Chapter 10: Twist and Turn

Disclaimer: I don't own the boys or the show but the plot of this fic is from a couple of ideas from other writers and of course me. So no stealing!

The same day, earlier that afternoon

"Do you really think he's ready?" Rowan asked Gilbert as they watched Shinn do a field test on the Destiny Gundam. Gilbert watched Shinn for a while before he answered.

"I highly doubt it, to be honest, but he's the best we've got."

Rowan frowned slightly. "You were the one who suggested him!" he burst. Gilbert remained calm. "Yes, but it was only because I'm quite fond of him, in case you haven't noticed. I'm starting to think that maybe Kira or Athrun would be easier to use in this plan." He replied.

Rowan Sterling glared at the former Chairman. 'Why can't he make up his mind? Is this the guy who used to run the PLANTs!?' he thought angrily but restrained himself.

Gilbert was still watching Shinn; the boy was a natural killing-machine, that's for sure. He hit the targets easily and defeated his enemies quickly. When he was on board the Minerva he was glad that he had such capable pilots in his military.

Gilbert always knew that Shinn had potential for this kind of thing. The kid was full of rage and raw emotion, but he was good at what he did. Sure he tended to stray from the path sometimes, but he would've been the perfect pawn for the Destiny Plan.

'And now it seems he's the perfect pawn for the revised Destiny Plan. But it just doesn't feel right for some reason, he's changed too much, and now the only thing we have is his skills and attitude, which we could do without the latter.' He thought and sighed.

'Sometimes I wonder what I was thinking when I took him that night, it ruined my career and it's ruining the plan. If only I could take it all back…' he thought again.

"Well, at least he's a good enough match for the veterans, wouldn't you say?" Rowan was saying. "Yes, yes he is." Gilbert replied.

"But what about his hand-to-hand combat skills, or his gun skills? He's going to be a mercenary as well, is he good in those fields?" Rowan asked again.

"Oh yes, but if you would like to test his skills go right ahead. I believe it's been a while since he's handled a gun." Gilbert told him. Rowan nodded and Shinn finished up his training exercise.

He came out of his gundam and they met him on the lower level. "That was better than I hoped, now, what about your gun skills? I know you've been trained in that field, but would you mind hitting a few targets so I know where you're at?" Rowan asked him ever-so politely.

Freak. (A/N: Couldn't help it, hehehe)

Shinn nodded and they walked toward the gun range. Durandal followed, looking forward to watching Rowan's expression.

They were standing in front of a moving-target practice field and Rowan handed Shinn a gun. Probably not the best idea, but hey, he's made dumber mistakes.

Shinn glanced at the gun and then at Rowan, seeming to decide whether to shoot the target or him. (A/N: SHOOT HIM!!! DO IT!!!)

"Go ahead, and its okay if you don't hit it right on the dot, but-," Rowan began but was cut off. Without even moving his eyes, Shinn raised the gun to the side and pulled the trigger, they all turned to see the moving target hit literally right in the middle of the middle target.

Perfect shot.

Rowan's jaw dropped and he regarded Shinn oddly while Shinn waited for his next easily-overcome-obstacle.

Gilbert smirked and said, "Yeah, I think he'd do fine." Rowan whirled around and was struggling with himself for a moment.

"Alright then, if you want to be that way. Let's see just how good you are, Shinn Asuka." He said and led them down a row of target ranges to the very last one.

Rowan moved the target as far back as it would go, 100 feet (bear with me people I know nothing about these kinds of things!) and then turned smugly to Shinn.

"I want you to hit that target five times without even looking at it." He said. "All in one place or in a pattern?" Shinn asked, but not smugly or sarcastically like he would if he wasn't a robot.

Gilbert chuckled and they ignored him. "Whatever is best for you, although I doubt you'll be able to make a pattern." Rowan snorted. Shinn continued looking at him and raised the gun, firing five times.

They brought the target back and, low and behold, Shinn made a pattern after all! And not just any pattern, Rowan's face distorted into something ugly as he saw that there were two shots at the top and three below them curved upwards into a somewhat smirk.

It was a smiley face.

Gilbert started clapping and Shinn smiled at him. "Is that good, sir?" he asked coldly. Rowan was positively steaming and turned on his heel muttering obscenities.

"Good job, Shinn." Gilbert praised him. He nodded and stared at the gun oddly.

Just then, more flashes escaped across his mind, he saw a few images where he was training with Luna and Rey at the Academy and on the Minerva, and then to some images where he shot down a few people during the war.

He braced himself against the counter and started breathing heavily. "Shinn, are you alright?" Gilbert asked. Shinn nodded and regained his composure.

"I keep seeing…things. People, explosions, gundams; and everyone's dieing." Shinn told him. "What does it mean?" he asked, staring up into Gil's eyes and pleading for an answer.

Gilbert couldn't tell Shinn why he was having déjà vu of the past war, so he simply shrugged and led him back to the "base".

"You should eat." Gilbert told him. "Yes sir." Shinn said disappointedly as he went back to being a cold robot and they went to the cafeteria. They saw Rowan hunched over his tray looking angry and embarrassed.

