls, turning around to face them. Her fingers flew over the weapons panel as if they had done this a hundred times before. A barrage of missiles shot out and all hit their marks, destroying the enemy.

"Not bad," Professor G mused. "Change the simulation. Let's see how she responds to more challenging opponents."

Master O nodded and cranked up a dial on the control panel.

Felicia blinked when the field in front of her suddenly became the blank nothingness of outer space.

"What now?" she grumbled.

Her alarm signaled someone was coming and Felicia checked her radar. Appearing like stars in the distance, five figures were coming towards her. As they got closer, Felicia noted how they didn't look the same as the mobile suits she fought earlier. These were more stylized and each one was different.

The blue mobile suit shot its arm at her--almost like a snake's head to bite her. She managed to dodge the attack and sent out retaliatory fire which the enemy suit also dodged. Next, the black one with the scythe took a swing at her. She ducked, but was then hit by the white suit with the buster rifle in its hand. Felicia cried out in surprise. She could feel herself falling backward as now the red and the yellow mobile suits came after her. That was when she lost control.

In that instant, all time seemed to stop for Felicia. The computer generated battle produced on the screen disappeared as a different vision came to her. She saw a lovely church suddenly come under attack. The screams of the innocents were heard as the holy building was burned to the ground and the charred, bloodied bodies were left to rot as the fires burned out. And as Felicia was treated to this gruesome scene, she was, at the same time still in her cockpit and she gasped as a gooey red substance oozed from the walls around her. Blood.

Next, Felicia saw a kingdom as it was demolished to the ground and a peace loving ruler was put to death along with the rest of his kin as an angry young boy with platinum blonde hair watched on with revenge on his mind. And the walls continued to bleed.

An extremely young boy was blasted away from his mother's arms during an attack and left to a life without an identity and knowing nothing else but the war that cursed him. A young man with sad blue eyes watched helplessly as his father was shot down before his eyes. Another young man experienced the same thing as he watched his own colony self destruct for his sake. And the walls continued to bleed.

A war to end all wars raged through space. A three sided battle with no definite victor. An outraged colony on one side and a wounded Earth on the other. Heartless machines tore through the stars as human blood was splattered across the cosmos.

Blood was dripping from the ceiling now and it pooled around Felicia's ankles. She shook her head in panic, but the overwhelming visions refused to stop. Felicia screamed and then...there was nothing.

The two scientists walked slowly down the stairs once the simulation ended. The gundam fighting program had won, but the girl had still done an impressive job for one who had never piloted before. Professor G reached the cockpit first and opened it. Felicia's body instantly fell out and to the floor, ripping out the helmet from its wires as she did so.

Her arms hugged herself as her body convulsed violently on the floor; her fingers clutching so hard on her arms they dug into her flesh. The girl made the sound of vomiting from inside her helmet as she curled up into a tight, shivering ball.

The two scientists look on, unaffected.

"Quite an interesting after affect," Master O commented placidly.

"Indeed," Professor G agreed. "It appears the ZERO system has a more overwhelming affect to those who have never piloted before. Too bad in this state, the girl is unable to give us a full report of what she experienced. How disappointing." He turned to go. "Come, we'll check on her in the morning and see if she is able to recover."

The taller form of Master O nodded and followed his comrade out. The empty sound of their footfalls echoed in the silent room as they left. The door squeaked and whined as it was shut, leaving the small, shuddering figure alone in the darkness.