Undeniable Truth
Chapter 12: Recovery
Disclaimer: As I have said and will continue to say in order to keep me from being sued, I do not own any part of the original gundam seed/destiny story line I only own the original ideas and characters, such as koji and star and things like Artinal. So…yeah, enjoy!
A/N: I see some of you were offended by not considering some of you 'fans'. I am very sorry; honestly I didn't think people really cared much for this story from a hack of a writer like me. Anyway, thank you for enjoying it everyone. I wouldn't have written it this far if it wasn't for all of you. And special thanks to FanofInulover who insisted I add the name (oh was I not supposed to say that…? He he) and of course I give thanks to Inulover4eva who I refuse to leave out. This chapter will have no action, but next chapter will! Now read, read until your eyes bleed! Not literally…
Despite the noise inside the military briefing room kira couldn't hear a thing; all that rang through his head was that same word. Tomorrow….Tomorrow…that's…tomorrow. Despite his earlier resolve kira couldn't help but doubt himself. "Takaru please tell me you're joking…" Murrues voice was just above a whisper, how could anyone prepare to meet a strike with only a single day to prepare? Kiras spaced out look didn't help much either.
The aged leader stared down at the large steel table shaking his head hesitantly "No I am not, which is why if you plan on leaving I suggest you do it tonight. No one here would think less of you; this is not your home after all."
Murrue frowned deeply slamming her hand down against the table defiantly, the rattles echo dying away quickly "Don't be silly! We already said we would help, no matter what. Right kira?" She sighed softly as he only gave a slight nod, not even looking up fom the desk. Please kira…we need you to stay strong. She wouldn't dare voice that statement; he was under enough emotional stress as it was.
"I see…you are all as strong willed as I thought. If we get through this…I promise you every one on your ship will be considered hero's and not a single citizen would consider leaving you to fight alone." Murrue knew exactly what that meant, he was offering their military's aid if they survived. Unfortunately they did have to survive first, and if kira stayed in such a depressed state it didn't look good.
"Right…so do you have some sort of battle plan? We can't just rush out and fight them. Do we know how many there are?" Takaru seemed a bit taken aback by the sudden questions, but he could definitely see why she was known for being such a great captain.
"Well we do have some information, but not enough too plan a defense. We will know more information tomorrow morning, and since the attack isn't expected till late tomorrow…we should have enough time to review it and quickly prepare." It was never a good thing to work under time constraints, especially when so much was on the line. "But I think I should familiarize kira with Artinals military today since he will be commanding it"
Both murrue and kira found their eyes barely staying put in their sockets, kira the first to stutter out a sentence "W-what do you mean!? M-me, you can't be…I can't!" There was a big difference between the pressure of leading one mobile suit and leading a full army. When you were only in charge of yourself there was less riding on your actions…but to have to coordinate a whole army.
Sighing to himself takaru gave an affirmative nod "Of course, I did say if Artinal was dragged into this conflict you would lead us correct?" Kira gave a slow nod before returning to his arguments "That might be so, but all of Artinal is at risk!"
Frowning takaru turned slowly towards the confused murrue just before showing a slight smile "I am very sorry, would you mind excusing us? We can finish going over this in the morning." As soon as murrue gave her approval he led kira out of the room and down another set of halls.
"Kira, why do you doubt yourself so much? I just met you and I don't think that's how you are" hesitating with his answer kira clenched his fists tightly "I was always counted on with the archangel, but I was never in charge of protecting so much…and having to command the forces to do it. I can't do it…what if…"
"I believe in you, Murrue believes in you, and I know cagalli believes in you. Are we all wrong then? Listen…why not take the day to think about it and give me your decision tomorrow." Takaru stopped near a double set of doors pulling a disk from his pocket. "Here, this is all the information on Artinals military…if you can't come up with a battle plan by tomorrow I will put someone else in charge, deal?"
"I guess that would be ok…" Smiling slightly kira plucked the disk from the older mans hand, staring at the top secret mark planted on the cover for a moment. I guess people really do believe that deeply in me…
Kira didn't know how long he had been with takaru as he reviewed tomorrows defense planning schedule, all he knew was he was glad to be out of there. He found himself quickly back in the beautiful city bustling with life, citizens hurrying children while others ran into shops. He couldn't bare the smiles that the world faced at him, he knew before long they would be rushing to shelters with fear etched across them. His eyes turned to the floor, admiring the cement for the strength he didn't have. He could pilot a mobile suit, and could protect the archangel…but an entire nation? He failed to do that with Orb already, and yet now he had even more responsibility.
