Episode 09: The Oracle At Delphi

Outside the charred shell of the Corinth Colony, Shinn, Rey and Luna are stunned as the remaining EA warships suddenly halt their attack. Unsure of how to react, the ZAFT pilots pause, expecting the Earth Alliance fleet to surrender. In a rapid, nearly simultaneous, succession the remaining Alliance warships self-destruct, scattering debris across the battlefield. Shinn watches the remaining Nelson-class EA warships destroy themselves and is shocked; he wonders why they chose to end their lives so abruptly. The remaining EA mobile suits, mostly 105-type and Long-type Dagger units, however, continue to fight. A pair of 105 Daggers approach the motionless impulse at full-speed; Rey positions his Gaia-Gundam in front of the Impulse and cleaves one of the attacking suits in half with his twin beam sabers and then rapidly turns his suit around to blast the second suit with the Gaia's head-vulcans. Rey shouts at Shinn that the battle isn't over yet. Shinn shakes himself back into action and punches the attacking Dagger with the Gundam's clenched fist: the metal "fingers" are smashed together and the Impulse Gundam's hand is left a deformed lump. As the force of the impact knocks the 105 Dagger back, Rey shoots his beam-rifle at the enemy's back, frowning slightly as the armor surrounding the cockpit melts and the suit explodes.

At the other end of the battlefield Lunamaria Hawke, along with a pair of GuAIZ units belonging to the Joule-team, engages a half-dozen EA Long-Daggers in close-range combat. The GuAIZ' quickly demolish two of the Long-Daggers and Lunamaria smirks, saying she can't afford to be outdone yet, and fires her Saviour Gundam's twin-heavy beam cannons and beam rifle at the same time, simultaneously striking down three enemy mobile suits. Luna smiles, flush with the feeling of victory and rushes at the last remaining Dagger with her beam-saber As she swings the beam saber at the Dagger's central torso the Dagger's pilot drives the mobile suit into a steep downward dive, retaliating by blasting off the Saviour's left leg with its beam rifle. As the Saviour is incapacitated the Joule-team GuAIZs rush in and destroy the Long Dagger. Lunamaria sighs and says that the enemy was just a little bit more skilled than she thought, and retreats back to the Minerva.

The Strike II Gundams and Astray units aid the ZAFT forces in mopping up the remaining EA mobile suits and fighters. An ORB squadron-leader piloting a Strike II, comments on how terrible it was that the EA space-forces destroyed a civilian colony; he sighs as a pair of Astrays help Dearka's ZAKU destroy one of the last Alliance mobile suits.

Lunamaria lands her one-legged Gundam on the catapult deck of the Minerva clumsily, barely able to maintain balance. On the bridge, Talia surveys the battlefield: debris from the demolished colony and destroyed warships is strewn about the area recklessly. Arthur informs her that all of the enemy forces have been annihilated and Talia orders the Minerva to launch signal-flares to alert its mobile-suits to return to the ship.

As the ORB mobile suits withdraw to their respective Izumo-class carriers, Yzak slumps back into his ZAKU's cockpit panting heavily. After taking the time to catch his breath, Yzak returns to the Chasseur de Têtes. Dearka and three GuAIZ mobile suits return to ship as well, though all four suits are heavily damaged. Dearka's ZAKU bears the worst injury, having lost it's head, entire left arm and most of it's skirt-armor What armor was still left on the ZAKU was charred black from countless beam-rifle hits. On the bridge of the Chasseur de Têtes, Yzak is informed that the Minerva and all other ZAFT vessels are to immediately proceed to the nearest completed colony--Delphi--for repair and resupply. Yzak sits down in the captain's chair and sighs, too tired to curse, and says he doubts they'll be having any new missions for a while. Dearka approaches and says that it's to be expected, considering the casualties the Joule-team suffered, but at least they'll get some leave out of it. Yzak orders to Chasseur de Têtes to enter formation with the Minerva and follow it to Delphi.