"Stay here and eat, I'll be right back." Gil told Shinn and the boy nodded and sat. He started eating but was watching them out of the corner of his eye.

"At least we know he's good." Durandal said as he sat next to Rowan. "Yes, he is isn't he? Are you sure he's not the Ultimate Coordinator? Because I'm pretty sure he could kill Kira in a matter of seconds with that kind of aim." Rowan grumbled.

"I'm sure; he's just had good training. I'm sorry if we offended you or anything, he didn't mean to be sarcastic or smug." Gil told him. Rowan snorted but nodded.

Gil slapped him on the back and smiled like they were old buddies and then went back to Shinn who acted as if he didn't hear their conversation.

"You did good today." Durandal commented as he took a sip of wine he got from the cook. Shinn glanced at him but said nothing. Gilbert stared at his eyes; those once sparkling eyes full of determination were now dark and cold, almost lifeless.

'I guess this was how the Extendeds looked after they were brainwashed. Oh well, as long as he does what we say, I'll have to accept it.' He thought and sighed.

But what was Shinn thinking? Or could he think at all? Was he a complete robot, or only partial? Would he remain this way? Or could it be reversed?

Or is Kira just too late?

"Remember Shinn, Kira Yamato is the enemy. You must kill him and Athrun Zala. They'll try to stop the plan, and we can't have that now can we? They love the naturals, they are traitors to their own kind, you must destroy them." Rowan said to Shinn and held up two pictures.

The first was of Kira, with his chocolate-brown hair and amethyst eyes, those sparkling eyes that always used to remind Shinn of the sea.

But now they only remind him of what the enemy looks like.

Then there was the picture of Athrun. His navy blue hair fell to his shoulder and his emerald eyes showed Hope and determination.

Shinn didn't know what those two feelings even were anymore.

"Yes, Master Rowan, seek and destroy Kira Yamato and Athrun Zala. I understand." Shinn replied in his cold, lifeless voice.

Rowan grinned. "Good." He said. Gilbert was watching from the corner, and although he was delighted, something just didn't seem right about this.

He wasn't an evil man, he told himself. This is all to ensure that the coordinators aren't threatened again; this is to protect his people, he reminded himself. But still, twisting a young man's mind and making him destroy an entire world full of –innocent- people?

Has this world gone so mad that this Plan should feel right?

"Back to practice, we have a big day tomorrow." Rowan said and Shinn returned to the training area.

To clear a few things up, when Shinn was kidnapped he was transported to Aprilius One so he wouldn't be found until it was too late. Rowan sent out the letter to all the members of the Cosmic Evolution before-hand, and when he discovered that one of the letters was confiscated by ORB, he made plans to also capture anyone who might try to get Shinn back or sabotage their meeting.

Uh-oh. Not good for our other heroes, eh?

And so the day continued with Shinn training and being drilled on what he was supposed to do for the meeting and the plan in general. He didn't seem nervous or stressed at all, just cold and robotic; uncaring.

That night, when Kira and Athrun arrived

Athrun dialed Cagalli's number and waited as it rang. He prepared to hold the phone away form his ear the second she answered, but there was no need.

"Athrun?" came Cagalli's hopeful voice. "Yes," he replied a little uneasily. Cagalli let out a breath of relief. "So did you guys make it there safely?" she asked.

"Yes, we're at the hotel now, we're going to go out and try to find the Warehouse in a few minutes so we know where to go tomorrow." He said.

"Well, just be careful, this could very well be a trap." She told him. Like I've always said, that woman has good instincts. Tch, and Yuuna thought she couldn't run ORB, pshaw! I'm glad he got killed in a non-significant way! WAHAHA! Ahem, sorry.

"I will, don't worry, we brought a few guns and some ammo. But just in case, could you arrange for some Zaft officers to stand by in case we need backup? I don't want Rowan to know I'm here just yet." Athrun told her.

"Yeah, I'll see to it personally." She replied. "Good, thanks Cags, I'm sorry we had to leave you like this." He said.

"Don't say that, the whole world is at stake here! It's not just about Shinn anymore, Athrun; if you guys don't get him back he could destroy the whole world! Who knows what those madmen have done to him. He could be transformed into a…a newtype." She said worriedly. (1)

Athrun glanced at Kira who was staring at the ceiling with a sad look.

"I understand, and so does Kira. Oh, and tell Lacus we made it okay? I don't think we got to say goodbye before we left." He said sheepishly.

"No, you didn't. I want you two to apologize to her; she was very distraught and didn't know what was going on. You could have at least awoken her and told her the news." Cagalli said sternly.

Athrun pinched the bridge of his nose. This was a dangerous subject to play with. On one hand, he could react by saying that they were in too much of a hurry trying to save the world (literally) and didn't have time to tell Lacus everything when Cagalli would tell her anyway.

But on the other, that would seem rude, and Cagalli just woke up. Besides, he had to admit that Lacus deserved to know what was happening, and that leaving her like that wasn't good because of her current condition.

He sighed and said, "Alright, we'll apologize."