His only reward for not paying attention to the other walkers was to slam directly into someone, both of them plummeting to the floor with a grunt. Staring up at the other person kira quickly scrambled to his feet "I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention!" The victim appeared around 22 years old, his hair an odd white color that ran to his upper back. He reached his hand out to help him but the other walker seemed to refuse it, simply picking himself off the floor in a bit of a daze.
It was then that kira noticed the blindfold over his eyes…which probably meant he couldn't see in the first place. That fact just added too his guilt "Oh don't worry about it, usually I'm pretty good with hearing people but it's so lively here…" The mans hand extended slightly, a smile gracing his lips "The names Yuichi, I'm here on business"
Kira blinked several times before shaking his hand "Kira…" A blind merchant huh…? He received another smile from the blind man "I see, so then kira let me treat you to something to drink. Know any good places?"
"You don't have to!" Since yuichi didn't seem to be backing down and considering kira also wasn't from Artinal he only knew of the café from earlier, so that would have too do "Yeah…but I insist that I buy you something instead"
Considering that for a moment the man grinned "Well if we both want to treat the other, we will just buy for each other…then it's even alright?" Chuckling kira agreed as he headed for the café from the day before. He was surprised at how easily the man followed…he really was good with his ears, but even so kira would occasionally say something as guidance.
It wasn't long before they reached the quaint little spot both of them simply ordering a cheap coffee. It was much simpler if they got the same thing then neither felt bad. "So kira, you live here in Artinal?" Despite knowing the man was blind kira shook his head out of habit. "No I'm just visiting I guess"
"Ah so we're in the same boat, neither of us knows the city well. I'm here with some associates but they had other plans." Kira smiled slightly as he sipped his coffee, he always enjoyed meeting nice people. "So are you a merchant or something?"
"Um…yeah something like that, I deal with weapons and such" kira sighed softly, a bit surprised to meet a kind arms dealer. I suppose it makes sense…even neutral countries need weapons. "So what do you do kira? I'm sure you must have a good reason to be here."
"Oh…I'm a pilot" the phrase slipped out before he even realized it, the archangel was 'officially' not in Artinal, just like they weren't 'officially' in orb in the last war. Thankfully Yuichi drew his own conclusion "Oh I see, another pilot trying to escape the war? I can see why…even though I don't have my eyes I can hear the destruction…from the conversations, and the television."
"Y-yeah…I just wanted to get away from it all" It's not a complete lie I suppose…Smiling slightly he took another sip of the cooling liquid considering cagalli had his morning one. "It's just horrible…having to kill innocent people, who are all convinced they are doing what's right. How do you decide who's the enemy?" It was obvious athruns confusion had rubbed off on him a bit, but kira still knew what he wanted…to protect cagalli and everyone else, no matter what.
"I guess that does make it kind of hard. But I think you already found that answer right? I bet you have…just want some reassurance." He chuckled slightly before resting his chin on his hands. "You sound like you still have some fight left in you unlike most soldiers. Your voice still has passion in it"
"Really…? I wouldn't think so…but yeah I think I may be thrust back into battle real soon" Like tomorrow…He didn't like feeling so overwhelmed with things, although he knew many more people felt it. He had no right to escape from the feeling if they didn't.
"Is that right? Well I'm sure your enemies will respect you long before you ever get to fight them on the battlefield" A gentle tapping caused both of them to turn towards the cafes window where two men in suits stood impatiently. One of them pushed the door open slightly "Yuichi It's time"
"Oh my, it seems my associates have returned. Well kira it was very nice to meet you" He extended his hand again, smiling as he was met with a friendly handshake. Drawing himself to his feet he strolled casually towards the door before kiras voice caught his attention.
"Um wait! It was…nice to meet you to, thanks for the talk" He received a light bow before the man left completely. Sighing slightly kira finished his coffee silently before smiling slightly "I think I'll return to cagalli and then look over this data." He didn't know why such a simple talk got him out of the slight depression of his thoughts, all he knew was he had someone waiting for him.
Some ways down the street one of the two men groaned slightly "master Yuichi did you get what you came from?" Nodding slowly he grinned a bit "Yeah I did, now we have to prepare for tomorrow" I'll see you soon kira and see if your new resolve keeps you strong.
The trip back to the government building was rather short even without a car, and thankfully the lobby was somewhat cleared out as well. "Seems it was the morning rush when I left" he followed the same path he left by, finding the room he shared with his sister quite easily. Slipping his keycard through kira heard the soft click of the lock and pulled the door open. "Cagalli? You here?" He was met with silence, even the bed was empty. She didn't wait for me after all
"Suppose she probably went out." Moving over to his bag he removed a laptop silently from its case, plopping down to a sit on the bed before lying down. Popping up the monitor he heard the soft roar of the inner workings as it came to life with a press of a button. Sliding the data disk into the tray he sighed softly as a warning emerged on his screen "Top secret…yeah yeah."