In the briefing room of the Minerva, Talia Gladys addresses the three Gundam pilots. Talia praises Shinn, Rey and Luna for their exemplary performance in battle and singles out Luna for her particular achievements in the last battle. Rey asks if she thinks they'll be fighting against the Alliance space forces any time soon, and Talia honestly states that she does not know: most of the EA's space forces were present at the battle of Corinth, and those are all gone, but there are other Alliance military units still in space. Talia continues to say that with no stable communication with Earth, all of the Alliance space-forces are in a state of disarray--it's impossible to determine what course of action they might choose to follow on their own. Lunamaria asks Talia if that means PLANT and the Earth Alliance are really at war with one another again, and Talia responds that it does not. She tells the pilots that the actions of the Earth's forces at Corinth can be judged as nothing other than renegade activity. Just as the actions of the Zala-loyalists at Junon were contrary to the feelings of PLANT, they must assume that the actions of the EA fleet at Corinth, too, ran contrary to the Alliance's wishes. Upset of the reminder of their failure at Junon, Shinn, Rey and Luna are silent for a moment.

Lunamaria is the first to speak up, asking the captain what the Minerva will do next. Talia responds that once the Minerva reaches Delphi they will most likely be there for some time in order to be fully repaired and resupplied. She reminds the pilots that even though two of the Minerva's ZAKUs were given to the Joule-team, the Minerva still has three other units without pilots. Talia laughs slightly and says that she never expected the Minerva's maiden voyage to be quite the eventful. Through the darkness of space, the Minerva approaches the central docking bay of the Delphi colony. The massive ship folds it's "wings" close to its hull and lowers itself onto a giant landing-pad that slowly descends as the ship lands. The platform comes to a halt and four large clamps latch onto the ships hull, holding it into place.

On the Chasseur de Têtes, now docked inside of Delphi alongside the Minerva, Yzak complains that the O'Neil-type colonies are too damned cramped. Dearka laughs and says that he had better get used to it. Outside the Minerva, a ZAFT pilot wearing the red uniform enters the ship. Upon entering, the pilot is stopped by security personnel and asked to identify himself; the pilot removes his helmet; Heine Westenfluss snaps a curt salute and smiles, saying that he heard the Minerva was short on pilots.

Shinn, Rey, Lunamaria and Meyrin all disembark from the Minerva wearing civilian clothes. Luna sighs and says she's stuck taking her little sister shopping. Meyrin pouts and pinches Lunamaria's side making her yelp in surprise Rey and Shinn laugh. Luna ignores her sister and asks Shinn what he's going to do with his time off; Shinn says he doesn't know. Shinn, in turn, asks Rey if he has any plans and Rey responds that there is a place he wants to visit. Shinn asks if he can tag along and Rey states that it wouldn't be a problem.

As they leave the tram that carried them down to the colony from the spaceport at the center of the colony, Luna and Meyrin leave to board a public E-Car. Shinn asks Rey if it's a long walk to the place he wants to visit; Rey says it should be very near to where they are. After a following Rey in silence for a while, Shinn groans and asks Rey if it's much further. Rey says they will be there soon. After walking even further through the colony without respite Shinn gets more and more irritated. As they leave the commercial area of the colony and enter a more rural area Shinn asks Rey where it is that they are going anyway. Rey points at a narrow gray structure pointing up over the treetops in front of them like a stone needle and labels it as his destination.

Shinn and Rey approach the structure and Shinn notes that it is a giant marble obelisk, set into a wide foundation. Shinn asks Rey if it's some kind of memorial and Rey replies that it is, of a sort. As the two pilots approach the structure a tall woman with long-brown hair approaches them and bows respectfully. She looks at Rey and stifles a gasp, but quickly removes any hint of recognition from her face as Rey shakes his head slightly. The Woman welcomes Shinn and Rey to the Kreuze memorial, and introduces herself as Meere Campbell. Shinn asks her if the obelisk is some kind of memorial, and Meere nods and says that it is called the Kreuze Memorial. Shinn walks up to the obelisk and slowly walks in a circle around it, examining the marble structure from ever angle. Shinn then proceeds to walk around the granite foundation examining the floor; not seeing any writing to identify the monument he turns to Meere and asks her what it's for.

Meere smiles and says that the obelisk was one of the first structures built on the colony to commemorate the work of Kreuze da Flaga. Before Shinn can ask who he his, Meere informs him that Kreuze da Flaga was a professor at Janus-1 in the third decade of the Cosmic Era. Kreuze worked as a teacher, but his true calling was philosophy and he is credited with several major theories regarding the purpose of coordinators and the true meanings behind the words of the first Coordinator, George Glen. Shinn shrugs and says that he's never heard of the guy; Meere smiles and says that when PLANT was formed as a sovereign state, governed and populated solely by coordinators, Kreuze da Flaga's writings were forbidden. Meanwhile, Rey leans against a rail at the edge of the foundation and stares at the marble obelisk silently.