"Good, I'll get her." Cagalli said. "What!? Cagalli it's almost 10:00!" Athrun said and Kira looked over at him.

"So, I was looking over some paperwork and Lacus is on the computer." Cagalli replied and Athrun did an anime face-drop with a huge sweat drop.

Kira raised an eyebrow and Athrun explained what was going on. Kira also sweat dropped and looked away guiltily.

"Here she is." Cagalli said and then Athrun heard. "Athrun? This is Lacus."

"Hey, look, we're sorry for running out on you like that, but we wanted to get here quickly. I guess we could've woke you up and told you what was happening." Athrun said sheepishly again.

"Oh, yes, you could have. But I understand your urgency. A lot is at stake here, you were just doing your job. There's nothing I can really do anyway." Lacus replied.

"But Lacus, you have an important job, you give people hope. If this doesn't work out and we get captured you'll need to explain to everyone what happened and help them to remain calm. We don't need another war, you know that, and you can prevent people from panicking." Athrun told her.

"It didn't work the last two times I tried to stop the war from happening, what makes you think it'll work this time?" she asked sadly.

Athrun's features softened. 'We're losing her again. Lacus,' he thought and pushed on.

"It will work if we act fast enough. Lacus, you were the one that told me to believe in myself and have hope. You were the one that helped me to fight even when I didn't want to. And I know you've helped Kira as well, he wouldn't even be here if it weren't for you! You've saved us both numerous times!" Athrun said.

Kira motioned for Athrun to hand over the phone before Lacus could reply.

"Lacus." He said. Lacus sniffed. "Kira?" she asked. "Yes, it's me." He replied. There was a pause on the other line.

"Listen, Lacus, I'm sorry for not telling you what was going on, but we expected Cagalli to tell you when you've had enough rest. We were worried about you, Lacus. You needed to rest after all you've been through. We thought that if we woke you up and told you that you be hysterical, no offense.

"We were only looking out for you, Lacus-kun." Kira told her.

He heard her gasp. Athrun looked at him strangely, a mix of awe and confusion.

"Th-thank you, Kira. That makes me feel…better, I suppose." Lacus replied. Kira frowned.

'This is all a game to her. Okay then, if she wants to play, I'll play too.' He thought.

"Good, now excuse me while I save Earth and my husband." He said coldly and hung up. Athrun's eyes grew wide.

"Don't say anything Athrun; let's try to find the Warehouse. Maybe we can take him now?" Kira said and got up. He grabbed the keys and went to the door.

Athrun blinked and stood up, following Kira out. Kira got in the driver's side and Athrun rode shotgun.

"Kira…" Athrun said. "Athrun, don't start, okay?" Kira asked coldly and sped off. Athrun sighed and looked out the window, wondering what happened to his two friends.

They drove around Aprilius One, trying to figure out the direction from the fax Cagalli sent them earlier. It took them twenty minutes to find the place.

The warehouse was large and foreboding. It loomed over them in all its metallic glory. Kira glared at it as he slowly got out, alert for any danger.

Athrun made a move to get out as well but Kira motioned for him to stay inside. He had his gun out and lurked around the warehouse.

'Be careful, Kira.' He thought and watched his friend disappear behind the building.

Kira walked slowly and carefully around the place, looking for a way in that wouldn't cause alarm. He heard some voices and slowly crept toward them, gun ready.

"We'll have to be careful, this warehouse isn't completely sound-proof, so he won't be able to show off the weapon-power, but that's okay. And we might even consider moving the meeting to the base so that we won't have to worry about people hearing the Gundam's footsteps. Plus it's bigger."

"Well, this area is pretty abandoned, not many people come around here. But I see your point, besides, it'll be better if we were underground in case anyone from ORB came."

Kira held in a gasp. 'This might be a trap, they might be saying this purposely for me to overhear. I'll have to be careful.' He thought and peered cautiously around the corner where he heard the voices.

He saw them and had to restrain himself from killing them, but what would be the harm? They'd know he was there, and his shots might miss. Then they'd be done for.

Rowan Sterling and Gilbert Durandal were only ten feet away from him, whispering to themselves.

"Yes, we'll have to be careful." Rowan said and grinned. Just then Kira saw him glance in his direction, and he knew it was a trap.

Kira turned and ran for the car, but two men stepped out of the shadows and two more came around the corner with Athrun. They had a gun to his head and a hand over his mouth and he was glaring at them.

'Damn.' He thought as they grabbed him too and threw down his gun. They pushed a gun to his temple and guided them both to stand in front of the two leaders of the Cosmic Evolution.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here." Rowan said and smirked at them as Kira glared at him and then turned to look at Gilbert with pure hatred and disgust in his eyes.

Athrun knew that this wasn't going to end well, not at all…

-Author's Note: WOOT! Thank you, thank you (bowing) I'll take my award now! Hahaha, just kidding I'm not that conceited! Please review and tell me what you think, you knew this was coming, I know you did! And also, if you would like to guess what's gonna happen to Kira and Athrun go right ahead, who knows, you might be right! Wahaha… Also, isn't a stronger type of coordinator called a newtype???-