He searched through the documents of the folder before finding what he was looking for. Pulling up the military summary he scanned the massive amount of photos and information. "Wow long did it take to compile all of this? Let's see...guess I'll sort by size."
"Let's see now, we have the flagship goliath. Classed as a mobile battle station, armed with 16 main rail guns with 8 positron cannons along with various other armaments. Amount of ships, one" whistling softly he examined the structure of the ship, despite the huge size making it a rather big target it could definitely pack quite the punch.
Continuing down the list he reached the next level of ship. "Class carrier, armed lightly with four rail guns and smaller arms. It can deploy a small radius shield to defend launching mobile suits. Amount of ships, 20" Studying the architecture he noticed it had more length then width, making it easier to hit from the side. "What else…Class battleship, armed with positron blasters and heavy rail cannons. It's able to carry small squads of mobile suits and fighters. Amount of ships, 54"
Scrolling down he approached the last two types "Class Light cruiser, armed with one positron cannon and various small armaments. Used as escort ships and interception. Capacity to hold 6 fighters or two mobile suits…amount of ships, 122."
The last ship in Artinals arsenal was something he had never seen before, and definitely useful for battle. "its class…defender? Light long range weaponry. Heavy close range equipment uses beam anchors to hook mobile suits and fighters before destroying them. Number of ships, 65."
"Well that's interesting…never seen a ship exclusively armed to combat mobile suits in close range." He went over various aspects and such before reaching the mobile suits, which only one kind was listed. "The Art-X91 Geo huh? Two beam sabers, reinforced armor…enhanced boosters, beam rifle, crash shield and heavy beam cannon. Pretty standard equipment, but it's all really high tech." Right below were descriptions a few space fighters employed in the Artinal military, but they were mainly support units anyway.
He didn't even hear the door open as he continued the rather tedious task set before him. Before he knew it another form plopped onto the bed next to him, causing both of them and the laptop to bounce slightly on the flexible bed. Not even phased in the least cagalli rested her head on her arms, staring at the screen "What are you up to?"
Coming back from the surprise of the moment he smiled slightly towards her "Just reviewing some of artinals data…looks like Zaft is going to be attacking tomorrow." It seemed to take cagalli a moment to process what he was saying, but it didn't take long for her temper to flare "WHAT!? Are you kidding me!? Tomorrow!?"
"Yeah, so murrue decided we are going to help out with the defense. Takaru wants me to try and come up with a battle plan." He didn't even mention the fact he would be playing the role of commander if it worked out. Mostly he didn't even want to think about it.
Groaning cagalli leaned her head against him slightly "Man, we just got here to. So what's the plan…?" When she found he had nothing she let out another groan. "You haven't come up with anything? Well that's just great. Well then we might as well do it together. At least if you don't mind the help"
"Not at all, it might be useful having another guy's opinion." He had to hold back the snicker until she realized what he said, releasing the built up laugher just as she pounded his arm. "That's not funny!" Growling at him it wasn't long before he captured her lips in his in a quick kiss, pulling away with a small grin. Sighing cagalli shook her head, responding quietly "You know that won't always work…"
"It won't? Well then I'll just come up with something else" smiling he turned back to the screen, discussing the earlier information quietly with the person he could trust most in the world, his sister and his love.
Artinal Defense Station
The twins had spent most of the night trying to come up with a nice strategy, and just before cagalli decided they should both catch up on some sleep they decided it was better to make a plan simple. They had only made a small outline before dozing off against each other.
Takaru showed what seemed to be a fractured smile, bloodshot eyes scanning the room where many of his finest commanders and Artinals guests had assembled in the briefing room. It was obvious he was worried beyond belief. "Thank you for coming everyone. Just this morning we made are final rejection to Zafts unreasonable demands after negotiations broke down completely. So as such we have to prepare for the inevitable attack."
One of the sterner generals of Artinal grunted heavily "What are these kids and guests doing here? They have no part in this! This fight is for Artinal our home and saving grace, and I am not going to entrust its safety to them"
Giving a polite nod to the distinguished member of his staff takaru gave a light sigh "I do apologize but if you can not work with my guests I must ask you not to participate in this battle." Another grunt was his only response, the general obviously giving up on his argument. "Now as I was saying…"
Sliding a remote from his uniform takaru gently pressed one of the buttons, a 3D map of Artinal and a good degree of the space around it showing up. "Now I know many of you have read through the proposed battle plan, but I would like to review now." He refrained from mentioning kira as the one to create it; his men were having enough trouble dealing with him as their commander.