Shinn asks why PLANT disliked Kreuze's writings and Meere tells him that the core of Kreuze's ideology was that coordinators were destined to facilitate an "awakening" of mankind--they were meant to coordinate the transition of mankind from one state of being to the next. From Homo-Sapiens to something new. Such an ideology meant that coordinators were a temporary-existence. PLANT feared this as it had been founded under the idea that coordinators themselves were the new breed of humanity. Shinn asks why it matters so much what coordinators think they are; people are people, he says, regardless of the circumstances of birth. Meere smiles and says that Shinn is correct. Meere continues to say that according to Kreuze da Flaga's ideas, the new humanity would be an enlightened race, free from violence and war.

At these words Shinn recalls seeing the Freedom Gundam fighting in the skies above Onogoro Port, the Freedom hunches down in mid-air and cuts through the knees of an EA Dagger. The lower-legs of the mobile suit explode and the upper part of the Dagger falls down, crashing onto the refugee ship with Shinn's family. In the cold choppy waters below, Shinn sees his sister cry out for him as pieces of shrapnel fly up from the deck and into her flesh. Mayu's eyes widen for an instant in pain, and then disappear as she is consumed in a burst of flame. Shinn screams in his memory and through his teary eyes he sees the Freedom and Calamity continuing to battle above, oblivious to the carnage below. Shinn opens his eyes and clenches his fists, his former jocularity vanishing. Shinn snaps at Meere, telling her that such a thing is impossible. Humans are humans, he says. They fight, they kill, and they die. If some marvelous new breed of human being were to exist, all of the sacrifices, all of the death that had preceded it would be meaningless. Kreuze was nothing but an ineffectual, foolish idealist.

Shinn shouts at Meere angrily, tears beginning to well up in his eyes. Shinn tells Meere it's impossible The world she's describing is no more than a deranged fantasy. Meere smiles softly, looking at Shinn with a faint pity. Wouldn't it be nice, she asks him, if humans could one day live in a world without war? A world where mobile suits were unnecessary? Meere asks Shinn if he pilots a mobile suit because he truly enjoys fighting and killing, or if he does it because he wants to protect something. Wouldn't he be much happier, Meere asks Shinn, if he didn't have to fight at all? Do not, she continues to ask, all soldiers think such thoughts? It may be foolish idealism, she says, but it has a certain charm to it.

Shinn clenches his teeth but says nothing. No one wants war, Meere says. No one wants to die; no one wants to kill. It's possible, she says--it's probable--that one day human beings will outgrow their violent tendencies. It's also possible that humanity will destroy itself entirely. Meere asks Shinn which of the two options he would prefer to believe.

Shinn says nothing and looks up at the obelisk. Meere apologizes to Shinn for upsetting him and bows, and then states that perhaps he would prefer to be alone at the moment, excusing herself. Meere steals one last, quick glance at Rey before descending from the stone platform.

Shinn backs away from the obelisk towards Rey, wiping the moisture from his eyes. He sees his sister, Mayu, once more. Her body being torn apart violently. Shinn vividly recalls the agony expressed in her eyes the moment she died. Haltingly, he asks Rey if it could have been avoided. Was there any way that all the senseless death could have been circumvented?

After a brief pause Rey shakes his head "no" to comfort Shinn and states that all humans, no matter how miserable their lives may be, always want to live--even if they must take the lives of others to do so. If mobile suits did not exist, humans would fight with guns. If guns did not exist, humans would fight with knives and clubs. Rey reasons that if no tools existed, and each human owned nothing more than that with which he or she was born, we would then kill each other with our bare hands, tearing the flesh from our enemies intimately. Shinn frowns at Rey's words and tries to reply, but he cannot deny the logic behind Rey's statement.

Shinn steps forward to touch the obelisk silently, running his hand up the marble structure. He turns to Rey and that Rey's words might be true, but it would be wonderful if there was hope for something better. Rey smiles and walks up to Shinn, nodding his head in agreement.

Episode 09 - END

Next Episode: To Earth