"As you know artinals colony defenses are rather light but are fleet is strong, so we will be adopting a series of defense walls starting here." He pointed out the point of the last line of defense, stationed exactly where a ship would have to be to accurately hit the colony without chance of interception. "We will work with four lines of defense, if one breaks it will fall back behind the next one as support. In this way not only does the next line provide cover for retreats, but what's left of the forces bolster the next line."
He went over the basic division of their forces, their flagship being positioned on the last line along with all of the carriers and a light assortment of other ships. Mobile suits and fighters would work line to line, using the back carriers as supply points. The archangel would work on the second line, while the invisible took up the third. A small detachment of ships would patrol the actual colony in case any enemies managed to slip through.
"Basically that is our plan, with this we should be able to ware the enemy down with superior mobile suits. We also have many independent vessels and non military craft that are willing to pick up escape pods for us, so don't hesitate to give forewarning of evacuation. Any questions?"
A younger general stood slowly, nervously watching his fellow soldiers "I would just like to ask about you being confident in Mr. Yamato as our commander…I mean, he isn't that old. I'm impressed with his piloting as much as anyone…but can he really lead us"
Smiling at the much less aggressive inquiry he turned the central map off. "Yes I am very confident in his ability to lead us, if you are having any problems on the battlefield or do not know what to do please contact kira. His word is law out there, if I give an order he disagrees with I want you to follow his order." A small eruption of conversation broke out but no one seemed to want to bring up an objection.
"Well then, meeting adjourned. I hope to be able to congratulate every one of you for a victory well earned my friends."
A/N: And that's that my friends, I set it up perfectly to get right into the action next chapter. By the way a crash shield is a shield that has a beam saber built into the center. The credit to that goes to Mobile Suit Gundam Wing.
Mind of an Author
Surprise surprise I actually have something to say, anyway as always I will start by talking about the chapter. I do hope you will read this before asking me a question since it may be answered. First off I know it was mostly only kira in this chapter, but it is a kira centered story and I needed to introduce a small temporary character. Anyway I sent kira back into a bit of confusion, because in war things in my opinion can switch between clear and hazy very fast. This just shows his constant search for the perfect answer, even if there isn't one. He has seen so much death, and has failed one to many times in his mind, so with all the pressure and all. So yeah this chapter was mostly story development, character exploration and slight foreshadowing, sorry if it bored you!
Next I would like to introduce a small contest I would like to throw your way, which of course will be completely optional to participate in. You could look at this as an attempt to get reviews, or even just giving back to my fans. Either way it's here for one chapter and one chapter only (unless its popular). I am going to give you ten quotes from animes, anyone who can give me the animes they are from AND the characters who say them will get to give me one paragraph for me to work into my next chapter. The rule is, it must be reasonable. I do not want to see something with atomic monkeys exploding on windshields (just an example). If for whatever reason I deem your entry unreasonable, I will disqualify it nicely and tell you why it's unreasonable. You will have one chance to re enter a paragraph, but will be offered no more chances. If I get multiple people who get the answer right, I will choose one for my next chapter and another for another chapter see? I am hoping this will help challenge me as a writer AND make you feel more apart of the story. Obviously I will give you full credit for the paragraph if you choose to submit. You may answer through an email to me or a review. If no one enters, then that's ok I will just continue on as I have. Since there are many different versions of quotes varying from the strict Japanese, English dubs, English subs and manga remember to look for minor differences in appearance. If you can offer proof that the quote shows up in an anime outside of my original answer I will accept it. Anyway here they are.
1.) "Uguu"
2.) "You're thinking in Japanese! If you must think, do it in German!"
3.) "And what's the real lesson? Don't leave things in the fridge."
4.) "Babies aren't born after just 5 months!"
5.) "So my stupid student thinks he changed the secret of swordsmanship..."
6.) "I wouldn't mind if you want to kill me, but I might struggle a bit"
7.) "If I have the power to make a difference then why not put it to good use?"
8.) "History is much like an endless waltz. The three beats of war, peace, and revolution continue on forever."
9.) "I've said this before--the only way to live a good life is to act on your emotions."
10.) I am Valentinez Alkalinelia Xifax Sicidabohertz Gumbigobillo Blue Stradivari Talentrent Pierre Andri Charton-Haymoss Ivanovicci Baldeus George Doitzel Kaiser. Don't hesitate to call."
Good luck!
Hint: There are gundam quotes in there.